… like standing under a waterfall on a hot summer day!
How wonderful, how beautiful, when brothers and sisters get along! It’s like costly anointing oil flowing down head and beard, flowing down Aaron’s beard, flowing down the collar of his priestly robes. It’s like the dew on Mount Hermon flowing down the slopes of Zion. Yes, that’s where God commands the blessing, ordains eternal life. Psalm 133:1-3 MSG
The psalmist paints such a beautiful picture here. One time I was anointed with oil like that. It wasn’t just a dab. No, the anointing oil was poured on my head and it flowed down all over my face. It was one of the most stunningly weird and amazing experiences of my spiritual journey! The fragrance, the fluidity, the beautiful mess. It dripped into my hands; I rubbed it all over my face.
I felt very loved and completely absorbed and surrounded by God at that moment. It was like standing under a waterfall on a hot day! Thirst quenching. Spirit filling. Life giving.
It’s that same feeling that God seeks for His children when they walk together in unity and in peace. That’s because, with believers, the unity is not just for this month or this year, it’s for all eternity!
I’m sure He weeps for us and with us when there is discord between two people, or two groups. Especially in a marriage or a family or a community or even a church body. Sadly, I think busted relationships is what the devil specializes in. If he can break up a father and a son, or a pastor and a church, or one part of the community and the other part, the enemy’s on his way to completely destroying all that Jesus came to achieve. Peace. Harmony. Love. Care. Oneness among believers.
Take heart, Jesus prayed for us: “I want all of them to be one with each other, just as I am one with you and you are one with me. I also want them to be one with us. Then the people of this world will believe that you sent me.” (John 17:21 CEV)
So whenever there is a lack of harmony or unity, our call is to do everything we can do to get back to the wonder and beauty of getting along with others. “Then the people of this world will believe that God sent Jesus.”
Submit to Jesus first. Give up your selfish ways. Put others’ needs before yours. Do all you can to disappoint the devil and glorify God. Work through misunderstandings. Be at peace.
Then you’ll be ready for the refreshing waterfall of His love, His grace, His anointing! Drench yourself in His unity. It’s where we find His blessings. It’s ready for you to enjoy!
Jesus is the Light. He shines in the darkness. He brings Life!
Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus the Messiah. There is something very powerful and yet peaceful when His name is spoken in reverence and worship. His very name conquers fear. His very name lights our way when we feel trapped or alone or lost or consumed with darkness.
Remember when you were a kid and you were afraid of the dark? Maybe, like me, you had to have a light on in your bedroom at night. What was it about the light being on? It shined brightly in the darkness, didn’t it? It showed us that there was nothing else in the room, nothing would harm us or hurt us. The light was a comfort, wasn’t it?
Jesus said in John 8: “I am light to the world and those who embrace me will experience life-giving light, and they will never walk in darkness.” John 8:12 (Passion)
Light is not only a comfort, but it brings life! Like the sun on the leaves of a plant, Jesus, the light of the world, brings life!
Do you believe that? Let His light shine in you and on you to give you His life. As the dawning light of a new day chases away the darkness of night, the comfort and peace of Jesus can do the same thing in your life. There is nothing so dark that His light can’t shine through and bring calm.
Maybe you need His light to bring you comfort today? Ask Him to shine His light in your life. Ask Him to let His life drive the darkness out of your life! He loves you and He will do it.
There’s a new song many churches are singing today during their worship services. It’s called “Raise a Hallelujah” by Bethel Music.
For some of us it’s easy to praise God and sing “Hallelujah,” right? You’re going on vacation. It’s summer. The bills are paid. The kids are behaving. Life is good.
But there are others (most of us?) who are just not feeling it. There is pain. There is disappointment. Life is one big slog each and every day. How do we sing in the middle of the storm? How do we even manage a smile when we are feeling defeated?
The answer is this: We can praise God by the power of the Holy Spirit who is in every Believer.
There’s something amazing that happens when we praise God… especially when we offer a praise to God when it’s hard to do so. And we don’t have to have a beautiful singing voice. It might be as simple as viewing an amazing sunset and exclaiming, “Wow, God!”
I believe praise releases God’s love and grace and power and provision in our lives. You may have heard the story of two disciples of Jesus. They were in prison, locked in chains, because they had been sharing the Good News. But they didn’t let shackles hold them back.
Along about midnight, Paul and Silas were at prayer and singing a robust hymn to God. The other prisoners couldn’t believe their ears. Then, without warning, a huge earthquake! The jailhouse tottered, every door flew open, all the prisoners were loose. Acts 16: 25-26 (MSG)
There’s something about praise that sets us free. No matter what is holding you captive, bring it to the Lord in praise.
Let me encourage you to sing, to pray, to exclaim or even lament in the middle of your storm. Tell God how much you love Him. Tell God how much you trust Him.
And believe Him to bring you His freedom and His joy!
God Never Fails. I’m pretty sure I’ve written that before. Maybe multiple times. But it’s worth repeating. Over and over again.
God never fails.
We fail, right?
