If You Love Me . . .

It is so easy to say, “Lord, I love you.” But how many of us prove our love for Him. Jesus tells us in John 14:15, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” When most of us imagine acts of love, obedience is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. But there it is. If you love Me . . . you will obey.

“But Lord I would rather . . .” Obey Me. “But wouldn’t it be better to do it this way?” Obey Me. “Lord, You couldn’t really mean for me to do that!” Obey Me.

Throughout God’s Word, we are given promises that obedience will bring blessings. Why do we stubbornly refuse to obey and forfeit the blessings that God wants to bestow upon us? We are like the children of Israel who over and over again lived for a while in obedience which brought blessings, only to turn away from God in disobedience, including the worship of idols, which brought destruction. We are witnessing the same thing happening in our nation today. Though we were founded as a Christian nation, we have come to a time when the majority of Americans have no regard for God and worship every kind of “idol” imaginable, an idol being anything or anyone that we hold in a higher place in our hearts than God.

Psalm 33:12 tells us, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” We have been the most blessed nation on earth for some time; but now that America for the most part has turned away from God, we are seeing the destroying hand of the enemy moving across our nation.

I believe if America could hear God’s heart today, He would be saying, Turn back to Me. Love Me. Obey Me. And I will restore you, just as I did the children of Israel so many times.

We as God’s children need to act first. Even those of us who say we love Him many times fail to obey Him. We have lost our first love and need to repent and do our first works over (see Revelation 2:4-5). If the fire of love for God would be rekindled on the altars of our hearts, what a difference we could make in this world. A passionate love for God would change our actions. Instead of living in our self-indulgent lifestyles, we would obey. Our first priority would be to reach out to those who need to know the Lord, rather than living to fulfill our own desires. 

Father, before it is too late, help us to turn away from worthless pursuits. Draw us unto Yourself. Teach us to love You. Teach us to obey.

At the Feet of Jesus

Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:38-42, NKJV).

In the scripture above, Martha was distracted by the important while failing to see what was most important.

Mary, on the other hand, was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word (v. 39, NASB). Some of us have a hard time being still before the Lord, always feeling the need to do something. I can see Mary sitting at His feet, adoring Him, and listening to His words—her devotion to Him evident on her face.

It is so sad that many of us are like Martha. The Lord is present with us because He has taken up abode in our hearts. However, our lives can be so filled with distractions that we do not enjoy the presence of the Lord. We live in a time when there is so much available to do, so many opportunities that did not exist is earlier generations. Quiet times spent at home seem to be a thing of the past.

There are many important and worthwhile activities in which we can become involved. However, there are also unnecessary activities that, if we allow it, will cause us to drift from our close relationship with the Lord. It is important for each of us to take inventory and ask the Holy Spirit to examine our hearts and lives. If He reveals to us that time we are spending on things we want to do would be better spent at the feet of Jesus, then we need to change our priorities. I have heard the expression that good is the enemy of best. Just because an activity is good and not sinful does not necessarily mean a child of God should be doing it. We must be sensitive to the Spirit as He guides us.

I have been invited many times by some of my Christian friends to join their book club. While I love to read and it would not be sinful to join, and I have many times wanted to do so, I have felt compelled by the Holy Spirit to not join. I have been unable to put into words the reason why until now. I now know that the Lord wanted me to spend time with Him so that I could discover His new direction for my life. Time reading enjoyable books would not be sinful, but because of what the Lord wanted to show me, it would have been time wasted. I am glad my friends participate in something they enjoy so much, and hope they understand that I have to do what the Holy Spirit is leading me to do.

Have you allowed your life to become so full of activities that you cannot enjoy the relationship you have with your loving Savior and Lord? If so, kneel at the feet of Jesus and ask Him to help you change your priorities. Your reward for time spent with Him will be the deep and abiding relationship with our Lord that we each long for.

The Test

Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you." (Genesis 22:1-2-NASB)

Can you imagine being asked to give up your child in this way? And Isaac wasn’t just the child of Abraham and Sarah born under normal circumstances. He was the son of promise born in their old age. He was the one it seemed would never come—the promise it was hard to believe would ever be fulfilled. Isaac was born twenty-five years after God first promised him. And now God wants Abraham to take him to the top of a mountain and offer him as a sacrifice.

