Thankful for Manna

Then the foreign rabble who were traveling with the Israelites began to crave the good things of Egypt. And the people of Israel also began to complain. “Oh, for some meat!” they exclaimed. “We remember the fish we used to eat for free in Egypt. And we had all the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic we wanted. But now our appetites are gone. All we ever see is this manna!” Numbers 11:4-6 (NLT)

The Israelites were in the wilderness. Their journey was long and I imagine hard. One thing they didn't have to worry about was food. God was providing manna. The description in the Bible of manna says it looked like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey. The Israelites ate it for 40 years while they wandered around which means that it had to be nutritional as well. It sustained them for a long time.

Interestingly, after eating it for a bit, the Israelites began to complain. They wanted meat. The thing that makes you wonder here is that as they complained, they started comparing their life in freedom to their life in Egypt. In Egypt they were slaves. That little thought seems to have escaped them as they wished for fish, cucumbers, melons and other foods. They said in verse 5 that they used to eat fish for free in Egypt. It wasn't free. They paid for it with the sweat of their brow and the lives of their families. But they still reminisced thinking back on slavery as the good 'ol life.

If I were being honest, I can't judge them. How often do I do this? How often am I staring at ablessing while wishing for something else? How often do I thank God for something and then turn around and complain about another aspect of my life? What are we saying about God and his gifts when we are not thankful?

One day I was complaining to a friend of mine about my life. After I was done, she looked at me and said "Your life doesn't sound that bad to me. I think you are complaining about "first-world problems." She was right. My life it not that bad. It's actually really amazing. There are folks who would sacrifice much to have what I complain about.

How did God respond to the Israelites complaining about his provision in their life? He said,  “And say to the people, ‘Purify yourselves, for tomorrow you will have meat to eat. You were whining, and the Lord heard you when you cried, “Oh, for some meat! We were better off in Egypt!” Now the Lord will give you meat, and you will have to eat it. And it won’t be for just a day or two, or for five or ten or even twenty. You will eat it for a whole month until you gag and are sick of it. For you have rejected the Lord, who is here among you, and you have whined to him, saying, “Why did we ever leave Egypt?”’” (vs 18-20)

God saw their complaining as a rejection of his gifts. He saw it as a rejection of himself. Maybe that's why in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 he says "Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." Maybe he knows that when we complain there is something broken deep down in our hearts. We think we know what is best for us and what we should have when really, we don't have a clue. We forget that God has our best interest at heart and that he knows what we need.  We forget that he is always working to bring us into a better place with him.

What is broken deep down in our hearts? It is in how we see and trust God. Do I look at my circumstances and trust God knowing that he is doing what I need? Can I count all that is happening in my life as blessings, no matter what? Am I staring at manna and wishing for meat?

All I can do is praise him because in spite of my complaints, it doesn’t stop him from his work. It doesn’t stop him from loving me. Be thankful in all circumstances. Because the One who knows the end from the beginning is in charge of your life.

Talking Back To Satan

One day he asked the woman, “Did God actually say.....? Genesis 3:1 (ESV)

Did God actually say ________________ (fill in the blank)? What he said would happen won't happen. These are the things we hear in our heads. Satan's goal is to get us to doubt God. He was small minded and jealous when he set out to deceive Eve. He was expelled from Heaven; he lost the war he waged against God. His attack on Eve was not against Eve. He wanted her to fail as he had so he could point to God and his character and say his love wasn't good.

Nothing has changed in thousands of years. Every time he says to us "Did God actually say that?" or "Maybe you are imaging it." or "God doesn't talk to people." and "He certainly doesn't talk to you."  he is not attacking you. He is attacking God. He wants us to fail so he can point to that and say that God failed. He wants people to think that God's plan of mercy and justice couldn't possibly work. 

But it is working. Satan can't point at Jesus and say he was a failure. Jesus won. Jesus overcame. And he did it so we could overcome. So now, when Satan says to you "You failed." you can say "No, Satan. You failed. I am covered by Jesus and with his help, I am living proof that love can prevail. I will keep walking and I will become more like Jesus every day. And that, Satan, is something you will never do."

God's strange mixture of justice and mercy does work. Just remember who Satan is trying to destroy when he comes at you. It's not you, it's God. And remember, every time you reject that negative voice in your head saying you can't do it, you have overcome.

Keep walking. Keep resisting. God's already got this one in the bag.

A Minute In It - Finding Your Strength

A little time in the Word every day changes you. Take a few minutes, read these verses and ponder the questions at the bottom of the post.

