Don's Devotionals: Learning to love God

Lamentations 3:25  The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

This morning as I was considering what I would write, my mind was filled with lots of  stuff.  We have a lot going on and my mind was just cluttered with details and concerns.  As I was trying to focus upon the Lord, the following song began playing in my mind.  Mentally, I stopped and just listened – allowing the words and music to minister to me.

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases  – His mercies never come to an end –   They are new every morning – New every morning – Great is thy faithfulness O Lord – Great is thy faithfulness

It’s a lovely song and its impact upon me was significant.  I experienced a settling calm that was like the Lord saying, “Peace – be still.” to the storm in my thoughts.  I thought of how the first rays of dawn dispel the darkness – and the beauty of a sunrise.  The  turbulence in my mind just faded away.  But it was more than just having a sense of peace in my mind so I could better do the task at hand.

It was Him.  It was experiencing Him and His goodness to me.  The peace was and is a blessing – but far greater is the blessing of being captivated by who He is.  Think of the ten lepers who all were healed.  One – a Samaritan – came back to Jesus praising God and he threw himself at Jesus’ feet.  The healing was wonderful but foremost, he had to express his praise to God and his thankfulness to Jesus.

May we all more deeply recognize that our hope is in the Lord.  Today, may we more deliberately look to Him and seek Him in the midst of our daily life.  If we do, we will experience a heightened awareness of His goodness and His presence with us.  The fact that the Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him is not just a theological truth – it is an experiential reality for us to enjoy each day.

Here is a link to this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJbXDoK_AAs

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 if 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.

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.

Psalm 9:1  I will praise you, O LORD, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonder.

Have you ever thought of praying scripture?  Years ago I heard a teaching on this idea and it has been a wonderful blessing.  Simply put, you personalize scripture so that the verses express what you want to say.  But more than that, many are the times that I’m not sure how to pray and they give me the words and the guidance – the path to pray.

Among my favorites are the ones I’ve identified as “The Blue Sections”.  (My Bible is kind of highlighted to the hilt!)  I have used a blue highlighter to mark over 30 different sections of scripture that focus upon God and His greatness and wonder.  They are not about us – they do not include requests for help or assistance.  They are declarative about Him.

I frequently found myself at a loss when it came to expressing to God what was in my heart.  I wanted to tell Him how wonderful and glorious He was.  It occurred to me that scripture describes Him more accurately and effectively that I can.  So I searched for those scriptures that did exactly that and marked them in blue.  They run the gamut from entire Psalms to a single verse.  But when I pray them, personalizing them, my heart rejoices because it is accomplishing what it desires.

For instance Psalm 19:1-4 begins ”The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”  When I pray this, I personalize it so it becomes “O Lord, the heavens declare your glory, the skies proclaim the work of your hands!”  By using scripture, my affirmations are rooted in eternal truth.  I know I am expressing reality and my heart is filled with a sense of accomplishing something so important.

It takes me about 25 – 30 minutes to pray through my Blue Section verses out loud.  Frequently, the experience provokes tears of joy and gratitude because it leads to such an intimate experience with God.  They help me to praise the Lord with all my heart and tell Him of His wonders!

Acts 9:31  Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord.

Have you ever lived anywhere where the drinking water was too unpleasant to drink?  In such situations a couple of alternatives are available.  One is to get bottled water and many people do that.  The other is to get a good water filter system that removes all the unpleasantness from the water.  Think about traveling overseas and the issue of whether it is wise or safe to drink the water?  There’s a lot more to it than just the taste and smell of the water.  Water that might seem fine can be a disaster to drink, that’s why it pays to be careful.

There are other water issues to be concerned about depending upon where you live and the water source.  Suppose you have the water tested and discover that there is ‘stuff’ in the unfiltered water that can and will hurt you.  But the good news is the testing also confirms that a quality water filter system removes those negatives; making the water safe to drink.  It’s just a matter of maintaining the filter system.

In this situation, with the filter system, the water is safe to drink.  Without the filter system, there are negatives in the water that will hurt us even if there is no bad taste or smell.  Water is important and it pays to be careful.  With this in mind, it’s important that we recognize that the fear of the Lord is a vital component of our spiritual filtering system.  There is a lot of deadly stuff out there in our culture that doesn’t ‘taste’ or ‘smell’ bad.  But it’s stuff that can kill and destroy.

