Where's the Rest?!

As some of you may know, as of tomorrow I will be moving out of my parent's house, and into my own place. As I was discussing this last night, I realized that I've lived here for about 7 and a half years now, and that reminded me of one of the stories about my all time favorite character from the Bible: David.

"1 In the course of time, David inquired of the LORD. “Shall I go up to one of the towns of Judah?” he asked.
The LORD said, “Go up.”

David asked, “Where shall I go?”

“To Hebron,” the LORD answered.

2 So David went up there with his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. 3 David also took the men who were with him, each with his family, and they settled in Hebron and its towns. 4 Then the men of Judah came to Hebron, and there they anointed David king over the tribe of Judah.

As you're probably already aware, David was anointed to be king over Israel at a very young age. The Lord sent Samuel to Jesse, and chose Jesse's youngest son, David, to be king over Israel. However at this time, Saul was still the king. David eventually was brought under the service of Saul, killed Goliath, Saul got jealous of David, David and Saul have a falling out, and thats about as much of the story as I'm willing to fill you in on. If you can't fill in the details go read it!

Anyways, now that that's out of the way. David was anointed to be king, but that promise was in no immediate. He wasn't anointed and then BOOM king of all Israel. It was a long hard road for David to eventually fulfill that anointment. In the passage we read above, David is STILL not king of Israel! He is king over only the tribe of Judah. The rest of Israel is still under Ish-Bosheth. (Fun name to say. I know you're sounding it out in your head)

Now, why me moving brought this story to mind? I've been living here for around 7 and a half years. How long was David ruling in Hebron over the tribe of Judah?! That's right. 7 years and six months. After which he was finally made king over all Israel. Which MUST mean that when I move, I will be elected mayor of Chattanooga. It's just meant to be! Or maybe that's aiming too low. Maybe governor of Tennessee is a more realistic thought.

On a more serious note, having nothing to do with me moving or my hopes of political success, I can only imagine what David must think of all this. He is told from childhood that he will be king of all Israel. He waits all these years, fights battles, and struggles through life. Then one day what does he get? Judah. Just put yourself in David's shoes. You're promised to be king of Israel, then the day comes and the Lord gives you Judah?? It's kinda like "Oh hey! Thanks for Judah and all but uh.... What happened to the other 11 tribes I'm supposed to be king over?" It's like being promised a new car for a graduation gift, and them sending you pedal car. It's just not quite what you imagined it would be. I believe at this point I'd be a little frustrated. I mean I killed a giant, ran for my life, my own city was burned to the ground and my people wanted to kill me (didn't tell that story, maybe I'll tell it tonight), and I get one of the 12 tribes I'm supposed to be king of?

David had to be one patient man. He ruled over Judah alone for 7 and a half years before he was finally king over all Israel. Just another reminder of God's everlasting promises. You may not see them coming true or happening, and you may have to serve where you are for 7 and a half years before that promise is fulfilled, but it will happen. Remember to be patient with God's plans, and accept that His will is perfect. He knows His plan for you, and it will come to pass, but it will be on His time, and not ours. If all you have been given for now is one tribe, serve there with all your heart, all your soul, and all your might.

P.S.- Well, that one went a little bit of everywhere. Not really a full drawn out through. I apologize!

Humble Hygiene

12 So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. 14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. 16 Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. 17 If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. (John 13:12-17)

This is a pretty popular scene from the Bible, and one that never ceases to amaze me. Never gets old. So I thought I would share it with you today. It came to mind earlier when I walked out into the yard bare foot on this particularly rainy day, and consequently got my feet muddy. So, before we jump into it, a quick fact or two on feet washing.

In the Hebrew culture, the job of washing the feet was an especially degrading one. So much so, that local servants were not even chosen for the task, but rather foreign slaves were responsible for it. (Well, not as much history and background as I imagined this paragraph would have, but its all I really got. Enjoy)

So we have the most degrading and humiliating task available, and a room filled with the 12 disciples, and their leader, Jesus Christ. (Must I reiterate the fact that He is God, King of King, Lord of Lords, etc.) The disciples of course, are under the teaching and leadership of Jesus, they being His followers and students. Yet, Jesus fills a basin, and proceeds to wash all of their feet. The most humiliating task available performed by the person with the highest position, not the lowest.

