Meager Basketfuls

“‘This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the village and buy themselves something to eat. We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish.’ ‘Bring them here to me…’ Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven… he gave thanks…gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.” Matthew 14:15-20.

They were exhausted and they were scared as the news of the murder of John the Baptist trickled in. Who would be next? As the visibility of Jesus was growing so were the stakes. Everywhere the disciples turned there were crowds…people who needed the touch of Jesus for healing…no time for them to rest. Finally, as the sun was setting on this day they urged Jesus to send the people to their villages to be fed. Jesus commanded them to take their meager amount and commit it all to Him. Once in the hands of Jesus, He committed it to God through prayer. It was then that the tiny portion multiplied and provided more than the disciples could have ever dreamed. As a matter of fact, my commentary states, ‘His disciplines felt a crisis was brewing…How little they understood the heart of Christ or discerned His power! The Lord assured them that there was no need. Why should the people leave the One who opens His hand and supplies the desire of every living thing…there was more left over when Jesus finished than when He began. Ironically enough there was a basket for each unbelieving disciple.’ Believer’s Bible Commentary, p. 1261.

Are you in the middle of a crisis? Are you hungry…lonely…exhausted? Are your offerings to others meager at best because of your situation? I believe that every one of us can relate to times of crisis and the emotional and mental challenges we experience. Our baskets are full of limited resources, whether it is energy, money or hope in any given situation. We look at our group of 5,000…our unsurmountable circumstances and ask God to send them away. But God allows the crowd to remain so the question is what will we do with our meager offerings? Will we withhold our time and encouragement to others because we are too tired? Will we hoard the little bit we have in fear of running out? We must take our limited basketfuls and commit them to God in prayer. He will provide everything we need with leftovers. We ask for rest…He multiplies with peace. We ask for comfort… He multiplies with blessings. We ask for deliverance…He multiplies with wisdom and knowledge.

Don’t be afraid to share what you have with others because when you run out of your own resources and strength God will provide His.

“Now to him who by his power working in us is able to do far beyond anything we can ask or imagine” Ephesians 3:20.

A City No Longer Deserted

“The LORD has made proclamation to the ends of the earth:  ‘Say to the Daughter of Zion, “See, your Savior comes!”’  They will be called … the Redeemed of the LORD; and you will be called Sought After, the City No Longer Deserted.” Isaiah 62:11-12.

Leading up to February, 2006 I was living a Christian life but was not living in an intimate relationship with God.  The two are as far apart as east is from west with vast acreage in the middle.  I remember staying home from work with the flu, flipping the television out of boredom.  I began watching a Christian channel which prompted stirring in my heart.  The next day I decided to go out and buy a Bible Study on which to meditate every morning.  Eight years later I am more in love with the Lord than ever before, and in looking back I recognize that He was pursuing me.  My Savior came during that season and called me His daughter.  He redeemed my life and gave me purpose and position in His kingdom.  He relentlessly sought after me, creating His residence in a deserted heart.

" Dear Daughter, do you need a Savior this morning to search and rescue you?  Does your life feel like a city that is deserted…deserted from joy…deserted from all hope?  We are the redeemed of the Lord and must live like we believe it!   My dad’s favorite verse was 1 Peter 2:9 which I recite sometimes in my prayers.  Even on days when my city feels deserted there is great reassurance in God’s proclamation of my position in Him.  ‘But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.’

Whatever darkness you are presently surrounded by, you can be encouraged in your position in God.   As His redeemed and sought after child, your story is showing light in your darkness.  You are part of His city for others to see.  ‘You are the light of the world.  A city on a hill cannot be hidden…In the same way, let your light shine before men…and praise your Father in heaven.’ Matthew 5:14.  It is difficult to see light when there is no darkness.  It is in our times of darkness that His light most brightly shines the rays of our position in Him…indwelling of Him…and the sustaining grace promised by Him.  Daughter, where else can you find a better deal?

Love, A City No Longer Deserted"

The Whispers of Freedom

“‘I have had enough, LORD,’ he said.  There he went into a cave…The LORD said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by…’ but the LORD was not in the wind…but the LORD was not in the earthquake…but the LORD was not in the fire.  And after the fire came a gentle whisper.  When Elijah heard it…he went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.” 1 Kings 19:4-13.

