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God is greater than this…. (devo reflection)

Malachi 1:2a “I have loved you,” says the Lord. “But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’

Malachi triggers a long held belief that you should not question or argue with God. Ironically, at this point in my faith journey, I no longer subscribe to the “Don’t question God” philosophy. I think what bothers me here is that it feels like almighty God is being lured into defending Himself, and that’s not ok.

Malachi 1:6a “A son honors his father, and a slave his master. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me?” says the Lord Almighty.

I can question God. I can be angry. I can wail and rail against the unfairness of a situation. But at the end of the day, I know God loves me, He loves my loved ones (He loves my enemies, too, for that matter), and at the end of the day, even though I don’t understand, I trust His love and His promises. This chapter of Malachi, where He seems to be arguing back and defending Himself, is too human a reaction for me. God is greater than this.

Malachi 1:6b “It is you priests who show contempt for my name.
“But you ask, ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?’

Lord, Thank You for the ability to immerse myself in Your word. Thank You for helping me try to untangle prejudices and preconceived notions from my own past. Help me, always, to draw closer to You. Amen.

Malachi 1:7 “By offering defiled food on my altar.“But you ask, ‘How have we defiled you?’ “By saying that the Lord’s table is contemptible.

Have a blessed day.

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On that day…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 14:1 A day of the Lord is coming, Jerusalem, when your possessions will be plundered and divided up within your very walls.

The repetition of the phrase “On that day,” repeated five times in chapter 14, really strikes me. Verse one tells what day is referenced—a day of the Lord that is coming—and the repetition, called anaphora for my fellow rhetoric nerds, keeps us centered on that day and all the things that spring from it.

Zechariah 14:4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south.

Romans 11:36 states, “For everything comes from him and exists by his power and is intended for his glory. All glory to him forever! Amen.” Jesus is a central pillar in my life, around which everything else is centered. Just like the repetition of “on that day” keeps us focused on the day in question, I want to remain focused on Jesus as my rock. I want to abide in Him. I want everything to center on Him.

Zechariah 14:6 On that day there will be neither sunlight nor cold, frosty darkness.

Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the understanding that You are my center. Help me to always stay centered on You, grounded in You. This world tries every day to wreck my focus, to distract me from Your purpose. Help me to stay rooted in You, no matter what. Amen.

Zechariah 14:8 On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it east to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter.

Have a blessed day.

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The Lord is our God…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 13:7 “Awake, sword, against my shepherd, against the man who is close to me!” declares the Lord Almighty. “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn my hand against the little ones.

The descriptors in this section are pretty terrifying: strike, scattered, struck down, perish, put in the fire. This is not a good time. This is, rather literally, a hellish description.

Zechariah 13:8 In the whole land,” declares the Lord, “two-thirds will be struck down and perish; yet one-third will be left in it.

But take a moment to read verse 9, split up here into a & b. At the end of all the trials, the people are purified, cleansed, and claimed. “They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’”

Zechariah 13:9a This third I will put into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold.

Lord, There is so very much in this life that I do not understand, but one thing that I know for sure is that You can draw us closer to You through life’s trials. Thank You for loving me, for claiming me, for drawing me closer. In a world that often makes no sense, help me hold tight to the truth I can always count on: You are sovereign, loving, and merciful. Thank You. Amen.

Zechariah 13:9b They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is our God.’ ”

Have a blessed day.

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The Lord Almighty is their God…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 12:2 “I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem.

The very beginning of verse 1 says: “A prophecy: The word of the Lord concerning Israel.” This is the faithful remnant of Jerusalem, and God is talking about the day He fully restores them.

Zechariah 12:3 On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves.

How fantastic these promises must have seemed to the remnant. In an effort to get Israel to return and repent, God has used all these enemy nations to unseat her. She has been a pebble easily displaced. To know that the power and protection of God is theirs because of their faithfulness is a new experience for them.

Zechariah 12:4 On that day I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness,” declares the Lord. “I will keep a watchful eye over Judah, but I will blind all the horses of the nations.

Lord, Thank You for the ability to repent and return. Thank You that You remove our sins as far as the East is from the West. Thank You that You see past my deeply flawed nature to the beloved child that You created. Thank You that, as human as I am, I can claim with all truth and sincerity that I am Your masterpiece. Draw me closer. Amen.

