Day 256: Ezra

3 John; Ezra 7-8; Psalm 94

In ministry it is so easy to let our opinions of others' purposes cause us to not support them. Each person has been given a different role in the kingdom of God and sometimes it may be something that we personally don't understand. This letter written by John reveals that this person named Gaius is doing the right thing by showing love and welcoming follows. This other dude, Diotrephes, is gossiping and not welcoming fellow believers and according to John, this is very wrong. While they may be different, we don't understand how it's going to work, or it doesn't seem logical, we need to love on and support fellow believers who are living and loving for the kingdom.

Ezra "had spent his life studying and obeying the Law of The Lord and teaching it to others." Ezra was a man of God and a great leader because he was devoted to God, not just his spare time, but his whole life. God is able to do great things through him because he was obedient. As mentioned before, this book records how God takes care of his people. First, God, through powerful kings, is giving the Israelites everything they need--permission and treasures. They have the blessing of the most powerful rulers to go and worship. Secondly, God gives them protection. Ezra mentions that he was tempted to ask the king for an army to protect them along the way, as this must have been a dangerous trip. But he doesn't succumb to his fears of humans and trusts The Lord. His faith pays off because God proves himself as their protector and they have a safe trip. God wants to be involved in our lives; he wants to help and protect us from hard; we open the door for him to work through being devoted to him and obedient, like Ezra.

This psalm seems completely relevant to how I feel about the world sometimes. How is it that wicked and deceitful people prosper? Why doesn't God do something? It can be so frustrating to watch the poor and innocent be abused and no one is there to help. This psalm talks about how useless our plans are and how good our God is, even in the midst of pain and frustration. God gives all things, he blesses and instructs, he keeps us steady and gives comfort, he is our safety and our security. Despite the craziness and evil of the world around us, despite how alone and hopeless we can feel watching and trying to help the victims, God is still there ruling and teaching and sheltering. The psalmist says it beautifully: "When I felt my feet slipping, you came with your love and kept me steady. And when I was burdened with worries, you comforted me and made me feel secure. But you are opposed to dishonest lawmakers who gang up to murder innocent victims. You, Lord God, are my fortress, that mighty rock where I am safe."

Day 255: Love Then Truth

2 John; Ezra 5-6; Psalm 93

There are two main concepts in this letter. First, love. It seems a reoccurring theme in a lot of the books. Hm, must be important. Again the emphasis is that we love God by DOING what he says. Actions. Secondly, this passage talks about holding onto the true teachings and not even welcoming those who teach falsely about Jesus. Wow, that's pretty serious. John warns that we are not to change the original teachings about who Jesus was because God will no longer be with us. We must believe the truth of Jesus' words and who he says he was, not try to search for something else that fits our lives better. I also think the order of these messages is important. First it communicates that we are to love. Cultivating that attitude of love is primary. That was Jesus' purpose. Secondly, we seek truth and hang on to it. This is done through prayer and studying God's word. Something that I was discussing with my family: we spend so much time talking about truth, what we shouldn't do, that we don't ever talk about what we should do--love.

This story in Ezra about rebuilding the temple is interesting because it shows how God uses people to bless his followers and make his plans succeed. These leaders who would typically not help the Jews, not only let them build the temple, but gave them money, encouragement, and warnings to anyone who hindered it. What would it benefit them that the Jews would rebuild the temple? Maybe somehow, but I can't come up with anything! God made sure that his plan succeeded and at the end, everyone celebrated and praised God for helping them.

This psalm is just a beautiful praise of who God is. He is majestic and eternal, more mighty and powerful than anything on earth. God is awesome!

Day 254: Not Rambo, Just Obedient

1 John 5; Ezra 3-4; Psalm 92

Believing in Jesus brings lots of blessings. According to 1 John 5, we become God's children and receive love. Because God is love, we learn to love him and love others. Secondly, we have victory over the world. To me, this means that I don't live bound by the worries or trappings of this world; money isn't that important, simply a tool; the only reputation that matters is God's; struggles don't have to leave me empty because I believe in something more. And finally, we have eternal life through Jesus. That's what God promises through his son and so if we believe he is truthful, we can trust that Jesus is the way, truth, and life.

In Ezra, the people return to the rubble that was Jerusalem and soon they rebuild the altar so they can offer sacrifices to The Lord. It says that they did this "even though they were afraid of the people who were already living there." I don't know the details of the people living there, but whoever they were, the Jews were a little nervous to be around them. But did they cower and hide their faith? Nope. This passage acknowledges their fear and doesn't discount it. Being nervous or fearful is a part of being human. God doesn't expect us to rush into every situation as if we are Rambo or Chuck Norris. But, their desire to be obedient was stronger than their fear--that's what God wants from us.

Then, when the foundation of the temple is finish, they throw a huge party honoring and praising God. This seems kind of silly, like, hey guys, you aren't really even very far yet. Why throw a celebration? Because they had been faithful, because any reason is a good reason to throw a celebration honoring God. It was a milestone on their journey of faith and life and so they were celebrating it and God. I think it's cool. Why do we wait until emotionally powerful occasions to honor God? What's wrong with doing it simply because it is Tuesday, or because there is air to breathe, or because we have a job? God deserves parties for any and every occasion.

Psalm 92 could be a song sung at the celebration in Ezra. The psalmist is celebrating who God is. He says that EVERYTHING God does makes him happy. Really? Are we happy about everything God does? I find myself sometimes frustrated with circumstances that I know God set up. Why do I do that? The psalm goes on to tell how wicked people may prosper momentarily, but they will eventually be pulled up like unwanted grass. Those people that love The Lord will prosper and be strong, they will be healthy and fruitful, even when they are old. We have to be in it for the long haul and the present frustrations should bring us joy, just knowing that God is working! God cares enough to put his hand in this mess that we've made called life and do good things.

Day 253: Don't Worry

1 John 4; Ezra 1-2; Psalm 91

This chapter in 1 John is all about how God is love and our expression of being saved is loving others. First it tells us that "God is love." He is love and he is the ultimate expression of it. His unity with Jesus and the Holy Spirit, that perfect relationship, the service and sacrifice of Jesus, the oneness that the Holy Spirit shares with us--that is the perfect example of what love is. Secondly, we are told that "if we keep on loving others, we will stay one in our hearts with God, and he will stay one with us." This sounds a lot like the "abide in me" verses back in regular John. Love is how we remain connected with The Lord. It isn't through rituals, long prayers, fasting, giving, though all of those can help--it is through choosing to love and demonstrating devotion and compassion to God and others. Finally, it says that the reason we love is "because God loved us first. But if we say we love God and don't love each other, we are liars. We cannot see God. So how can we love God, if we don't love the people we can see? The commandment that God has give us is: 'Love God and love each other!'" Since there is absolutely nothing God needs, nothing we can do for him, we can show our love for him by acting out love towards others. This is a big challenge because there are a lot of people in our lives that we deem 'unloveable' or 'hard to love.' Imagine God looking at his creation: are we easy to love with all of the ways we have hurt creation, mistreated one another, distort who He is? We are so unloveable at times, but God still saved us through his son's sacrifice. And so because of that, we seek to love those around us, even those who are difficult to love.

Psalm 91 shows that God can be trusted to protect us. When we put our faith in him, we can believe that he will watch over us. This doesn't mean that we won't have trouble in this life, but that we will be saved from things that will destroy our souls because God holds our spirits for eternity. The psalmist writes that we don't "need to worry about dangers at night or arrows during the day." Worrying is a big struggle for a lot of people, as well as myself. We worry about our future, about our families, about what people think of us; but this passage reminds us that because of God, because of his promise to never leave us, because if we have faith in him and his son we are saved, we don't need to worry about the things of this world. The worst that can happen is that our physical bodies die. And I know that seems like a crazy stupid thought; but we are going to die eventually, and all that means is that we get to start our eternity in heaven with The Lord sooner. This life that we are living now can be painful and depressing, why would we want to prolong it or hang on to it for more than we have to, when a life of peace and complete joy awaits us? I pray that we can learn to trust God in this life and not worry about the troubles ahead. God's got it. He will rescue us when the time comes.

