Category: Daily Devotionals

The Secret of Peace

Published on by Christine WyrtzenLeave a comment

My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promise.  Psalm 119:148

Picture it ~ It’s the middle of the night.  You’ve been sleeping sporadically because of something that’s been eating at you.  Tossing and turning, you meditated on it, turning the issue over and over again in your mind.  No more peace was gained by doing so.  In fact, the rehearsal of it only brought more distress.  Such is the result of a meditation that is not of the God-kind.

David was up at night, too.  The Jews set up night watches (in four-hour shifts starting at dusk) to keep the city safe.  He revealed that his eyes were awake before the announcement of the next shift because he was already meditating on the promises of God.

This is the secret of insight and of peace.  This is where the treasures of the darkness are found.  When there would otherwise be no rest for our heart and no peace for our mind, God gives them both as we set our heart and mind on His words.

David said, “On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.”  Ps. 145:5 What works touched his heart in the wee hours of the morning?  I suspect the ones that contrasted the hurts and frustrations of his world on that particular day.  When he was betrayed, he meditated on God’s faithful heart.  When afraid, God’s power.  When trapped, God’s promise of deliverance.  When small and void of answers, God’s limitless wisdom.

I believe that meditation is most meaningful when I take the very thing that is troubling me, identify a few of the tormenting themes, then meditate on their kingdom counterparts.  God never entraps His children with words.  Every command, every insight, brings them into a spacious place where the view is expansive.  Upon seeing an old truth in a new light, we draw in our breath and say, “It’s beautiful!  The view is stunning.”

Your Words deliver me.  You are an unending meal for my soul.  Amen

Overshadowed

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I am concealed in the shadow of God’s hand.  Isaiah 49:2

The definition of a shadow is an image cast by an object.  The word doesn’t usually bring warm feelings.  Someone hiding in the shadows is a person with a questionable agenda.  Someone afraid of their own shadow is a poor soul gripped by shyness.  Someone who sees shadows in the night is one who sleeps lightly.  And we know the familiar phrase in the 23rd Psalm, ‘in the valley of the shadow of death.’ 

While the topic of shadows makes us think of something foreboding, shadows can also be beautiful.  How about these references.

I dwell in the shadow of the Almighty.  Psalm 91:1

I am concealed in the shadow of God’s hand.  Isaiah 49:2

And, I take refuge in the shadow of my Father’s wings.  Psalm 36:7 

God is also described as One who casts a shadow, and His shadow provides shade from the heat.  Isaiah 25:4  His presence shadows His children ~ going with them wherever they go. Psalm 121:5

If I am in Christ, I am overshadowed when the Spirit conceives something holy, or heals something broken, or prepares something yet unformed.  In these days of our family’s sorrow, we are overshadowed.  We are being refined in the fire, healed in our brokenness, and watching for redemption still unformed.

For each of us who are overshadowed by Your Spirit, we rest while You create.  Amen

What Is That In Your Hand?

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Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” Mark 1:16-17

Ron’s father, Jack Wyrtzen, was a well-known evangelist. His sermons were simple but powerful and memorable. The one I remember most was the one entitled, “What Is That In Thine Hand?”

He re-told the story of Moses holding a shepherd’s staff in his hand. God called him to become a leader of His people but Moses declared himself unqualified. God asked him what that thing was in his hand? He answered, “A staff.” God didn’t intend for Moses to leave his shepherding skills behind. Moses would use that same staff to lead people out of slavery.

Simon and Andrew were fisherman. It’s all they knew. Jesus didn’t tell them to stop being fisherman. They would keep fishing but would fish for men instead of fish. Their fishing skills would be translated into the kingdom counterpart. God gave them two decades of experiences related to fishing. He wasn’t going to waste their knowledge. He would expand it. Fishing is about timing. Fishing is about using the right bait. It’s about catching a few one day but then hitting a windfall the next. Doesn’t this sound like evangelism?  And isn’t strategy and timing also pertinent?

What was in my hand as a teenager? A piano and a flute. A love for telling stories. A love for hurting people. A love for creative language.  Instead of going into social work or attending music school to play the flute in a symphony, God called me to relinquish control of what I was grasping for myself. A ministry was born. Today, I use all the passions and experiences of my childhood in this ministry.

