GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS
“Produce fruit in keeping with repentance”
Matthew 3:8

There have been times in my life when I didn’t give my all. You know those moments. Like in school when I would turn in homework that I knew wasn’t great but still good enough to get a B or C on. If I applied myself I could have gotten an A with ease, yet I was lazy. But there have also been times at work when I have been asked to review an issue and went through the motions of looking to be intently examining when really not looking at all. The outcome to those moments has been short vague responses. Even in my spiritual walk, though, I have gone through the motions. I have said the prayers and acted the part when really my desire to follow God’s ways has been lacking and flat out unwanted at times. But what purpose does it serve to appear to be what we are not. With all the effort we put into pretending, would it not be better and easier just to be living the truth as opposed to the half?
As I was reading the story of John the Baptist with my children last night before bed, a truth jumped off the page and convicted me. Maybe it was in the simplicity of the story from the children’s devotional, maybe my heart was in a vulnerable place, or maybe it was the fact that God had been speaking to me about my motions already. Whatever it was or was a mix of, the truth is that these words spoke. Allow me to share them with you from this devotional we read from.

“John was a powerful preacher. For example, he knew when people were just pretending to obey God. When some of them came to be baptized, he said to them, ‘You brood of snakes. Who warned you to run from God’s punishment? If you have turned from your sins, prove it by the way you live. Don’t just claim to be from Abraham’s family. That will not help you.’”
*One Year Bible for Children – V. Gilbert Beers

How many times have we pretended? We go to church, we read the Bible, we sing Jesus songs, but do we mean it or are we just going through the motions? What would happen if we gave God everything we say we are giving Him? We cannot pull one over on God even though we at times think we can. So why do we try? Why do we work so hard to produce pretend fruit when it seems to be easier to just produce real fruit? And the real fruit would keep us in right relationship with God.
I guess what I am saying is that God has been convicting me lately of pretending to obey God. God wants my all, not my motions. He wants my heart, not my intentions. I am being challenged in my walk with God these days to be real, be honest, and be completely His. In order to do this, though, I need to stop going through the motions of this Christian life and truly follow Him with all that is in me.

WARRIOR HEROES
“Following are the names of David’s warrior heroes…”
II Samuel 23:8

For the past two years I have been working on an idea for a book, taking the details of some historic events and leaders of the past, mixed with events and people in the Bible, all intermixed with lessons that God Himself has shown me. I am happy to say that I am so close to finishing. But of all the chapters and characters I have written about thus far, I have been most inspired recently by David’s warrior heroes. II Samuel 23 records for us the last words of David before he passes away and leaves Solomon to take his throne as promised. But after these words is found a list of warriors, individually named as David’s mighty men. There is debate as to the categories of these soldiers since they are named as the Three and the Thirty. The group of Three were specifically three, Josheb-Basshebeth the Tahkemonite, Eleazar, son of Dodai the Ahohite, and Shammah, son of Agee the Hararite. It is these three I want to look at today with you.
The first of the warrior-heroes who made up the Three is Josheb-Basshebeth. Josheb-Basshebeth, who some scholars believe is a translation error of the name Isbosheth or Ishbaal, who was King Saul’s son and heir, is described as being the leader (II Sam 23:8). It was he who killed 800 men in a single encounter, using only a spear.
Following him is listed Eleazar. Eleazar was said to have taunted the Philistines at Pas Dammim, much like Goliath of Gath had once done to Israel. The difference was the Eleazar was able to back up his taunt as God was on his side. When the army of Israel saw the Philistines charging at them, they all left. But Eleazar stood his ground. Fighting with God as his strength, he struck down one Philistine after another until his hand grew tired and froze to his sword. When the fight was done, the army of Israel rejoined Eleazar, but only to strip the dead men he had killed.
The last of the three is Shammah who is known for a fight over lentils. Again we read of the army of Israel fleeing the scene when the Philistines arrive, but Shammah stood his ground. In the middle of the field Shammah planted his feet and began defeating the Philistines that attacked him. The Lord brought about a great victory that day and the Philistines that were left went home lentil-less.
What was it that drove these men to fight for David? And what strength did these men possess? To take out 800 men with a spear, to defeat an army with a tired hand, or to stand in a field and defend your ground when all other have left takes courage. But it takes something else as well. It takes the true grit of knowing that God is on your side. These men fought for Israel and fought for King David because they saw God’s hand on him. They wanted to stand in the blessing that God was pouring out over David. To them the Philistines were a curse, and the curse needed to be broken. So ultimately, with God as their strength, they were able to do the impossible. With each thrust that Josheb-Basshebeth took, God directed his point. With each swing that Eleazar had the strength to start, God finished. And with each strike that Shammah leaned in with, God allow him to collect bodies. These men knew that the battle was God’s and gave Him the glory. It is for this reason that God gave them the victory.
These exploits were only able to happen because of God. When David’s men joined with him under God’s banner and for God’s purpose, victory was theirs. And the same is true for us. In my life I have ventured in fighting a number of battles on my own. I have gone out on the field before without the blessing and covering of God. It is no wonder I have failed as I have been fighting for me rather than fighting for the King, for God. But in taking the lessons of defeat from fighting alone, I so clearly see how once again I can do nothing on my own. It is God who gives me strength, God who gives me courage, and God who finishes my blow when I have only the strength left to start a punch. I want to be a warrior hero for God, but it starts in giving my allegiance fully to Him, putting my faith wholly in Him, and praising only Him. These are the beginning weapons of being a warrior for God.