Can I assure you, however, that for those who trust God and who follow Jesus that it’s okay to fail. I believe we all actually need to have at least one moment in our life, or multiple moments in our life, where we we fail… where we are broken… where we take all of the burdens we’ve been carrying and finally fall to our knees at the foot of the Cross and say, “Here, Jesus. I can’t do this anymore.” I believe we all need to get to that point where we stop kidding ourselves that we can be self-dependent and we fully cross the line to being dependent on God and God alone.
For me personally, I could share story after story where I was so broken that I just couldn’t carry the load any longer. They include:
Each of the six times my employer at the time decided to change directions without me.
Too many times to count when parenting teenagers or adult children.
And the recent death of my Mom.
On each occasion, my knees couldn’t hit the floor quick enough. Did I fail or did my situation fail me? No matter. I couldn’t bear the weight alone.
The strongest people are those who fail… who acknowledge that they are weak and empty.
One of the greatest, strongest people of all time was Israel’s King David. He writes, “If your heart is broken, you’ll find God right there.” Then, look at the word picture painted by the Message translation: “If you’re kicked in the gut, He’ll help you catch your breath.” (Psalm 34:18 MSG). What an encouraging image!
Even when bad things happen to good people, God is there for you. Every time.
Perhaps your tending to a broken heart? Perhaps you’ve wondered where is the promised victory of the Christian life? In Luke 4 Jesus says the whole reason He came was to heal the brokenhearted, to release the captives and to bring sight to the blind. No matter what broke your heart, no matter what is holding you captive, no matter that you can’t seem to see your way out of your situation, can I assure you that Jesus came for you.
You may have failed, but you are not a failure! Take time, maybe even right now, to tell God that you need Him. Admit that you can’t carry this burden on your own. Tell Him that you’ll trust Him.
And then… do it. Lay your burden down and trust Him. Cross that bridge and breathe in the air of a new found freedom and peace. Jesus is waiting to help you catch your breath!
What is something that is “so good” you can’t live without it? You may recall the old ketchup TV ad that used a creative pun to promote their condiment as being “slowwww gooood.”
During the summer months some may have a favorite vacation spot that is “so good!” Others might find it to be an escape with a book or movie that is “so good.”
For the Believer, truly God is so, so good to us. He really is!
The Bible is full of promises of the goodness of God. But here’s the thing: God’s goodness does not depend on our goodness. Thanks to His grace, there is nothing we have to do to earn His goodness.
Paul says it this way: But you cannot make God accept you because of something you do; God accepts sinners only because they have faith in Him. (Romans 4:5 MSG).
God also confirms His goodness through the writings of Solomon: God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits, to the woman who diligently seeks. (Lamentations 3:25 MSG)
So, goodness comes to the faithful who wait, to those who seek.
Why is God good to us? Again from Paul: God is kind, but he’s not soft. In kindness He takes us by the hand and leads us into a radical life change. (Romans 2:4 MSG)
That’s why He is good to us! It’s not just for the sake of our happiness or joy. No, God is good to us because He wants to see radical life change in us. He wants us to let Him guide us and lead us to true transformation!
And then, as we are inspired to grow, we can have an impact on those around us. Think about it. If a group of people is inspired to accept God’s goodness, be led by Him, be more like Him, be transformed by Him, that group can collectively have a God-sized impact on the community in which they live. And that’s where God’s goodness get exciting!
You may be feeling like He is distant or ignoring you right now. The key is to have the faith to believe, to passionately wait and to diligently seek.
You will see Him. And you will see that God is so, so good.
Some trust in chariots, some in horses, but we will trust in the name of the LORD our God.
David writes in Psalm 20:7:
Some trust in chariots, some in horses, but we will trust in the name of the LORD our God.
A chariot combined with a horse was one of the most powerful weapons of war in King David’s day. The first six verses of the psalm suggest it is penned for the person who is in trouble or who needs to be rescued. Some have called this psalm a prayer for victory. When life has you against a wall, where is the source of any true triumph? It is only in trusting the LORD; it is only in trusting God.
Do you see what David did there? Look at the chariots. They are man-made objects. Sometimes we can trust in those kinds of things, right? Our homes. Our cars. Our jobs. Even our churches.
But these are things that all have the potential to fall apart, rust, disappear or even close.
Or how about the living things like the horses? How often have we trusted in people only to have them fail us? Our spouse. Our children. Our boss. Our parents. Our friends. This list is endless because people are people. Often selfishness tends to put our wants before others’ needs. As a result, we don’t live up to expectations.
There is only One to whom we can confidently put our trust in: God. He will never fail us. He will never disappoint us. He will not fall apart on us or disappear. He will answer you “with the victorious power of his right hand.” (Psalm 20:6).
Certainly, it is important to build your marriage on trust or maintain the roof so rain will not leak into your house. Whether it’s a catastrophe or a minor offense, we will be let down by both the living and inanimate. “The chariots will rust and the horse will pull up lame.” (Psalm 20:7 MSG).
But we can confidently trust God! Period. He knows us and knows what is best for us. You can trust Him. You can! And, the victory we have in God’s economy is this: “God blesses everyone who trusts Him.” (Proverbs 16:20 CEV).
