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March 1
Acts 26:14
“And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.”

What a picture of how hard we work sometimes to resist the Lord!  “Kicking against the goads” is an agricultural reference from the first century, when so many people used oxen to till the soil. The goad was a wooden shaft with a pointed spike and controlled the ox. If the ox refused the farmer’s command, the goad would jab or prick the ox. Sometimes the ox would kick in rebellion, and the goad would be driven deeper into its flesh. The more the animal rebelled, the more the animal suffered.

Jesus saw Paul fighting Him, persecuting His people, and finally confronted him on the road to Damascus (you can read the while story on the book of Acts, chapter 9).  As Paul recounted his dramatic conversion later, it was if the Lord was shaking his head and saying, “Paul, why are you making this so hard?  Quit kicking against the goads and so I can bless you and we can work together!”

C.S. Lewis described a classic, modern day conversion in which he too found himself “kicking against the goads:”

“That which I greatly feared had at last come upon me... I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England. I did not then see what is now the most shining and obvious thing; the Divine humility which will accept a convert even on such terms... who can but duly adore that Love which will open the high gates to a prodigal who is brought in kicking, struggling, resentful, and darting his eyes in every direction for a chance of escape? The hardness of God is kinder than the softness of men, and His compulsion is our liberation.”1    

God set into motion certain principles in the universe.  We reap what we sow.  We pay for stupid choices. We fight Him, and hurt ourselves. But when we follow Him, we are sustained and blessed, in good times and in difficulty, and we are given grace and the opportunity to use our gifts and talents in ways we could never imagine.

“Jesus tapped me on the shoulder and said, Bob, why are you resisting me? I said, I'm not resisting you! He said, You gonna follow me? I said, I've never thought about that before! He said, When you're not following me, you're resisting me.” --Bob Dylan

 1.Roger Lancelyn Green and Walter Hooper, C S. Lewis; A Biography (New York;Harcourt, Brace Jovanovich, 1974), 228‑229.

March 2
Romans 1:18, Colossian 3:6
“The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness... the wrath of God is coming.”

Not a pleasant subject, the wrath of God. Personally, I would much rather focus on grace and love.  I don’t like to think in terms of an angry heavenly Father.  No one does – so maybe we need to understand “the wrath of God” a little better.
A best selling book, “Conversations With God” is typical of how many people want to represent God’s wrath.  It portrays a chummy God who patronizes sin, because there is no right or wrong.  This God smiles on all we do and just asks us to do our best.

But the reality is quite different.  The passage in Romans, 1:18-32, is the only place in the New Testament where God’s wrath is discussed at length.  Three times in that passage the phrase “He gave them over” is repeated.  He gave them over to sinful desires, shameful lusts, and depraved minds. When people deliberately walk away from God, determined to pursue their own, harmful ways, He gives them over to themselves, to allow the consequences to teach the lesson.

A shallow concept of sin leads to misunderstanding of the nature of sin.  Sin is not just something that makes God mad for arbitrary reasons. Sin violates His holiness, separates us from Him, and its evil causes human suffering. Sin is like a cancer that, left untreated, has horrible consequences. A perversion of our relationship with God becomes a perversion of our relationship with others, and in the end, we become less human, and everyone suffers.

Yet, God expresses His love by continuing to give us the freedom to choose for or against Him.  God’s wrath can be redemptive, as in the story of the Prodigal Son.  When the son wanted to leave, the father did not put him under lock and key nor prevent him from ruining his life in a far country.  He gave him his freedom, even if it led to a pig sty!  He gave him over to his own sinful way, and it was that pig sty that snapped him back to his senses and brought him running back into the arms of a loving father who accepted him without hesitation (Luke 15).
God’s wrath is to be respected, even feared with a healthy, smart fear.  But His love is even greater, always keeping the door open for a wayward child to find a way home.

March 3
Colossians 3:12
“As God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”

“Kindness has converted more sinners than zeal, eloquence or learning,” wrote Frederick Faber, a 17th century hymn writer. 

Kindness jumps out at me in the list of above in verse 12.  A word loaded with emotion and meaning, “kind” is not always the gentle, casual adjective one might assume.  Kindness comes from compassion and tender mercy, demonstrated in difficult times. “Kind” is a word used to describe wine, which has grown mellow with maturity and lost its harshness.  The literal interpretation of “kind” is what Jesus used to describe His yoke:  “My yoke is easy” (Matthew 11:30). 

Kindness is not only one of the fruits of the Spirit, the result of being full of God in human life; it is also a quality of God Himself, with powerful results. It is God’s “kindness” that leads to repentance, according to Romans 2:4.

We can be witty and wise; we can win arguments and debates.  We can even prove ourselves more charitable, virtuous, and disciplined than others.  But most of that is forgotten, resented, or resisted if not done with a kind heart.  A kind word or deed is almost always received, appreciated, and remembered—and reflects God’s Holy Spirit and His love.

A friend of mine says she advises her daughters to marry a kind man.  Having been the recipient of such a love, she knows that kindness will translate into patience and a selfless love that can survive storms and tribulations.

Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, an act of humble kindness.  Their feet weren’t a matter of life and death.  He was showing them kindness to demonstrate His love. “Now that you know these things,” He said, “you will be blessed if you do them” (John 13:17). Kindness blesses others, and does our own heart good as well.

“Do not be satisfied with loving people in your own mind.  Love them until they feel your love.” —Mike Mason

March 4
Song of Solomon 4:1-7
“Behold, you are fair, my love! Behold, you are fair! You have dove's eyes behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats, Going down from Mount Gilead. ...You are all fair, my love, And there is no spot in you.”

