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The Lord was with Joseph, so he succeeded in everything he did… Genesis 39:2

Joseph did not deserve what happened to him. He was minding his own business, obeying his dad, when sibling rivalry got out of hand. His own brothers ambushed him, stripped him, threw him into a well, and then sold him as a slave to a band of traveling salesmen. The rough, camelhair seat cushions on Joseph’s ride were the least of his troubles. Foreign traders. Foreign language. Weird customs. Weird religions. A slave’s future. We are told nothing about his trip from favored son to foreign slave, but the rest of the story implies that Joseph did not give way to hatred. He did not grow bitter or blame God.

When life explodes around us, we have a choice. We may not be in control of what is happening to us, but we have complete control of our responses to it. We can: 1) Grow bitter and blame God, 2) Deny that we are suffering, 3) Turn to addictions or immorality, or 4) Remain faithful to God in spite of it all. The fourth response is the one that catches God’s attention when He searches hearts and minds for those who are wholly His (2 Chron. 16:9). Sometimes it takes being stripped of everything we depend upon before the true condition of our hearts is known. God actively seeks those who will cling to Him, regardless of what is going on around us. When He finds us faithful, He promises to be with us and bless whatever He’s given us to do.

Which of those four options do you choose when life explodes around you? 

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Praising Right Through It

 

At the very moment they began to sing…the LORD caused the armies... to fight among themselves.  2 Chron. 20: 22

The problem is overwhelming, more than you can handle. The bills are due. The relationship is over. The medical report looks grim. You don't see a way out, and that gleam in the enemy’s eye challenges your faith. Your frantic prayers seem like wasted breath, so they begin to sound like wasted breath. “Lord, if you can do anything...” “Oh Jesus, they're gonna get me…” “God, if you don’t come through, I’m gonna have to take matters into my own hands. Why won’t you help me?”

That heavy sigh coming from heaven is not your imagination. How the Lord must weary of our faithless prayers! Our problems are not frustrating to Him, but our lack of faith is. He did not need the Israelites’ weapons or their strength. He required their praise instead. Only when the people began to sing and praise God did He step in on their behalf. They never even broke a sweat, because God did the whole thing without them. When the Lord fights our battles, He rides in upon the winds of our worship. He is eager to show himself strong to those whose hearts are wholly His (2 Chron. 16:9). Darlene Zcheche, former lead singer with Hillsong, writes this: “Praise is the proclamation that the enemy’s intent to plunder you, won't rock you.”

What do you proclaim when you face your battles? 

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When It's Bigger Than You Are

“Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.”  

2Chron. 20:15

“Dad?” Four-year-old Zac stood in the doorway of his father’s shop. His father welcomed him and then noticed the tears in his son’s eyes. Zac drew a shaky breath and opened his fist to reveal four sweaty pennies. "Dad, I heard you tell Mom that we can't pay the ‘lectric bill. I don't know what a ‘lectric bill is and I'm really scared. But I have these and maybe they can pay it.” Dad smiled and kissed his son’s bent head. “Well son, I do know what it is and how to pay it, and we won't even need to use your pennies. This is not your problem, it’s mine, okay? I'm the dad, and I will always take care of you. Trust me.” 

Sometimes we don't know how to pay the ‘lectric bill either. A problem bigger than us threatens our security, our reputations, or our future. We were trying to follow God, and then this happened. We often wear ourselves out because we think we have to pay the triple-digit ‘lectric bill with four sweaty pennies. It is those times that our Father offers to draw us to Him and whisper, “This is not your problem, it’s mine, okay? I’m the dad. I will always take care of you. Trust me.” God doesn't need our contribution. He requires our childlike faith. He reminds us that the battle is not ours, it is His. And we can trust him.

What battle are you trying to fight with your four pennies? Trust your Father. 

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On or Off

 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding... Proverbs 3:5

Jim sat in the open doorway of a plane, one foot inside and one planted firmly on the ground. He grabbed a magazine and smiled at the flight attendant headed toward him. She was not smiling. "Sir, you really must come inside or the pilot cannot take off. We won't get anywhere with you like that." Jim lifted a brow. "It’s OK. I’ll just ride like this. I don't understand aerodynamics very well. This hunk of steel staying in the air seems impossible to me. Plus, I'm not sure the pilot knows how to get where we're going, so I’d rather keep one foot on the ground just in case." The flight attendant wouldn’t budge. "Sir, we won't be flying low enough for you to jump out. Either get all the way on the plane or get off. You can't have it both ways." 

