Don's Devotionals: Learning to love God

1 Kings 3:5  At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

Solomon’s answer pleased the Lord.  God said He would give him a wise and discerning heart.  He also would give Solomon that which he didn’t ask for – both riches and honor.  In this dream God closes with this admonition for Solomon, “And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life.” (1 Kings 3:14)  God was saying I will bless you with long life if you love me.

Yesterday’s devotional focused on earnestly seeking God – and the fact that He will reward those that do.  The same question (as in today’s scripture) was raised in terms of identifying what we would like the Lord to give us as a reward for earnestly seeking Him – if He asked.

We would probably ask for what is most on our hearts – and that could cover many things:  The salvation of parents or children or friends; a better job; money to pay bills; ability to be a better husband, wife, parent or child; to love better; to be better at what we do; to love the Lord more; to be used by Him; for an opportunity of ministry; for support for our ministry; to have good devotional times with the Lord; to have a desire to read and learn scripture;  – the list just goes on.  And none of these answers are wrong.

But at the end of the day, what does God really want and what is He offering?  I think of John 14:21, “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”  The Amplified Bible makes this verse jump off the page:

“The person who has My commands and keeps them is the one who [really] loves Me; and whoever [really] loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I [too] will love him and will show (reveal, manifest) Myself to him. [I will let Myself be clearly seen by him and make Myself real to him.]”

God wants to meet our needs and He instructs us to make them known to Him.  But He wants our relationship to grow beyond seeing Him as our source and provider.  He wants to be the love of our life.  He wants us to want Him so much that we receive the incredible blessing of His presence which He reserves for those who love Him this way.

I am reminded of the final scene in Anne of Green Gables.  Anne was an orphan and the story describes her adventures growing up and particularly, her relationship with a boy named Gilbert. At the end of the 4^th film there is a scene of the two of them on a little bridge over a pond.  He starts to tell her that he cannot give her wealth or diamonds… but she interrupts to tell him that she doesn’t care.  She looks up at him and says, “All I want is you.”  May our lives lovingly declare the same message to our Lord Jesus as we celebrate His birth.

Hebrews 11:6  And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

This scripture talks about faith and its importance in pleasing God, coming to Him and seeking Him.  It also speaks of God rewarding those who earnestly seek Him.  The Amplified Bible words the end of this verse, “…who earnestly and diligently seek Him [out].”

I have heard people discuss their view of this verse saying, “I don’t need a reward for seeking Him.”  My response to that is – that isn’t an option.  Phrased another way, we do “A” and God does “B”, where “B” could be anything of His choosing – but there is going to be a “B”.  In 1 Samuel 26:23a David declares, “The LORD rewards everyone for their righteousness and faithfulness.”  This is simply one of God’s realities for us.

I am reminded of the story about Henry Brooks Adams:

Henry was the grandson of President John Quincy Adams, the fourth of seven children, and began journaling at a young age.  When he was 8 years old he spent a day fishing with his father – a very busy man.  Henry’s journal entry states: “Went fishing with my father today, the most glorious day of my life.”

That day was so special that he continued to talk about it for many years.  Thirty years later he looked at his father’s journal entry for that day and found: “Went fishing with my son, a day wasted.”

We can become so preoccupied with business and “things” that we totally miss the truly priceless things that might be around us – or there for us to be richly blest if we but take the time to see and embrace them.  I find that one of the marvelous “rewards” that God offers to those who earnestly seek Him – is Himself.

Though He lives within Christians, and is always with us.  There are aspects of His presence that He makes available to experience that are not the norm.  They are so special that they are remembered like Henry remembered the special day he got to spend with his father.  They become one of the most glorious days of our lives.

To be continued…

Colossians 3:5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.

One of the great blessings of our Christian faith is the way it transforms our lives.  This impacts everything from how we live at home to how we do our jobs.  By living wisely, we are able to create opportunities where they might not otherwise occur.  One of the more memorable sales situations I had early in my career with Blue Cross gave me an important lesson in this regard.

