July 5, 6 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

Heroic Hezekiah to the rescue!

In God’s providence, Hezekiah comes on the scene at just the right time.  And I love what he did first.  Scripture says that in the first month of the first year of his reign, he began to rebuild the temple and consecrate the items inside it.  Hezekiah was a man who understood the holiness of God and his choices reflected that understanding.

I am overcome as well with the people’s response.  Instead of doing as before, those who saw Hezekiah as their leader, followed in his steps, bringing their tithes and offerings to the temple in excess; so much so that new priests were consecrated in order to prepare all of the animals for sacrifice.

What did you glean from the past two days of reading?  I can’t wait to hear…

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July 3, 4 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

Our American justice system, though better than most, is gravely imperfect.  At our human core, we want to believe that a human judge and human jurors can hear all the evidence presented and come to the just conclusion.  But we have all come to understand that is not always the case.  Often, even after acquiring all the information needed to make a right decision, the guilty go free without penalty and the innocent are indebted to those who have plead their case to an unrighteous conclusion.

And yet, when we find ourselves on the “wrong” side of the law and receive the justice we deserve, don’t we often complain about the consequences to our unrighteous actions? We want to receive forgiveness and mercy and we want our lives back to the way they were before we chose to do the wrong thing with more regard for our own discomfort than the discomfort we have caused or potentially could have caused another with our actions.

Isaiah 5:16 says, “But the Lord Almighty will be exalted by his justice, and the holy God will show himself holy by his righteousness.”

Wow!  God is exalted by his justice.  He shows Himself to be holy by His righteousness.  As we, His creations, experience the consequences of our poor choices, God is exalted.  He is just, perfect and His laws are perfect.  When our human justice system fails, we know that we can depend on a perfectly just God.  Isaiah warns against those who live unjustly, “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter… who acquit the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice to the innocent.” (Isaiah 5:20, 23)

Our job, as His children, is to keep our focus on Him and follow His Words and the model of Christ on earth.  We are not to be like the Israelites who “worshiped the Lord, but…” (2 Kings 17:32, 33).  Instead, we are to be wholly devoted, single minded in our focus and purpose to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, while loving others as ourselves.  We are to put no other gods before the One True God and trust and obey His Word.  Our human systems will change as the law makers and judges change, but our God is same yesterday, today and tomorrow and we can trust Him.

“In love a throne will be established; in faithfulness a man will sit on it – one from the house of David – one who in judging seeks justice and speeds the cause of righteousness.” (Isaiah 15:5)  As we learn later from Acts 17:30-31, that day is drawing nearer.  “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

Today, what changes might we need to make in our life to be ready for that day of judgment?  In what areas are we “… worshiping the Lord, but…”?  What idols have we erected in our lives that need to be torn down to put God in the highest place of our lives?

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July 1 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

Before addressing today’s passages, let me say one thing.

CONGRATULATIONS! If you are reading this blog, you have most likely kept up with the One Year Bible plan and you are half way to your end goal.  Many things fought for your attention, but you have remained steadfast, immovable and committed to finishing strong.  My hat goes off to you!  Way to go.  To celebrate this accomplishment, I would love to buy each of you women a cup of coffee and hear what God has taught you throughout this year.  Please email me at Calvary Church, and I will let you know the time and place of our meeting.  I am thinking we will get together sometime during the week of August 23, 2009.   I hope you can join us!

Now, on to today’s passages…

The tone of the reading today reminds me of the writings of a parent who is lamenting a wayward child or a spouse, lamenting a wayward love.  And yet, like a loving parent or spouse who longs to restore the relationship, our God longs to do the same with His people who have rejected Him.  God desires our love, attention, devotion, commitment and understands the choice we make involves seeming sacrifice on our part, but does it really?  In the scope of eternity, is the life we are asked to relinquish truly worth living for in the first place?

Hosea 6:13-15 is the cry of our Lord’s heart.  “I long to redeem them but they speak lies against me.  They do not cry out to me from their hearts but wail upon their beds.  They gather together for grain and new wine but turn away from me.  I trained them and strengthened them, but they plot evil against me.”