Zechariah 12:5 Then the clans of Judah will say in their hearts, ‘The people of Jerusalem are strong, because the Lord Almighty is their God.’

Have a blessed day.

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The ultimate example of love, compassion, and mercy…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 11:7 So I shepherded the flock marked for slaughter, particularly the oppressed of the flock. Then I took two staffs and called one Favor and the other Union, and I shepherded the flock.

What struck me about this prophetic passage in Zechariah is the magnitude of Jesus’s choice to love us unconditionally. What is portrayed in these verses is a realistic look at what could happen if the crowd you are guiding doesn’t want to be guided. Throwing up hands, being weary, anger and hurt feelings are very real possibilities. Walking away makes sense.

Zechariah 11:8-9 In one month I got rid of the three shepherds. The flock detested me, and I grew weary of them and said, “I will not be your shepherd. Let the dying die, and the perishing perish. Let those who are left eat one another’s flesh.”

But Jesus doesn’t walk away. Yet He doesn’t force. I certainly don’t respond that way. I’m quick to get in a snit when I feel I have done everything and more and my efforts are for naught. Additionally, that line between compassionate and doormat gets a little blurry sometimes in this life.

Zechariah 11:10 Then I took my staff called Favor and broke it, revoking the covenant I had made with all the nations.

Lord, Thank You for the ultimate example of love, compassion, and mercy that we see in Jesus. Help us to navigate the gray area of leaving an open door for those who are not yet ready for our compassion and laying down as a doormat for those who are simply taking advantage. Help us to give You praise and glory always. Amen.

Zechariah 11:11 It was revoked on that day, and so the oppressed of the flock who were watching me knew it was the word of the Lord.

Have a blessed day.

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Nothing like I had hoped or imagined…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 10:1 Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime; it is the Lord who sends the thunderstorms. He gives showers of rain to all people, and plants of the field to everyone.

Commentary says, in part, that this scripture is about trusting the Lord and asking Him specifically for what you need. It goes on to say that the Lord will provide abundantly for His people. This brought to mind the fact that I still have so much to learn about prayer.

Zechariah 10:2 The idols speak deceitfully, diviners see visions that lie; they tell dreams that are false, they give comfort in vain. Therefore the people wander like sheep oppressed for lack of a shepherd.

This scripture, and everything I understand about prayer, indicates that it is important to pray specifically. What trips me up is the fact that the Lord will answer my prayer but in His way and His time. Additionally, His thoughts are nothing like my thoughts and His ways are far beyond anything I could imagine (Isaiah 55:8), meaning that the answer may look nothing like I had hoped or imagined.

Zechariah 10:3 “My anger burns against the shepherds, and I will punish the leaders; for the Lord Almighty will care for his flock, the people of Judah, and make them like a proud horse in battle.

Lord, Thank You for the understanding, again and again, that to fully live in You means to trust You implicitly—Your will, Your way, Your timing, Your love, mercy, and compassion, everything. Forgive me when I struggle. Help me to never lose sight of Your fierce love for me. Help me to let go of my expectations and cling to You alone. Amen.

Zechariah 10:4 From Judah will come the cornerstone, from him the tent peg, from him the battle bow, from him every ruler.

Have a blessed day.

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Precious and valuable…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 9:3 Tyre has built herself a stronghold; she has heaped up silver like dust, and gold like the dirt of the streets.

The imagery in verse 3 really struck me: “she has heaped up silver like dust, and gold like the dirt of the streets.” Silver and gold are precious and valuable, but Tyre has treated them as worthless, of no more value than dust and dirt in the streets.

Zechariah 9:4 But the Lord will take away her possessions and destroy her power on the sea, and she will be consumed by fire.

I wonder if there is a parallel to the way Tyre treats people, particularly the Israelites. Now that the faithful remnant is all that remains, God seems to be cleaning house. He’s smoothing the way of the remnant, He knows the value of precious things and of precious people. He’s “keeping watch”.

Zechariah 9:8 But I will encamp at my temple to guard it against marauding forces. Never again will an oppressor overrun my people, for now I am keeping watch.