While calling on companies on my prospect list, I encountered a hospital that was soliciting proposals for their employee benefit program.  The hospital had recently gone through major changes and was struggling to survive.  They were receiving proposals from a number of agents and carriers and after meeting with their new chief executive, I was given the opportunity to quote.

Later, when I presented our proposal to this executive, she had just received another proposal that she let me see.  It was clearly better than ours.  I knew what flexibility I had in my proposal and informed her that we could not match it.  This one competitor’s offer and program were better than what we had to offer.

A bit later I received a phone call from her asking me to come by the hospital and meet with her.  When we met she asked if I would be willing to review the various proposals that she had received and give her my recommendation – even though the carrier I represented was out of the running.  Was this someone taking advantage of me?  Or, was this an opportunity?  Fortunately I recognized it as an opportunity for the long term.  Every cancellation or lost sale has potential to be a future sale.

But in an important regard this was better than that.  She had noted my attitude, professionalism and honesty in the times we met.  She looked at me and told me, “I trust you.”  Can you imagine a more wonderful compliment?  This was an opportunity to serve her and strengthen this relationship with a potential future client.  A couple years later they became my client.

There are times when we can do the right things, regardless of our motivations.  But we have a faith that enables us to “be” the people God wants us to be.  The more we walk in His ways, being wise in all our interactions, the more we are able to make the most of the opportunities He provides.

Nahum 1:7  The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble.  He cares for those who trust in him,

Intentionality is one of my favorite words/concepts because it describes something that is required of us in so many areas of our lives.  I don’t think I’ve ever purchased a lottery ticket but a good point is illustrated by the story of the man praying for God to have him win the lottery.  The Lord said to him, “You have to buy a lottery ticket first.”  (To this some might reply, “Lord you could cause me to find a winning ticket on the ground.”)

Have you thought about the question, “How do I demonstrate to the Lord that I trust Him?”  Trusting God is supposed to be a way of life for Christians, but how do we know that we’re actually doing it?  Is trusting God one of those things where we can just take it for granted that we’re doing it – only to discover that we’re not?  Is this something we have to be intentional about?

We heard a powerful message that was one in a series on what the good news of the gospel really is.  The focus was upon having a life that tastes the goodness and power of God and that demonstrates dependence upon the Lord.  The primary way this is done is through prayer.  And prayer is something that defines who we are – much more that it being a weapon to be pulled out in times of need.

Prayer expresses our dependence, our helplessness and trust in our Lord.  It is a continuation of our acknowledgement of our need for God that we experienced when we were born again.  It is a daily acknowledgement and recognition that we need Him in all the areas of our lives – not just those where we feel needy.

The primary purpose of prayer is not to ‘get’.  It is the life-blood of our relationship with Him.  He wants us to have times set aside for Him AND times throughout the day where we talk with Him in the midst of all we are doing.

While He encourages us to make our needs known to Him, He wants us to develop an ever-richer relationship with Him.  The amazing thing is the reality of how many of our ‘needs’ disappear because they are dealt with by our thriving relationship with Him.  It is not a problem to forget to ask about our needs when we are caught up in His presence in our times of prayer.

John 21:16a  Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?”

We’ve written before of the movie Fiddler on the Roof.  It is a musical about the life of a family in the small Jewish village of Anatevka, Russia   Set in 1905 it tells the story of Tevye, his wife, Golde, and their five daughters.  The repeated ‘problem’ that Tevye and Golde contend with is their daughters falling in love and wanting to marry.

‘Tradition’ – which was very important to them – held that marriages were to be arranged, by the parents and the village ‘matchmaker’ – NOT by the young men and women falling in love!  After his oldest two daughters fall in love and receive approval to marry the ones they love, Tevye is struck by this novel idea of love being the true matchmaker.  He then asks Golde this same question that’s in today’s verse, “Do you love me?”  The ensuing song of this name is such a sweet scene.  We get to watch and listen as Tevye and Golde consider this ‘love’ and conclude that in fact they do love one another.

