Do You Hear That?

One night Eli, who was almost blind by now, had gone to bed. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was sleeping in the Tabernacle near the Ark of God.  Suddenly the Lord called out, “Samuel!”
“Yes?” Samuel replied. “What is it?” He got up and ran to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”
“I didn’t call you,” Eli replied. “Go back to bed.” So he did.
Then the Lord called out again, “Samuel!”
Again Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”
“I didn’t call you, my son,” Eli said. “Go back to bed.”
Samuel did not yet know the Lord because he had never had a message from the Lord before.  So the Lord called a third time, and once more Samuel got up and went to Eli. “Here I am. Did you call me?”
Then Eli realized it was the Lord who was calling the boy. So he said to Samuel, “Go and lie down again, and if someone calls again, say, ‘Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went back to bed.
And the Lord came and called as before, “Samuel! Samuel!”
And Samuel replied, “Speak, your servant is listening.” 1 Samuel 3:2-10 (NLT)

This passage is probably familiar to many of us. We know it as when Samuel was called by God. But recently when I read it, something else popped out.

Samuel didn't recognize God's voice at first. Every time he heard it, he ran to Eli. He had to learn to recognize who was calling him. He had to figure out what God's voice sounded like.

I hear so many people say that God doesn't speak to them. And then others ask how you know it is God. First, I believe that God speaks to all of us but we often don't recognize His voice. And I believe that as you develop your relationship with God you will hear Him, learn when it is Him and when it is not and you will then recognize when He speaks. 

Of course, it is not always so cut and dry but like Samuel, God will keep speaking. He will be patient and keep talking so you will learn when it is Him. Your job is to listen.

Work

Your unfailing love is better than life itself;
    how I praise you! Psalm 63:3 (NLT)

It's Monday! Up and at 'em! Time to wake up, work hard and achieve success! Right?

There is nothing wrong with working hard. God himself worked and he is always working to this day. But do you ever feel that maybe what we work for is skewed? While there is nothing wrong with owning things and achieving success, if our only focus is on those things, we can be off-balance.

Ask yourself, are you spending enough time with family and friends? Are you taking time to celebrate life and its blessings? Are you spending enough time resting and enjoying yourself? Are you spending enough time with God?

It is really easy to get to the place where a description of ourselves is "busy." Somehow, I don't think that is how God intended it.  The Bible tells us that work is good but it also tells us to rest and live life well. 

Is your motivation for work balanced? If everything you strive for was taken away and all you had left was your relationship with God, would you be OK? Something to ponder.....  

A Minute In It - Relationship

A minute in Gods' word will change your life.  Read through the Bible text and reflect on the relationship between us and God.

1 Hear my prayer, O Lord;
    listen to my plea!
    Answer me because you are faithful and righteous.
2 Don’t put your servant on trial,
    for no one is innocent before you.
3 My enemy has chased me.
    He has knocked me to the ground
    and forces me to live in darkness like those in the grave.
4 I am losing all hope;
    I am paralyzed with fear.
5 I remember the days of old.
    I ponder all your great works
    and think about what you have done.
6 I lift my hands to you in prayer.
    I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain. Interlude

7 Come quickly, Lord, and answer me,
    for my depression deepens.
Don’t turn away from me,
    or I will die.
8 Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning,
    for I am trusting you.
Show me where to walk,
    for I give myself to you.
9 Rescue me from my enemies, Lord;
    I run to you to hide me.
10 Teach me to do your will,
    for you are my God.
May your gracious Spirit lead me forward
    on a firm footing.
11 For the glory of your name, O Lord, preserve my life.
    Because of your faithfulness, bring me out of this distress.
12 In your unfailing love, silence all my enemies
    and destroy all my foes,
    for I am your servant.
Psalm 143 (NLT)

God's Heart and Hands

“Don’t call me Naomi,” she responded. “Instead, call me Mara, for the Almighty has made life very bitter for me. Ruth 1:20 (NLT)

As Naomi entered her hometown, her old friends and family ran to greet her.  They called out her name to which she responded "Don't call me Naomi. Call me Mara (which means bitter). God has made my life miserable."

As you read through the book of Ruth, you notice something though. While God isn't in the forefront, he is definitely involved. There are too many things that happen as coincidences. One of my favorite sayings is "A coincidence happens when God wants to remain anonymous." 

You know the other thing that happens? God's people do things according to God's will. They behave as they are supposed to.  They take care of each other.

Ruth takes care of Naomi.
Boaz takes care of foreigners by letting them glean in his fields.
Boaz takes care of Ruth because Ruth has been so good to Naomi.
Naomi takes care of Ruth by suggesting she marry.
Boaz fulfills his role as family redeemer. 

These are just a few of the examples of the reasons that things turn around for Naomi. God's people doing God's will so God can bring about restoration. At the end of the book, Ruth has Obed and this is what Naomi's friends say to her.