Ever feel like you’re on the cusp of something big? Like you are “this close” to a receiving a blessing of some sort? A really big blessing?
The Bible is full of “blessing” stories. The first is a promise from God to Abram.
Genesis 12:
The Lord said to Abram:
Leave your country, your family, and your relatives and go to the land that I will show you. I will bless you and make your descendants into a great nation. You will become famous and be a blessing to others. I will bless anyone who blesses you, but I will put a curse on anyone who puts a curse on you. Everyone on earth will be blessed because of you. Genesis 12:1-3 (CEV)
This is the promise to Abram, which means “Father” … who later became Abraham… “the Father of Many.”
Abram had no children. Yet because of his faithfulness to God, he became the father of Isaac, who became the father of Jacob, who’s name was later changed to Israel. He had twelve sons, the heads of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, God’s chosen people, who crossed the Jordan River at Jericho and inherited the Promised Land.
This idea of Abram’s blessing is the picture of a conduit. We are blessed with the express purpose of being a blessing to others. There is a continual motion with our hands of receiving and giving… receiving and giving… receiving and giving. Can you see yourself as both a receptacle and dispenser of God’s grace and joy and blessing?
Let’s jump a couple of thousand years to David, Psalm 1:
God blesses those people who refuse evil advice and won’t follow sinners or join in sneering at God.
Instead, the Law of the Lord makes them happy, and they think about it day and night.
They are like trees growing beside a stream, trees that produce fruit in season and always have leaves.
Those people succeed in everything they do.
Psalm 1:1-3 (CEV)
The Psalms are mostly David’s journal, his intimate thoughts with God. These prayers detail his struggles, his joys, his defeats and his victories. He gets the concept of blessing through the Word of God. The idea of “thinking about the law” — or other translations suggest the phrase is “meditating on the Scripture” — is the picture of a dog, chewing on a bone. Or more precisely a lion growling over his prey, followed by licking and chewing it up. Taking his time. Enjoying the blessings of his spoils. Usually in solitude.
So, it is THAT person, who is like a tree growing beside a stream. Its roots are long and deep. Have you ever seen a tree growing on the bank of a river and its roots run long down the bank until they are touching the water? That’s the kind of tree we are to be, someone with long and deep roots. And that tree? It produces fruit!
These are trees that do not worry. They are blessed.
“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NIV)
And just like trees “those people succeed in everything they do.” They are blessed.
Proverbs says “the roots of the righteous give life, and more life.” Proverbs 12:12 (MSG)
Blessing happens when we enjoy our times with God. Please hear that the only way we produce fruit, or more accurately when God produces fruit in us and through us, is when we enjoy, when we relish, when we love quiet times of digging into and digesting His word, lingering over it, often; when our heart is connected to His heart.
One more Bible story about blessing:
When Jesus taught His first sermon, what’s the key word He used? At the Sermon on the Mount, He affirms eight additional Blessings.
God blesses those people who depend only on him. They belong to the kingdom of heaven!
God blesses those people who grieve. They will find comfort!
God blesses those people who are humble. The earth will belong to them!
God blesses those people who want to obey him more than to eat or drink. They will be given what they want!
God blesses those people who are merciful. They will be treated with mercy!
God blesses those people whose hearts are pure. They will see him!
God blesses those people who make peace. They will be called his children!
God blesses those people who are treated badly for doing right. They belong to the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:1-10 (CEV)
One thing each of these Blessings have in common? These Blessings are given to those who are active, not passive.
You’ve heard “God helps those who help themselves.” That’s not in the Bible. That’s a quote most often ascribed to Benjamin Franklin. That’s not what I’m saying. Indeed, God’s grace is offered to all, because we really cannot help ourselves, right?
Here’s the true statement. Again from Proverbs: The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed. Those who help others are helped. Proverbs 11:25 (MSG)
Jesus is describing actions taken. Who receives blessings? Those who are depending and grieving. Those who are humble, obedient, mercy givers. Those who have a pure heart and who make peace and who do right.
Proverbs has two additional blessing promises:
God blesses everyone who trusts him. Proverbs 16:20 (CEV)
And then there’s this one:
When God blesses his people, their city prospers, but deceitful liars can destroy a city. Proverbs 11:11 (CEV)
I believe God wants to bless your city, your state, our county. But I don’t believe we are called to sit around and wait for it. I believe He will continue to bless this Land through each person who trusts in Him.
Jesus had an encounter with a dad who was hoping that the Messiah might heal his son. The boy’s father says: “Please have pity and help us if you can!” Jesus replied, “Why do you say “if you can”? Anything is possible for someone who has faith!” Right away the boy’s father shouted, “I do have faith! Please help me to have even more.” Mark 9:23-25 (CEV)
Maybe that’s our prayer too? “God, please give me more faith.”
That takes us full circle back around to Abraham. It was his faith that allowed him to see and believe that he’d have as many descendants as the stars in the heavens. It will be our faith, and our taking action steps — not passively sitting around waiting — to receive God’s blessings. And then its up to us to be obedient to pass them on… to our family, our neighbors, our city, and our country. And through our passing them along, we are blessed!