Let us picture ourselves in a situation where we are alone, in a quiet enjoyable place, sitting peaceably, and thinking about our faith.  Then, in the chair next to us, Jesus appears and we know it is Him.  After the initial shock and thrill of sitting there with our Lord, Jesus looks at us, and with kindness in His eyes, asks, “Do you love me?”  And after we likely answer, “Of course, I do.”  He responds by asking, “How do you know that you love me?  What is the evidence of your love for me?”

Consider those questions now:  Do you love Him?  How do you know you love Him?  What is the evidence of your love for Him?  The question is not about His love for us – but our love for Him.  Do we fully realize that God has defined what the evidence is of loving Him?  It’s not about what we think, but about the reality of what our lives demonstrate.

Psalm 13:5, 6  But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.  ⁶ I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me.

How long??  How long is it going to take me to find a job?  How long will it be before you answer my prayer, Lord?  How long before my spouse, or son, or daughter or friend, comes to know you?  How long am I going to have to struggle with_________? (fill in the blank)

What things are going on in our lives that the above questions describe our pleas to God?  Or, maybe we aren’t praying but simply asking ourselves these questions in frustration.  The struggles just seem to be never-ending and have led us to hopelessness and despair.  We become convinced we are alone and are stuck in situations with no way out.

When reading today’s faith-filled verses, we might respond, yes, but….  If you only knew…  While they declare such wonderful and important truths, we can respond thinking they are at odds with our situations.  But, if we look a few verses earlier, we see that David was in the midst of serious struggles when he cried out to God with questions just like these.

Four times in verses 1 and 2 David expresses his despair in asking God “How long?”

¹How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
² How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and every day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me? 

But then in verses 3 and 4 David’s despair becomes prayer:

³Look on me and answer, O LORD my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;
⁴ my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”
and my foes will rejoice when I fall. 

Praise God!  David’s prayer leads to his wonderful faith-filled declaration of the truth:

⁵But I trust in your unfailing love;
my heart rejoices in your salvation.
⁶ I will sing to the LORD,
for he has been good to me. 

Despair – we cannot stop there.  Prayer – is vital but is part of the way there.  Faith – is where we must be, and where He will lead us.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18  Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Yesterday’s guest devotional dealt with gratitude and used the specific example of a pastor named Martin Rinkart from 17^th century Germany.  I had never heard of him until I read Steve’s devotional nor did I recall the Great Pestilence of 1648.  The prayer that Martin wrote for his children and his story were so touching I wanted to find out more about him.  Wow – is there more to learn about him and the circumstances he lived in!

In 1617, at the age of 31, he became pastor at Eilenburg.  A year later in 1618 began the terrible conflict known as the Thirty Years War.  Army after army laid the countryside bare, having no regard for the civilian populations. Famine and disease became widespread; farms, livestock and crops had been destroyed and weak and hungry people had no resistance against illness. During this war nearly one-half the men and one-third of the total population of the German states lost their lives, mostly through hunger and illness.

By 1636, Martin Rinkart was the only pastor left in Eilenburg.  There had been four pastors in the town, one had left, and Rinkart buried the other two. The walled city had become a place filled with refugees, who brought with them further infection to add to that already present, and who placed further strain upon the town’s desperately short food supplies.  In 1637 8,000 people in the town were to die from the plague.  The illness had no regard for wealth or age.

In May 1837, he buried his own wife. He was to bury more than 4,000 people during the plague, which was followed by a severe famine that saw people fighting in the street over a dead crow or cat. He was faced with conducting up to dozens of funerals a day as the town struggled to cope with a huge mortality rate.  By the end of the year the bodies of refugees were being buried in trenches with no service.

