Audience with the King..... Streams in the Desert

Audience with the King 

Streams in the Desert

I believe God, that it shall be even as it was told me (Acts 27:25).

I went to America some years ago with the captain of a steamer, who was a very devoted Christian. When off the coast of Newfoundland he said to me, "The last time I crossed here, five weeks ago, something happened which revolutionized the whole of my Christian life. We had George Mueller of Bristol on board. I had been on the bridge twenty-four hours and never left it. George Mueller came to me, and said, 'Captain I have come to tell you that I must be in Quebec Saturday afternoon.' 'It is impossible,' I said. 'Very well, if your ship cannot take me, God will find some other way. I have never broken an engagement for fifty-seven years. Let us go down into the chart-room and pray.'"

"I looked at that man of God, and thought to myself, 'What lunatic asylum can that man have come from? I never heard of such a thing as this.' 'Mr. Mueller,' I said, 'do you know how dense this fog is?' 'No,' he replied, 'my eye is not on the density of the fog, but on the living God, who controls every circumstance of my life.'"

"He knelt down and prayed one of the most simple prayers, and when he had finished I was going to pray; but he put his hand on my shoulder, and told me not to pray. 'First, you do not believe He will answer; and second I BELIEVE HE HAS, and there is no need whatever for you to pray about it.'"

"I looked at him, and he said, 'Captain, I have known my Lord for fifty-seven years, and there has never been a single day that I have failed to get audience with the King. Get up, Captain and open the door, and you will find the fog gone.' I got up, and the fog was indeed gone. On Saturday afternoon, George Mueller was in Quebec for his engagement."
--Selected

If our love were but more simple,
We should take Him at His word;
And our lives would be all sunshine,
In the sweetness of our Lord.

The Priority of Obedience..... Dr. Charles Stanley

The Priority of Obedience

Dr. Charles Stanley

John 14:23-26

The Creator gave two commands to Adam and Eve—first, to fill the earth and rule over it, and second, not to eat from a certain tree in the Garden (Gen. 1:28; 2:17). Because they chose to disobey, their relationship with God was broken, and they had to leave Eden.

The first couple’s rebellion not only impacted their own lives but also had far broader implications: all future generations have suffered. In Romans 5:12-19, the apostle Paul explained the reason. Through the trespass of one man, Adam, sin made its entrance into the world, and death resulted for all mankind. Because Adam was head of the human race, his actions affected everyone born after him. His disobedience resulted in each of us having a bent away from the Lord and a desire for self-rule.

By contrast, Jesus made conformity to the Lord’s will the priority of His life. He obeyed God in both word and deed (John 8:28-29). Having lived a perfect life—one entirely without sin—He qualified to be our Savior (2 Cor. 5:21). Through the death of one man, Christ Jesus, payment was made for the transgressions of all mankind. God’s acceptance of the Son’s sacrifice brought us forgiveness and freedom from sin’s power.

Adam’s disobedience brought judgment and death upon us, whereas Jesus’ obedience resulted in new life for all who believe in Him (Rom. 6:4). Our Savior calls us to deny selfish desires, live sacrificially, and follow Him (Matt. 16:24). A godly life will bring Jesus honor and influence others for Him.

What If My Quiet Times Are Anything but Quiet?..... CORRIE GERBATZ

What If My Quiet Times Are Anything but Quiet?
CORRIE GERBATZ

“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Matthew 7:7 (NIV)

I sat in the metal folding chair, balancing my Bible with one arm as my other arm hid the unfinished questions in my study. The Bible study group’s discussion topic was quiet time, spending personal time with God, and a woman across the circle was sharing.

She wakes up an hour before her kids. She spends time in the Bible, praying and journaling every day. She makes it a priority. 

I listened and nodded politely.

She seemed to be doing it “right,” and she wasn’t wrong about time with God — it was important. But most weeks, I wasn’t even able to complete my Bible study, let alone have a quiet time with any consistency. I felt like such a failure. The sweat accumulating under my strategically draped arm served only to condemn me further.

In truth, the discussion of having a quiet time with God has always caused me to sweat a little (OK, a lot). Don’t get me wrong, it’s not because I don’t want time with the Lord — I do! But I have never felt I’m doing it quite right … especially since my kids were born.

