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timewithgod.blog-city.com — May 2009
2 Chronicles 32-36 Breaking The Chain
There's just something about Josiah that speaks of solidness. He was the son of a 16-year-old prince, and he became king at just 8 years old. His dad, king before him, had been a terrible role model, worshiping idols and leading the p
There's just something about Josiah that speaks of solidness. He was the son of a 16-year-old prince, and he became king at just 8 years old. His dad, king before him, had been a terrible role model, worshiping idols and leading the people to sin. His granddad, Manasseh, had been one of the worst kings in terms of sinfulness. So Josiah should have followed right after them.
Instead, he chose to break the chain.
By age 16, "He began to obey the God of his ancestor David." This in itself is amazing, because apparently the scriptures had been lost. It wasn't until he ordered Temple repairs to begin 10 years later that he actually heard God's word.
These years are usually turbulent times for young men, who are usually full of self and believing they are untouchable, immortal, and all-knowing. Yet here was Josiah, who as king could have anything, and he is following GOD.
When he heard God's word in his mid-twenties, he cried and tore his clothes in grief. He realized that, despite his obedience thus far, he was far from where God would have him.
This energized him to rid his land of the corruption of idols. It wasn't enough to have them knocked over and broken into pieces. The wooden ones were burned and the stone idols were ground to DUST. The ashes and dust were then scattered over the graves of those who'd worshiped them, defiling what little remained.
Perhaps 34:34 described his life the best-- "The king stood by his pillar and made an agreement in the presence of the Lord to follow the Lord and obey His commands, rules, and laws with his WHOLE BEING..."
Father, that's the kind of man I want to be. I pray that I can remain active and vital, showing others how You've changed my life. Please allow me to train up other generations of young men, as You have over the last 17 years, to know You and to seek Your face.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Esther 1-4 Do I BELIEVE Or Not?
There are just lots of things about this story that touch me. Perhaps it's because Esther was an orphan, like my sons were. Perhaps it's the living in a foreign country, as I have done. I'll bet it certainly has to do wi
There are just lots of things about this story that touch me. Perhaps it's because Esther was an orphan, like my sons were. Perhaps it's the living in a foreign country, as I have done. I'll bet it certainly has to do with stepping up to the plate as Esther chose to do when the right time came. For that reminds me of getting on that plane to Ukraine in January of 2003, not knowing what kind of reception I'd receive at the National Adoption Center in Kyiv, showing up uninvited. Would I even get to see the director, Mrs. Parienko?
But it had come down to that, I know. God had spoken to me indisputably on that bus from Svir Stroy, Russia back to St. Petersburg, once called Leningrad. He'd told me that I would adopt from over there. I had to choose whether to believe him or not. And it was a curious mixture of a command to adopt and a granting of my desire to adopt. I've often heard it said that God will build up a desire within us so that, when we arrive at the time of His choosing, it will almost feel like it was our idea!
That January was my crisis of belief. I'd done all that I could. Ukraine had said "no". But God had told me "yes". Who was I then to believe?
I didn't have to worry about perishing, the way Esther did. But we did have something in common. We both had to worry about disappointing God. We could either believe Him -- that He had brought us to this place for this moment -- or not. I'm glad I chose to believe Him.
Father, that month will remain in my mind for the rest of my life. It was my big stepping-out-in-faith moment, and it is exhilarating to look back on it and to know what You have wrought as a result of my faithfulness. I can never thank You enough for believing in me! Thank You for helping me to believe in You.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Esther 5-10 Focusing On The Villain
I've never much focused on the villain in this story -- Haman. Sure, he gets what he deserves, but how much like us is he really, and what can we learn about ourselves by looking at him?He was consumed with pride -- to the point that he act
I've never much focused on the villain in this story -- Haman. Sure, he gets what he deserves, but how much like us is he really, and what can we learn about ourselves by looking at him?
He was consumed with pride -- to the point that he actually threw a party just to tell his friends how rich and powerful he was! His pride was out of control.
