God-Confidence

I just finished reading Elizabeth Edwards’ book Resilience. She reflects on death, cancer and marital heartache. I know a little something about all three from the past few years of my life, albeit with different details. And yesterday as I contemplated the very recent death of my sister-in-law, my cancer-free child coughing on the couch, and my distant and moody husband, it all felt very present, intense and a little overwhelming. Even a little scary.

Our family’s emotions have run the gamut in the past month, since my sister-in-law was killed. Fear, anger, sadness, disbelief. And I believe there’s a place for all of them in the framework of God’s sovereign love and power. But when does it become destructive to engage in, or dare I say indulge in, certain thoughts and emotions? Where’s the line between the natural progression of healing and obsessive? And is it too early to judge?

Having already wrestled with some hard emotional and theological issues when our son was diagnosed with cancer at age 8, my questions through this round of emotional trauma are different. I learned (through personal experience and the truth of God’s Word) over the course of Charlie’s illness and recovery that God is God. He is good no matter what. He is present and loves me perfectly. He placed the stars in the universe, the planets in orbit, and the individual blood cells in our bodies are under His control. I never asked, “Why Charlie?” when he got cancer. I knew that this world is broken and diseased and we are victims of it. The gospels tell us that rain falls on the wicked as well as the righteous. Good people get cancer and wicked people don’t. C’est la vie. Maybe it was easier to swallow because Charlie recovered and we just celebrated his 13 birthday. Some parents at Seattle Children’s Hospital didn’t go home with their children at the end of treatment. Their theological battles were probably different than mine.

This time around, I’m faced with integrating abstract theology with very personal and unpleasant life experience in a new way. If God reserved wrath and destruction and great personal suffering for His own children when they turned away from Him in the days before the captivity (Old Testament prophets, etc.), how does the grace of Jesus Christ fit now? If I believe that God is powerful enough to have stopped the attack on my sister-in-law and that He loved her perfectly, where do I go with the frustration that He didn’t stop it? Why is there unspeakable evil in the world that God seemingly ignores? And does He really want redemption for everyone, including the man that killed my sister-in-law? Does mercy always triumph over judgment?

So, as I wrestle with some of these issues, I find great comfort in resting on the ones that have already been settled for me. As I’ve been reading through Jeremiah this summer, the following verses were the first that spoke to me again in a way that felt familiar – like God quickening my heart to hear Him:

⁵This is what the LORD says:

“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,

who depends on flesh for his strength

and whose heart turns away from the LORD.

⁶He will be like a bush in the wastelands;

he will not see prosperity when it comes.

He will dwell in the parched places of the desert,

In a salt land where no one lives.

⁷But blessed is the man who trusts

in the LORD,

whose confidence is in him.

⁸He will be like a tree planted by the water

that sends out its roots by the stream.

It does not fear when heat comes;

Its leaves are always green.

It has no worries in a year of drought

And never fails to bear fruit.” (Jeremiah 17:5-8)

The contrast in the cursed one and the blessed one is clear: trusting in God brings peace and blessing while trusting in anything else brings unrest, worry and fear. I know which I want to choose. And I reap the benefits when I follow through. I can see from life experience that this passage doesn’t mean that nothing bad will happen to those who love and trust God and that people who don’t trust Him will be consistently miserable. What I do know is that when my confidence is in God – His mercy, His sovereignty, His perfect love for me, and His strength – I can be more like the tree that bears fruit and doesn’t have fear or anxiety the way I do when I look to other things. Have you experienced that? Is it not true that when we are connected to God and trusting Him for the outcome of our circumstances and the well being of our hearts that we are less anxious and less fearful?

So how does this play out when life is just too much? What does it all mean? When life is difficult and there’s a struggle to get through – hope of relief at the end of a trying time – we wait for God’s reassurance that things will be okay. But what about when the worst possible life scenario has already happened and there’s just waiting for the present pain to subside? What can we cling to? What should we look for? How does God show up now?

I’m finding that so much of the relationship that God and I have built together over the years is the foundation upon which I’m drawing strength and comfort now. I’m not learning new things about God or myself in this season as much as I’m being reminded of what I already knew. It is true that perfect love casts out all fear (1 John 4:18). God really is source of comfort, my rock, my fortress, my hope (Psalm 71). It was true in my head; now it’s true in my life. I haven’t had to run to God for comfort so much as I’ve just been made aware that I was already connected to Him.

I can trust in the criminal justice system or my own fortitude or the possessions in my home. But to have my trust there requires that my heart turn away from God and I miss out on peace and comfort in His Presence. On the other hand, when my confidence is in Him – when I come to the full realization that His Presence is more important than the answers – then fear fades, worries evaporate, and fruit in my life blossoms and nourishes.

• Read Psalm 1. How does this psalm expand your understanding of what it means to put your confidence in God? What practical steps can you take this week toward that goal?

• Read Psalm 27:13-14. How does this confidence differ from what some people may label as “blind faith”? What kinds of things in your life lead you toward that kind of God-confidence? How can you build more into your life?

