He Is is Who – That's Why!

5 Why are you downcast, O my soul?  Why so disturbed within me? 

    Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.
– Psalm 42:5

He Is is Who – That's Why!
Did you ever wonder why we question everything?  From the time we are able to utter our first words, we are questioning.  I remember when I was a teenager, I spent the weekend at my grandparent's home doing yard work and helping out with some painting that needed to be done.  My cousin was living in a studio apartment that was attached to their garage and during the entire weekend, her daughter, my 2 year old niece, followed me around and asked me two questions over and over.  "Whatcha doin?"  and "Why?"  By the end of the weekend I vowed never to have children.

This is what we must sound like to God sometimes: 
us:     "Lord, whatcha doing?"  
Him:   "I'm teaching you to be a fruit tree."
us:     "why?"
Him:   "Because I need you to become an orchard."
us:     "why?""
Him:   "Because I need you to give good fruit to my people."
us:     "why?"
. . . and on and on it goes.  

I'm sure glad He has more patience than I did – or still do for that matter!  I think I'd be tempted to answer all those "Whys" by sending down a lightning bolt.  But asking why is part of who we are – it is our nature – we will always want to know why. 

Now don't get me wrong,  I am just as inquisitive as the next person, and I think we are always going to try to understand the reason that things happen the way they do.  But the truth of the matter is that we will never know the answer to some of the "whys" – not while during our time on earth anyway.

Instead of asking "Why?"  we should be asking  "Who?"  Who knows the depth of my pain?  Who sees the bigger picture in my life?   Who is interested in forming my character through various trials?   Our heavenly Father is the answer.  He is the one who knows, who sees, and who cares.  He loves us so much and He wants us to know and love Him, despite our painful circumstances.  He wants us to believe in Him and to Have faith that He will see us through – every time.

He wants us to know that He is God and He needs us to know what that means – no fear, no doubt, no concern – just Him . . . that's Who!

Prayer
Father, You are the one who knows the reasons for all things.  You have my life in Your hands and as You shape and mold me into the man You want me to become, I will yield myself to Your way.  Please forgive my selfishness and for questioning Your motives.  I pray that as I continue to grow in Your grace, my need to satisfy my curiosity will diminish and I will learn to wholly trust and believe in You and allow You to reign freely in my life – for all of my life.

Have a blessed day everyone!

– Richard

Hope and Encouragement

7  But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us;

8  we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed ; perplexed, but not driven to despair;

9  persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;

10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. 

11 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
– 2 Corinthians 4:7-11 (English Standard Version)

Hope and Encouragement
It's only just barely Wednesday and already, this has been a long and tiring week – at least it has felt that way to me!  The rainy weather has my old friend arthritis playing havoc on my body, and work has been crazy, and even though I got them done last night, the stresses of having to get the taxes done has taken its toll, and the fact that I've been neglecting my school work and the semester looms ahead has me all stressed out, and-on-and-on, etc., etc., (now would be a good time for someone to play me a hauntingly sad song on the violin).  Add not feeling well and having no energy to the mix, and all I wanted to do today was crawl back into bed and sleep until weekend.  I know I can't do that though (sigh), . . . and so I press on.

How about you?  Has your week been as crazy, and tiring, and stressful as mine?  We all have different things that we are going through, and we are all affected in many different ways.  We can choose to give in to the pains, and the pressures, and the stresses, and use them as an excuse to escape from the world, but I think the Lord would rather we remember His Word that says, ALL of this happens "...so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our bodies." 

He does not, and He will not, give us more than we can handle (even though it may seem too much when we are in the moment), but He wants us to continually look to Him for our strength – our energy – our peace – our rest – our healing, and our delivery.  Christ IN us can do anything!  He will be our champion when we feel like we can't do one . . . more . . . thing.

He will be our smile and He will be our joy when we are so distraught, and sick, and tired, and stressed, and it seems like life has no meaning.  He will carry us when we feel like we are too weak to move.  He is so that we can be!  So let's look to Him today! Let's cry out to Jesus with eyes and arms and spirits lifted up! Let's show Jesus that we believe what He says and we are willing and ready to receive the life that only He can give us. 

Because according to God's Word to us, we may be afflicted in every way – but we will NOT be crushed. We may be perplexed about our situations – but if we look to Him we will NOT be driven to despair. We will be persecuted by the world – but because He is our Lord we will NOT be forsaken. We may, from time-to-time be struck down – but because of His shed blood, we will NOT be destroyed. 

He is our Deliverer, and He is our Redeemer, and He is our Portion! 

Thank You Jesus!

Prayer
Lord, I am so tired.  I have had a tough week and I need You right now.  I need You to help me to do the things I need to get through my day.  I know that in You I can do it all, and so I am asking You to be my strength and my energy today.  I need You to carry me a few steps so that I can get the momentum from Your love and joy.  Just a jump-start Lord – that's all I need right now, then I can carry You with me throughout the rest of my day. Thank You Lord – You are always there for me, and You never neglect me.  I love You.

Have a blessed day everyone!

– Richard

Beast of Burden – Luke 19:35

35 They brought the colt to Jesus. Then, throwing their coats on its back, they helped Jesus get on.

– Luke 19:35 MSG

Beast of Burden

The colt . . . the lowly colt of the lowly donkey . . . designed, created, crafted for a life of service, a life of toil, a life so ordinary and filled with hardness and never-ending labor; the only peace it will ever know is when it is no longer any use and is set aside to await its final rest. 