The sidebar in my Bible is taken from The Practice Of Godliness by Jerry Bridges, and says:
"We must realize that the battle for self-control is fought primarily within our own minds; it is a battle with our passions, thoughts, and desires. In those areas where we have failed to curb our appetites and emotions, we seem to have invisible antennae sensitively attuned to the corresponding temptation. The proverbial "chip on his shoulder" describes the person whose antennae are constantly searching for the minor incident that he can magnify into an occasion for losing his temper. The person who habitually yields to some bodily appetite or lust is constantly alert for opportunities to indulge that carnal desire. We must learn to say no to those passions when they first enter our minds. Above all, we must pray for the inner strength of will necessary to curb our passions and desires. It is God who works in us to will and to act. Our own particular areas of vulnerability must be made the subject of earnest, beseeching prayer for God's grace to work in our wills. At the same time, we must realize that the will is strengthened by obedience. The more we say no to sinful desires, the more we will be able to say no. But to experience this, we must persevere through many failures. A large part of learning self-control is breaking bad habits and replacing them with good ones .... As we grow in the grace of self-control, we will experience the liberation of those who, under the guidance and grace of the Holy Spirit, are freed from the shackles of self-indulgence and are brought into the freedom of true spiritual discipline.
Father, I know that too often I wallow in self-indulgence. Please grow in me the grace of self-control. Help me to enforce a "diet of the mind", refusing to allow myself to dwell on thoughts or desires that are not of You.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Psalms 1-4 Be Happy, But Tremble
God is described as the One who takes care of His people, who is our shield, who gives us courage and strength, who saves us, and who makes us happy.We hear reminders to ourselves: "I will pray ... and He will answer me...." and "
God is described as the One who takes care of His people, who is our shield, who gives us courage and strength, who saves us, and who makes us happy.
We hear reminders to ourselves: "I will pray ... and He will answer me...." and "the Lord listens when I pray to Him," as if we often forget that very thing.
My commentary said, "Those who trust in the Lord are as 'the apple of His eye'. Their names are engraved on the palms of His hands. He hears them when they call and HASTENS to their assistance." When we are tempted to think that God may not be listening or that He lets things go for awhile before moving, we should remember that, at our first cry, He is already right beside us, lifting us into His arms. He is not a neglectful parent.
So with all this said, I liked what my commentary said about 2:12 -- "For man to trust His Creator is the most sane, logical, reasonable thing he can do. On the other hand, to disbelieve and defy the Almighty is about as irrational a thing as a person can do."
Verse 2:11 kept catching my eye. It says, "Obey the Lord with great fear. Be happy, but tremble." Some versions say, "Worship the Lord with reverence, and rejoice with trembling." That's a curious mixture -- reverence, great fear, rejoicing, and trembling. It almost speaks of an uncertainty regarding just how we are to approach God when we worship. After all, we place ourselves before the Creator of the universe, yet He chooses to call us His children. And He engraves our names on His hands. A little uncertainty is probably a good thing. It does a lot to keep our pride down.
Father, thank You for being all of this to me! Thank You for the picture of Your running to my side when I cry out, ready to help. Thank You for the love You sowed in giving up Your Only Son for me, and in turn, for calling me Your son.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Psalm 5-8 An Eloquent Gasp
The beginning of chapter 5 and the ending of chapter 8 really fit what my commentary says about these chapters -- "an eloquent gasp from David."First, I noted in 5:3 David saying, "Lord, every morning You hear my voice. Every mor
The beginning of chapter 5 and the ending of chapter 8 really fit what my commentary says about these chapters -- "an eloquent gasp from David."
First, I noted in 5:3 David saying, "Lord, every morning You hear my voice. Every morning I tell You what I need, and I wait for Your answer." I'd passed over these verse, thinking mainly that it meant when David prayed, God listened. But the "every morning" phrase repeated twice stood out, for Jewish writers used repetition like bold face type. It hit me that David actually means that every single morning he communed with God in prayer. Every single morning he told God what he needed, and every single morning he waited on God to answer. The more time we spend with someone, the better we come to know them. No wonder David was a man after God's own heart!
