Category: Daily Devotionals

DO IT BEFORE IT GETS MORE DIFFICULT

When he had finished talking with him, God went up from Abraham.      Then Abraham took Ishmael his son and all those born in his house or bought with his money, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that very day, as God had said to him.  Genesis 17:22-23

         As soon as Abraham watched God ascend from his presence, he went to circumcise himself and every other male in his family.  What a difficult act of obedience yet he didn’t put it off and spend the next days and weeks in dread.  Sometimes, the more difficult the command, the longer it takes to get up the nerve to do it. I have found that to be a grave mistake.

         Anytime God has asked something of me, there were risks.  Others being angry with me.  Risking a loss of respect.  Putting my life on the line.  Introducing conflict into a relationship I valued.   Going somewhere that held bad memories for me.  Taking on a job I didn’t feel qualified for.

         The last thing difficult thing God asked of me was on a November day.  I wrestled badly with Him and didn’t obey until the end of February.  The outcome was a miraculous one and if only I had spared myself the three months of misery.

         I forgot that when God gives a command, there is empowerment to do it.  God’s Spirit goes with me when I engage in that difficult thing.  When I envision the pain of it, I misjudge how it will be because I don’t put God’s grace and blessing in the midst of it.

         So, Abraham circumcised adult men and boys far beyond infant stage.  How excited were they about God’s command!  Yet we do not know how God’s gracious hand was manifested during those painful moments.  Perhaps he gave spiritual anesthesia.  He is the divine Physician, after all.  The text doesn’t reveal that there was bedlam, or sickness, or even weakness.  There may have been but I do know something about the nature of God.  He blesses obedience and we need to factor that in ahead of time.

         Whatever it is you’re putting off, take this devotional as the gentle wind that will propel you into action.

You are with me; Your influence changes everything I do.  Amen

WHEN ONE CHILD IS LEFT OUT

And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!”        God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him. As for Ishmael, I have heard you; behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly.   Genesis 17:18-20

         Ishmael may have been the child born outside of God’s plan, but that wasn’t his fault.  He was now a full-fledged person, a son that Abraham had grown to love.  When God promises a new son to be recipient of the covenant, Abraham struggles as he realizes that Ishmael will be left out.

         Is that not painful for any parent who loves their children equally?  To see one flourish in most everything he does and the other?  Well, everything seems to come hard.  It happens in most every home.  If we are not careful, we will conclude that God has blessed one and cursed the other.  Our theology must bear down hard and carry us through misconceptions.

         Those who teach have been hard on Abraham for wanting God to just give the blessing to Ishmael instead but he is just being a father.  God knew that, too.  He said, “As for Ishmael, I have heard you.”   God understands the heart of fathers.

         So what of the child for whom everything comes hard?  What should be his perspective?  And what is to be my perspective as a parent?   The story is not yet finished.  It might be that the one who finds life easy will later encounter challenges that will build endurance into his character.  Humility and dependence on God will be the wonderful fruits of struggle.  As for the one who seems forgotten in their youth?  God may be using suffering to prepare them for greatness.  As with many of his choicest servants, the first 40 years were the wilderness preparation for a glorious deliverance into anointed ministry and unfathomable blessing.

         As a parent, I must trust God as I remember that I am only in the middle of the story.  God is God.  He writes the ending. My part is to trust, to pray, to encourage both children to walk humbly with their God despite the seeming inequity.  In the end, we will see evidence that God does do all things well.

Help my faith to grow up!  I must trust You even when You look guilty.  Amen

The kindest thing my Father did was to give me the choice to cooperate with Him in the dismantling of my impressive looking, but diseased internal world. It was painful to examine it all in the dis-assembly.  It took three years.  I discovered what was missing.  Continue reading “Admitting Who I Was” →

LAUGHTER IN A MOMENT OF DISBELIEF

         I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.”    Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed.  Genesis 17:16-17

         I’m one of God’s children who is not so unlike others in His family.  I have had incredible prayers answered.  Some were so desperate that when He broke through with deliverance, I fell to my knees and cried out, not with tears, but with laughter.  I’m pretty reserved so anyone who knows me is sitting wide-eyed right about now.

         Laughter has gotten a bad rap.  It does not always mean derision or unbelief as many might tell you.  For me, my outburst of laughter came with words in staccato.  “Oh Lord, you did it!  Thank you.  This is too good to be true.”  I hugged Him in the air and danced, literally.  If He hadn’t delivered, I would be stooped and old for my age today.  My only hope was in Him.  I was out of options.

         How can we say what kind of laughter Abraham had when God announced the coming birth of a child in his old age?  Maybe it was of the praising kind.  Perhaps it celebrated a God so good, so faithful, that laughter expressed celebration.