Day 252: Each Day

1 John 3; 2 Chronicles 36; Psalm 90

1 John seems to have two major themes: if Christ is really in your heart, you will stop sinning, and if Christ is really in your heart, you will love others. The way this works is that if Christ is in a person's heart, then they cannot keep sinning because Jesus did not sin. We will not want to sin, we will choose right. This doesn't mean we are perfect, but it means that sin has zero appeal. The second point, which I think is very powerful is the idea that if Christ is in our hearts, we will love others. The whole second half of chapter 3 is an awesome explanation of living and loving in this world because of Christ. John says that we should not be surprised if the people of this world hate us. That just shows that they do not have Jesus in their hearts and are ruled by the devil. However, it is "our love for each other that proves that we have gone from death to life" through Christ. It is our LOVE. It isn't our baptism that shows we have Christ, it isn't our church attendance, our WWJD bracelet...it is our LOVE that shows we belong to Christ. Are we, as Christians, truly living a life of love? The author states that "we must give our lives for each other" just as Christ gave his life for us. Life has to be more about loving others than loving ourselves. When we love extravagantly, we draw closer to God and prove that we belong to Jesus. And as mentioned in a recent post, love isn't an emotion, it is ACTION.

The people of Judah choose to disobey God despite the examples in the past of both good and poor leaders. God's patience runs out and so he allows Judah to be completely destroyed and the people captured as slaves. What is interesting is that these last few kings and the people of the city who  disobey end up in chains. The idea is that if a person isn't following The Lord, they aren't free, they are bound by their enemies. The same is metaphorically (or even literally) true today. When we don't follow God, we are bound, trapped, chained by whatever it is that wants to hurt us, destroy us--our enemy. In God, there is freedom.

This psalm talks about how short life is and how powerful God is. Our life is but a breath in the span of eternity. The psalmist cries out to The Lord to "teach us to use wisely all the time we have." It's not completely depressing though, because we are to celebrate each moment that we DO have on this earth: "When morning comes, let your love satisfy all our needs. Then we can celebrate and be glad for what time we have left." A healthy dose of humility for how momentary our lives are will help us to make better choices and live not for this life, but for the next.

Day 251: Love is a Verb

1 John 2; 2 Chronicles 35; Psalm 89:38-52

"When we obey God, we are sure that we know him. But if we claim to know him and don't obey him, we are lying and the truth isn't in our hearts. We truly love God only when we OBEY him as we should and then we know that we belong to him. If we say we are his, we must follow the example of Christ."

Loving God isn't an emotion. So often we think that during our music time at church that we are "loving" God through singing to him, and while that may be a little bit true, the measure of our love of God is in our actions. Loving God is a VERB. We love God when we DO, ACT, GO, LIVE, OBEY. These are powerful words and I cannot help but think of the thousands of "Christians" who say they "love God" but don't demonstrate it with any of their actions. Christ's word that he loved us wouldn't have been enough to offer salvation to the world; he had to demonstrate his love by dying, by acting, by sacrificing. Actions. It's similar in marriage. It isn't enough just for me to say I love Austin. If I turn around and disrespect him in front of other people, or live adulterously, then I don't truly love him. I love him by trusting him, respecting him, being completely faithful to him. God wants the same devotion from us: Love him by doing, acting, obeying, not just with words.

This chapter goes on to talk about loving the world. Same deal: love is an action. if we act like the world and do what the world does, then we are demonstrating our love for the world. and "if you love the world, you cannot love the Father." It's hard. I get that. But it is so worth it to love (obey) God and not live or love this world.

For the Passover celebration Josiah and some of his officials donated animals to the people for sacrifices. They were willing and ready to give up much of their own stuff so that others could be made right with God. Josiah cared so much about God's favor and the people's obedience that he donated a bunch. Do I, do we, also feel that same way? Do we want so badly to give people an opportunity to get in touch with God that we are willing to sacrifice some of our stuff? Stuff like time, money, possessions? Because of Josiah's faithfulness, this "was the greatest Passover celebration in Israel's history!" Way to go Josiah!

The speaker of this psalm concludes in a dark place. They feel alone, rejected by God, with the meaning of life drained out. Yet, at the very end, it says, "Our Lord, we praise you forever, Amen and amen." Wow, in the midst of darkness and despair, they praise God! That takes some presence of mind and spirit. I pray that when we face trials in our lives that we would have the faith to give glory and praise to our Father no matter what.

Day 250: Light

1 John 1; 2 Chronicles 34; Psalm 89:19-37

Wow, in case you were wondering if continuing in sin is okay: "Jesus told us that God is light and doesn't have any darkness in him....If we say that we share in life with God and keep on living in the dark, we are lying and are not living by the truth....If we say that we have not sinned, we make God a liar, and his message isn't in our hearts." This chapter in 1 John talks about God being life and light. It is not ok to claim to be a follower of Jesus, but not admit our sins and continue living with them. What is scary to me is that I know I am disobeying God in ways that I'm not even aware of, such as when I wasn't following Jesus by reading my Bible. Or when I talk about others thinking that I'm not gossiping, when really, that's exactly what it is. We need to seek life in Jesus and the light of God, not live in the darkness of our sin.

Josiah follows The Lord. He completely destroys all the pagan altars and idols in the nation and "when everybody was there he read aloud The Book of God's Law." He made a point to eliminate the idols and share God's message with everyone. He understood the power that God had and the fury he would feel at the disobedience of his people. Josiah did everything he could to right the wrongs of his ancestors and nation.

This part of the psalm talks about David's kingdom lasting forever. God's promise comes true because of Jesus. Jesus was a descendant of David and because of his resurrection, he will rule in heaven and on earth forever. God promises "I won't break my agreement or go back on my word." Such a wonderful reassurance!

Day 249: God's Fish

John 21; 2 Chronicles 33; Psalm 89:1-18

The disciples went back out into the boat to fish. They did what they knew; whether it was because they didn't know what else to do now that Jesus wasn't with them or they simply felt like fishing, I don't know. But the point of this story is that until Jesus showed up and gave them direction, they didn't catch anything. Without God, we can do nothing, John 15 says that. But with Christ there, guiding us, we will be more successful and blessed (not by worldly standards, mind you) than we could ever imagine. I think it is also interesting that when they get back to shore, Jesus already has fish cooking. He doesn't need the disciples to bring fish, just like he doesn't need us to save people--that's God's job. And yet, he tells them to bring what they caught anyway. It isn't our job to catch the fish, but to be obedient, fish and cast our nets where God tells us to. This is the same with our sharing of the gospel with people. We don't save them, that's God's job. We simply must be obedient to share the message of Jesus Christ.

Man, when I first started reading this chapter of Chronicles, I was so frustrated! Hezekiah did so much good and then his son ruins it! Manasseh rebuilt all the shrines, sacrificed his sons, and worshipped all sorts of things. It made God angry and so he let their enemies defeat him. But God wasn't done with Manasseh yet. While he was rotting in chains, Manasseh must have done some thinking. He repented and God did what only God can do: forgave him completely and restored him. Through the deepest, darkest time in his life, Manasseh realized who God was and the devotion he deserved. And because of his prayer to The Lord, God poured out his love on him and redeemed him. It doesn't matter what our past is, how terrible we've been--God saved Manasseh, he will save us if our hearts truly cry out in repentance.