Jesus tells us Himself in the above passage that He has set an example for us and that we should do as He has done. If our Lord and Teacher was willing to serve in such a humble manner, how much more so should we be willing to serve? All too often I look over tasks that seem much too trivial for my time and effort. I simply can not see how doing it could possibly benefit myself, anyone else, or the Kingdom of God. I will over and over leave the job undone, thinking that someone else should perform that, because there are greater and bigger things for me to do. What a prideful and terrible view to have of myself. If my Lord Jesus Christ was willing, in all of His perfection, to kneel down and wash the feet of flawed men, then there is no task on this planet that I am too great for.

Never overlook even the smallest of jobs. Be willing to submit yourself humbly into the service of Christ, even if that means accepting what appears to you to be the most insignificant of tasks. The Body of Christ is made up of many different parts. Not everyone is a head, an arm, a leg or a foot. There are no greater or more significant parts to the Body. Each individual within it has their own set of spiritual gifts with which they are to contribute to the growth and expansion of the Kingdom. Humble yourself, and be better fit to serve the purpose for which you were placed here. "If you know these thing, blessed are you if you do them" -Jesus Christ

Nearly got off track there and got sucked into a whole different topic about spiritual gifts and our places within the Body of Christ. Maybe another time. For now, go wash some feet. (Figuratively that is. Unless of course you have the opportunity to do it literally, in which case you should definitely follow through with that.) -KT

Ruth

I posted earlier about a mighty man, and I felt it only appropriate to write a couple of thoughts about a woman in the Bible as well. So I've decided to jump to Ruth, one of my favorite stories. Ruth has always stood out to me as one of the most devoted people in the Bible. I won't share with you her whole story, you can go and read the book of Ruth for yourself. (It's a very short book. Shouldn't take you more than 30 minutes to read through it.) But what I do want to share with you is a very short piece of the book, from the mouth of Ruth herself:

“Entreat me not to leave you,

Or to turn back from following after you;

For wherever you go, I will go;

And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;

Your people shall be my people,

And your God, my God.

Where you die, I will die,

And there will I be buried.

The LORD do so to me, and more also,

If anything but death parts you and me.”

If you're struggling to understand the meaning of the word devotion or what that may look like, then here is your answer. She is so devoted to her mother-in-law that she will allow nothing but death to separate herself from her. This is what devotion should look like.

Ruth will follow, lodge with, be one with, die with, and be buried with this person that she is devoted to. There will be no degree of separation between them. This is the kind of devotion we should all be pursuing towards God. No degrees of separation us. I'm going to take a few liberties (please forgive me) and rewrite Ruth's words into a prayer:

Entreat me not to leave you,

Or to turn back from following after you;

For wherever You lead, I will go;

And wherever You send me, I will stay;

Your people shall be my people,

For you are my God.

Not my will, but Yours.

Turn Your face upon me Lord,

If anything but death parts You and I.

Amen.

A Mighty Man

(Figured a He Man picture was appropriate)

What is it that makes a man “mighty” or “godly”? Such strong words, ones that we Christians strive to recognized as. We all desire to live up to the so-called spiritual giants that we read about in the Bible, characters such as David, Solomon, Peter, and Paul. We read about their lives and the words they wrote and we use them as examples of how godly people live. The question is what empowered these men to lead the lives they did? What is it that they had that we don’t? Let’s take a look at a maybe lesser known godly man from the Bible. From Judges (NKJV).

12 And the Angel of the LORD appeared to him, and said to him, “The LORD is with you, you mighty man of valor!”

13 Gideon said to Him, “O my lord,[a] if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, ‘Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the LORD has forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.”

14 Then the LORD turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?”

15 So he said to Him, “O my Lord, how can I save Israel? Indeed my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.”

16 And the LORD said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat the Midianites as one man.”

17 Then he said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk with me. 18 Do not depart from here, I pray, until I come to You and bring out my offering and set it before You.”

And He said, “I will wait until you come back.”

