How Long?

We live in a time where we can find answers to our questions almost immediately with a simple click of a button or a voice command to a digital assistant. Businesses have 24/7 online support where we can call or text for immediate one-on-one assistance. We can even order coffee before leaving our house and pick it up on the way to work without waiting in line. We’ve become a culture that isn’t accustomed to waiting for anything. When we have a question, we want answers right away. When we face problems, we want a solution immediately. But when our problems become bigger than ourselves; when we face something that Google or Siri can’t fix, our self-entitlement is immediately stripped away, and we are grounded with the reality that we are at the mercy of God. If you read the Psalms, you’ll see that David found himself in that place quite often. He found himself in need of an answer; in need of deliverance immediately, but was powerless to do anything in his strength. In Psalms, chapter 13, verses 1 and 2, he writes: 

“How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?”

As I read those verses, I imagine David lamenting not for hours or even days. I imagine weeks or maybe even months of emotional and psychological distress. I can almost feel the depression in his heart growing after crying out to God for days on end without deliverance. I don’t doubt David’s faith in believing that God hears his prayers and will come to his aid eventually. But without knowing when, all David could do was wait and cry out to the Lord. Have you ever been in that place? Has something ever overtaken you that was much bigger than yourself, requiring you to depend solely on the deliverance of the Lord? If you have, you might be able to relate to David. You might have wrestled with your thoughts and have felt sorrow in your heart. You may have questioned whether God would ever deliver you from your situation. If you find yourself in that place now, I encourage you to do what David did. Continue to cry out to him. Keep crying out to him until he answers your prayer. Have faith that he will, and stand firm. 

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I remember watching an insulin commercial where professional musician, B.B. King, says, “I don’t like to wait”. Well, that is something he and I have in common. I suspect everyone has that in common with B.B. King. No one likes to wait. But there are times when we must. The key is to not lose heart. The key is to have faith and to persevere. No one likes to wait, just like no one likes to feel pain. But it rains on everyone; the just and the unjust alike. During those times, believers know that God is the answer. He is good and he has our best interest at heart. We are in his hands. Hopefully, we will be able to get beyond what David wrote. Hopefully, we will learn not to wrestle with our thoughts or allow sorrow to overtake us. Hopefully, we will surrender the outcome to the Lord and trust him.

Integrity

There are a number of things in life that are completely out of our control. We can’t control when calamity will strike. We can’t control the timing of every event. We can’t control the weather and the forces of nature. And we can’t control the actions of others. Though this is true, we can take heart. Believers know that God is in control of the things we are not. But he does leave at least one thing well within our control, and that is our integrity. We are responsible for our behavior, our character, and our actions. In essence, we are in control of our overall conduct. The apostle Paul’s conduct was impeccable. Though others tried to “bad-mouth” him, turn others against him, and undermine his ministry, those who he spent time with knew who he really was. In this, Paul was willing to boast. It says in second Corinthians, chapter 1, verse 12: 

“Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God. We have done so not according to worldly wisdom but according to God’s grace.”

Paul acknowledged that he was not able to achieve this completely on his own. It was through God’s grace that he was able to maintain integrity with those he came in contact with. Even still, it was ultimately his choice. Knowing the God he served, and knowing the truth of the gospel, Paul was able to testify with a clear conscience that his actions and motives were conducted in holiness and with sincerity that are from God. We are also in control of our conduct. We can choose to act in holiness and with sincerity toward others as well. It may help to remember that it may take years to build a good reputation. But it can take only a moment to destroy it. The Bible encourages us to have a good reputation and to be in peace with everyone. But our conduct must be genuine because people can tell who we really are by the fruit we produce. So I encourage you to be mindful of your integrity and your reputation. Like trust, it is difficult to gain, and easy to lose. 

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Do you have a clear conscience when it comes to your integrity? Do you portray yourself as holy and sincere in public but live a life contrary to that when alone? If others knew what was really in your heart; if they knew your true intentions and thoughts, would you lose their trust? If so, I encourage you to allow the Holy Spirit to help your heart align with your perceived reputation. If you don’t, you are sure to be found out. The Bible tells us that out of the abundance of our hearts, our mouths speak. It says that our true selves will be revealed by the kind of fruit we produce. We cannot carry on our charade for long because our hearts will ultimately betray us. Instead, let us be like Paul. Let us be confident that our conduct is holy and sincere, accomplished not according to worldly wisdom but according to God’s grace.

Directs You

I was watching an insurance commercial on television the other day. In it, the company attempted to explain how they could help me plan out my financial future. I watched as people on the screen followed green arrows that seemed to illuminate on the ground directing them along the path they were expected to take to achieve their financial goals. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if following our spiritual path was that easy? Wouldn’t it be great if God were to put little green arrows in our path to tell us exactly what we should do and which way we should go in life? Then we would know exactly what he wanted for us and we would be sure that we were on the path he’d chosen for us. This may sound like a fantasy, but in actuality, the Bible teaches us that God does direct us in the way we should go. Isaiah reveals these words from God explaining this truth to the Israelites, and I believe that it is just as true for us today. It says in Isaiah, chapter 48, verse 17:

“This is what the Lord says - your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.’”

