What I Have Escaped

Help My Unbelief

Mark 9:23-24 

But Jesus said to him, “‘If You can?’ All things are possible for the one who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the boy’s father cried out and said, “I do believe; help my unbelief!”

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When the man asked Jesus to heal his son, he said “if you can.” Jesus corrected him. Faith must come before healing. The man recognized his doubt, so rather than pretend, he asked Jesus to strengthen his faltering faith.

Sometimes I pray prayers that others might find ridiculous. By practical standards, I ask the impossible. But all things are possible with God.

I’ve prayed for salvation for the family for so long; can it ever come to pass?  Am I the problem? So I repeat, “Lord I believe. Help my unbelief.” The Lord answers unnumbered prayers for me from small to large. I find the lost shoe in the strangest of places.

More dramatically, I took a job at Fort Leavenworth when I had no car and an eighty-five-mile round-trip commute. A bad year left me broke: I suffered an ovarian tumor the size of my son had he been twins. Insurance evaporated with a lost job. 

Desperate, with no job offers, and no answers, I spent an afternoon praying to a god I didn't know. That day, the LORD saved me.

Only the new faith the Lord gave me forced me to go to work the first day. Most people who commuted to work drove to Kansas City or Topeka—not Fort Leavenworth. 

As I shook hands with my new boss, he introduced me to Carol, the other new hire from my home town. She needed a paying rider. She couldn’t find a carpool.

He answers prayer in response to the troubled prayers of a human being. Because I accept my weakness and ask Him to strengthen the faith that He’s already given me, He hears.

We can pretend a perfect faith. But the LORD knows better. How much more honest to acknowledge that we need His help? 

Dear Lord, Never let me forget that You are my only hope, and when I ask for help to be who You want me to be, prayer, and all  of my life become stronger.

When the Holy Spirit Calls Your Name

Proverbs 19:2

Also it is not good for a person to be without knowledge,
And one who hurries ^[a]his footsteps ^[b]errs.

Proverbs 24:14

Know that wisdom is the same for your soul;
If you find it, then there will be a ^[a]future,
And your hope will not be cut off.

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The voice of God comes through desire, or an insistent belief we’re called, or both. But when we hear the voice of God, it’s time to investigate it. So we pursue the judgment of others who tell us the truth.

If I imagine I’m called to astonish the world with my voice, but I can’t sing, someone needs to tell me I sound like a cat in pain. (Although a few men and women made that work).

Then we pray and wait to hear from God. We seek supernatural intelligence.

David yearned to erect a temple to God, but the LORD told him, no, that He chose Solomon to build His house. 1 Chronicles 17:4

God doesn’t always make it simple. So, trusting in the peace you feel and the guidance you’ve received, you take a careful step forward—and fall on your face.

Franklin Graham went before a large crowd to preach. He thought God wanted him to follow Billy’s footsteps. So he held his first service. At the end, he gave the altar call. Not one person came forward. After watching his dad, Billy, call hundreds of people to salvation everywhere he appeared, Franklin felt humiliated.

But the Lord didn’t let him rest. He believed he did the will of God, and he kept trying. Imagine walking out on that stage the second time. Franklin Graham now leads Samaritan’s Purse and preaches. He wants to bring souls to Christ by whatever means possible.

If you believe you heard from God, trust that instinct.

If so, you need practical wisdom. We owe God our best, and that includes learning our business. Jesus set the example. He started His ministry at thirty. But the Bible shows Him in the temple at twelve, so passionate to learn He forgot to catch the caravan home.

Missionaries train for years. Pastors study in seminary. Doctors spend ten years learning their trade. Maybe you read everything you can find on the subject. You sit in conferences by experts in your field. You talk to counselors.

But it takes so long. Impatience wants immediate answers. We hurry. We step out before God’s time. Then we hang our heads and wonder why He didn’t bless what He called us to do. So we quit.

Moses believed God wanted him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, but after he killed the Egyptian, he fled to the hills, his ministry in shambles, and tended sheep until he reached eighty. He resigned himself. They lived longer than, but at eighty you’re planning your retirement. And then one quiet day, God visited Moses in a burning bush, and called him to become head shepherd to the biggest flock imaginable.

If you hear God’s voice, you don’t want to offend Him by throwing up your hands. Convinced of your mission, you start over. And give the Lord your best—while you wait.

Dear Lord, Let us trust You to direct our paths, no matter how long we wait.

 

Image from Max Pixel

 

 

God's Love Letter--How One Woman Reads it.

2 Timothy3:16-17

 All Scripture is ^[a]inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for ^[b]training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.

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This post is for those new to the Bible.

I'm not the only ???expert??? on this. Please add your improvements in comments. You don't need to join Typepad. Just skip that part.

As a beginner at Christianity, I read the Bible from beginning to end, Genesis through Revelations. Mistake. I bought a One Year Bible, but it confused me. Jesus didn’t change the information in the old testament, but He clarified parts of it.

As an example, I read in the Old Testament that if you make a vow, you must keep it. Old testament people killed because of thoughtless vows. They considered breaking a vow worse than murder.

I made vows and failed  to keep them time after time. So I repented, but then I promised something else. Then when studying the New Testament, Jesus solved the problem with one sentence. But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil. (Matthew 5:37) Simple. Don’t make vows. Now I don’t even sign pledge cards.

Later, I bought a packet of lined sticky notes that resemble a notebook page. The page adheres to the inside back cover of my Bible. I write the chapter and verse I finished. Then, when the last verse of Revelations goes on the list, I go back to the first verse of Matthew and re-start.

