Category: Daily Devotionals

Testing ~ The Subject We Avoid

Published on by Christine Wyrtzen1 Comment

After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” Genesis 22:1

I’ve spoken with three women, just this week, who believe God is testing them. He’s led each of them into the wilderness and the pain and pressure seem unbearable. Whether I am a new Christian or a seasoned believer, a time of testing challenges my view of God and how He loves His children. How can He say that I am the apple of His eye yet test me with pain? Can it really be that the resulting faith is so valuable to both of us that the testing is really a loving act, not a cruel one?

I’m not going to attempt to answer any of those questions here. Just raise them. I’m about to enter the story of Abraham’s testing period. He’s asked to sacrifice his own son on the altar. It’s inconceivable that God would ask such a thing, isn’t it? So, I’m letting my unrest stand this morning. Questions are good. Though I already know the end of the story, Abraham didn’t. And like him, when testing comes, the pain that comes with it unearths the hidden things of my heart. What can stay conveniently veiled in good times erupts under stress. Lies and accusations abound when I was previously unaware such things existed in my own soul. Perhaps this is one of the ‘gifts’ of testing?

I’m jumping into the deep end of the pool. No shallow answers. I hope you’ll join me for the next week as we lace up Abraham’s sandals and feel the pain of a father’s heart. He is torn by his love for God and his love for his son. They appear to be mutually exclusive.

This morning, let’s feel the tension. If you are in the middle of testing, it’s okay to allow your own questions to surface. God will lead us through the minefields ahead of us.

Lord, I want You to speak to me through this story. Only Your voice, Lord. Reveal Yourself and give me the treasures of the darkness. Amen

 Journal Question: Are you one who distracts yourself from feeling any pain? Maybe you escape into television, gadgets, work, food, Facebook, and even social functions with Christian friends. Will you take one lunch hour this week to fast for 30 minutes in order to seek God on a new level?  Let’s make this commitment together.

Why Can’t I See Him?

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Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8

Purity and defilement are polar opposites. A pure heart sees God. A defiled heart does not. A pure heart has a cleansed conscience. A defiled heart has a seared one.

Can I achieve purity of heart with mere mental discipline? Not remotely. Some would say to just ‘think on the things’ that Paul advocates in Philippians. But those mental gymnastics don’t make me pure. Though they might help me stay pure in heart, purity is the gift God gives to me upon confession of sin.  A defiled heart is one that is deceived. To the degree that I have a history of unconfessed sin, I can be sure that deception has a hold on me and has rendered me partially blind. Christ won’t be someone I treasure because my vision is impaired.

When mentoring women, I take them through a life inventory. I explain that past sins, not yet confessed, bear consequences of spiritual blindness. Unholy spiritual legacies from family bloodlines will also pass on deception. Let me speak from personal experience. My father, and his parents, belonged to the Masonic Lodge. When he asked to be released from his vows, he initiated a freedom for my sister and me. If he had stayed in the Lodge, he would have passed on spiritual blindness since the belief system of the Lodge is rooted in Eastern religion. Our family did some significant spiritual work to fully renounce the ties of our ancestors. Just as they took vows, one at a time, they needed to be renounced one at a time. Some vague general prayer didn’t really hit the mark.

Paul addressed this subject another way. “To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted.” Titus 1:15   My rudder, resident in my conscience, is corrupted by unbelief.

If I want to see God and remain pure in heart, I need to be tough on sin. I aim to be a sin-killer. Otherwise, I risk wearing foggy eyeglasses when I behold the face of God.

Bad eyesight can creep up on me. Expose my sin before it metastasizes. I want to see You in all of Your glory. Amen

When Satan Pours On The Heat

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And when the devil had finished every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. Luke 4:13

I find that temptation rarely comes on a good day. I would have more resources to resist. Temptation comes when I’m worn down, when I’ve lost a night’s sleep, when I’m grieving something, or when I’m stressed by life. That’s when the enemy pours it on. Is there a scripture to support that? Actually, yes.  Jesus went from his own beautiful baptism by John the Baptist to the desert for 40 days. His calling was followed by a season of testing. (Isn’t that the way it is!) When Jesus was alone, weathering the elements of an unforgiving wilderness, hungry, tired….that’s when Satan came with guns loaded. One temptation after another bombarded him to offer Jesus a way out of distress early.  Instead of persevering and waiting for God’s intervention and care, Satan wanted Him to take advantage of a counterfeit fix. All Jesus had to do was worship him.

