Category: Through the Bible Devotions

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Lessons from the ocean

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Sean on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” devotional thoughts from Jeremiah 5.

I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea,
    a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass;
though the waves toss, they cannot prevail;
    though they roar, they cannot pass over it.
But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart;
    they have turned aside and gone away. (Jeremiah 5:22,23)

The ocean is an imposing body of water. It is powerful. A single wave can knock you over. Riptides pull you helplessly away from the shore. Offshore storms create waves that rip apart piers and wash away resort beaches. The seas toss huge ships around as if they were nothing. Pressure at the bottom of the ocean crushes the sturdiest submarines.

But the ocean obeys its creator. They can only go as far as he permits.

People? They are stubborn. They are rebellious. They disregard the barriers of God’s law. They dismiss the guardrails of God’s statutes. They ignore his warnings. They go where they want. They do what they want.

Okay, let’s be honest here. Let’s correct the pronouns. I am stubborn. I am rebellious. I disregard the barriers. I dismiss the guardrails. I ignore the warnings. I go where I want and do what I want.

Let’s get it right. I’m a piece of work. I’m a mess. I’m greedy, selfish, judgmental, prideful, insensitive, and cruel. I’m the enigma Jeremiah describes. I’m the one part of God’s creation who doesn’t honor and obey the creator.

That’s a tough confession to make, isn’t it? It’s honest though, isn’t it? It’s truthful. It’s real. It’s puzzling. It makes Jeremiah’s words come to life. Yeah, he’s talking about me.

Once I get that right, the bible starts to make sense. I need help. I need God’s help. And I have a God who helps. With love, mercy, and grace he gets my attention, draws me in, and shows me how much he still loves me.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Broken cisterns rather than a fountain?

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Muneer ahmed ok on Unsplash

Be appalled, O heavens, at this;
    be shocked, be utterly desolate,
declares the Lord,
for my people have committed two evils:
they have forsaken me,
    the fountain of living waters,
and hewed out cisterns for themselves,
    broken cisterns that can hold no water. (Jeremiah 2:12,13)

I love Jeremiah’s imagery here. He condemns a couple of habits that many of us can relate to. We don’t think God can fulfill our needs, so we pursue other things, people, and experiences we believe will satisfy us.

Those pursuits are just futile. They are sinful, unfaithful, and idolatrous. They reveal distrust, unbelief, and outright disobedience.

Convicted? Yeah, me too.

What are my cisterns? Approval. “Likes” for anything I write. Feeling “fit” compared to so many overweights who can barely walk into a store. A little money in the bank. 20+ likes for any blog post.

Why am I not satisfied with what God provides? Great question. I have no profound answers.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

I have a job for you

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Resume Genius on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Jeremiah 1.

Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:4,5)

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

Ask that question of you’ll children and you get answers that range from ballerina to firefighter to doctor. Later on, as high school graduation approaches, you need some career aspirations so you can pock your college classes. By the end of college, you may have changed your major a number of times. But the world changes so quickly that your first job may be one that didn’t even exist when you started school.

Jeremiah was on track to be a priest. It was the family business, so to speak. But God had another career in mind for him, picket out a long time ago. Prophet. God appointed Jeremiah to speak to nations on a collision course with a Babylonian invasion, destruction, and exile.

Does God have a career in mind for everyone? That’s a great question. (Spoiler: I don’t have the answer.) He created each of us with strengths, abilities, and aptitudes that move us toward certain jobs. He knows what jobs will exist in twenty years. But I think he leaves that choice up to you and me.

Jeremiah was a special case at a unique time in Judah’s history. God knew he would need someone like Jeremiah, and put him to work at just the right time.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

He’s got a footstool. Now he wants you.

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Isaiah 66.

Thus says the Lord:
“Heaven is my throne,
    and the earth is my footstool;
what is the house that you would build for me,
    and what is the place of my rest?…
But this is the one to whom I will look:
    he who is humble and contrite in spirit
    and trembles at my word. (Isaiah 66:1,2)

As the book of Isaiah draws to a close, the almighty God reminds us that he’s not so interested in any temples we could build for him. Instead he’s at home with those who who don’t have it all together, who have a boatload of regrets, and take what God has to say seriously.