This psalm is beautiful. It is a praise of who God is and what being in his presence does for us. God is mighty and powerful and being a  part of his "festival" and walking in the "brightness" of his presence makes us blessed, happy, strong, and honorable. My goal sometimes is simply to soak up God's presence, not expect anything from him, because really, if he never gave me anything else in my life, just being his child, being in his presence should and would be enough.

Day 248: Being Human

John 20:19-31; 2 Chronicles 32; Psalm 88

The disciples were afraid, they locked themselves in a room. Thomas wouldn't believe until he saw Jesus himself. They were human. We humans need so much reassurance that what God says is true, who he is is real, and that where he calls us to go is the actually where he wants us to go.

Another take on Thomas is that he wanted to make sure he wasn't going to believe in some made up hocus pocus. There are a lot of religions out there, all of them claiming to be true. This is something I struggle with comprehending. Thomas said he wanted to see it with his own eyes to make sure that the disciples weren't delirious or something. We have to investigate Jesus for ourselves. It isn't enough just to take our pastor's word for it. How do we do that? Reading our Bible. I'm amazed at what I have discovered through scripture! There's stuff in here about God and about living life as a human that I didn't realize and have been significant in reshaping how I do life. That's a lesson from doubting Thomas as well.

Wow, 2 Chronicles 32 is PACKED with stuff! First Hezekiah and the people of Judah get attacked by a powerful enemy. Significance? Just because we serve The Lord, doesn't mean that we won't face enemies. Then this enemy tries to instill fear by comparing God to the gods of other nations. Sennacherib, the Assyrian king, believed that the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, was no different than any other worshipped idol; but that is where he was very wrong. Our God is not like other gods: he is alive and powerful and attentive. Next, Hezekiah prays for help and God completely wipes out the Assyrian army without the people of Judah even lifting a finger! God fights for us! And from then on, everyone knew that Hezekiah and Judah's God was not to be messed with. Sennacherib returns to his home and is killed in the temple of his gods by his own sons. His gods do not protect him and his life is taken by those that should have loved him. Worthless idols lead to a worthless existence. Hezekiah made God proud. He wasn't perfect, and this chapter reveals that too, but he was faithful to The Lord. He is a good example of trusting in God and making him top priority in our lives.

This psalm reflects times in our lives when we are at our darkest. The last verse says "my friends and neighbors have turned against me because of you and now darkness is my only companion." Because of God, they abandoned the psalmist. If we live radically for Jesus, there will be some of our friends and family that will think we are ridiculous. However, this psalm STARTS with this: "You keep me safe, Lord God." Even in our darkest times, we have to trust that God is there and will protect us. We may not understand why we are suffering in such great despair, but The Lord promises to never leave us. Trust that God will be there for you.

Day 247: Just A Woman

John 20:1-18; 2 Chronicles 31; Psalm 87

Jesus rises from the dead! He shows himself to Mary first. I think this shows the Lord's heart, as well as Mary's. Mary wept for Jesus; she wept for his death and for those who would disturb his body. She stayed by the tomb alone shedding tears for her Lord. Jesus shows himself to her first, a woman, a woman who used to be a disgrace, but was saved by the grace of Jesus. Jesus could have shown himself to the Jewish leaders, to the Roman officials, or even to the male disciples first. Women were second-class citizens at this time. But he chooses this woman whose heart is tender and broken, and he calls her by name. I love our God!

Hezekiah "was a successful king, because he obeyed The Lord God with all his heart." Awesome. These last few chapters about the rule and decisions made by Hezekiah are so encouraging. Not only does he quickly make changes to the temple and kingdom, but the people follow his example and immediately destroy the altars and shrines to other gods. They then quickly offer a tenth of all that they own to God at the temple, providing more than enough for the priests to make the sacrifices and provide for everything. They thanked The Lord for all the things that he was doing for them. And even the families of the priest, the wives and children remain faithful to The Lord because of the example of their husbands. Gosh, that is so amazing! And it all started with a man who immediately obeyed The Lord. Hezekiah didn't wait until he had things figured out, he just knew they needed to focus on The Lord and he took action to do so. A lot of times we sit around and say, "I need to do this," or "I should really do that," but that is as far as it goes. Hezekiah is an amazing example of a man who knew that he needed to do something and he just did it, and God blessed the entire kingdom for it; everyone was changed and praised The Lord.

God loves the city of Zion and God loves it more than anywhere else; everyone wants to say that they are from Zion. What? This psalm seems really weird, but I think there is a point. The first line says Zion was built by The Lord, it is his city, his kingdom. Perhaps it is a real, physical city, but it also represents God's reign and rule. Everyone who loves The Lord wants to say that they belong to him and they from God's kingdom. That's the point, that we want to be identified with God's family and his establishment.

Day 246: Better Late Than Never

John 19:16-42; 2 Chronicles 30; Psalm 86

"Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" was written on his cross in three languages for all to see. Even as he was dying, people were finding out who Jesus was. Pilate refused to change it when the priests asked about it and so the declaration was made. All people would have been able to read it since it was in the languages of the times and locations. Jesus was for everyone and Pilate's charge made it possible for people to get who he was, even as he was dying.

Another striking moment in this story is when Joseph from Arimathea comes to take care of the body. He had kept his faith a secret up until this point because he was afraid. So what made him come forward now? He might have thought that since Jesus died, there was nothing more to be afraid of, as in, none of what he had said could have been true. That's why the disciples hid until they witnessed Jesus. Or, it could have been that he realized that Jesus laid down his life for his friends and that he was a truly good man, perhaps even the Christ, as he said. Whether noble or not, it is hard to tell what his motivation was, but none the less, he came forward and acted according to his faith. In light of Jesus' sacrifice for me, I need to do the same: step out and make my discipleship known.

Hezekiah led a revival! And it was a success! People were worshipping and celebrating, God blessed his people, and everyone was happy. However, there were some issues, like when the message of the celebration was going out, some people "laughed and insulted" the messengers for what they were saying. They were unwilling to humble themselves and return to The Lord. Same thing happens today. Others didn't go through the ceremony to be clean but worshipped anyway. This was against God's Law. But Hezekiah offered up a prayer on their behalf and God spared them. These little hiccups did not stop or hinder the celebration. Hezekiah knew that the people needed time to return to God; he gave them an extra week and extra sacrifices and many continued to worship. This is a wonderful model for us and our faithfulness. When we fall away, no time is too late to turn back. They were celebrating the Passover a month late, but it didn't matter to God, he was just glad he could bless his people again.

All of psalm 86 is awesome, but especially verses 11-13:
"Teach me to follow you, and I will obey your truth. Always keep me faithful. With all my heart I thank you. I praise you, Lord God. Your love for me is so great that you protected me from death and the grave."

God is good and his love for us is unending. The first part of verse 11 is truly important and I have been learning the significance of it: we need to be taught how to follow The Lord; it doesn't just come naturally. Our nature of sin wants to rule us but God can teach us his ways. How does he teach us those things? Through daily reading of scripture and our tough circumstances. I feel like each day I am learning and growing, and now that I am being taught by The Lord, the call is that I will obey. That's sometimes hard to do. But there is scripture in John 15 that talks about how obedience is the sign that we love Jesus. If we won't obey, then we don't really love him. A simple, but hard truth. God, teach us your ways so that we can walk in obedience.

Day 245: Right Now

John 18:38-19:16; 2 Chronicles 29; Psalm 85

In the sad story of Jesus' trial, Pilate makes the comment that he has the power to free him or nail him to the cross. Jesus reminds him that he only has that power because God gave him that power. A lot of times we give ourselves credit for successes or talents or strengths that we have. We think that we have created our victories or cultivated our talents. It is true that if we want to be better at something, we often have to practice. But it is God who gave us everything necessary to be successful or enhance our skills.

