Reaching out to the rejected

Good morning. Today’s scripture comes from Psalm 88:13-14 (NIV):

“But I cry to you for help, O Lord;

in the morning my prayer comes before you.

Why, O Lord, do you reject me

and hide your face from me.”

In life, there is much difficulty. Sometimes, it seems, there is no relief in sight. All hope is lost. Does God even hear our prayers at such times? Life is miserable, and we don’t know where to turn. We cry out to God, but we aren’t even certain he’s listening. Yet, even in our deepest misery, God understands; he does not reject us forever.

Psalm 88 is one of the few psalms that do not have a conclusion of answered prayer. The psalm does not end with praise of how God worked in Heman’s (a son of Korah and a musician) plight. Even though Heman’s soul “is full of trouble,” (vs. 3a), he does not stop crying out. Even though he appears to be near death (“as my life draws near the grave”, vs. 3b), he doesn’t stop praying.

Because of Heman’s illness, his friends have deserted him. This is one of the darkest psalms out of the 150 listed in the Bible. Life does not appear to get better for Heman. So what is the message if there is no hope for someone in such despair? Perhaps the message isn’t for the afflicted, but for the friends of Heman. God tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matthew 22:39). How do we do that in such a situation as this? Or do we avoid the situation, as the priest and the Levite did in the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:27-37).

We can always pray for that person. Pray for a miracle. Pray for strength. Pray for endurance. Pray for their financial needs to be met. Pray that friends don’t desert the person, because despair robs us of dignity and emotional strength. Despair leads to depression. Depression leads to solitude. All those things wrapped into one leads to hopelessness. Hopelessness leads to the end. We need to be friends to such people. We were created to love and be in fellowship, and when we are lacking those two essential elements in life, misery can fill our lives. When Jesus told us to love our neighbors, he wasn’t talking about the millionaire down the road who has everything; he was talking about the person who has nothing. When we love our neighbors today, that has a way of coming around to us tomorrow when we are down and out.

How does this apply to my life?

Today’s prayer: Lord, help me to lift up my friends in prayer, and help me to be a better friend through their troubles and struggles. Amen

Dwelling in God’s place

Good morning. Today’s scripture comes from Psalm 84:1-2 (NIV):

“How lovely is your dwelling place,
O Lord Almighty!
My soul yearns, even faints,
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and my flesh cry out
for the living God.

Last week’s events left me utterly exhausted. All week long, my wife and I were dealing with her son’s schooling issue. We watched God do his best work up close and personal. The biggest miracle we witnessed was watching the transformation of a once stubborn teenager who returned to his old chipper self, once we laid the law down. . On Friday morning, he got up and went to school the same way he did every day last year. He didn’t ditch and curse us. Friday after school, I met him at on his walk home from the bus and bought him a Jamba Juice, and we talked about school. Life is peachy keen.

But that was just the beginning. I had two finals in my online college courses due on Friday, including a 10-page paper that I didn’t start until Friday morning at 8:30. I turned the paper in at 4 and finished the second project at 7. Then, on Saturday, I worked 15 hours on a catering job. You can imagine how I feel right now. I took a 90-minute nap yesterday, which rarely happens. After not sleeping well all last week, I am suddenly sleeping through the night.

After a few hours sleep Saturday night, I couldn’t wait to get up and go to church on Sunday. I wouldn’t miss a chance to worship in the house of my God. After all we had been through, I needed worship him. I needed to rest in God’s jumbo-sized arms and cry out my thanks to him. We had put some serious requests before the Lord and waited patiently while he worked through the 11th hour on our behalf. Just a few weeks before, he had answered my prayer about a job. This prayer answer to my step-son’s schooling was huge to us, because we felt this was a crucial time in his life.

You better believe I look at God differently than I did a month ago, when I was unemployed and my step-son was trying to get his way by demanding, lying and manipulating. During that time, my prayer life has changed dramatically. Instead of glancing through my prayers, I spend 10 or 15 minutes going through a long list. My needs are suddenly miniscule when I look at my friends’ needs for jobs and marital guidance. If God worked miracles, he surely can work miracles in my friends’ lives. I want them to prosper just as I am right now. The place I am dwelling now is indeed lovely. I think I’ll stay here awhile.

How does this apply to my life?

Today’s prayer: Lord, I am exhausted. I just want to rest in your dwelling place for a while until my strength is restored. Amen

Happy dance time!

Good morning. Today’s scripture comes from Psalm 81:1 (NIV):

“Sing for joy to God our strength;

shout aloud to the God of Jacob!”