• As I examine these two verses, I ask myself these questions:
• What lies do I speak against the Lord?
• Why do I not cry out to God from my heart and instead wail upon my bed in anguish?
• When did I last celebrate a meal and forget to stand in recognition of the one who created the seed and the plant from which that meal came?
• How has God trained and strengthened me for His purposes, yet I have misused those resources?

The question that hits closest to my heart today is “Why do I not cry out to God from my heart and instead wail upon my bed in anguish?”  Why don’t I cry out to him?  It seems sometimes I forget to call to Him because I am too consumed with how I am going to fix the situation.  At other times, I find myself thinking that God might be powerless against my battle (How wrong is that?)  And still other times, maybe I want to wallow in my bed because it is easier than having faith, trusting that God will work it all out in His time and for His glory.  Once again, I think I have some serious crying out to do…

I am curious, which part of the reading hit home for you today?  How might you apply the truth of God’s Word to your life?

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June 19-20 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

“Is there no prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire of the Lord through him?” (2 Kings 3:11)

Different times during this period of history, prophets of God are called upon to relay messages from God to the people doing the inquiring.  As I read these passages I am saddened by the fact that some people, even today, think that they need to go through someone who is spiritually educated, committed or robed to get their message to God and hear their message from God.

The truth is that we have access to God through Jesus Christ.  We do not need a prophet, priest or other person to mediate between us and Him.  We can go directly to the throne of God and share our heart.  In order to hear back His message for us, we have His Words in print to read, examine, pray through and apply to our lives.  Unfortunately, I join the throngs of believers who know this truth yet fail to apply it as often as I should.

I want to spend more time on my knees.  I want to spend more time in prayer.  I want to hear the voice of God through my readings.  I want to know God more.

Today, what do you want?

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June 18 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

My prayer for today using the daily readings as a guide…

Lord, my heart is set on seeking you.  There are battles in my life that I cannot avoid.  I have not sought after the battles.  Instead, they have arrived at my doorstep ready for my response.

My heart is set on seeking You.  I have no power to face them.  I don’t know what to do.

But, my eyes are fixed on You; my heart is set on seeking You.  I will not be afraid or discouraged.  Instead, I will recognize the battles are not mine, but Yours.  Into Your hands, I give them to You and humbly ask You, Lord, to fight them on my behalf.

My heart is set on seeking You.  I will stand firm in what You have asked of me and I await your deliverance according to Your will.   As I face each battle, I know that You, oh Lord, go with me.

I give thanks to You, oh Lord for Your love endures forever.

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June 15-17 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

Kings and Chronicles are filled with the stories of kings fighting other kings, prophets sent as messengers of the Lord, with God always accomplishing His work in His way among His people.

Having recently read Prayer that Works by Jill Briscoe which covers the life of Elijah, I was taken this time through with Elijah’s humanness.  I appreciate the example Elijah gives of sold out obedience to the Lord, but it helps me to see that after being sent to the wilderness to be fed by ravens and a brook that will eventually dry up, being sent to town to be fed by a widow with her last cup of flour and then to be sent to the mountain to make way for God to prove who He is to the king and prophets of Baal, “Elijah was afraid.” (1 Kings 19:3)  After seeing the power of God displayed, Elijah feared man over trusting God.  Isn’t that the way we are as well?

The other thing I noticed about Elijah this time through is that Elijah, messenger of God, is seen by those who are not following God as a “troublemaker.”  Abah even calls him “… you troubler of Israel.” (1 Kings 18:17)  Can you and I relate to that?  How quickly do others around us who do not know our God think that by our speaking up for Truth, we are stirring up trouble.

We continue reading about the battle between Ahab and Aram and how God used his prophets to direct His people to battle.  Once again, however, the king of Israel did not follow God’s commands completely and made a treaty with his enemy rather than taking his life.  For this, the prophet of God told Ahab that he would surely die.

Finally, we read about the evil relationship of Ahab and Jezebel in the killing of a vineyard owner for a piece of land.  Yet, this story concludes with God’s mercy on Ahab after seeing Ahab humble himself before Almighty God.  God declares, “Because he has humbled himself, I will not bring this disaster in his day, but I will bring it on his house in the days of his son.” (1 Kings 21:29)  Even if in the last days of life, one decides to turn to the Lord, the consequences of a sinful life are still felt in generations to come.  How good it is for me to remember this truth.