Singing in Prison

Did you know that singing can bring healing and health to the temporal lobes and maybe the deep limbic system of your brain? In a recent book by Dr. Daniel Amen called Change Your Brain Change Your Life there is considerable evidence that humming, singing and even talking can enhance the part of our brains that is responsible for mood and memory. I have a friend who says she can’t wait to get to Heaven when she’ll be able to sing with the angels since people here don’t appreciate her voice! The act itself is good for us and it can often bring us closer to God. Look at how Paul and Silas experienced that when in prison:

²³ After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown in to prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. ²⁴ Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

²⁵ About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. ²⁶ Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose. ²⁷ The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. ²⁸ But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!” (Acts 16:23-28)

Imagine sitting in a cold, dark prison and the new guys start singing in the middle of the night. Well, you’re not really getting much sleep anyway so why not have a listen? But why are prisoners praying out loud and singing in the dark? Why does the caged bird sing, after all?

Because the alternative is to shrivel up and concede that the darkness is more powerful and allow the lie that God is not able to save and comfort to become truth in our minds. Paul and Silas chose to run to God for solace and believe the truth they’d come to know about Him, namely that He is all-powerful and all-loving and present with them, even in difficult circumstances. Joseph must have discovered something similar in prison when he was falsely accused of acting inappropriately with the wife of Pharaoh’s official, Potiphar. And Daniel had to have experienced God’s presence in the lions’ den when the angry leaders had him thrown in for praying, of all things! And I would guess that the prophet Jeremiah found comfort in God when his enemies threw him into a dry well and left him for dead because of the unpleasant messages he was speaking. How can we know that these men relied on God in their trouble? Because of what they said and how they acted when they were freed. Only time with God produces the kind of character and clarity that these followers of God modeled after their brushes with death. And in all of those cases – Old and New Testament examples – the people around them were influenced or dramatically changed because of the faith of those imprisoned.

Not surprisingly, I see some patterns in these stories that can be applied to our lives by asking a few questions about the scene that was played out.

Why were Paul and Silas in prison? There had been a slave girl with a spirit by which she predicted the future and earned a great deal of money for her owners that ran into Paul and Silas as they were out and about preaching and healing in the name of Jesus. They cast that spirit out of her when they saw that it wasn’t of God and the people went nuts, having them beaten and thrown in jail. Their imprisonment came about because of their obedience to God’s call on their lives. Seasons of darkness are sometimes caused by our disobedience, but sometimes they come when we are doing everything right. And God’s timing and plan are always perfect.

How did Paul and Silas respond to their circumstances? They were praying and singing. Their focus was on God, not their situation. They chose hope over despair and faith over fear. In Bill Hybel’s book, Too Busy Not to Pray, he says that the key to prayer that builds our faith is to focus not on the mountain that needs moving, but on the mountain-mover Himself. If we discipline ourselves to focus on God and His character instead of our circumstances or our pain, we will be more likely to connect the dots when He actually answers our prayer.

What happened when they prayed? The first question I wrote in my journal when I read this passage was, “What were they praying for?” Could Paul and Silas have possibly been praying for what eventually happened? How could they have even imagined this outcome?! But they put themselves in a position to hear from God, to be comforted by Him, and to see Him do whatever He was going to do, and then did He ever deliver! Earthquake, doors flying open, prisoners’ chains coming undone, the jailer falling to his knees wanting to be saved… what?! Even if Paul and Silas didn’t expect God to show up exactly like this, there was no doubt that He was acting since there was no other possible explanation. When we pray in the darkness, even when we don’t know exactly what to pray for, we can expect something and be ready for anything.

As I looked back over times in my life that were particularly trying, I tried to lay these filters over my circumstances to see how they applied in my life. What did I do in those times when life fell apart? And did God show up?

I begged. There were many times when my prayers weren’t eloquent – or even comprehensible. They consisted of “Pleeeeeez…” when waiting for blood test results for my son during his cancer treatment. I relied heavily on Romans 8:26 when my marriage was falling apart: “…the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” My guttural prayers were certainly in that category.

I asked, “What are you showing me?” That question became its own prayer in hard times as I desperately searched for meaning in my suffering and wanted so badly to please God and become more like him – especially if it meant this hard lesson could be over! No joke.

I relied on what I knew was true. We don’t have to believe every thought that comes in our heads and it’s wise not to, especially when wild emotions and circumstances are involved. Memorizing key Scriptures when life is going well is crucial to having a foundation to fall back on when it’s not. Even when I didn’t feel it, I told myself over and over that God did, in fact, want what was best for me and the He was, in fact, in control of my circumstances. I willed myself to believe what was true, not what I felt. That was huge.

I would never choose the most difficult periods of my life over comfort and unadulterated joy, but in retrospect, I can fully embrace them and be thankful because I now know God more deeply than I would if life had been easy. And the people around me have been changed along with me because of those times. That’s not coincidence; it’s how God operates. Yes, Paul and Silas were freed from their chains, but God’s plan included the jailer and his family, too. Yes, Joseph got out of prison by interpreting the Pharaoh’s dream, but God’s plan included all of Jacob’s children and the entire nation of Israel, ultimately. People are watching us in dark times and the result of trusting God and focusing on Him in that darkness has an impact on those around us. We can pray like Elijah, before King Ahab and prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel: “Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.” (1 Kings 18:37) That, I’m convinced, is one of His favorite prayers.