ACTIONS DONE IN SPITE
“Now Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan-Aram to choose a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he charged him, ‘You are not to choose a Canaanite woman as your wife.’”
Genesis 28:6

When I was in high school I began to have feelings for a girl. I knew she wasn’t right for me, but I threw aside all the warnings and ventured out in a relationship with her anyway. In many ways, I see how I did it all in spite. Coming from a family where my parents pushed us to live right and obey God’s word, I quite honestly got tired of being good. I was the one that people looked at as being too good, too spiritual, and too white. So I began to rebel. I began to step out into things I knew my parents didn’t approve of, and this relationship was one of those things. I look back now and wish I could erase that part of my past, slap myself upside the head, and give myself a stern talking to, but I can’t. I can only take the lessons learned and by God’s grace, not repeat them.
What causes us to act out in spite? Rules are set for our protection yet still we push through them. In the end they only prove to make us look foolish. But in that moment, when anger and independence take charge of our lives, we see the ability to take revenge and move on it. This anger is not a righteous or holy indignation, however, but rather it is us being given limits that we do not want. In Genesis 28:5-9, we see an illustration of this fact.
Esau has had one pulled over on him again by Jacob posing to be him and receiving his father’s blessing for the first born child. Now with a vow to get revenge on his brother, Rebekah shares with Isaac that she wants her son to find a wife from her brother’s clan as she is tired of the Hittite women in the land they are now living. They were not worshipping the same god that God had commanded. Isaac and Rebekah push Jacob out of the home with the command to head for the home of Rebekah’s brother, Laban. But Esau, who also knew of this command and of this conversation, went out in spite and married from the tribe of Ishmael, his uncle. God had already pushed these people away because they were not part of the promise, but Esau in spite welcomed them back in through marriage to Mahalath. In spite, in his way of revenge toward his parents, he did the exact opposite of what he knew was right under God’s standards.
So how different are we from Esau? I would venture to say not very different. Like Esau we grow weary of second fiddle. We get tired of seeing the rug pulled out from under us because of deceit and trickery. But let us not forget two things. One, God takes vows seriously. Although done in trickery, a vow was made between Jacob and Esau that exchanged the birthright for soup. While Esau may have agreed to this, thinking it was a joke, or because he was just so famished, God saw it etched in stone. But secondly, we cannot expect to walk under God’s blessing if we fail to do His will. The actions that Esau took done in spite only proved to hurt him. Yes, his parents were probably upset that he continued to take wives that were not part of God’s plan, but I question if they were not more upset that he did this in hopes of getting even with them.
Going back to my high school days, while I was acting out and trying to make my parents look the part of the fool, it was I who was foolish. It was I who made the mistake, acted in spite, and have had to answer to for my actions. I may have caused a bit of frustration for my parents in my choice, but I have had to live with the regret of my actions. Done is spite, done in the heat of the moment, done in an attempt of revenge, the only person I managed to hurt was myself. This story of Esau and Jacob is in the Bible as part of the history of the nation that would come, but let us not read it simply as history. We all have the ability to become like Esau and act out in spite. But we all should refrain, for our spiteful actions will only hurt us.

