Joy IS the Revival!!! (Part 1 of 3)

Nehemiah was an interesting character. He was a royal cupbearer, literally this dude got to taste wine for the king he served. Sounds like a pretty sweet gig, right? Well, not so much. With every sip his life could hang in the balance if someone had poisoned the cup. He was the last layer of defense.

He was serving 800 miles from his homeland when he received notice that his people were in disgrace and shame (Nehemiah 1:1-3) As they return from exile the walls of protection are broken down and the gates are destroyed by fire. Upon hearing this Nehemiah weeps and mourns and prays with fasting before the Lord for days this Scripture says (Neh. 1:4).

His prayer is interesting… He appeals to God who keeps covenant with steadfast love and offers repentance for how he and his people have sinned. He does this before any external circumstances change. God is still keeping covenant, for he made a promise years ago (Genesis 12:1-3 & Isaiah 7:14) to provide one who would pay for all sin and provide life eternal for those who come confessing their sins with repentance. The result is joy that is impenetrable and inexpressibly filled with hope, the enduring hope of Jesus, by His Spirit with us.

The Joy of the Lord is our strength ONLY because of the Grace of Jesus 

We live in challenging times, as did Nehemiah, with those returning from exile who were crushed in despair and grief over what they saw. We too, perhaps understandably, may be standing at the edge of grief and despair. How did Nehemiah (and Ezra the scribe) do it? How did they encourage the people to believe the truth that the joy of the Lord is our strength(Neh. 8:10)? 

I'd like to suggest three heart-anchoring truths from Nehemiah 8:1-18. Today, tomorrow and Wednesday we will explore them. They are: All understood, All rejoiced, and the people were All in. 

Nehemiah 8:1-8 describes the situation in detail. The people had just finished bringing voluntary offerings and rebuilding the wall that surrounded their city. Ezra began reading from the book of the law that had been long since forgotten. He read it from "early morning till midday..." (all you sermon length complainers out there be thankful Ezra wasn't rocking the pulpit of your local church). Curiously, four times in 8 verses we see the word "understand, understood." 

Warren Wiersebe once said, "God's word must be understood before it can enter the heart and release its life-changing power." God's Word is alive and active (Hebrews 4:12) in His people. In fact, these people were so riveted by the Word being read aloud that length (Neh. 8:3), fatigue (Neh. 8:5) and sheer numbers did not discourage them! 

Their response:

1. "Amen, Amen..." literally meaning, so be it. That is a faith filled response! 
2. "...lifting up their hands. And bowed their heads and worshipped the LORD with their faces to the ground." A HUMBLE and WORSHIPFUL response to the power and authority of God's word when understanding of it happened!!! 

What about you? What keeps you from understanding the Word? 

• Is it busyness (well thats slowed way down, "Thank you God."). 
• Sin? 
• What does Jesus teach us in Matthew 13:1-23 about understanding His Word and the results in our lives? 

Monday thoughts

Joshua, the leader who took over after Moses, had some shoes to fill; some rather large shoes, or to be more accurate, sandals. This is evidenced when we begin to read what are sometimes referred to as the "land-grant narratives" in Joshua 13-17.

The people of Israel had now come to the place where they were to take possession of the Promised Land. The very land God PROMISED to give to them. Let's pick up the story chapter fifteen; Joshua was divying out the land but some were struggling (see 15:63, 16:10, 17:12, 14 - I encourage you to read it on your own). 

First, when told their allotment of land, the tribe of Ephraim "did not drive the Canaanites out..." but instead kept them as slaves.  

In like fashion, upon encountering the "determined" (17:12) mindset of the Canaanites, the tribe of Manasseh didn't actually drive them out and possess the land. They simply waiting until they had gained enough strength and forced the inhabitants to work as their slaves. 

Finally, the descendants of Joseph lack the perseverance needed to possess the promise. Instead, they display an all-too-common perspective, "these people are bigger, faster, and stronger than us; loss is certain, why try?" (17:16).

In summary, what we find are all people who have been given a promise and land to go with it. Yet two, Ephraim and Manasseh, opt to permit the wickedness among them for their own personal gain even though God desired their (Canaanite) destruction. 

"Peace with wickedness is preferred to war for righteousness." (David M. Howard Jr.) 

And the tribe of Joseph, what do we discover about them? They were greedy and fearful (17:14 "why have you given us only one portion of land..." & 17:16 "they are too strong for us.") but ultimately unconvincing as Joshua doesn't bend to their manipulation.  Joshua essentially restates the allotment and process to possess it, like an undaunted father staring down the stubborn and entitled child.

Why write about Joshua's leadership challenges when we face fears as novel as anything any of us can recall in our lifetime?