Those haunting words… ‘I have had enough, Lord!’  I remember a day like none other when my heart groaned these words.  It was the day that my daughter should have been getting ready for her high school graduation.  It was the day that she should have awakened in her bed only to find her dress that I had laid out the night before.  It was the day when she should have come to the breakfast table, finding a beautifully wrapped gift with a special piece of jewelry for a day never to be forgotten.  Well, it actually is a day I will never forget.  As other moms were calling on restaurants for reservations I was calling on God for rescuing.  As her friends were all lining up for the ceremony she was lying down in her drug use.  I remember dreading this day for over 3 years, with the tumultuous journey of her addiction and homelessness marking our days.  I had reverted to my cave trying to avoid everyone in my community.  That day, the very day I had dreaded for so long was a sweet day of whispers...whispers I never expected.

I took a chair and some soft music out on the deck on that sunny day determined I wasn’t staying within the confines of those walls.  As the clock struck the time the graduation ceremony began, it was like the clouds receded and the sweet rays of heaven settled on my face.  I suddenly became aware of the beauty of the skies, and heard the birds in a way never before.  There was a sweet breeze that danced on my face as tears streamed beneath my sunglasses.  God whispered into my heart that day, ‘You are free now.  All of her friends will disperse and go their separate ways.  You will no longer live under the microscopic views of this little community.'  That day I went out and stood at the mouth of my cave and chose life again.  I realized that God was not in the drugs…He was not in the evil…He was not in darkness.  He was in the whispers of light...freedom...future deliverance of my sweet daughter five years later.

Whatever you face this morning please know that when we have had enough…God will be enough!  He will remind you of the good where there is bad, and whisper love and hope into the circumstances that scream fear and despair.  He will surround you with His creation to tend to your soul and give hope in your spirit.  Don’t be afraid to come to the mouth of your cave…God is there and will show you the sweet whispers.

‘Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.’ 2 Cor. 3:17

Tithing With Our Heart

“You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.  In your good pleasure make Zion prosper; build up the walls of Jerusalem.  Then there will be righteous sacrifices, whole burnt offerings to delight you; then bulls will be offered on your altar” Psalm 51:17-19.

King David had everything he wanted but yet it wasn’t enough.  He was living the dream in the eyes of others but in his own eyes he grumbled and groaned.  Ungrateful and bored he sought after another man’s wife and went from bored to broken in no time.  King David wrote this psalm after his heart was broken.  He understood that he had lots of monetary things he could place on God’s altar, but God wasn’t interested in his tithe and sacrifices.  He was more interested in his heart, which had become a place without compassion for his fellow man.  David understood that the only way back to restoration was through a broken heart and spirit.  That was the price for God’s altar in this particular season in David’s life.

I don’t care how seasoned we are as Christians we all have times in our spiritual lives when our hearts become distant.  This distance can lead to sin and destruction, and neither tithe nor service is the offering God desires. Those things are wonderful but they were never meant to take center stage in our relationship with God.  Our service and offerings are the overflow of our worship through our relationship with God, not a guarantee of the favor of God.  God always desires fellowship first, things second.  The most precious gift we can ever lay on the altar is a humble heart, surrendered to God in all circumstances.

He is our Father and wants us to love and delight in Him setting aside all of the formalities of everything else in life.  When we come to Him in our broken and contrite circumstances it gives Him the space to comfort and restore us…to parent and nurture us…things that we cannot buy or obtain through our own doing.  We must make space for grace...

Breakfast With Jesus

“But he replied, ‘Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death…’ Luke 22:23.  ‘The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him:  ‘…you will disown me.’  And he went outside and wept bitterly…’ Luke 22:61-62.  ‘Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb…he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.”  Luke 24:12.

One way that Peter is frequently described by scholars is prideful.  Time after time he puffed himself up and in pride acted and reacted.  He was in the inner circle and could sense the rising of the kingdom of Jesus.  He saw great things ahead, not understanding the reality of suffering in the very near future.  He spoke of loyalties and sacrifices on behalf of Jesus, but failed terribly when faced with its reality.  Peter, like us, talked a big game before the kickoff.    The scene is heartbreaking…Peter aware of his failure… his weakness…his pride.  He locked eyes with Jesus and at that instant the prideful became humble… the Savior became the sacrifice.  Did Peter turn and walk away to avoid seeing the hurt in his friend’s eyes?  With his head held low and feeling sick to his stomach where did he go?   How can one get away from the reality of themselves?  Can you imagine how thankful and hopeful he was to hear that Jesus was alive?  He immediately ran to the tomb feeling life again…another chance…a plea for forgiveness…an opportunity to make things right.  But once again, nothing…empty…left with dashed hopes.  Little did he know all things would be restored the following week and he would be sharing breakfast with Jesus.  Not only would they eat together but Christ would exalt Peter as the rock on which He would build the church.  The grace of God was bestowed upon Peter once he was humbled by his circumstances. 