THE VISIBLE HAND OF ADONAI
“They answered, ‘We saw very clearly that Adonai has been with you; so we said, “Let there be an oath between us: let’s make a pact between ourselves and you that you will not harm us, just as we have not caused you offense but have done you nothing but good and sent you on your way in peace. Now you are blessed by Adonai.”’”
Genesis 26:28-29

Just yesterday we read of a scuttle breaking out over wells that Abraham had dug prior to his death. It was a deep subject. But when Isaac came to reclaim what belonged to his family he found the wells stopped up and filled with dirt. At this, he was told to leave the area by Abimelech. Was the action taken by the Philistines based on jealousy? In Genesis 26:13 we are told that Isaac became rich and prospered more and more. It is possible then that the stopping of the wells was based on the people of the land not seeing the same degree of increase and blessing as Isaac was. Still, it could also be based on the fact that the people coveted. Seeing what God was doing for Isaac could have made the people covet Isaac’s land. The way to get that land that was already showing signs of prospering was to get Isaac and his people off it.
This portion of the story makes me chuckle, I will admit. I think it amusing to see that the very people that told Isaac to move away were now the very people coming back to him and asking him to make a covenant, or pact with them. They saw God’s hand on him when he was there, and in some ways I am sure they all benefited from his being there. This was true with the Ark of the Covenant, where we read that in a failed effort to try and move the Ark, David had it remain for three months in the house of ‘Oved- ‘Edom the Gitti. While it was there, God blessed the household and all he had (I Chron 13:14). So could it be that the Philistines recognized the same thing?
By forcing Isaac to move away, I wonder if the people set themselves up for hard times. History shows this to be true. When the law was passed to separate church and state, removing not only prayer, but the Ten Commandments from being posted in public schools, the affects that followed showed an increase in everything negative. Removing God from the equation always sets downfall into place. So then I cannot help but think that removing Isaac, who carried with him the blessing and promise of God, brought for the Philistines a path paved with one destroying factor after another. And I cannot help but think that it is because of this truth that Abimelech came back to Isaac to make a covenant. He wanted back in; he wanted to be under that blessing once more that Isaac walked under.
I have to ask myself a few questions here. First, am I walking under the same blessing as Isaac? I know that God has a path for me to walk in and that He loves me, but am I walking in His covering of blessing? Do I find myself removing the very piece that holds the blessing, and then wondering why I am falling into destruction at every step? Have I removed God from my city, telling Him He is no longer welcomed? I sure hope not. But the great thing is, Genesis 26:30 states that Isaac prepared a feast share with him. The next morning, Isaac and Abimelech swore to each other. There was no more fighting breaking out during their time. This gives me hope, because even if I have removed God, the covenant can still be made in my asking for His forgiveness. A banquet is held and we come under His protection and blessing once more. I tell you the truth, there is no other god I want on my side than God, no other feast I want to be seated at than God’s, and no other blessing I want to know than that which God gives.

