Our LORD God Deals With Those Who Harm Us!

Reading:  Isaiah 41
My Verse:  "Behold, all who are incensed against you
                        shall be put to shame and confounded;
                    those who strive against you
                        shall be as nothing and shall perish

                    You shall seek those who contend with you,
                         but you shall not find them;
                    those who war against you
                         shall be as nothing at all.

                    For I, the LORD your God,
                         hold your right hand;
                    it is I who say to you, "Fear not,
                         I am the One Who helps you."  - Isaiah 41:11-13

This is pretty powerful!  I would not want to be in the shoes of any that harm Your loved ones, LORD God!  It is a most dreadful and terrifying thing to have to answer to You!  You tell us this throughout Your Word, You remind us over and over that You will deal, You will contend with those individuals that try to harm me in any way!  

"It is mine to avenge; I will repay.  
   In due time their foot will slip; 
   their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them" (Deuteronomy 32:35).

"Do not take revenge, my dear friends, 
   but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written. 
  "It is mine to avenge; 
   I will repay," says the LORD" (Romans 12:19).

"Do not say, "I'll pay you back for this wrong!" 
      Wait for the LORD, 
      and he will avenge you (Provergs 24:29).

Wow!  Reminds one of  when you see a parent's reaction to someone that tries to harm their child.  One even sees this parental protectiveness in animals.  You have instilled this very feeling- this feeling of protectiveness,  within all of creation.  Is it because this is so strong an emotion that you warn us, LORD God?  We tend to misuse, allow anger to take over?

I like how one verse says to avoid taking revenge so as not to give way to the enemy - satan.  Ephesians 4:7 says, "and do not give the devil an opportunity."  The New Living Translation states the verse, "for anger gives a foothold to the devil."  The previous says, "do not let the sun go down on your anger."

Many studies have shown just how detrimental the emotion of anger is to our health, especially the anger of holding a grudge against another.  This is toxic to our being, it corrodes away at our souls.

LORD God, thank You for this reminder.  I do not need to fret about those that mean me harm.   They will have to answer to You.  You love me more than I can ever understand.  All I need to do is rest in that knowledge and allow You to do Your work in and through me, dealing with all the individuals and circumstances around me as You know is best.  This no light thing and I am learning, but it is  a wonderful knowledge for those of us that belong to You!

"The LORD is a God who avenges.
O God who avenges, shine forth" (Psalm 94:1).

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!
 

Our Need To "ASK"

Reading:  Isaiah 40
My Verse:  "A voice says, "Cry!"
                         And I said, "What shall I cry?"
                    All flesh is grass,
                      and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
                    The grass withers, 
                    the flower fades
                       when the breath of the LORD blows on it;
                        surely the people are grass.
                 
                    The grass withers, 
                     the flower fades,
                         but the Word of God will stand forever" (Isaiah 40:6-8 ESV).

This is such a hard concept for man - that our time here is  limited.  Yet there can be a freedom in that knowledge, especially for those who struggle with the many hard realities of our lives in this fallen world.  And  for those who have that most wonderful hope in You, LORD God!  Yes, we are as grass that withers away so very quickly, but You give us a reason to make the most of this so very brief life if we but "ask" You for help.

My son writes these critiques on music bands he follows, and has allowed me to read some.  I find the lyrics of some of these bands fascinating - they reflect such an agony of soul searching.

Some of those lyrics . . .
 
   "This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality.
     Embrace this moment.  Remember.  We are eternal."

   "Calculate what we will or will not tolerate.
     Desperate to control all and everything.
     Terrified of being wrong
     Justify denials and grip 'em to the lonesome end."

   " . . . I embrace  my desire to . . .
    Swing on the spiral of divinity and
    Still be human . . . "

They reflect real struggle, grinding heart-wrenching struggle, but there is no real breakthrough to truth.  There is no release, no peace.  While they are to be admired for entering into the struggle, so many won't even go there, these individuals seem unwilling to look to You, LORD God.

Oh, LORD God, You tell us . . .

"You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13).

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you" (Matthew 7:7).

"But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul" (Deuteronomy 4:29).