We can also be sure that temptation will involve an offer of pain relief that encourages us to circumvent waiting on God. Jesus showed us what to do. He didn’t cave no matter how weakened He was. He quoted scripture and put the enemy in His place. He stayed the course and waited on God’s grace and comfort, and eventually, deliverance.

Today’s scripture is what concludes His wilderness temptation. When the devil had been unsuccessful at every juncture point, he departed from Jesus until another opportune time. When would that be? When Jesus would be weary from ministry, misunderstood by those who once loved Him, and betrayed by Judas. These would comprise the next opportunities for temptation.

If you are in a difficult period of life, beware of the one who doesn’t play fair. Satan loves to prey on the vulnerable. Listen for the roar of the pretend lion. Have a plan. Have some scripture picked out and ready so that when you want like everything to compromise, you can withstand the temptation. Every victory tones our spiritual muscles for the ‘next time.’

And when Your wilderness was over, You entered ministry with power. I want everything You promised. Don’t let me cave. Amen

Application, Not Theory.

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So faith comes from hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ.  Romans 10:17

Life-saving advice means that what was shared with me was so valuable that I couldn’t wait to go away and apply it.  I have complete confidence in it.

One of the meanings for faith, in the Greek, is ‘to have complete confidence in something.’  The evidence of confidence is application.

Abraham had faith in God.  How do we know that?  He left his home village of Ur and took off for a new life.  Saul had faith after experiencing Christ on the road to Damascus.  How do we know that?  He went from hunting down Christians to becoming ‘the hunted.’  Peter and Andrew had faith after hearing Jesus’ call to them.  How do we know that?  They left their fishing business and their families to follow Jesus, even unto death.

Many today say that they believe in God; that he lived, died, and spoke the truth.  They equate belief with faith.  Yet, there has been no action that has proven their confidence.  Words are cheap without evidence of life-change.

Ultimately, this is not a devotional about unbelievers vs. believers.  It is more personal.  I must ask myself the question, “Do I have faith that Scripture is true?”  I answer ‘yes’ without even blinking.  But if that’s true, am I acting upon what I read without hesitation?  Am I one who looks for loopholes?  Do I rationalize why I haven’t obeyed yet?

Or, am I bold in my application?  Will I stand up for truth in a meeting where it will cost me something?  Will I take on a challenge God has led me to if I fear I’m not qualified?  Will I risk offending family or even a good friend by charting a different course from them?  Will I leave a group where I’m comfortable if God is telling me to join a different Bible study, Sunday school class, or even go to a different church?

Difficult obedience is the proof of faith.  “Faith comes by hearing”….yes, but faith is more than saying “I believe.”  The essence of faith is a confidence that bears proof through actions.

I believe You, Lord.  In everything You speak, I believe You.  Where do I need to act on it today?  Show me where I’ve been lying to myself.  Amen

Bilhah and Others Who Are Used And Abused

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While Israel lived in that land, Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine.  And Israel heard of it. Genesis 35:22

Bilhah is a woman without rights. She was Rachel’s maid all the way back before Rachel was married. She learned to obey orders very young.  She never knew freedom and her life was characterized by being used by others.

When Rachel couldn’t conceive, she gave Bilhah to Jacob as a secondary wife. She used her as a surrogate to conceive babies. Once they were born, Rachel would keep them and adopt them as her own sons. Once again, Bilhah had no choice.  Years later, she was victimized again as Jacob’s oldest son, Reuben, took her honor. He snuck in her tent and in the darkness, he lay with her. Bilhah could teach a class today on what it means to be victimized.  Did she know God? I want to believe so. She was immersed in all the teaching, the worship, the building of altars at pinnacle moments of faith. She saw it all and probably clung to God for the strength to endure hardship.

