willing

Just a few

/ EllieJ

While Saul sat in hiding, his son Jonathan, was out trying to find a way to defeat Israel’s enemy. Without questioning his own motives, the young man place his trust entirely in God. Without care for his own being, Jonathan pushed ahead and trusted that God would lead him to save Israel.

Perhaps the Lord will act on our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by a few.

1 Samuel 14:6b (NIV)

If it is God’s will to accomplish something, all He needs is one willing and obedient person to turn the enemy’s camp into confusion. While Saul sat indecisive, Jonathan followed God’s guidance—which lead Israel to victory.

God will direct the steps of those that acknowledge him in all their ways, and seek him for direction, with full purpose of heart to follow his guidance.

Matthew Henry

The will of God in the hands of just a few is far greater than swords in the hands of many. When our confidence is in God, nothing should be able to stop us from pursuing His will and achieving victory in His name.

What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?

Romans 8:31 (NIV)

Like Jonathan, we can put our confidence in our God who knows the ending from the beginning and everything in between. He has ordered our steps, all we need do is take them as prescribed.

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.

Hebrews 10:35-36 (NIV)

Read: 1 Samuel 13-14, Luke 14:1-24

Four crazy friends

/ EllieJ

It’s been so long that I can’t remember if I actually heard the sermon or not or if I’ve just heard it mentioned so many times. There was a pastor who once said that every Christian needs four crazy friends. Why four? Why do they have to be crazy? Do I really want one friend like that let alone four?

Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.

Luke 5:18-19 (NIV)

This is why every Christian needs four crazy friends. The paralytic man was in a bind. He’d heard that Jesus had been going around the countryside healing pretty much everyone who came near him. But there was a problem. He was paralyzed. There was no way he could get to Jesus and it was highly unlikely that Jesus would just show up at his front porch. So when Jesus came near, there was some conspiring amongst friends to get the man to Jesus, no matter what it took.

Now, how many of us would be willing to carry a friend to a crowded meeting? How many of us would try to talk our friend out of going. Maybe we’ll send a text or a shout out on social media. Does Make-A-Wish come out all this way? If we were honest with ourselves, most of us don’t have one, let alone four friends who would go out of their way and make a great effort to get us much-needed aid.

But more than needing four crazy friends, we should also be one of the four crazy friends.

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

Luke 6:38 (NIV)

If you’re willing to be one of the crazy friends, someone who is willing to go beyond the extra mile for a friend, you’ll have a greater chance of having those crazy friends when you need them. Maybe you won’t need a crew of burly guys to lower you through a roof, but you may need someone who will stay up with you all night if a child is sick in the hospital. You may need someone who will take their lunch break to pray with you. You may yet need someone to physically carry you or maybe just to carry you from their knees.

No matter where we are in life, we can’t do it alone. I don’t know about you, but if I have to have people around me, I’d rather they be the crazy kind than the boring kind.

Read: Joshua 19-20, Luke 5:17-39

Apprentice

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Read: Genesis 9-11, Matthew 4

You’re a professional. You own your own business and you’re looking for a succession plan. You want to train someone in your line of work to take over the business when you retire. Where are you going to start looking? Most people will go looking in a similar environment. If you’re a carpenter, you’ll go looking at construction sites, cabinet shops, or a furniture builder. If you’re a baker, you’ll go looking at a bakery or restaurant. If you’re in insurance, you’ll go looking at an insurance office. If you’re a pastor, you’ll go looking in a church, seminary, or Bible school.

As Jesus began his ministry, he knew he only had a few years to get his job done. He needed a succession plan right away so he went looking for men he could train to take his place. Without knowing the story, most people would have him looking in the synagogues. If you’re going to be a Jewish minister, wouldn’t you want someone trained in Jewish ministry?

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.

Matthew 4:18 (NIV)

Instead of doing the expected, Jesus did as he always did—the unexpected. He didn’t go looking for help in the temple where he’d find learned—but idle—men. He went to the lake where he found men at work. Archaeologists believe that, at the time of Jesus, the Sea of Galilee had been overfished. Those who made their living on the lake were used to long hours and hard work. They would have had to come up with creative ways to do their work and repair their equipment. These are the men Jesus went to find.

