Meditation
Jeremiah 36:26—Then the king commanded Jerahmeel the king's son, Seraiah son of Azriel, and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet, but the LORD had hidden them.
God told the prophet Jeremiah to take a scroll and write on it. His purpose was to communicate all the disasters He planned to inflict on Israel, Judah and other nations. His concern was that the people of Judah would repent when they heard what He was going to do and receive forgiveness. So Jeremiah dictated God’s words to Baruch, his helper, who wrote them on a scroll. Then, because he was restricted from going to the temple, he sent Baruch to read to the people. Word of the scroll’s contents reached Judean officials and they had Baruch read the scroll to them. Concerned how their evil king would react and afraid of the message, they told Baruch to go and hide with Jeremiah. Then they took the scroll and had it read to King Jehoiakim who instead of repenting burned the scroll and issued the command above.
There are some very significant lessons we can extract from this story. When God asks us to do something, we are not to question the risk of the task; find excuses, modify the command or recommend someone else; or, fear that we might suffer. Our job is to obey God. He is quite capable of using us to deliver the truth and then protecting us from those who react violently. Just as God hid Jeremiah and Baruch, He is capable of hiding us.
Is it possible we waste time worrying what enemies might do to us? Alternatively, do we smugly embrace our eternal inheritance yet ignore the reality that we have a temporal mission? Do we live as undercover Christians hoping to be left alone and unpersecuted?
It may seem like what God asked Jeremiah to do was a waste of time and energy. The king did not fear Him. The people did not repent. What was the point? Here is where we go astray. Quit looking for the point. Listen to God and trust that He knows what He is doing. If He wants to, He can hide us. He may allow us to suffer and perish—many a prophet died a horrific death. Our responsibility is not to worry about our condition but to condition ourselves to obey. Praise God, we will always be hidden under His eternal wings. No one can take what Jesus won for us and that’s something to think about . . . in reveration!
Inspiration
I place no hope in my strength, nor in my works: but all my confidence is in God my protector, who never abandons those who have put all their hope and thought in him.—Francois Rabelais
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Off to the Jungle
Pete and Saul left last month to visit three Segadorian missionary families working in the distant Asheninka tribe. They traveled seven hours by bus, then six hours in the back of a pick-up over a rough road, then finally three hours in a motorized canoe in drizzling rain. As Peter notes in their newsletter it was well worth the sacrifice. Why did these two men go to such lengths to visit these families? They went because they understood how important the value of encouragement is. It is not easy to get from Lima, Peru to remote jungle towns but it you want to communicate to your fellow teammates that they matter; making the effort is the right thing to do.
Meditation
Acts 11:22-24—Then the report about them reached the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to travel as far as Antioch. When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he encouraged all of them to remain true to the Lord with a firm resolve of the heart for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith—and large numbers of people were added to the Lord.
Antioch was about 300 miles north of Jerusalem. Whether Barnabas walked to a port city and took a boat to the port fifteen miles from Antioch or just walked overland, we can assume it took him at least a week to get to his destination. He did not have luggage with wheels so he either carried all he needed or paid to have his stuff transported. He had no phone to call ahead and arrange where to meet and chances are good he had never before met the people the church sent him to greet. From the passage above, we can assume that his presence was partly responsible for amazing church growth. Barnabas was so enthused by what God was doing in Antioch, that he went to Tarsus to find Saul and brought him back with him. For over a year they taught large numbers of believers—the first disciples to be called Christians.
Have you ever considered that one of the best forms of evangelism is encouragement? Think about it! If I am discouraged and not doing so well in ministry and someone travels 16 hours just to visit and encourage me—is it possible that I will be reenergized to serve the Lord? If a total stranger travels over 300 miles to encourage my interest in learning about Jesus — is it possible, I may conclude that the gospel is valid and indeed life changing!
Would you consider doing something with me? Stop and spend a few moments in prayer. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you someone who needs encouraging. Then make the sacrifice to either travel to that person’s location (if God so leads), or write a letter (don’t email—that’s too easy), or pick up the phone and call that person and build them up. Go the extra mile to make a difference in someone’s life. Let God use you to be a soul-shiner. If we would spend more time encouraging saints, we would find a whole lot more people wanting to become saints.
Inspiration
There is a good reason why dogs are therapeutic—they use their tails to fan our hearts.
Meditation
Acts 11:22-24—Then the report about them reached the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to travel as far as Antioch. When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he encouraged all of them to remain true to the Lord with a firm resolve of the heart for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith—and large numbers of people were added to the Lord.
Antioch was about 300 miles north of Jerusalem. Whether Barnabas walked to a port city and took a boat to the port fifteen miles from Antioch or just walked overland, we can assume it took him at least a week to get to his destination. He did not have luggage with wheels so he either carried all he needed or paid to have his stuff transported. He had no phone to call ahead and arrange where to meet and chances are good he had never before met the people the church sent him to greet. From the passage above, we can assume that his presence was partly responsible for amazing church growth. Barnabas was so enthused by what God was doing in Antioch, that he went to Tarsus to find Saul and brought him back with him. For over a year they taught large numbers of believers—the first disciples to be called Christians.
Have you ever considered that one of the best forms of evangelism is encouragement? Think about it! If I am discouraged and not doing so well in ministry and someone travels 16 hours just to visit and encourage me—is it possible that I will be reenergized to serve the Lord? If a total stranger travels over 300 miles to encourage my interest in learning about Jesus — is it possible, I may conclude that the gospel is valid and indeed life changing!
Would you consider doing something with me? Stop and spend a few moments in prayer. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you someone who needs encouraging. Then make the sacrifice to either travel to that person’s location (if God so leads), or write a letter (don’t email—that’s too easy), or pick up the phone and call that person and build them up. Go the extra mile to make a difference in someone’s life. Let God use you to be a soul-shiner. If we would spend more time encouraging saints, we would find a whole lot more people wanting to become saints.
Inspiration
There is a good reason why dogs are therapeutic—they use their tails to fan our hearts.
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