Tuesday December 24, 2013 – Christmas Eve

Posted on December 24, 2013 by Don Schmidt

Luke 1:34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

We are thrilled with the birth of Jesus and the miracle of a virgin giving birth to the Christ as foretold by Isaiah.  But have you considered what God had Mary and Joseph walk through to bring this about?  Who would have believed what they said – other than Elizabeth and Zechariah?

We are all aware that Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph when the angel appeared to her and she conceived Jesus by the working of the Holy Spirit.  Joseph became aware of her being pregnant and was planning to divorce her quietly.  But then the angel appeared to him in a dream explaining everything so he took Mary home as his wife.  But…

What did Mary say to her parents and friends when asked about the pregnancy?  How likely was it that they believed her explanation?  Did she tell Joseph what happened?  If so, he didn’t believe her prior to his dream.  What did Joseph say to his friends or his relatives?  Would they have believed him?

Think of the looks and comments that reflected suspicion that the baby was due to him, or worse, some other man.  How likely was it that anyone believed that her pregnancy was due to God’s direct intervention?  On top of this, consider the thought that this “scandal” likely followed them, all the days of their lives.

Yet this was their destiny.  God chose them for it – knowing that it would be hard, but that He would be with them.  Mary and Joseph were chosen to raise His Son!  Imagine being entrusted with Jesus!

This Christmas season, remember Joseph and Mary and the difficult path they had to walk to fulfill God’s plan for them.  They chose to say “yes” to God no matter what difficulties obedience entailed.  They responded with faith.  May we respond as well to whatever God may ask of us.

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Monday December 23, 2013

Posted on December 22, 2013 by Don Schmidt

2 Kings 5:11, 12  But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers ofDamascus, better than any of the waters ofIsrael? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage.

Naaman was a valiant soldier and commander of the army of the king ofAram.  He was highly regarded and viewed as a great man by the king because through him, the Lord had given victory toAram– but Naaman was a leper.

A young girl from Israel had been taken captive and served Naaman’s wife.  She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”(5:3)  So Naaman traveled to Israel with his horses and chariots (befitting a great man) and came to the door of Elisha’s house.

Then ‘the event’ happened!  Elisha didn’t come out, but instead, sent a messenger with word for Naaman to, “Go, wash yourself seven times in theJordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.”  But Naaman exploded as expressed in today’s verses and went off in a rage.  In his pride, he expected to be treated with honor and respect, by the prophet himself; in a manner consistent with his greatness and stature.

But it didn’t happen that way.  [Note: His response reminds me of how the religious leaders reacted to Jesus when he performed miracles on the Sabbath.  They were so angered, they missed the Christ!]  Fortunately, Naaman was an extraordinary man and he had some extraordinary servants:

13 Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” 14 So he went down and dipped himself in theJordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.

Naaman, listened to his servants – in spite of his anger and pride – and responded in obedience, and received the miracle!  If he hadn’t listened – or if they hadn’t spoken up – he would have returned to Aram as a leper.  But he set aside his pride, responded to God’s word and received God’s provision.

This lesson is HUGE for us!!!  We must recognize that in our daily lives we encounter situations where if we listen, respond with humility and do what we’re told, we receive the blessing.  If not, we miss God’s provision for us.  How many times do we reject the message because we reject the messenger, or because of how it is given?  May we learn from Naaman’s example!

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Sunday December 22, 2013

Posted on December 21, 2013 by Don Schmidt

Deuteronomy 8:2  Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.

Suppose the Lord spoke to you in a dream and let you know that the next day you were going to be tested by Him, but He didn’t go into the particulars of what it would entail.  When you got up in the morning you were excited and a bit nervous because you wanted to pass the testing.

Spend a moment and think about what kind of things the Lord might do to test you.  Might it involve work – dealing with what you do and how well you do it?  Would it involve relationships?  Would it involve the possibility of a promotion, where it would be an interview or performance evaluation regarding how well you know your job?  Would the testing involve big things or small things?  How do we tell the difference between big things and small things?

Suppose when you got to work, your boss told you that he needed you to prepare an important presentation for that afternoon that could result in major new business for the company.  This unexpected opportunity would involve you working with a bunch of people throughout the day to put it together.  A lot to do; with little time to do it; with a major opportunity as the potential outcome – what a test!

Most of the day was an adventure interacting with co-workers to obtain what was needed.  They were all so busy as it was and helping you seemed like just one more unwelcome task.  Their responses to you ran the gamut from helpful to wanting to ignore your requests.  Fortunately, the presentation was completed, delivered to your boss and the big opportunity was won.

But at the end of the day, you discovered that winning the opportunity wasn’t the test the Lord was referring to.  Your boss was pleased with the end result, but the Lord had been looking at something else.  His test involved all of the human interactions that you had in preparing the presentation.

Given the importance of the project, did you fall into a more abrasive style where ‘the ends justify the means’ mentality kicked in – in order to get the job done?  Did you take offense at some of the resistance you encountered and respond in kind?  Did you assume fences could be mended later?