Matthew 4:19-20

In a culture where very few left the family business, these brothers jumped at the opportunity to leave a failing venture. Some believe that the draw of Jesus was too strong to resist.

Jesus calls us all. Will he find us idle? Or will he find us at work? Will he find us willing? Or will he find us hesitant to leave behind the only thing we’ve ever known?

Jesus isn’t looking for people who know everything, but those who are willing to do anything. The only qualification you need is the call. And you’ve already got that. What are you waiting for?

Ready and willing

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Ready and willing. If you haven’t said that you are, you’d probably like to think you are when it comes to obeying God. Here am I, Lord, send me! We think we really mean it. But most of us probably haven’t taken the time to think through all of the consequences of what it means to be ready and willing.

But as for me, I am filled with power and the Spirit of the Lord. I am filled with justice and might…

Micah 3:8a (NLT)

Filled with power, justice and might! Yes! I want all of those things!

…fearlessly pointing out Israel’s sin and rebellion.

Micah 3:8b (NLT)

Now, wait a minute, I’m not so sure I want to be the one to have to make that point.

The point is this: being ready and willing includes far more than just the good news and the blessings. Micah stood alone in his time. He was just a peasant from a town on the outskirts of the territory. He was a nobody telling the priests and prophets that they were a bunch of lying scoundrels. That’s not a very comfortable conversation to have with anyone. To be ready and willing means to be ready to have the uncomfortable conversations.

And on the other side of the same coin, as ready as we must be to initiate those difficult encounters, we must also be ready and willing to be on the receiving end.

Ready and willing is not a physical place, but a spiritual posture. If we want to proclaim the Good News, we may also have to give a hard word. If we want to be blessed, we must also be able to be a blessing. To be ready and willing means to be prepared for whatever God has for us—the good, the hard, and the uncomfortable.

Those who act honestly, may act boldly. And those who come to hear the word of God, must be willing to be told of their faults, must take it kindly, and be thankful.

Matthew Henry

Like Micah, when our true strength comes from the power of the Holy Spirit within us, we can willingly give and receive the truth no matter what package it comes in.

Daily Bible reading: Micah 1-3, Revelation 10

All I really want

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What do you want in life? A nice car? A big house? A good-looking spouse with a good job? Do you want to be happy? Feel settled? What do you spend your time pursuing?

Then I pray to you, O Lord.
I say, “You are my place of refuge.
You are all I really want in life.”

Psalm 142:5 (NLT)

Can any of us say, like David did, that the Lord is all we really want in life? Do we look to God for direction in everything? Do we trust Him with our lives—our entire lives?

Let me hear of your unfailing love to me in the morning,
for I am trusting in you.
Show me where to walk,
for I have come to you in prayer.

Psalm 143:8 (NLT)

While I believe that our spirits long for God completely, the rest of us often struggle to catch up. In our heads we can say that God is all we want, but our attitudes and actions may not quite fall into line.

That is where the asking comes in.

David had no trouble at all bringing his complaints and concerns to God. Did he do absolutely everything the way God wanted him to? No. But he was still the man who, despite his downfalls and shortcomings, chased after the heart of God.

Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God.
May your gracious Spirit lead me forward
on a firm footing.

Psalm 143:10 (NLT)

We have to keep reminding ourselves that, even if the spirit is willing and the flesh weak, that God, in His infinite loving kindness is still faithful. When we call out to Him, He will answer. If we allow Him to, He will lead us. If we open our eyes, He will show us the way.

If we endeavor to truly make God all we want in life, He will meet us where we are and fill as much space in our lives that we make available to Him.

Daily Bible reading: Psalm 142-144, 1 Corinthians 10:14-33

I lay it down

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We always talk about how Jesus was killed. He was murdered. He was put to death. But was he really?

When Jesus was finally sentenced to being flogged and crucified, the religious leaders thought they got the last laugh. They got what they wanted. The man who threatened their entire way of life would die. They would have him killed.

Read the scriptures again. Yes, Jesus was sentenced to death. Yes, Jesus was flogged. He was crucified. But was he actually murdered? Was he really put to death?

Then Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!” And with those words he breathed his last.

Luke 23:46 (NLT)

He shouted. As he hung on the cross in unbearable pain for crimes he did not commit, he shouted. He raised his voice so every ear in the vicinity could hear that he would not be put to death. He gave his life of his own volition.