         Now, I know that the real test is not laughter that celebrates after a miracle but one that expresses faith before it happens.  “Lord, I’m celebrating Your power.  I know You can do this.  I celebrate Your goodness even though I don’t see it yet.”  I’ve had a few of those too but not half as many as I would like to tell you I’ve had.  My faith has been so weak at times.  What did I do instead?  The opposite of laughing.  Merriam Webster’s Dictionary spells them out in quite a long list; crying, moaning, sobbing, wailing, frowning, pouting, and scowling.  Not that there shouldn’t be tears in God’s waiting room.  There should.  But there should always be the presence of joyful confidence in a God who can, and will, break through the dark clouds.

Today is a day to remember.  I celebrate You with a joyous spirit.  Amen

PRINCESS TO PRINCESS

And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.  Genesis 17:15

         Sarai means princess.  So does Sarah.  She was once of nobility among her people, her father’s princess.  Once God spoke her name, changed it slightly, she was named as one who would share in the covenant God made with Abraham.  She would be God’s princess.  The name change might seem insignificant, but it was a sign that she would be foundational in the new thing God was doing with their future.

         When I was born, my parents gave me a name.  How I felt about it depended on how others said it.  Did they use it to call me with joy?  Did they ever say it tenderly as I went to sleep?  Did they tweak it and morph it into an endearing nickname?  If none of the above was true, I’ll probably not only despise my name but also myself.

         Something happens though when God calls my name. The very voice of Love gives it a unique sound in my spirit.  There is no way God can touch anything without the properties of it changing.

         Satan would love to use a common thing like a name to inspire self-hatred.  He goads others to ridicule.  He knows that with enough negative input, I’ll associate my name with painful memories.

         God can, and wants to, heal the meaning of my name.  It shouldn’t be hard.  I have His Spirit living inside.  If I just be still and ask Him to speak my name, won’t He do it?  He is a wooing God.

You are personal and eager to do things I’ve never even thought of asking.  Expand the possibilities.  Amen

THE MARK AND WHO CAN SEE IT

This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised.  Genesis 17:10

            What a covenant God made with Abraham!  God intended to give him and all his descendants a physical sign that they were His chosen people.  Circumcision, a surgical procedure, was performed on male children at eight days old.  It was a ‘seal of righteousness’ that all humankind could see.

            Today, I am also marked with a seal, but not with a physical mark.  The ‘seal of righteousness’ upon me is spiritual and can only be seen with spiritual eyes.  The Holy Spirit is my seal.  Just as every human being could see evidence of a circumcision, so every spiritual being can see evidence of the Holy Spirit who marks me.  Angels see Him.  Demons see Him.

            The sign of God’s blessing and covenant upon Israel made them plenty of enemies.  Even to this day.  The sign of God’s blessing upon me, the indwelling of the Spirit, also earns me plenty of spiritual enemies.  When Satan sees me, he sees the presence of God.  His hatred cannot be underestimated but neither can God’s favor for His child.

            When I look at myself in the mirror, am I consumed with disgust and a measure of self-hatred?  How tragic.  The spirit world sees Jesus when they see me.  I vow to do a better job at remembering that I am a mortal shell that houses divinity.

Those who hate me – hated you first.  Help me treat respectfully what you love, starting with myself.  Amen 

Blessed be the Lord, my Rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle.  Psalm 144:1

Trains ~ Perceives by sight or some other sense.  Distinguishes and discriminates.

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PRAYER:  Teach me how to fight my enemy like You did, Jesus.  He comes at me like he came at you; quoting scripture, presenting spiritual arguments in such a persuasive way that it’s hard to discern if what I’m hearing is a God-breathed idea.  But You knew the difference when You were in the desert and You will train me to develop my spiritual senses, too.

Many decisions lay in front of me.  How do I know Your plans for me?  My enemy mimics Your voice and wants to lead me to do something spiritual at the wrong time.  The consequences are too great if I am a novice.

He told You to turn stones to bread when You were hungry.  It wasn’t an evil idea Lord, because You did it later with the loaves and fishes.  The miracle in the desert would have just been premature but how did You know?   Was it because He promised You a way out of pain before it was time?

Today, I am asking You to teach me, train me, make me sharp and discerning.  You promised You would when You sent Your Spirit to live inside Your children.  “He will become your teacher and guide,” You said.   How I need You.  Satan would have me move when I should be still, speak when I should hold my tongue, overextend myself when I should simplify, feel guilty when I should celebrate Your forgiveness, and even bring an end to something holy when it’s nearly time for advancement.

Speak Your Word into my spirit.  Speak loudly and clearly.  You promised that Your sheep would know Your voice.  So, let me know without a doubt that it’s You and not him.  Or, let me know that it’s him and not You.  Give me the precise Word to speak to overcome the voice of the tempter and liar.  Make me skilled and seasoned with the Sword for a battle that I cannot see.  All for Your honor and glory.  In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen

HOW I AM DEFINED

No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.  Genesis 17:5

            Anyone who names me has a position of authority over me.  My name can be a  source of joy or source of pain, depending on the relationship I have with the name-giver.  I am always struck by how deeply some people hate their names.  It goes beyond wincing at the sound of it.  Oftentimes, a person was named after a relative they didn’t care for.  For years they struggled with it, only to adopt some nickname to avoid using their real name.

