Disciples Study Daily!

I have several devotional books to choose from each morning. When I want to be hit by hard truths, challenged to linger and grow, I turn to Walk With God: The One-Year Devotional. I found this morning’s reading most convicting:

“Most of us…measure our spiritual maturity [this way]. We assume that the heights we’ve reached indicate the level to which we’ve grown. Many Christians…let our spiritual highs determine our self-image, and we live off of their memory while neglecting daily growth. Think of the inconsistency of that. Do we feast one day and then decide that we need no more nutrition for a few weeks? No, our bodies pester us with their need for daily sustenance… Our souls are more subtle. We respond to their hunger pangs with memories of past meals and expect them to be satisfied. But…true discipleship is consistent. The blessings of discipleship and worship are found only in their consistency. Measure yourself not by your highs or lows, but by who you are in between them.”

Ouch!

I have friends who commiserate with me about our lack of daily discipline because we are not in the Word every day. Knowing others have this struggle somehow validates it in my mind; if [insert name of godly friend here] isn’t in the Word every day, then I must be okay even though I am not.

I can have my daily snippets of quick devotional readings and be reminded momentarily of Who God is and inspired to live for Him. But if I’m not reading His Word, His actual Word, every day, then I am backsliding whether it’s apparent or not. My inconsistency makes me an unreliable disciple. No wonder I still struggle with temper and overeating and laziness; little daily snacks don’t satisfy a soul.

As an inspiring writer, I have this sign posted by my computer: “Writers write. Daily.” I continually remind myself that thinking about writing is not writing. Reading about writing is not writing. Planning to write is not writing. If I really want to call myself a writer, I need to write. Every day.

Tonight I’ll be adding a new reminder sign: “Disciples study the Word. Daily.” If I’m going to call myself a Christ-follower, I actually need to follow, to learn, to study, to seek Him. The Amplified Bible (in the book of Acts) repeatedly restates “believe in Him” as “believe, adhere to, trust in and rely upon Him.” The state of mind is not enough. It is the actual doing, the daily discipline of sitting at Jesus’ feet, that makes a disciple.

Disciples study. Daily!

Do you spend time reading the Bible each day? If so, how do you motivate yourself to ensure it gets done?

The Crown of His Creation

"The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it." -Psalm 24:1.

We were blessed to spend a week in Hawaii earlier this month, and I was amazed in new ways at the beauty God has placed on earth.  I saw hundreds of plants I've never seen - evergreens with needles that appear to grow upside down! a flower that looks like an ugly ribbon! mango and pineapple plants! - plus birds I have never seen before.  I snorkeled near Black Rock on Maui and saw dozens of fish I had never seen before, each with its own particular beauty and design, the stamp of God's creativity.  The terrain was absolutely gorgeous - mountains and rivers and waterfalls and that azure ocean, light sands and volcanos - so unique, unlike anything I've seen elsewhere in the States - more like an exotic new continent!  And I marveled at the God who could pour all of this beauty into our world simply by His Words - "let there be..." - whose creativity is beyond anything we could ever master or even imagine.

And yet, despite the bursts of color and light and detail, despite the overwhelming variety and beauty of all these things He created, He calls us the crown of His creation?  Sinful man?  Lowly, sinful ME?  How can this be?  How blessed we truly are!

Lord, give us eyes to see anew the beauty of our world, the splendor of Your design, the vastness of Your creative heart.  Bring us to our knees in worship for the One Who created all of this, yet loves each of us enough to give Your most precious Son so that we could know You and love You and spend eternity with you.  In Jesus' name we pray.  Amen.

Praising Him in the storms of life

"Where seldom is heard a discouraging word..." - Home on the Range

God spoke to me this afternoon as I was reading the first chapter of Job.  Here is a man who had everything - seven sons, three daughters, lots of cattle and sheep and camels - this means little to this non-farm girl, but in Biblespeak it means he was very wealthy.

Then Satan slithered over and told God that Job was a fair-weather friend who only loved Him because of all His blessings.  So God gave Satan permission to take everything Job had, so long as he did not harm Job himself.  And then, ka-blam!  Calamity struck!  Armies invaded, a tornado hit, lightning struck, and all of Job's children and possessions were dead and gone.

What did Job do next?  He cried, he swore, he raised his fists and yelled at God...

What?  No, he did none of those things.  The Bible says he mourned (tearing his clothes, shaving his head) and then WORSHIPPED God.  "I brought nothing with me into this world, and I can take nothing with me when I die.  Everything I have comes from God, and now He has taken it away.  May His name be praised!"

And the Word further tells us that "in all of this Job did not sin or blame God."

Obviously Job was a man whose love for God went far, far beyond the blessings He had given him.  I mean, God allows Satan to take away all he has, and he praises Him instead of blaming Him?  That would not be MY first reaction!

Okay, let's be honest.  I complain when I misplace something or the dishwasher breaks or the kids argue with me or minor inconveniences get in my way.  I argue with God when He doesn't answer my prayers the way I want.  And when calamity strikes, when I am overwhelmed or griefstricken and simply don't understand, I don't praise...I yell.  I go into my prayer closet (or the car - since I spend so much time driving kids around) and I raise my voice and say, "I don't understand!  Why?  Where were You?  Where ARE You?  Are You still in charge?  I need to hear from you!"

Job never DID hear why all this happened to him...not in chapter 1 and not by the end of chapter 42.  Yet he still praised God, worshipped Him, acknowledged Him as sovereign.  I want to be like Job when I grow up...if I ever do grow up.

Lord, I believe, but help my unbelief.  Help me to trust in you so firmly and fervently that even life's storms and calamities cannot shake my belief that You love me, that You are here, and that You are in control.  Help me model this unshakeable faith to my children, that all future generations of my family may glorify Your name.  Amen.