Sounds simple enough, until I realize I typically do the opposite. I tend to be prideful, get defensive, make excuses, and treat God’s word lightly. Why is it so easy to get so far off track?

For some reason, there’s a desire to impress others, and that includes God. I’m doing a good job, I’m staying out of trouble, and I’ve got my favorite bible verses. Not much humility, contrition, or trembling.

What a great reminder that God is a lot bigger than me and my little world. Compared to the heavens and the earth (meaning everything), I don’t amount to much. But he cares a lot about me anyway, enough to remind me to fear, love, and trust him over and above anything else.

Even myself.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Sometimes all you have to do is wait

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Valentin Wallet on Unsplash

Some “through the Bible” thoughts from Isaiah 64.

From of old no one has heard
    or perceived by the ear,
no eye has seen a God besides you,
    who acts for those who wait for him.
You meet him who joyfully works righteousness,
    those who remember you in your ways. (Isaiah 64:4,5)

This description of God brings up a good question, “Should I do something or wait for God to take care of it?” After all, he “acts for those who wait for him.”

Most people probably believe that you can’t just sit around and wait for God to take care of a situation. You get to work and do what needs to be done.

And yet on the other hand, in retrospect, God takes care of a lot of things without our help.

My garden is a good example. I had high hopes for lots of home grown veggies. I made raised boxes, filled them with good soil, supplemented the soil with homemade compost, built chicken wire cages to keep the squirrels out, watered, weeded, and staked up the tomatoes. Most of the lettuce died, a got more than enough jalapenos, and found out that cherry tomatoes are the only ones that grow well in my beds.

I didn’t plant much this past spring. (In Florida you plant in February or October, when the weather is a little better.) Lots of weeds grew. But so did a pepper plant. A green bell pepper plant. Which I’ve never planted. It must have been from the compost. I walked out there one day and harvested two pretty nice peppers for my salads. All courtesy of the creator, who made fruit-bearing plants that reproduced themselves.

All I had to do was wait.

I take medicine when I don’t feel well. But for the most part, my immune system takes care of my ailments and I feel better after a few days of rest.

All I have to do is wait.

Earlier this year, I worked hard to rehab our backyard lawn that had been torn up by an energetic Great Dane puppy. Sod, sod plus, filling holes, and taking her for more walks. Then the rains came, and the yard suddenly came to life. The grass grew in nice and thick so that I had to start cutting it every 4 or 5 days.

All I had to do was wait.

God provides in lots of different ways. Parents while we’re growing up, jobs and the ability to do them, friends who help us out, a earth filled with resources, and government. So no matter how hard you work, he ultimately gets the credit. And if you choose to wait, he gets the credit as well.

To God be the glory.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Instead of

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Mariana Medvedeva on Unsplash

Some “through the Bible” thoughts from Isaiah 61.

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me…
    to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning,
    the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit (Isaiah 61:1,3).

What do you think of those restaurants whose menus announce, “No substitutions?”

  • “Can I get a side salad instead of the vegetable medley?”
  • “Could you give me a baked potato instead of the smashed garlic potatoes?”
  • “I’m gluten free. Can I get celery instead of the pita chips?”
  • “I’m vegan. Do you have Beyond meat?” (at a steak restaurant, lol)

Burger King was the chain who conditioned us to think we can have it our way. John Wanamaker supposedly said, “The customer is always right.” Plenty of “Karens” have led us to believe we can bully our way around a “no substitution” world.

On the other hand, God is all about “instead of.”

  • Joy instead of gloom.
  • A beautiful outfit instead of a black suit for a funeral.
  • A smile instead of a frown.
  • Life instead of death.

This world offers little. God offers so much. Grace instead of shame. Forgiveness instead of condemnation. Renewal instead of expiration. Fresh instead of stale. Victory instead of defeat. The old has gone; the new has come!

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Closer than you think

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash

Some “through the Bible” thoughts from Isaiah 59.

Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,
    or his ear dull, that it cannot hear (Isaiah 59:1).

