Morning devotions

Encouragement in the Psalms

/ The Pastor

Hear my prayer, O Lord;
let my cry come to you!
Do not hide your face from me
in the day of my distress!
Incline your ear to me;
answer me speedily in the day when I call!
[Psalm 102:1-2]

I like the Psalms. The range of emotion helps me put things into perspective.

There are Psalms of praise.
There are Psalms of lament and complaining.
There are Psalm of whining.

And then these Psalms usually end with some statement of God’s faithfulness.
Often times these Psalms follow this pattern:
“Where are you God”
“How long O God?”
“Why aren’t you listening to me?”

And then…

“God, you are awesome!”
“God, you are great!”
“God, you are worthy of praise!”

I read these Psalms and I am encouraged in my faith journey.  I am encouraged because I often feel the same way these psalmists feel…but I sometimes forget about God’s love and faithfulness.  You see…the God that the psalm’s is talking about is the God I want to get to know.  That is the God who I want to be close to.  That is the God I want to worship.  Scripture doesn’t promise an easy road, but Scripture does promise a faithful and loving God.

So lift your complaints, laments and whining to God but also know that God will not abandon you.  God will be faithful for you are his beloved child;  redeemed through the blood of Jesus Christ.

That’s the God I want to know better.

edh -|—

Worship God…not yourself

/ The Pastor

Oh come, let us sing to the Lord;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.
[Psalm 95:1-5]

If you ever needed a reason to go to worship, Psalm 95 lays it out for you. The problem is that many people would prefer to write a Psalm about themselves and talk about what their exploits and what they believe God should do for them.  For many…worship is all about them.

We have a messed up view of worship…hence the many “worship wars” that congregations experience.  The wars come from an attitude of “entertain me“.  If something doesn’t entertain them then it should not be done.  And in the midst of the worship wars, the true reason for worship gets lost.

For the Lord is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.

When was the last time you went to worship with no other reason than to sing praise to God, thank God for His awesome love in Jesus Christ and to lift up His holy name for His awesome deeds?

When was the last time to went to worship FOR GOD and not FOR YOU?

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
 Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
[Psalm 100]
God is holy.
God is worthy.
God is…well…God…so worship God and God alone for God has been and always will be faithful.
Praise be to GOD, always and forever.
Amen!
edh -|—

Don’t be like a demon

/ The Pastor

“But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!” [James 2:18-19]

It is one thing to sit in worship on Sunday morning; singing, confessing, listening and the like but quite another to practice what you say you believe outside the walls of the church building.  Complacent and apathetic Christians are not what God has called us to.  Sitting on our butts as spectators watching a sporting event is not the Christian life. I love that phrase “even the demons believe” that God in Jesus exists.  The difference is that they do not reflect God’s glory on their actions.

So the real question is this:
Are you like a demon?

Ouch!

It’s a harsh truth to face but it is one we need to see.  Live your faith…don’t just talk about it.

edh -|—

Ask

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
[James 1:5-8]

How many times have you gone to God asking for wisdom?
“God…grant me wisdom.”
“Help me to understand what to do.”
“Guide me.”

I have uttered those prayers many times.  I have asked God to lead me.  I have asked God to give me wisdom  The problem is that God wants to do this and when God does we often times don’t listen, believe or trust.  I think it is because that we don’t like the answer we get.

“Really God?  That’s what you want me to do?”
“I can’t do that.”
“That is going to be too hard.”

Sound familiar?

Imagine if we actually listened and trusted God when we prayed those prayers.
Imagine all that we could accomplish for the glory of God if we used the wisdom that God has for us.

Believe it or not, God knows what God is doing.  God has been around the block a few times.  God sees the whole picture (and we don’t).

So pray and believe…

…and imagine….and then pray some more…and listen…and trust…and then do.

God will be faithful.

edh -|—

Finish strong

/ The Pastor

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

I love these texts that mention running since I am a runner myself.  I have run many races: A number of 5K and 10K races; 3 marathons; and a bunch of other races of varying distances.  Currently I am training for a 1/2 marathon which will take place in a couple weeks.

Running a race can be grueling; your muscles get tired, you develop cramps or some kind of pain or doubts enter your brain about your ability to finish.  When these things happen the temptation is to immediately find relief and stop and quit the race.  Those thoughts have entered my mind many times.

But I have kept running.

What helps me when the going gets tough is thinking about the finish line; picturing my wife standing there cheering me on and longing to receive that finishers t-shirt and/or medal.  I focus on what lies ahead and not on my current circumstances.  Sounds contrived considering the Hebrews text but its true.

No doubt you are going to run into tough times in this life.
No doubt you are going to feel like giving up.
No doubt Satan is going to speak his lies to you that it is not worth it.

But Jesus has already finished the race for you.  Jesus endured the cross and won the prize FOR YOU.  Place your faith in him and keep your eyes fixed on the finish line…where Jesus is waiting to give you your finishers medal; your crown of glory.

Keep running and I’ll see you at the finish line.

edh -|—