What can be said for the Bilhah’s of this world? Perhaps you are one. From a young age, you were taken against your will, used for someone else’s pleasure. Your life was a set up and choices were made for you. How do you come to believe in a God that appears to bless some and curse others? Those with heartbreaking stories have posed the question to me on many occasions. Can He be trusted to rule fairly?

God’s feelings toward Bilhah are not revealed, nor are her feelings for God recorded. But lest God become One I stumble over, the whole context of scripture is at my fingertips. A generation earlier, Hagar was in similar circumstances. Used. Spurned. Banished. (She and her child.) But in the aftermath of man’s sin and the tragedy that had been thrust upon a young mother, God’s character shines through when He remembers her and meets her personally in an unforgiving desert. He reveals Himself as the ‘God who sees her.’ El-Roi

If I measure God’s goodness by my own story, confined to my personal lifespan, He can look pathetic and quite guilty. I must widen my view to include all of history. I must take in God’s over arching redemptive plan that included the provision of a Savior who would redeem tragic stories. I must look ahead to Paradise where faithfulness will be rewarded and where sin will be judged. There, the first will be last and the last will be first. Hagars and Bilhahs will lead the way in heaven. Ultimately, the broken are blessed. Even here. The extent to which God allows one to be crushed, alternatively, He gives that person an unequaled capacity to know Him intimately. Treasures of the darkness are promised to the one who seeks God by faith when all evidence against him seems ironclad.

For the one who is Bilhah, disclose Yourself to her today as El-Roi. Amen

You Are Now Who You Are In Heaven

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So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the robe of many colors that he wore. Genesis 37:23

Joseph was stripped of his robe of honor. Jesus was stripped of his robe, too. The momentary humiliation didn’t change the destiny or the spiritual identity of either. Jesus stayed in touch with His divine favor but I suspect that Joseph did not. History would prove that the brother’s destruction of the robe of many colors impacted him greatly but, ultimately, it did nothing to stop Joseph’s ascension to a royal position in Egypt.  Their sin against him only propelled him to an exile that led to glory.

Jesus was God’s Son whether anyone acknowledged it or not. If the accusation flew that he was only the illegitimate son of Mary, Jesus was still God. When the crowd publicly humiliated him by accusing him of demonic possession, Jesus was still God. When His family eventually turned on Him and believed Him to be mentally unstable, Jesus was still God. When He hung on a Roman cross and died the most degrading death in the Roman culture, His spiritual status did not change. Jesus was still God.

If ever there were a time I needed to settle my spiritual identity, it’s now. This world is  growing more and more unfriendly to the name of Jesus Christ and anyone who is associated with Him will experience discrimination. If a barb from a parent can lay me low for four decades, how will I survive if a community ostracizes me? I will remember that I’m a much loved, cherished child of God.  If unfair criticism from a local spiritual leader sends me into hiding, how will I sustain the intentional diatribe of non-Christians who are salivating to misjudge?  I will remember that I’m a much loved, cherished child of God.

No ill treatment in this world can change my status in heaven nor will it change my status on earth as far as how God sees me.  His opinion and conferred status is eternal and the only honor that matters.  It trumps all dis-honor.  The degradation of others should be discounted; it will pass away.  While earth bestows the basest kind of shame, God bestows the heavenliest kind of honor.

The only way to stay in touch with these beautiful realities is to read a Word that is eternal, not temporary. Whatever it says, I can stake on it being true forever and ever. Today, I may be Joseph in a pit. Tomorrow, I will be reigning with Christ.

Every time Jesus was crushed, He looked up until He felt Your favor. I lock my eyes on You today. In Jesus’ name, Amen

Knowing My Perfect Storm

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And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.” But he refused. Genesis 39:7-8

God has Satan on a leash. He can’t do more than God allows. Temptations test my faith. I’m required to dig deeply and use spiritual faith muscles that need strength training. Satan never tempts me just once, either. When I take hold of God’s grace and flee one kind of temptation, Satan will come back with yet another variety. He is relentless and doesn’t play fair. He is intent on concocting the perfect storm so that I will have no willpower. He’s after my kryptonite.