It is so difficult to actually ask You, LORD God for help.  But that is the very thing that is needed.  You tell us to "Ask."

I really like how Oswald Chambers explains this need for us to "Ask."

"God cannot give until a man asks.  It is not that He withholds, but that that is the way He has constituted things on the basis of Redemption.  By means of our asking, God gets processes into work whereby He creates the thing that is not in existence until we do ask.  The inner reality of Redemption is that it creates all the time.  As the Redemption creates the life of God in us, so it creates the things belonging to that life.  Nothing can satisfy the need but that which created the need.  This is the meaning of Redemption - it creates and it satisfies!" (The Utmost For His Highest)

It is just so wonderful, how it works!  Yet it is so very hard for us to break down, and admit we need You, LORD God and actually ask You to help us,  to save us from a life of endless searching!

Thank you for this reminder of the brevity of my life here on this earth.
Thank you for responding to my cry for help, for redemption.
Thank you, LORD God, that Your Word is truth and it remains forever!
Mostly, thank you for enabling me to "ASK."

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!

   




 

Be Careful What You Pray For!

Reading:  Isaiah 38, 39

My Verse:  "Then came the word of the LORD to Isaiah saying,

                     Go, and say to Hezekiah, 

                         Thus says the LORD, the God of David your father;  

                         I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; 

                         behold, I will add to your life fifteen years" (38:4,5).

This is an amazing story.  You, LORD God do attend to our prayers and at times you will even allow us to have what is not best.  You are compassionate and throughout Your Word You provide many examples, stories of how You love us so much and want for us to be happy, especially when we plead with You in faith.  But, Oh LORD God, how we need to be in tune with You, with what You would have for us that our desires may delight You and not ourselves.  Prayer is powerful - I need to be mindful of that.

The saying, "Be careful what you ask for, you just may get it"  comes to mind here.  How many of us ask for things we have no business asking for?  Like Hezekiah in this story.  He got what he pleaded for.  But then he did some foolish things, like showing off his wealth to visitors, who were actually spies from Babylon!   He then had a son, Manassah,  who ended up becoming one of the most evil kings Israel ever had!

It is so easy to forget how very limited our view of the future is.  You, LORD God, only You know what lies ahead - the possibilities, the dangers, the blessings.

And there is such a freedom when we are able to trust our lives fully in Your care, LORD God.

I ran across this wonderful saying by Martin Luther.

     "Blessed is he who submits to the will of God; he can never be unhappy.  
      Men may deal with him as they will . . .;  
         he is without care; 
         he knows that 'all things work together for good' (Romans 8:28)."

Psalm 106 retells how the Israelites allowed their selfish desires to rule them.

"But they [Israelites] hastily forgot His works; . . . 
 But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness and tempted and tried to restrain God [with their insistent desires] in the desert.
And He gave them their request , but sent leanness into their souls and [thinned their numbers by]disease and death" (Psalm 106:13-15).

A commentator made the interesting point that the Psalms version does not even mention that what the Israelites were desiring was meat - the point being that they, the Israelites, totally disregarded You, LORD God.  They allowed their selfish desires to rule their very thought process and behavior.

Oh, LORD God, how often do I do this very thing?  How often do I become so focused on my own very limited vision, my own selfish desires and wants that I allow them to rule me, that I tune You out and start demanding and going after things I have no business wanting or worrying about?

Reading this from afar, we can see how very tragic this was and how foolish those Israelites were!  Yet how often do we, do I, do this very thing?

Oh, LORD God, to be in that place of peace, that place where I can completely rest in You, allowing You to have full sway in my life, allowing You to carry me along when I am unable to carry myself, allowing and trusting You to provide me all that I could ever need.

How does one get to this place?  How does one trust in "all things work together for good?" I like what A.W.Tozer says about success, that success is costly.  Success in any given goal requires one to be intentional, persistent, willing to give up anything that would get in the way.  And success takes time!

I cannot do this in my own strength.  David wrote in Psalm 121:1

     "I will lift up mine eyes to the hills,
       from whence comes my help."

Help me LORD God to always return to that, to lifting my eyes up to You, to quieting myself to hear what it is You have for me.

Ditat Deus - God Enriches!