Today is a holiday for my wife and me. Silently, we will be singing for joy and shouting aloud. We have agreed not to do the happy dance while my step-son is around. He isn’t quite ready to sing and do the happy dance, but he’s coming around. The reason for our joy is that we witnessed God’s miracle in the 11^th hour as He changed the hearts of my step-son and his dad. In short, my step-son will be going to the same Christian high school he attended last year, and not the public high school four blocks away, which was his desire.

We are joyful, because we had inwardly resigned to his attending the public school when it looked as though all hope were lost. We even started looking into getting involved in a few faith-based programs at the school. Our prayers changed to “Lord, if this is your will, then show us where you want us to serve.” My wife was looking into Mom’s in Touch, a group that prays for the students, campus and faculty at schools, and I was praying for new ministry direction, perhaps on campus. I had even tried to meet with the principal of the Christian school in order to give back the generous scholarship the school had given us, but was thwarted by a phone calls that caused me to miss him. When I arrived at the school, the principal had just left. School started there on Wednesday.

Then something happened. The door that had seemed shut, suddenly opened a crack. “Hmm,” I thought to myself, “very interesting.” What might God be doing here? I grabbed my wife’s hand on Monday morning and said, “This isn’t right. We prayed for God’s peace in your son going to public school, and it isn’t happening. We’re not giving up. We’re going to pray some more. And we did – fervently. I was on my knees every morning, and my wife fasted for one meal a day all week.

What God did next blew us away. He opened new doors of communication with the dad. It seemed our “opponent” had switched jerseys at halftime. God shined a light on the truth. Their son had pitted them against each other to get his way. His reasons for wanting to switch schools became suspect; something was not sitting right with any of us. But the grace of God brought his parents together to decide what was best for him and tore down the walls of division. Before we met with him and his dad, we had prayed all day, and sent an email to over 200 people asking them to pray with us. We were deeply touched when about 20 people responded immediately that they were praying right then and there.

The last miracle was the change of heart in my step-son. He had threatened to ditch if we forced him to go to the Christian school, but last night, he was happily texting his friends and letting them know he would be there today. Through this whole ordeal, the school remained a staunch supporter of my step-son. Two of the secretaries were praying for us the past two days. This is where God wanted my step-son to be. It was an easy decision for us, because we knew he was loved and accepted there. Oh, and God answered a bazillion prayers on our behalf. Thank you all for being our friends and prayer warriors. We felt your prayers. Someday, we’ll let my step-son know that more than 200 people were praying for him. You may now move about the cabin and join us in the happy dance.

How does this apply to my life?

Today’s prayer: Lord, you are awesome. You do your best work in the 11^th hour. No one else gets the glory but you. Your sovereignty and love are simply amazing. Amen

Heal our nation? Look inwardly first

Good morning. Today’s scripture comes from Psalm 79:5 (NIV):

“How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever?
How long will your jealousy burn like fire?
Pour out your wrath on the nations
that do not acknowledge you,
on the kingdoms
that do not call on your name.”

Uh, that would be us, the United States of America, founded on Christian principles way back in 1776. For 200-plus years we were known as a Christian nation, led by Christian leaders. Today? I don’t know. I am scared for our country. I’m frightened that Christians are being threatened with silence, from the airwaves, to schools, to the workplace. Our government is headed toward socialism, forcing a free medical health care plan – even for illegal immigrants – on us that would include provisions for free teenage abortions. Oh, and if your mom is in her 80s, the government has a right to intervene and take over her life, including determining when she dies.

When you look across our nation, it is not acting much like a Christian nation. You might be saying, “That’s all well and good, but I’m just a pour, private citizen. What can I do?” Simple. Pray, just as Asaph is doing here probably shortly after the Babylonian invasion had leveled Jerusalem (see 2 Kings 25). Suddenly the landscape of Jerusalem had changed. God-fearing Jews were being sent off to foreign lands, and the mighty Babylonians were in charge.

Asaph (or one of his descendants) was outraged at the injustice he saw all around him, so he cries out TO God, not AGAINST him. There’s a difference. Asaph is angry at the situation, but he isn’t angry at God. During times of disaster, we must trust God to deliver us from tough times. Are we facing tough times in America? You bet. But most of our public ills were brought on by our greed for more of everything. More money, more toys, better-paying job, bigger house, bigger cars, more fun, more merriment. Oh, and more sex and pornography, meaning more abortions and more divorces. The toys were put on credit, meaning more debt. More time in the office to pay the creditors, and less time in the home, which means letting liberal teachers to raise our children.

