Author: Christine Wyrtzen

ANGEL ACTIVITY

And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it!  Genesis 28:12

         Jacob is on his way to find a wife in Paddam Haran while also fleeing the wrath of Esau who might take revenge on the brother who stole his birthright.  On the way, he stops to sleep.  He has a dream.  Earth is connected to heaven by a passageway, a ladder of sorts.  On it, angels are going back and forth between the two worlds.

         What strikes me is that the verse doesn’t say angels came down – and then went up.  It reveals that angels first went up – then came back down.  It reveals that angels dwell among us, seeing to our needs, and they are here by God’s orders.   They go up from our presence and they come back with more direction from God’s throne.

         So much is happening in the supernatural and when I fail to ask for awareness of God’s kingdom, I can miss what God might show me with spiritual eyes.  He is the same God who promised that in the end times, He would give dreams and visions.  (Joel 2:28)  But I often feel alone and believe that I am at the mercy earth, that circumstances and people here rule.  Not true.  Heaven’s purposes are being realized today by God’s army of angels.  He is Lord of the angel armies, after all.

         Angels are around me all the time.  Protecting, singing, bringing messages, soothing, providing.  Upon whose orders are they acting?  The same Jesus who loves me enough to give His life for me.  Now at the right hand of the Father, orders are given to sustain my faith and provide for my needs until I arrive home in heaven one day.  I am not an orphan – left to fend for myself.

         The kingdom realm is meant to be more real to me than the tangible world I can see, taste, and feel.  God connects me to it as He communes with me in my Spirit.  Living in the rich pages of scripture, He unveils the things of the kingdom and opens my eyes to many things that are happening outside of natural vision.  In January of 2007, I prayed, “Lord, open the heavens and show me your glory!”  It was my prayer everyday that year and I will tell you that nothing has been the same since.  Most likely, at this very moment, angels are ascending to the throne on my behalf and then coming back with God’s answer.

I am often consumed by earth and the futility of what happens here.  I want to be consumed by what I can’t see, the stuff of Your world, Jesus.  Amen

Journal Question:  When was the last time you had an experience with the supernatural, God’s kingdom?  Did you see an ‘angel unaware’?  Did you dream?  Did God open your spiritual eyes to something after meditating on scripture?  Revisit that and ask God if there’s something you missed.

PASSIVE OR PROACTIVE?

May he give the blessing of Abraham to you and to your offspring with you, that you may take possession of the land of your sojournings that God gave to Abraham!”  Genesis 28:4

         Isaac’s blessing to Jacob is beautiful and trustworthy.  However, while the spiritual inheritance passed on from Abraham is a sure thing for Jacob, it’s not just handed to him on a silver platter.  A heavenly promise requires proactive participants.  Isaac reveals to his son that he will have to take possession of the land of promise by force.

         How many years have I waited for God to deliver something only to discover that its delivery involved a collaborative effort! All spiritual inheritances must be fought for.  God’s enemy, Satan, is intent on thwarting every purpose of God in my life.  He doesn’t want me to have it.  I can be sure that realizing my destiny will involve a battle.

         Along the way, there are skirmishes when I can rest and know that God is fighting for me but in the larger war, my spiritual life is carved out with prayer, strategy, and endurance.  Figuring out when to wait and when to advance is something only revealed in prayer.  If I don’t know how hear God’s voice, I won’t know which posture to take.

         It is a carnal thing to advance and take things by force whenever I feel that I am stuck.

• Sometimes people are against me.  With God on my side, I believe I can go in to settle the score with some harsh words.
• Sometimes circumstances are against me.  With God on my side, I believe I can manipulate circumstances to work in my favor.

         Both are mistakes. God is the shaper of circumstances and the renovator of people.  My part is to intercede and stand in the promises of scripture.  At some point, God will say ‘move!’  When I do, I will notice that all the red lights have turned green.  Worship will be the result.

Waiting doesn’t mean passivity!  I see that now, Lord.  I direct all my pent up energy to my prayer life.  Amen

Journal Question:  Are you at a point where you’ve declared that ‘something has to change’?  Do you have a plan carved out to make it happen?  Are you willing to set it aside and pray instead?  Write out a prayer to begin a new proactive initiative today.

HOW OTHERS ERODE OUR FAITH

Then Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and directed him, “You must not take a wife from the Canaanite women. Arise, go to Paddan-aram to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father, and take as your wife from there one of the daughters of Laban your mother’s brother.”  Genesis 28:1-2

         Here is an act of sanctification before the word was ever used in scripture.  Isaac is ‘set apart’ by his father and told to protect his spiritual line by declining to marry anyone outside his faith.  He was still fairly young and could not know how easily wrong company could corrupt faith in God.  In his naiveté, Isaac commanded.  Commands protect us when we’re ignorant of consequences.

