God's Mighty Hand

"This is the word of the LORD 

to Zerubbabel:

'Not by might

nor by power,

but by my Spirit,'

says the LORD Almighty.

Zechariah 4:6

He was in charge of rebuilding the Temple of God.  He relished the challenge at first, following the strict plan given by God generations ago.  It was the culmination of many promises made by the One True God: He would gather His people from all the places where He had banished them and bring them back to this place from which God first had carried His defiant people into exile.  (Jeremiah 29:14)  The humble carpenter was honored to be playing an important role in this historic moment.

Things, however, had not gone as smoothly as he had first hoped.  Opposition arose against the building of the temple; so much so that they had to stop construction for a period of ten years!  Zerubbabel almost gave up, until that momentous day when God himself sent a message to the foreman.  It was just the encouragement he needed to finish the job.

I'm not so different from Zerubbabel.  I may not have the skills and experience needed to head up an important job like rebuilding God's temple, but I do get discouraged by the tasks God has placed in front of me.  The slightest snafu can set me off course, plunging me into the depths of despair.  If things don't go according to plan, my plan, then I act like a piece of twine and come unraveled.  The most minor of irritations can get under my skin, distracting me from the job at hand.

Life is not orderly and organized.  Instead, it is filled with people who have different ideas than I do, others who follow a diverse callings and many who are working against me.  Things don't just fall into place.  Instead, I could more accurately say that if life were a jigsaw puzzle, I would still be trying to find all the edge pieces.  I am not equipped to negotiate life on my own.  When I try, I fail.  

As a follower of Christ, I am called to love the unlovable all around me.  The message God gave to Zerubbabel is the same kind of encouragement I need to get through each day.

Soaring

First there was the unexpected hospitalization.   Then came the car accident, and the ticket that went with it.  Then the phone call every parent dreads, "Mom, I've been in an accident but I'm okay."  It so happens that this final crash was potentially fatal as the teenage boy and his friend rolled the car, totaling it but miraculously walking away unharmed.  Each progressive crisis was another opportunity to trust God for my friend; another occasion to worry.

My friend would agree with me that life is hard and cannot be negotiated in my own strength.  I can try to stay strong for the kids, put up a brave front and do what needs to be done, but inside I am worn out.  The answer lies in where I find my strength.  

If I look to myself, my resources and my support system, I will soon run out of steam.  I am just not designed to carry the kind of load that life heaps upon me.  If, however, I do as the prophet Isaiah directs, I'll get through each day.  He said, "those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."  (Isaiah 40:31)

Sometimes, carrying on in the face of day-to-day life is the most difficult task to accomplish.  The drudgery, the monotony, the lack of excitement can cause me to think my life is without meaning.  But if I keep my eyes focused on Jesus, believing that He created me for a special mission and, as unimportant as it may seem to me, I can know without question that God has planned some good works for me to do.

It could be that the good works are hidden in the cup of tea I share with a hurting neighbor or the seemingly insignificant act of helping an older woman carry her groceries to the car, or the kind word of encouragement I give to a coworker.  In the hands of Jesus, a small act of faith has an earth-shattering impact.

Finding my strength in God means I'll never forget who I am: a sinner saved by His grace.

Letting Go

Forgiveness.  I can think of nothing more powerful than the act of letting go of the hurt caused by another's sin.  Jesus' sacrifice on the cross gives me the ability to take this life-changing action.    Instead of holding onto the hurt, anger and pain, I can choose to place it in Jesus' hands where it will be covered by His blood.  Even if the one who hurt me never accepts this free gift of mercy that Jesus offers, I am free from the bondage in which sin holds me.  

It is not within my own power to forgive others.  I can try to let it go, push the act out of my mind and move forward, but the wound festers, lying just under the surface and ready to explode at the slightest provocation.  Likewise, it is impossible for me to forgive myself in my own power.  I can try to let it go, push the guilt out of my mind and move forward, but the shame and remorse will always hang over me like a heavy cloud, bearing down as I slink through each day.

