Don's Devotionals: Learning to love God

Romans 1:20  For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

As I’ve noted before, I had a thunderous conversion the fall of my junior year in college.  The next 22 months saw me at retreats, conferences, prayer meetings, mission trips, Bible studies, witnessing and being discipled.  On a side note, I nearly flunked out until I realized that God wasn’t glorified it I did – and that He wanted me to graduate.  That “revelation” – along with meeting and becoming engaged to Donna – enabled me to focus on my studies my last 4 quarters and graduate.

My last quarter at Michigan State in the summer of 1970 brought another experience that continues to move me to this day.  I had opportunities to visit with one of my best professors and talk to him about my becoming a Christian and the many experiences I was having.  He was Jewish and an atheist.

In our discussions he expressed a major concern that he had.  He believed the most important issue in life was to answer the question, “Is there a God.”  Then, if you concluded there was a God, you must discover if that God has any requirements of you.  He had seriously pursued this and concluded, “There was no God.”  But he was very distressed with my peers and so many others that he knew in that they didn’t take this issue seriously.

As we talked about my conversion, my experiences and the miracles I’d seen, he felt he could explain away most of my testimony.  He seemed settled in his conviction that there was no God, except one thing troubled him.  I can remember him looking at me and saying with a serious thoughtfulness, “I don’t know what to do with the miracles.”  I was so blessed that he believed that I was truthful and had truly experienced the miraculous.  Hopefully, the miracles caused him to reconsider the issue and discover Jesus, his messiah.

Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;

In light of the massive devastation from the tornadoes, I thought this devotional from last summer could be helpful.

Years ago my mother had a powerful experience with the Lord.  It involved the death of a good friend.  He was a younger man with a wife and a young son.  They attended the same church with Mom and Dad and had been dear friends for years.  His wife had been Mom’s nurse when I was born.  Mom had a strong relationship with the Lord but she just couldn’t understand how this young Christian man could die and this family suffers such loss.

I remember so clearly her describing the experience afterwards.  She was downstairs in the basement doing laundry.  She was overcome with sorrow over the death of this friend and just couldn’t understand how it could happen.  He and his wife were so young; life was there to be lived with his family; how could this happen?

She was standing in front of the washing machine, tears coming down her face, repeating over and over to God, “I just don’t understand.”  Into that moment, the Lord spoke to her so suddenly and clearly, that she never doubted that it was Him.  He said, ‘Louise – You don’t have to understand.  You have to trust!”

This had an immediate and profound impact on Mom.  While she still didn’t understand, she turned to the Lord, and released it to Him.  In Him, the edge of the pain dissipated.  In Him, she found peace.  In Him, she found refuge.  She was no longer a tormented ‘prisoner’ of having to understand this death.  She was able to mourn in a healthy place.

Tragedy occurs all around us: tornadoes, flooding, earthquakes, explosions, accidents, unexpected deaths or injuries.  Life is filled with them.  Usually they are things we read or hear about. But, sometimes they are near and we or our loved ones are stricken.  In those times we are to trust in the Lord.  He has a way of comforting and bringing life to us when we don’t understand.  He is our source of mercy and grace to help us in our time of need. (Heb 4:16)

Psalm 59:16  But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.

What a blessing to have our thoughts preoccupied each morning with the strength and the love of God.  Although He loves all mankind, the remarkable thing is His love for you and for me – for each of us individually, not just corporately.  If we are going through difficult times, remember He is our fortress and our refuge.  We are safe with Him.

King Saul was trying to kill him when David wrote this Psalm.  That is likely a bit more difficulty than any of us are encountering now.  Yet David’s hope and trust and confidence were in the Lord.  How much more should the same be true of us.

Most of us have had the privilege of becoming a son or daughter of God, because of His love for us.  We have Jesus.  We have the Holy Spirit within us.  We have God’s word.  We have experienced His love in ways that David never did.  We have been set free from the power of sin – to live for Him.  This Psalm speaks of the wonder of who He is for us.  He wants us to have this knowledge firmly rooted in the depths of our being and growing morning by morning.  No matter what we experience, He is the same – but our awareness of who He is for us will grow and grow.

We recently sang a song during worship that had this chorus:

The more I seek you      The more I find you       The more I find you   The more I love you

The words are so true.  He loves us to seek Him – and to seek Him regularly.  If you don’t think of Him in the morning, particularly when you awake and are getting up, create yourself some visual reminders that will help you to do so.  He will help you.  He wants you to find Him.

Jeremiah 3:19  “How gladly would I treat you like sons and give you a desirable land, the most beautiful inheritance of any nation.  I thought you would call me Father and not turn away from following me.”

How can I describe the power of this verse and what it reveals?  I am not aware of any other verse in the Old Testament that so reveals God’s heart for His people and the pain of their rejection – its impact upon Him.  The context of chapter 3 is one of God calling Israel to come back to Him.  They would call out to Him but at the same time they were doing all the evil they could do.  They would say one thing and do another!

