Category: Daily Devotionals

And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What did you see, that you did this thing, [turn over your wife to me]?” Abraham said, “I did it because I thought, ‘There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’  Genesis 20:10-11

         Sometimes, by all appearances, I am completely hemmed in. The only way of escape that I can see is to make a choice I would never otherwise make. It is against my conscience. Yet, my rationale overrules and I cave to engage in something unwise and even sinful.

         Abraham was in a tough spot. He had traveled into heathen territory and now He feared for the lives of his family. He assumed that the king would act in an unconscionable way by killing him in order to secure Sarah and all their wealth. It’s not that Abraham failed to be realistic about people. It’s that he assumed the worst about God. He believed God was not strong enough to keep His promises. As it turned out, Abimelech had a strong conscience and once he discovered that Sarah was Abraham’s wife, he trembled in fear over the sin he almost committed.

         What Abraham also did, and I never saw this before, was throw temptation before Abimelech. He provided the perfect opportunity for infidelity.  My bad choices always affect others.

         So many things can happen that make it appear that my world has fallen apart. I can be hemmed in by disease, finances, others bad choices, the mistakes of my past, and there appears to be no perfect way of escape. There just is no righteous door in sight. To cope, I manufacture a solution that is anything but perfect. I have to wince as I move ahead. If I could hear God speak, He would say, “Why didn’t you trust me? I’m never out of options and I would have led you through a door you couldn’t even see?”

         I have learned two things the hard way. 1.)When there is no righteous solution, I have learned not to move. Wait on God.   2.) When the righteous solution appears to have a bad outcome, I obey God anyway and know that He will order my steps into spacious places.

You are my hiding place.  You are my mountain mover.  You are the one who changes the hearts of those who have the power to harm me.  I vow to trust You and not myself.

WHEN I JUMP TO CONCLUSIONS

We wanted to come to you – I, Paul, more than once – and yet Satan thwarted us.  I Thess. 2:18

What I think are God’s plans for me and God’s actual plan are often far apart.  If I automatically assume that all my goals are His goals, just because they appear to be noble, then I will be confused when my way gets thwarted.  Is it Satan who prevents me from moving forward or is it God hemming me in order to move me in a different direction? Continue reading “Jumping To Conclusions” →

WHEN THE GLITTER IS REMOVED

I have seen a limit to all perfection, but your commandment is exceedingly broad.  Psalm 119:96

            Matthew Henry lists David’s disillusionments.  He saw Goliath, the strongest man around, overcome by a small stone.  He saw his nephew, Asahel, one described as ‘swift as a gazelle’, killed on the battlefield.  He saw his fairest son, Absalom, deform in character and turn on him.  He watched the seeming perfection of everyone around him take on their true limits.  Their glitter was removed.  The only thing that grew taller and wider with time was the Word of God. It was a painful thing to have that which beguiled me take on its true form.  The disillusionment unraveled my world.

           Recently, I taught at The Cove in Asheville, NC.  I talked with a woman whose daughter was dating someone who was not good for her.  Yet, her daughter was absolutely taken with him.  “What can I do,” she lamented.  I suggested that she pray and ask that his true colors be exposed, that the glitter that her daughter sees be removed by a God who wants her daughter to know truth.

            Jesus is to be my treasure.  Any other person or thing that my heart covets in place of Him has had a bona fide paint job by the enemy.  Satan allures me to the counterfeits, making each one seem as if it will fill my soul where it aches.  It’s a mirage.  Though it may seem for a time that it’s the thing I was looking for all along, eventually its glitter is removed.  The downward spiral into the mire of disappointment can cripple me permanently if I don’t turn to the only One who expands with time.

            The more I attempt to see the glory of Jesus, the more glory there is to discover.  The more I attempt to understand a stunning Bible truth, the larger and more expansive it becomes.  The things of the kingdom are broad, never disappointing the true seeker.

I’ve known so many disappointments and, for a while, they crippled me.  It took me a while to find you as my treasure.  Now that I have, my joy of discovering your limitless love and power only abounds.  Thank you for drawing me to you, the source of all pleasure.  Amen

THE LURE OF HOPELESSNESS

Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.  Genesis 16:2

         See what hopelessness has produced once it was verbalized?  Abram, who loved ‘hopeless Sarai’, empathized, then shared her hopelessness, then embraced her dangerous suggestion.  The thing that’s missing from all of this is prayer.  Sarai didn’t take her plight to God.  Abram, who listening to her crying, didn’t offer to make a sacrifice, build an altar, and get on his face with his wife.  They engineered a human solution and oh, how the world has suffered since.