God doesn’t expect us to figure life out on our own. He guides and directs us through the Holy Spirit living inside of every believer, the Holy Bible, and divine intervention. Have you ever felt the Holy Spirit “speaking” to you? He may have placed a clear prompting in your heart, urging you to do something, say something, or to go in a certain direction with your life. Have you ever experienced God speaking to you through the Bible? Verses you may have read time and time again may have a fresh new meaning when applied to a situation you happen to be going through at that very moment. Through his word, God may be telling you how he wants you to respond. He may be teaching you what is best for you. And have you ever had someone say something to you at just the right time, almost as if God sent them to speak to you? Or has God “spoken” to you through an external method to communicate, like a television show you’re watching or a book you’re reading? Isaiah reminds us that God does, in fact, teach us what is best for us and he directs us in the way we should go. The question is, are you listening? Are you obeying? I hope the answer to those two questions is, “yes”.   

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Isaiah reminds us that our Lord, our Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel teaches us what is best for us and directs us in the way we should go. At the time this verse was written, God used prophets to speak his words to his people. They were sent as vessels to relay God’s directives. Today, we have the Holy Spirit, we have the complete Bible, and God can also use almost anyone or anything to divinely relay his desires and directives. Our job is to walk closely with him so that we can discern when he is communicating with us. When that happens, it might even seem as if God is illuminating bright green arrows that only you can see, directing you in the way he wants you to go.

Lord's Eyes

You’re probably familiar with the phrase, “don’t judge a book by it’s cover”. For those who aren’t, it means that a person’s outward appearance may not accurately reflect who they really are. So, we shouldn’t make blanket assumptions based only on visual cues. I don’t know about you, but I’m guilty of doing this quite often. If someone is well-dress, well-groomed, and wearing glasses, I assume that person is intelligent. If someone is well-muscled and tall, I assume they are into sports. And if someone is unusually attractive, I assume they are popular. Most of us make snap judgments based on the appearance of others. Sometimes we are right and many times we are wrong. Samuel made that mistake when considering who God might anoint as the next king. After king Saul was rejected, God sent the prophet, Samuel, to the house of Jesse. God had in mind one of his sons to be the next king. Then it says in first Samuel, chapter 16, verses 6 and 7:

“When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, ‘Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.’ But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’”

Saul looked like he would be a great leader. The Bible described him as, “an impressive young man without equal among the Israelites - a head taller than any of the others.” He looked impressive. But only a few chapters later God rejected him as king because of his disobedience. David, who God chose to replace Saul, is later described as a man after God’s heart. He didn’t look as impressive as Saul, but as it says in first Samuel, “man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” If we are to reflect the character of God, we should look at the heart as well. It may take us a little longer than it takes God to discern the heart of a person, but the Bible teaches us that we can judge a person by their fruit. We will know where a person’s heart is if we listen to what comes out of their mouth and examine what kind of fruit they are bearing - or what kind of results are born from their actions. So I encourage you not to judge a book by it’s cover. Give everyone a chance to show you what is in their heart. It might surprise you who God may use to do great things.  

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David is described, in first Samuel, as a ruddy young man with a fine appearance and handsome features. Though these are nice attributes, they aren’t necessarily features one might associate with a great king. But David proved to be a great king in the eyes of his people and in the eyes of God. Why? Because, “the Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” How is your heart today? What kind of fruit are you producing? Are you producing any fruit at all? God doesn’t really care if you are impressive to men. What gets God’s attention is your heart. Let us all pursue getting God’s attention like David did. Let us all be people after God’s own heart.

Revere Him

For many of us, our days can become quite repetitious. One day can blend into another, and time can get away from us. Our lives can become one long to-do-list as we focus on the tasks of the day, but forget about the Lord of our life. I want to challenge and encourage you with the words David wrote in one of his psalms. He wrote this to encourage the Israelites to keep their attention on God, but it applies to us gentiles as well. In Psalm, chapter 22, verse 23, it says: 

“You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!”

Fear him, praise him, honor him and revere him. We need to remember God by making him central in our life. That means involving him in every area of our life. We need to reverently fear him, remembering that he is not only our friend, but he is also our master. He is God, and he has the power to destroy both our body and our soul. We must also praise him, not only for who he is, but also for what he has done. We should not be like the nine leapers who were healed and did not come back to praise Jesus. We should be like the one who came back and praised him for his deliverance. We need to honor him, understanding that we serve a Holy God, one who is almighty and whose name is higher than any other name; the God who says there is none besides him and who created us and everything we know. And we must always revere him. Our knee, as well as our hearts, should be forever bowed before him in awe and submission. Our days should never be absent of God. From when you wake up in the morning to when you go to bed at night, I hope that your thoughts are on the God of all creation and the savior of your soul.

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The worries and responsibilities of life make it easy for us to take our eyes off of the reason for life. God is that reason. Nothing matters without him. We are prone to take him for granted. We are prone to taking our eyes off of him. And if we aren’t careful, we are prone to wander away from him. One way to avoid these traps is to remind ourselves, every day, of our need for God by fearing him, praising him, honoring him and revering him. Let us reflect the heart of David; a man after God’s heart. Let us proactively fix our eyes, and our hearts, on God from when we wake to when we go to sleep. After all, the Bible commands us to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. That is an all encompassing love.