• What Scripture do you rely upon in hard times? When did you first discover its comfort and relevance? How has God used that Scripture in your life since then? If you don’t have places in the Bible that you turn to in hard times, do a search and memorize one or more verses for future reference.

• Read more of the story. Expand on today’s lesson by going to Acts 16:16-40 and reading the context surrounding Paul and Silas’ imprisonment. Where do you see yourself in this story? Did you have a dramatic conversion experience when you first came into a relationship with Christ? Have you seen God show up in unexplainable ways when you were crying out to Him in prayer or song? Spend some time praying over this passage and asking God to reveal something new about Himself and your relationship with Him.

Hard Truth

Have you ever seen kids stick their fingers in their ears and chant, “I can’t hear you. La la la la la”? Imagine how ridiculous adults would look if that was the way we chose to deal with difficult truths in life. And although I don’t know anyone who actually does that, the effect is the same when we refuse to hear God’s truth from Him directly or from those He has sent to reveal truth to us.

I am convinced more and more that some people simply do not want to hear the truth if it is painful, inconvenient or unpleasant, even if they know that pushing through the hard part will ultimately bring freedom and higher quality relationships. They are in denial, averse to confrontation, or just plain scared. It’s human nature, to some degree, to seek comfort in our lives and to avoid pain. However, because humans have the capacity to reason instead of just react, we can choose what seem to be difficult actions in order to reap a greater reward. No pain, no gain. Case in point, the prophet Amos.

As a southerner preaching bad news in the north, his message was not received well. This shepherd-turned-prophet was called by God to tell the nation of Israel that her time of freedom as a nation was coming to an end due to stubborn rebellion. Instead of turning to God in repentance, one of the nation’s priests threatens Amos and twists his words to protect the people and the king from hearing the cold, hard truth that God’s patience had come to an end.

¹⁰ Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent a message to Jeroboam king of Israel: “Amos is raising a conspiracy against you in the very heart of Israel. The land cannot bear all his words. ¹¹ For this is what Amos is saying:

“ ‘Jeroboam will die by the sword,

and Israel will surely go into exile,

away from their native land.’ ”

¹² Then Amaziah said to Amos, “Get out, you seer! Go back to the land of Judah. Earn your bread there and do your prophesying there. ¹³ Don’t prophesy anymore at Bethel, because this is the king's sanctuary and the temple of the kingdom.”

¹⁴ Amos answered Amaziah, “I was neither a prophet nor a prophet’s son, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore-fig trees. ¹⁵ But the LORD took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ ¹⁶ Now then, hear the word of the LORD…” (Amos 7:10-16)

Amos was minding his own business taking care of sheep and sycamore-fig trees when God specifically commissioned him with the task of bringing a message of coming wrath to Israel. He didn’t want to go preach the message any more than the people wanted to hear it. But that didn’t matter nearly as much as God’s desire and sovereign timing to bring His plan to fruition. So whether we find ourselves in the role of truth telling or truth hearing, there are some lessons here on what to do and what not to do in order to allow God’s truth to have its effect in our lives and in the lives of people around us.

Amaziah was a priest in Bethel, where after the ten northern tribes broke away from Judah and Benjamin under the reign of Solomon’s son Rehoboam, a new temple was set up to keep people from having to travel all the way to Jerusalem to worship. Forget the fact that this was contrary to God’s plan from the beginning. Things went from bad to worse once anyone could become a priest, and the worship of Yahweh became adulterated by being mixed with other religions from surrounding areas. Since the temple in Bethel was set up by the rebel kings and run by priests of their choice, Amaziah and King Jeroboam II must have felt they had some control over the messages that were spoken there. Even so, Amaziah made a couple of mistakes:

1) He twisted Amos’ words. Amos never plotted against King Jeroboam and he never said that he would die by the sword. It’s true that God’s message included exile for the nation of Israel, but Amaziah’s reluctance to hear something negative compelled him to turn God’s message into a false one of treason. This is a great example of what not to do when someone is trying to tell us what we may not want to hear. We need to be sure we are hearing the actual message and not making up parts as we go along. This penchant for mixing truth with fiction is not only what makes the slumber party game of “Telephone” so amusing; it’s also one of Satan’s best tricks to whip us into an emotional frenzy and paralyze us from any sort of useful action. Practically speaking, repeating back to someone what you think you heard is very helpful in the communication process so anger and defensive attitudes don’t overrule what God is trying to do in our lives through a message of truth.

2) He sent away the truth. Amaziah told Amos to go back home and stop speaking hard words to the people. He was ostensibly trying to protect the people and the king, but in reality was declaring a “no conflict zone” in what he called “the king’s sanctuary” (Amos 7:13). Instead of bringing the nation’s leader in on the issue, Amaziah blurred the lines of church and state to such a degree that the temple of God and the temple of the kingdom were synonymous! God will not allow any political leader to dictate His message. Instead of dealing with the dilemma head on, Amaziah effectively closed his ears (and his heart) to what God was trying to tell him through Amos. And Amaziah was supposed to be working for God! Proverbs 27:6 says that “wounds from a friend can be trusted”. When someone we know and trust comes to us with hard things to hear, there is value in pushing through the discomfort to hear what God has for us. We do ourselves no favors and sell ourselves short by sending away those in our lives who would tell us the truth.