So let’s walk through this…. If you go back and catch up on a bit of history, the Israelites are being oppressed by the Midianites. They have sinned in the eyes of the Lord, so they are now in the hands of the Midianites. And the Midianites are destroying the harvest and livestock of the Israelites. So in the beginning of our story Gideon is hiding in the winepress threshing wheat, so that the Midianites would not come and take it. Then the Angel of the Lord appears to him and addresses him as a “mighty man of valor.” (Allow me to point out again the fact that the man is HIDING in a winepress.) Not exactly the mightiest scene we have here. Gideon then proceeds to doubt the Lord, saying that the Lord has forsaken them by delivering them into the hands of the Midianites. The Lord then replies with “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel….” When the Lord refers to “this might of yours,” I would imagine that He isn’t referring to Gideon hiding in the winepress. Gideon again questions the Lord’s words, saying that his clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and that he, Gideon, is the least amongst his people. The Lord again assures him that he will defeat the Midianites as one man.

So, we have this mighty man, Gideon. He is of the weakest clan of Israel. Within his clan, Gideon is the weakest of the men. Yet the Lord appears to him and calls him a “mighty man of valor.” What’s to be seen here is WHY Gideon was a mighty man, and why he was able to defeat the Midianites as one man. Gideon was no powerful and mighty man. He was weak, hiding in a winepress, and he doubted the Lord, even when the Lord appeared and spoke to him directly. Much like all of us doubt the Lord in our lives. What made Gideon mighty and gave him the ability to do great works for the Lord? The answer is simple: The Lord. “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?” Have I not sent you? That is what gave Gideon his might. Not any personal attributes that earned him the title, but that he was sent by the Lord. Gideon was able to defeat the Midianites not through his own power, but by the guidance and strength of the Lord.

You can try all your life, and nothing you do will make you a mighty or godly person. We will always fall short, but there is infinite might in our Lord. Being His chosen people is our strength and salvation. In the words of David “Although my house is not so with God, Yet He has made with me an everlasting covenant, Ordered in all things and secure. For this is all my salvation and all my desire; Will He not make it increase?”

Daily Bread

I wrote this devotional as I was reading this passage and I titled it "Daily Bread." I believe now that I will just write an entire series under the name "Daily Bread." Hope in inspires you today!

Daily Bread

“And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, also how he had executed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, "So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time." And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.
But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, "It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!"
Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, "Arise and eat."
Then he looked, and there by his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank, and lay down again.” (1 Kings 19:1-6)

Here we see Elijah running for his life. He is out in the wilderness, and he prays to God asking Him to take his life because Elijah has sinned against God. So we have a man who is being pursued because he murdered the priests and he is overcome with grief about his sinfulness. And of course, he prays. That’s what we all do in situations like this. Life is going badly. We feel guilty for our sins. Everything is crashing down, and so out of our desperation we pray, because there is nothing more we can do. And we want so desperately for God to do something spectacular in our lives to rescue us from the troubles we face. Elijah was so burdened that he prayed that God would just end his life. However, God answers Elijah’s prayer in a much different manner. The spirit of God taps him on the shoulder, wakes him up and tells him to eat. He doesn't work some miracle in his life, come down and comfort him, promise to save him from Jezebel's wrath or any other exercise of His infinite power. He wakes Elijah up in the middle of the night and tells him to eat. Cake and water. Elijah is having the worst day of his entire life, and all that God has to offer him is some cake and water. Not quite the miracle answer to a prayer you'd expect huh?

In our most desperate of times, when we feel that everything has gone wrong, God answers with the most simple of answers. Yes He could make it all go away, but instead, He awakens you, and reminds you simply to eat. Partake in the most practical necessities of life. I find it to be a very humbling answer to a prayer. While He may not have answered it with balls of fire and mind blowing displays of His power that you may be wanting, He fed you. We are physical humans, living in a physical world. No matter how hard it may be, you were put on this planet. God isn't going to make this planet go away just because it's difficult for you. He understands your problems and your struggles. It will always be hard on us. We can't expect God to swoop down and stop things when they are tough. But we can expect Him to provide. Elijah prayed for God to take his life, in return God gave Elijah life. What a miracle food is.

God's answer to Elijah’s desperate prayer in a time of need is nothing more than food and water. We’re human, what else do we need? I think it was God's way of showing Elijah that he was provided for. The food and water that you and I eat and drink every day, is the answer to our most desperate of prayers. The only answers we need. "Give us this day our daily bread." It has been given. Partake of it, and be reminded of the tremendous power of our God. -KT