So where does the eloquent gasp come in? First in 5:7 -- "Because of Your great love, I can come into Your Temple. Because I fear and respect You, I CAN worship in Your holy Temple."
David is amazed that the Creator of the Universe allows ANYONE near Him, and that He permits a sinner to worship Him.
There was a sentence in my commentary that said, "God cannot be tolerantly pleased with any form of wickedness." He cannot tolerate wickedness in my life and be pleased with me. Yes, there is sin in my life, and I struggle daily not to sin. When I don't sin, God is pleased with me. When I sin, He is disappointed, and the distance between us increases. David was amazed that God could be so close to him because God's holiness demands separation from sin.
David gasps again in chapter 8. Seeing the vastness of what God has created and man's relative unimportance in all of it, David gasps to think that God would choose to love and care for mankind, to be mindful of not only all mankind, but also even to be mindful of him. Like all of us, he is probably asking, "God what's so special about me that You CARE for me?" David didn't know the answer in his lifetime, and he didn't know that he was writing about the answer in the verse that followed. God's answer? "I care about you because My Son chose to die IN YOUR PLACE, FOR YOUR SINS. He said you were worth it!"
Father, I gasp again at Your love and caring and concern for me, even in my sin. Help me to commune with You each morning, not just to throw a bunch of requests Your way. You aren't a divine butler. You are my Creator and my Savior and my Lord. I love You!
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Psalm 9-13 How To React To A Crisis
David, the man after God's own heart, finds himself reacting to circumstances in different ways. In chapter 9, he's gained a victory which leads him to exalt God. His faith boldly declares that the Lord rules forever. In ver
David, the man after God's own heart, finds himself reacting to circumstances in different ways. In chapter 9, he's gained a victory which leads him to exalt God. His faith boldly declares that the Lord rules forever. In verse 10, he says, "Those who know the Lord trust Him, because He will not leave those who come to Him."
But chapter 10 shows quite a different side of David, starting with, "Lord, why are You so far away?" David complains bitterly about how wicked people are prospering. Despite his bewilderment at God's inaction, he still says, "The Lord is King forever and ever." God hadn't moved. David had.
Chapter 11 begins with, "I trust in the Lord for protection." The next few verses make it sound like invaders are near the city and David is being urged to flee. I'll hold his answer until later.
In chapter 12, David bemoans the fact that all the good people are gone, but then he changes his attitude, telling how God will keep believers safe and will protect them from evil people.
Chapter 13 almost seems like David's lowest point. "How long will You forget me, Lord? FOREVER? How long will You hide from me?" He asks two more 'how longs'. In desperation, he cries out, "Lord, LOOK at me. ANSWER me, my God; TELL me, or I will die." As he meditates on his questions, though, it's not God who changes, but David's heart. He says, "I trust in Your love."
As to David's answer to the messenger who appears to be delivering news of an invasion, listen to David's calm assurance borne of a deep faith in a God who answers: "The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord sits on His throne in heaven. He sees what people do.." My commentary adds, "NOTHING can stop the fulfillment of His plans! His throne is in heaven, unmoved and UNMOVABLE, no matter what kingdoms on earth may rise and fall .... Nothing can disturb God's poise and serenity."
So then, how do we rise above the circumstances of life? David's answer in chapter 11 is by keeping our eyes on the Lord.
Father, when the storms of this life test my faith, help me to learn from David's weak moments what not to believe, and help me to aspire to his reactions to circumstances at his strongest moments -- a strength that comes not from within but from You. Help me to never forget that "those who know the Lord trust Him, because He will not leave those who come to Him."