What about Amos? As a reluctant and untrained prophet, Amos had to depend fully on God to supply the message and to do damage control when the audience was less than pleased with the delivery. From this short book bearing his name we can gather the following information about Amos:

1) His message was from God. Amos was minding his own business with the sheep when God gave him visions of locusts, fire, fruit, destruction, desolation, and ultimate justice. He tells Amaziah this when he is threatened. Look at verse 15: “But the LORD took me from tending the flock and said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ ” The message, its timing, its recipients, and the prophet were all orchestrated by God Himself. He alone took the initiative and there was nothing to gain for Amos in delivering the message. This is one way to test our motivation in telling others a hard truth. What are we hoping for? If our goal in speaking what is true is to humiliate, dominate or hurt another person, chances are the message is not one God wants us to speak. If, on the other hand, after praying about the issue and asking God to open up channels of communication, we sense Him prompting us to speak and we are hoping for reconciliation or understanding in the relationship, it is easier to trust that God is in it.

2) He was bold and courageous. Although one doesn’t necessarily think of shepherds as being brave as warriors, there are complementary skill sets. David told King Saul that he had battled lions and bears to protect his flock of sheep, so the giant Goliath didn’t scare him. (1 Sam. 17:36) Amos must have had confidence in his skills to come into a foreign nation to preach bad news, but more importantly, he must have had confidence in the God who sent him. He had so much confidence, in fact, that he was being led and strengthened by God, that his response to Amaziah’s threat was to deliver a personal message from God concerning his own future: “Your wife will become a prostitute…and your sons and daughters will fall by the sword…and you yourself will die in a pagan country.” (Amos 7:17) When God has called us to speak truth and our confidence is firmly rooted in Him, we can speak and act with boldness, knowing that He who called us is faithful and that His strength and grace are sufficient for us in our weakness.

If we are wise we will engage the truth when it appears in our lives and we will commit to speaking and living it with passion. Anything less is choosing a shallow relationship with God and with others. There is immeasurable value in allowing hard words of truth to penetrate our defenses. Jesus comforted the disciples by telling them that the Holy Spirit would come after His departure and that He would guide them (and us) into all truth. (John 16:13) We can trust that God’s Spirit will reveal truth to us with the purpose of revealing Himself and transforming us into His image. And He who calls us is faithful.

• When have you had to speak hard truth to a friend or family member? What emotions were you experiencing? Fear? Trepidation? Were you afraid that the message you were going to deliver might not be from God? How did you proceed?

• What is normally your reaction to hearing something difficult about yourself? Does it matter who delivers the message? How do you determine what is true and what’s not?

• What is your reaction to Jesus’ words in John 8:31-32, when he says, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”? What are the implications of that truth in your life?

God's Part and Our Part

What if you were told that you had to go up on the tight rope in the circus and walk from one end of the tent to the other? Here’s the deal: there’s a net beneath you that will catch you and you won’t die. Also good news, your body has been supernaturally strengthened so that you will heal from the scrapes and bruises when you fall. And an expert will walk with you the whole way. But there is some bad news, too. You will fall. That’s certain. Over and over again. And the crowd will boo you and throw things at you the whole time. But you have to walk – no other option. And here are your instructions to prepare for this task: Get ready, don’t be afraid, and walk. Are you excited?

The prophet Jeremiah faced a similar dilemma. Don’t rack your brain trying to remember the circus scene from Sunday school when you learned about the Old Testament prophets. That twist is mine. But the scenario has some similarities. Look at the passage I’m referring to:

¹⁷ “Get yourself ready! Stand up and say to them whatever I command you. Do not be terrified by them, or I will terrify you before them. ¹⁸ Today I have made you a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land – against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests and the people of the land. ¹⁹ They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 1:17-19)

This is the introduction to the Old Testament book of Jeremiah, named after the prophet who wrote it. He also is credited with the book of Lamentations, which comes right after Jeremiah in the Bible. He is known in many circles as “The Weeping Prophet” because he really didn’t have much good news for the nation of Judah. His tenure as prophet came toward the end of the 5^th century B.C. And his job was a tough one, as we can learn from his marching orders in this first chapter. Earlier in the chapter, God tells Jeremiah that he has been set apart from before birth to say whatever God commands him as he has been appointed as a prophet to the nations to tell of their pending destruction and captivity. Yay.

This particular passage sets up the rest of the book and is perfect foreshadowing for Jeremiah’s plight as a bearer of bad news. As with most of the Old Testament prophets, however, God’s punishment for His children is because of centuries of disobedience and hard-hearted, stiff-necked attitudes and behaviors. And there is always the good news of restoration and redemption for the repentant.

So what does this passage have to do with us, thousands of years later? That’s the exciting part! Look at what God is responsible for and what Jeremiah is responsible for in this arrangement.

Here is God’s part.

He will command Jeremiah what to say. (1:17) God is responsible for the message. In His perfect sovereignty and knowledge, He will instruct Jeremiah in every situation so that the words coming out of Jeremiah’s mouth will perfectly reflect God’s message.