To whom can the holy God be compared?
    Is there anyone else like him?
Look up at the sky!
Who created the stars you see?
    The one who leads them out like an army,
    he knows how many there are
    and calls each one by name!
His power is so great—
    not one of them is ever missing!
Israel, why then do you complain
    that the Lord doesn't know your troubles
    or care if you suffer injustice?
Don't you know? Haven't you heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God;
    he created all the world.
He never grows tired or weary.
    No one understands his thoughts.
He strengthens those who are weak and tired.
Even those who are young grow weak;
    young people can fall exhausted.
But those who trust in the Lord for help
    will find their strength renewed.
They will rise on wings like eagles;
    they will run and not get weary;
    they will walk and not grow weak.
Isaiah 40:25-31 (GNT)

Who do you compare God to? When you look at the stars or the ocean, do you see them as God's handiwork? When was the last time you went out into nature to ponder God's greatness? What characteristics of God do you see in this text? What does it say will happen when you put your trust in God?

Being Sure When You Are Unsure

Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping—believing that he would become the father of many nations. For God had said to him, “That’s how many descendants you will have!” And Abraham’s faith did not weaken, even though, at about 100 years of age, he figured his body was as good as dead—and so was Sarah’s womb.
Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise. In fact, his faith grew stronger, and in this he brought glory to God. He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises.  And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. Romans 4:18-22

Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping. I ask God sometimes to remind me why I am doing what I am doing that seems totally contrary to logic. Sometimes, the path God has put me on doesn't seem to make sense. And I wonder if God is in it. To be honest, this happens more than I would like it to. But I am learning. When it does, I go to God and ask to hear from him.

On one such occasion God gave me Romans 4:18-22. I started thinking about it. I struggle because God said "Walk this path and wait." So, I am walking the path I was given. Each day, one foot in front of the other; waiting. And when many days go by with no change, I become restless with the waiting part. I don't know exactly what I am waiting for. But Abraham knew. He knew God promised him a son. At age 100 the Bible tells us he thought his body was as dead as Sarah's womb. Made me think that maybe it would be harder to believe in something you knew to be scientifically impossible. But the Bible says Abraham never wavered in believing God's promise and He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises.

I had to ask myself, am I fully convinced that God is able and will do whatever he promises? What am I using as a benchmark to question him? For Abraham, he would have used his age and the fact that his wife was barren. Am I using what I see with my eyes only? Am I holding up my own yard stick of measurements and saying "God, you must not be working because it doesn't look like this."

I've always said we can't put God in a box. We can't put him in a box that looks logically correct because the Bible says that our wisdom is God's foolishness. We can't put him in the scientifically correct box because over and over again he defies science (like making a 90 year old barren woman pregnant or by controlling the wind and the waves). We can't expect what we see with our eyes to be a gauge of what God is doing. God is God and he will do what he wants, how he wants, and most importantly when he wants.

So what can we do? Believe in what we know about him. Believe that he is able to do what he says he is going to do even if it doesn't make any sense at all. And then, wait.

To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see. Hebrews 11:1 (GNT)

The Hard Road

You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell[a] is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. 14 But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it. Matthew 7:13-14 (NLT)

If I were to describe the narrow gate, I would say it's not well marked. There are no flashing lights, no huge signs, it looks rather uninteresting and it's probably not easily found. I think you'd have to really look for the entrance. You have to want to find it. And in my mind, when you enter in there are these tall walls that make it hard to get through. Sometimes, it feels like they are lined with sandpaper. Entering in is difficult because you have to squeeze in, sideways.

Why? Why does the bible say many will try to enter but fail (Luke 13:24) Matthew says the road it difficult.  Why?

Maybe this is because you cannot enter this gate with anything but your desire to please God. All the 'stuff' we carry with us has to be left outside. Your backpack of belongings like your house, your car, your bank account are not important on this journey. You have to let them go. Letting those go is harder than you think.

And why the super narrow entrance that I describe as sandpaper when you squeeze in? Because not only do we have to leave all our 'stuff', we also have to leave our pride and our of success and what is right according to the world. We must be made over again with a heart like Jesus.

Following God is not a one-time statement saying "I believe in Jesus." That will not get you through the narrow gate. It is a life change, and more importantly it is a cutting away of the parts of your heart that that keep God from being first.

Sounds hard doesn't it? It is. Matthew says it is and folks who live with God first know it is. Want to know how to do it? Grab hold of Jesus' hand and hold on. Don't let go no matter what. He will never let go of you. You may come through that gate battered and bleeding but you will not do it by yourself.