For the last 10 years, I’ve been attempting to navigate the endless demands of parenthood. From sleepless nights to pre-dawn wake-ups, never-ending teething purgatory, tyrannical toddler tantrums and potty-training woes — the struggle has been real.

My prayer times have occurred at all hours of the day, in a variety of places, and usually they’re anything but quiet. From the hallway floor, I have pleaded with the Lord for peace as a little one wails into the night. Under the cover of a much-needed shower, I have let my tears fall at the feet of Jesus. Stuck in traffic, I have desperately sought God’s direction. Some days it takes me all morning just to read a simple devotion uninterrupted, and other days, my prayer time finds me at the foot of a potty seat, begging for sanity.

My days are far from neat and tidy. And in this season of life, discouragement nips at my heart, leaving me wondering if my efforts are enough.

In one of Jesus’ most famed sermons, He spoke on this very idea of prayer, saying, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8, NIV).

Many of us are probably familiar with this passage. But have you ever taken time to notice the words that are not present? A “perfect hour” to seek the Lord was not in the directions. The “right words to say” while knocking were not suggested, and prerequisites of neat and tidy were never mentioned.

Why? Because Jesus doesn’t demand perfection in our pursuit of God; He encourages our persistence in the pursuit.

And that’s a BIG, grace-filled difference!

Our Lord sees our mess, our daily shortcomings and even the unanswered questions on our Bible study. He sees our unconventional quiet-time locations, and He knows there have been occasions when we’ve fallen asleep mid-prayer. Yet He loves us still. 

We’re covered by the grace of the cross, and any whispers of doubt attempting to condemn or discourage our pursuits are from the enemy. But, friends, we do not belong to the enemy; we belong to God!

Our heavenly Father invites us into His presence today. He guarantees to answer when we knock, and His merciful arms are open wide and waiting. I pray each of us will embrace this promise, from wherever we are, and run with confidence toward the Lord of our hearts.

Dear Jesus, we desire to pursue You wholeheartedly, and we ask that You quiet any whispers of shame and doubt seeking to dissuade our efforts. Embolden us to live confidently in Your presence and love today. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

TRUTH FOR TODAY:
Jeremiah 29:13, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” (NIV)

Romans 8:1, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (NIV)

Stuck with Paul..... by John UpChurch

Stuck with Paul
by John UpChurch

“How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?” Romans 10:14 

You can’t escape Paul forever. At some point, every Christian must set aside self-righteousness and drink Paul’s writing, which can be akin to slurping down pickle juice. The sharp bitterness sends shivers through the whole body—and yet hydrates from the inside out (which is really what pickle juice does).

The bitterness, however, isn’t from what Paul says exactly; it’s from our reaction. Each word hurts because it’s true. Sometimes he hits our recklessness, and sometimes he hits our legalism, helping us to clean the glass so that we can see clearly.

Far worse, in my mind, is Paul’s refusal to let us gloat or raise ourselves up. There’s no place for that, no room for a trophy case. Being isolated by my own sense of holiness would be easier; I’d love to slip away into my happy world of playing Christian.

Paul doesn’t even let me close the door.

“Look ‘out there,’” he says. “You see those people? That’s you—each one is just like you. They need the gospel. They need grace. You know all about it. You’ve met the same Jesus I did. They’re not coming in here, bub. So, get out there and do something.”

It’s an uncomfortable feeling, trying to understand how to be like Christ, how to shine through pitch. I want to pursue Him with all I am, but He keeps going out where the tax collectors and sinners are—people like me. The only difference is that I realized how much I needed Him; they haven’t yet. And perhaps the very reason they haven’t is because I’m not out there telling them.

Or as Paul might put it (at least, in my head), “They ain’t gonna hear if you don’t speak up. And they ain’t gonna fall on their knees if you’re too chicken.”

Jesus went to the synagogue—and then took the synagogue to the people who needed it most. He did most of His miracles out in the thoroughfares, tombs, fields, and corners of the world. His loudest messages echoed from hills and street corners. In fact, I didn’t meet Him in a church—or a Bible study or a church event. I met Him where Matthew did: in the middle of my sin.