He has made Jeremiah strong (fortified city, iron pillar, bronze wall) to stand against the enemies that will fight him. (1:18) This is in the past tense; it’s already been done. Jeremiah has already been given everything he needs to be successful at the task God has called him to. And the imagery is of materials that are impenetrable, sturdy and designed to withstand great force from enemies. This is exactly what Jeremiah needs for God’s assignment.

He is with Jeremiah. (1:19) The ultimate defense is having God with you. The Presence of God Almighty was what guided the fleeing Hebrews in the desert after their escape from Egypt. God’s Presence comforted and rescued the faithful Hebrews Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego when the king had thrown them in the fiery furnace. God’s Presence comforted Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and gave Him courage to face the cross. When God says, “I am with you” it is enough.

He will rescue Jeremiah. (1:19) There will be hard times ahead for the prophet, but God’s promise for the future is that He will rescue His servant from the enemies that will attack him. The going will be tough, but God will save Jeremiah to continue preaching His message.

So if God has covered Jeremiah past, present and future, what’s left for Jeremiah to do? That’s where we can learn something. Look at Jeremiah’s job description:

Get yourself ready! This term in the Hebrew language has a military connotation that implies the act of a soldier wrapping a sash or belt around himself to prepare for combat. A physical and preemptive action before an enemy attack. In the seasons of life, there are actions we can take to prepare ourselves for the next spiritual challenge. There are times of struggle and there are times of peace. The times of peace are for preparation. Getting ready. If we seek God in our times of peace, His Presence will be more tangible and we will be better equipped to face the times of difficulty.

Stand up and obey. There is to be no cowering obedience for Jeremiah. No apologetic delivery of God’s pronouncement of coming wrath. He is to stand and speak God’s message loud and proud! And everything in this section of Scripture indicates that Jeremiah will know when it’s time to speak – when the time of preparation is over. And then… action! Speak away! God’s instructions to Joshua were of a fighting nature, too, but they were definitely military in nature. Jeremiah is to speak. Everyone has a specific calling from God and when we discover it, we are to move. But only when we’ve prepared. See how it all fits together? It would be easier if not for this last part…

Do not be terrified. After preparation to move, there’s that part about controlling fear. This seems to say that we can control our fear. The root word of this has definitions that include cracking, shattering, and panic. There will be an adrenaline rush at the moment of obedience, and that may be the inklings of fear. But we do, in fact, have control over our thoughts and emotions and we can act in spite of them when necessary. 2 Corinthians 10:5 instructs us to take our thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ. We decide between fight and flight. We limit our fear when we remember God’s promises and how He has come through for us in the past and how He will be faithful in the future.

So how do we prepare for a challenge ahead? How do we control our fear? And how do we move forward in obedience, even against opposition? By focusing on what God has done, is doing and will do in our lives when we partner with Him to advance His Kingdom. He has created us and called us to live unique and dynamic lives in intimate relationship with Him. Sometimes we are in a season of preparation and waiting and then the command to move comes. Will we be ready? What are we seeking in the meantime? Where is our focus? These are questions worth pondering. So get ready, control your fear, and obey!

Read the following passages and write or think about what they tell you about God’s activity in your life. What is your response to these truths? How can they make a difference in your life if you really lived as if they were true?

•Deuteronomy 31:6 •Psalm 118:6,7 •Matthew 28:20

•Ephesians 1:3-14 •2 Peter 1:3-4 •Revelation 2:10

A Famine of Words

As I read through the book of Amos this week, on a tangent from a New Testament quote, I took in the repetition of fire, destruction and judgment with the same reaction as when it appears in the other prophets’ books. The pattern is similar in most of them: the nation of Israel/Judah has turned away from God in attitude and action so they will be punished, then the nations around them will be punished for having mistreated them, and finally, God will restore Israel/Judah to the position God originally intended – perfect harmony and obedience with God and dominion over the land. Amos is no exception. God promises, through Amos, to send fire, destruction, wrath, and punishment to Israel and the surrounding nations for turning away from God. Right on, I thought. Everybody gets what’s coming to them.

Then I read a passage that quite literally brought tears to my eyes and made me catch my breath. I’m still trying to grasp the gravity of it in my life, but see what happens when you read it:

¹¹”The days are coming,” declares the Sovereign LORD,

“when I will send a famine through the land –

not a famine of food or a thirst for water,

but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD.

¹²Men will stagger from sea to sea

and wander from north to east,

searching for the word of the LORD,

but they will not find it.

¹³ “In that day

“the lovely young women and strong young men

will faint because of thirst.

¹⁴ They who swear by the shame of Samaria,

or say, ‘As surely as your god lives, O Dan,’

or, ‘As surely as the god of Beersheba lives’ –

they will fall,

never to rise again.” (Amos 8:11-14)

I was just about to conclude that Amos had nothing relevant in it for me when I got to these verses. Boy, was I wrong! Sending a famine on the land… that sounds about right. But, wait. A famine of hearing the words of the LORD? Please, Lord, no!