Perhaps you’ve wondered how your love for a certain ‘thing’ could have anything to do with ministry. Maybe you’ve felt like your past experiences (painful ones) were wasted. No. God doesn’t work like that.  Today, someone’s eyes (maybe yours) are flying open to put the puzzle pieces of their life together in a new way. In God’s work, even with suffering, there is joy and wonderment. What is in your hand?

You do all things well. I’ve seen 66 years of it. Amen

Division and Reconciliation

Published on by Christine Wyrtzen1 Comment

Behind enmity of any kind, there’s always something bigger going on; something sinister in the spirit world that exacerbates seeds of discord. Satan loves division among people groups. He favors anything that God hates. God calls His children to unity; Satan calls his children to discord. God calls His children to love one another; Satan calls his children to kill and destroy. Whenever prejudice is not dealt with, it intensifies with each generation. Sin is never dormant. Left to itself, it will grow, giving Satan an opportunity to get even more mileage out of hatred.

Racism and prejudice are rampant and on full display.  Whites against blacks. Arabs against Jews. The North against the South. Old money against new money. The rich against the poor. But God would want me to personalize this even further. We are often born into homes with family prejudices. I was. There were feelings of animosity against a certain relative who, sadly, couldn’t do anything right to lessen the feelings of hatred. There was a prejudice against a neighbor who had acted foolishly years back. Their name couldn’t even be mentioned without the re-telling of their story of shame. It’s possible for us to hear family stories around the dinner table and feel a dislike for someone without a personal reason of our own. It’s in the blood, just as it was for Haman.

God is a God of reconciliation. Whenever prejudice can stop with us, let’s make this our holy ambition. Seeds of righteousness will be passed on to our children. A war, local or even international, might just be prevented if generational biases were healed at the foot of the cross.

It Was Nothing!

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So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her. Genesis 29:20

This is one of the rare moments in the Bible where sentiments about romantic love are expressed. Does love at first sight exist? Yes. Is there such a thing as people just ‘clicking’ when they meet? I believe so. It happens in friendship. Why not romantic love!

Jacob so loved Rachel that working for seven years to acquire her as his wife was hardly a sacrifice. If we were to ask Jacob about it in today’s vernacular, he might reply, “It was nothing!” And we know what he means. When I love to do something, the time that expires as I engage in the activity is irrelevant. Hours go by as if they were minutes. This is how I feel as I do many things; record in the studio, engage in the graphic design of new marketing materials, organize drawers and closets, even explore colors, textures, and fabrics.

There are people that I love deeply and serving them also seems effortless. I wouldn’t think twice about sacrificing in some way for them. I love to see them happy no matter what it costs me.

What is Jesus asking you to do today that seems steep? There is a cost. He said there would be. It is cross-shaped. Paul said that it was love that constrained him to endure hardship. It is lack of love that causes many to abandon their faith. When things get difficult, there is no relationship to sustain them. Knowledge of God without experience does not build emotional and physical endurance in Christian service.

There are days each of us lose perspective. They are related to the moments Jesus spent in the garden asking His Father if He might be spared the cross. But one day, no matter what we’ve suffered, I believe we will all say something similar. “I loved Him so it was easy to spend my life.”

Internal pep talks fizzle out quickly, Lord. It is Your voice and the memories of our time together that give me supernatural strength. Amen

 

    Just a Drop in an Ocean of Need

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      “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.” Mark 4:30-32

      Kingdom seeds are so powerful when they are planted on earth. Jesus gave an example of this when talking about the tiniest of seeds, the mustard seed.  Each one grows into a 10 foot plant. Great things always start small.

      How much do I really believe in the seeds of scripture? When a need is so great, whether in someone else or in me, it can seem hopeless to personalize a few verses. What difference is it really making when I don’t see immediate results? Does speaking a few kingdom words over an ocean of need even impact the void?