God will not leave us in our seasons of humbling one minute beyond the purpose being fulfilled.  Many times we are unaware of where pride resides in our hearts, but under God’s hand we will be shown.  Any time we are in a humbling season, anxiety is our companion.  There is much spiritual work done in the heart of the humbled, and thankfully it is only a season.  Like Peter, God in due time will restore us, strengthen us and exalt us in our God-directed purposes.  And who knows, we might even find ourselves having breakfast with Jesus.

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you….And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.  To him be the power for ever and ever.  Amen.” 1 Peter 5:6-11.

Slowly I Turned...

“Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, ‘I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!’" Mark 9:24

One of my all-time favorite routines is the one from Abbott and Costello called Niagara Falls (Slowly I Turned.)  The routine features a man recounting the day he took revenge on his enemy, becoming so engrossed in his own tale that he attacks the innocent listener to whom he is speaking. The attacker comes to his senses, only to go berserk again when the listener says something that triggers the old memory again.  The implication is that the words have an unpleasant association in the character's past. While the other character merely acts bewildered, the crazed character relives the incident, uttering the words, "Slowly I turned...step by step...inch by inch...," as he approaches the stunned onlooker. The character then apologizes, admitting his irrational reaction to the mention of those certain words. This follows with the victim innocently repeating the words, sparking the insane reaction all over again.

Our passage is about a father who approached Jesus with a story about his demon-possessed son.  No doubt this man had been to many people in the past for healing.  I am confident he had told his story to anyone who would listen.  How many times had he told this story to no avail…no healing…hope dashed by failure?  Don't you know that he had watched others receive healing in the past...the sting of it all.  In telling Jesus his story in hopes of receiving healing, his story slowly turns to doubt.  ‘But if you can…’ Mark 9:22.  He believed that Jesus could heal but his unbelief was surrounding whether He would heal.  Slowly he turned from belief to doubt and step by step watched hope crumble.  But Jesus stopped the story and called him out on his unbelief.  Things would be very different this time and healing would come.

I know sometimes I can be that crazed person who slowly turns to disbelief.  Like the father in our passage, I know God has the capability but will God act…will He heal…and step by step I begin to focus on the future in fear.  My triggers are words like cancer…relapse…death. It is so easy to turn away from our belief in the goodness of God.  Inch by inch we allow negative thoughts to creep into the stories of our mind…will my spouse leave me…will we get our healing…will I ever have a child…will I lose my job? 

We must be 2 Co 10:5 people with steadfast belief and faith in our words during our challenges.  ‘We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought.’  The story we tell in public should match what we believe in private.  When we allow negative fears to dominate our present situation, we become irrational in predicting our future outcomes.  We must take these old triggers captive and replace them with our belief in God who is love…who is good…who is all-knowing, even if we don't understand His ways.  By turning these thoughts over to God, He will infuse His peace and comfort into our challenging circumstances.

  

Growling Stomachs

“Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry.  Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves.  ‘Then he said to it, ‘May you never have fruit again!’  Immediately the tree withered.” Matthew 21:18-19

I remember when I was a little girl being so hungry coming into the house after school.  Sometimes when I would open the door the aroma of something cooking would almost knock me over.  I would rush to the kitchen only to find it in the beginning stages of being done.  The smell tricked me into thinking it was ready for consumption but upon closer inspection it offered me nothing. 

Jesus experienced the same thing one morning as He was coming back into the city.  He was famished, and in the distance was a green and leafy fig tree.  I can imagine that He picked up the pace and could already taste the fig in His mouth.  When He got to the tree the reality was that there were only leaves…no fruit existed…barren and empty…all for show.  This angered the Lord which caused Him to curse future fruit upon the tree.  The Bible states that every one of us is recognized by our fruit.  ‘Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit.’ Matthew 12:33.  It goes on to state that we are ‘a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor’ Isaiah 61:3. 

We are much like this fig tree as Christ comes towards us hungry for us to produce fruit.  He knows that He has planted us in the right soil, sent the rains upon our lives to grow our faith but will He find fruit?  Will we look faithful from afar but upon closer inspection be fruitless?  When the drought comes into each of our lives will we still bloom?  Will we display His splendor both in and out of season?  These are the questions that must be answered in each of our lives.  If we do not bear the fruit of our faith we cannot provide anything for others when they are hungry.  From afar they approach us to find encouragement and nourishment for the soul.  What will our offerings be to the hungry person in our lives?  May our offerings be not for show but for comfort in dealing with those hungry and hurting people around us.  How we feed and nourish others in all times is how we feed Christ.  'I tell the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me' Matthew 25:40.

May all of us produce the fruit that fills and satisfies the growling stomach of Christ.