The Swedish army that controlled the town in 1637 demanded a huge payment from the town.  Rinkart led a group of citizens from the town who went out to plead for leniency with the Swedish general. Their request was refused and Rinkart turned to his companions and said, “Come, my children, we can find no hearing, no mercy with men, let us take refuge with God.” An account of the event tells of how. ‘He fell on his knees, and prayed with such touching earnestness that the Swedish general relented, and lowered his demand’ (by over 90%).

Rinkart lived to see the coming of better times.  The signing of the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 brought an end to the three decades of suffering and misery for the people of the continent ofEurope.  Here again is the prayer he wrote for his children.

Now thank we all our God with hearts and hands and voices; 
Who wondrous things hath done, in whom this world rejoices. 
 Who, from our mother’s arms, hath led us on our way, With countless gifts of love… and still is ours today. 

Steve’s devotional led me to a sermon by Ion Poulton on Martin Rinkart that was my major source of additional information.  Ion is a canon of Saint Patrick’s National Cathedral, Dublin.  http://www.forthefainthearted.com/2011/09/14/an-a-z-of-hymnwriters-martin-rinkart/

Re-post of Guest Devotional – By Steve Fry, our pastor at The Gate when we lived in Franklin, TN.

Now thank we all our God with hearts and hands and voices; 
                                            Who wondrous things hath done, in whom this world rejoices. 
                                           Who, from our mother’s arms, hath led us on our way,                                                        With countless gifts of love… and still is ours today.

Those words were penned by a 17th century German pastor by the name of Martin Rinkart. He wrote this ‘prayer’ for his children to offer to the Lord. Not all that unusual… Until we understand the backstory.

For Rinkart pastored a small village, Eilenburg, which had been decimated by war. He saw his colleagues and flock perish by the hundreds, victims of what was called The Great Pestilence of 1648. He buried his wife, buried his friends…At one point he was conducting 40 funerals a day.

Yet… he had learned to be thankful. He had learned a secret that is often missed in the very rushed world we live in today. A secret that Brennan Manning speaks of when he says, “We’re not joyful and then become grateful—we’re grateful, and that makes us joyful.”

As we survey this past year, I’m sure that we can all find a fair bit of disappointments, discouragements, and perhaps even deep losses. I’m sure we can also find the chuckles and the friends – and the many moments where God made us so very aware of His Presence!

In all these things, we can truly be thankful, for gratitude doesn’t have to wait for circumstantial happiness. Thanksgiving is always just a breath away, for in that moment of thanks we take a stand for hope in God’s faithfulness, and repudiate the lie that our circumstances determine our future.

You have a future and a hope, the prophet Jeremiah said (29:11), and it is continuous thanksgiving that will give you eyes to see what that hope looks like. It may not look like what you think it should look like, and if you see life through the lenses of discontent, you most likely will be blind to that future. A life of thanksgiving will adjust your sight to rightly see your future. Complaint and regret will merely shut you in the prison of your memories, and your hope –though right in front of you – will go unrecognized.

Rather, may the Spirit of God grant us the perspective of an Apostle Paul, who could say “though dying, behold we live; though persecuted, we are not killed; though sorrowful, yet we always rejoice; though poor, we make many rich; though we having nothing, yet we possessing everything.” (2 Cor. 6:9-10)… An ‘everything’ that can say with joyous abandon, “Now thank we all our God with hearts and hands and voices!” 


Note: Donna and I are so grateful for the year we were able to spend at The Gate; the many wonderful friends we made, the love of God we experienced there and the blessing of Steve Fry & his wife Nancy.  Steve is the President of Messenger Fellowship http://www.messengerfellowship.com/#/associates/executive-team

Ephesians 5:10  and find out what pleases the Lord.

There are 7 words in this verse and they present a thought and a command that is important beyond measure.  I’m embarrassed by the number of times I’ve read the book of Ephesians without noticing this verse.  I think it tends to get overlooked because the verses surrounding it are so significant.

The verses immediately preceding it deal with being children of light and what that entails.  The verses following it instruct us to have nothing to do with fruitless deeds of darkness.  These are major ideas of instruction (commands) for us.  But between them lies this life-giving gem for anyone with eyes to see or ears to hear.