If you want to hear how much God loves you, read the Song of Solomon out loud.  On one level it is a literal love story between a king and a shepherd girl.  But on another level, it is a poetic allegory of God’s love for us.  As you read, pay close attention and think to yourself, “This is how the Lord sees me.”

When I first pictured Solomon, the author of this book, saying these words to his love, the Shulamite girl, I thought, well, “dove’s eyes” isn’t a bad start.  The dove symbolized peace, tranquility, and quiet beauty.  Not bad. Then I tried the next line on my wife:  “Your hair is like a flock of goats...” Something got lost in the translation.  It didn’t quite have the desired affect.

But in the cultural context of this shepherd girl, he had adorned her with praise, because a flock of goats represented bountiful prosperity.  By the time he finished, he had praised her from the top of her head to her beautiful feet, telling her how much he loved and treasured her, and that in his eyes, she was perfect —“no spot.”

Do you believe—I mean truly believe—that the Lord loves you?  Do you comprehend His passion for you and His desire to bless you?  At first the Shulamite girl resisted, saying, “Do not look upon me...” She felt unworthy of such love.

No one is worthy of being loved by a holy God who also happens to be the King of the Universe, the Master of all creation.  But He still asks us to accept His love.  While we see ourselves as wretched...or, sufficient unto ourselves...or incapable of comprehending such great love, He looks upon us and says, “I have washed away that wretchedness with my blood...I am here to comfort you when all else fails...and the more you let Me bless you, the more you will understand.”

What bothers me most is when someone reads the Bible and miss the greatest truth of all—that God’s Word is a love story, from beginning to end.  As Soren Kierkegaard said, “When you read God’s Word, you, must constantly be saying to yourself, ‘it is talking to me and about me.’”

March 5
Colossians 4:2
“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”

Be honest.  How committed to prayer are you?  When the apostle Paul also admonishes us to “pray without ceasing” it can be intimidating (1Thessalonians 5:17).  “I can hardly pray for 15 minutes, “ a friend lamented to me, “much less ALL the time.”

Devoting ourselves to prayer hardly implies an occasional, quick request shot up to heaven in a moment of desperation (although that needs to happen too!). According to Scripture, we are to spend serious, sincere time in prayer on a continual basis.  How?

The Quaker Thomas Kelly, in his “Testament of Devotion” wrote, “There is a way of ordering our mental lives on more than one level at once.  On one level we can be thinking, discussing, seeing, calculating, and meeting all the demands of external affairs.  But deep within, behind the scenes, at a profounder level, we may also be in prayer and adoration, song and worship, and a gentle receptiveness to divine breathings.”

We can be about our business, working, cleaning house, running errands, tending to family, taking care of all the “external affairs.” And at the same time, we can be speaking to God, asking Him to bless the people around us, yielding decisions and actions to Him as we ask for His will to be done.

“Be watchful and thankful,” says the rest of today’s verse.  As you go about your daily business, as you pull the clothes out of the dryer or turn the corner at a busy intersection, watch for God at work, in people, in circumstances, in your heart.  And thank Him for the blessings in your life.  For the clothes you wear, the people in your care, for your job; be thankful that in a difficult moment, you can look up and see clouds or blue sky, or a silky night adorned with stars. Thank Him for your daily breath, for giving you life. As you face each task, chore, or duty, turn your thoughts toward Him, asking for His strength, His will, and His love for other people, and you will find yourself in a constant state of prayer.

“Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saints (God's consecrated people).” —Ephesians 6:18 (Amplified)


March 6
Colossians 4:4
"Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should."

The church, theology, and spiritual truths can be mysterious, elusive, and mystifying—especially when religious leaders make them that way.

Paul prayed for clarity, to be able to share the love of God in a way that is clearly grasped and taken to heart. Theological discussions are fine, but when they obscure the real message, and keep us from connecting to God on a personal level, then such lofty dialogues are more likely to turn into debates in which the end goal is to win an argument rather than to love one another.

Someone passed the following on to me, from a graffiti wall at St. John's University in Minnesota:  "Jesus said, 'Who do you say that I am?" And they replied, 'You are the eschatological manifestation of the ground of our being, the 'kerygma' in which we find the ultimate meaning of our interpersonal relationships.' And Jesus said, 'What?'"

As grace flows through our hearts, may it also flow out in kind, thoughtful, interesting words that express the Gospel in a way that intrigues, cares, and reaches the hearts of people. That kind of conversation is never boring.

If you ever find yourself on the receiving end of a confusing or even hostile theological discussion or debate, please remember this: the Bible is rich with philosophy, history, poetry, and deep, sometimes mysterious, spiritual truths. But in the end, it is God's Word and it is accessible to people of all levels of intellect, age, race, or cultural background. Its ultimate message has been sung by countless children throughout the ages: "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so."


"Christ said, 'Feed my sheep... Feed My Lambs.' Some preachers, however, put the food so high that neither lambs nor sheep can reach it. They seem to have read the text, 'Feed my giraffes.'"—Charles Spurgeon


March 7
Colossian 4:12-13
“Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you...”

 “Wrestling” in prayer describes a man who cares, as the word wrestling comes from our word for “agony.” Epraphras isn’t one of the better-known first century Christians, but he deserved special mention here, as one of the caring, hard working friends of Paul.
When you are walking closely with the Lord and serving other people in His name, it can be emotionally risky.  You develop something of His heart for others, which naturally translates into deep concern and caring, and being drawn into others’ lives in a personal, way, rather than just sitting on the sidelines watching.

“To be a true minister to men is to accept new happiness and new distress,” wrote Pastor Phillip Brooks. “The man who give himself to other men can never be a wholly sad man; but no more can he be a man of unclouded gladness.  To him shall come with every deeper consecration a before untasted joy, but in the same cup shall be mixed sorrow that was beyond his power to feel before.”