Like Asaph, we must realize why the calamity around us is happening: It’s our sins. God was so thoroughly disgusted with the Israelites worship of false idols that he let the Babylonians conquer Jerusalem and the scattering of Jews began in earnest. In verse 9, he asks God to “forgive our sins / for your name’s sake.” Before we can heal our nation, we must look inwardly and heal our own hearts. Get your own life in order before you criticize the political landscape around you. Then get on your knees and pray for the injustices you see around you. God is our only hope.

How does this apply to my life?

Today’s prayer: Lord, before I ask you to heal our nation, I ask you to heal my heart. Lord, I ask that you cleanse my heart of my sin. Amen

Fulfilling my vow

Good morning. Today’s scripture comes from Psalm 76:11 (NIV):

Make vows to the Lord your God and fulfill them.

For the past two months I have been praying for a job. In the interim, I’ve been freelance writing a little, but not enough to pay the bills. Specifically, I have been praying for a 20-30-hour-a-week client as an anchor, one that pays well and allows me to do the ministry that I desire. Frankly, I don’t want a 40-hour-a-week job that pays well if it means not having the time or the energy to minister to the homeless and jobless.

Last week, I believe my prayers were answered. I worked nine straight days as a contract copywriter, working for a nearby marketing company. It was a trial-run for my client and for me. Although I had never done this kind of work, the skills I had as a journalist are invaluable to me in this line of work. Friday was pay day, and we have a mutual agreement to continue. Because it’s contract work, I don’t know how many hours it will be every week, but that first nine days was busy much of the time. That’s where faith comes in: Lord, provide for my needs.

I did my halleluiahs on Friday, and over the weekend, I realized I had to fulfill my vow in my prayer time. God answered my prayer beyond my expectations, and now I must figure out what it is God is calling me to do in ministry. I have lots of options, and it will take more prayers to determine the direction God wants me to go. My job prayer was answered, but not my ministry prayer. I have been praying about praying for the unemployed. I have been praying about volunteering in a homeless shelter kitchen one day a week. I have been praying about jumping back in and ministering to the single men I used to minister to, many of whom have followed my path to marriage. Plus, my step-son may be going to public school in a few weeks, and maybe God has a plan for me to minister to high school kids in a different way than teaching provided.

I don’t know which direction to go, but God does, so I must seek him out. I’m back in the waiting game. One prayer down, one to go. Maybe I need more patience. Maybe I just need time to focus on my new work opportunity. I have an obligation to my new boss, to give him my best effort every day during my working hours. Most importantly, I made a vow to God, and I must fulfill it. I told God that if he provided me the right job that affords me time to volunteer in the community that I would do it. Maybe it will be another two months of prayer before I know the answer. I know God will answer this prayer, too.

How does this apply to my life?

Today’s prayer: Lord, thank you for answering my prayer for work. Now, I ask for wisdom in deciding how to use my volunteer time with my church and the community. Amen

Lord, I need you NOW!

Good morning. Today’s scripture comes from Psalm 70:5 (NIV):

Yet I am poor and needy;
Come quickly to me, O God.
You are my help and my deliverer;
O Lord, do not delay

There are times in our lives that our prayers are like David’s here: “O Lord, do not delay.” David needs help right NOW! Yet, other times, we pray in the immediacy, but there isn’t quite the sense of urgency. I need a job today seems important right now, but then we realize that we have money in the bank, the mortgage is paid, and there is food in the fridge. God knows the difference between NOW! and what can be answered later.

We’ve all experienced those prayers that need immediate answers. We panic. We say a quick prayer. This is one of the shortest Psalms, and you can sense David’s haste. He’s on the run, he’s short on time, and yet he takes the time to pray to God. This would be one of those get on bended knee and pray for a minute type prayers, then get up and go again. Yet even in David’s panic and haste, he still takes the time to praise God.

What happens when we feel a sense of urgency and God doesn’t seem to be in any hurry to answer our prayers? It isn’t easy to say to yourself, “OK, God must know something I don’t. Maybe I don’t have to panic. This isn’t as urgent as I thought.” We can breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that we can wait. We can change our prayers. “OK, Lord, what do you want from me today? What do you need from me right NOW?”

In that time of waiting, God is still working through us. He will reveal his plan to you. He just isn’t in the hurry that we are. It may not be the same plan we had for ourselves. We must be willing to alter our course and get on His path. Maybe he wants to teach us patience. Maybe he wants our focus off our worldly possessions and our titles and to get back to loving Him with all our hearts. Maybe he wants us to be reliant on him and not our own power. Those things take time. One day at a time, but start NOW!

How does this apply to my life?

Today’s prayer: Lord, help me to see my life as you do. Help me to see the immediacy, and help me to see where I need patience. Amen

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