         Unbelief, which leads to hopelessness, is a cancer.  It metastasizes like wildfire because the natural tendency of human beings is to rebel and wander in unbelief.  It goes against every natural grain in my being to have faith.  That’s why I must fight for it!  What little I have, I must guard with my life.  I must surround myself with others who are also fighting for faith because when I am my weakest and most vulnerable, they can pray for me and whisper God’s promises in my ear.

         There is a cross for every child of God to bear.  Though I can think someone else’s life looks perfect, it isn’t.  They also cry in the night about that thing that breaks their heart.  Over the nearly 60 years of my life, I’ve had more than a few say they wish they could be me, and live my life, thinking it’s nearly perfect.  I have laughed out loud, believe me.  I think to myself, “Really, you want to be me? Do you really want the story that has gone with the calling?  I don’t think so.”  All of us speak out of ignorance.

         The cross God has given me is mine to carry, not abandon.  Yet, I can spend all my energy trying to figure out how to engineer a solution to it.  Instead, I should submit to God and ask for the daily grace to carry the cross well.  If Abram and Sarai’s cross had been permanent barrenness; God would have carried them on the wings of faith.  The irony is, He promised them a miracle.  Deliverance was coming.  But in the difficult waiting period, they chose to walk in unbelief.  Hagar and Abram’s union would be a disaster.

           If you are about to enact a human solution to that which seems too crushing to bear, stop!  Either ask God to show you what to do and wait for Him to move or let us be like the Apostle Paul.  Though he asked for the thorn in the flesh to be removed, God did not do it.  Paul submitted, and through his weakness, He experienced the strength God gives.  So much so ~ that it became the focal point of His stories.  All His boasting was in the keeping power of Christ.

What will I do if some of my prayers are not answered the way I want?  I vow to be faithful, rely on Your grace, and speak well of you.  Amen

And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”  Genesis 15:16

If I had to pick one thing that has caused me to stumble over God, it would involve the question of why he waits so long to judge evil.  Those who are suffering at the hands of others cry out to God for deliverance.  The pain is unbearable.  The damage seems irreparable.  The thought of it having no end seems unthinkable.  God will do something, right?  I mean, God loves and promises to protect His people.

It’s difficult to explain God’s reasons thoroughly.  Who can know the mind of God?  But, some hints comfort me. This verse points at something weighty to consider.

The 400 years of Jewish slavery in Egypt are foretold to Abram.  God reveals that He will not bring them out of slavery until the iniquity of the Amorites is complete.  Amorites are the ones who possess Canaan, the Promised Land.  Their heinous sins will grow slowly through six generations.  There will be a limit to what God allows.  When their iniquity reaches the heights of notoriety, God will strike.

A couple of things I can conclude.  1. God does allow some evil to run a long course, and that decision can hurt His people.  2. He waits to judge because His heart is merciful and doesn’t want anyone to perish.  He gives all of us innumerable chances to hear His call and respond with repentance.  3. He allows evil to become blatant so that when He strikes, the message is clear about the consequences of sin.  4. With judgment, God’s power, justice, holiness, and glory are on full display.

As I reflect on my own life, I only understand a little of why God withheld justice for so long in hindsight.  I learned about the nature of evil.  The longer I suffered, the more wisdom became mine.  When I was released to live again, and abundantly, I could see that freedom came right on time.  It was a knowing in my spirit.  Many of my questions still remained, though.  But the real test was whether, in the middle of pain and unanswered questions, I could still say that God is good and does all things well. I had to say this by faith, with no visible evidence, and through many tears.

When you and I don’t understand, we can know that He does and has good reasons for how He chooses to rule.  In the end, heaven will reveal that God loved every one of us perfectly.

I pray right now for everyone who is suffering under the hand of evil.  Increase their faith.  Restore their trust.  Resurrect their cries for deliverance.  Oh Lord, judge the wicked and come to the aid of Your people.  Amen

ABRAM, GOD, ME & THE COVENANT

And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.” But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half. And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram.   Genesis 15:7-11

         God cut a covenant with Abram as a way to confirm the validity of all He had promised him. It was a blood offering, a blood oath. From that day on, there would be vows in place between God and Abram because of this ceremony. The ritual of cutting a covenant meant that each party was pledging all they were and all they owned to be forever available to the other person. Abram gave up all rights to himself and offered God the wealth of all he owned (exhibited by sacrificing the best of his flock for the covenant ceremony itself) as well as all rights to himself. He was no longer master of his own life but permanently put himself at God’s disposal.

            God did the same thing. He offered Abram all He was, all He owned; sharing the resources of heaven to lead, equip, and protect Abram. Who benefited most? Abram, for sure.

            A new covenant was cut at Calvary. Blood was shed again, except now it wasn’t the blood of animals, it was the blood of God’s own Son. When I embraced Jesus and came to God through the way of the cross, I took part in the covenant He offered just as tangibly as Abram and God enacted their ceremony. If I belong to Christ today, the covenant is firmly in place and this is what it means.