Lord, Thank You for the beauty in Your word, for the number of times a verse, thought, or image strikes me as I read. Thank You for the ability to wonder and speculate about Your meaning. Thank You for the fact that I never have to speculate about Your love, mercy, and compassion for Your people. Amen.

Zechariah 9:9 Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Have a blessed day. I love you.

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Limited by my own imagination…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 8:6 This is what the Lord Almighty says: “It may seem marvelous to the remnant of this people at that time, but will it seem marvelous to me?” declares the Lord Almighty.

In today’s reading, the Lord describes a rebuilt Jerusalem, filled with wise older residents and the young, both of whom are scarce in the current city in the process of rebuilding. The Lord says that this vision may seem marvelous—incredible, unbelievable—to the remnant, but God’s thoughts are not our thoughts. His ways are far beyond anything we can imagine (Isaiah 55:8).

Zechariah 8:8 I will bring them back to live in Jerusalem; they will be my people, and I will be faithful and righteous to them as their God.”

When it comes to God’s glory and goodness, when it comes to trying to understand His ways, when it comes to trying to imagine what heaven might be like, I know I am limited by my own imagination. What’s possible is shaped by what I’ve seen, by my understanding of the workings of the world, which is so incredibly limited as to be laughable.

Zechariah 8:13 Just as you, Judah and Israel, have been a curse among the nations, so I will save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong.”

Lord, Thank You that You are not limited by my understanding, imagination, or humanity. Thank You that Your ways are beyond anything I can imagine. Help me to trust You, even when I am afraid, even when I don’t understand. Draw me closer. Amen.

Zechariah 8:16-17 These are the things you are to do: Speak the truth to each other, and render true and sound judgment in your courts; do not plot evil against each other, and do not love to swear falsely. I hate all this,” declares the Lord.

Have a blessed day.

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The heart of my faith…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 7:4-5 Then the word of the Lord Almighty came to me: “Ask all the people of the land and the priests, ‘When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for the past seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted?
The question here is one of motivation, not action. The people have followed religious law and fasted when appropriate, but God asks WHY they fasted: to adhere to the law, so they could be seen as upstanding religious persons by law, or to draw closer to God?
Zechariah 7:6 And when you were eating and drinking, were you not just feasting for yourselves?
The point, it seems to me, is that faith is more than following religious law and checking off obedience boxes. If there is no heart for God, no justice, mercy, and compassion, if there is only adherence to ritual, the acts are empty and meaningless.
Zechariah 7:9-10 “This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’
Lord, If I am a “good Christian” in the eyes of the world but fall short of the mark in Your eyes, I have failed. Help me to live out the heart of my faith. Help me to put my beliefs into action daily. Help me to live a life that allows You to say to me at the end, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matt 25:23). Amen.
Zechariah 7:11 “But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and covered their ears.
Have a blessed day.
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Sinking our roots deep…. (devo reflection)

Zechariah 6:12 Tell him this is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Here is the man whose name is the Branch, and he will branch out from his place and build the temple of the Lord.

Commentary posits that this section is referring to the Messiah and mentions John 15:5: “I am the vine; you are the branches…” as corroboration supporting the point. It makes sense. And the image of Christ as a branch is a lovely one.

Zechariah 6:13 It is he who will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he will be a priest on his throne. And there will be harmony between the two.’

Colossians 2:7 furthers this idea of Christ as the branch to which we cling in that it reminds us of our role. Christ is the branch and we must root ourselves in Him. Sinking our roots deep into Him allows our faith to grow strong and allows us to overflow with thankfulness.

Zechariah 6:14 The crown will be given to Heldai, Tobijah, Jedaiah and Hen son of Zephaniah as a memorial in the temple of the Lord.

Lord, I am just barely enough of a gardener to know that even the loveliest flowers will fail without strong roots and even the tiniest, scrappiest remnant can thrive again for the same reason. Help me to root myself deeply in You so that I may flourish in the tasks You have placed before me. Help me to give you the glory. Always. Amen.

Zechariah 6:15 Those who are far away will come and help to build the temple of the Lord, and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the Lord your God.”

Have a blessed day. I love you.