While most of us are familiar with a hunger pang now and then, or even have had our hearts wrenched by photographs of the distended bellies of children in impoverished nations, few of us know the reality of living through a famine in an agricultural community. When there is no food or water, life hangs by a thread. Day after day, week after week, hunger gnaws at the abdomen, and light-headedness, nausea, lack of concentration and other symptoms make one weak and irritable. And underneath the physical symptoms of hunger lie the anxiety and hopelessness that food may never be found to satisfy the body. People travel miles to find food. Women carry baskets for food or buckets for water on their heads great distances in parts of the world just so their children can live. Why? Because without food and water there is no life. That’s exactly the analogy Amos wants us to get.

Jesus replied to the devil in the desert, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God”. (Matthew 4:4) He was quoting the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy, where Moses recaps what God has done among His people by making them hungry so He could feed them and draw them to Himself. When there’s no food or water, I can still rely on God. When my relationships are suffering and broken, I can still rely on God. When my finances are uncertain, I can still rely on God. But when there is no word from God – when He is silent or I have turned away from Him – I have nothing. That’s the point God wants to make to His people through Amos. When He is convinced that our hearts have completely turned against Him, He will stop talking to us and give us over to our own thoughts and actions as the ultimate punishment. The first chapter of Romans describes it this way:

“Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.” (Romans 1:28-32)

What happened when people stopped listening to God’s voice? When they continued to do what was wrong despite warnings from others and from their own hearts? God gave them over. He let them have what they perceived as freedom, which we know is no freedom at all. And what is the fruit of that pursuit? According to Paul in Romans it looks like envy, murder, gossip, hating God and becoming senseless and heartless. Ah, freedom. According to the message Amos received, not listening to God’s word will cause people to wander desperately in search of direction and comfort, but God will not be found. I cannot think of a more tragic consequence in my life.

Why does God want us to rely so heavily on His words? Because His love and His character are found in them. He speaks His heart for us and His words lead us to Him. Straying a little, listening to a little of the world’s wisdom (or our own), will be a catalyst for more straying and we will lose any sense of true north. God’s absolute standards. His best for us.

Even the “lovely young women and strong young men” will be thirsty (Amos 8:13). And those who swore by false Gods, thinking they would respond and bring them satisfaction will be disappointed and meet their end (Amos 8:14). Youth, strength, trends, self and money are all distractions, at best, and false gods that hide our Creator and stop up our ears and hearts, at worst. We are not meant to live apart from God. We were created to live abundant life, connected to the Father and our brothers and sisters, while seeking God and living to please Him.

So how does a famine like this begin? Can it happen to us? I believe that we live in a broken and sinful world so bad things will happen to us. My son didn’t get cancer because we were a disobedient family. There are mutant blood cells and fanatical religious zealots who will cause us pain. That’s not what Amos is talking about here. This is a specific call to those who have strayed from God’s best and are living in a created world of relativism, marginalizing God and His law. They have convinced themselves that God’s law isn’t good or that it’s irrelevant. That’s the only way His chosen people could have wandered so far from His design. Circumstances will cause them to go back to what they were taught about the God who saved them from slavery and enemy armies, but God will be silent in their disaster. This is the ultimate punishment.

And it can happen to us today. If we don’t read God’s Word, we can’t know it. If we don’t know it, how can we apply it? If we don’t take time to listen to God, how can we sense His direction? His comfort? His discipline? His overwhelming message to the Israelites in Amos’ time was not destruction and punishment. It was a passionate desire for His children to come back into relationship with Him and be restored. That is His desire for us as well. And there is no other way to do that than by purposing to spend time with Him and making the hard decisions that lead to obedience and life.

Please, Sovereign Lord, let there not be a famine of hearing your words in our lives. We cannot live without them. They are our sustenance and our only hope.

• Read Amos 4 and 9:11-15 and notice the connection between the calamity that has befallen the Israelites and God’s purpose for them. Have you noticed those connections in your life? Hard times that were your own fault and you know they were meant to bring you back to God? Did you return to Him? Were you restored?

• Look at the following verses about the importance of knowing God’s Word. Do these verses resonate with you? Are you spending regular time reading and meditating on Scripture? If so, what results have you seen in your life? If not, what’s preventing it?

~ 2 Timothy 3:16-17 ~ Psalm 119:9-16 ~ Deuteronomy 32:45-47

Passionate Aging

Do you remember anticipating your birthday as a kid? Counting down the days until you could hold up more fingers when someone asked how old you were? When we’re young, each birthday brings us closer to the next milestone. The next privilege. When I’m 16 I can drive. When I’m 18 I can vote. At 21 I can drink. Thirty is old. Can you believe my grandpa is 60!? Then our perspective shifts as we tick off more years. Upon hearing of the death of a family friend, we say, “60!? That’s so young!” And so it is. 

If not all of us want to live to be 110 like Suzanne Somers, most of us at least want to finish well. I am inspired by older, elegant women who seem to emanate confidence and perspective. Dame Judy Dench. Queen Elizabeth. The retired prayer warrior at church. They are no longer worried about laugh lines or cellulite. They’ve experienced tragedy and hard work and deep love. They know what matters and they have their priorities straight. The older I get the more I envy that. And the more I come to terms with the fact that I’ll never look like Heidi Klum or Beyoncé. 