            Lord, I am completely yours. I give up all rights to myself and like Abram, I am listening for Your voice to lead me on my journey. All I am and all I have is Yours. I am at Your disposal for always.

            God’s response. And all I am is yours! All I have is yours. Continue reading “Abram, God, Me & the Covenant” →

OH, HOW I NEED A SIGN!

And he said to him, “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.” But he said, “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall possess it?”  Genesis 15:7-8

         Because of Jesus’ harsh words in the Gospels about asking for a sign, I can wrongly conclude that asking for such a thing is displeasing to God.  But this story is just one passage in the Old Testament that proves God gladly gives signs.  The difference between an acceptable request and an unacceptable request is the kind of heart that asks.

         Abram had already believed God, so much so that God had declared him righteous.  The sign he asked for was a commemorative event that would forever serve to remind him that God’s promise would come true.

         An unacceptable request for a sign comes from unbelief.  You’ve heard people say such things.  “When God comes down here Himself to tell me, then I’ll believe it!”  With such statements, there is no humility, no trace of true searching.  The undertone smacks of blasphemy.

          If signs were evil, then why would God give Jesus as a sign?  Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.  Is.7:14   When His people, in the context of relationship, looked longingly for salvation, God gave the best sign of all.  His only Son!

         Perhaps God has spoken to you about your future.  You know that God does not lie.  You know that God is a covenant keeping God.  You have been standing in faith, watching for the fulfillment of what He has promised.  But let’s face it, there are discouraging days.  We have an enemy who assaults us on all sides and undermines God’s character.  Our hearts can faint even though at the core of our spirit, we still believe.  We cry out to God for a sign, for a commemorative event that will strengthen our weakened hearts. God knows the deep weariness that plagues His people in the midst of their obedience.  He is the one who sent angels to minister to Jesus in the wilderness when He was depleted and weary.   He is the Father who rewards faith with signs and answered prayers.

You see where I’m fainting.  I hold on to you, in faith.  Would you give me a sign that will strengthen me for the long road ahead?  Amen

WHEN I’VE GIVEN UP!

And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.  Genesis 15:6

         Abraham believed God for what he didn’t have (an heir and descendants), for what he could never have without a gift from God himself.  That’s called faith. God was so overjoyed by Abram’s faith that he declared him righteous on the spot.  God made it as though Abram lived on the other side of the death of Christ and was wearing Christ’s righteousness.  No one but Abram in all of history, prior to the cross, was justified and declared righteous.  They rest of God’s followers made continual sacrifices to cover their sins but their sins weren’t removed from them until Christ died.

         This tells me, through story form, how much God prizes faith.  Am I believing God today for something I don’t have, for something I could never have without a gift from God’s hand?  Have I put everything on the line – waiting for God to move?  That is how faith looks.

         When I embraced Jesus as my Savior, I believed that He would forgive me and adopt me as His own.  These were things I couldn’t earn nor accomplish in any way for myself.  I laid everything on the line for what God promised to do for me.  That was my first great act of faith.  But my life is to be marked by daily acts of faith, incredulous acts of faith.  It’s tragic when I enter the kingdom by faith only to live the rest of my life in control of everything.  No faith required.  I miss out on miracles, passion, and amazement!

         God has rigged my life so that I would learn how to live by faith.  He has, through the fallen choices of others, afflicted me in ways that my survival is dependent on Him only.  I have been brought, and am being brought often, to the end of myself.  I must declare things hopeless without the move of God.  If I don’t have faith, I have nothing and will certainly live in despair.

         It was the mid-90’s when I put everything on the line.  I gave up on life and shut down.  It was a pivotal point as things crumbled all around me.  I could take my life, or curl up in a ball and live with a deadened heart, or cast my life upon Jesus and cry out for what I would never have without His intervention.  I’m so glad I made the third choice.

         If you’ve ever been to a Daughters of Promise Event, or a Prayer Mapping Event, you have heard me tell one story after another of God breaking through the fog of resignation and unbelief with one stunning miracle after another.  It’s not because I deserved it.  I didn’t.  It’s just that I serve a God who rewards faith!  I defend the character of a God who loves to do the impossible.

         I look again at my life this morning.  Where do things look hopeless?  Where have I languished for a lifetime thinking that nothing could ever change?  This is where faith is born.  I take my unbelief, speak God’s words over my dark soul, and cast all my hopes on Christ.  God is so pleased over unwavering faith that He greatly rewards it with one breakthrough after another.  Oh, how I wish we could share one-on-one today.