God will enlarge our hearts to love more people, to care more, to serve more.  But some of us prefer the safety of a small heart, because it minimizes the sorrow in life.  If your ambition is to avoid trouble, the formula is simple:  minimize entangling relationships. Don’t get too involved with people or give too much of yourself, and avoid trying to have an impact on the world.  You just might avoid a multitude of afflictions and protect that shrinking heart.

Or, you can allow God to enlarge your heart and trust Him with the consequences!  You can open yourself to others, serve, love, be available, and “wrestle in prayer” like our friend Epaphras.  But I should warn you – you will become vulnerable to a host of sorrows scarcely imaginable to a shriveled heart.  You will care more than you want at times, and you will open yourself to feeling others’ pain.  But I believe you will also experience deeper, more satisfying joy than a shriveled heart can imagine!

You can live your life hiding behind grand ideas and religious thoughts, or you can truly experience the love of God joyously flowing into and through your life as you abandon our life to Him and open yourself to others, even “wrestling” for their well-being.  It just might be the difference between living  too carefully, and being truly alive.

March 8
Psalm 40:11
“Do not withhold Your tender mercies from me, O Lord; Let Your lovingkindness and Your truth continually preserve me.”


Thomas Hooker, the English preacher who came to the new world and eventually founded the state of Connecticut, lay dying.  Gathered around him were well-meaning friends who sought to comfort him. “You are going now to your reward,” they said.  The old preacher responded, “I go to receive mercy.”

Mercy rescues us. If we were held accountable for our sins, heaven would be far away and unreachable.  But God is good.  He gives us love, joy, forgiveness through the Holy Spirit.  He shows us the way to a life of adventure and discovery through faith.  He gives us prophecy to understand the future.  He gives us prayer as a source of power.  And He gives us eternal life.

Mercy is the bonus; like the fragrance of a flower, the caring touch of a loved one, there is this quality of love that marks all of God’s good works; it is mercy—tender mercy.  Undeserved favor, which can’t be earned. We can only receive it.

Death or life.  We have a choice:

“God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

I pray that you choose life.  When you reach the end of your days on earth, I hope that you will know, without a doubt, that you will receive the mercies of God.

Even believers have days of doubt.  If you feel far away from God, or you know that you don’t have a personal relationship with Him, then today can be a new beginning.  We can all be encouraged by the Scripture which promises, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the children of God...” (John 1:12).

Reach out to the Lord in prayer, ask Him to forgive your sins, and acknowledge Him as your heavenly Father.  Then you will know what it means to live under the protective arm of God’s tender mercy.

March 9
Psalm 145:9
“The Lord is good to all, And His tender mercies are over all His works.”

He had betrayed his best friend.  Badly.  Again and again.  The exact thing he had promised not to do, he did, before he could stop himself.

He watched his friend paraded through town, an object of scorn, ridiculed, and falsely accused.  Rather than stand up, as he had so gallantly promised, Peter crumbled in fear and confusion.
“No, I don’t know Him,” he said. 

Three times Peter denied knowing Jesus.  Three times he turned away from his closest friend.

Now he was drowning in guilt.  It must have been hard to think, to reason, to breathe.  What bitter remorse and regret Peter must have felt!  He had abandoned Jesus in His most desperate hour.  And the look Jesus gave him just before dawn, just before He went to His death—it would haunt Peter forever.

But skip ahead now to the end of the Gospels, after the Resurrection.  Jesus’ suffering is over. He is walking on the seashore in search of His friends.  Who did He specifically seek out?  Peter! They had unfinished business. But it was not retribution, not punishment nor rebuke that Jesus intended.  It was mercy.  Tender mercy.

As they shared breakfast on the seashore, Jesus did more than forgive Peter.  He gave him the chance to make things right.  Peter denied Jesus three times.  Jesus gave him three chances to declare his loyalty and love (John 21).

Then Jesus went a step further. He gave Peter a purpose and direction for his life. He challenged Peter with a commission, which Peter fulfilled until his death, and which ultimately changed the world.

“Feed My sheep,” Jesus said, giving Peter a job.  “Follow Me,” He told him, which Peter did for the rest of his life.

The Lord not only has mercy for us, but He is good to us.  His mercies are tender, loving, and kind. Just as He gave Peter a purpose, the Lord has such plans for good for each of us.

Throughout my personal life and ministry, I have been moved and motivated by the deep and abiding love and mercy of God.  Over all of His good works, God’s tender mercies abide, and that is what makes everything else possible.

March 10
Revelation 2:1-4
“I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.  Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.”

All that good work, and Jesus has something against us?  This Scripture spells out the Lord’s priorities pretty clearly.  We can do it all, everything a Christian should do, but if we have lost that love, that relationship with the Lord, He holds it against us.

God once said to Israel, “I remember you, the love you had for Me when you followed me in the wilderness” (Jeremiah 2:2).  What the Lord has always desired is an intimate, love relationship with His people.  That hasn’t changed. 

The Christian life is meant to be one of falling in love with Jesus —because He first loved us. But in this distracting, busy world, we lose that love.  Jesus gave us the solution in the very next verse after today’s Scripture:   “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works...” (Revelation 2:5).

Take the time today to REMEMBER where you were before you committed your life to the Lord.  Remember what He has done for you, how He rescued you and provided for you.  Remember the joy of discovering eternal life!  Remember the truths that made your heart excited, grateful, and more tender toward others.  Remember the joy of knowing that Jesus loves me.

March 12
Colossians 3:12
"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience."