Or, were your attitudes, words and actions consistent with your faith? In difficult human interactions were grace and kindness there?  Would your co-workers be grateful for the way you performed your task in spite of how they might have behaved?  We have a real tendency to focus on the ‘destination’.  The Lord is vitally concerned with how we get there.  In His eyes, the process is the goal.

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Saturday December 21, 2013

Posted on December 21, 2013 by Don Schmidt

John 3:16  For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Many, many years ago a man embarked on a journey home.  It required him to be on a ship for the major part of the journey.  This was still during the time when slavery was common and there were slaves serving on the ship.  Over the course of the voyage the man struck up a friendship with one of the slaves.  As the days went by they enjoyed the times together more and more.

When they arrived in port the captain came to the slave and informed him to get his belongings because he had been purchased.  When the slave discovered that he had been sold to the passenger who had become his friend he was outraged.  The slave confronted his new owner and asked, “I thought we were friends!  But now you have purchased me to make me your slave – to serve you!  How could you do this to me?”

The man looked at the slave and said, “You misunderstand.  I didn’t purchase you to make you my slave.  I purchased you to set you free!”  Upon hearing this, the slave exclaimed, “I will serve you all the days of my life!”

I heard this story many years ago and never cease to be moved by it – maybe because I relate so to the slave.  The details of my life are obviously very different from his, but I remember the struggles I was going through 45 years ago – the loneliness, lack of direction, the inferiority complex.  I always seemed to be struggling with feeling un-chosen, left out or left behind.  I didn’t realize it but I was a slave to my sinful nature.

Only, I didn’t have a voyage to get to know someone who would surprise me with freedom.  For me it was totally unexpected and what He did was so much more than just physical freedom.  In my stunning encounter with Jesus (October 11, 1968), my ‘Matterhorn of doubt’ regarding God was leveled!  He made me someone entirely new!!!!  I am still amazed at how utterly transformed my life was in a single moment.  I so understand the slave saying he will serve his new master for the rest of his life.  Even now I am overcome with emotion and gratitude thinking of what my “new owner” did for me 45 years ago – and Jesus has never stopped doing it!!!  He overwhelms me with love!

I am so grateful that I get to serve Him the rest of my life – only it is so much more than that: He enables us to love Him in return.  We become friends and family – in relationship with Him every day of our lives.  The more we realize the incredible wonder of what He has done for us, the more we want to love Him.  That is what makes the Christmas season so special to me.  God so wanted us that He gave us Jesus, so that we might become His – forever!

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Friday December 20, 2013

Posted on December 19, 2013 by Don Schmidt

Daniel 3:16-18  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

BUT EVEN IF HE DOES NOT…  These three young men were facing a horrible death for failure to bow to an idol.  They were confident that God would rescue them but their faith wasn’t dependent upon Him doing it.  They were going to remain true to Him even if He didn’t.  They are in my Hall of Fame for demonstrating how to respond when the going gets tough and threatens to get even worse.  Their confidence and proclamation to the king were rooted in God’s greatness!  No matter what happened, they were going to be true to their God.

While we might not be facing death, many of us are facing all kinds of difficult situations today: loss of job, loss of income, overwhelming bills, uncertainty of the future, threatened layoffs, illness, inability to financially help friends or ministries in need – the list goes on. How are we responding?  Are we caught up in the trauma of our need?  Or, are we focused on the greatness of our God?

In Habakkuk 3:17-19 the prophet describes barren farms.  But even though the farms have no figs, no grapes, no olives, no food, no sheep and no cattle – the response is “YET I will rejoice in the LORD.  I will be joyful in God my Savior.  The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.”

Let us apply Habakkuk and the example of these three young men to our situations.  Fill in the blanks with whatever difficulties you, your family and friends or co-workers might be facing:  “The God we serve is able to deliver us from __________, and he will deliver us from __________ – But even if He doesn’t…..  I will rejoice.  I will be joyful in God my Savior.  He is my strength.  He enables me to walk in precarious places.”

This isn’t just good theology – this is what Jesus enables our bedrock reality with Him to be. He wants us to have such a relationship with Him that this will just flow out of it.  If this doesn’t describe where you are, seek Him and He will enable you to get there.  Let us remember, Job faced untold calamity but he didn’t sin by charging God with wrongdoing, nor did he sin in what he said.  He responded with worship and praise. (Job 1:22 & 2:10b).

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Thursday December 19 2013

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Don Schmidt

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 4th 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.

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Wednesday December 18, 2013

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Don Schmidt

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.

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Tuesday December 17, 2013

Posted on December 16, 2013 by Don Schmidt

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 aspect 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.

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Monday December 16, 2013

Posted on December 16, 2013 by Don Schmidt

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.

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Sunday December 15, 2013

Posted on December 14, 2013 by Don Schmidt

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.

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