It reminds me of the story of the sinful woman who anointed Jesus' feet with perfume.  She had hurt many people in the town.  Most likely she was the source of jealous anger within a marriage, broken trust and shame that spread like the plague.  There was also much heartache within her.  Her guilt bore down heavily upon her, disgrace and humility her constant companions.  If anyone needed forgiveness, it was her.

Jesus offered that forgiveness and she grabbed it hungrily.  Out of gratefulness and honor to her Savior, she loved Him the best way she knew how and Jesus recognized her gift of gratitude.  

Remembering the sins of which Jesus has forgiven me gives me the power to let go.  

Mission

I can relate to Moses.  When God called him dramatically at the site of the burning bush, he thought of all the reasons he was not the right man for the job.  First of all, he was just a lowly shepherd, not a leader or man of influence.  Then there was his speech problem.  To make matters worse, he also had a credibility problem since he'd run away from the Pharaoh's palace 40 years ago and most of the Israelites would probably not know his identity as a fellow Hebrew.  What was God thinking?

God has a mission for each of His people.  It is a specially chosen ministry that He has called every one of His children to embrace.  None of us are perfectly equipped to carry out that mission.  By design, God expects us to rely on Him for all that I need to accomplish His calling.  As the Apostle Paul said, ". . . for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties.  For when I am weak, then I am strong."  (2 Corinthians 12:10)

Paul understood from where the source of his strength and power came.  He comprehended that fact that God was the One who accomplished everything.  Paul's job was to submit to His authority and sovereignty.  

As a fellow follower of Christ, it's no different for me.  God will accomplish what it is He's called me to. . . if I will let Him.  Most of the time, however, I get in the way as I try to do it in my own strength or find excuses to not take the step of faith.  Once I walk off the proverbial cliff into the darkness of the unknown, Jesus will be there to provide firm footing. I can trust Him to accomplish the mission to which He's called me.  Then I will be like Zerubbabel whom God said, "What are you, O mighty mountain?  Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground." (Zechariah 4:7)

Relying on Jesus to accomplish the mission to which He has called me and seeing His mighty works reminds me of who I am without Him. 

God has presented me with an impossible task: To live in a fallen world and love all those around me.  As I keep my own identity as a sinner saved by grace before me I will remember to draw on Jesus for the strength to carry on and for the power to forgive.  Then I will truly see God's mighty hand accomplish His mission in my life.

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I will rely on God and God alone to accomplish the mission to which He has called me.

When do I give excuses to God for why I can't do what He wants me to do?

How do I hold onto hurt instead of allowing the power of forgiveness to work in my life?  

If My People . . .

"If my people,

who are called by my name,

will humble themselves and pray

and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways,

then I will hear from heaven

and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

2 Chronicles 7:14

He does it all.  He created all things, set the wheels of life in motion, watches over all things, reconciled a sinful people to Himself.  What is there left for me to do?  

When Jesus died on the cross, He paid the penalty meant for my sins.  As I accept Him as my Savior, my sins are wiped away and I appear before the Lord as clean; white as snow.  There is nothing I can do to make myself worthy.  It is the grace of God that gives me this glorious gift of salvation while I'm still in my sin.  I can't make myself good enough for God; that's what I need Jesus for.

So if Jesus reconciled myself to God, what is expected from me?  Do I keep living my life as I always have?  

As I go through the transformation process of being cast into the image of Jesus Christ, there are four things that I must always strive to do.

Humble Myself

I think I'm pretty important.  Well, it's not that I think that highly of myself because I do possess quite a few insecurities and suffer from low self-esteem in many areas.  Rather, my problems seem more important to me than others' difficulties.  My pain hurts more than my neighbors' pain.  My bad day is worse than your bad day.  I tend to be the center of my own world, whether I like it or not.

For this reason, it is vital that I constantly put myself in my proper position.  One of the best ways to do this is to walk outside on a clear night.  As I observe the vastness of space, I feel small and insignificant.  My life is tiny compared to the universe!  

It is also good for me to intentionally look for suffering around me, seeking ways to encourage another or help one who needs a hand.  Focusing only on my own life and it's struggles, difficulties and even joys has a way of narrowing my perception.  As I turn my attention to others, it helps me to keep my life in perspective, realizing that I'm not the only fish in the pond.