Faith is not rational.  It appears ludicrous to anyone watching.  That’s okay, Jesus.  Faith is a supernatural thing, fed on the diet of Your Word and Your grace.  Amen

A GOD WHO GETS MILEAGE OUT OF GIVING

And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”  Genesis 15:6

         God loves to give.  He is not stingy, but extravagant! Even though I did nothing to deserve His love, His nature is to bless.  And when He gives a gift, it always means more than I can understand at the time.  If God has blessed you recently with something unexpected, be prepared to see many tentacles materialize.  God may appear to be giving one thing but that ‘one thing’ brings ‘many things’.

         God told Abram in Genesis 13:6 that his descendants would be as numerous as grains of dust. Now, He tells him that his offspring will be as numerous as the stars.  Are these descendants one in the same?  Not on your life.  The blessing God speaks over Abram keeps increasing exponentially.  The descendants related to the earth are the Jewish people who will come after him.  The descendants related to the stars are his spiritual seed; those who will embrace Jesus globally over the course of time.  Could Abram understand what all this meant?  No way.  All he could see was a Jewish line of descendants.  Even this taxed his faith since he and Sarah were no longer of childbearing age.

         There are so many personal stories I could share with you of how God gets mileage out of gifts He gives.  Here’s just one example.  In 2008, God spoke to me in prayer and told me to start training twelve women at a time in Prayer Mapping.  I really questioned Him to make sure I heard right.  How would teaching twelve be better than teaching large groups? Wouldn’t I be minimizing impact?  Yet God persisted in His message to me and gave many confirmations, even reminding me that He changed the world with twelve!  So I began to schedule several retreats a year with openings for only twelve to register.  This was done by faith since this also did not appear to be an economically sound decision for the ministry.

         What happened?  This small intimate group was impacted in a way that would not have happened in a large group.  The teaching was interactive and the women shared their lives authentically.  The breakthroughs they experienced, every single one of them, left me on a spiritual mountaintop the likes of which I had rarely experienced.  I left praising God for His blessing, not realizing that I had only just begun to see what the blessing involved.  Over half of that group of twelve went home to sponsor their own Prayer Mapping event.  The ministry of strategic prayer increased exponentially because when God gives a gift, He gets mileage out of it.

         What may God be asking you to do that makes no sense to you?  It looks like you will lose instead of gain?  Take this advice from a spiritual sister.  I have gone on to sponsor many events for twelve and each of them has had exponential results.  So, run and do what God asks.  Trust His nature.  He longs to be gracious and His arms are full of gifts just waiting to be released into your future.

Lord, the stories I am telling today aren’t even the end of all You still plan to give me.  I know You.  Each act of obedience brings an open ended blessing.  There is no King like you.  Amen

SO MUCH FOR PARADISE

So the enemy took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their provisions, and went their way. They also took Lot, the son of Abram’s brother, who was dwelling in Sodom, and his possessions, and went their way.  Genesis 14:11-12

            What looks good to me may not be good for me.  When I choose something based on eye appeal, without the wisdom God offers, I will be a casualty of my ignorance.

            Abram had been generous.  He and Lot had stood overlooking the vistas of new land and a new future and Abram gave Lot first choice of where he’d like to settle.  Lot was not prayerful, did not seek God, and did not seek Abram’s advice either.  He grabbed the greenest and most promising land to the East (Sodom) and settled there.  He did not know the folly of making such a critical decision without prayer.  In just thirteen years, enemies would come in, conquer the land, and then take Lot and his family captive.

            Seeing how this story turned out, I can over-correct in the flesh and do the opposite thing.  I vow to pick the lesser of two choices, as a rule, to self-protect.  That is equally foolish.  The problem was not the lush land of Sodom.  The problem was Lot’s heart and his casual disregard of God.

            The take-away is this.  I must not let anything temporal control me. I can enjoy beautiful things but should hold them loosely.  Enjoy the things but worship God.   When presented with a job offer, one lucrative and one modest, I know that I will naturally be drawn to the one that promises wealth.  That being true, I also know that I can’t trust myself.  Only God knows if that option is good for me.  What I really want is His choice lest I become the likes of Lot whose perceived good fortune led him into slavery.

            What choices are you weighing today?  Who to marry, where to move, what job to take, where to move a parent with special needs, what church to attend…  The choice that seems obvious may be the wrong one.  The one without the glitter may turn out to be a blessing in disguise.  God is all too willing to reveal His secrets to any child who comes acknowledging that he is void of wisdom.

            One final thought.  Lot knew God had spoken to Abram and promised him a blessed future.  Leaving Abram at all, preferring to live anywhere else, was his greatest mistake.  I continue to make my company with those who walk closely with God and are under His blessing and favor.

I make such a mess when I live by my senses.  I can’t tell what I’m looking at, even though it’s pretty.  Oh God, protect me and lead me.  Amen