Throughout this chapter on Hezekiah, there is a undercurrent of urgency. Hezekiah begins "in the first month of the first year" his plans to have the temple purified and repaired. It takes the priests 2 weeks to do this. Then later it says "Right away, Hezekiah called together the officials of Jerusalem and they went to the temple." And finally, they "celebrated, because God had helped them make this happen so quickly." Hezekiah wanted and needed to clean up the mess that the previous kings had made of the temple and of worship. He could have waited until he had established himself as a leader, or the people were ready, or some other excuse--but he didn't. The time to make things right was now. When should we make things right with God? Not when we've got our career together, when we are married and have a family, when we've solved that problem, or our health is better. Whatever our circumstances, now is the time to get right with God.

This psalm is a beautiful expression of what could have been Hezekiah's heart:
"I will listen to you Lord God because you promise peace to those who are faithful and no longer foolish. You are ready to rescue everyone who worships you, so that you will live with us in all your glory. Love and loyalty will come together; goodness and peace will unite. Loyalty will sprout from the ground; justice will look down from the sky above."

Day 244: Proximity

John 18:19-38; 2 Chronicles 27-28; Psalm 84

In this telling of Peter's three denials, there are two questions: the first two times, the people ask Peter if he is one of Jesus' followers. He refuses such a claim. At that moment, he is unwilling to say that he is a disciple of The Lord, someone who learned his teachings, watched him do miracles, travelled with him all over the place. The last questions, isn't even about Peter's love or discipleship of Jesus, but simply his proximity to him: "Didn't I see you in the garden with that man?" At this point, Peter could have said yes, he was in the same location, but even such a claim is too much for Peter to admit to. Even being around Jesus is shameful (at that moment) in Peter's eyes and so he denies even that. If we are unwilling to be called followers of Jesus, if we don't want to admit that, then are we even going to want to admit that we are "Christians," a word that seems to hold very little value these days? Peter was an all or nothing type of guy, which in some ways is good. Here, he shows us that if we aren't going to be all in for Jesus, then we might as well be completely out.

Jotham did a good job of leading Judah; his son did a great job of screwing it all up. Ahaz made idols, offered sacrifices, including his OWN SONS. He was so despicable, God virtually wiped out Judah. Thankfully, God was still watching out for the people, so when they were taken prisoner, he rescues them. They were suffering because of their terrible and ungodly leader. There are a lot of factors that could be examined in this story. For instance, why was Ahaz such a terrible dude when his father was a decent guy? Maybe he neglected his children and so they were not raised loving The Lord. Maybe Ahaz just decided that he didn't trust God and wanted to do a religion his own way. Towards the end of chapter 28, he thinks that maybe all this bad stuff has happened to Judah because the foreign gods are helping them, so he decides to try out worshipping them and see what happens. He sounds like a wishy-washy guy, trying to get whatever might be best for him.

This Psalm talks about the incredible blessing and life that flows from The Lord. The psalmist is so excited just to be in God's presence, just to serve in the temple. We should love The Lord so much that we don't need anything more from him except his presence, being in close proximity to him. We shouldn't love God just because of what he gives us, his blessings, his protection. God deserves praise not because of what he does and can do for us, but simply because of who he is.

Day 243: Power of a Name

John 18:1-18; 2 Chronicles 26; Psalm 83

When the guards show up to arrest Jesus, he declares "I am Jesus!" and they all fall to the ground. People don't do that when I introduce myself. Ha! There could be several reasons why this happens. First, there is power in the name of Jesus. He and his name are "God in the bod," and the Creator of the universe. Secondly, if I remember right, his name can drive out powerful demons. These men might have been influenced and filled with demons and so by declaring his name, the demons were forced to fall to the ground. Whatever the cause, it demonstrates the incredible power of the name of Jesus.

Uzziah's story is sad. He had great power, was obeying The Lord, and was known all over the world! However, scripture tells us that he "became proud of his power, and this led to his downfall." What did he do that made God angry? He offered incense at the altar for The Lord. What? That doesn't seem like it is wrong! However, that job was assigned by God to the priests because not just anyone could go before The Lord. They didn't have Jesus to bridge that gap yet. Uzziah thought he was awesome enough to do something so special, but God didn't let it slide. And when he was called out on it at first, he got angry. He didn't like being called out, as most people don't, and God struck him with leprosy. It was at that point, when physically his disobedience manifested itself, that he accepted his mistake and left. He suffered the rest of his life, unfortunately. Humility is super important. We cannot become too proud of ourselves that we stop submitting to The Lord. May Uzziah's example remind us of this.

Day 242: Why Idols?

John 17; 2 Chronicles 25; Psalm 82

In this passage of scripture, Jesus talks a lot about oneness. He and the Father are one and he prays that his followers would also be one with each other and with God. All of this oneness is about relationship and purpose. God the Son and God the Father are one because they share a perfect unity, a perfect relationship, a perfect purpose. We are designed in God's image, and so that perfect unity and purpose is what we are also to strive for and embrace. It's hard because so much of our energies are devoted to selfishness or protecting ourselves.

The other thing Jesus talks about is his followers being hated by the world. Ouch. But why do they hate us? Because we "don't belong to this world," just as Jesus doesn't. What does that mean? That our purpose is eternal, that what we value can't be seen, because we are driven by one truth, because we pursue humility and compassion. That can seem so discouraging sometimes. How are we supposed to love on people that hate us? The same way Jesus did: self-sacrifice, humility, grace, service. If we focus on the things that will matter in eternity, the hate we receive in this world will seem like minor trouble comparatively. That's tough, but that is what we are called to do.

Amaziah compromises, follows his own path and it leads to his destruction. He listens to God, but not because he wants to obey, but because he's worried about his life and position. God wants to bless us; it is when we go down our own path and stop listening that we leave his blessing and then end up in ruin. At one point Amaziah has taken the idols from the Edomites and starts to worship them. God, through a prophet, asks "Why would you worship idols that can't even save the people you stole them from?" Basically, are you blind? What kind of logic is that, Amaziah? It's like we know that being a workaholic is dangerous for our family, yet people worship their jobs anyway. We know that putting a significant other or spouse on a pedestal is dangerous for our relationship, but we do it anyway. We know that getting mixed in with substances is destructive, yet people will sell out everything for their next fix. We need to be people of purity, not compromises as Amaziah was.

In this psalm it references these "gods" that people worship. Basically God says, you are evil and useless, what you should be doing (and this is for all of us): "Be fair to the poor and to the orphans. Defend the helpless and everyone in need. Rescue the weak and homeless from the powerful hands of heartless people." What is so beautiful about this passage is that we get a glimpse of God's heart and his design. God is truly loving, and he doesn't ignore the poor and helpless.

Day 241: Faith of our Own

John 16:4-33; 2 Chronicles 24; Psalm 81

Jesus tells the disciples, "I am going to do what is best for you." Isn't that awesome! What a great promise!

Jesus also says some powerful statements about the truth that the Spirit will show people of this world: that they are "wrong about sin, because they didn't have faith in me. They are wrong about God's justice, because I am going to the Father, and you won't see me again. And they are wrong about the judgment, because God has already judged the ruler of this world." I don't know enough about denominational theology to connect these to certain churches or even other religions, but I do know that the thoughts expressed here are serious causes for conflict. We have ideas about sin, about believing in Jesus, about justice and judgment. Whatever all this may mean, one point that I definitely get is that the Spirit shows what is really true. So how do we know what is Truth? We get connected intimately with God's Spirit. How do we do that? Pursuing a relationship through scripture reading and prayer.

And finally, Jesus promises unalterable joy in the days to come. We might have struggles here on earth that bring great sorrow, but that isn't what eternity will be made up of. Christ promises reasons to be joyful beyond measure.