RECHOVOT
“He went away from there and dug another well, and over that one they didn’t quarrel. So he called it Rechovot [wide open spaces] and said, ‘Because now Adonai has made room for us, and we will be productive in the land.’”
Genesis 26:22

It was because God blessed Isaac so greatly that the Philistines envied him. When he planted crops the harvest would be returned a hundredfold. His animals became fruitful and multiplied. And it seemed that everything he touched was blessed by God to the point of being untouchable. But seeing God’s hand on Isaac caused jealousy to arise in the hearts of the Philistines in whose land Isaac was an alien. This then caused the Philistines to plug up wells once built by Isaacs father, Abraham. Maybe still not getting the full point, it finally took Abimelech saying, “Move away from here,” before Isaac finally moved away.
It seemed like no matter where he moved to, these jealous Philistines and men of other tribes still followed him. And no matter what he did to provide for his clan and himself, trouble always came looking for him. When out in the valley, after digging a new well named Esek, the herdsmen of Gerar came to quarrel and eventually stole his well. Isaac’s response was to dig a second new well which was named Sitnah, but it too was taken from him. It was after this, then, that Isaac moved on from there. He moved on and dug a third well. Seeing that no one was challenging him for the rights to this well, he named it Rechovot, meaning wide open spaces. It was here that God allowed him to flourish
Have you ever noticed that what Isaac went through we also find ourselves going through? Let me explain. The enemy’s number one goal is to prevent us from being blessed by God. He knows that once we are in sync with God, nothing can stop the tidal wave of blessings that will be poured out over us. This in a way is the fact of digging a well. In going deeper in our relationship with God we are in essence drilling for the fresh water from which we can drink and be filled. But the enemy comes to fill up our well, covering it with the dirt and debris of sin. As we find ourselves thirsty for a true drink still, we dig again only to have the well be covered up again.
But notice that Isaac did not give up in his search for fresh water. Instead he moved on from there. His desire for a drink without the bitterness or dust flavoring his water was so strong that he continued to dig and dig. And this time his digging paid off as the enemy did not follow and did not fill in his wells.
While this may be a physical story about a well, it is a spiritual representation also of our lives. Again, the enemy does not want us to drink deep of God or of His blessings. But we cannot allow him to continue to cover up our wells. Those who are truly thirsty for a relationship with God will continue to dig and ultimately find that fresh water and fresh relationship with Him. So the question I ask is how thirsty are you? Are you thirsty enough to keep digging even when your wells continue to be filled in? The wide open spaces of a relationship with God may be found in the next well dug. But if we do not move on and continue to dig, we will never find the water we long for. So then dig, my friend, dig.

THOUGHT SHIFT
“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.”
Romans 7:15-17

Yesterday I left you with a question I ask of myself, but I am pretty sure you may have found yourself at one time or another asking as well. Why do I run to and from the opposite of what God is calling me to run to and from? I may have left you hanging when I answered that question by saying I need a shift in my thinking. But it is true. As I have come to realize that I can do nothing without Christ, I am also coming to realize that my thoughts are not always, or even half the time, the thoughts that He has. My thought pattern is tainted, skewed, and quite honestly lacking good sense many times. The words Paul wrote in Romans 7:15-17 were custom made for me.
“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do” (Rom 7:15). Paul and I are sharing the same idea here in saying that we know the right response, the right character to own, and the right way to live, but why then do we find ourselves doing the exact opposite. Where the sign reads to go left, I find myself wanting to go right. If the sink is putting out clean water I find myself still drinking from the toilet. And if the skull and crossbones are printed on the label marking the bottle toxic I still find myself unscrewing the cap to take a sip. Why do I find myself like Jonah, running from the very command that God has given me?
God has given us His law. As a parent I can respect this. I lay down the rules for my kids and I expect them to be obeyed. Failure to obey them leads to consequence. Are we so naïve to think that when we step outside God’s law that we will not find consequence? True, we will find forgiveness when we repent, just as I offer to my children when they fail to obey, but there still is consequence.
We need to make a shift in our thoughts. We need to pull ourselves away from our ‘self’ and replace the self with God. For instance, one of the methods that I used in pulling away from my addiction was to imagine God sitting right next to me while surfing the internet or watching movies. With the idea that I was sitting next to God, my thoughts changed from ‘my self’ to ‘my God’. The sin that was living in me was beginning to be replaced by a desire to obey God. But without even allowing my mind to be changed, and my thoughts in line with God’s thoughts, I was doomed to be no better than I was. I would have spent my life living in that lukewarm place and running from God.
The change in mindset produced a change in spirit which began a true change in character. It is only because of this change that I am now able to do the right type of running, that like Joseph who ran when temptation came looking for him. It was against God more than anyone else that Joseph knew he would be sinning against, and he was not about to fall into that lifestyle. This should be our resolve as well. Instead of me running to sin and from God, I want to be found doing the opposite and running to God and what He is calling me to and running from the sin that longs to take me down. I have resolved to make the thought shift needed in this hour. Will you?