Chosen, holy and dearly loved...that's who we are to our heavenly Father. And like any good father, He takes care of us—and in this case, He is providing our "wardrobe" for life.

Everyday you choose what to wear to clothe your physical body. But God, who is more concerned about our relationships with other people and with Him, has designed an "inner" wardrobe for which He recommends five important pieces:

HUMILITY—The ancient world did not much respect humility, so this was a pretty radical recommendation. Instead, they admired pride and domination. The humility that we can find in Jesus is not thinking poorly of oneself, but rather having the proper estimate of who you are, and thinking of others more.

GENTLENESS (also called meekness)—Meekness is not weakness; it is power under control. This word is used to describe a soothing wind, a healing medicine, a colt that has been broken. Someone who blesses others through quiet strength.

PATIENCE (or longsuffering)—Long suffering literally means "long temper." It is fine to get angry for the right reasons, for it can be a trait of holy character. But short temper out of control is not holy. We need to be understanding and merciful with each other! We're all human!

FORGIVENESS—This world is really a very unforgiving place. To be like Jesus is to be forgiving, to show mercy to people who wrong us, to love them even when they hurt us. Forgiveness opens our hearts to the fullness of God's love!

LOVE—True love is a heart melted in genuine compassion for others, mingled with the actions that demonstrate the love in our hearts. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 13, "the greatest of these is love."

Everyday, we can make a conscious decision to "clothe" ourselves in the Lord, and to ask Him to design who we are, and how we will interact with other people. For all the hours we spend shopping for and peparing our outward clothes, I pray that we will see our inner wardrobe as an even higher priority.


March13
Colossians 3:15
“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.”

“Emotionally healthy people understand the limits God has given them.  They joyfully receive the one, two, seven, or ten talents God has so graciously distributed.  As a result they are not frenzied and covetous, trying to live a life God never intended,” writes Peter Scazzero.1

We are called to peace the apostle Paul wrote. But it’s a call we don’t always answer. Often our source of discontentment is simply not being in the will of God.

The word “rule” in our Scripture is translated from an athletic term, meaning “umpire.”  Peace is supposed to “umpire” our hearts, guiding our decisions and instincts.  When we lose our inner peace, we often go off in directions outside the will of God, trying, as Peter Scazzero noted, to live a life God never intended for us. 

Then to compensate for that lack of peace, we try unhealthy and often destructive behaviors, trying to ESCAPE.  But we can’t escape from ourselves.  The healthiest, most peace producing thing we can do is turn to God, confess and repent for the sins we know we have committed in the guise of trying to do and have it all, and believe in His forgiveness. 

Then start accepting you as God made you. Look at Jesus as your example.  He had a specific mission, a specific, God-ordained purpose.  He didn’t travel the world, gather more than 12 disciples, nor did He minister personally to everyone around Him. Yet, at the end of His life, He prayed, “I have finished the work which You have given Me to do”  (John 17:4). 

Live in God’s will, let peace rule your heart—then thank Him for all He has given you.  It’s a much healthier way to live!

1. Scazzero, Peter, The Emotionally Healthy Church, Zondervan, Grand Rapids Michigan, 2003, p. 132


March 14
Colossians 3: 23-24
“And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”

Alarms, traffic, coffee to get you going... demanding people and pressured deadlines. Or piles of housework, paper work, and in some cases, life altering situations that people depend upon you to facilitate.  Work is hard—even if you like what you do!

When you are a Christian, there is a work ethic to which we are called—and it is simply to do the very best we can, no matter where we work, whom we work for, or what we do. Even if the work seems tedious, menial or below your skill levels, if that is where you find yourself at this moment in time, we are called to “work heartily”—give it your best. If you feel unappreciated, or deal with difficult people, be patient, set a good example, and know God has you there for a reason—to be a light in what might be a dark world for some people. “A dairy maid can milk cows to the glory of God,” said Martin Luther.

As Christians we are working for the Lord, not just a boss.  Work hard whether the boss is watching or not, be honest, encourage co-workers, and remember, your Boss in heaven is watching and will reward you in His time and manner.

C.S. Lewis was one of the most qualified candidates at Oxford for a professorship position, but for years he was overlooked while others less qualified were promoted above him.  But years later, I doubt if many of us know the names of those other candidates, but the whole word has heard of Narnia and many of Lewis’ other accomplishments. More importantly, his writing has encouraged and inspired millions of people in the Lord.

“He who labors as he prays lifts his heart to God with his hands.” —St. Bernard of Clairvaux, 1130.


March 15
RUN!
Jonah 1:1-3
"The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 'Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.' But Jonah ran away from the Lord..."

Believe it or not, sometimes running away from the Lord is the first step toward obedience. Jonah was faced with a daunting task, which he resented and had no desire to accomplish. Not feeling quite gutsy enough to just say no to God, he booked a passage on a ship and tried to get out of the way, perhaps hoping God would forget? Out of sight out of mind?

Jonah's escapades remind me of Moses. In an amazing, miraculous encounter, God spoke to Moses in a burning bush. Moses took off his shoes, recognizing that he stood on holy ground, heard God's plans for his life – and then began second guessing the wisdom of God in choosing him as the deliverer of His people. He wanted to run away.

If you aren't familiar with what happened to Jonah when he set out sea and ended up in the belly of a whale, you can read the rest of his story in the book of Jonah in the Old Testament. But the point, is, I think God sometimes deliberately chooses people who will run at first, because He knows He will meet them wherever they go.

We all run at times, only to discover as David the Psalmist did, that we cannot run from God, and indeed, when we are found, we are glad.

"Where can I go from your Spirit?" David asked. "Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in the depths, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast" (Psalm 1397-10).