There are plenty of Biblical examples of individuals having great adventures and accomplishing big things for God well into the autumn and winter years of life. Noah was 600 years old when the floodwaters lifted the ark God had instructed him to build. Abraham and Sarah were over 90 when Isaac was born. Moses was 80 when God spoke to him from a burning bush in the desert. And there isn’t a better example, in my opinion, of how to do this with passion and determination than Caleb son of Jephunneh.

                                    ⁶ Now the men of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the LORD said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. ⁷ I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the LORD sent a report according to my convictions, ⁸ but my brothers who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear. I, however, followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly. ⁹ So on that day Moses swore to me, ‘The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly.’

                        ¹⁰ Now then, just as the LORD promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the desert. So here I am today, eighty-five year old! ¹¹ I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. ¹² Now give me this hill country that the LORD promised me that day. You yourself heart then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the LORD helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.”

                        ¹³ Then Joshua blessed Caleb son of Jephunneh and gave him Hebron as his inheritance. ¹⁴ So Hebron has belonged to Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite ever since, because he followed the LORD, the God of Israel, wholeheartedly.

Don’t you love that!? An eighty-five year old guy who is every bit as bold and passionate about grabbing all the gusto God has to offer as he was in his forties! And in his forties, he and Joshua were the only ones saying, “We can do this!” after the scouting mission into the Promised Land. They were positive, faith-filled leaders then, and they just got better with age. Oh, how I want to be like that. What would that look like in this day and age? I think there are some timeless principles that resonate.

Like Caleb, we can be people who:

• Live by the strength of our convictions – Joshua and Caleb did not cave to the fear and negativity of the other men who went with them to scout out the Promised Land. When ten of the twelve spies were shaking in their sandals, Caleb said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.” (Numbers 13:30)  And apparently Caleb’s convictions never flagged because forty-five years later he remembers it with clarity and his perspective hasn’t wavered. Faith in God’s vision is more than just wishful thinking; it’s choosing to believe the One who is always faithful.

• Follow God wholeheartedly – This phrase is used three times in this passage and every time the story is referenced and told in Numbers and Deuteronomy. Caleb is known for following God wholeheartedly. With all of his heart. Whatever else he did pales in comparison. He was Caleb the wholehearted God-follower. What a phrase to have on a tombstone – “She followed the LORD wholeheartedly”. ‘Nuf said.

• Expect God to follow through on His promise – Caleb had been patient and recognized God’s hand in the previous decades. He saw that God had kept him alive and He kept him strong. So now Caleb wants his inheritance. He believed God at His word when He made the promises and he kept believing him, year after year, until the time was right for God to deliver. I want that kind of consistency and longevity in my faith.

• Are willing to work to see God’s promises come to fruition – Even though Caleb has waited for God’s promise and sees that the timing is right, there is no sense of entitlement. Caleb has not forgotten that God is God. He is, however, willing to work or fight or do whatever is necessary to guarantee his possession of the land he was promised. “Give me what’s mine; I’ll do what it takes!” Caleb shows us how exciting it can be to work in partnership with God when we are following Him closely enough to know the plan and how we fit into it.

Who are the modern examples of God-followers who live with this kind of passion and integrity? They are all around us and we can learn a great deal from them. They are pastors who refuse to water down God’s truth with the cultural fads of the times. They are parents who don’t cave to pressure to let their kids see movies that “everyone else is seeing”. They are business owners who treat their employees fairly and tell customers and vendors the truth. They are church members who pray for years for family members who are far from God to see and embrace His love. They are individuals who discipline themselves to read and know Scripture so they can apply it to their own lives and the lives of people who matter to them.

We are surrounded by people and can become people who grow and mature into more passionate God-followers. Time isn’t the enemy. Whether we’re in the early productive years of life, middle age, or enjoying the fruits of our labors in years of retirement, we can age passionately and with purpose if we learn from Caleb’s example. We can see God in action if we live with conviction, follow God wholeheartedly, expect Him to do what He says, and are willing to do our part in God’s plan.

• Who do you know that lives part or all of Caleb’s characteristics as they live for God? 

• What parts of Caleb’s example do you find most challenging? Where might you go in Scripture to learn more about how to live differently?

• Ask God to reveal to you any area of your life that made need some tweaking to align yourself with what He is doing in your life currently. He may show you a lack of conviction or a lack of faith. Are you willing to confront that and trust Him to change you?

Waiting

My husband and I have become quite a team for navigating new territory in the car. We've seen parts of France and Italy in a car that were brand new to us, but have kept our sense of humor and seen some of the most beautiful cities and scenery by working out our system of directions. We have circled roundabouts many, many, many times, until we are sure of the right route. I've asked directions in languages I'm not at all conversant in. And through it all, we've managed not only to laugh and enjoy the ride, but learn a great deal about how we work together as a team. (In France, this system also included walkie talkies to a car with my parents. Stories for another time...) 

Sometimes, however, when my husband and I are driving a familiar route, he'll ask me for directions as if, occasionally, his mind forgets how to get to the airport or a friend's house despite the fact that we have driven there many times before. When I remind him of the route, he'll joke about it by saying, "But we've never been this way before." I reassure him that it's true; this is a new route that we're trying and he'll remember the next time. 