Martin Luther wisely said, "Until man is nothing, God can make nothing out of him."  If I want God to mold me into the masterpiece He created me to be, I must become as lowly as a lump of clay.

If I want the Master Potter to have His way with me, I must become mold-able. 

Pray

It is said that the average adult makes 35,000 decisions per day.  Although most of those are simple, like considering where to sit or what to eat, others are more complicated.  Out of the more challenging choices, I usually make most using my own common sense,  advice from others, or choosing whatever appeals to me at that moment.  Every once in awhile, I will remember to pray, asking God for guidance as I make a choice.

Life can weigh me down, there's no doubt about it.  Instead of carrying the load myself, I can instead say to God, "When my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I." (Psalm 61:2 NKJV)

There is a peace that comes when I give God the responsibility of being the head decision-maker in my life.   Tranquility exists in the midst of strife when I place the burden of judgment on God's shoulders.  Allowing God to take the lead leaves me in the serene position of following.

As I unload my worries upon God, a peace that no one can understand guards my heart and mind from further anxiety.  Or, as Harry Emerson Fosdick said, "Peace is a consciousness of springs too deep from earthly droughts to dry up."  

If I want to become more like Jesus I must pray continually.  

Seek God

In the movie, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Milo's life was driven by a passion for discovering the lost city of Atlantis.  This single purpose colored every part of his life even down to his choice of career fields.  His enthusiasm for the quest for Atlantis was dismissed by everyone around him, earning him the scorn and ridicule of co-workers and peers.  Popularity, however, was not important to Milo.  What mattered most to him was that he solve the mystery of the lost city.

In the same way, my single focus in life is to be the mission of seeking God.  The difference between Milo's quest and mine is that God wants to be found.  He said in Jeremiah 29:13 that, "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."  

As I work in the garden, I can look for God's hand in the wonders of a sprouting seed or a singing bird.  When I am driving in rush hour traffic, I can strive for a godly attitude and ability to see the good instead of focusing on the drivers cutting me off or tailgating so close I can see their eye color.  If I am performing a menial task I have done and detested a thousand times, I can meditate on His Word and what He is trying to teach me.

Seeking Him is about including Him in every part of my life, not just those parts where I need Him or where I feel I'm most presentable.  I want to make running after God and desiring to please Him above all other things the engine that drives my car.  He wants to be an integral part of my life, but I have to invite Him in.

It's easy for me to move out of God's presence, but if I want to become more like Jesus, I must "continually seek Him." (1 Chronicles 16:11)

Repent

If you ever watch a herd of cows, you'll notice that they always turn their backs to the wind, especially on a stormy day.  They know enough to protect themselves from the harsh cold.

I need to learn a lesson from the bovine family.  Instead, my flesh is usually drawn toward sinful behavior.  Anything I do that is in response to my own fleshly desires instead of out of obedience to God is considered to be wicked in the eyes of God.  If I am to please God, I would be wise to forsake my natural ways and thoughts.  (Isaiah 55:7)

Turning my back on a certain thought pattern or destructive behavior is effective because it places the temptation out of my vision.  It also serves to turn the tables, putting the evil behind me and pointing me in the direction that leads toward God.

As anxious thoughts enter my mind, I can turn away from them and focus on what God is doing in my life or toward meditation of a verse of scripture.  If I am being lured into gossip, I can end the conversation or change the subject.  When I am tempted to enter into sexual sin through pornography, watching an explicit movie or something even more blatant, I can get up from the computer, television or flee the scene and turn toward my Bible.  It may also be necessary for me to get rid of my computer or other source of temptation in order to truly turn from those evil ways.  

Turning away from those things that tempt me to go against God and His ways is vital to my spiritual walk.  I can't simply ignore those thoughts or replace them with something better.  Instead, purposefully setting my course in the opposite direction will take me further away from evil and closer to God.  

I can't live my life my way and please God.  If I want to grow more Christ-like, I must turn away from those things that displease God.

Jesus did it all.  That, however, doesn't take me off the hook for the way I live my life.  In order to please God, I still need to constantly strive to humble myself, pray, seek God and turn from my wicked ways.  In this way, my character resembles Christ's more and more with each passing day.