Joash did a good thing by repairing the temple, but his faithfulness was only so deep. He wanted the temple to look good and followed The Lord as long as the priest Jehoiada was keeping him accountable. But as soon as Jehoiada died, king Joash was adrift in this world of deception and unfaithfulness. It is clear that his relationship with The Lord was not of his own initiative. He fell away and was swayed very easily. Our faith in The Lord needs to be our own. We can't depend on others to keep us strong and devoted.

This psalm is demonstrating that God deserves our praise and wants to save and provide for us. But why wouldn't he? Because we, people, turn away. I've written about this before, but here it is in scripture again: If we want God's blessing and protection, then we need to worship him. If we aren't willing to submit to him, then we can forget about his favor. God isn't going to force himself on us, he even says, "I let you," showing that God allows us to go our own way. But how could we not serve a God who promises, "Just ask, and I will give you whatever you need....I would feed you with the finest bread and with the best honey until you were full." My mouth waters just thinking about that! God loves us, that's why he warns us not to turn away; that's why he allows us freedom. I pray that our hearts and lives would focus around the God who wants to bless and love on us in a way that no one or nothing else can.

Day 240: Stay Joined

John 15:1-16:4; 2 Chronicles 23; Psalm 80

This message from Jesus is intense and at times hard to swallow. Instead of saying "abide" as other texts do, my CEV version says "joined": "Stay joined to me, and I will stay joined to you....Stay joined to me and let my teachings become part of you." This is the answer to how we will produce "fruit that will last." Jesus calls us to produce fruit in our lives and how we do that is staying joined, connected, to Christ. Otherwise, God will cut us off. The part of the verse that really hit me the other day was, "But you cannot do anything without me." Whoa. Apart from Christ, everything I think I'm doing is worthless. It won't have a positive lasting impact for eternity; it is worthless. I can do NOTHING apart from Christ. So do I need Jesus? That would have to be a loud, gigantic YES.
The next part of Jesus' message here that packs a punch is about how the world will treat us. This is probably my greatest hindrance to sharing the gospel: getting laughed at, rejected, hated because of the message of Jesus. And what is sad, it isn't that they will reject the message; I'm much more selfish than that. It is that I would get laughed at or hated. I'm not proud of that. However, each day, Christ is making me more and more bold and I'm discovering that what matters is not the world's opinion or treatment of me, but God's feelings for me.

Lots of killing in Chronicles. In this chapter, they not only kill the evil queen (think evil step-mother or the one who poisons Snow White) but they also destroy and kill anything that has to do with the god Baal. Jehoiada is determined to set up the temple and people as a holy institution again and he is very strict about it, not in a way that is religiously legalistic, but to reestablish it as God had originally directed. But what did it take to do that? Lots of bravery, planning, risk. They couldn't walk up to the evil queen, Athaliah, and ask, "Hey, you're kind of evil and not doing a good job, can we crown Joash?" They had to be bold for The Lord, have a plan, and disobey human laws in order to uphold God's. This doesn't mean we break our laws of this land, but it does mean that we are to be faithful to God before we are faithful to anyone or anything else.

This psalm talks about a vine! However, it says that enemies chopped down the vine. The vine could represent Jesus, it could represent God's kingdom, and this psalm reveals that enemies have chopped that vine down. Jesus was treated terribly throughout his three year ministry, believers have been killed and persecuted through the ages. This psalm cries out, revealing that the only one who can save the nation, restore it, make it powerful, destroy the enemies is The Lord Almighty. The God we serve is so powerful that we cannot truly understand what he is capable of. I am thankful that The Lord I serve is that incredible.

Day 239: "If You Love Me"

John 14:15-31; 2 Chronicles 21:2-22:12; Psalm 79

Every time Jesus opened his mouth, it was like, "Whoa. Crazy awesome." This passage is no exception. He seems to focus on two main ideas. First, and he says this several times: "I you love me, you will do as I command....If you love me, you will do what I have said....If anyone loves me, they will obey me." Ok, three times, it must be important. On the flip side, he says that "anyone who doesn't love me, won't obey me." Makes sense. So what has Jesus commanded? Well since he is God, we basically ask, "what has God commanded?" Let's pause here for a second. Here Jesus says that those that love him will obey him, will do what he says. It seems simple enough, except there is a problem. SO MANY people have NO IDEA what Jesus actually has said. They may think they know because they go to church and listen to the pastor speak. So why am I saying this? Not many people have an idea what Jesus has really commanded because they HAVE NOT READ what he said. They don't read their Bible. I used to be one of those Christians: I  went to church, served here and there, and thought I was doing good. Then, my eyes were opened, and I realized how can I follow Jesus when I am not pursuing him? He is constantly moving forward and I was going nowhere. I was further and further from him and had no excuse except that I was lazy. I started reading my Bible daily, and my life has never been the same. Ok, back to the story in John: just in the New Testament, he says things like love your enemies, love The Lord with all your heart, love your neighbor as your self, humble yourself, trust in him, sell everything and give to the poor to follow him, and many more. Loving Jesus and obeying him means giving up everything we want and trading it for everything God wants. It means sacrificing more than we think we can in order to give God glory, break away from temptations and sins, help others. It means making life all about God and growing his kingdom and not about me and my earthly comforts and pleasures.

The second thing Jesus talks about in this passage (which was what I was writing about in the first place) is the Holy Spirit. The spirit will come to "help," to comfort, encourage, or defend (as the notes in my Bible say. This Spirit will "show you what is true." How do we get this Spirit that reveals truth? Back up a verse or two: "If you love me, you will do as I command. Then I will ask the Father to send you the Holy Spirit." Oh. So it all comes back to loving and obeying Jesus. People and churches that hurt rather than heal, judge rather than love, I believe, probably don't have the Holy Spirit of Truth. If they did, they would know what Jesus says, love him, and obey him, which doesn't include hurting and judging. We need to stop pretending we are following Jesus, throw off the "Christian" mask and ACTUALLY follow him, read his word, and receive the Spirit of Truth. If we do that, the world could be radically different. Look at what Jesus did through 12 men who did just that.

Jehoram, the son of the pretty awesome Jehosaphat, was a terrible person. He murdered his brothers, disobeyed God and worshiped idols, and built shrines that led the people astray. God was ticked. Because of his disobedience he suffered. When he died, "no one even felt sad." Whoa. That's sad. It makes me think about what people will think and feel when I die. I don't want them to be sad, because I don't want to make anybody sad ever, but not because I've lived such a terrible and dishonorable life that they are glad I'm gone. Jehoram could have followed the example of his father and grandfather and continued their positive legacy, but he wasted his position as a leader and died a painful and empty death. Tragic. And his son Ahaziah is no better. Things can turn from beautiful to ugly in no time at all. Whatever sin entangled these people's hearts, it was bad. They were killing their own family for power, control, selfishness, idols--worthless stuff. God wanted purity, life, love, faithfulness. All that these people did was pervert that with sin, idolatry, unfaithfulness. But what is woven within this story is God's ability to maintain power. His hand is not far from these people and he removes them when he chooses. God is not absent and the wicked are under his control.

From the psalm: "Our God you keep us safe. Now help us! Rescue us. Forgive our sins and bring honor to yourself....Then we, your people, will always thank you. We are like sheep with you are our shepherd and all generations will hear us praise you."

Day 238: Just Show Up

John 14:1-14; 2 Chronicles 20:1-21:1; Psalm 78:56-72

In this passage of John, Jesus tells his disciples that he is the way to the Father, the representation of God, he is one with the God Almighty. If there was any doubt before as to how to reconcile a relationship with God the Father, how to connect with the God of the Universe, how to know what The Lord wants, it's to know, understand, and follow Jesus. One verse that really stands out is when Jesus says, "I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me, you will do the same things that I am doing." Whoa. We should not read those words lightly. Jesus says that without a doubt, with certainty, he can tell us that those who are his followers, his real disciples, will do what Jesus does. I spend a lot of time doing things that Jesus never did: complaining, gossiping, worrying, judging. Instead, I need to fill up with Jesus so that I do the things that he did: loving, forgiving, healing, helping, serving.