David expresses what Jonah experienced, what Moses discovered, what each of us will learn as we walk with God. We can run, but He will there, out of love, helping us to fulfill our gifts and talents and answer His call upon our lives.

Some people just don't discover what is best for them until they try to run away and find that God is a God of pursuing love.


March 16
Storms
Jonah 1:4
“Then the Lord sent a great wind on the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship threatened to break up.”

If you read yesterday’s devotion, you know that Jonah tried to run away from God.  He didn’t want to listen, obey, or have anything to do with God’s plan.

But God loved Jonah too much to let him run off in the wrong direction. While Jonah was sailing as far away as he could manage, a huge storm threatened his ship, frightening the seasoned sailors, who went to work immediately as they fervently prayed to their gods.  Where was Jonah?  Asleep. Sometimes people try to escape God by going to sleep.

Jonah, the Jew, one of God’s chosen people, demonstrated less character than the so-called “pagan” sailors.  Even after Jonah confessed that he was most likely the problem, that he was running away from God and this storm was God’s way of getting his attention—even then, he didn’t pray, like the sailors did.  He just gave up and said, “throw me into the sea.”  Jonah found it easier to die than to obey the Lord!

You may think that absurd, but don’t we often live our lives like Jonah, perhaps on a less dramatic scale?  We believe the lie Satan feeds us, that we might as well give up.  We can’t or don’t want to accomplish what God has called us to do, so we run, we sleep, we escape, and then when circumstances feel threatening or impossible, we give in to self destruction, in some manner or form.

When the ship’s crew finally threw him overboard, God could have let Jonah drown and found someone else to do his job.   But God spared his life, because He loved him too much to let him go.

The men and women God calls often wrestle with doubt, fear or resistance to the task.  But the Lord never allows his children to sin successfully by disobeying Him.  When the storms of life come—and they will— they are often God’s way of reminding us that He will be with us, that we don’t need to run.  Through His strength, His Spirit, and His presence, we can surrender our pride, our fears and prejudices, and allow Him to use us and bless us.

“To take all that we are and have and hand it over to God may not be easy; but it can be done, and when it is done, the world has in it one less candidate for misery.” —Rev. Paul E. Scherer

your comments and feedback:  media@maranathachapel.org

March 17
PRAYING IN HELL
Jonah 2:1-7

"I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction, and He answered me. Out of the belly of Sheol I cried... When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord; and my prayer went up to You..."

When you're in hell, it's time to pray. It's not too late, when you're in the kind of hell Jonah fell into.

Jonah was a very stubborn man. Look what it took for him to finally bend his pride and cry out to the Lord. Thrown over a ship into a raging sea, swallowed and churned about inside the hot, burning insides of a sea creature, he felt like he had landed in hell. "Out of the belly of hell I cried," he said.

When your life feels like you're in hell, don't be afraid to pray. Don't think you are too far gone, too far away, too miserable, too sinful...too anything to cry out to the Lord. It is usually from this very dark and desperate place that our prayers take on real meaning, becoming more passionate and sincere.

Don't be like Jonah and wait to reach such extreme depths.  He had run so hard away from God, trying to avoid facing Him, that even in the midst of such horrible conditions, he held back. Finally, he said, "When my life was slipping away, I remembered God" (NLT).

God answered Jonah, just as He will answer you, even if you find yourself in the depths of hell. God pursues us, even when we choose to go our own foolish ways. "If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there," wrote King David (Psalm 139). He will never leave us nor forsake us.


"I was like a stone lying in deep mire, and He that is mighty came and in His mercy raised me up and, indeed, lifted me high up and placed me on top of the wall. And from there I ought to shout out in gratitude to the Lord for His great favours..." —St. Patrick, from the "Confession of Saint Patrick"— 450 A.D.

your comments and feedback: media@maranathachapel.org


March 19
ANGRY ENOUGH TO DIE
Jonah 4:9
“God said to Jonah, "Do you have a right to be angry...?" "I do," he said. "I am angry enough to die."

Jonah had serious mental and emotional problems.  If you read through the short book of Jonah in the Old Testament, you’ll see how he ran from God, defied God, resisted God, miraculously survived a storm at sea and being swallowed by a giant fish —and still he couldn’t bring himself to have a healthy relationship with the Lord or anyone else. 

Like the patient, loving Father He is, God finally persuaded Jonah to obey – to go to the wicked city of Ninevah and preach repentance – and behold! The people listened, repented, and an entire city was saved!  Jonah succeeded in his mission!  If he was around today we would probably hail him as a great preacher, prophet, and reformer.

Was he happy?   No.  He was mad.  He resented God’s grace towards these “wicked people.”  He just didn’t get it.  So he pouted and brooded himself into a depressed and suicidal state.

God could have said, “Mission accomplished,” and moved on.  But the reality was, God had more trouble with Jonah than He did with the whole wicked city of Ninevah.  Jonah accomplished a great feat, but his heart was all wrong.  And God knew that, “For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).  And the Lord was as interested in saving this one surly, difficult servant as He was in saving a whole city.

The Lord took the time to listen to Jonah, to answer his questions, and to remind him of His love and grace.  He taught Jonah the meaning of love.  Jonah felt angry enough with God to die, but he ended up in what was probably one of the most meaningful and significant counseling sessions ever recorded.  He learned that God does indeed care more for what is going on inside of us, than what we accomplish in the eyes of the world.

Most historic experts agree that Jonah himself wrote this book.  He portrayed himself honestly as a defiant, resentful, angry man who struggled to obey God, even in the face of great success, depression, and confusion.  But in the end, he learned the depth of God’s forgiveness and compassion, and recorded his story for all posterity.  

