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Human Nature…. (devo reflection)

1 Samuel 8:9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.” 

Conformity exacts payment. Sometimes it’s pretty steep. Being like everyone else means denying the individual parts of yourself. Sometimes those who control “the group” expect the followers to openly shun those who can’t or don’t conform. Chances are good that those who are trying to conform are doing so to end or avoid shunning.

1 Samuel 8:10 Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking him for a king. 

Yet even with the warning, they still want to go the route of everybody else. “Give us a king! Give us a king!” And today’s verses are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to warnings. But isn’t that human nature? Even when we know the cost, we still pay the price. God wants to free us from that. He wants us to trust Him even when we are afraid.

1 Samuel 8:11a He said, “This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: 

Precious Savior, You know that trusting You when I am afraid is still so hard. Thank You for whispering to my heart again and again and again that You will never leave me nor forsake me, that I can trust You, always. Help me not to be afraid. Amen.

1 Samuel 8:11b …He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots.  

Have a blessed day.

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It’s not personal…. (devo reflection)

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The gift of family…. (devo reflection)

1 Samuel 8:1 When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as Israel’s leaders.  

My church is reading through 1 Samuel 8 this week and I am finding it really interesting. Samuel was a good leader. He raised two boys and appointed them leaders after him. Unfortunately, they were dishonest, accepting bribes and perverting justice.

1 Samuel 8:2 The name of his firstborn was Joel and the name of his second was Abijah, and they served at Beersheba.

Today’s verses have me thinking about parenthood, about my own boys, who seem to be good boys, about how children are raised and how they become who they will become. The hubs and I have done our best to teach our children well. But when they leave our house and enter into the world fully on their own two feet, they will have a choice about whether they continue in the ways they were taught or whether they go the way of the world. I hope they choose well. I think they will.

1 Samuel 8:3 But his sons did not follow his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice.

Precious Savior, Thank You for the gift of family, for the joy and sometimes heartbreak of raising children. Help us to shepherd them well. Once they stand on their own two feet, help them to make good choices. Amen.

1 Samuel 8:4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah.

Have a blessed day.

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But the greatest of these is love…. (devo reflection)

1 Corinthians 13:11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 

There’s so much in these last three verses that it’s hard to know where to start. Because we are human, because we are on this side of the veil, there is so much we don’t know, can’t understand. I have said for many years that by the time I get to ask God all my questions, I won’t care about the answers anymore because I will fully know and be fully known.

1 Corinthians 13:12a For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. 

Verse 13 reminds us that “these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” I find that telling. God wants us to love others as He loves. I once saw a billboard that has stuck with me. It said, “Just love everyone. I’ll sort them out later. ~God” I think that’s at the heart of 1 Corinthians. Love.

1 Corinthians 13:12b Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

Precious Savior, Thank You that there will come a day when I will fully know and be fully known. Thank You that some day the distance between us will be removed. Thank You for the reminder that love is the greatest, that I am to love as You love. Help me. Amen.

1 Corinthians 13:13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Have a blessed day.

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God is love…. (devo reflection)

1 Corinthians 13:8a Love never fails.  

God is love. All of the verses in 1 Corinthians that talk about love can be replaced with God. I am honestly not sure why I never thought to do that before, but it is true. God is patient. God is kind. God rejoices in the truth. God never fails.

1 Corinthians 13:8b …But where there are prophecies, they will cease;

Another important truth in 1 Corinthians is that while we are on this earth, we are incomplete, a vital part of ourselves is missing. This world is not our home, cannot be our home, yet this world is our mission field. We have work to do here. And that work is to be done in love, in God. Always.

1 Corinthians 13:8c …where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.  

Precious Savior, Thank You for opening my eyes and my heart to Your truths. Thank You that You are love and that this world is not our home. Help us to strive to bring You praise and glory always. Amen.

1 Corinthians 13:9-10 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.

Have a blessed day.

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Love is…. (devo reflection)

1 Corinthians 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 

I remember a friend once telling me that when she talked with her daughters about relationships, she encouraged them to put the names of the young men they were dating into these verses. If it held true, then that relationship was sound.

