Never be Swallowed by Life

"If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, When men rose up against us,
Then they would have swallowed us alive, When their wrath was kindled against us;
Then the waters would have overwhelmed us, The stream would have gone over our soul; Then the swollen waters would have gone over our soul."
Psalm 124:2-5

Image By: cod_gabriel

Simple actions like checking the news or Facebook can leave you feeling buried, not to mention the daily grind. Sometimes I would swear that laundry and dishes are going to consume my soul.  It's easy to get in the mindset of just trying to survive, to keep your head above water, while secretly wondering if at some point it will just be too much.

The good news: With Jesus you will never be swept away. By Jesus' side you will never disappear, no matter what comes your way.

Knowing Good

"Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin." James 4:17

Image by: Pink Sherbet Photography

 

 

The ways this verse can apply are endless and staggering.

We know it's good to say hi to that really obnoxious person, but we chose to avoid them instead (sin)

We're called to care for the orphans, yet how many of us really adopt? (sin)

We know we should exercise and start eating less (sin)

We know we should do good, but there are others called to those areas. We don't want to be inconvenienced unless a bolt of lightning from heaven strikes us with the idea. (sin)

So many sins in our day to day lives, not from doing something wrong, but from not doing something right.

I like to think that God simply hasn't called me to all the things 'm not doing, but does he really need to tell me to do all the things that I know are good to do? What parent isn't thrilled when their child cleans their room without being asked? Are we watching opportunities pass?

Thoughts?

Who's the Guy whose Wife asked for Springs?

"Then Caleb said, "Whoever attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give my daughter
Achsah as wife." And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it; so he gave him his daughter Achsah as wife. Now it happened, when she came to him, that she urged him to ask her father for a field. And she dismounted from her donkey, and Caleb said to her, "What do you wish?" So she said to him, "Give me a blessing; since you have given me land in the South, give me also springs of water." And Caleb gave her the upper springs and lower springs." Judges 1:12-15

Alright, so that's very interesting. The same story is recorded almost word for word in Joshua 15:16-19. I've read this story many times and always wondered why it was included. So I did some background research on this guy Othniel and guess what? He was the first judge of Israel. I know, I know - I should have caught that before. But there are a lot of funny names and I never made the connection. Anyhow, in Judges 3:7-11 we learn that Israel forgot God, got taken over, God raises up Othniel who judges Israel, goes to war, prevails, there's rest in Israel for 40 years, them he dies. So I guess the guy whose wife asked for springs played a rather big roll after all.     

Invisibility

"If He goes by me, I do not see Him;
If He moves past, I do not perceive Him;"
Job 9:11

I read this verse and thought, "What's so great about that?"

Often times I view God's invisibility as an inconvenience. It would be so much easier to follow Him if He were visible. The fact that I don't see Him doesn't inspire a feeling of awe, and yet, this verse is part of a long list of God's amazing attributes.

It set me thinking. If I were reading a story or watching a movie where the hero could move without being seen, if this hero could be invisible - wouldn't i think that was amazing, cool, or even wicked awesome?

God's ability to be invisible is as much a sign of His power, an indication that He truly is God, as walking on water.

Constellations Then and Now

"He made the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades,
And the chambers of the south;"
Job 9:9

Some part of my mind got this idea that the sky looks very different to us now than it did back in the beginning and yet this verse references some of the most well known constellations.

In our world where nothings looks the same as it did in bible times (society, government, day to day life), it is amazing to realize that we still look up into the same night sky. 

Without Him Nothing

John 1:3
"All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made."

Over time I find myself losing my grasp of the full weight of certain truths.

For example:
"God is good"
"For God so loved the world . . . "
 and "God made the world."

Yes, I know that God is good, but if I were to truly sit and try to comprehend how good He is or acknowledge the magnitude of His love - I would doubtless find myself overwhelmed with awe. I easily throw around the "God made the world" bit, but when I really stop and take in the words "without Him nothing was made that was made," I am forced to see how everything around me is a testament to His awesomeness.

Impossible Foretold

"He alone spreads out the heavens,
And treads on the waves of the sea;"
Job 9:8

It's amazing to me to think that Job made reference to God walking on water so long before it actually happened.

Had Jesus not walked on water, I don't think I would have associated walking on water with God. After all walking on water is about as possible as swimming in lava. Yet Job doesn't say that he swims in lava, but that he "treads on the waves of the sea" and that's exactly what he did.

Pawns

"For the pillars of the earth are the Lord's
And He has set the World upon them."
                  1 Samuel 2:8c
Every other day, it seems, you hear about another nobody who rocketed from obscurity into somebody. A budding new author, a lucky unknown in a lead acting role, the heroic marine, all around us in every area of life there are individuals coming to the forefront while others are moving back.

People struggle year after year to attain these positions of influence and the greatness that accompanies them, but these positions are God's to fill. He can replace them in a blink of an eye with whomever He chooses. If God wishes to lift you up - He will, but if God wishes to bring you down, that's just as easy.

As I watch the people around me move up and down it just serve to amaze me with how Big God is and how small we really are. We are but pawns that can stay lowly or become a queen as it best suits the overall outcome of the game. Either way I am just honored to be a part of His game. How about you?

Water into Wine

I already know the story of Jesus turning water into wine, so when he tells the men to pour in the
water I think "Of Course!" But what if I was one of those men, and I didn't know the water was going to be wine in a matter of seconds. Would I have followed orders or would I have argued? So often following God feels like pouring in the water. We don't see how what He has asked of us is going to fix the problem at hand. Just remember that the water did turn into wine. God always follows through on his end. Do we always follow his directions?

John 2:1-10

      "On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”it.” Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”

A Virtuous Wife (3 of 3)

Quality Number 2:

"She does him good and not evil
All the days of her life."
Proverbs 31:12

Doing good to your husband is different from simply not hurting him. As wives we have the ability to build our husbands up or to tear them down.

How do you build him up?

• Show him unconditional respect. This means you respect him even when he fails.
• Unconditional support and encouragement. This is what it meant when you said for better or for worse.
• Unconditional love. This one is important, but focus on the two points above. He will feel loved if you are respecting and supporting him. 
• Encourage hum in his interests, strengths, and to be the best he can be in whatever he tries. 
• Don't let him feel belittled in your eyes.
• Let him know how much you respect him and appreciate what he does or tries to do. 
• A man should not be ranked by his success in his wife's eyes.
• Never say I told you so when he fails and don't expect perfection.

Marriage isn't made great by only putting the work in when you are feeling it - the love born through marriage is the love you learn through choosing to love, respect and support your spouse even when it's hard.

Be his rock. He wants your respect and he needs your strength. With you behind him, he can tackle anything.