RUNNING
“But Jonah ran away from the LORD and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the LORD.”
Jonah 1:3

Truth be told, running is not my thing. After spending the summer walking with a goal to complete 500 miles, I contemplated doing another 500 in the way of running. That lasted one day. It wasn’t that I wasn’t able, but more so that I kept finding reasons to excuse myself from it. I didn’t have the right shoes. I didn’t have the endurance. I couldn’t talk on the phone and run at the same time. Whatever the excuse may have been, the fact was I had one. I find it funny that I can run for the door of the ice cream shop, but I find it harder to run for my health. It reminds me of two stories I have read in the Bible concerning running. Allow me to explain what I mean.
In Genesis 39 we read of Joseph, the son of Jacob whose brothers had sold him into Egyptian slavery. It is in this chapter we find that Potiphar’s wife had the hots for Joseph and had no problem sharing her feelings with him. On a few occasions she was even blunt enough to ask him to sleep with her. But one day, thinking ahead and having everything planned out, she cleared the house of all the servants and caught him by the cloak. Again she beckoned, “Come to bed with me!” Instead of giving in, Joseph left his cloak behind and ran out of the house.
In Jonah 1, however, we read of another type of running. When the word of the LORD came to Jonah to travel to Nineveh, Jonah decided to run from God. And he didn’t just run, he ran with passion in the opposite direction, boarding a boat bound to any city far enough away to not be in proximity of where God was calling him. I think it is safe to say that Jonah learned that hard way that God cannot be outran when the fish swallowed him up.
Two different examples of running, yet both are important for us as believers. Both offer to us a truth that we would do well to learn. As in the case of Joseph we can learn that temptations will come and it is best to run away from them. Temptation has no power over us and God will always provide a way out (I Cor 10:13). I wonder if we are looking for that way out as often as we should. And if we do see it, are we running towards that out? But then in the case of Jonah, I question if we are running from God. God has a specific plan and purpose for us all, as I shared in cowboy lingo yesterday. But when God gives us that calling or mission, do we run from Him? We should learn from Jonah’s example that not only are we unable to run from Him, but it is not smart to run from Him.
So then, here is my final thought. In the beginning I questioned of myself, why is it that I can run for the door of the ice cream shop, but I find it harder to run for my health? It seems like I have my running purposes backward. Change the words a little and the thought could read, why is that I can run to temptation, but I find it harder to run to where God is calling me? This is not the way it is supposed to be, nor the way I want it to be. Why do I run to and from the opposite of what God is calling me to run to and from? I need a shift in my thinking, and that is what we will discover in tomorrow’s devotional.