1 Corinthians 13:5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 

At the time, I thought that was a lovely idea, but this morning, sleep-deprived and grumpy as I am, I wonder if that standard is too high, if it is setting us up for a fall. After all, if I substituted my own name here, I would fail miserably many days: Beth is patient? Beth is not easily angered? I’m definitely not currently living up to this ideal.

1 Corinthians 13:6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 

Precious Savior, Thank You that You are love, pure and simple. Thank You that even though we fall short of the mark, You never do. Thank You for loving us as the deeply flawed humans that we are. Amen.

1 Corinthians 13:7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Have a blessed day.

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God is bigger than my feelings…. (devo reflection)

1 Corinthians 13:1 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.  

My daily devo this morning reminded me that God is outside of my feelings. It is a truth that first really sank in many years ago, truthfully, because of song lyrics that finally hit home. I can be happy, sad, gutted, elated, etc etc, and God is outside of that, bigger than all those feelings. It is easy for me to forget, to limit God with my own imagination.

1 Corinthians 13:2a If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge…

So what does all of this mean for me in a practical sense? It means I can be elated or angry or bitter or sad, and as long as all I do is wallow in those feelings, I will never draw closer to God because of the situation. I have to get beyond my feelings and say, essentially, “OK, God. What do you want me to see, learn, do, understand because of this situation?” Sometimes the answer is simply, “Know that I am with you always. I will never leave you.”

1 Corinthians 13:2b …and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 

Precious Savior, Thank You for being bigger than my feelings. Thank You for the truths You whisper to my heart each day. Help me to seek You, to see You, to hear and understand You as I seek to draw closer to You. Amen.

1 Corinthians 13:3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Have a blessed day.

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Changing my default…. (devo reflection)

Romans 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 

As I am reading today’s scripture, I realize that *I* am the one who separates myself from the love of Christ at times. *I* am the one who allows trouble or hardship or persecution etc etc to separate me, to make me feel alone and isolated. God hasn’t moved. I’m the issue here.

Romans 8:36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

The good news is that if I’m the problem, I can absolutely be the solution. But I’ve got to change my default. My default in times of difficulty is to feel beleaguered and isolated. Poor me. Why me? But NOTHING can separate me from Christ’s love–except *me,* and I have a choice.

Romans 8:37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 

Precious Savior, I want to choose You always. Forgive me for the times when I separate myself from You, when I isolate myself and lick my wounds instead of coming to the foot of Your throne and finding rest. Help me to change my default of isolation and to come to You always. Help me to live as more than a conqueror through You alone. Amen.

Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Have a blessed day.

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A God of abundance…. (devo reflection)

Romans 8:31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 

My daily devo this morning contained this gem: “Remember, I am a God of abundance.” That is so easy for me to forget this time of year. I’m in survival mode. The kids are in summer mode. The school days keep coming, and we’re all just hanging on, trying to make it to exams.

Romans 8:32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 

That mindset doesn’t feel very abundant, but today’s verse reminds me that it’s *my* mindset that has stifled God’s abundance. When I take the time to purposefully shift my perspective to focus on the good things, they *are* abundant. Counting those blessings can keep me busy for a very long time, but if I don’t take the time to manually shift my perspective, the soul-draining things are so large they are hard to see around.

Romans 8:33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 

Precious Savior, Thank You that You are a God of abundance, that even in our trials, You shower us with blessings. Help us to take the time, to expend the energy, to look for and see Your blessings always, even when we are exhausted and just trying to survive. Especially then. Amen.

Romans 8:34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

Have a blessed day.

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God can use all things…. (devo reflection)

Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 

I have come to paraphrase this verse as “God can use all things for our good and His glory.” And I often whisper it to myself when things are going awry. “God can use this. He can use all things. And He can use this for my good and His glory.” It’s often a much needed reminder.

Romans 8:29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 

It also reminds me of Genesis 50:20 “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good….” God can use all things, all of them–even things that others meant for harm, for our good and His glory. I sincerely believe that. It gives me great hope, especially when life feels like it’s going sideways and there’s no way to stop it.

Romans 8:30a And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; 

Precious Savior, Thank You for the hope that can only come from You. Thank You that You can and will and do use all things for our good and Your glory. Thank You that You can take what others intend for harm and use it for Your glory as well. Amen.

Romans 8:30b …those he justified, he also glorified.

Have a blessed day.