I woke up early this morning with two little words haunting me - stir up. Interesting, don't you think? I did, too, so I decided that was God's way of telling me I needed to get up, shake off the sleepy and write something. I sat down with my Bible and decided to look up that phrase. You won't believe what I found. (Okay, so maybe you will!)
The phrase "stir up" is used over and over again in Scripture. In my Bible's concordance (which is not exhaustive), "stir up" is mentioned 11 times about all different kinds of things - wrath, hatred, grevious words, unbelief, agitators, kings, generosity, repentance, ministry, memory - quite a mixture, huh?
One of the most familiar passages to me is Proverbs 15:1 which says, "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." That description of stirring up something is not so flattering. It kinda makes me think of stirring up an antbed - ouch. But there are other places in the Bible where stirring up something IS a good thing. Hebrews 10:24 tells us to "stir up one another to love and good works." You and I are supposed to motivate, encourage, stimulate, provoke, and incite other Believers to love one another and do good works for Christ.
In a practical sense, how does that happen? How do we do stir one another up? Well, in order for any of this to happen, we've got to be together. Get this - we should actually go to church - not just for our own benefit, but for the benefit of others. Let me make that statement again - we should go to church not just for our own benefit, but for the benefit of others. The sentence that began in Heb. 10:24, continues in 10:25: "not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." How can we, as Believers, follow the command of Christ to motivate and encourage one another IN the Body of Christ, if we never are WITH the Body of Christ? Hmmm...
Another way to stir up one another to love and do good works is to simply use words. When you see someone doing something well, tell them they did a good job. When you see the potential in someone to fulfill a need in the Body of Christ, tell them you think they'd be great for that particular area of service. When you see someone respond well in a bad situation, tell them you're proud of them and that they honored Christ with their response.
And words aren't the only way - smiles, hugs, cards, - okay, is your mind teeming with ideas yet? There are so many Christians who just need a little "something" to get them going or keep them going. Why don't you and I decide today to be a part of God giving them that little "stir."
And don't just wait until the opportunity presents itself to be an encourager. The first part of Hebrews 10:24 says to "consider one another." We're supposed to be proactive in thinking of ways we can be an encourager to our brothers and sisters in Christ, even before the opportunity to do so, arises.
With all this in mind, let me start my day by encouraging you. You are loved wholly and completely. Nothing you have ever done or will ever do can change the way God loves you. You are beautiful in the eyes of the Father. You are His treasure...His friend...His child. He created you for a specific purpose, and will fulfill that purpose in you. You are His glory here on earth. He's crazy about you.
Now, it's your turn.
Help us, Lord to do a better job of this. Help us to think of ways we can "stir up" one another to love and good works...and then do them. Open our eyes to see those who need encouragement today and thank You for the privilege of being Your arms and hands and mouth to those around us here on this earth. May we serve You well. Thank You, Jesus. Thank You.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Monday, August 15, 2011
He is Good, Regardless
There's a particular line in a song that's been playing over and over in my head since last night:
You are good. Lord, You are good. And I am in wonder how could it be? Lord, You are good. You are so good. In so many ways You've been good to me. If suddenly it all were ended and the blessings disappeared. Looking back over a lifetime, the evidence is clear. It's so clear. You have been good.
God is indeed, good. Scripture says it repeatedly. The Psalmist says in Ps. 145:7-9, They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness,and shall sing of Your righteousness. The Lord is gracious and full of compassion. Slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are overall His works. And in Jeremiah 31:14, God testifies of His own goodness: "I will satiate the soul of the priests with abundance, and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness," says the Lord.
So, the question is - what happens to God's goodness when circumstances in our lives seem to point in a different direction? What happens to His goodness when loved ones die unexpectedly, when children suffer, when depression just won't go away? What happens to God's goodness then?
Nothing, absolutely nothing. He is good, regardless.
How do I know? How can I testify of His goodness? He's proven it to me. I remember a specific time in my life when everything around me seemed to scream, "God is not good! He is cruel!" During that time, I remember putting my kids down for their naps in the afternoon and burying my face in the carpet, begging God to show me His goodness, because I couldn't see it. I wanted proof of His goodness...of His love towards me. To make a long story short...He gave me the proof I needed. He showed me that He was good, regardless.
But don't just take it from me, take it from someone who seemingly had every right to believe in the "notgoodness" of God - Job. He lost everything. He lost his family, his possessions, his health, his friends, AND YET, when God finally spoke with Job in chapter 42, Job testified of - guess what - God's goodness:
I know that You can do everything and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, 'Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?' Therefore, I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know."