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Psalm 14-17 In The Likeness Of You
I was thrilled to be able to revel in the kind of God I have this morning. "Protect me, God, because I trust in You ... You are my Lord. Every good thing I have [including my two sons] comes from You..... The Lord is all I need.
I was thrilled to be able to revel in the kind of God I have this morning.
"Protect me, God, because I trust in You ... You are my Lord. Every good thing I have [including my two sons] comes from You..... The Lord is all I need. He takes care of me ... I praise the Lord because He advises me. Even at night, I feel His leading. I keep the Lord before me always. Because He is close by my side, I will not be hurt. So I rejoice and am glad ... You will teach me how to live a holy life. Being with You will fill me with joy; at Your right hand I will find pleasure forever .... I call to You, God, and You answer me .... Your love is wonderful. By Your power you save those who trust You from their enemies. Protect me as You would protect Your own eye. Hide me under the shadow of Your wings ... Because I have lived right, I will see Your face. When I wake up [from death], I will see Your likeness and be satisfied."
That last sentence reminded me of Petra's song, "In The Likeness Of You". That song, probably more than any other, was used by God to hook me and reel me back in to Him. There was a real pull to the idea of being someday in the likeness of Him. Over and over at the end, they sing, "I wanna be, I wanna be just like YOU!" That's the kind of excitement we ought to feel about striving for righteousness.
Father, thank You for being my God and for teaching me each day more about You. I do want to be just like You. Please help me to do that with my whole heart every day.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Psalm 18-19 Knowing My Rock
I don't want a divine butler. I don't want a God who is at all subject to my whims. I guess that's why I like Psalm 18 so much."I love You, Lord. You are my strength. The Lord is my rock, my protection, my Sav
I don't want a divine butler. I don't want a God who is at all subject to my whims. I guess that's why I like Psalm 18 so much.
"I love You, Lord. You are my strength. The Lord is my rock, my protection, my Savior. My God is my rock. I can run to Him for safety. He is my shield and my saving strength, my defender. I will call TO the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I will be saved from my enemies."
As I sorted through old videotapes last night, I found videos from two rock-climbing schools I'd attended at Enchanted Rock near Fredericksburg. It's one big, massive piece of granite, not a hill with dirt and lots of boulders. It's hard to imagine a single rock that big! I remember climbing various routes on it and how incredibly feeble my efforts must have seemed to that rock. I was like a mosquito on an elephant. The granite face was so smooth that I remember feeling grateful just to find a hold for my fingers the size of a nickel. Resting against that huge rock face halfway through a climb was indeed like hugging the mountain. It was immovable and unyielding. Like my God.
The amazing thing is how insignificant Enchanted Rock is compared to Earth. And how insignificant Earth is compared to the universe. And God is infinitely bigger than all of it. Now, what does that say about my God -- my Rock?
David's prophetic descriptions of the spiritual battle at Christ's death and resurrection that follow only serve to amplify the greatness of God. And with a God that big, that wise, that powerful, and that all-knowing, who would I be to ever question Him? By heeding Him, I find, as David did, that "He makes my way free from fault. He makes me like a deer that does not stumble." If only I would always listen! I agree with David as he speaks personally to his God, "You give me a better way to live, so I live as You want me to."
My God controls others to do His bidding, as David shows at the end of chapter 18. I saw there that I'd written a note reminding me of Joseph's adoption process. At the time, adoptions were averaging 28 days or more in-country. David said, "People I never knew serve me. As soon as they hear me, they obey me. Foreigners obey me. They all become afraid and tremble in their hiding places."
I remember our translator being amazed at how approvals were coming from officials. One approval was expected to take 10 days and she received it in 5 days! We were home, door-to-door, in just 18 days!
David was right -- "May my Rock be praised!"
Father, who am I that You would do this? That You would care so much about me and about my family? Thank You for being my Rock. I cannot wait until I gain a heavenly mind so that I can fully now the true greatness of my Rock!
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Psalm 20-22 I Didn't Understand...