And Judah was just as bad!  In verse 3:12 He declares that Judah “did not return to me with all her heart, but only in pretense.”  He repeatedly calls for them to return to Him.  He will frown on them no longer and will be merciful; He will not be angry forever.  If only they will acknowledge their guilt and return to Him.

I don’t know how many times I read today’s verse before the Lord opened my eyes to see it as a window in to His heart.  The focus of the verse is Him – our God.  Yes, He’s speaking to His people and their failure to respond, but He’s allowing us to see how their rejection has impacted Him.  In spite of all He did, they did not call Him Father and follow Him with their lives.  It’s like His heart is bleeding all over the carpet.

This verse is such a powerful force to help me love Him.  More than anything else, God wants a people who love Him.  In addition, I never cease to be thrilled by the fact that my attitudes and actions can please Him.  Think of it!  We GET TO bring pleasure to our God.  Each and every day we have untold opportunities to say, think, act and respond in ways that tell Him of our love.

Yesterday’s devotional ended with the thought that I cannot imagine Him asking me, “What fault did you find in me?”  The pain of knowing that my life found fault with Him would be beyond bearing.  A similar thought applies to this today.  My life MUST NOT be one that would cause my Heavenly Father to lovingly look at me and say, “I thought you would call me Father and not turn away from following me.”  Let us renew our commitment to have our lives vibrantly express the He is our Father and we are following Him!

Jeremiah 2:5a  This is what the LORD says: “What fault did your fathers find in me, that they strayed so far from me?”

God loves His people and He wants them to love Him.  The second chapter of Jeremiah talks about how Israel forsook God – in spite of His love for them.  This question is part of His grievance against them. As we consider it now, don’t think of it as a harsh or blunt accusation.  But rather think of it as a cry of a loved one scorned who still loves and is asking why.

Four years ago I was reading this on a flight from Recife to Sao Paulo, Brazil and the Lord allowed me to experience the pain of this question.  It broke my heart. I immediately thought of Jeremiah 3:19 where the Lord says, “How gladly would I treat you like sons and give you a desirable land, the most beautiful inheritance of any nation.  I thought you would call me Father and not turn away from following me.”  What wrenching words these are!  But they also express the incredible heart that He has for His people and the relationship He desires.

We are His people – His treasured possession.  Because of Jesus Christ we can walk in His ways.  We can love Him with all our heart.  We can be the people He wants us to be.  Our lives can be – make that must be – love letters to Him affirming that He is our Father and that we are His daughters and sons.

Today’s verse is a treasure to me, because it makes me so aware of the importance of living my life for Him.   When my life is lived carelessly, I can bring Him pain – particularly in light of what He has done for me and for all of us.  I cannot imagine Him asking me, “What fault did you find in me?”

Matthew 28:19a  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,…

Easter Sunday (yesterday) was a full and wonderful day.  We got to spend the day with our son, Andrew in Denver, see friends, spend much of the day with new friends and experience worship services at two different churches.  The first church was Calvary Temple and we were there because Andrew and some of The Thorn cast were performing during the service.

While we were waiting for the service to begin, I was particularly struck by what I was seeing unfold in front of me there at Calvary Temple.  There were babies and white-haired old folks, little kids, teens, twenty-somethings, middle-age – all the age groups were abundantly represented.  Lots of churches have this, but I am always blessed when I see it because it is such a sign of health.

But it got even better.  It was a multi-colored, multi-ethnic group as well. Everywhere I looked across the room my eyes saw a marvelous mixture of the nations.  Even the worship team had members from several different nations.  It all looked like the Body of Christ!   This was such a wonderful reminder on this Easter morning that Jesus died and rose again for us all – all ages, all races and all ethnic groups.

What a blessing to be able to interact and worship with such a group.  It was wonderful to see Andrew, in costume, do the monologue of the leper who was healed by Jesus’ touch, and to see the dancers and hear the singer from Thorn.  But most of all, I was blessed by the wonderful representation of the Body of Christ in that place.

Luke 24:30-32  ³⁰When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. ³¹Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. ³²They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”

The incident of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus encountering Jesus is one of the more wonderful ones in the Bible.  These two men were walking along, downcast and discussing everything that had recently occurred, when something unusual happened to them.  Jesus himself came along and walked with them, but they were kept from recognizing him.

This was the day of his resurrection and they had no understanding of what had happened.  So Jesus joined them and as they walked along, “he explained to them all that was said in the Scriptures concerning himself.”  Then, since it was nearly evening, they stopped for the night and strongly urged this man walking with them to stop and stay with them.  It’s apparent that they were deeply moved by what he had said to them, even though they didn’t know who he was.

Moses encountered God when he responded to the burning bush and didn’t pass it by.  Likewise, these men responded to what God was doing in their hearts and did not let this man pass them by.  Because they insisted that he stay with them, they experienced the wonder of God in having their eyes opened to see this man was Jesus – risen from the dead.

Isn’t it fascinating that God would have Jesus appear to these two men but prevent them from recognizing him?  It was important for them to listen to the message of this stranger and understand the “why” of what happened to Jesus.  The events that happened to him were foretold in Scripture and they needed to understand it – rather than simply see Jesus and get excited.  When God opened their eyes to recognize Jesus, they understood!  The life, death and resurrection of Jesus were fulfillment of God’s purpose.