         I’m not sure I ever fully understand how the company I keep has long-term effects on me, and eventually, everyone close to me.  When I am changed by someone’s influence, for the good and for the bad, it leaks out into all my relationships.   Children, spouses, friends, people I serve in business and ministry, all will feel the good and bad repercussions of my alliances.

         God made humans to interact with each other and, in the course of relationship, affect each other.  This doesn’t happen with inanimate objects.  If I wrapped a knife and fork together in a napkin, put them in a drawer for 10 years and then unwrapped them, they would emerge the same.  Put two people together in the same space for even a year and they will have changed from the influence of the other.

         I consider how easily relationships form.  An act of kindness, a gift given, attention bestowed; these can capture another’s heart.  Someone’s guard is let down.  Oh, how easily Jacob could have fallen for a Canaanite woman.  It might have taken only one soft encounter.  Isaac knew and sent him away from all temptation.

         Life is a series of course corrections.  I draw close to some and pull away from others.  May those I pull near be those who encourage me in my fight for faith.  May I be willing (outside of immediate family) to take a careful step back from any alliance that was made in haste and in foolishness.  The long-term effect on my faith and my descendants depends on both intentional choices.

I consider all your commands in a new light today.  They are out to protect me from what I can not see in the future.  Amen

Journal Question:  Consider one bad relationship from your past or even in your present life.  Ask God to give you wisdom as you trace the steps that led you to trust them.  Make a thorough list of all consequences and see what God teaches you about yourself and your future choices.

HOARDING THE TREASURE

But on some points I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, because of the grace given me by God to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:15-16

         When I’m sitting on a discovery of wealth, what do I do?  Do I call and tell everyone I know about my find so that it can be shared?  Or, do I save it all for myself?

         That’s how Israel felt when the love and favor of God went outside their borders.  They felt God’s love was theirs exclusively.  They resented the fact that His grace and mercy knew no boundaries.  Though they had been chosen to be God’s people, they were also commissioned, as far back as the early Old Testament, to be a nation of priests to those outside of Israel.  “But you shall be called the priests of the Lord; they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God.”  Is. 61:6  No wonder Paul reminded the Roman church that he, as a Jew, was a priest to the Gentiles.

         Love like the kind God gives is what my heart has always been seeking.  Can’t I just bask in it and enjoy it without an obligation to make sure others find it too?  Continue reading “Hoarding The Treasure” →

WHEN BELIEVING HURTS

He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb.  Romans 4:19

Faith doesn’t exist if I can possibly manufacture an answer to my problem.  Faith begins when a situation is absolutely hopeless.  There appears to be no solution.  God says He can heal it, fix it, reform it – yet I can not see how.  At that point, I choose to believe.  But believing hurts because I must invest my heart when it feels like suicide. Continue reading “When Believing Hurts” →

WHEN SOMEONE PLAYS GOD

Esau said to his father, “Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, O my father.” And Esau lifted up his voice and wept.  Genesis 27:38

         Rebekah played the part of God and how she and her sons, and their descendants, suffered.  She and Isaac played favorites between their two sons and encouraged unhealthy competition.  Usually these urges to draw closer to one child emerge from a defect in a marriage.  When emotional and spiritual needs go unmet between a husband and a wife, one or both turn to a child to find understanding, camaraderie, and even comfort.

         Rebekah devised the scheme where Jacob would dress up like his brother, go into the presence of Isaac, and extort the blessing reserved for the firstborn.  Maybe Rebekah believed that the outrage would be short-lived.  Esau would go hunting for a while and get over it.  Isaac would only grieve for a short time.  And Jacob?  He would rejoice and prosper.  She was wrong on all counts!  Esau, from that day on until God intervened, was bent on revenge.  Rebekah had to send Jacob away for his own safety and though she believed it would only be for a short time, she never saw him again before her own death.  As for Jacob, the one who got this wonderful blessing, he would suffer the effects of others deceptive schemes.

         Sin has deeper consequences than I ever bargain for.  When I am poised in that moment of decision, that very moment when I decide whether the sin is worth it or not, I make calculations based on my limited knowledge of people and of God.  My own spiritual blindness fails to see the gravity of a choice made against the glory of God.  What I believe to be some insignificant act really has the power to eat away at the spiritual health of my family for generations to come.  Whatever precipice I stand upon today, the one where action has not yet been taken, here are my choices.  1.) I can venture my best guess about the future.  Then I can move ahead to force things to work the way I believe they should.  Or, 2.) I can repent of my distrust toward God’s sovereignty and leave all possible interventions to a wise Father.