If you see yourself in Jonah—if you have succeeded in accomplishing good works, but you know your heart is still not right, then be encouraged, God will not let you go.  He loved Jonah enough to stay with him, teach him and encourage him, and He will do the same for you.


March 20
Time Out
Hosea 1:10
“Yet the time will come when Israel will prosper and become a great nation. In that day its people will be like the sands of the seashore too many to count! Then, at the place where they were told, ‘You are not my people,' it will be said, 'You are children of the living God'”(NLT).

The verse above reminds me of a time out—the kind we dole out to kids when they misbehave.  They’ve disobeyed in some way and need to be separated from everyone else for a while.  Even if the child cries, “You don’t love me!”  the parent knows that this is best and that love is not the issue.  The parent never stops loving the child, but a disobedient child needs to be removed from the situation for a while.

That’s what God did with the children of Israel. God removed them, pronouncing, “You are not my people.” You cannot be My people and behave this way. You cannot continue to run from Me, hurt one another, and allow evil into your lives, and be My people.

But in the very next breath, in the same place where He rebuked them, He also assured them, “You are the children of the living God.”  You will always be My children, whom I love, and in whom I will build a future nation. 

Have you ever been wounded so deeply in an area of your life, that you feel like you’ll never recover – and indeed, you‘d like to avoid being in that difficult place ever again?

The very place in which we are wounded, the site of the deepest pain, can also be where the most precious and life changing lessons are learned; where God finally gets our attention and draws us into intimate fellowship.  We might be separated for a time from Him and His people.  But He never stops loving us, and He wants to give us a chance to start anew.

“Come now, let us argue this out," says the LORD. "No matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can remove it. I can make you as clean as freshly fallen snow. Even if you are stained as red as crimson, I can make you as white as wool.” — Isaiah 1:18 (NLT)
 


March 21
Hosea 2: 7-9
“She will chase her lovers, but not overtake them; yes, she will seek them, but not find them. Then she will say, 'I will go and return to my first husband, for then it was better for me than now.' For she did not know that I gave her grain, new wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold-- which they prepared for Baal. Therefore I will return and take away My grain in its time and My new wine in its season, and will take back My wool and My linen, given to cover her nakedness...”

“Our backsliding is great; we have sinned against you" (Jeremiah 14:7).

There’s nothing more miserable than a backslidden believer.  To have once been close to God, to have loved God, and walked with Him, experiencing new and exciting life and insights—then to allow sin to pull you away and darken your hearten, is to be in a backslidden state.

Throughout Scripture, backsliding is treated seriously.  In the book of Hosea, God likens it to committing adultery, and portrays Himself as the heartbroken husband while His wife prostitutes herself to false lovers—until He withholds His blessings of grain, wine, silver, gold, wool, and linen, which represent abundant care, provision and love.   “She did not know,” He says...she did not stop to think of where all these riches came from, who provided them, who protected her, fed and clothed he —until it all stopped and she finds herself naked and alone in the world.

Backsliding is not only sinning. We all sin and can repent and be forgiven, because our hearts are sensitive to the conviction of the Holy Spirit.  Backsliding is a coldness of heart, a loss of love. A state where sin takes precedence over your relationship with the Lord, and you lose the joy of your salvation, and find yourself like the adulterous wife in Hosea, alone and naked.  Or, like the prodigal son of the New Testament, living
in a pig sty.  Backsliding has consequences.

But the good news is, that God will pursue you like a relentless lover, longing to bless you once again.

March 22
Psalm 52:8
“I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing love for ever and ever.”

I’d like to introduce you to someone who has been a tremendous influence on me.  He’s a character, who once admitted, “I was ashamed to be less scandalous than my peers.”  He was a questioner and searcher who navigated through the rough waters of life, alternatively running from the truth, denying the truth and finally, relentlessly seeking the truth. 
 
He’s now referred to by title as “Saint,” but I tend to think of him as my friend Augustine.

He’s been dead for more than a few centuries.  But the tales he left behind, the insight, and the soul-baring story he shared with the world, have impacted my life and ministry in a profound, unforgettable manner. 
Augustine’s story, aptly titled “Confessions,” is refreshingly honest —probably more so than I will ever be.  He has been described by fans and historians as  “a great sinner who became a great saint.”

Born in 354 A.D., the son of a poor, pagan freeman and a devout Christian mother, Augustine was unusually intelligent. Shoving aside his mother’s prayers, he spent his adolescence in rebellion, exploring sexual pleasure and running with a gang. 
Eventually, an intense struggle plagued his life as he wrestled with his intellect, his mother’s prayers, and his spiritual hunger to find the truth. 

The “Confessions” are the story of that struggle and his ultimate passion for God, which he finally expressed so eloquently:  “I love you Lord, not doubtingly, but with absolute certainty. Your Word beat upon my heart until I fell in love with you, and now the universe and everything in it tells me to love you, and tells the same thing to all of us, so that we are without excuse.”


Augustine taught me that no matter where we are in life, no matter what we’ve done or how far we’ve strayed, it is never too late to come to the Lord and surrender our hearts and wills to His love and mercy. 
 
“I came to love you late, O Beauty so ancient and so new,” he wrote.  “I came to love you late.  You were within me and I was outside, where I rushed about wildly searching for you like some monster loose in your beautiful world.  You called me, you shouted to me, you broke past my deafness.  You bathed me in your light, wrapped me in your splendor…you touched me and I burned to know your peace.”
 
1

May we all long to know His peace with such fervor!


1. Wirt, Sherwood, translator. “The Confessions of St. Augustine in Modern English (Grand rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing), p. 125.

March 23
Hosea 2: 14-15
“Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.”

Hosea the prophet married a prostitute who betrayed him by selling herself back into prostitution, even after bearing him three children. The Lord told Hosea to buy her back, and to love her—and He taught him how, by His own example.