Matthew 26:31 Then Jesus told them, “This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: “‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’”

Any understanding of the events of Jesus’ suffering and death was hidden from the disciples whenever Jesus spoke about it prior to his death (Luke 18:34).  It was only after his resurrection that Jesus opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.  But while the events were unfolding and following his death, they didn’t understand what was happening or why or what it all was leading to.

They had such hope in Jesus – and He and that hope were snatched away from them in such an incredibly vicious way.  On top of that they all had fled just as he said they would. I cannot imagine the pain, despair and hopelessness that they experienced at His arrest, crucifixion and death.  How could they console one another? There had never been anyone like Jesus

Our view is so dominated by the knowledge and joy that Jesus rose from the dead, it’s difficult to comprehend the pain they went through.  That pain, and restless sleepless nights would have continued not only on that Friday, but on Saturday and into Sunday.

I think of the scenes of Aslan’s death from ‘The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe’.  Lucy and Susan watched as the hundreds of horrible creatures tortured and then killed Aslan.  In their heartbreak, they witnessed the jubilation of the Witch and the wicked host who believed they had won and that nothing could now stop them.  Aslan was now gone forever.  The girls’ tears and misery lasted throughout the night.  In the morning they experienced more pain as they tried to untie Aslan’s body.  They had no idea what was about to happen.

Two thousand years ago, the first disciples spent today in such pain.  Wicked men had killed Jesus of Nazareth, the man so used by God and they were helpless to stop it.  They experienced the shame of running and hiding.  They deserted Jesus – just as he said they would.  They didn’t understand what was about to happen.

Luke 22:61-62  The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.”  ⁶²And he went outside and wept bitterly.

I cannot imagine the pain that Peter experienced after he denied Jesus the third time and the rooster crowed – and he saw Jesus look right at him.  Their eyes met!  Peter knew – that Jesus knew that it had happened just as Jesus had said it would. Then Peter went outside and wept bitterly.  It was bad enough that Jesus had told him a few hours earlier that it would happen; but to have Jesus witness it and to look right at him at that very moment is pain and a sense of failure beyond imagining.

Peter had some other difficult moments.  When he walked on water he sank.  When he rebuked Jesus for talking about his coming suffering and death, Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan!”  In the garden when Jesus was being arrested, Peter drew his sword and cut off Malchus’ ear, earning a rebuke from Jesus.

I find it so encouraging that in spite of these events, Jesus didn’t reject Peter and send him packing!  Jesus chose him because he believed in him.  When Jesus spoke to him of the denials, he also said, “And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”  After Jesus’ resurrection, the angel told the women who had come to the tomb, “But go, tell his disciples and Peter.”  Then Jesus appeared separately to Peter.  Think of what each of these would have meant to Peter as he struggled with his actions of denying his beloved Lord.

Peter was a mixture, just like you and me – lots of potential and lots of things to work on.  In spite of difficulties noted above, Peter was the one who did walk on water. He was the disciple who first acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the living God.  He spoke for all the disciples to the crowd in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost. He was rescued from prison by an angel.  He was also the one who received the vision from God regarding the gentiles who then received the gospel at Cornelius’ house. He was one of God’s chosen servants who never gave up and God used him mightily.  What an example he is for us!

John 13:4-5  so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. ⁵ After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

Today we commemorate the Last Supper.  I am so grateful for the Gospel of John because it expands so wonderfully upon this intimate evening with Jesus and his disciples.  Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and this evening meal was critically important in preparing his disciples for what was about to happen.  Jesus knew what the coming hours would bring.

Some of the precious memories my family and I have of this special day are of the service that was held each year at St. Luke’s Anglican Church in Akron, Ohio.  The church has a semi-professional dramatic ministry called The Fisherpeople.  This ministry, founded years ago by a wonderful St. Luke’s couple, Bob and Suanne Crowley, has been powerfully used by God through the years to communicate His message through drama and comedy.

The service at St. Luke’s, commemorating the Last Supper was set up in the round.  All of the chairs surrounded the table where the disciples reclined and interacted with Jesus.  They weren’t up on a stage – but within a few feet of those sitting in the front rows.   It’s amazing how powerful it is to be in an intimate setting, seeing these actors, in costume, portraying Jesus and the 12 disciples living this event right before us.  The lights would be down and we were no longer observers but participants in the Last Supper.

Seeing and hearing Jesus interact with the disciples; hearing him teach; hearing him share with Peter the details of his coming denials – we became a part of it.  Watching the disciples relate to each other; seeing them respond as Jesus informs them that He is going to wash their feet – and then He does it.  It’s one thing to read about it or hear it – it’s another to see it being done right in front of you.

After washing the disciple’s feet, Jesus invites everyone in the audience to come get their feet washed.  I am in tears just thinking of how moving it was.  The disciples washed our feet!  Then when Jesus shared the first communion with them, we all were invited to come and share in that as well.  We all got to live out being a part of that special time.  What a powerful way to communicate the truth about our Lord!