Satan tried to use pain to drive a wedge between Joseph and his God. It didn’t work. (But it does with most people and it certainly did with me. A low threshold of pain causes strong Christians to fall into disbelief.) Yet, Joseph stood strong. He stayed tender, teachable, and resolute in his faith.

When the catalyst of pain failed, he turned to pleasure. Day after day, Potiphar’s wife wooed Joseph. She was probably beautiful and Joseph was, most likely, lonely. That he didn’t give in to her was nothing short of miraculous.

Satan is intuitive. He is also strategic, cunning and patient. He spies, watching my life to assess where I am vulnerable. He knows my story and knows my wounding patterns. I can’t afford for him to know more about my weaknesses than I do. Perhaps this is why David was so intent on asking God to search his heart. Knowing himself as God did was critical to his spiritual victory.

Under what circumstances would you fall? Do you know? What are your unique longings, and if someone or something could fulfill them right now, would you be tempted? It’s not a mistake that Paul defines sin as trading the glory of Christ for something else. For Joseph, it could have been a forbidden affair with Potiphar’s wife. What trinket holds allure for you over the value of treasuring Christ?

Don’t let me run from the truth about myself. Show me who I am through Your eyes. Deliver me from any evil that is being customized for my defeat. In Jesus’ name, Amen

Would I Dare Say This?

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When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was favorable, he said to Joseph, “I also had a dream: there were three cake baskets on my head, and in the uppermost basket there were all sorts of baked food for Pharaoh, but the birds were eating it out of the basket on my head.” And Joseph answered and said, “This is its interpretation: the three baskets are three days. In three days Pharaoh will lift up your head—from you!—and hang you on a tree.” Genesis 40:16-19

I am one from whom others often seek advice. Questions like, “Why am I like this?” “What do you think the problem is?” “Why am I stuck and not progressing?” “Have I done something wrong?” “Is God punishing me?” I love to take someone’s life puzzle and make divine sense of the pieces.

But having said that, the hardest thing for anyone with a gift of mercy is to give bad news. If a mercy gift is accompanied by a prophetic gift, obedience becomes difficult. God gives insight that can be difficult to speak. Mercy wants to minimize the damage and cushion the blow.

Joseph’s obedience was put to the test so many times on his rise to blessing. Two cellmates, both former servants to the royal court, share two different dreams. Joseph happily told the first that he would be blessed and reinstated to his former position. Upon that good news, the other man shared his dream. Joseph was instantly in a dilemma. There was no good news about the 2nd dream. He would not be restored to honor; he would be hung. At that point, Joseph could have claimed ignorance but he didn’t fail to give the fateful interpretation.

Can God count on me to speak the truth when truth is unwelcome? Can He depend on me to paint an accurate picture of what’s ahead for a person, or an organization, if being honest threatens relationships? I will admit that this is a struggle for me. I’d rather stay silent and pray than speak up to inflict life-saving wounds. I’m faced with a number of these dilemmas right now. It seems that no matter where I turn in ministry at the moment, I need an infusion of holy boldness.

For any like me, know that I am praying for you.

Make me Your prophet. Trembling but obedient. In Jesus’ name, Amen

She Wasn’t Even Afraid

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By faith, after Moses was born, he was hidden by his parents for three months, because they saw that the child was beautiful, and they didn’t fear the king’s edict. Hebrews 11:23

Fear is Satan’s biggest tactic to destroy the children of God.  Since we were never created to encounter evil nor to be able to fully understand the depths of depravity, evil scares us.  We can’t figure out the maze and the minefields of it.  “Don’t be afraid” is a frequent message from God throughout the old testament. In the Gospels, Jesus continued to encourage faith and told many people, on many occasions, not to fear.  I think I’m finally getting the message that I should be able to encounter evil and not be moved with terror.