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I will keep my course set on Jesus.

How do I let sin into my life by refusing to turn away from it?

When am I most vulnerable to sin?

Know Him

" ' For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you,

plans to give you hope and a future.

Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me,

and I will listen to you.

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.' "

Jeremiah 29:11-13

I accepted Christ as my Savior at the age of 12.  For the next 15 years, not much changed in my life.  Don't get me wrong, I went to church every Sunday where I learned what it meant to follow Jesus.  I read the Bible on a regular basis.  I prayed.  But these were all rituals. . . duties I could check off my list once finished.  These were things that were expected for a good Christian to do. Right?

It depends.  The thing about my life is that God was not a part of all these rituals.  Sure, I knew He was there and that He was the main character in this story I was learning as I read the Bible, but I didn't know Him personally, like I knew my sister, or my parents, or my friends.  He was this benevolent Being that was there, but separate from me in some way.

As I grew up, got married and began the job of raising a family of my own, my sister sent me a book called, "Experiencing God" by Henry Blackaby and Claude King.  God used that Bible study to transform my mind and teach me about walking with Him on a personal level.  I learned that God is at work all around me and it is up to me whether I'll be a part of what He's doing, or just watch as a spectator on the sidelines.  I began to choose to participate, and my life has never been the same!

Hope for the Future

The first thing I noticed was that I sensed this excitement within me as I looked for evidence of God working around me.  I was getting to know the One with the plan for my life!  His plan was to give me hope and a future.  As I went through my day, raising my four daughters who were all in diapers at the time, I sensed a meaning in the drudgery.  Being there for my triplet daughters and their older sister was a part of a plan that God had for my life! 

Knowing there is a purpose gives me hope.  It means there is a blueprint that will give rise to a magnificent structure that no man can destroy.  It means every diaper I change, every runny nose I wipe, every shoe that I tie (and retie) is a part of that plan and serves a purpose in the scheme of God's blueprint!  It is not mindless drudgery as I so easily can think.  It is vital, necessary and crucial to the plan God has for me.  As David said in Psalm 39:7, "But now Lord, what do I look for?  My hope is in you." 

Getting to know the God who has the plan for my life gives me a sense of hope for a meaningful future.

Prayers are Heard

After I committed my life to getting to know God in a more intimate way, I noticed my prayers were different.  Instead of an empty habit or practice, it became a two-way conversation.  I knew my prayers were being heard by the Almighty God, and I was sensing His presence in a whole new way.  I had always known He was there, but now it was as if He was sitting beside me and we were talking.  

Jesus described this personal way of talking to God as a relationship between a Father and son.  He said, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." (Matthew 7:7-8)  He then goes to explain that as much as an earthly father gives good things to his son, our heavenly Father will give so much more to those who ask.

This is not to say that God is a vending machine, but that He is a loving Father who listens to our prayers and responds in a very real way.  David enjoyed a close relationship with God, and he put it this way.  "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4)  As I grow closer to God and take pleasure in getting to know Him, He will transform my heart to be more in tune with His.  

Getting to know God opens up a whole new way to pray as I become more in sync with Him.

Seek His Will

Growing up, I could never understand my parents and why they did the things they did.  When I became a parent, I could appreciate the decisions they made as they did what was best for their children.  It never seemed quite fair as a child, but when I became familiar with the role of parenting, my perspective changed.

This transformation process takes place as I grow closer to God.  I read in Romans 12 that I can either conform to the pattern of this world, or I can choose to "be transformed by the renewing of (my) mind. Then (I) will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will." (v2)

As I learn more about God and His ways, I can put those words into action, or I can let them sit on the page.  If I trust God at His Word and allow Him to change me, I will begin to recognize what He is doing all around me.  I will begin to see things with new eyes as I identify His work in the everyday things of life, and my life will take on new meaning.

Getting to know God gives me an opportunity to learn how to recognize His will for my life.  

As a Christian, I can either go through the motions, or I can go deeper.  If I choose the latter, I will discover a sense of hope for a meaningful future, a rich and fruitful prayer life, and a greater awareness of God's will for my life.  Walking with Christ is as significant as I make it.  I want to know Him today even more than I did yesterday!