 

Trusting God is like that. Trust means we let go of our right to control a situation. If we want to trust in the Lord, we cannot also lean on our own understanding. Even when we can’t trust a person, we can trust God with the relationship. We don’t always understand God’s ways, and we’re afraid he doesn't know how to get where we want to go. So we keep one foot on our own understanding while pretending to trust Him. We want an escape route in case we don't like where this is going. It won’t work. God is nobody's co-pilot. We are trusting either in Him or in ourselves. We can’t have it both ways.   

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What Is Good?

Trust in the LORD and do good… Psalm 37:3

The whole meaning of life is summed up in that short verse: Trust in the Lord and do good. In fact, those two commands are intertwined to such an extent that we cannot have one without the other. 

If we really trust in the Lord—with all that implies---then He controls us. Trust results in setting aside our selfish will and allowing the Holy Spirit to produce His fruit, His character, and His deeds in us (Gal. 5:22). When we trust in the Lord, we will do good things. However, when we try to do good without trusting in the Lord, our good deeds are like filthy rags to God (Is.64:6). What may look good on the outside is motivated by how it makes us feel and what others think of us. Sometimes our good deeds are attempts to appease God.

So what does it mean to do good? The Lord told King Saul that “to obey is better than sacrifice” (1 Sam. 15:22). So the kind of “good” God desires is our obedience to His commands. Often we try to substitute a good deed in place of simple obedience to His word. We imagine that God is pacified with our helping a neighbor or serving in the soup kitchen and won’t notice that we are living in sexual immorality, drunkenness, or deceit. But to truly trust in the Lord is to desire is to please Him in everything. Only when we obey Him from a heart of love can we offer good deeds that are acceptable to Him. Only when we trust in the Lord can we truly do good.

Have you tried to substitute your ideas of good for simple obedience to God’s word? Only God can define goodness, and it starts with obeying what He has already told us to do.

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And Then It Got Worse

 You're pumped!

You've heard from God!

The vision has come and you see your destiny. 
You're called. 
You're chosen. 
God is with you and you're ready to go.

Moses knew that feeling. God had found him hiding in the desert, called to him from the bush that didn't burn up, and turned his shepherd's staff into the Rod of God. And if the miracles weren't enough, God even gave him an assistant. No excuses, Moses. Get to it!

So he did. At the end of Exodus 4, he had gone back to Egypt, gathered the elders of his people, told them what was going on, and they caught the excitement. They were getting out of here! God was gonna do something awesome. They cheered, partied, and worshiped like it was 1999. If this had been a movie, the music would have swelled and the camera would have pulled back into a beautiful sunset.

Brimming with power, authority, and confidence, Moses and Aaron strode into Pharaoh's courtroom and demanded that he knock off the nonsense. I can imagine Moses' sly nod to his brother as he twirled the holy staff. Watch this! 

The next thing they knew, they were outside the slammed doors of the palace with the sound of a loud "NO!"  still ringing in their ears. Had they just been thrown out? What was that about? What about...What about all those promises from God?

Have you been there?

You're in good company. If you've followed God for any length of time, you will have noticed that He rarely does things the way we think He will. You cannot second-guess God. His plans are far beyond the scope of our plans, so it's pointless to try to figure them out ahead of time. 

Imagine the dilemma as Moses went back to the eager Israelites to confess that not only had Pharaoh not let them go, but everything was about to get worse. The king was going to increase their labor as a punishment for Moses' impertinence. 

I feel sorry for Moses. How shattering to think you know what God's gonna do and then He doesn't. But God's plan had far greater significance than that generation of Israelites could ever fathom. God is not always as concerned as we are about our tiny piece of the puzzle. He sees the big picture and His plans always work toward accomplishing it.

What if Moses had succeeded the first round? What if one request had Pharaoh quivering and he agreed to let them go without a fight? We would have never had the parting of the Red Sea, the 10 plagues, the plundering of the Egyptians, or the Passover. Already, God was setting the stage for the culmination of his final Passover 1500 years later.

What might God be doing in your situation? All you can see is your corner of the picture. Could it be that God's answer has eternal significance? Could it be that when you set out to obey Him and everything got worse, there is a good reason for it? What if Moses had given up after the first go-round with the Meanie-on-the-throne? What if he had decided he had misunderstood the Burning Bush and gone back to sheep-herding? The ramifications are too disastrous to consider.

What if some day we all say that you?


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Faith or Trust

Is there a difference between faith and trust?

A friend posed this question last week, which resulted in a lively discussion. As I pondered it more, the word "faith" echoed in my mind from Hebrews 11, the "Hall of Faith." Many verses begin, "By faith Abraham...or Moses...or Elijah..." and then go on to detail their heroic acts. 

But verse 13 jerks you to a stop. "All these died in faith, never having received the promises..." It seems a rather rude interruption to the glowing accolades and you wonder for a moment if their faith was misplaced.