Then the women of the town said to Naomi, “Praise the Lord, who has now provided a redeemer for your family! May this child be famous in Israel. May he restore your youth and care for you in your old age. For he is the son of your daughter-in-law who loves you and has been better to you than seven sons!” Ruth 4:14-15 (NLT)

What looked like a dreadful situation turned into a true blessing. God is always working. When we work with him, lives are changed.

Sticking With It

Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.  Ruth 1:16 (NLT)

Naomi's life got very messy. First, her husband died. That made things a little uncertain but she still had two sons so she was able to work through it. A little later, her sons died. In that culture at that time, being a woman without a husband and without sons was catastrophic. She did have two daughters-in-law but they were in the same boat. No husband, no sons. 

Naomi decided to head back to her hometown. She packed everything up and took to the road. Orpah and Ruth went with her. Along the way, she realized that just because her life got messy, she didn't need to place that burden on her daughters so she turned to them and said "Go home. I have nothing to give you and the life I am looking at is not going to be fun. Go, take care of yourselves. No need for you to share messy with me."

Orpah reluctantly went back home to her family. Ruth refused. She was committed to Naomi, mess and all. The future for her was uncertain. She would be a foreigner in this new land and may not be accepted. She would have to work hard to provide for her and Naomi. It would have been so much easier to go home, marry again and start another family. But she didn't. 

Ruth chose to stay in the mess. She chose to stick it out and support the person God put in her life. In the end, she became the mother of Obed, who was the father of Jesse, who was the father of David, who was a descendant of Jesus.

You just never can sometimes tell how God works it out if you stay in the messy.

Meanwhile....

But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I.” John 5:17 (NLT)

Back when I first started cooking, I used recipes. I am not a chef.  It took me years to feel comfortable to create my own recipes or to alter the recipes I saw. I would read the recipe and follow it religiously afraid that if I didn't, I would mess up the meal. 

One thing that always made me chuckle was the word "Meanwhile." Inevitably, the recipe would tell you to do something and then say "Meanwhile." I always thought "Are you kidding me? What do you mean "Meanwhile?" I am not that talented!"

Fast forward many years to yesterday. Yesterday afternoon was rather hectic. I was working in my home office. I had someone coming later in the day to take some pictures for a project. After that, we were having a group over and I was providing dinner. Talk about the perfect storm.  As I was juggling all this stuff the word "Meanwhile" kept popping into my head. 

Race back and forth from the office to the kitchen to check the dinner; meanwhile put on clothes for the photo shoot.  There it was again. Meanwhile. This was too much juggling. I am not God.

God can do all that. The Bible tells us he is always working. He is involved in each and every one of our lives with such intricacy there is no way we could possibly understand it. God lives "Meanwhile." 

I can't fathom how he does that but I am really glad he does. While he's touching my friend in California, a family member in Europe and the loved one of a friend in India, he is also touching me.  Do you know what that means?  I can race back and forth from the office to the kitchen, meanwhile giving it to God and letting it go.

The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.  2 Chronicles 16:9 (NLT)

It's For Your Own Good

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 (NLT)

Last week I had the occasion to sit in a criminal court room. I watched the accused come forward one by one.  Mostly, the cases were continued. Then a woman stepped up. Her lawyer asked for a continuance.  The judge noted that she had not fulfilled the requirements that were set forth in the last hearing. Apparently, she did not pass a drug test that she should have passed. 

He said he was reluctant to grant a continuance but instead wanted to revoke her bond. The lawyer argued. The judge asked if she would be willing to submit to a drug test (urinalysis) today. She said no.

The judge revoked her bond. She looked very distraught as the Sheriffs came in to place the hand-cuffs on her. My heart was racing as I watched this unfold. Then, the judge said something that made me pause. He said "Miss, I am doing this so you don't die."

It dawned on me in that moment that this is what God does with us. He allows us to face our consequences and even sometimes increases them so we will pay attention. He wants us to have eternal life.  

And I imagine, as Jesus was hanging on the cross and God's heart broke that he said "We are doing this so they won't die."

Dream BIG!

I have some big dreams.  Dreams that are way bigger than me. I know these are God-sized dreams and as it has been said "If your dream doesn't scare you, then it's not from God." So what do you do when those dreams scare you?  Give up?  NO WAY!  

Usually we stop in our tracks when we start looking at what we can do and not what God can do. That's when we turn to God's Word for a "shot in the arm" of courage.

If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Romans 8:31 (NLT)

Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” Matthew 19:26

I know that you can do anything, and no one can stop you. Job 42:2

O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you! Jeremiah 32:17

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Ephesians 3:20

And finally, when we don't understand why it doesn't look like we think it should.....

My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts, says the Lord. And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. Isaiah 55:8

Have a very courageous day!