Why would God give such a command? Today as we read this story from our vantage point we can see that it foreshadows the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. In the Old Testament account, when Abraham is about to slay his son, at the last moment the angel of the Lord calls out to him and instructs him to not take his life. He then provides a ram for the sacrifice. The ram was the substitute for Isaac. In the same way, Jesus—God’s only begotten Son became our substitute when He died on the cross. We don’t have to be punished for our sins, because He took the punishment for us.

But the Word of God reveals another reason for God’s command. Look at verses 11 and 12: But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me."

God wanted Abraham to fear Him—to have a reverential awe of Him, to realize that no one, not even the son of promise, was more important than his relationship with God. The fulfillment of the promise must not take priority over the One Who made the promise.

This speaks volumes to me. When God blesses us and fulfills promises He has made to us, we must never allow the fulfillment of the promises to take precedence in our lives. When we place importance on anything or anyone above God, that thing or person has become a god in our lives. And the Lord has instructed us, Thou shalt have no other gods before Me (Exodus 20:3).

God is the One who deserves our devotion. He is far above all gods (Psalm 97:9). He is our Source, the One who provides everything we need. He pours out His love upon us. And we still turn away from Him. I pray that we become like Abraham, willing to give up anything God asks of us and prioritizing our relationship with Him.

Stepping Out

But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. (I Cor. 12:18)

Isn’t it amazing that we imperfect, finite human beings are in the habit of telling the awesome and all-knowing God of the universe that we know more than He does. We don’t necessarily say it in words, but by our actions we declare that we know more about who we are and the life we are supposed to live than He does. 

Each of us was created with a specific destiny, and we have God-given gifts to help us accomplish His purposes. However, many of us spend years trying to fit ourselves into molds that were not made for us.

One of my brothers is a very talented musician who is using his gifts for the Lord. There have been times that I have earnestly questioned God about why He gave him that ability instead of me. After all, didn’t the Lord know I would be a pastor’s wife and that my having musical ability would benefit my husband and the church? But God has shown me that He has a different plan for my life, and it has taken me a long time to surrender to His will.

When you come to the place of full surrender to God’s will rather than frantically trying to work out your own plan, you gain a sense of purpose that you did not have before. Even in the midst of questions regarding the details of what lies ahead, there is a calmness that holds you steady as you step out into the unknown.

After our God calls us, He does not leave us alone. He equips us to do what we have been called to do. Thank God for His Spirit who indwells us! As we live for and trust Him, God’s Spirit continually stays with us and guides us and we never need to fear the future.

Father, thank You for Your indwelling Spirit who guides us and empowers us to live our lives according to Your plan. Help us each day to submit to Your will in all things.

Changing Our Focus

On Monday of this week, I woke up feeling depressed for no apparent reason. As I reflected on it later in the day, I came to the conclusion that my emotions were out of sync because I was feeling the weight of responsibilities in various areas of my life, including my job, my family, and my church. We live in a fast-paced world, and most of us have many details to take care of and many deadlines to meet. When you add the moral and economic decline of our nation, along with the increase of anti-Christian rhetoric that we now hear on a regular basis, all of these can weigh upon a person’s mind and heart. Although the details of our future have always been uncertain, we now see our society moving rapidly in the wrong direction, and the changes are particularly disturbing.  We live in a time of great distress and perplexity.

During a whirlwind of activities a few days ago, I told my husband that sometimes I just want the world to “stop and let me off.” I am sure we have all had those moments. I believe the enemy’s goal is to keep us focused on the negative circumstances of life and the frustration we feel. If he cannot keep us from being Christians, he at least wants us to be distracted so that we cannot serve God effectively.

In my opinion, two of our worst enemies are busyness and discouragement, because these can keep us from spending time with the Lord. However, if our desire is to grow in our relationship with Him, our Lord provides a way for us to turn our focus away from the harsh circumstances of life and turn our attention toward Him. We find the power to refocus in the Word of God.

Over the course of this week, I have been drawn to Psalm 34. In this psalm, many times David makes it clear that we serve a God who is willing to deliver us from the troubles and distress of life.

I sought the Lord, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears. (v. 4)
This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. (v. 6)
The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and rescues them. (v. 7)
Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. (v. 19)

The following verses of Psalm 34 especially ministered to me, because through them I was assured that the Lord’s attention is focused on me and He cares about what I am going through.