Jehosaphat was a pretty good leader. He still left some shrines in tact and God was mad at him for that; he also made an agreement with the evil king of Israel and God didn't like that either. However, this story in Chronicles is a powerful example of how, if we rely on The Lord completely, even in our darkest hour of desperation, God will come through for us. Jehosaphat's kingdom was being invaded by a terrible army and it says he was afraid. It's ok to be scared sometimes. But instead of fretting, freaking out, falling into despair, Jehosaphat sought the Lord's wisdom and power and he got the entire kingdom involved. He admits "we won't stand a chance when this army attacks. We don't know what to do--we are begging for your help." It's ok to feel helpless, because in our weakness, God can be strong. And God is. The Lord responds by saying "you won't even have to fight. Just take your positions and watch The Lord rescue you from your enemy. Don't be afraid. Just do as you're told. And as you march out tomorrow, The Lord will be there with you." Wow! The only thing God was asking for was obedience. He wasn't asking them to have amazing skills, to be perfect, to build something, or carry out a complicated tactic. Just be obedient by getting into position. Basically, show up. And what did God do? He fought for them. They didn't lift a finger, and thank God that they were able to recognize who won the battle. See, when we are so afraid and realize that we don't have what is necessary to defeat the enemies of our souls and lives, that opens the door for God to do everything, to work a miracle. He came through for Jehosaphat, an imperfect king; he will come through for us, too.

Day 237: Will You?

John 13:21-38; 2 Chronicles 19; Psalm 78:40-55

This passage of John is all about betrayal. Jesus was "deeply troubled." Why? Because he was about to be betrayed into the hands of death. When he dips the bread and hands it to Judas, its like he is handing his body over to him to betray him. The next verse says that "right then Satan took control of Judas." I don't know if Judas gave up hope, if Satan just overcame him, or what, but Satan's role in this betrayal is clear. God ordained it for the salvation of the world, but Satan was greedy enough and wanted to get his hands on Jesus no matter what. He chose a man whose god was money and used that to overcome the message of Jesus. In addition to Judas' betrayal, Jesus also predicts Peter's betrayal. Peter declares that he would die for Jesus, and he very well might, but would he stand up for him? Would he identify with him? A lot of Christians say that they will die for their faith, for Jesus. Ok, that's great, Jesus says, but will you defend me? Will you represent me? Will you speak up for me? Our actions show that we often won't. It's so sad and when I think about it this way, I feel like I am betraying my Savior even after his has given up his life for me. Praise God that he died because of his love for us, to save us, to bring us closer to him and to provide forgiveness!

Jehosaphat travels around his kingdom and encourages the people to worship The Lord. He himself goes and speaks to his people. This is a very awesome, personal approach and through it, he sets up leaders to carry out justice and keep the peace. He doesn't just send a letter and hope the people figure it out. He equips them because he knows that humans make mistakes (as he was just rebuked by a prophet for one of his own).

People sometimes say they don't want to believe in God because they want proof. The Israelites were a group of people who saw the hand of God performing amazing and terrible miracles and yet they still forgot and disobeyed The Lord. What makes us think that our generation would be any different? God revealed himself in a very visual and powerful way to them and they did not always respond with faithfulness. Today, God whispers to hearts, uses people to do miracles, and it is through the acts of changed hearts that he reveals himself. If we are unwilling to be faithful and believe because of the testament of the scriptures and the testimony of believers, then probably no amount of fire from heaven will change our minds either. We must have faith. I think it was C.S. Lewis who said something like, if Christianity is fake, then it is of no importance; but if it is real, then it is the most important thing ever (my paraphrase). If God isn't real, if he doesn't exist, then believing in him, what the Bible says, really doesn't matter. But if God is real, then whether or not I have faith in him is the most important thing of my entire physical and spiritual life.

Day 236: Washing Feet

John 13:1-20; 2 Chronicles 18; Psalm 78:21-39

Jesus washes his disciples' feet. What is interesting is that the verse says "Jesus knew that he had come from God and would go back to God. He also knew that the Father had given him complete power" and he goes on to wash their feet. It seems like a weird transition. Here Jesus is thinking about the complete faith and power God has placed on him, and he decides to do a servant's job. It must be significant. I know that washing of the feet was a common practice since it was dirty outside and it was a servant's duty. Their Lord and Master is the one performing this. He tells them that they should follow his example of love and humility and service. Man, how often do I shirk duties of service because I don't want to do them or feel they aren't worth my time? Too many. I was thinking about it yesterday, that Jesus died, DIED for me. He took all my sins upon his broken shoulders and suffered the full fury of God, FOR ME. Why am I so afraid of what people might think if I share the gospel with them? Seriously, as Jesus has done and shown me to live, so I need to do that too: selflessly.

When everyone else is saying one thing, what do we say? In this story in Chronicles, 400(!) prophets were giving the king the information he wanted to hear. Then comes along Micaiah who is already despised by the king because he "always has bad news," meaning that he always tells the difficult truth. He has a reputation for being disliked because he speaks the truth from The Lord. That's a tough place to be in and really, very similar to what I was just writing about above. Human approval means nothing in the eyes of God; it is the Lord's approval that matters, both here on earth and in heaven. Not only is Micaiah disliked, but he's treated poorly, like a criminal for speaking up. That's not a great incentive to tell the truth. But this comes back to an eternal perspective: what is more important, God's approval for eternity with some suffering here on earth for a few years, or an eternity of suffering because we wanted a little bit of superficial comfort here on earth? Tough question, but one we need to answer and be SOLD OUT for.

This psalm recounts the story of the Israelites in the desert and their provisions of manna. Even when God was mad at them, he provided "more than enough." He "gave his people all they wanted and each of them ate until they were full." But they kept on sinning, they ignored his miracles, and when they did turn to him, it was only out of fear and they didn't truly love him. However, the passage continues, saying: "Yet God was kind. He keep forgiving their sins and didn't destroy them. He often became angry, but never completely lost his temper. God remembered that they were made of flesh and were like a wind that blows once and then dies down." God knows we are going to make mistakes; he made us, he would know. He has such incredible patience for his children. However, we need to work hard not to try that patience. Remember, God's approval is the only one that matters.

Day 235: Scare Away Boogey Monsters

John 12:27-50; 2 Chronicles 16-17; Psalm 78:1-20

Jesus refers to himself as the light several times in this passage. Why that image? Why light? In the light you can see more; you can see where you are going, where your feet are stepping, what lies in your path. In the light, there is not fear of the unknown because all can be seen. Things are clearer. Just the idea of being able to see things clearly is a powerful promise to me. I'm the kind of person that wants to know where I'm going, what my surroundings are. Believing in Jesus opens our eyes to see him, life, people, circumstances with the greatest clarity possible. The alternative? Stumbling around in the dark, not being able to see what is in front of us, what dangers surround us; having to guess at who is with us and what they are like, not knowing any such clarity or freedom in life. In the darkness there are boogey monsters! Ok, maybe that's left over from my childhood, but in the dark, things can lurk unseen and the Devil prowls and thrives in the darkness.

What is interesting about this chapter is that it also includes a note about the people. Jesus had worked a lot of miracles, "but they were still not willing to have faith in him." Why not? One guess is that they were in it for the short term benefits, being healed of various physical impairments. They would have to believe stuff that was contrary to everything they had ever learned. To step from the deepest darkness into blinding light is painful and takes some adjustment. Some people aren't willing to risk the pain it would take. Following Jesus requires we experience the pain of sacrificing our own desires for God's. But again, what's the trade off? Light, clarity, focus, perception.