Of course, you can always go through the wide gate.  You will not be alone there either.

Walking The Walk

So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20 (NLT)

In one day I had a success and a failure. Except true to human form, I noticed the success but not the failure. That's because I am talking about in my behavior. It's easy to recognize when we've done something good but totally miss when we didn't. Let me explain.

On this day, I was emailing with my accountant. She was asking me questions about taxes and asked a question about something. I sent her the answer.  Later, as she questioned again I started thinking about the fact that really I could still be technically correct but word the answer in such a way that I would get more money back on my refund. I started to type and then the Voice asked me if I was being honest. Completely honest. I backspaced over my response and was completely honest. Success! I listened to the Voice.

Later in the day I was talking to someone and they made an unfavorable comment about someone I knew. It wasn't a bad comment but it wasn't a totally positive comment either. The conversation went on and I contributed with a comment here and a there. We finished talking without any super negativity and I went on with my day.

The next morning as I was reflecting with God on the day before, he brought this to my mind. He revealed to me (as only God can) that my heart was in the wrong place. That in my heart I was holding a grudge against the person mentioned and that my heart was glad something unfavorable was said about them. He pointed out that while I didn't say anything wrong, my intentions were not his. Failure.

You know the really cool thing? During this same quiet time with God, the text he brought to me wasn't a text about where your heart is or how you should love one another. The text he brought was Galatians 2:20. This text reminded me that no matter how many times I fail, while I walk this earth, my trust should never be in my own behavior but in Jesus. It reminded me that while I live in this earthly body, I will have days--no, fleeting moments--when I am more Christ-like and I will have moments when I am not but as long as I stay focused on Jesus I am good.

During that conversation with God, I talked to him about why I reacted the way I did and we worked through it. I talked to him about my perceptions and he revealed how my perceptions might not be reality. There was healing in my soul. My heart overflows with love for a God who loves me enough to work with me in my failures. And because he takes the time to do it, I trust that I should listen when I hear his Voice.

Forgiving Is Hard

As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died. Acts 7:59-60 (NLT)

Stephen was one of the people proclaiming the gospel and the awesomeness of Jesus after Jesus death. During one of those times, the people who did not believe Jesus was the Messiah became so angry and agitated they reacted with violence. They began to throw stones at Stephen and killed him.

Interestingly, Stephen was talking to God in his last moments. He asked him to receive his spirit and then he said, "Lord, forgive them." After that he died. The last thing he did was ask for their forgiveness. Jesus did the same thing. As he was being crucified, he asked God to forgive the people who were murdering him.

Sometimes forgiveness is hard. And sometimes the things we need to forgive others for are because of horrific acts. But God still asks us to do it. I am reading a book called Grace is Greater by Kyle Idleman. In the book he says two things that struck me:

Second, I wonder if Jesus and Stephen both prayed that God would forgive their murderers, instead of just offering forgiveness themselves, because ultimately what matters most, what people need most, is God's forgiveness, not ours.

Third, I wonder if maybe Jesus, and especially Stephen, prayed God would forgive them because in that moment they didn't have forgiveness to give. I said forgiveness isn't simple; it's difficult and maybe even impossible on our own. Perhaps Stephen couldn't muster up the grace to say, "I forgive you" to the men who were killing him, so instead he prayed that God would, which is what they really needed anyway.

We all know forgiving someone who has truly hurt you is hard. And sometimes we don't have it in us to do it on our own but, if we pray and ask God to forgive them and to heal our hearts, he will get us around to the place where we can forgive. Forgiveness doesn't mean that you discount what was done and throw the consequences to the wind, it means that you give it up. You give it up to God. You give it to him for your own peace and your own healing. And you stop the damage that is being done to you by becoming whole again.

It is still hard but oh so worth it.

A Minute In It - Time to Rest

A little time in the Word every day changes you. Sometimes, it is wonderful to read God's promises and just rest knowing that he's got this.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd;
    I have all that I need.
He lets me rest in green meadows;
    he leads me beside peaceful streams.
He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths,
    bringing honor to his name.
Even when I walk
    through the darkest valley,[a]
I will not be afraid,
    for you are close beside me.
Your rod and your staff
    protect and comfort me.
You prepare a feast for me
    in the presence of my enemies.
You honor me by anointing my head with oil.
    My cup overflows with blessings.
Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
    all the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of the Lord
    forever.