The subtle difference is best illustrated in the account of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego found in Daniel 3. Faith gave them boldness to declare, "Our God is able to deliver us from your fiery furnace, O King." You can tell by the statement that they had no doubts about that. But they don't stop there. Trust provoked them to add the key words, "But if not..."

 Faith believes boldly in the power and ability of God. But trust rests calmly on the character of God 

and says with Job, "Though he slay me, 

yet will I trust him."

 Too many people have one without the other and get off balance. The "faith" people proclaim confidently that what they want and have prayed for is a reality--even though it's not and never comes. 

"Trust-only" people refuse to exercise the faith that pleases God. They fear going out on a limb and actually believing God for what he has shown them is his will. 

Either one by itself is not sufficient. To remain overcomers in this world, we must have both.

 

Your Only Job

He shifted in his seat, unable to look at me. "I don't know what I'm gonna do. I needed that job. I'm doing everything I know to do, everything I thought God told me, but...it isn't coming out like I thought."
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She wiped the tears from her cheeks and squeezed her eyes shut. "The burden is too big," she whispered. "I'm praying and believing, but I'm so scared. What if...?"

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"My daughter is making terrible choices. I've given her to God, tried everything I know, but she continues on this downward spiral. What am I supposed to do? I can't take this hurt."
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Could one of those illustrations be you?

Many times we've done all we can to obey what God tells us. We are keeping our lives as close to Him as we can, trusting Him as well as we can, but the circumstances are careening out of control. It feels like certain disaster.

And our hearts duck for cover. We go back over every decision, analyze every move, second-guessing our choices until we are a puddle of emotional turmoil.

There is a simple reason we do that. And when we understand the reason, we can swim out of the puddle.

We have adopted the false notion that we are responsible for the results in our lives. Results are not the same thing as consequences. We bring on consequences by making choices that have direct results. If I run a red light in front of a police officer, I get a ticket. That is my consequence.

However, if I have obeyed every law and am pulled over by the highway patrolman anyway, then I am reaping results I did not create.

Often in our walk with God, we get the cart before the horse. We think we know what God intends to do in a given situation, so we begin to pray "in faith" and expect Him to get to it. When He does something differently, we often turn inward. "What did I do wrong? Where did I fail?"

One simple understanding can eliminate a boatload of frustration and spiritual confusion:  

I am only responsible to God for my obedience to Him, not the results of that obedience.

Praying "in faith" does not mean I confidently tell God what I expect him to do. Praying in faith means I allow God to so conform my will to His that I place all my trust in his nature and character. I have faith that He will do what is best, even if it does not look like MY idea of best.

Then I confidently obey what He tells me to do and leave the results with him. At the end of every day, there is only one question that every child of God should ask him/herself: Lord, was I as obedient to you today as I know how to be?

If the answer is NO, repent and accept forgiveness. 
If the answer is YES, then you're done. Period. The results are up to him.

Freeing, isn't it?

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Describe Bliss

You can't look at this without smiling.

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You smile because you know exactly how the old guy feels.

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You can almost feel the cool breeze flutter over your sweaty face. You remember how it feels when the heat evaporates from your neck and for a delicious moment, you know total happiness. Other needs disappear in those fleeting seconds when you're basking in sensory relief.

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It's the same feeling you get when you take a long drink of cool water after a hot run. Or when you finally hold your new baby or the returning soldier in your arms. For that instant, there's not a single thing you want but to relish the sensation.

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I think that's what Heaven is.

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Many people imagine elaborate celebrations, joyful reunions, and entertainment that makes Hollywood look dull. And that may all be true.

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But I believe what will startle us is the complete lack of need. The sensory satisfaction only experienced in fleeting moments on earth---before a fan or in the embrace of someone we love.

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But what's even more startling is that God offers that to us now!

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"My God shall supply ALL your needs, according to His riches in glory through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:18)

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Those aren't words meant to be rattled thoughtlessly from the innocent lips of VBS kids. They are a gold-embossed guarantee from the Creator of Heaven. The One who understands what need means.

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We often approach prayer almost apologetically, as though embarrassed to admit to God that we have needs we cannot meet. As though He'll say, "Really? You're scared (hurt, lonely, angry)? I had no idea. What's wrong with you!"

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God created our senses. He created our hearts. He embedded within us the ability to be filled as well as giving us opportunities to know deprivation. He understands need and He recognizes that one of the greatest gifts He can give us is the total lack of need.

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We can wait for Heaven to experience that delight. Or we can take Him at his Word and experience bits of it now. For every need you entrust to God, delight increases. It's no longer your responsibility to meet that need. It's God's. You can wash your hands of it and turn your attention to something else.

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And in doing so, you've tasted a drop of Heaven.

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