AT THE POTTER’S HOUSE
“Then the word of the LORD came to me: ‘O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?’ declares the LORD. ‘Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.’”
Jeremiah 18:5-6

About a month ago I shared with you my most recent experience with watching a piece of pottery being made. It was at the county fair that I stopped in at an exhibit and watched a demonstration where the lady was working to create pottery. Lining the shelves were finished products, but on the wheel was a new creation being formed. I remember watching her throw a slab on clay on her wheel and gently push the peddle down to create speed. As the whole lump began to spin faster and faster, she used her fingers to indent and form this blob into something more. Within only a short few minutes a bowl was formed, perfect in every way and ready to be dried by the heat of the sun. She had taken what was void of form and in her own way, breathed life into it making her own unique dish. But how many dishes were made before that for some reason were not seen as perfect? I know for myself that I tend to see myself as a perfectionist in some areas. When I do my paintings, and even when I type these devotionals, I will sit for as long as needed to make sure I am producing a great piece.
Yet going back to the potter, if she was to begin making an item and found that it wasn’t shaping as she hoped, her next step would be to start over. She wouldn’t have to start over with fresh clay, though, just take the clay she was using and form it back into a ball to start fresh from. In reading the account of Jeremiah visiting the potter’s house, I see the same idea. Jeremiah followed God’s leading and found himself at the potter’s house receiving his next message. As he watched the potter at work, he watched the clay being crafted. But it wasn’t shaping as the potter wanted, so he started over until finally it held the shape that seemed best to the potter. It was then that God spoke. “‘O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?’ declares the LORD. ‘Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel’” (Jer 18:6).
It is said that He is the potter and we are the clay. Lyrics of an old song I would sing in church went on the state, “mold me and make me, this is what I pray.” As I have grown over the last three to four years, this idea has indeed been my prayer. I have found myself many days looking in the mirror. There are some days that I like hate who I see, knowing the person I have become. And there are days that I look and enjoy who I see, again knowing who I have become. But one thing is constant. Whether a bad day or a good day, this prayer of mine is always the same. “God make me more like you.” I can see on those bad days how desperately I need God. Yet I can see it also on those good days when even at my best I still have so far to go to match His reflection.
The words God spoke for Jeremiah to give to Israel are the words I feel He is asking me. “O Daniel, can I not do with you as this potter does? Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Daniel.” I know what this entails. I know that it means that every piece of me that does not reflect God needs to be reworked. I know the pain that will come from this remolding. But I also know that unless I allow God the opportunity to perfect me, then I will only be a deformed piece of pottery. I want to be in His image, be His reflection, and be His masterpiece. This will not happen if I do not yield myself over to the Great Potter.
Perhaps you have days like me, where one day you hate who you see and the next day love who you see. Maybe like me, though, you also realize that a great day still only reflects how much more you need the reshaping that God alone can do. He is asking you, as He is me, if He can please remake you, remold you, refashion you into His image. I cannot make this choice for you. But know that His desire for you is best. Will you allow the Potter to place you back on His wheel and craft you into His image?

TOO HARD?
“’Is anything too hard for ADONAI? At the time set for it, at this season next year, I will return to you; and Sarah will have a son.’”
Genesis 18:14