The Lord led His people out into the wilderness—to punish them for their grievous backsliding?  To strand them in the desert to die for betraying Him?   No, to “allure” His beloved. 

The word “allure” implies a healthy, passionate love, for true love is no less ravishing than false infatuation. In fact, it more so.  The desert, where we are led, and the Valley of Achor, where we too often reside, represent the wilderness of loneliness and affliction, and the valley of deep sorrow.  Perhaps it is only in these places that we can hear the tender mercies of God. 

Like the children of Israel, like Hosea’s wife, we forget who loves us in the glitter of prosperity and the distractions of the world.  So the Lord led His faithless love into the desert, away from everything, where nothing else could distract, to speak tenderly, and to remind her of His love. He allowed her to walk through the valley of sorrow to a place of hope, where He would heal her afflictions and grief.

Is God dealing with you through affliction? Has He led you to a desert? Do you feel humbled and stripped for the moment of the comfort and blessings you once enjoyed from Him?
He promises to restore the vineyards, meaning the physical blessing.  He will give you hope in the midst of sorrow.  And He will see you singing again in youthful joy. 
God sent Hosea to find his wife and love her back, and that is exactly what He does for us: pursue us, and love us back into His blessings.  He doesn’t give up on us!

"God will find us, and bless us, even when we feel most alone...God will find a way to let us know He is with us, in this place, wherever we are, however far we've run. And maybe that's one reason we worship—to respond to His grace...and to be delighted because God has called us His own." —Kathleen Norris

“Grace is getting another chance even though you haven’t earned it or deserve it. (You may not even want it!)—Fritz Ridenour

March 24
Hosea 11
When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son...It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; but they did not realize it was I who healed them. I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love; I lifted the yoke from their neck and bent down to feed them. ... How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? ... My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused.”

Much of my upbringing in the Church taught me to ignore emotion.  We are often told not to go by feelings.  And yet, in this remarkable passage of Scripture, we get a glimpse into the compassionate, emotional heart of God. He allows us to see into the inner recesses of His heart, and know the deep feelings he has for His children.

But people are a little afraid of emotion, like it’s not spiritually correct. John Calvin worried about any suggestion that God has feelings and even wrote in his commentary on Hosea, “For it must ever be remembered, that God is exempt from every passion.”  While I respect Calvin, I disagree with him on this point.  Hosea, and indeed many portions of Scripture show us a God filled with deep emotion and feelings of love. Jesus, God incarante, lived a life full of rich emotions,  He loved, He knew sorrow, He wept openly, and expressed his righteous anger.  Since we are made in His image, we too have deep emotions and feelings.

“Ignoring our emotions is turning our back on reality...in neglecting our intense emotions, we are false to ourselves and lose a wonderful opportunity to know God.  We forget that change comes through brutal honesty and vulnerability before God,” writes Dan Allender and Tremper Longman in “The Cry of the Soul.”

God brought His people to place where their emotions and true feelings were exposed.  Where they are forced to acknowledge their sin and their betrayal of Him, then face His unchanging, pursuing love.  Once we are honest about our feelings, they can be submitted to eh transforming pwoer of the Holy Sprit, who desires for our emotions to be rooted in His love, reflecting the fruits of His spirit in healthy, healing ways.

March 26
Hosea 12:2-6
"In the womb, that heel, Jacob, got the best of his brother. When he grew up, he tried to get the best of God. But God would not be bested. God bested him. Brought to his knees, Jacob wept and prayed. God found him at Bethel. That's where He spoke with him. God is God-of-the-Angel-Armies, God-Revealed, God-Known. What are you waiting for? Return to your God! Commit yourself in love, in justice! Wait for your God, and don't give up on Him - ever!" (The Message)

Abraham may be the father of the Jewish nation, but Jacob, who became Israel, built the twelve tribes. And Jacob was a character.  His story is about how a very stubborn, self-reliant human being is transformed into the founder of a nation chosen by God.  His story is one of the most profound examples of unmerited grace in Scripture. Even Hosea felt compelled to refer to Jacob’s sins, and ultimate humility.

Jacob, that conniver, deceived his father and cheated his brother out of an inheritance.  In fear of his brother’s wrath, he fled his homeland.  God found him asleep, alone in open country.  Did he punish Jacob?  No, instead He gave him a vision for the future and blessed him.

 “It gives me hope,” writes Kathleen Norris, “that when God gazed on the sleeping Jacob, He looked right through the tough little schemer and saw something good, if only the capacity for awe, for recognizing God, and for worshipping.  That Jacob will worship badly, trying to bargain with God, doesn’t seem to matter.  God promises to with him always.”1

Later Jacob was forced to wrestle with an angel, until he was physically hurt.  When he couldn’t defend himself any longer, he finally let go and surrendered, crying out for a blessing.  It was in this moment of raw, emotional, painful honesty that the Lord’s blessing was poured upon him.

There will always be emotional pain when we surrender our pride, self-reliance, plans, gifts, and resources to God.  It is hard for us to give it up!  But of course the truth is, God is always in control – He’s just waiting for us to realize it and surrender to His blessings. 

Jacob thought that it was his own planning, scheming, talent, and brilliance that made him succeed.  But he learned, the moment he gave up control and surrendered to God’s blessing, that now it was amazing grace that guided and blessed his life.

“Return to your God,” Hosea implored, which is what Jacob did, over and over again.

1.    Norris, Kathleen,  “Amazing Grace,” (Riverhead Books, New York, 1998), p. 151

March 27
Hosea 13: 4-6
"I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from your slavery in Egypt. You have no God but me, for there is no other savior. I took care of you in the wilderness, in that dry and thirsty land. But when you had eaten and were satisfied, then you became proud and forgot me.”


