Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Trusting God or testing God?

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Nguyen Dang Hoang Nhu on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from Ezra 8.

It sounds like Ezra painted himself into a corner with God.

King Artaxerxes sent Ezra back to Jerusalem to teach and reestablish worship in Jerusalem with plenty of resources to get the job done. But when it’s time to go, Ezra faith is put to the test.

Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods. For I was ashamed to ask the king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on our way, since we had told the king, “The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him.” (Ezra 8:21,22)

Ezra told the king that he had God on his side. True enough. But Ezra also has a whole bunch of gold, silver, and bronze to take back to Judah. Without some soldiers to accompany him and his fellow travelers, they would be sitting ducks for robbery along the way. But he can’t ask for that. Ezra went all in on God’s protection. There was no going back.

So was Ezra faithful or foolish? Well, they made it, and Ezra gives God all the credit. “The hand of our God was on us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy and from ambushes by the way” (Ezra 8:31).

It’s really easy to second guess Ezra. Remember when the devil tempted Jesus to leap off the top of the temple, with the assurance that angels would catch him before he hit the ground? Jesus declined, reminding the devil, “You don’t test God.” Of course, you don’t take advice from the devil. He’s a liar. But how do you know if you’re trusting God or testing God?

First of all, Ezra was a priest steeped in the word of God. He knew the promises of God, and knew that the exiles’ return to Jerusalem had been promised by God. This was God’s plan, not his own. If God says it, it’s the right thing to do.

Second, is it about you or about God? If it glorifies him, it’s trust. If it’s for approval from others, you might be going out on a treacherous limb.

Finally, you don’t know. Our hearts are deceitful. We lie to ourselves. We say it’s all about God, when it’s really all about us. Lord, have mercy.

Okay, here’s my conclusion. You’re probably testing God not trusting him. Admit it. Repent. He knows. He forgives. Learn something. Don’t go out on that limb again. Next question?

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Just like riding a bike

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Jonny Kennaugh on Unsplash

I was asked to substitute preach last November at the church I retired from two-and-a-half years ago. While I’ve done a few memorials and funerals, this was my first time back in the pulpit for a Sunday morning worship service.

A few months before, someone who knew I was scheduled to preach teasingly asked, “Do you think you’ll remember how?” But it’s a good question. It should be like riding a bike, right? I might be a little stiff, but preaching muscle-memory ought to kick in.

And it did. In some ways it felt like I had taken a couple of weeks off rather than two years. I could have resurrected a sermon from my archive of messages. I didn’t because old messages include things that aren’t relevant. Plus, the discipline of preparing a message assures that it will touch my heart before it reaches the ears of others. I need and appreciate that blessing.

I do not write out my sermons. I outline them using Keynote (Apple’s version of Power Point), putting a picture on each one to help me remember. That way I can preach just using my bible, freeing me to better engage the congregation.

I also volunteered to lead the praise service that day, since the leader would also be away. And teach an adult Sunday School class between the two morning worship services. In hindsight, I should have just preached rather than dividing my efforts between all those things. I enjoy doing all of that, it just takes a little more preparation to spin that many plates on a Sunday morning.

The week before I noticed that my mind was continually filled with the upcoming sermon. I would think my way through the outline, introduction, illustrations, and applications throughout the day. I had forgotten how sermon preparation moves in and occupies a lot of space in my mind. It requires a lot of mental and spiritual energy.

That’s the part I don’t miss. It sounds terrible, but I don’t miss the weekly grind. As soon as you’re done one, the next one looms. Sundays come around with precise regularity. As much as I love preaching and teaching, I don’t miss it that much. Does that surprise you? I read those words and it surprises me. It’s one of those love-hate things, I guess.

Thanks for lasting this far through a rambling post. Here’s one last thought. I am grateful for the honorarium paid for my Sunday morning efforts. I do want to mention that this is one place where inflation has not spun out of control. I received the same amount as we were paying substitute preachers thirty years ago. I know, I know, you don’t do it for the money. I’m just putting it out there.

I suppose I’ll preach now and again in the future. We’ll see what happens. I still get to teach adults and youth each month, and enjoy that a lot.

I’m still figuring out this retirement thing.

Posted in cookies

We are printing cookies!

Posted on by William Douthwaite

We are printing cookies!

Well, kind of. We just added an Eddie Edible Ink Printer from Primera to our cookie business’ arsenal of equipment. It is amazing how quickly cookie cutters, icing tips, boxes and packaging, food coloring, and little pokey things for smoothing icing accumulate in the kitchen, the bedrooms, and on the dining room table. I suspect they are being fruitful and multiplying when we’re asleep.

The Eddie printer is amazing. It prints a picture with edible ink right on an iced cookie. Here are the first few that I made as I figured out how the printer worked.

You can print any text or picture right on a cookie. Once you get it set up on the computer, it only takes a few seconds. It’s pretty amazing.

I unboxed the printer yesterday. All I had to do was put the carousel in the front, hook up a few cables, pop in the ink cartridge, and I was all set to go.