The Israelites wandering in the desert after their escape from slavery in Egypt had plenty of navigational opportunities. Moses led them for 40 years by following the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night. And when he disappeared on Mount Sinai for 40 days, Aaron and the others quickly gravitated toward the default value system of their past by building an idol so they would have some sense of leadership. Where there is a vacuum in leadership, people will follow anything that seems plausible. Another lesson entirely.

After Moses' death, Joshua carried the mantle of leadership as the one God had chosen to lead the people into the Promised Land. The wandering was over; the law had been given; the nation had been established. Now all that remained was to kick out all the people already living there and claim the territory for the Israelites as God has commanded. No problem. But this is new territory. And they are surrounded by scary people. And the Israelites are weary from their wandering and aren't sure of the future. Gosh, this doesn't sound like anything I've ever experienced. How about you? Here's some help for us in navigating what could be uncharted life territory. 

            Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. 2After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 3giving orders to the people: "When you see the ark of the convenant of the LORD your God, and the priests, who are Levites, carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. 4Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about a thousand yards between you and the ark; do not go near it."

            5Joshua told the people, "consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you." 

            6Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people." so they took it up and went ahead of them.

            7And the LORD said to Joshua, "Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. 8Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: 'When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.'" (Joshua 3:1-8)

I see several application points in this passage that are helping me navigate my own personal life transition currently. See if any of them resonate with what you're experiencing now or have experienced in the past. If not, wait a bit. It's probably around the corner. At least you'll be prepared. 

Wait For Instructions -- Verse 1 tells us that the Israelites camped by the Jordan river for three days before God gave His specific instructions. I'm guessing those three days felt a lot longer to a group of people who were so close to embarking on the adventure of a lifetime. They'd heard about the Red Sea from their parents or grandparents (who had all died in the desert), and they'd heard Moses talking about what the Promised Land would be like, but here they were, on the shore of the river, and they had to wait. I hate waiting. I hate waiting at red lights. I hate waiting in line at the grocery store. I hate waiting for something to arrive in the mail. And, can I say this? I hate waiting for God's instructions. I will do anything He tells me to do (or so I think), let's just move! But here's what I think I'm discovering: the waiting forces me to press into Him more deeply to hear the instructions, and I catch a glimpse of His heart for me in those times of waiting and listening that I just don't experience when I'm moving. Think there's something in that? Yeah, me too. 

Look For God -- The people were supposed to watch for the priests who were carrying the ark of the covenant, and that would be their signal to move. What a sense of anticipation there must have been among the tribes of Israel! What a sense of anticipation among the priests, knowing that they were going to be the ones to hear first from God! The ark of the covenant contained the tablets of the Ten Commandments, manna and Aaron's staff - all symbols of God's power, love and provision. Most importantly, the ark contained and represented God Presence. The Israelites were supposed to look for God's Presence and follow. We are to do no less. In seasons of waiting, the most important thing we can do is to watch for God's activity. He is always moving, and sometimes He chooses to clue us in on what He's doing. If He does, we can move. Move toward Him. And when we catch that glimpse, the waiting doesn't seem so long or so useless. Those glimpses make my heart sing and my adrenaline flow. I live for them.

Anticipate -- Joshua tells the Israelites in verse 6 to consecrate themselves because the next day God would do amazing things among them. In the waiting, do you live with a sense of expectation and anticipation? Do you think God will do something amazing in your life or in the lives of the people you know? Or do you think all those biblical promises are for other people? This is one reason why it is so important to know the Scriptures. God loves and involves His children in His plans. If it's true for others it's true for me. And I can't let myself get bored or distracted in the waiting. I must discipline myself to keep expecting great things from God, even when it feels like time's a wastin'. Build in my times of peace, as it were.

Of all these similarities between Joshua's situation and ours, I find one salient difference to be the most striking and the most encouraging in this, a season of rest and waiting in my life. Look at the instructions to the Israelites in verse 4 concerning the ark of the covenant: "...keep a distance of about a thousand yards between you and the ark; do not go near it." Why couldn't the Israelites go near the ark? Because it was where God was and only the priests who had been called to serve Him in the tabernacle were allowed to go near His Holy Presence. Why is that encouraging? Because in the Old Testament, God's Presence was confined to the ark of the covenant and the temple. That's where He lived and only the priests and prophets could communicate with Him. Then Jesus came and men, women and children could come right up to God and touch Him. Kids climbed into His lap and He touched the unclean in society. Finally, with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, every believer has access to God's Presence through the death and resurrection of Jesus. Look at these New Testament verses encouraging us to draw near to God:

"Come near to God and he will come near to you." (James 4:8)

"...let us draw near to god with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water." (Hebrews 10:22)

"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)

So what can we do in the various transitions of life? Wait for instructions, look for God and anticipate His activity. But most importantly, we can draw near to the Father who made us and loves us because in times of transition and waiting, His Presence is its own reward.

•  Are you in a season of waiting or transition? How can you draw near to God, and look for His activity in your life?

• Take time this week to be still and listen for God. If you are waiting to hear from Him for your next move, let Him know your feelings and ask your questions. Then be still and listen. Look around you this week with a sense of anticipation, and look for Him.