            Abram’s name, given at birth, means ‘my father is great’.  It speaks of his prestigious ancestry.  His name was all about the family he came from.  When God called him for spiritual greatness, he gave him a new name.  Abraham means ‘father of many nations.’  The focus shifted from his past to his future.

            When someone is given a new name in scripture, they are receiving a new status, calling, or change in character.   The timid are named strong.  The insecure is named a solid rock.  Whom God favors, God renames.

            In ignorance, I can feel forgotten.  God only renames the spiritually great, right? If I believe that, I will flounder in my sense of identity.  I will not grasp who I am; not only by virtue of who God created me to be, but who I am in regeneration and redemption.  I have a new name in Christ.  With that change comes privileges and responsibilities that define my future.  I am like Abraham after all.

            Satan is a liar and accuser.  His mission is to destroy every confidence I have in Christ.  He is constantly trying to convince me that I am not who God says I am, that  I’m a fake.  But if I understand the new name I’ve been given as God’s child, I will live safely in a fortress of strength.  No accusation of Satan will be successful against me.  He will not be able to undermine my confidence.

            So I take Revelation 3:12 in deeply today. “I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.”

            Like Abraham, my new name is all about my future.  Inscribed on my body, soul, and spirit (a three-fold spiritual tattoo) is the name of God, his city, and his Son!  Every time Satan looks at me, he sees the name Jesus.  I’m branded for eternity and though he sees it and knows it, he’s counting on the fact that I don’t.  Or, that I’ll forget it when I sin and fall flat on my face. I must remember that my new name has been forged through forgiveness, not failure. When God looks at me, now and forever, he sees Jesus.  My calling is new and my character change is in process.

When you write with your pen, Lord, it’s with permanent ink.  Amen

AM I TOO OLD?

When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty;walk before me, and be blameless, that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” Genesis 17:1-2

         Is anyone too old to come to Jesus?  We know the right answer.  “No, anyone, at any age, can trust Christ.”  Yet, we can despair over the elderly parent close to us.  They seem too far gone in their ability to see truth and trust a Savior.  They have a history of sin and scripture says that sin upon sin brings deception.  Their eyes are blinded by a lifetime of iniquity.  Yet, new birth happens with prayer, warfare, scripture and a loving and gentle perseverance.

         Is anyone too old for God to do a new thing?  Again, we know the right answer.  “God can call someone at 80 and his greatest achievement for the kingdom can be ahead of him.”  Yet, we can despair over ourselves when, at mid-life, we feel we have blown it.  The prime years of life are behind us and we believe we are too far gone for God to offer a pristine beginning.  We call our life to this point ~ ‘wasted years’.

         I consider Abram.  He was ninety-nine when the Lord appeared and reiterated the blessing and covenant.  God is about to change his name ~ a cataclysmic spiritual event that always precedes spiritual greatness.  He is anything but washed up.  Though, if we were to talk with Abram, he would need days, not hours, to tell us stories of his life.  Yes, he had taken great steps of faith but also matched them with great steps of failure.  He had betrayed his wife, taken a handmaiden to produce an heir, and made a mess of family relationships.  If anyone could have felt disqualified, it was Abram.

         Are you thinking of a senior adult as you read this?  I am.  A woman in her nineties.  Three marriages.  Two daughters who hate her; one physically assaulted her recently.  She’s seen it all over the course of her life.  Successful in business but jaded by the majority who have done anything for power, sex, and wealth.  She doesn’t know Jesus yet.  But recently, God has allowed her need of Him to surface and she’s open to the reality of prayer and God’s loving intervention.  This is a first.  Somehow, through a lifetime of experiences that would give anyone a hard heart, the love of Christ is breaking through to hers.  Soon, He will call her name.  She will hear and her greatest days may be ahead of her.  She’s got five more years before she’s as old as Abram when God spoke.  A God who is not impressed, nor restrained, by the limits of old age ~ stunned him.

No one is too old.  Not others.  Not me.  No one is too far gone.  Not others.  Not me.  In You, Jesus, all things are made new. Amen

HEAT DAMAGED

I have become like wineskin in the smoke, yet I have not forgotten your statutes.  Psalm 119:83

A wineskin is a ancient bottle made of leather.  If it got too near someone’s campfire for too long a period, it would dry out, crack, and become unusable. However, a little bit of exposure to the smoke would be a good thing because the wine would take on a distinctive smoky overtone. Continue reading “HEAT DAMAGED” →