Is this the story of your life?  It was certainly the story of Israel—and if we’re honest, I think we can all admit to this cycle of desperately needing the Lord, then once we are safe, full, and satisfied, we forget.  And sadly, in forgetting, we fall into sin.

The Lord rescued us from slavery and desires to set us free —and keep us free. It breaks His heart to see us slip back into bondage to things that will harm our lives and cause us to hurt those we love. This kind of prideful sin drags us into pain and suffering, and the enemy is only happy to help.

But God sees your misery, hears your crying and cares about your suffering. His desire is to free you from bondage. Whatever has enslaved you: drug addiction, cigarettes, pornography, food, alcohol, sexual sin, adultery, or a hard heart, Jesus came down from heaven to free you from the bondage that controls your life.

God was with you in the wilderness, those times in your life when you felt alone, lost and afraid.  His complaint against the children of Israel is not their human frailties or weaknesses.  He can deal with that.  It’s that they became proud and forgot.  They forgot who rescued them who loves them, who set them on the right path.  And because they forgot, they will fall into sin again and start the whole cycle over.

But the cycle can be broken with one moment of sincere surrender, of swallowed pride, and abandoning oneself to the love of God.  He never turns away a repentant sinner.  He never fails to welcome home a prodigal son, daughter, or nation.  All He asks is that we will remember.

“And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’ Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.’” —Luke 22:19-20

March 28, 2007
Hosea 14:4
I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, For My anger has turned away from him. I will be like the dew to Israel; He shall grow like the lily, And lengthen his roots like Lebanon. His branches shall spread; His beauty shall be like an olive tree, And his fragrance like Lebanon. Those who dwell under his shadow shall return; They shall be revived like grain, And grow like a vine. Their scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

God doesn’t just forgive us when we repent.  He blesses us.  He loves us “freely.”  We make a mess of our lives. We come to God in sincere repentance, sorry for our stupidity and sin, and He heals and blesses us.  That’s the way it works.  That’s amazing grace.

When the children of Israel finally turned their backs on idols, finally realized who truly loved them, they repented.  And God “healed their backsliding.”  His anger melted into love. 

Out of love He blessed them with a fresh anointing, evidenced by dew, flowers, fragrance, beauty, and shade.  A chance to be revived, and to be nourished back to health and beauty.  When someone knocks around in the world, giving themselves away to false gods and sin, they need that refreshing and an opportunity to be renewed.

He also gave them a new sense of stability.  Nothing makes us feel more insecure and unsure of our place in the world than sin.  One of Satan’s best tactics is to lure us into unhealthy situations, then strip away our sense of security and love.  God longs restores us to people who are emotionally healthy and secure in His love.

“They shall be revived like grain, and grow like a vine…like the wine of Lebanon.”  Once we are healed and secure, God gives us new growth, and helps our lives bear fruit that is rich and scented like new wine.  Our gifts and talents will blossom and bless others.  His love will be reflected in our lives!

What a beautiful picture of the heart of God!  His desire to nurture, love, care for and help us grow richly are all expressed beautifully and with such emotion!  How can we not love a God who loves us so much?

“Let not a repentant sinner imagine that he is remote from the estate of the righteous because of the sins and misdeeds he has done.  This is not true, for he is beloved and precious to God as if he never sinned.”  —Malmonides, Mishneh Torah, 1170 A.D.

March 29
Deuteronomy 32: 10-11
"In a desert land He found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; He guarded him as the apple of His eye, like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them on its pinions."

A mother eagle builds her nest on top of a mountain, usually on an unreachable crag jutting out of a cliff that oversees a chasm, thousands of feet below.

After the eagle builds a sturdy, safe nest, she feathers it. She cushions it for her babies to make it comfortable and cozy. When her eagles are hatched, she spends the first weeks feeding them, sheltering them, keeping them nestled and safe.

In this happy setting, they grow fat and strong. Soon they're wrestling around in the nest, elbowing each other for room, fighting to be first at the food. Wise mom knows it is time to disturb the nest.

Little by little, she starts pulling out the soft and cushy things. The eaglets must wonder, "What's with Mom?" as their nest begins to prickle and poke them. It's not so comfortable anymore. So, they start working their way up from the bottom of the nest, trying to get away from mom's antics, until they find themselves near the edge.

Wow! What a big world out there! They peek out at the horizon. It looks interesting, so they venture a little higher until they are perched right on the edge. Suddenly Mom comes up from behind, thrusts out her strong beak and pushes one little eaglet over the edge.

Well, at this point our little hero is convinced that mom is crazy. He's falling and falling, apparently plunging to his death. Fighting the currents in the wind, vainly flapping his baby wings, tumbling around out there in the middle of the air, scared to death.

Then, right before he hits bottom, Mom swoops down with her big powerful wings and catches him, carrying him up, up, up back to the safety of the nest—until next time.

Over and over the eaglet tries to escape the new thorniness and prickliness of his nest. As he climbs toward the perch, mom sneaks up once again and pushes him out, and again he falls. Each time, she catches him, but she knows that one day she won't need to. Each time he falls, his flapping at the wind gets stronger and more sure. Finally the day comes when he is capable of flying on his own, soaring on the wind and learning to navigate by himself.

And do you know how eagles navigate? By the sun. They look to the light for their guidance.

Oh how we hate to have our nests disturbed! But do you know what happens to the eaglets if they are allowed stay as they are? They get so fat that they can't leave, and they die.

God knows when it's time for us to learn to fly. Often it's painful and scary. We are comfortable—and God stirs the nest. But even if we feel like we are fall