We must also remember that we play a key role in our spiritual filtering system.  We have to pay attention to it and provide it with God’s Word so that it is fully operational.  We have to care! There is a very key verse in Numbers 32:23 that is a Biblical principle that we tend to forget but it’s still there: “your sin will find you out”.

That begs the question: “What is sin?” and the answer to that leads to specifics in every area and aspect of our lives.  Fortunately, the fear of the Lord is a fountain of life in the motivational aspect of our lives in this realm.  It is life producing and the more we respond to it the more it protects us from things we must avoid.

Reread today’s verse.  The fear of the Lord was what they lived in.  It is healthy and positive and vital to our life in Christ Jesus.  We are to live in it too.

James 3:13  Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.

Don’t you just love a wonderful meal?  The enjoyment we experience as fragrant aromas fill the air building the anticipation of the delights to come.  The table is well set and the foods presented attractively.  Think of tasting and savoring the first bite of each food and having “On my goodness is this wonderful!” moments.

Then making the meal even more wonderful is the fact that we are sharing it with family or friends.  The tangible satisfaction we experience by being together and enjoying one another’s company.  It’s easy to take that for granted, particularly when it is on a regular basis, but we are blessed by not overlooking it.

Many are the times that guests ask for the recipe of a dish Donna has made – and, many are the times when we have asked for a recipe.  Everybody enjoys good meals.  Good recipes + good ingredients + good preparation + timely presentation = wonderful meal.  This formula is accomplished through intentionality and the development and application of learned skills.  It is not accomplished on a consistent basis by accident.

The same is true of a wise and understanding life, filled with good deeds done with humility.  Such a life requires focus and commitment.  Focus touches on the intentionality while commitment recognizes its daily requirement – like preparing a meal to eat.  It happens multiple times daily.   We must also be concerned with quality.  It is not enough to do good deeds – although the doing of them is important.  Our faith must address the way we do them.  The humility that comes from wisdom is the “seasoning” that sets them apart.

There is such satisfaction and joy to be experienced in both the living of such a life and for those who interact with it.  Isn’t it wonderful to be around those whose lives are described by this verse?  Seek to become like them.  Learn of them.  Ask them for their recipe!

2 Timothy 3:5a  having a form of godliness but denying its power.

Consider these questions: 1) Is the Church a victim of the degenerating culture that surrounds it?  Or 2) Is it the other way around – is the surrounding culture reflective of the Church having a form of godliness but denying its power?  Jesus taught that we are the salt and light of the world.  Salt and light prevent decay and darkness.

The context of today’s verse is Paul’s warning to Timothy of the godlessness of the last days.  Some of that godlessness is inevitable but to what extent is it reflective of ‘unsalty’ Christians – or Christians who too often turn off their ‘light’?  A major issue we have to deal with is selective obedience (or selective disobedience).  This results in having a form of godliness but denying its power.

The power of the gospel of Jesus Christ is beyond anything we can imagine.  But how we choose to respond to His gospel is critical.  Let’s look at the older brother in the well known parable in Luke 15 of the lost son.  Upon the younger brother’s return and seeing the response of his father:

²⁸ “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. ²⁹ But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. ³⁰ But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’  ³¹ “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. ³² But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

The older son has been ‘obedient’ for years, everything the father has is his and he has always been with his father but his negative response could not be more different from that of his father.  Who are his bitterness and accusations focused upon?  He’s more upset at his father than he is with his brother.  Over the years, outwardly everything might have looked fine, but inwardly the older brother was so far from where he should or could be.  The brother’s return and his father’s response revealed the reality of where he was.

The point of this is that the same thing can happen to us.  We can look good on the outside – having a form of godliness; but inwardly we can miss so much because we selectively respond to Gods’ word – resulting in a denial of its power.  Unfortunately we can be blind to this reality occurring in our lives.

Acts 13:22  After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: “I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him  o do.”

Think of God being able to describe someone as “a man after my own heart, he will do everything I want him to do.”  This was the opposite of Saul.  The people had wanted a king like the other nations, so God gave them Saul, who looked like a king – outwardly.  Scripture describes Saul as being impressive and a head taller than the others.  He would have really stood out in a crowd.  Unfortunately his heart was not where it needed to be and because of the choices he made, God rejected him.