Continue pressing on with the goal of completing the One Year Bible this year.  With summer in full swing, it may be easy to get sidetracked or fall behind.  Don’t’ fret.  Pick up where you left off, read longer to catch up and stay engaged with the Lord through His Word this summer.  Due to vacations and other days away, blogs may be postponed for a few days or a week throughout the summer.  I still encourage you to comment on the days you read to encourage others.

Until tomorrow…

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June 13-14 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

Isn’t it interesting to read about other families’ dirt? As we follow the royal lineages of two kingdoms, it is interesting to see what God, the Author Supreme, deemed important to include for us to read thousands of years later. Here are a few highlights and applications for me:

• Abijah became king of Judah and “He committed all the sins his father had done before him.” (1 Kings 15:3) None of us comes from a perfect family with perfect parents, but we all make the choice to follow what has been modeled or choose to live differently than what we have observed. Abijah chose to follow in his father’s muddy footprints. Reading on, we see why, “…his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his forefather had been.” Regardless of who our earthly father has been, we all have access to forefathers of faith. The Bible is filled with their stories that we can read and learn from. Looking back, we can learn how to live through the righteous choices of those who have gone before us.

• As we continue reading, we learn about Asa son of Abijah. We learn that “the country was at peace for ten years” during Asa’s reign and then we learn why. “Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God.” (2 Chronicles 14:2) He removed, smashed, cut down the idolatrous objects and places of worship in Judah and built up the fortified cities of Judah. Because of his extraordinary efforts, God gave him rest from war. It could have been easy for Asa to follow in his father’s muddy footsteps, but instead he fully devoted his heart to the Lord all his life. (1 Kings 15:14) Where did Asa learn how to make right choices? From whom did he learn about God; if not his father, then maybe his mother or a family member, a servant or the priest? Like Asa, God puts people in our lives to teach us what our earthly parents never did. What areas of your life need some remodeling? Who might you go to for wisdom on how to live differently than your parents?

• While Asa was nearing the end of his reign, the new king of Israel, Omri, “… did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of those before him.” (1 Kings 16:29) Considering the sins of his forefathers, trivial, Omri “shot the moon” and married the daughter of an evil king and began to serve Baal and worship him, even setting up an altar and Asherah pole for his god. This provoked the Lord to anger more than any others.

Today, I hope you would compare yourself most to Asa who did what was right in God’s eyes, but maybe you are struggling to fully devote your heart to the Lord like Abijah. I encourage you to reach out and find someone who can encourage you to walk forward in your faith, doing right in God’s eyes. Don’t turn to the left or the right and fall off the path to follow other gods like Omri, rather stay focused on what you know and have believed praying that God moves your head knowledge into a lifelong heart-felt devotion to Him.

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June 7 – 1 Kings 11, Ecclesiastes 1, 2

God knows that human love is one of the greatest forces to turn a heart away from the Lord. Solomon, wise Solomon, knew better, yet he gave his heart away (many times over) and his wives turned his heart away from the Lord his God.

Scripture records these words, “… his heart was not fully devoted to the Lord… he did not follow the Lord completely.” (1 Kings 11:4, 6) Solomon even went so far as to build high places for the detestable gods and his foreign wives so they could offer sacrifices to their gods.   There is little doubt in my mind that Solomon used some of the wealth God had freely given to him to be used for this purpose.  Does that remind you of the Israelites who used the gold God had given to the them through their masters, the Egyptians, to build for themselves a golden calf as the object of their worship?

Have you given your heart away to someone who does not share your love of the Lord?  How has this impacted you?  What would you tell someone who has yet to be in love?

God will accomplish His will using whatever means He sees fit. As a result of Solomon’s sin, God chose to reap enmity on his life and sent him adversaries in the people of Hadad, Rezon and Jeroboam.  We don’t like to think of God moving evil men to accomplish His purposes for individuals or nations, but this is proof that He can and has worked in this way.

As we continue with Solomon’s recorded thoughts in a book titled Ecclesiastes, we read that Solomon found little or no meaning in his acquisition of wisdom and wealth toward the end of his life.