How angry the Jewish leaders must have been. In the moment when they expected to finally be able to breathe that sigh of relief, the man they wanted to have killed made sure everyone knew his life was given willingly. And Jesus had to do so.

The Father loves me because I lay down my life that I may have it back again. No one can take my life from me. I lay it down voluntarily. For I have the right to lay it down when I want to and also the power to take it up again. For my Father has given me this command.

John 10:17-18 (NLT)

By proclaiming with his last breath that he was giving up his life into God’s hands, Jesus was fulfilling his own words. Those words took all power away from the men who put him on the cross. Little did they know that, in their anger and indignance, they played right into the plan of God. By putting Jesus on the cross, they fulfilled prophecy and gave the plan of salvation another big push toward fulfillment.

The next time you consider the account of the cross, keep in mind that, while Jesus died, he was not put to death. He laid down his life voluntarily. For me. For you.

Daily Bible reading: 1 Kings 8-9, Luke 23:39-56 

Overshadow

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The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you…”

Luke 1:35a (NLT)

Here’s another word for you to think about: overshadow. It sounds ominous. And, in a way, it is.

OVERSHADOW: To cover with shade; to cover with anything that causes darkness; to render dark or gloomy.

Uh… hold on. This is the angel speaking to Mary, the girl who was to become the mother of Jesus. She was supposed to become dark and gloomy?

Look at it this way:

I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. So I life my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Galatians 2:20 (NLT)

When Mary said to the angel, I am the Lord’s servant, and I am willing to accept whatever he wants, this is what she meant. She was willing to sacrifice herself—her own will, her own desire, her own ambition—to do what God had chosen her to do. Had she not been willing to take a back seat to her own life, the Holy Spirit would not have been able to come upon her.

Here was a young girl preparing herself for marriage. No property of her own. No education (that was reserved for males). Yet, when the angel of the Lord came to her, without question she chose to put her own life aside and take on the life that God had prepared for her.

Could I so easily set myself aside to be overshadowed by the Holy Spirit? Could you?

Daily Bible reading: Deuteronomy 33-34, Luke 1:24-56

I am willing

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A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said. Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!”

Mark 1:40-41 (NLT)

I am not a people person. There are days when, if I know I will have to be around more people than normal for an extended period of time, I’ll lock myself away to be alone. I don’t take kindly to interruptions on those days.

Yet Jesus, no matter what day it was—if a close relative or friend died, if he’d already been surrounded by people for days, if he’d been preaching for hours—never turned anyone away. Not only did he not turn anyone away, he willingly healed them.

I am constantly in awe of Jesus’ compassion. It knows no end. We can go to him with anything at any time and he is willing.

He is willing.

Daily Bible reading: Leviticus 24-25, Mark 1: 23-45

Whole and Willing

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And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.

1 Chronicles 28:9 (ESV)

As one of his last acts as king of Israel, David urges his son to follow in his father’s footsteps. God knew David’s heart and David’s heart was in the right place.

I often have to take a look at my own heart. When I wake up Sunday mornings, more often than not, I’m looking forward to an afternoon nap more than I am to the church service that comes first. Where is my heart?

When I stand on the stage, am I giving God my whole heart or just a part of it? Am I serving with a willing mind or is it wandering, trying to make it through the service?

Church aside, where are my heart and mind through the week? Does God have my whole heart all the time? With a willing mind, do I read His Word and pay attention to His teachings?

I take no small amount of encouragement in the second part of this verse, “If you seek him, he will be found by you.” God doesn’t play games with our hearts or minds. He is always faithful and sure. He will not leave us or forsake us even if we don’t approach Him wholeheartedly or completely willingly. He meets us where we are so long as we take that step. Jeremiah 29:14 says, “I will be found by you, declares the Lord.”

When I think of us searching for God, I think of playing hide and seek with a kid. We’re the one seeking and God is the kid hiding in plain sight, breathing heavy, talking the whole time, impossible to miss.

God wants us to find Him. And, when we know that God wants to be found, it makes it easier to search for him with all of our hearts and with a willing mind.

Daily Bible reading: 1 Chronicles 28-29; John 11:47-57