December 2 2018

Delay is not Denial


There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years. So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. “And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. Luke 1: 5-14
My favorite line in this passage is: 
“Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard.”  
God hears our prayers.  
Sometimes we may feel we are praying to a low and in penetrable ceiling, but we must remember that God hears our prayers as they go forth.  
Zacharias and Elizabeth were well advanced in age.  
The prayer the Angel was referring to was a prayer for a child.  
It would seem that although God heard their prayer, it was too late.  
But let me tell you today, God is never late.  
The Angel bore the news that they would have a son! 
Sometimes we feel that if we don’t receive an immediate response to our prayers that the answer is no. 
But God’s timing is perfect.  
What we have asked for may not be for this season.  
So, we must learn to wait in the Lord’s timing for the answers to our prayers. 
Delay doesn’t always mean denial

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December 1 2018

A Season for All Things


To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones; A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
A time to tear,
And a time to sew; A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

There is a season for all things.  
Some seasons are joyful and celebratory and some seasons are characterized by sadness and tears.  
But they are all seasons we need to move through in the course of our lives.  
What I have learned is that the one thing that stays constant throughout the seasons is the Lord.  
The Word tells us: 
“Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”  Deuteronomy 31:6 
The Lord goes before and follows behind.  
He creates a hedge around us and hems us in.  
He is with us in and through all seasons.  He will take that season and use it for good in our lives. 
Often we try to understand the situations we find ourselves in, but it is not ours to understand. 
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverb 3:5-6 
Rather than trusting in our own abilities to figure things out, we need to learn to lean on the One who has all things figured out.  
What season are you in at the moment?  
Through smiles or tears, lean in and lean on the One who controls the seasons and find peace in the midst

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November 29 2018

What Did the Lord Say?

On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.”
Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” Mark 4:35-40

Jesus spoke to the disciples and said, 
“Let us cross over to the other side.”  
He knew where they were going.  
He knew the plan.  
But part way across the storm came up and the disciples were afraid that they would perish.  
Jesus was sleeping.   
They woke Him up, 
“Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”  
Jesus got up, rebuked the storm and then asked them why they had been so fearful, where was their faith?  
Jesus had told them they were going to the other side and yet, half way across, they panicked when they saw the storm.  
We are so much like the disciples.  
We hear the voice of God telling us where we are going and yet, half way through when the storm clouds gather, we begin to panic!  
What did the Lord say? 
If the Lord said we are going to the other side, then we need to trust that He knows the plan.  
We need to keep our eyes on Him and not on the storm.  
If Jesus said we are going across, then no storm is going to stop us from crossing over.  
What did the Lord say?

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