As I begin this day, it is my prayer that I will seek God with all of my heart.  Then I know that I will find Him.

How do I go through the motions of what I think I should do without ever going deeper?

Am I in a relationship with a living God or a part of a religion filled with rituals and routines?

  

Set Free

"Let those who fear the LORD say,
   'His steadfast love endures forever.'

  Out of my distress I called on the LORD;
   the LORD answered me and set me free.
The LORD is on my side; I will not fear.
   What can man do to me?
The LORD is on my side as my helper;
   I shall look in triumph on those who hate me."

Psalm 118:4-7





 Artificial diamonds can be made by subjecting graphite to intense temperatures and pressures along the lines of 1700 degrees Celsius and 60,000-100,000 atmospheres.  This is equivalent to about 700 times the amount of pressure exerted on the Earth's crust by Mt. Everest.*  It takes a lot of pressure to create a diamond, but they are considered to be one of the most beautiful of gems.

My life is filled with stress and in fact, pressure is a part of modern life.  If I consider the time constraints, financial limitations, health restrictions placed on my life, coupled with the relational difficulties found in loving people and just my general exposure to an evil, dark world, I have a formula for stress.

The pressures of my world will not go away, but I have a secret weapon at my disposal to keep stress from controlling my life, sending me into a frenzy and ruining my health.

Call=Answer

Humans have been under stress ever since the fall of man, when Adam and Eve disobeyed God and sin entered His perfect creation.  As a result, I am now hard pressed on every side, just like that piece of graphite in the process of becoming a diamond. 

But I am not without hope.  When I call on God, He will answer me.  God told his people who were exiled to Babylon, living as foreigners in a strange land and under tremendous pressure that, "you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.  I will be found by you." (Jeremiah 29:12-14a)

When the stress if overwhelming and I cry out to the Lord, He answers. 

Set Free

When God answers me, it is not with mere words of consolation.  He goes even further and sets me free from the bondage of worry, grief, anger, or any other stress that is threatening to break me.  I am not bound to these stresses!

Jesus came to His creation in order to set me free from the bondage of sin.  The stresses generated by an imperfect world threaten to rule me.  But Jesus said, ". . . if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." (John 8:36)

It makes me think of a giant trash compactor.  I am trapped inside as the walls close in on every side with no hope of escape.  Then, I call upon the name of the Lord, and He sets me in an open space, free from the constraining walls.

I can live as if I'm in that open space, free from the stresses of this world, not because there is no stress, but because He is greater than the stress.  I can trust Him to save me from the great pressure upon me, but I have to call on Him.

When He answers me, He sets me free.  Will I trust Him?

His Presence=No Fear

Trusting God means acknowledging that His presence and power in my life are greater than all the things I have to fear.  Death?  He's overcome it.  Failure?  He looks at my heart, not my production value.  Loneliness?  He will never leave me or forsake me.  Loss?  My life and everything in it belongs to Jesus, it's not mine to lose.

Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed in his first inaugural address of 1933 to a nation plunged into the depths of a Depression that, ". . the only thing we have to fear, is fear itself."**  He may have had a point.  Fear can be my greatest enemy, driving me to perform desperate, foolish acts, sending me into a state of panic where my decisions are frenzied and without reason, and taking a toll on my physical health. 

It has been said that fear is the absence of faith. And without faith, it is impossible to please God!  When I give in to fear, I am sending the message that not only do I not believe God can save me, but I don't even believe He exists!  If I truly accept as true that He exists, then I must recognize that He is bigger than anything I can face. 

If I trust God, I will not fear.

Stress is a part of life that cannot be avoided.  But as a follower of Jesus, it does not have to rule me.  I can call on the Lord and He will answer me.  When He answers, He sets me free from the sin that pressures me.  And in His presence, I have nothing to fear.

As I begin this day, it is my prayer that I can live my life as one who has been set free.

How am I living as a slave to fear?

Where am I not trusting God for deliverance?

*http://hypertextbook.com/facts/1998/IleneWeintraub.shtml

**http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5057/

photo from   salsolastock.deviantart.com