The hearing aid business must be doing very well. They take out full page ads in the local paper. I get robo-calls and lots of direct mail from a variety of vendors. I’m in that age group. Everyone my age has some hearing loss. At this point, I’m not aware of my need for assistance.

I am shorter than I used to be. For most of my adult life I was five foot ten inches. Somewhere I lost an inch. Now I’m only 5′ 9″.

So it’s only natural to think that the eternal God, the ancient of days, may have lost a step or two. At the very least, he’s not as quick to respond as we would like.

I love how Isaiah addresses this. “Behold…” in other words, “Look…” God’s reach is as long as it’s ever been. His hearing is just fine. He’s not the problem. You are. Your sin, your failures, your mistakes, your disobedience, and your dishonesty has created distance between you and God. At a distance, objects look smaller than they really are.

So does God.

Like a young child who wanders ahead of the parents, we don’t realize how far we’ve strayed until we need divine assistance. Then all of a sudden we wonder why God seems so far away. Guess what? He never moved. You did. And I did.

It happens at the beach. You’re out in the water having a great time. You look up and realize you’ve drifted far from your beach umbrella and cooler.

It happens at sporting events. You thought you had good seats. But the players seemed so small from where you were sitting.

Younger kids often look through the wrong end of binoculars. Everything looks so small!

How often do you look at God through the wrong end of the binoculars? How small and remote is your view of God?

Only scripture can turn the binoculars around. In the bible God is bigger than the seas, mountains, rivers, creatures, weather, trees, and hailstorms. He overcomes trouble, storms, hunger, fatigue, doubt, and death. Impressive. Much bigger than we think or imagine.

We can’t get close to God. But he comes to us. Jesus comes to make the impossible possible. God with us!

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Beyond ritual to relationship

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Timur Weber on pexels

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Isaiah 58.

“Will you call this a fast,
    and a day acceptable to the Lord?” (Isaiah 58:5)

This whole chapter (Isaiah 58) is convicting. In it, Isaiah challenges us to look at our worship practices. Are they nothing more than ritual? If there’s no horizontal dimension to our spiritual lives, our worship isn’t worship at all. In other words, if our devotion doesn’t affect how we live with others, we’re not worshiping God. We’re just going through the motions.

When love for others is paired with love for God, we get it. He graciously provides food for our souls and an eternal home, and uses us to provide others with physical nourishment and homes. Worship isn’t just about me and God. It’s about God and us, those who intersect our lives every day.

How can you keep your spirituality from becoming nothing more than ritual? Reading this chapter of Isaiah is a good wake up call for those us of, like me, who find that ritual is easier than relationship. The problem is, ritual leaves you further from God. God promises to be closer when we pay attention to each other.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Crushed

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Image by Thomas from Pixabay

Some “through the Bible” thoughts from Isaiah 53.

There’s so much in Isaiah 53. I’ve read it so many times. I could write a whole series of devotions on just this chapter. And some day I will. This time I paused at these words

“It was the will of the Lord to crush him” (Isaiah 53:10).

Did those prophetic words echo in Jesus’s mind in Gethsemane when he prayed, “Not my will, but yours, be done” (Luke 22:42)? Absolutely. He knew his task was to fulfill scripture. He knew the Father’s will. He knew the plan.

Jesus knew he would be crushed for our iniquities (Isaiah 53:5).

I wonder what Isaiah thought about this description of God’s servant? A servant of God should be honored and celebrated. In Jesus’s parables, faithful servants are rewarded. Yet the ultimate servant, the Christ, will be stricken, smitten, afflicted, pierced, and crushed for our sin (Isaiah 53:4,5). For my sin.

I underestimate what Jesus suffered for me. I take it for granted. God forgives me; it’s all good. I just leave out the crushed part. Crushed like those who didn’t make it out of the World Trade Center on September 11. Crushed like someone in a mineshaft that collapsed. Crushed like someone who rolled their car into a ditch. Horrible way to die, right?

Can you imagine what it would be like to be Jesus and read Jeremiah 29:11, “I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord.” Do you think Jesus would want to see those words on a cake, t-shirt, or coffee mug?