Some sinners come running to steeples. Some sinners come running to Jesus in the streets.

Intersecting Faith and Life: We all need Paul to smack us around on occasion. He keeps us from digging a bunker to hide from the messy world outside. He reminds us that Jesus picked us off the ground, not to look down at those still trying to stand, but to show them the One who can make it happen.

For Further Reading
Romans 1-2
Matthew 9

When Someone Else is Living the Life You Want..... By Laura Polk

When Someone Else is Living the Life You Want
By Laura Polk

Is everyone’s life picture perfect (except mine)? One look at social media would attest to that fact. Our feeds are filled with adoring spouses, doting grandparents, children who excel at impressive rates, beautifully maintained homes, dinners that rival a five-star restaurant, love stories that should be in the movies, vacations that I can only dream about... and the list goes on.

It’s easy to glance at someone else’s life and wonder... how is it that they got the life I always wanted? It’s also one of the fastest ways to become discouraged, disgruntled, and disconnected from the blessings we actually have right in front of us. We could talk about how things don’t always look as they seem, but when we take on the mindset of wanting someone else’s life, the issue isn’t really with the person we envy, it’s with us.

God has a plan for each and every one of us. An individual plan that’s based on our unique bents, gifts, and needs. Looking into another’s life and pining away for what they have steals the joy away from the blessings He’s chosen to give us. He doesn’t toss blessings at us randomly as if we are some person in a crowd that He’s tossing giveaways to. He chooses to bless us based on His intimate knowledge of our past, present, and future needs. We should be thankful that what He gives us is precisely what we need at the time.

In Luke 17, Jesus was approached by 10 lepers who begged for healing. After telling them what they needed to do to be healed, they took the blessing He gave and went on with their lives. But one leper was so thankful that he returned to Jesus, threw himself at Jesus’ feet, and praised Him. Though the other nine were also blessed, they didn’t bother to thank the One who’d given it. They simply took what He gave.

There are blessings all around us. Blessings that we may not even notice. Blessings we take for granted. Do you take the time to see them and be thankful? For the one leper that returned, Jesus told him, “Go, your faith has made you well.” While the others were blessed and all were physically healed, the one who returned to show his gratitude was made well in ways that the others were not. By seeing the blessing and being grateful for it, he experienced it differently in his life than those who simply took. Be the one.

A Prayer for Hope..... By Wendy van Eyck

A Prayer for Hope
By Wendy van Eyck

While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?” Overhearing what they said, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” – Mark 5:35-36

I've often wished I had never heard the words, “Your husband has cancer.” They are hope-sucking words. Those four words were the ones Xylon and I heard a few months after marriage. And then two more times in the years since. Each time the doctor has spoken them I’ve felt God whisper into the dark corners of heart time-and-again: “Just trust me.”

I don’t think anyone likes hearing the phrase, “Just trust me.” But sometimes that is just what God requires of us. When I’m worried about what is going to happen next, when I’m stressed out over what the doctors results will say, or when I feel like I have no hope because I can’t see my dreams ever being reality that’s when I hear it, quiet, firm, “Just trust me.”

One thing I’ve learned in the almost four years since Xylon’s cancer diagnosis is that when the rest of the world is saying there’s no hope, Jesus is standing there saying, “They’re wrong.” When everyone else is questioning if Jesus really cares about the hard things we’re going through, I listen for his voice declaring, “Don’t listen to them; just trust me.”

A Prayer for Hope

If today you’re struggling to find hope in dark places and are looking for words to pray, I hope these prayerful words help:

Lord, help me to hear you saying, "I am your hope" over all the other voices. Lord, your word says, you are the hope for hopeless so I'm running to you with both hands stretched out and grabbing on to you. Fill me up with hope and give me a tangible reminder today that hope is an unbreakable spiritual lifeline (Hebrews 6:19-20). God, you know those things in my heart that I barely dare to hope for, today I give them to you, I trust them to you, and ask that you because I know that you can do more than I could ever guess, imagine or request in wildest dreams (Eph 3:20). God, you are my hope and I trust you. Amen.