I was so proud of Asa in my last post! And then he goes and depends on the Syrian army to protect him from a threat rather than trusting in God. The prophet, Hannai, reminds him that God watches everyone and gives strength to those who obey him. Because Asa disobeyed, didn't trust, God was withdrawing his peace for the kingdom. Unfortunately Asa doesn't accept this rebuking well and throws Hannai in jail and takes his anger out on his people. He wasn't willing to accept the consequences for his actions and acted like a spoiled child. This continues when he gets a foot disease and "he relied on doctors and refused to ask the Lord for help." He was done depending on the Lord, despite all the amazing blessings God had poured out for him. A great example of what NOT to do.

Asa must have done something right, however, because his son Jehosaphat obeys God, destroys the shrines for worshiping idols, and demands that the Lord's Law be taught in every city. Yay! Even his enemies knew that God was with and wouldn't attack because they "were afraid of the Lord's power." Jehosaphat became rich at powerful, but at this point in his life, he still doesn't desert The Lord, abandon God's law, or take things selfishly. He breaks the cycle that his father had fallen into and does right in God's eyes. Way to go, Jehosaphat!

In this psalm, it talks about how important it is to teach God's word to the younger generations, to our children. That is one of the things that I am SO looking forward to. I want to read my child scripture and fill up their heart and mind from a very young age with the truths of God's word. I want to demonstrate a real relationship with The Lord, show them what it means to pursue Jesus through reading the Bible, and pray with them consistently. The problems for the Israelites began when they doubted God and forget him. I don't want to ever forget my Lord and don't want my children to either.

Day 234: Sweet Worship

John 12:1-26; 2 Chronicles 14-15; Psalm 77

Only 8 verses in to John 12 and man, there's a lot to discover! First, Mary pours very expensive perfume on Jesus' feet. For some reason, John records this very poetic line: "and the sweet smell of the perfume filled the house." Why would he record that? It was a beautiful act of worship that Mary was performing, an action that we should emulate in spirit. But this line? I think this is representative of the incredible beauty that a true act of worship and sacrifice has. The sweet smell filled the house and everyone knew what had been done, they could experience it too, its presence was strong and apparent to everyone there. The same is true when we worship The Lord. When our hearts pour out in humility and love, when we sacrifice our best, when we love of Jesus the way we were designed to do and the way he deserves: the evidence of it is beautiful and permeates all the space around us. People will see it, feel it, experience it, be moved by it. Way to go Mary.

Contrast that with stinky Judas. He masquerades as being holy but his heart is selfish and set on money. "Why wasn't that money given to the poor?" he asks. Does he really care about the poor? No, because what he really means is "why was that money wasted"? Geez, this kind of question gets asked by a lot of skeptics in the church. People give their money to people in need, they buy something for the church, and the question that is in the hearts of those whose lord is money, wonder why the money was wasted on that. Worship and sacrifice of and for Jesus. That's what Mary was showing us. May we follow her example, not Judas'.

Ok, normally I only write one comment per story, but this is just too good. The "chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus." For heaven's sake, why? He's not Jesus, he's not healing people, he's not the leader! Maybe not, but he is an example of the saving power of The Lord, a testament to what God can do, living proof of the life Jesus gives. His word and life are in some ways just as powerful for listeners as Christ's were. People, this should be us! We have been saved, risen, brought to life by our Lord! It says in the scripture that "he was the reason that many of the Jewish people were turning from there and putting their faith in Jesus." His story of salvation is very similar to our own. People should be hearing our story and want to put their faith in Jesus. I'm just as guilty as the next person of keeping Jesus a secret, and this is something I definitely need to work on. But wow, way to go Lazarus.

Check this out: "a grain of wheat that falls on the ground will never be more than one grain unless it dies. But if it dies, it will produce lots of wheat." So awesome! If we do not give up our lives for The Lord, we will never amount to much. Our influence, our faith, our service will never mean anything or be very powerful. But, if we surrender our life for Jesus, he can make our life matter in an eternal way.

Asa destroyed, smashed, cut down, and destroyed again. Is he a violent guy? No, he is obeying God. This is how God wants us to take care of the idols in our lives and in this world. We are not to hide them in the closest, shove them to the back, cover them up. The Lord blessed this guy for tearing these things down and telling everyone to worship God. Asa even makes his grandma mad because she had build a "disgusting idol" and so he "cut it down, crushed it, and burned it." Then he removed her from her royal position. Idols of any kind are dangerous, Asa knew this, and was not afraid to confront his own family about it.

Day 233: See The Glory

John 11:28-57; 2 Chronicles 12-13; Psalm 76

Jesus asks the people who have gathered to mourn for Lazarus, "Didn't I tell you that if you had faith, you would see the glory of God?" This strikes me as a very interesting question. It suggests that in order to see God's glory, we must put our faith in him. So what is God's glory? Power? Compassion? Salvation? Miracles? Jesus? I Googled it (why not) and it said that the glory of God is the "beauty of God's spirit." Cool. So if we have faith in Jesus, then our eyes and hearts will be opened to his love, his greatness, his heart. That means that even for us, today, if we have faith, God will allow us to see the glory, the beauty, of who he is.

Because of how incredible Jesus proves himself to be, the Pharisees plot to kill him. Even Jesus, or should I say, especially Jesus, lives in such a way as to upset people because of how radical he is. The Pharisees make a very interesting comment in their discussion: "Then the Romans will come and destroy our temple and our nation." Do they not believe that God Almighty will guard and protect them? That The Lord will abandon them? Perhaps they believe that God already has since their hearts are so far from him. Either way, they demonstrate that they are not followers of The Lord in order to get to know the heart of God better, but to be over the sinners and have a higher status.

In the last post, I was proud of Rehoboam because he seemed to be wising up. In this next passage, Rehoboam shows that he still had a lot to learn. He allowed the people to stop obeying The Lord. As a result, God allowed the king of Egypt to invade and take over. When we stop obeying God, stop relying on his strength, ignore his wisdom, we open the door for unhealthy, foreign, dangerous things to enter our lives. That's what happened to Rehoboam and his kingdom. Now, they eventually said they were sorry and God made them prosperous, but had they simply continued to follow The Lord, they would not have fallen into the hands of their enemies.

Abijah sounds pretty cool. He has half the number of troops that his enemy, Jeroboam has. He steps up to the top of the mountain and declares that Jeroboam doesn't have a chance since he turned his back on God, while Abijah and his people still obey God. And indeed, despite his lack of numbers, his troops being trapped, God comes through and they are victorious in every way. When we put our faith in God, we will have victory over our enemies, whatever they may look like.

This psalm could have been written by Abijah himself. (It's not, but the message is similar.) In this passage, God is being glorified for his power and ability to bring rulers to their knees and destroy those who oppose him. This should be encouraging to followers of him, that he has power over the evil of this world and can defeat it.

Day 232: Advice from Friends

John 11:1-27; 2 Chronicles 10-11; Psalm 75

In the story of Lazarus, Jesus' wisdom and power are evident. He says at the beginning that Lazarus' sickness won't end in death...but he is dead when Jesus shows up. What exactly does this mean? It could mean that Jesus' perspective is further than what is happening at the moment. The same can be said for Martha's response: "I know that he will be raised to life on the last day, when all the dead are raised." She has the same sort of eternal perspective that Jesus is essentially alluding to. Even death doesn't end our journey, our story, our life. Just as in losing a job, a loved one, a friend, isn't the end of our journey. Lazarus died, indeed. But there is so much more to his story that was going to be revealed by The Lord. Everyone who has faith in Jesus "will live, even if they die." Our hope, our perspective, our life, should be focus beyond our physical death because there is so much more to our story than just what we do on this earth.