This short verse about baby Moses and his parents is one that has escaped me all the times I’ve read this chapter.  How did I miss something so shocking!  Pharaoh decreed that all baby boys should be drowned.  Yocheved, Moses mother, hid him for a while after he was born.  When he was too big to conceal any longer, she conceived a plan that would culminate in him being raised in the palace.  The astounding thing is that his mother, though pregnant with a son, did not fear the king’s edict.  I can understand now why she would be mentioned for her faith.

Threats by someone powerful can be crippling.  Those with the muscles to exert force over others, including politicians and governments, can send the powerless into a perpetual state of fear and dread.  Yocheved, a Hebrew, a woman, in an Egyptian culture could teach us a lot about an unshakeable trust in God.  Was her lack of fear a form of denial?  No. She made plans to hide her baby. Was her lack of fear due to the fact that  Pharaoh’s power had been over-exaggerated?  No. He had the midwives murder thousands upon thousands of infants.  Her lack of fear was due to the fact that she saw this pivotal moment in history, saw the beauty of her son, and perceived the possibility of him winning the heart of some Egyptian mother.  I also believe she knew the risks and trusted God with the outcome.

The powerful still make threats ~ inspired by their father, their devil.  We never know which ones are empty threats either.  But trust in God’s sovereignty, a firm knowing that no one can erase my destiny and cut my life short because my Father oversees my comings and goings, means that I can rest.  Some people are bolder than others.  I’ve always been prone to fear and worry but there will always be something that makes even the robust shake and tremble.  At that point, whether we have faith in God will be our lifeline!  Our ability to trust Him will have been determined by how much I fed my faith; how much, or how little, I invested in our relationship.  The time to prepare for the dark is when I’m in the light.  You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.  I Corinthians 5:5

I refuse to finish my life with fear winning.  Keep training me.  Amen

When Jesus Doesn’t Feel Like Enough

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You let your mouth loose in evil And your tongue frames deceit. “You sit and speak against your brother; You slander your own mother’s son. “These things you have done and I kept silence.  Psalm 50:19-21

Nothing stirs up our flesh like family rivalry.  The personality and gifts of one child can be celebrated more than the uniqueness of another child.  Or, a mother favors one while the father favors another.  From birth, affections and privileges can be divided.  It would appear that harmony among children is often doomed from the start.

Siblings can spend their lives at odds.  The tension is never resolved.  Family inheritances only add to further alienate relationships.  Even in old age, the stuff of youth is rehearsed.  A bystander in their thirties marvels that brothers and sisters in their seventies are still arguing.  Not until they get much older will they understand that childhood offenses seem like yesterday.   A brother or sister can be despised all the way to their deathbed because of something that was done or said during their teen years.  Because our past replays vividly on the jumbo screen of our heart, the wounds stay fresh.

Love, respect, favor, and wealth?  How can life-long prejudices dissolve?  Someone new must arrive on the scene to offer something that is greater in value than what we lost.  Someone has ~ and His name is Jesus.  Healing for severely fractured families is possible but only as they come together to love and worship Jesus.  As each one’s appetite is transformed by beholding the beauty and glory of Christ, the stuff that comprised their arguments seems miniscule.  Every family member comes to realize that what they had been fighting over is a trinket compared to the gifts Jesus freely offers.  And, He is no respecter of persons.

Perhaps I have a life-long angst regarding other members of my family.  All I have to do is think about that person and my insides are churning.  Being loved by Jesus and becoming emotionally engaged with my spiritual birthright melts away resentment.  What I seek, I already have in Christ.  It may be hope deferred but it is real and it is mine.  If it doesn’t seem like enough to my heart, I must ask God to open my heart to incomparable gift of Him!  Is He not powerful enough to transform my affections?

Open my spiritual eyes to see the value of You and everything You long to give.  Help me re-orient my soul so that my hands are clutching You instead of things that perish. In Jesus name, Amen

Journal Question:  What memory from childhood still haunts you?  What is so unfair that the hurt it generates eats away at your flesh like a cancer?  What are you trying to extract from another family member that you could abandon today for what Jesus offers?  Today can be the day you turn a page in your history.  How badly do you want freedom?

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