Who is the focus of our lives as Christians?  Why do we do the things that we do?  What is the nature of our motivation?  What are we trying to accomplish?  Who is the love of our life?  What is important to Him?  What opportunities does He give us that are beyond counting?  This verse supplies the key.

We have the incredible opportunity to please the Lord by what we do – to bring pleasure to our God.  This opportunity doesn’t occur just once, or once in awhile – but innumerable times every day.  His Word and His Spirit will guide us to discover those things that please Him.  It’s not about earning salvation or earning anything.  It’s not about us – but about Him, the one we love and belong to.  It’s not about avoiding punishment or judgment but about blessing Him.  It’s living for Him.

Think of the pleasure you experience when someone does something important to bless you just because of his or her love for you and not wanting anything in return.  By finding out what pleases the Lord – and doing it – we can bring pleasure to our God each and every day of our lives.

Psalm 107:1  Give thanks to the LORD for he is good; his love endures forever.

A Politically Incorrect History of Thanksgiving

Posted: November 17, 2007              http://www.wnd.com/index.php?pageId=44599
By Jonathan Falwell
© 2011

It was a bitter two-month sea journey the Pilgrims endured on their passage from England to Plymouth Rock. Upon landing, they gathered for a prayer service before setting out to build shelter. They were severely unprepared for the harsh New England winter that was approaching.

After that winter of 1620 killed almost half of their population, the Pilgrims were befriended by members of the Wampanoag Tribe. The Indians taught the naive colonists about fishing, planting and hunting, thereby ensuring their survival. When the fall of 1621 began to set in, they had reaped a bountiful harvest and preserved enough food to allow them to survive the coming winter, thanks to their Indian neighbors.

As an expression of their thanks to God, the colonists hosted a three-day feast to celebrate the harvest and the transformation of their fortunes from the previous winter. This meal today is thought of as the first Thanksgiving.

In the years to come during the fall, the governor of each New England colony would declare a day of Thanksgiving so that the people could prayerfully thank God for supplying their needs.

In 1777, the Continental Congress decreed that all 13 colonies were to jointly celebrate victory over the British.

Twelve years later, the first national Thanksgiving occurred. In the Congressional Record for Sept. 25, 1789, Elias Boudinot issued a resolution stating: “Resolved, That a joint committee of both Houses be directed to wait upon the president of the United States to request that he would recommend to the people of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer. …”

The resolution was delivered to President George Washington who wholly concurred with the request, declaring: “Whereas it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor … Now, therefore, I do appoint Thursday, the 26th day of November 1789 . . . that we may all unite to render unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection.”

Days of Thanksgiving were celebrated on varying dates throughout the nation for the next several years. It was not until 1863, following the 30-year effort of Godey’s Lady’s Book editor Sarah Joseph Hale, that a National Day of Thanksgiving was declared.

In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln declared a National Day of Thanksgiving in hopes of bringing healing to a land that had suffered greatly in Civil War.

He set aside the last Thursday in November, declaring: “We often forget the Source from which the blessings of fruitful years and healthful skies come. … No human wisdom hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God. … I therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States… to observe the last Thursday of November as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens.”

In 1941, Congress established the fourth Thursday of November as a national holiday.

Thanksgiving is the perfect time to understand the Judeo-Christian history of our nation. Our forefathers were not uneasy about openly thanking God for His blessings or beseeching Him in times of trouble. Our nation is deeply rooted in Christianity and candid expressions of faith.

I urge readers across the nation to ensure that their children and grandchildren understand the Judeo-Christian heritage of our nation. There are many who wish to ignore and/or rewrite our history as our nation further embraces secularism.

I am thankful for this nation and for the God of the Bible who shed His grace on us, beginning with the landing of the colonists at Plymouth Rock.

Jonathan Falwell is the pastor of the historic Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, Va., the church his father started in 1956