      My greatest mistake would be to be misled by earth’s odds. If I look at the probability of change like I look at filling up a beach ~ one grain of sand at a time ~ of course I’ll give up. But that is not what happens when I consistently sow the seeds of heaven. These agents of the kingdom are energetic and highly effective. When inspired, and then spoken, they begin the process of change. How do I know? Jesus said, “If you plant it, it will bear fruit.” Whether I can see the changes is immaterial. God works in the deep, in the unseen and imperceptible.  He does soul surgery in masterful ways long before human beings can see the fruit.

      What kind of seeds do you need to plant today? Belief. Joy. Peace. Unity. Sobriety. Pure sexual appetite. I need to plant faith seeds ~ faith that God holds the answers to unanswered questions and is trustworthy.  So, I speak God’s Word outloud over myself.  When declared, faith is ignited and spiritual forces are put on notice. It is the legal equivalent of serving the enemy legal papers. Oh, the cumulative effect of God’s spoken Word over time – spoken over me – spoken over the earth.

      I believe and I have seen with my own eyes ~ my own transformation. Amen

      When We Need To Re-live Beautiful Moments

      Published on by Christine Wyrtzen1 Comment

      Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before Him.  Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they?  Has no one condemned you?”  She said, “No one, sir.”  And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you.  Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.”  John 8:9-11

      Jesus did not do away with the law of Moses.  He simply applied it to the woman’s accusers.  They desired to see her pay for her sin but all the while, they turned a blind eye to their own sinfulness; sins that also required judgment by law. God does not pro-rate sin.

      As the sun continued to rise in the early morning dawn, the judges disappeared.  The voyeurs fled.  The accusers vanished.  Stones hit the ground one by one and as they fell, I can imagine the woman’s disbelief.  The iron grips on her arm loosened as the vengeance of the hot blooded Pharisees began to dissipate under the convicting presence of Jesus.

      Within minutes, there were only two people left standing there.  The warming rays of the sun bathed the encounter between Jesus and the woman as they faced each other.  She had never seen such a pure gaze that resonated nothing but love and compassion.

      John revealed Jesus in the beginning of this book as ‘full of grace and truth.’  Never did a story showcase this better than this particular one.  Jesus was gracious and truthful.  He withheld condemnation but, simultaneously, told her the truth about a needed change in her lifestyle.   “Go, and do not sin again.”  

      I do not know what happened to the woman when she went home.  Did her friends continue to point the finger?  Did her family shun her?  Would the man with whom she’d been involved with punish her for turning him down the next time?  If so, she would gain strength as she re-lived those beautiful moments with Jesus.  She would remember how He addressed her tenderly and gave her a gift no one had ever given her; love, forgiveness, and a fresh start.

      Sometimes, others never forget our sins.  But you, Lord?  I rehearse the beautiful moments you touched me and forgave me.  Amen

      What Happens In Your Invisible?

      Published on by Christine Wyrtzen1 Comment

      By faith he left Egypt, not being afraid of the anger of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.  Hebrews 11:27

      What happened in Moses’ invisible world took him far.  He left his adopted family, forfeited his place in the line of royalty, and then took on the responsibility for leading over 603,000 children of Israel out of Egypt and across the desert to their new homeland.  He endured stresses most of us will never feel, suffered the love/hate relationship with a fickle people who worshipped God one day and Baal the next, and he did all this while enduring the many griefs of his own personal story.  What carried him through it all and gave him the strength to endure?  Connection with the One who was invisible.

      What happens in the unseen realm, in the life of every child of God, cannot be underestimated.  It’s what propels us into the line of fire, some even into martyrdom.  It gives iron to the weak.  A revelation of God, through Christ and through His Word, shapes things not visible to the naked eye.  Right now, as you are reading this, the Holy Spirit is working in your own invisible realm to guide your thoughts, personalize this scripture, and lead you to be different five minutes from now than you are now.

      As you and I interact with God and His Word today, here are just a few of things that will happen that are imperceptible to others.  God will reveal Himself and enlarge our view of Him.  God will disclose things to our minds, and hearts, that will bring inner change.  God will give me a word to speak that will plant heaven’s seeds on earth’s soil.  (It will prosper because His Word trumps all other forces at work.)  God will re-direct me when I am starting to wander off into wrong lines of thinking and feeling. God will revive me through a whisper when I sink under the pressures I can’t yet anticipate.  God will reward my obedience with peace and confidence.  All of this is invisible.