When the Lord had the prophet Samuel go to Bethlehem to anoint one of Jesse’s sons as king, even Samuel was impressed with outward appearances.  When he saw Eliab, Jesse’s oldest son, he thought that surely this was the Lord’s anointed.  But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

Each one of the seven sons of Jesse with him in Bethlehem passed in front of Samuel but the Lord chose none of them.  Finally Samuel asks, “Are these all the sons you have?”  No, there was one more, the youngest, but he was out tending the sheep.  So they sent for him and didn’t sit down until he arrived.  He was the one the Lord chose.

I find this event to be both motivating and encouraging.  It’s motivating, in that I want to more and more have a heart after the Lord like David had – that I would do whatever the Lord wants me to do.  It’s encouraging because even though David wasn’t there, things weren’t going forward until they got him.

Think of the times in our lives when opportunity called – literally.  We receive a phone call or letter regarding a job, a ministry or some kind of opportunity because the Lord brought us to mind.  He knows who we are and where we are.  Let us sharpen our focus on becoming men and women after His own heart.

1 Samuel 17:37  The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”  Saul said to David, “Go, and the LORD be with you.”

A favorite story in the Bible is that of David and Goliath.  Isn’t it amazing that David, whom King Saul considered just a boy, was totally unafraid of this ranting giant?  For forty days, Goliath, who was a warrior nine feet tall, railed against Saul and the army of Israel.  Every morning and evening he would come out shout his defiance.  Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified.

David arrived at the battle line with supplies and ran to greet his brothers.  As he was talking with them, Goliath came out and shouted his defiance.  The Israelites all ran from him in great fear.  But David wasn’t afraid.  He considered Goliath a disgrace that must be removed from Israel.  The Lord had identified David as a man after His own heart and here we see what that looks like.

Making the situation even more interesting for David was the fact that the men told him that King Saul would give great wealth to the man who killed Goliath.  Here all the fighting men of Israel were terrified and David wasn’t.  What is a nine foot tall man compared to a bear or a lion?  David also did not allow the anger of his oldest brother to deter him from ridding Israel of this warrior.

At the heart of the issue for David was the Lord.  David knew and declared to King Saul that “the LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.”  David wasn’t intimidated and he wasn’t foolishly brash.  His trust and confidence were in the Lord.

Goliath saw David coming at him and despised and cursed him.  Picture the setting and savor David’s declaration to Goliath, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.”

David did what the Lord wanted him to do – with boldness, firmly acknowledging that his confidence and trust were in the Lord.  Goliath was slain and the Philistines were defeated.  We won’t face 9′ tall giants, but we will face political correctness, an increasingly WOKE society and those who oppose any genuine expression of faith in Jesus Christ.  We will get to deal with our fears and have our confidence and trust firmly in Him.  May the Holy Spirit give us the same faith and boldness – and the opportunities – to show forth His love and live to His glory in the face of opposition.

I Kings 18:27  At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.”

I’ve wondered why this verse always brings a smile to my face.  I’m grinning even as I write this.  And now I am laughing.  Really!  I am sitting here typing and laughing.  It’s not laughing at the prophets of Baal shouting and dancing trying to get the attention of their god.  This verse just taps into such a wellspring of joy within me that comes from Him.

Think of it.  This verse paints such a perfect picture of who our God isn’t!  Our God isn’t deaf!  He isn’t distracted or busy or traveling.  He’s never asleep.  He doesn’t put out a “Do Not Disturb” sign.  He never says, come back later I’m too busy now.

Our God never has an “Oops”!  He doesn’t miss anything.  Nothing catches Him by surprise.  Nothing catches Him off guard.  There is never the need for Him to apologize to us because He was too busy elsewhere or distracted and just missed what happened to us.  He’ll never say, “Oh, how did that happen?”  He’ll never ask, “What do we do now?”

This reality must become bedrock in us.  Once it does, nothing will shake us.  No matter what happens, our first thoughts are of Him.  He knows what we’re facing.  He knows what’s coming.  If it happens, He allowed it and will get us through it.  Our God is always with us!  His grace and mercy and strength are there for us.  There’s nothing He can’t redeem.  We are never alone, even when we think He is no where around!

The more this wonderful reality of our God dawns on us, the greater is our joy and gratitude.  I guess that is the source of my smile – my overwhelming gratitude over who God is (and isn’t!) and that He made me His own.