I’ve already seen it!  Sinful consequences cannot be measured.  They have always been worse than I predicted.  You are a Father who mercifully redeems my messes.  Amen

Journal Question:  What have you prayed about, seen no movement, and concluded that you must take matters into your own hands?  Have you made your move yet?  What if your calculations for fallout are entirely underestimated?  Can you step back, ask God to forgive you for sitting in His seat, and just pray about all things?

CAN I TRUST MY SENSES?

Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that your soul may bless me.” Then Isaac said to Jacob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, to know whether you are really my son Esau or not.  The voice is Jacob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau.”  He said, “Are you really my son Esau?” He answered, “I am.”  Genesis 27:18-27

         It’s hard, isn’t it?  There are times when I fail to listen to my gut talking and pay dearly for it.  But then, there are as just as many times when I follow my gut instinct and make disastrous choices.  The need to be led and ruled by spiritual understanding rather than my fallible sense of things is crucial.

         I’m reviewing this scene from Isaac’s life.  He’s old, nearly blind, and quite vulnerable.  He’s about to be deceived so that Jacob can get the firstborn’s blessing.  Isaac is the means to an end.  He does not know it though.  He assumes that family treats him honorably.  A bit naive.

         His first instinct was right.  He believed it to be Jacob’s voice and he was right but as soon as he felt his son’s hands, he was confused.  Knowing that blindness impairs judgment, he should have stopped and asked the Lord for insight.  Instead, he made a crucial decision by his senses.

         There are times I will swear something is true.  I have mounted my evidence, feel something strongly in my heart, and no one can tell me otherwise.  Time goes by and I discover that I was completely wrong.  I didn’t have all the facts.  My judgment, like Isaac, was impaired by something I didn’t acknowledge.  Humility, the kind that comes after failure, incurs much remorse.

         What important decision are you making today via your own instinct? You believe you are making a solid choice based on what you’ve seen and felt.  You argue that you have a good track record of sound judgment and that you’re feeling pretty confident.  Where is God in this?   None of us are infallible because of some innate giftedness.

         The only way to live is to be aware of my need for God.  I can’t trust myself on crucial matters.  I am not advocating becoming an insecure person who wrings their hands over all matters great and small.  Far from it.  Great strength and confidence can be mine but only as I depend on God for all things.  Minefields are exposed.  Disasters are averted.

Daily, I joyfully admit that I am only wise in You.  Amen

Journal Question:  Over what are you saying today, “I just know that this is the right thing to do.  I’ve thought about it for a long time.”  Would you be willing to stop and ask God about it, to cast all judgment upon Him for review?  Your future depends on it.

TAKING ADVANTAGE OF ANOTHER’S WEAKNESS

Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, ‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the Lord before I die.’ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice as I command you. Go to the flock and bring me two good young goats, so that I may prepare from them delicious food for your father, such as he loves. And you shall bring it to your father to eat, so that he may bless you before he dies.”  Genesis 27:6-10

     You’ve heard the words.  Or, you may have spoken them.  “He won’t know the difference.  He’s out of it!”  This is the attitude with which Rebekah deals recklessly with her husband.  Isaac is nearly blind and it’s true that he won’t know the difference if Jacob dresses up to ‘feel’ like Esau.  The rest of the story is famous.

     Old age invites another’s reckless behavior.  Visit an elderly person who is unaware of time and it’s tempting to stay two minutes instead of twenty – just because I know they won’t remember or know the difference.  God’s Spirit would ask me, “Who, in my name, are you taking advantage of?”

    The feeble, frail and helpless, are the ones over whom God is most passionate.  Mistreat them, and His anger is kindled.  I can mistakenly believe that this only refers to the homeless or the orphans who are strangers to me.  But each one I am in relationship with has a place of frailty, a tender spot where they are vulnerable to another’s cruelty. In my flesh, I am selfish and can smell an opportunity, even a small one, where I can take care of myself at their expense.

    When I reach out to the feeble, to the ‘least of these, Jesus says that I am really serving Him.  I am looking into His face, bringing my gifts to His outstretched hands.

    I am no longer a thirty-something but am clearly in the last third of my life.  Because of this, I can see the beginnings of younger people treating me as ‘clueless.’  Total strangers assume I’m not as fast, as aware, as technologically saavy, etc.  And the truth is, I’m no match technologically for someone in their twenties, as hard as I work at staying current.  I don’t like how this bias feels but know that this is just the way it is.  What is humbling and unfortunate though is when I bring this same disrespect to people I love, those whom I believe might not know as much as me, or be as healthy as me, or are as young as me.

      The burning question I ask myself is this:  How would Jesus treat the elderly family member I’m caring for?  Would He take shortcuts because He wouldn’t face repercussions?  I doubt it.  Integrity and respect must be the hallmarks of my mindset toward others.   Whatever I do is for the glory or dishonor of Christ.