In 2 Chronicles we see a story in which the message is very clear. Rehoboam asks some older, senior advisors for advice, then asks some younger officials who are his age for advice. The older ones suggest kindness, service, gentleness, but the younger suggest a demonstration of power and force. Rehoboam shows his true colors--that he is power hungry and prideful--and takes the advice of the younger generation. The result is terrible. Sometimes we like to seek advice from people, and a lot of times we ask our friends or those we have a lot in common with that are similar in age and stage in life. This story clearly shows the potential danger. Rehoboam might have had some wise friends his age, but they are not recorded in this story. Instead, it is the older generation who demonstrates wisdom and grace and should have been listened to. Perhaps we should seek council from our elders, whether that means they are elders by 10 years or 50. Often, their judgement will be better, their wisdom solid, and their experiences expansive. Friends are great, but if we need advice, perhaps the best place to seek it is from those who have experienced a lot more of life than we have. Then once we hear it, even if it isn't desirable, we need to strongly consider following it. Good stuff in the Old Testament!

After Rehoboam makes a stupid mistake early in his rule, he lives much better for the next chapter. He wants to attack the people that rebelled against him, but God tells him not to and he listens. When the people of the other tribes cannot worship The Lord purely because of Jeroboam and they come to Jerusalem, They worship and are loyal under Rehoboam who obviously kept the temples pure and was someone they were willing to serve for several years. Rehoboam has a lot of wives and ultimately a lot of sons. He picks one to rule as king, but scripture says he "was wise enough to put one of his sons in charge of each fortified city in his kingdom" and he gave them all they needed. Rehoboam grew up! Good for him!

Psalm 75 is about how God has power over the wicked. It talks about how he will judge with fairness, he will take their power, he will pour out his anger on them and defeat them. On the flip side, this Psalm also includes praises to God. The psalmist says "our God, we thank you for being so near to us! Everyone celebrates your wonderful deeds." God is indeed near to us and if we praise The Lord and tell of his wonderful deeds, he will "give strength to those who are good." We don't need to be afraid or troubled by what the evil or wicked people are doing. Do we need to try and hinder their hurtful actions, protect the weak? Definitely. But, God holds the ultimate power and he will make sure that those that love him will be saved and those that do not will be judged accordingly. God is good and wise and right.

Day 231: Actions

John 10:22-42; 2 Chronicles 9; Psalm 74

While the significance of all of what Jesus says in this passage isn't completely clear to me at the moment, there are some things that stick out. First, Jesus says "I have told you and you refused to believe me" but it is "the things I do" that "show who I am." His point is, he can say and say and say all day long, but it is his actions that demonstrate who he really is. It's the same for us. I can say and say and say, until I'm blue in the face, that I'm a Christian, but until my actions reflect such a statement, who I really am could still be questionable. Words don't mean much without action to back them up. Anyone could agree with that, and that is precisely what Jesus is saying. Secondly, Jesus tells these people that they are not his sheep, so they don't know his voice or follow him. I've always wondered, does God send the people to the message, or the message to the people? In this passage it sounds like he prompts the people to seek out and believe the message. I'm not sure if that is significant or not, but there you go, my thoughts.

Solomon is the man. He is so wise and so wealthy, that people came from all over the world to just listen to him, even the Queen of Sheba. She had heard rumors of how famous and intelligent Solomon was and went to check it out for herself. I think that shows her wisdom: she was unwilling to just hear the rumors and be satisfied, so she went to discover the truth for herself. Because of that, she praises God, and God earns more glory on that day. Solomon's life was a testament to how much God loved his people. The Lord placed a ruler above all rulers to lead the people demonstrating that he cared for the wellbeing of his people. Solomon obeyed The Lord and everyone was blessed because of it.

It is weird that on the same day as I write the above, the psalm is about how distant God seems from his people. This passage is a cry to The Lord to see and do something about the enemies that disgrace The Lord and beat down his children. It reminds us, first, of how God is the ruler of all things: the land and sea, the night and day. If God can conquer the oceans and split the landscape, then he can manage some enemies. And so this call to him begs him to rescue his people. To contrast this with the previous reading, this just shows that life isn't always going to be peachy. Sometimes God is going to seem really close and his blessings are going to be obvious and numerous. Other times, we will face lonliness and emptiness and even defeat. God will seem more distant and uncaring at those times. But, that's where faith and a deep relationship with him is so important. During those times when it feels like we have to do it all alone, God's still here, he promises that. And the only way that isn't true is if our Sovereign Creator is a liar. So, I pray that we pursue an intimate relationship with our Lord so that in those dark times, we still believe he is here and faithful.

Day 230: We are Sheep

John 10:1-21; 2 Chronicles 8; Psalm 73

The good shepherd knows his sheep and they know him. He leads them with his voice. He walks in front of them and the sheep follow. He gives up his life for the sheep. He gathers other sheep so that he can have one flock. Those who believe in Jesus actually know him, not just know of him. Believers trust Jesus and they recognize his voice, they understand his word, they see him in this world. True believers of Jesus will actually follow him wherever he leads, and will follow the example he has set. Jesus has given up his life for us and wants for his brothers and sisters in Christ to be united because of him, not divided for whatever reason. I love the metaphor of the shepherd and the sheep. Sheep are dumb. They are defenseless and completely helpless. They need the shepherd to survive, because without it, they will wander off into dangerous places or never find water. Our need for Jesus is the same. We can be so dumb. I am so weak on my own and completely helpless to save myself. Without Jesus, I will walk a path of sin and never be satisfied. The sheep are completely dependent on their shepherd for their life; I'm learning that I am and need to be completely dependent on Jesus for my life.

Another small side note about this story: Jesus' words divided people. Because they are so radical, so powerful, so contrary to our worldly expectations, his words cut deeply to the heart and ultimately cause division because people want to believe certain things and refuse to accept the truth that Jesus speaks.

Solomon was a builder. When he finished constructing one thing, he built something else. He did build himself a palace, but most of what he built was for God and for the people: the temple, walls for protection, towers for lookouts, larger cities for people. And in between all of this, Solomon followed the Law given to Moses exactly. He didn't put off his worship of The Lord until all of his projects were done, his kingdom was perfect, he had complete peace in his kingdom. Since all of it was for God anyway, his worship was a part of the building he was doing.

Psalm 73 is awesome. It is so real, so raw, so honest. The psalmist starts out saying how frustrated he is because the wicked, the evil, those who do not follow God, seem to be so successful. They prosper, don't have problems, and yet they are foolish and don't honor The Lord. He says that he was frustrated and angered by this. I've felt that too. How could such evil people rise to such power, fame, and wealth in this world, and a lot of times, cause hardships for others? It just doesn't seem fair or right. But as the psalmist seeks guidance and wisdom from The Lord, he realizes that God isn't ignoring those people. They will stumble and fall and not be picked up. God will punish them, they will be destroyed, and never remembered. Their reward was received here on earth, the short time they got to be alive. But the rest of eternity, they will have nothing but pain.

The psalmist goes on to say how he was once "stupid and ignorant" and he treated God like a wild animal would. I was like, "how's that?" Then I realized that a wild animal is not submissive to anyone or anything. They keep their distance and take and take for their survival. Sometimes people treat God that way. They do not submit to his good and perfect will. They keep their distance, scavenging only when they need something. God deserves our devotion, our submission. He wants us close, relying on him for all our needs. Several verses at the end are so powerful:
"Your advice has been my guide, and later you will welcome me in glory. In heaven I have only you, and on this earth you are all I want. My body and mind may fail, but you are my strength and my choice forever. Powerful Lord God, all who stay far from you will be lost, and you will destroy those who are unfaithful. It is good for me to be near you, I choose you as my protector, and I will tell about your wonderful deeds."