“I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure.  My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor… everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.” (Eccl. 2:10, 11)

His perspective was one that was self centered and temporal rather than God centered and eternal.  What would we expect from one whose heart was divided, worshipping after other gods?  Even the giving of wealth and wisdom can teach us today that God is all we need.  God is the ultimate value and meaning in life.  In Him alone should we put our trust.

How has God accomplished His will in your life?  Has He used people or means that you least expected?  What have you learned about God from the life of King Solomon?

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May 26 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

The Queen of Sheba comes to visit Solomon and praise his wisdom.  Solomon had asked God for wisdom and his request had been granted.  Through this passage, we learn that wisdom included the discernment to know right from wrong, but also the knowledge of plant and animal life.  In fact, his fame spread to all the surrounding nations and “men of all nations came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, sent by all the kings of the world, who had heard of his wisdom.” (1 Kings 4:34)

Yet, it strikes me that the One who gave this wisdom to Solomon, the Creator of all that had been created, in the form of Jesus, came to live among men and man ignored Him.  Isaiah prophesied how Jesus would be received:

“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isa 53:3)

Anyone who has fully followed Christ for any length of time will probably resonate with the fact that this decision is not the most popular cultural choice.  In fact, some who claim to follow God and abide by His standards of living have been black-balled, ostracized, criticized and condemned. (Think of any bold Christian high school student at a public high school in your city.)  I doubt many Christians in America today will win popularity contests for their high moral standard or their definition of marriage, but their life choices will be seen by their Heavenly Father who will applaud them from heaven while preparing rewards that will await them there.

I wonder today, how willing we would have been to follow Jesus if we had been told that our life long road would be like Christ’s, filled with rejection, sorrow, suffering and dishonor rather than acclaim, adoration and fame from the kings of the world.  Rejoice with me as we realize that we have been chosen to suffer with Christ.  “For to you [and I] it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake…” (Phil 1:29)  For “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord  has promised to those who love Him.” (James 1:12)

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May 25 – See Chronological Reading Schedule

There are many “if… then” statements by God in the Old Testament.  In the reading today, we read a few of them.

• “… if you walk before me in integrity of heart… (then) I will establish your royal throne over Israel.” (1 Kings 9:4, 5)

• “… if you… turn away from me and do not observe the commands… I have given you and go off to serve other gods… then I will cut off Israel from the land I have given them and will reject this temple…” (1 Kings 9:6,7)

• “… if my people… will humble themselves … pray… seek my face… turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear… and forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

I am reminded that faith without works is dead.  God is fully loyal to us, his adopted children, but we are responsible to follow Him with the entirety of our beings.  God is not looking for those who are hypocritical, saying one thing but acting out another, instead He seeks those who have integrity; they do what they say they believe.

A friend works for Nike.  At Nike, employees are not allowed to wear clothing from competitors while on the Nike campus.  Why?  Because if an employee of Nike is wearing competitor’s clothing, they are saying with their choice of garments that the competitor is a better option than any Nike option.  This policy is a matter of brand and employee integrity.

Likewise, if you, like me, have chosen to be a follower of Jesus, we must make sure that the world sees us wearing Jesus when they look at us, not His competitor.  The competitor will never provide a better option, though at first glance, we may be tempted.  Instead, we need to remain true to our decision to follow our Brand Leader, Jesus Christ.

If we choose to turn away from God, there are consequences.  At Nike, the saying goes something like this, “If you’re going to wear them [the competitor], go work for them.”  The consequence of wearing the competitor at Nike is termination.  Be ready to find a new job.  The consequence of turning away from God is worse than unemploytment.  It is rejection and disaster – a removal from the protective hand of the Almighty God.  I don’t know about you, but that is not a consequence I want to experience.

But God, rich in grace, has provided us a way back under His protection.  It involves humility, prayer, seeking and repentance.  God promises to forgive us, and to show us the right way to go, again.

Today, where are you?

• Are you walking in integrity or hypocrisy?
• Are you turning away from God serving false gods?
• Or are you returning to God with humility, prayer, seeking and repentance?

Don’t let the sun go down without telling God where you’re at today and making the conscious decision to follow Him from this day forward.

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