Unfortunately, most of the software is for Windows and I have a Mac, but I found out a few workarounds from YouTube videos. I found a nice Elsa and Anna picture for my first efforts, one we can use for a fourth birthday party in a few weeks. The other design is for a conference. Once we get them baked, I’ll have to learn how to print them on a different shape. That will be my next challenge.

One of the hardest things to do when custom icing a cookie is lettering. This makes it a snap. Anything I can print on paper, I can put on a cookie! Photographs, logos, cartoon characters, maps, words, dates, anything.

Do they taste good? You better believe it. Butter, sugar, and frosting come together to make you reach for another…and another…and another.

If you want to see more of what we’re making stop by backseatgracebakery.com. We’re printing cookies!

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Severe consequences

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Gene Gallin on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from Ezra 6.

In anger, a parent might threaten their child, “If you do that again, you’ll be grounded for life!” Everyone knows that’s not going to happen. Young people might lament, “My parents are going to kill me!” But that never happened to any of my friends, even the ones who were always getting into trouble.

The bible includes examples of extreme justice. Like the decrees in Daniel to throw offenders into a fiery furnace or a den of lions. Those monarchs were serious. They really did it.

In the book of Ezra, when the Jews who have returned from exile are trying to rebuild the temple, the locals do their best to shut down the project. The matter ends up in front of King Darius, who searches the royal archives for a solution to the conflict. He discovers that Cyrus had decreed the house of God to be rebuilt in Jerusalem. All costs would be paid from the royal treasury.

Darius reissues the decree, prescribing severe consequences for any who fail to abide by it. “If anyone alters this edict, a beam shall be pulled out of his house, and he shall be impaled on it, and his house shall be made a dunghill” (Ezra 6:11). End of discussion.

There is no biblical record of anyone punished in this way. Maybe that’s because they knew from history that those kings were serious. These royal decrees insured everyone followed orders.

But would you turn in a neighbor who was interfering with the rebuilding of the temple if meant you’d end up with a dunghill in the lot next to yours. I know I wouldn’t.

Anyway, the project was completed on time. The Jews finished the reconstruction of the temple and worship was restored in post-exilic Jerusalem.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

The best party ever!

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Nik on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Chronicles 35.

What would make you exclaim, “This was the best Christmas (or birthday or other celebration) ever”? It might be the presents you received. Or the people gathered with you. Maybe the food was outstanding. A live band, fireworks, or an open bar could make an occasion the best ever. How about the amount of debris left to clean up the next day?

“Josiah kept a Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem” (2 Chronicles 35:1). Boy did he ever! “No Passover like it had been kept in Israel since the day so Samuel the prophet” (35:18).

What made this Passover so memorable?

First, the numbers are amazing. 37,600 lambs and young goats were slaughtered and roasted, along with 3,800 bulls. It’s close to twice as big as the Passover King Hezekiah kept, which was best one since Solomon was on the throne (2 Chronicles 30:23-26).

Josiah kept this Passover “according to the word of the Lord by Moses” (35:4). Those repairing the temple discovered the Book of the Law of the Lord. A convicted but repentant King Josiah made sure they followed God’s instructions to the letter.

Finally, the king kept the best Passover ever during the decline of the southern kingdom of Judah. In just a few decades after Josiah’s reign, Babylonians would capture and burn Jerusalem, and take whoever was left into an exile that would last seventy years. Those whom God loved rejected him and every messenger he sent to warn them. He had no choice There was no remedy (36:16).

What’s the best worship event you’ve ever experienced? Anyone who’s been to church has a story about an amazing service. The more I think about it, the more I add to my list. Mine would have to be my call service at the seminary, my son’s ordination, baptizing my children and grandchildren, and my father’s funeral. They were all very different but powerful moments.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Use your own ink

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

This morning I reflected on something I read in The Boonly, a weekly idea newsletter I get on Sundays.

“Are my pursuits genuinely reflective of my own dreams and values? Have I been seduced by the success stories of others, mistaking them for roadmaps to fulfillment? You see what other people are doing, their lifestyles or success stories, and you start thinking you want the same.”

Here’s the crucial question: “Is this what I really want?” In other words, do my pursuits come from my own passions or from the influence of others?

My theological mind immediately recognized this as a manifestation of coveting. The commandments are clear that we are not to covet, or desire what other people have. This would include both things and relationships. But isn’t that exactly what we pursue?

Are your new year’s resolutions things you really want to do or be, or do they reveal your wishes to be like someone else or have as much fun as them? Too often, “Instead of carving our own path, we find ourselves measuring our worth against borrowed ideals, often feeling empty, dissatisfied, and disconnected from our own reality.”

The author, Irena Spegar, expresses a different approach: “Your journey is a narrative waiting to be written, not in the ink of borrowed dreams, but in the colors of your person aspirations.”

I love the words, but I’m challenged that she does not suggest a strategy for accomplishing this. How do I identify and set out on my own personal path? How can I make sure I am painting my life in my own colors?