Help me see Your face in the faces of the feeble, beginning at home.  Amen

Journal Question:  Whose face comes to mind as you read today’s devotional?  Answer two questions as you journal.  1.) How do you see this person?  2.) How does Jesus see this person?

THE HIDDEN MEANING OF A BIRTH

Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.”  Genesis 4:1

            Though Adam and Eve’s external world had radically changed (from the perfect Garden to a cursed world), their inner life was still somewhat alive to God.  My hunch is that they missed Him, longed for Him, dreamed of walking with Him again as they did in the Garden.  They remembered His holiness, His glory, and the kind of love with which He loved Him.  How could you not miss all of that and grieve the memory!

            Childbirth was so difficult, so painful, that I’m confident Eve looked to God for help and strength.  She recognized, as she looked into the face of her newborn son, that God had done a miracle.  Neither of them had ever seen a baby and to witness life coming from her womb, to hold that infant in her hands was to witness a miraculous act by God Himself.

            Probably hundreds of thousands of babies will be born as I’m writing this sentence.  Will each mother know that God was involved in the creation of her child?  Sadly no. Will each child grow up to know that he or she is a unique creation of Almighty God?  Probably not. And when we languish for lack of that knowledge, our self-worth is skewed.  The parents who spoke into our life at birth shaped our view of ourselves.

            If they failed to celebrate our birth and hold us in their arms with wonder, we will wonder at the meaning of our life.  There will be no evidence that we have a Creator who celebrated the day of our birth, not until He chooses to reveal Himself to us and open our spiritual ears to the sound of His heart beating fast for us.

            No one should have the right to define my worth except my Creator.  Not a parent.  Not a caregiver.  Not a child.   There is no such thing as an unwanted child in the kingdom.  Each birth is a miracle regardless of the circumstances.  Eve knew it.  Cain was the first son in a cursed world yet she could see past the darkness of her times to see the handiwork of God in the face of her son.

            When it’s time to sign a birthday card for a friend, I often jot a note that says, “I am praying God will show you how HE is celebrating your birthday today.”  Just a glimpse of that will right the wrongs of all those who may have missed the miracle of their birth.  God can heal the gaping wounds of those who feel invisible and insignificant.

I am Your plan, Your creation, and Your joy.  Always was.  Oh how You love me.  Amen

MAKING SOMETHING RIGHT THE WRONG WAY

He [Isaac} said, “Behold, I am old; I do not know the day of my death. Now then, take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field and hunt game for me, and prepare for me delicious food, such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, that my soul may bless you before I die.” Now Rebekah was listening when Isaac spoke to his son Esau. So when Esau went to the field to hunt for game and bring it, Rebekah said to her son Jacob, “I heard your father speak to your brother Esau, ‘Bring me game and prepare for me delicious food, that I may eat it and bless you before the Lord before I die.’ Now therefore, my son, obey my voice as I command you.  Genesis 27:2-8

  Is your spiritual rudder straight?  Do you see evil winning and do you live frustrated?  What if it were in your power to make righteousness win, would you do it?  Would this be wrong?

  Rebekah didn’t think so.  As a mother, she knew the hearts of both of her sons.  Esau was bent toward unrighteousness; Jacob toward God.  Esau, by birthright, was normally the one to whom the blessing would fall.  (She forgets that God had already worked this out when the babies were in her womb. Gen.25:23)  When an opportunity presents itself to make things right, for her nearly blind husband to pass the blessing onto their younger son, she quickly conceives a plan.  She believes that the future of her family rests on her shoulders.

  Do I?  Do I ever play God in my family’s life?  Influencing them and controlling them are two different things.  And I can be controlling.  I’m a strong personality with definite opinions.  Given time, I can weave a convincing argument when I believe in something.  But here’s the question.  Am I trying to control someone where God is already at work?  His plan is perfect.  His timing is perfect.  He knows the hearts of the person who is involved.  Do I really think I know them better than Him?  If I believe that I need to compensate for God’s seeming inactivity, I am acting out of unbelief.  Faith is absent.

  There are times that God calls me to take a stand and wield spiritual power prayerfully.  That’s easier than the alternative; taking a stand and wielding power prematurely because I’m afraid God isn’t going to do anything.  Rebekah wanted something holy.  For this, I commend her.  Her methods, however, were deplorable.

Give me grace to ignore the ticking of my own clock and to wait on You. Amen

Journal Question:  Where are you crying out for change in your life?  In your family?  How long have you been waiting on God?  Are you willing to stop and learn from Rebekah’s mistake?  Write out your new commitment to move only as God prompts.  And when He is silent with a plan, to wait.