The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry. The face of the Lord is against evildoers, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. The righteous cry, and the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. (vs. 15-18)

When we are down, brokenhearted and crushed in spirit—in our times of greatest trouble and distress, we can call upon the Lord. And He will hear us and will deliver us from all of our troubles! That is cause for praise and rejoicing!

I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul will make its boast in the Lord; The humble will hear it and rejoice. O magnify the Lord with me, And let us exalt His name together. (vs. 1-3)

Do It!

In a publication that my husband regularly receives, I recently saw the title of an article that caught my attention. It stated, Find What God Wants You to Do and Do It! Sometimes I think we have a vague concept in our hearts of what God wants us to do, but we don’t take the time to “get down to business” with God to find out the details of His plan. I believe if you are a child of God, He has a definite plan for your life. Each of us has a ministry to fulfill, even if it is not a public “standing on the platform” ministry. Every day, there are people that our lives touch, and each encounter is an opportunity to minister.

As we study the Word of God, we discover things that all of God’s children are commanded to do. Jesus tells us, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:37-40). When we fulfill the law of love, we will be living the kind of life that God requires.

For the specifics of how God wants us to live out His commands, it is imperative that we have regular communion with Him. Many of us have prayer lives that consist of spending a few minutes each day asking God to meet our needs. But the Christian life is about relationship, and the way we have relationship is by having communion—talking with one another. Just as a husband and wife must have good communication to have a healthy marriage, so a child of God must have good communication with the Father in order to live a healthy spiritual life. Of course, communication is a two-way street. We are not to be doing all the talking when we pray. There also needs to be a time of listening. We do this by reading God’s Word and asking Him to speak specifically to us through it, and also by being quiet before the Lord. In the Old Testament, Elijah heard the Lord’s still small voice giving him instructions concerning what he was to do. (I Kings 19:12-18)

Once we hear from God concerning His plan for us, the next step is to do what He says. So many times I have failed to take the step of obedience, sometimes because I was not willing to submit to His plan and make the commitment that was required. Other times, I did not follow through simply because of fear.

Fear causes us to feel that we don’t have the ability to do what we’re being asked to do. But each one of us received natural gifts at birth, and God can use these for His purposes. In addition to our natural abilities, after we accept Christ God gives us spiritual gifts that help us to go beyond what we could do without His help.

We live in desperate times, and there are many hurting people who need God’s touch in their lives. We can be His hands reaching out to them. We are to follow Jesus’ example in Luke 2:49 and “be about our Father’s business.”  Let’s do it!

Transformation

Very often over the last few weeks, the Lord has brought the concept of transformation to my attention. Transformation is defined as “a change from one form to another.” From my understanding of scripture, I believe that those who profess Christ as their Savior and Lord will have the transforming power of God evident in their lives. Becoming a Christian is not about saying a little prayer and “turning over a new leaf.” When an individual accepts Christ, he/she is totally changed to the point that life becomes completely different than it was before salvation. There is a marked difference in the before and after “picture.” Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new (2 Cor. 5:17). 

Asking Christ into your life involves repentance. The word repentance in the Bible describes a change of mind and heart so powerful that it changes one’s way of life. It is a turning away from evil and a turning to God and righteousness. If a person asks Christ into their heart and truly repents, his/her life will be totally changed as the new child of God takes a completely different direction. There will be changes in desires, habits, attitudes, manner of talking, activities, priorities, and associations. I would be concerned if after accepting Christ, I did not have a change of heart evidenced outwardly in these areas of my life. I am in no way saying that when we become Christians, we are immediately made perfect. We are still human and live in a fallen world, and are subject to errors and sins. However, our lives as Christians should reflect the fact that we have invited a holy God to live inside of us.

A beautiful example of transformation that can be examined in the natural world is the change of a caterpillar into a butterfly. A caterpillar is a worm-like creature that is earth bound. After its metamorphosis, it becomes a butterfly—a beautiful winged creature that flies in the air. Can you imagine the difference in the life and perspective of a butterfly compared to the caterpillar that it once was?

It is also important to note that our transformation does not stop at salvation. It is a continual process. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Romans 12:2). As we immerse ourselves in the Word of God, our minds are renewed through the power of the Holy Spirit, our thinking becomes different, and we find ourselves changing in ways we never dreamed possible. God’s desire is for us to be changed into the image of His Son. But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. (2 Corinthians 3:18).

My prayer is: Lord, continue Your transforming work in my life. I want to be more like Jesus!