I guess it’s up to me to suggest a few ways to do that. (I am learning here as I go, so be easy with me!)

  • Turn off everything. Phone, social media, doorbell (yes, we clipped the wires), don’t walk to the mailbox, close the bedroom door, and be alone. I need to spend a few moments listening to my thoughts, my feelings, and my appetite.
  • Look back at the things that inspired, energized, or motivated you in the past. That’s who you are and that’s who you really want to be. I play trumpet and guitar, I love to read and write, I’ve always enjoyed running and fitness. I should try to be even better at those things.

That’s all I’ve got for now. My resolution is to use my own ink and write my own story. How about you?

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

The reality rather than the feeling of security

Posted on by William Douthwaite

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Chronicles 32.

About once a week, someone knocks on my door encouraging me to install their security system in and around my house. Their spiel always includes the sobering report, “Many of your neighbors have had break-ins lately.” I used to be annoyed by them, but now I look forward to it. I want to answer the door barely restraining my Great Dane who can be insistent about getting to know our visitors. I’m pretty sure she just wants to make friends, but the salesperson doesn’t know that!

On a typical day, someone I know will say something about hand weapons. They will speak about a gun they’ve purchased or the price of ammo or a shooting in their neighborhood. It seems that I know very few people who aren’t carrying!

And how often do I pass through a metal detector? They’re built into just about every hospitals, stadium, theme park, and government office building, no to mention airports and cruise ports.

The business of home and self-protection is huge, and we’ve all bought into it.

Sennacherib and his Assyrian armies have invaded Judah, besieging the fortified cities. It looks like Jerusalem will be next.

Judah’s King Hezekiah stops up the springs the Assyrians could use for water, builds extra walls and amasses extra weapons and shields.

His pep talk to all his commanders went like this:

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there are more with us than with him. With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles” (2 Chronicles 32:7-8)

Hezekiah doesn’t overlook the need to prepare for a siege, but that’s not the source of his security. He knows God’s people have an advantage. The bottom line: we’ve got God on our side.

I know it’s easy to forget that simple truth. The imposing threats around us block a distant God from view. In the same way, if we stay close him, danger shrinks to a manageable size. Scripture, worship, and prayer reinforce Hezekiah’s faithful statement, “With us is the Lord our God.”

A big dog might bring a feeling of security. But if I turn those letter around to “God,” that security becomes a reality.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

You’ll be missed

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Aron Lesin on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from 2 Chronicles 20 and 23.

As I write this I am getting ready to officiate and preach at a memorial service. Family and friends will gather with tears of sadness and smiles of remembrance. It’s a bittersweet moment to say goodbye to a loved one, and release them to the care of the Lord.

Do you want to read something sad? How about this description of the end of King Jehoram’s reign: “He departed with no one’s regret” (2 Chronicles 21:20).

Or how about these words after the death of Queen Athalia: “So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet after Athaliah had been put to death with the sword” (2 Chronicles 23:21).

What do you think it’s like to be someone no one will miss? What would it be like to be a person whose death no one grieves? I guess it happens every day. I’m sure there are those who are glad when the homeless population decreases. Few grieve the John or Jane Doe who dies on the street.

The pendulum swings both ways. Some can’t stop grieving the death of a loved one. They continue to celebrate birthdays and feel the emptiness of holidays for many years after a funeral. On the other hand, for others, life goes on without the deceased. They are not forgotten, but they only occasionally come to mind.

I can assure you of this: you’ll be missed. You have no idea how many peoples’ lives you’ve touched and the difference you’ve made. There will never be another you. You’ll be missed.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

That’s a nasty way to die

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Brian Wangenheim on Unsplash

A “through the bible devotion” from 2 Chronicles 21.

All of a sudden, as I’m reading through Chronicles thinking, “I’ve heard all this before,” this leaps out at me:

After all this the Lord struck [Jehoram] in his bowels with an incurable disease. In the course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great agony (2 Chronicles 21:19).

Yuk. That wasn’t in Kings. Come to think of it, neither was Asa’s terminal illness:

In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was diseased in his feet, and his disease became severe. Yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but sought help from physicians. And Asa slept with his fathers, dying in the forty-first year of his reign (2 Chronicles 16:12,13).

So of course I wonder, “Who else died a gruesome death?”

  • Jezebel got thrown out a window (2 Kings 9:33).
  • Sheba had his head cut off and thrown over a city wall (2 Samuel 20:22).
  • When King Herod got a little too full of himself, God struck him down and “he was eaten by worms and breathed his last” (Acts 12:23).
  • Jael drove a tent peg through Sisera’s head (Judges 4:21).

And of course, crucifixion is a horrible way to die.

I love to ask middle-school students, “What would be the worst way to die?” They answer everything from getting eaten by a shark to being seal in an oil drum to sitting naked on a fire ant pile. They like to hear vivid biblical descriptions like those above.

I guess that’s one way to get them into God’s Word!