Ah . . . but what an amazing life! This lowly colt, tethered and owned, and awaiting it's tumultuous life; this "beast of burden," has a place forever in the pages of scripture as the very vessel which ushered in the King of Kings – our Lord – our Savior – our Beautiful Redeemer! What a wonderful way to start your career eh? I mean if even the rocks knew who Jesus was, surely this simple-minded beast knew, and walked as tall and proudly as it could as it carried our Lord through the streets of Jerusalem. The finest hour of any animal ever to parade through any town, any time, and anywhere.  This was THE gig - the big time - the BIg Show!

But was the colt the real Beast of Burden in this story?  Hmmmm . . . I'd like to think the real "Beast" in this story was the Burden that our Lord was carrying upon His shoulders. The knowledge – oh the very real knowledge of exactly what He must do . . . the weight of the entire world, present and every future generation, riding and cutting, and digging, and burning into His very flesh with each step of the colt's hoof against cobbled stone.  What a beast that load must have been! What a horrible burden our Lord had to carry.  A burden He gladly and willingly accepted as He purposefully made His way through those crooked and dusty streets.

I imagine He could see into the hearts of every soul, and He could hear every heart-beat of every person watching, and cheering (some jeering), as the "parade" marched along. As Jesus, the man, the terror must have been unbearable, but as Jesus/God, the purpose and the promise made from the beginning of time, drove Him onward - keeping the resolve. The conflict between man's Flesh and God's Love all wrapped in one, sitting on a lowly colt, marching through the crowds of unsuspecting, undeserving, un-repenting souls – a slow-moving procession if ever there was one!

We all carry burdens don't we? The burden of our children, our careers, our family and friends, our communities, our countries, our world . . . does it ever end?  The real problem is that we hold onto our burdens; like tight-fisted monkeys not willing to give up the grain of rice, we stay captive in our own unwillingness. Our unwillingness to just open our hands, palm-up, and fingers-wide – stretched high over our heads in complete surrender to the one who already took care of all of it.  Our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ! He resolved all of it! He Overcame it completely and with undisputed finality! He handed to each of us the Victory over all of our burdens . . . now we just have to be willing to believe it, and accept it, and then live like we have.

Don't get me wrong, we will always have burdens, but what I'm saying is that our Lord, already resolved all of our worries, and our cares,and our hurts, and anything and everything else that is keeping us awake at night. We just need to believe it! We just need to give it up because we weren't designed to carry these burdens; because no matter what we do, no matter how much we worry, no matter how many nights we lay awake stressing over our lives . . . the only One who can do anything about it . . . already has!

Jesus is your solution, and He is my solution . . . to ALL of it!  Let's believe it, and then let's let our faces know that we believe it.  The smile that results will let the rest of the world see that we have the answer to overcoming any and ALL of life's "little" burdens. The Answer . . . the Solution . . . the Victory . . . IS JESUS!

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank You for carrying that terrible burden and for enduring the hardship and the suffering so that we could have victorious lives. Thank You for Your Sacrifice for us.  Lord I am so sorry for the worry, and for doubt, and for the despair that I know I can hold on to for far too long. As I get to know You better, I am learning to "give it up" that much sooner but I know I still struggle sometimes.  Help me Lord to always go to You first because I know that You are my answer, You are my Healer, You are my Victory over ALL of my burdens.

Have a blessed day everyone!

– Richard

You Have It In You! – Philippians 4: 11-13

11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 
12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 
13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. 

– Philippians 4: 11-13 

You Have It In You!

What kinds of challenges are you facing in your life?  Are there obstacles that seem to just come faster and faster like some out-of-control video game?  Have you reached the point where giving up is looking like a pretty good option?  Well where are you going to turn to get you past this trial?  How are you going to find the strength to come out victorious?  Who do you turn to for help?  What is your next move?

The obvious answer is to call out to your Father in heaven and ask for the Holy Spirit to give you the strength and the wisdom to overcome.  The not so obvious answer is that after seeking the Father's face, to look within yourself.  Find the you that is there when you are at your best.  Dig deep, dig hard, and dig until you find the strength and the spirit that God created you with.  The human spirit that He, in His glorious wisdom, so generously poured into you so that you could realize how special you really are and how awesome He created you.

God will help you and the Holy Spirit will give you wisdom and power from on high, and Jesus has given you the grace and love to remain humble, but in the end, our Triune God wants you to show the entire world the wonder that you are.  God did not create us to be weak and powerless - He created us with an incredible potential to overcome - to reach unreachable heights - to defeat the giants of this world, and to push beyond our familiar selves.  He gave each of us His seal of approval and He called us "good."

You and I are amazing and powerful beings - but we need to come to that realization of, and have the faith to know that God said it - and it is true - no ifs, ands, or buts about it!.  Just take a minute to reflect on all the things that you have made it through - God was there through it all.  Yes, the Holy Spirit also gave you the wisdom you needed to make right decisions, and yes, our Lord Jesus has saved you and He set your feet firmly on solid ground.  But you lived through it.  You survived.  You overcame because of the human spirit that our wonderful Father created inside of you.  You honored the power and the wisdom and the love of God by not giving up.

So now, in the midst of your trial, in the make-it-or-break-it time of your life, recall your victories and start praising God for creating you with the ability to walk through it all -  full of hope, full of joy, and full of life!

Prayer

Father I am so thankful for the human spirit that You designed me with.  You are constantly showing me that I can do anything as long as I put my faith and trust in you.  Each time I have had to reach deep and realize the strength that You have given me in order to walk when You told me to walk or to act when You told me to act, I have gained more confidence in You.  I know that it is not in my own abilities but by drawing close to you that those abilities become supernatural.  I am able to overcome anything the world throws at me - because You created me to live a victorious life!

Have a blessed day everyone!

-Richard