Before my devotions, I ask the Lord for wisdom. The Bible can drive you down a confusing path if God’s not standing at your shoulder.

I study the New Testament every day and arrange the rest of the Bible among three days—one day Proverbs, the next day Psalms, and the final, the Old Testament.

Coming to Christ, I had never eaten a spiritual square meal, and the Bible was my food. I spent every spare moment reading it. I went through the Old Testament and then through it again. Whether I retained it ??

Now, after thirty-five years, this approach takes a long time to get through the Old Testament. Right now I’m at the beginning of Daniel. It will finish up the year and go to mid-2021.

Proverbs go quickly, and Psalms does also, except for the long ones like Psalm 119. Those I divide into smaller readings.  But every book in the Old Testament could be a Bible in itself. I haven’t solved how to get through faster, though many Sunday School classes teach the Old Testament.

Time-travel back to 1985. Knowing what I know now, I’d tackle the book of John several times, then the New Testament two or three times before I ventured in to the rest of it.

This isn't necessarily the best method. It's just my method. One piece of advice, though. Don't start at the beginning. You’re blessed if you find someone to disciple you. Many churches will assign you someone to help if you ask. Our Associate Pastor took that job, but I didn’t meet him until many years later.

Some Christians mark up their Bibles. For me, that doesn’t work. Once I mark it up, it’s unreadable. Then it has to be replaced. Many Bible study guides let you fill the workbook with their blessings—a wonderful source if it helps you to learn by answering workbook questions.

I have my first red Bible. In church, I sometimes waved it over my head. It’s a wreck. I read it to death. I felt so honored when I had to replace it because it showed the devotion I have for the Lord. But later Bibles get tender care. Some people have embroidered, hand-made Bible covers. I admit to some jealousy. But mine travels in the cardboard box in which it came. Dropping my drink, or dropping the Bible doesn't hurt it.

I love the Bible--the LORD’s love letter.

Dear Lord, Thank you for plentiful Bibles in the United States. Please furnish them to Christians in other countries. And thank You that You gave me a thirst to read them.

 

Image from YorkNewLife.Org.

Crying Out to God when Faith Falters

Acts 12:16

But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed.

Matthew 17:20 (KJV)

If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you

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Sometimes I don’t think my faith is strong enough. How can the Lord hear my prayers when I’m not praying with perfect belief? I feel guilty. I’ve prayed for  the family since I received Christ, thirty-five years ago--some since birth. And I will continue to do so, though they seem no closer to salvation.

Then I remember: My mother and sister prayed for me for thirty years. When I told them about my salvation, they hesitated. They waited for proof.

When the Sanhedrin cast Peter in prison, his friends met to fast and pray for his release. They spent days on their knees, stomach growling. But instead of greeting Peter with shouts of “I knew it. Praise God,” after the angels delivered him to their door, they refused to open it. They accused the poor girl who went to the door of madness. Some believed Peter’s ghost stood outside.

They had the tiny mustard seed of faith that lead them to fast. But to see the miracle of Peter standing there tested what they knew. People didn’t walk out of prison and appear outside your door.

When our faith doesn’t satisfy our ideal of perfect prayer, we can only obey the Lord and practice the faith we have. He told the friends of Peter to fast and pray for him, so they did.

The Lord values our faith, but He understands our weakness. As important as belief is our obedience.

Dear Lord, please let me continue in obedience in prayer when I don’t immediately see Your answers. Deliver me from discouragement and strengthen the faith I have. Amen.

Painting: Liberation of St. Peter Bartolomé Esteban Murillo: 1665

Lost in the Wilderness

2 Peter 3:9

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

Numbers 11:19-20

You shall eat, not one day, nor two days, nor five days, nor ten days, nor twenty days, but a whole month, until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you; because you have rejected the Lord who is among you and have wept before Him, saying, “Why did we ever leave Egypt?

Slave owners in Egypt in the days of Moses abused the Israelites to make them too busy to hear Moses. They lived in misery. The Lord rescued them through Moses and they fled toward the promised land.

God performed miracles we will never see again. He opened the waters, so the Israelites came to the other side with no sign of wetness. The enemies who followed felt the waters descend on them, and they drowned. And yet, the Israelites questioned everything. They wanted more. They demanded meat. The Lord provided it, and they made themselves sick. The Lord's patience finally grew thin.

After forty years of weathering a harsh wilderness, they approached the promised land. Surely the giants who lived in Canaan might easily overcome their troops. They judged the fight by their weakness. Alone, they couldn’t win. But God created the earth. All His opponents stand puny next to Him.   

The trip took forty years, and the Israelites forgot what they had escaped. They should have passed over in a matter of months (40 days).

I thought the LORD used those days to weed out the unworthy, but realized that’s not the truth. The LORD prolonged the time again and again to give them a chance to follow Him in faith.

But the Israelites didn’t learn or change. They saw the LORD who parted the waters as powerless to give what He promised. The people weeded themselves out through fear.

We can appreciate the beauty of the landscape above. But what if you left your compass at home and you don't know the way out? Will you still see the beauty? Will you call on the LORD? Or will fear make you forget His power?

As we watch people die of the Corona Virus, with no clear end to it, tired of masks and social distancing, we hope to come out of our wilderness before forty years. But are we learning? Faith? Patience? Obedience?  

This Old Testament story illustrates 2 Peter 3:9. If we need to extend a forty-day trip to forty years to accept the LORD's sovereignty, the LORD will give us that time. But His patience will end eventually..

Dear Lord, Please teach me to trust You through every trial. The Promised Land is just ahead.

 

Image Alexander Nikitenko: Click his gallery on UnSplash