We read in Genesis 17:16 of God once again promising Abraham a son. This time, however, He specifically states that the son will come from Sarah, whose name was just changed, in stating, “I will give you a son by her.” Yet when the three men approach Abraham in Genesis 18:12 to once again share the plans and promises of God concerning His people, Sarah laughed. I cannot help but wonder if Abraham forgot to pass on the message from his previous conversations with God. I mean, seriously, did Sarah not get the memo? For the past 14 years since the birth of Ishmael, God continued to speak about this promise with Abraham. Now that it was on the brink of happening, Sarah doubted and laughed.
If I may interject here, I would like to add that this response is something that I too have done. There have been instances in my past when God has promised me something. It isn’t that I doubt He can do it, but it is more so that I question, “Why have You wanted till now?” For example, for years I have felt this urge to write a book. I received His promise that I would write and be published back in 1996, when I was in college. I have tried a few times, knowing the topic and title, but in every attempt I failed. By 2006 I had already started and quit a rough draft five times. Then in 2007 I was served divorce papers. I thought at that time that many of the things that I had heard God say or felt He had promised were never going to come about. But as I would spend time with Him, working to be healed from the pains of divorce and who I had become, God began to reinstate His plans for me. Suddenly, what looked to be an empty dream from God, what looked to be a broken promise, was beginning to take shape. On January 1, 2009, in prayer alone just after the ball dropped, I heard Him as clear as day say to me that now was the time. But why did it take so long. In all those failed attempts I was not writing from experience.
I can relate to Sarah. As she looked at her age as the blockage, I looked at my divorce. We both laughed because we both thought we were too far gone. But I love the rebuke that Sarah received, and in many ways that I also received. “’Is anything too hard for ADONAI?” Absolutely not. I have come to realize the same thing that I imagine Sarah learned that day when she was rebuked. God is able to do more than I could ever imagine. And why not; that is His character. Ephesians 3:20 records Paul stating that God is able to do far beyond anything we can ask or imagine because of His power working in us. At that moment when once again the men declared that Sarah would give birth within the year, His power was working. And in that moment when I found myself praying and crying out to God, His power was working.
Sarah did receive her child, and the nation of Israel was one step closer to being birthed, for from Isaac would come Jacob to whom the twelve tribes would be fathered. As for me, that night set me into motion. Empowered by God, I found myself unable to put the pen down. I have since written my promised book and am in the revising stages at this time. My own Isaac is in the birthing stages. So then, is anything too hard for Adonai? Absolutely not. I wonder where you are. Has God given you also a promise that has not yet come to pass? And was the promise so big that you could not help but laugh? I tell you, when God speaks concerning us and His plans for us, you can guarantee that it will come to pass. It might not be in our time, but in the time set, our Isaac will be birthed.

CURLED UP
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”
Isaiah 43:2

I was thinking last night. I know, either you are not surprised or you are coming up with overly sarcastic remarks to that truth. But in reality, I was thinking last night. As I found myself chatting with a friend I found myself beginning to think back to my days in college. You may or may not know, but standing in the entrance to Oral Roberts University is a monstrous statue of Oral Roberts hands. There are jokes that the hands clap at midnight, but it never seemed to happen when I was there. For me, though, they became a place of refuge and a welcome invitation to meeting with God. You see, many nights I would come out to this statue, lay flat on the cement, and just stare at the hands with only my Bible in hand. I wasn’t worshipping the statue, so please do not be fearful. But instead I would recall the life of Oral and think to myself, “If God can do all this through Oral then what can He do through me?” I would find hours pass by quickly, just resting there in God’s presence. I would spend time praying, but spend equal time listening.
One of the things I love most about being a father is when my children come and sit on my lap or snuggle up next to me. It is in those moments that they feel not only love, but also security. It is also in these times that we seem to have our best conversations. Our walls are down, our hearts are open, and our ears are listening. In that moment what my children say and do becomes the air I breathe. I want to listen, I want to encourage, and I want to show them my love. Is this not the same as how God feels for me when I come to Him and curl up on His lap?
Isaiah 43:2 reads, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” To me this is such an encouraging verse, and I can picture myself as a child being told these words by the one who has vowed to love me. I can see God wrapping His arms around me and letting me know that even when it feels like I am alone, He is right there with me. My life is His interest. I am at peace hearing these words even now, as I reflect on what I have already come through. I am also at peace as I consider what else lies ahead. Whatever it is that I will face still, whatever waters, rivers, fires or flames, I know that God is my protection. In His promise I find myself curling up.
Sometimes I long to travel back to Tulsa, to lie in that old peaceful place again and look up at those massive hands. That place was in essence the lap I would crawl up into. But that is not the only place I can hear God. And that is not the only place that I can feel comfort in. It was a landmark for my faith, but not the only place where my faith was able to grow. His lap is all around, and His presence close at hand. What is stopping me from curling up with Him now? Nothing at all. And what is stopping you? Again, nothing. Maybe it is time then that we do just that. Maybe it is time we crawl into the lap of our Father where the safety, protection, and love rest, and hear once more the words He longs to encourage us with.