Because when God promises something, He provides the requisite grace to lay hold of it. These times are UNCERTAIN but our God is not at all shaken, surprised, or dethroned. Some of us reading right now need to know this beyond a shadow of a doubt.

Tomorrow (Tuesday) we will look at Caleb. A man of promise tucked within this same narrative. He DARED to believe God despite many factors. Will you?

no little disturbance

²³About that time there arose no little disturbance concerning the Way.

Jada lies in her bed just 8 feet away from me - tossing and turning while at the same time gently moaning with abdominal pain; which I am told is a normal side effect for the chemo. There are few things more agonizing as a father than to watch your daughter do relatively well all day just to listen to her writhing in pain at night. It is, mind numbing and heart wrenching. Add to this that I met with a specialist today about wigs (for Jada's impending hair loss), gathered home health supplies for when we are discharged tomorrow, and learned that I have to personally administer 6 shots to Jada over the course of the next 6 days.

Jessica calls me after I learn of the shots (we had previously been told that Jada would not need to have any more "pokies,") and tells me she's having a hard morning but is sending Ollie over to see Jada and I. Ollie arrives and I go to grab him out of my aunt's van and I literally catch his vomit in my hands...an hour later he is home and has a fever of 102. Needless to say, when it rains it pours.

Now, if this were the end - it would be both sad and self-centered. However, I had a conversation on the phone tonight with someone who, after we were done and I had time to think about it, showed me a whole lot about God's process of refinement.

Everyone's hurting, right. I mean, look around you - there are divorces, children walking away from the Lord, job loss, broken family relationships and the list goes on. What Jess and I continue to discover in this journey is that God uses many things to get our attention - and until the cross-airs of my spiritual gaze are squared on Him I will continue to simply STARE down my issues and lament my existence. "Oh God, why me? Why did you have this lot fall on me? My life has been hard for too long."

Through it all my question is this: what is my intent in voicing MY LAMENT? A pat on the back and an anonymous donation (just an example - all monies will gladly be accepted) to help with the stress? The conversation tonight, and Acts 19:23 (above) have laid a heavy message on my heart that has been just working me over all evening - here's a peek...

Do we really believe we are part of THE WAY? I read all of chapter 19 in Acts and I challenge you to do the same. What you will find may challenge you. Because the believers lived their lives in communal harmony Demetrius (the silversmith) was legitimately scared that his trade was as good as gone. Have you ever considered the ramifications? The belief of the early church caused a CULTURE SHIFT. Entire trades were at risk of being uprooted in the town of Ephesus - and make no mistake - that kind of thing messes with the culture of a community.

If we suffer gloriously for Christ, and realize mortality matters if for nothing else but the immortality of God then maybe there would be "NO LITTLE DISTURBANCE IN THE PEORIA AREA CONCERNING THE WAY." The issue is not whether what I am going through is harder than what you have on your plate. For the constant throughout all human history is never the mode of human suffering. The CONSTANT is the GLORY OF CHRIST!

Ideally, folks would look at ALL of us and say, "he has a sick daughter, he just lost his job, she just got divorced, her car just broke down, he is buried in debt but THEY ALL have Jesus!!!

Perseverance - Character - Hope

A beautiful morning it was - sun shining, gentle breeze and runners ready. I had my camera slung over my shoulder ready to capture the memories. I watched the field ready themselves and the race began.

Nearly every runner was excited and looking fresh at the beginning. I ran from corner to corner to snap pics and encourage every runner I knew. I began to notice something as each race (both the guys and gals) wore on: they began to look a little weary and tired. As each race drew to a close the last 300 meters seemed especially difficult but the most exciting as strength and speed we evidenced in their increased effort.

As I had a conversation with some of the runners after the race my heart was reminded again of Romans 5:3-5. In the final, extremely difficult stretch when it seemed all strength was gone a few of the runners made the statement: "I had nothing and I called out to God for help and it was amazing how immediate He sent that help."

Our trials are designed by God to produce perseverance which in turn produces character and finally Hope. Hope is always tethered to an unchanging object. In this case - Jesus CHRIST! What a testimony for Him as the students drew upon their relationship with Christ for strength to finish STRONG!.

Lost eyebrows

So I was just trying to put Jada (my 3yr old) to bed. Which can be difficult. She tells me she wants to make up a story. Here's what she said: "you know what happened then? (that is actually how she started) She lost her eyebrows." I said, "really." Then she continued, "and she prayed to Jesus and he gave her new eyebrows and she put them on...the end."

That was the whole story. I had to wonder, wouldn't that make me anxious, losing my eyebrows...but I love how she resolved it. She had the little girl pray to Jesus immediately.

I am often an anxious person and have to repent of that. So, in an effort to help us all understand anxiety, I thought I would offer this little resource for free.

CLICK HERE