You would think that after everything he went through, Job would shake his fist at God and proclaim Him to be cruel. Yet, he testified that God's plans for his life were too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
Now, let me just go ahead and add here that I'm not saying God DID all of those things to Job just to make him suffer. The suffering came from Satan. You see, Satan told God that the only reason Job loved Him was because he was blessed. He was confident Job's faith would falter, if God would let him make Job's life miserable. God, being confident in His servant, allowed Satan to test Job. So, Satan made Job suffer - ultimately for our benefit. If Job's life had been one of ease and comfort, I doubt we would have ever heard much from him. And yet, his life of overcoming suffering speaks hope to our hearts, assuring us of the goodness of God.
But how do we make that real for us? How do we believe in the goodness of God in the midst of our own suffering? It's so simple, but so hard to do: trust Him. We've got to trust that God is good, no matter what our circumstances tell us. We've got to stay in His Word and on our faces before Him. We've got to speak those words back to Him in prayer - God, You are good, despite what my circumstances say, You are good. We've got to speak it out loud to ourselves. Walk around the house or the office or the grocery story - anywhere and everywhere the threat of doubt hits us, we've got to immediately replace those negative thoughts and say out loud (or whisper, if need be!!!), God, You are good, regardless.
Dear Lord, Satan would love to do nothing more than make us think that You are a liar and that we cannot trust Your Word. But the exact opposite is true. He is the liar, Lord. Deal with him and his lies to us. Thank You that You are good. We are living testimonies to that fact. Give us strength as we work it out in the midst of life, Lord. We thank You and praise You for the things You are doing that seem hard for us, for we know that You are working them altogether for our good. We praise You for Your goodness, Lord. We praise You.
You are good. Lord, You are good. And I am in wonder how could it be? Lord, You are good. You are so good. In so many ways You've been good to me. If suddenly it all were ended and the blessings disappeared. Looking back over a lifetime, the evidence is clear. It's so clear. You have been good.
God is indeed, good. Scripture says it repeatedly. The Psalmist says in Ps. 145:7-9, They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness,and shall sing of Your righteousness. The Lord is gracious and full of compassion. Slow to anger and great in mercy. The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are overall His works. And in Jeremiah 31:14, God testifies of His own goodness: "I will satiate the soul of the priests with abundance, and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness," says the Lord.
So, the question is - what happens to God's goodness when circumstances in our lives seem to point in a different direction? What happens to His goodness when loved ones die unexpectedly, when children suffer, when depression just won't go away? What happens to God's goodness then?
Nothing, absolutely nothing. He is good, regardless.
How do I know? How can I testify of His goodness? He's proven it to me. I remember a specific time in my life when everything around me seemed to scream, "God is not good! He is cruel!" During that time, I remember putting my kids down for their naps in the afternoon and burying my face in the carpet, begging God to show me His goodness, because I couldn't see it. I wanted proof of His goodness...of His love towards me. To make a long story short...He gave me the proof I needed. He showed me that He was good, regardless.
But don't just take it from me, take it from someone who seemingly had every right to believe in the "notgoodness" of God - Job. He lost everything. He lost his family, his possessions, his health, his friends, AND YET, when God finally spoke with Job in chapter 42, Job testified of - guess what - God's goodness:
I know that You can do everything and that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. You asked, 'Who is this who hides counsel without knowledge?' Therefore, I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know."
You would think that after everything he went through, Job would shake his fist at God and proclaim Him to be cruel. Yet, he testified that God's plans for his life were too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
Now, let me just go ahead and add here that I'm not saying God DID all of those things to Job just to make him suffer. The suffering came from Satan. You see, Satan told God that the only reason Job loved Him was because he was blessed. He was confident Job's faith would falter, if God would let him make Job's life miserable. God, being confident in His servant, allowed Satan to test Job. So, Satan made Job suffer - ultimately for our benefit. If Job's life had been one of ease and comfort, I doubt we would have ever heard much from him. And yet, his life of overcoming suffering speaks hope to our hearts, assuring us of the goodness of God.
But how do we make that real for us? How do we believe in the goodness of God in the midst of our own suffering? It's so simple, but so hard to do: trust Him. We've got to trust that God is good, no matter what our circumstances tell us. We've got to stay in His Word and on our faces before Him. We've got to speak those words back to Him in prayer - God, You are good, despite what my circumstances say, You are good. We've got to speak it out loud to ourselves. Walk around the house or the office or the grocery story - anywhere and everywhere the threat of doubt hits us, we've got to immediately replace those negative thoughts and say out loud (or whisper, if need be!!!), God, You are good, regardless.
Dear Lord, Satan would love to do nothing more than make us think that You are a liar and that we cannot trust Your Word. But the exact opposite is true. He is the liar, Lord. Deal with him and his lies to us. Thank You that You are good. We are living testimonies to that fact. Give us strength as we work it out in the midst of life, Lord. We thank You and praise You for the things You are doing that seem hard for us, for we know that You are working them altogether for our good. We praise You for Your goodness, Lord. We praise You.
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