      Scripture speaks of God’s child residing in peace and safety.  Does God keep His promise when I look into my external circumstances and see turmoil and danger?    Let us not doubt.  Peace and safety are the bedfellows of any of us who keep our eyes on the invisible God.  Like Moses, we  are constantly changing in the presence of the Almighty.  We endure.  We do not fear.  We rise out of the ashes.  We think soundly.  We speak wisdom in the presence of the foolish.  And like Peter and John, we stand before others and give testimony in such a way that others perceive we have been with Jesus. (Acts 4:13)

      Let these scriptures be our benediction.

       I solemnly charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and in the presence of Christ Jesus, who made the good confession before Pontius Pilate, to keep all His precepts without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.  He alone possesses immortality and lives in unapproachable light, whom no man has ever seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal power and dominion! Amen.  I Timothy 6:13-16 AMP

      When I Hold Myself Responsible

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      But they have not all obeyed the Gospel.  For Isaiah says, “Who has believed what they have heard from us?”  Romans 10:16

      How much does this passage reveal about the personal responsibility Paul felt for other’s rejection of Christ?  For any who open their mouth to share the Gospel with their heart fully engaged, there are minefields emotionally.  No matter how much you invest beforehand, there will be times when few respond. For the one who preached, that can be internalized as personal failure.

      This was my Achilles heel for many years. If I had worked hard to prepare to teach, if I had engaged others to fast/pray for me and for the group I was speaking to, if I had asked God for a fresh anointing before traveling, then I had an expectation of tangible, successful results.  When I didn’t see signs of the impact I had expected, I took it personally.  I concluded that something had to be wrong with what I had done.  I cited the examples from the New Testament when the apostles went out in the power of the Spirit and thousands believed but I failed to take into account that this was the exception.  More often than not, a few were converted but the majority rejected the Gospel.

      The Spirit of God had to set me free from this destructive stronghold in my thinking.  He worked within me to help me define ‘effective’ teaching.  He reminded me that Jesus was certainly effective, yet He told His disciples that the masses would walk the road to destruction while a few would walk through the narrow gate.  Regarding those who shrug their shoulders and walk away, I am not responsible.  God bears the burden and invites me to ‘shake the dust off my feet’ when the message is not received.  Bearing the burden for other’s spiritual blindness is a plot Satan has conceived.  Jesus is the lifter of our heads.

      Set other perfectionists free and use my story of failure, Lord.  Amen

      Getting Out Of Obedience

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      And Noah did all that the LORD had commanded him. Genesis 7:5

      This is such a short verse in the entire dramatic account of Noah; one could almost miss it.  Noah did every single thing that the Lord had commanded him. It’s not like God told him to do just one thing either.  God gave him 120 years of detailed instructions.  Noah didn’t deviate at all from the blueprint.  He didn’t take shortcuts when something got hard.  Who had ever built an ark or a ship of any kind?  There were no people to call on for advice.  His onlookers were only scoffers.  When stumped, Noah had God and the collective input of his family to figure things out.  That’s it.

      When it was time to make room for the animals, he did exactly what God said to do.  I’m one who can easily think, “I’m tired.  I’ll obey but I’ll do that tomorrow.”  I don’t see anywhere in this story that Noah rationalized and/or procrastinated.

      I won’t live 120 years.  In that span of time, Noah did every single thing God asked.  I’m half that old but in the span of time I have lived, I have failed to do a few things God told me to do.  I am absolutely struck by the stark comparison.  How many times did I sense God asking me to do something where I responded, “Really, Lord?  Am I hearing you right?”  Quite a few.  In 2019, when God asked me to do something I considered radical, I questioned it.  But, I sought His face over a long period of time for confirmations and made a choice to obey.  Oh, He has blessed me and my family because of it.

      At the end of my life, I pray it will be said that I followed God, though it has taken time for me to get it right.  As I understand more clearly why Noah is in the ‘hallmark of faith’ chapter in the Bible (Hebrews 11), I am deeply inspired.

      What can I say?  Though some might say I’m being too hard on myself, I don’t believe I’m being hard enough.  I vow to do better and give you instant, and exact, obedience.  Amen