Chapters 20 & 21 set us up for what happened in 22. We hear prayers that the Lord will answer in times of trouble and that God will protect, giving all that is asked and making plans succeed.We then hear happy rejoicing that God has answere
Chapters 20 & 21 set us up for what happened in 22. We hear prayers that the Lord will answer in times of trouble and that God will protect, giving all that is asked and making plans succeed.
We then hear happy rejoicing that God has answered -- that He did not refuse what was asked.
Yet chapter 22 opens with, "My God, my God, why have You abandoned [forsaked, rejected] me? ... You do not answer ..." What happened??
Chapter 22 is such an amazing prophecy of what Jesus would experience as He died on the cross. Max Lucado's sidebar in my Bible speaks about those words in a fictional conversation with Jesus about them:
"I don't like that word abandon. It doesn't sound like You ... Usually I love it when You speak .... the whisper of breath into the clay-caked Adam? That was You at Your best ... That's the voice I love to hear. That's why I don't like this verse ... I don't like to see the word abandon either.... Could we change the sentence a bit? Not much. Just the verb.... How about challenge? "My God, my God, why did You challenge me?" ... Now we can applaud....That makes You a hero... Or, if that's not acceptable,.... why not afflict? "My God, my God, why did You afflict me?" Yes... now You're a martyr.... a patriot ... a noble soldier ... Abandonment. That's the punishment for a criminal. Abandonment. That's the suffering borne by the most evil -- not for You....After all, didn't John call You the Lamb of God? ..."Who has come to take away the sins of the world." Wait a minute. "To take AWAY the sins...." I'd never thought about those words ... I thought You just, I don't know, sent sin away ... Just like You did the demons ... I just thought You commanded the evil out. I never noticed that You took it out. It never occurred to me that You actually touched it -- or worse still, that it touched YOU. That must have been a horrible moment. I know what it's like to be touched by sin. I know what it's like to smell the stench of that stuff. Remember what I used to be like? Before I knew You ... I didn't just touch sin, I loved it ... I was in the middle of it.... You remember.... You were the One who found me. I was lonely. I was afraid. Remember? "Why? Why me? Why has all this hurt happened?" It was all I knew to ask. You see, God, I felt so confused. So desolate.... Sin leaves you shipwrecked, orphaned, adrift. Sin leaves you aban--- Oh. Oh, my. Is that what happened? You mean sin did the same to You that it did to me? Oh, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I didn't understand. You really were alone, weren't You? ... You really were afraid. You really were alone. Just like I was. Only, I deserved it. You didn't."
Jesus, thank You for not abandoning me. I'm so sorry that Your sinless body had to come into contact with all the sin that I've wallowed in. I didn't even understand. Forgive me. Father, I'm so sorry my sin caused You to have to turn Your back on Your Son. I can't imagine having to do that to either of my sons. I'm so sorry.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
Psalm 23-26 TWO Marvelous Prayers
As sweet as the prayer is in chapter 23, my commentary says that everything within it hinges on a single, small word: my. "Unless He IS my Shepherd, then the rest of the Psalm does not belong to me," it says. A person who
As sweet as the prayer is in chapter 23, my commentary says that everything within it hinges on a single, small word: my. "Unless He IS my Shepherd, then the rest of the Psalm does not belong to me," it says. A person who has never given Him permission to be his shepherd cannot expect to experience what is described here.
There's an equally wonderful prayer being lifted up in bits and pieces of chapter 25. I liked:
"Lord, I give myself to You; my God, I trust You ... Lord, tell me Your ways. Show me how to live. Guide me in Your truth, and teach me, my God, my Savior ... Do not remember the sins and wrong things I did when I was young. But remember to love me always because You are good, Lord ... I trust You, so do not let me be disgraced. My hope is in You."
Father, I couldn't have said it better. Thanks for being my Shepherd. Thank You for Your mercy and grace bestowed upon me. Help me to live for You.
Your Brother In Christ,
Gary Ford
Gary Ford
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