Tag: devotion

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

So do you trust, really trust, him?

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Dane Deaner on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from Job 1 and 2.

In the opening chapters of Job, we know what’s going on. Job doesn’t have a clue.

We know that God appreciates Job’s faithfulness. We know that Satan has asserted that Job is faithful only because his life is good. God allows Satan to take everything from Job: animals, children, and his health.

What is Job’s response to all this? “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21). Job says to his wife, “Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” (2:10). Job only sees the hand of God in everything he has experienced, both the good and the bad.

What do you think of that? What do you think of Job’s assessment of God? How do you feel about a God who takes life away. What do you do with a God from whom we experience bad things?

In the Old Testament, God floods the earth, wiping out all life that isn’t safely on board the ark.

God lets his people get hungry and thirsty in the wilderness. Why? To get their attention. So he can show them that he provides what they need.

When King David calls for an unnecessary census, the consequences from God are a plague that kills thousands of people.

In Revelation, disastrous things happen when the wrath of God is unleashed on an unbelieving world.

Many will ask, “Why does God allow bad things to happen?” What about asking, “Why does God cause bad things to happen?”

It’s not an easy question to answer. And I doubt I’ll be able to answer it very well here. But I’ll share what I’ve learned and how I’ve worked through this. I’ve got a logical brain, so this works for me.

God is good, all-powerful, loving, and sovereign. If he allows something to happen, even if we think it’s bad, it’s for a good reason or purpose. Nothing happens outside of his control or his knowledge. Nothing surprises him or catches him off-guard.

Think about it. In hindsight, you learned a lot from and even benefitted from experiences you thought were terrible in the moment. You’ll never figure it out in that moment. Only later will you understand.

God sees the much bigger picture. And he cares. He knows how much it hurts, how unfair it is, and what it’s like to weep. He’s been here. He’s done that. That’s what Jesus did.

The bottom line is, “Do you trust him?” You have faith, but do you trust him? Do you trust him to bring you through a flood, or fire, or “the valley of the shadow of death” to a new, different, and better place?

For the next 36 chapters, Job and his friends will try to figure all this out. In the end, there is no other path than trusting God.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Is good enough good enough?

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on pexels.com

Yeah, I’m still at it. Here’s another “through the bible” devotion from Job 1.

The book of Job starts like this:

“There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil” (Job 1:1).

Was Job perfect? No. “None is righteous” (Romans 3:10). “All have sinned” (Romans 3:23).

So what kind of a person was Job?

What’s the difference between being “blameless” and “sinless”? Here’s one explanation. Sin is vertical, blame is horizontal. Sinful is what you are like in the presence of a holy God. Blameless is about life with others. Think portrait vs. landscape mode.

Blameless? Everyone thought of Job as a good guy. But Job still needed God’s grace as much as anyone else.

No criminal record. Perfect attendance. Excellent credit score. Employee of the month. All lab results normal. Most likely to succeed. 4.0 GPA. A horizontal righteousness, blameless and upright in the eyes of most.

Angry. Jealous. Holds a grudge. Bitter. Lips honor God; heart is far from him. Selfish. A vertical unrighteousness in the sight of the one whose opinion counts.

Some of us claim that we don’t care what others think of us. That’s a lie. Of course we care. We work hard to look good horizontally. Do we care about what God thinks of us? Probably not as much as we care what others think of us. How much effort goes into that vertical relationship?

Good enough or God’s enough? That’s a good question, isn’t it?

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

God’s Perspective: The Heart Over Appearance

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Randy Jacob on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from 1 Samuel 16.

I watched him walk into the church during the first hymn and sit in the back. He looked nervous and uncomfortable. He made me nervous and uncomfortable. I got the attention of an usher and said, “Make sure that guy has a worship folder.” In other words, “Keep an eye on him.”

Do you know what happened? Nothing. We had nothing to worry about. He was visiting family in town, stopped by for worship, and we never saw him again. But I’ve been taught, “See something, say something.”

In the aftermath, I remembered that while we look at appearances, God looks at someone’s heart. I am so shallow.

Having said that, I am also confused. First, when Samuel thinks he’ll anoint Jesse’s oldest son to be the next king, God says, “Nope. That’s not the one. Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7).

When they finally bring David in from tending the sheep, the author describes him as “glowing with health and…a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, ‘Rise and anoint him; this is the one'” (16:12).

I would have written something about David’s “heart.” I would have mentioned something about David’s character, his personality, or his faith. All of this will come out later. But why not sooner?

A few chapters ago, Samuel told a foolish and disobedient Saul, “the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart” (13:14). Well guess what? David’s that guy. Not perfect. But on the same page. Makes mistakes. But runs to grace. Fights hard. Prays hard.

So what’s God want from me (you)? Pray hard. Pursue grace. Be on the same page (scripture).

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Life-changing prayer

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash

Hannah’s prayer is life-changing. Yes, it is life-changing because God does give her a son. But a change occurs before that.

Hannah is deeply distressed and pours out her soul before the Lord, bitter tears running down her face (1 Samuel 1:10, 15). After she prays, she “went on her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad (1:18). She leaves Shiloh a changed woman.

So what just happened to Hannah? She opened her heart and emptied it of all its sadness, despair, concern, and provocation. (The provocation came from Peninnah, the other wife, who could have children when Hannah could not.) Once she had unloaded all that to the Lord, everything was different.

Maybe our hearts weren’t designed to carry all the sorrow, anxiety, jealousy, and bitterness our lives absorb each day. Thankfully God has designed a relief valve: prayer.

  • “Cast your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7).
  • “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6).
  • “Pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us” (Psalm 62:8).

So it’s okay to do that. It’s okay to open the floodgates and let all that pent up worry, grief, regret, and shame rush out. Our Lord is happy to clean up the mess.

That’s an interesting and profound way to picture grace, isn’t it? And then once you let it all out, you’ve got room for all God wants to pour into your life!

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Somebody

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by The Jopwell Collection on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from Judges 6.

God says to Gideon, “Go in this strength of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian” (Judges 6:14).

Gideon responds, “O Lord, how am I to save Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house” (6:15). In other words, “How am I going to do that? I’m nobody.” God says, “Don’t worry about it. I’ll be with you.”

Never underestimate the value of someone who says, “I’ll go with you.” To the doctor. To the funeral home. To lunch. To the store. Suddenly, you’re somebody. And so are they.

God has always been “somebody” to me. But how often do I think about me being “somebody” to God? When I pray, he listens – to me. When I’m reading scripture, he is speaking – to me. He created everything, and he created me.

I don’t have to work that hard to be somebody. I already am.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

An environment for unfaithfulness

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Nathan Cowley on pexels

A “through the bible” devotion from Judges 1 and 2.

Productivity gurus and life coaches will tell you that your environment determines your habits.

  • If you’ve got chips in the house, you’ll eat chips. Throw out the chips and fill the fridge with fruit. You’ll be much more likely to reach for a healthy snack.
  • You’ve got your guitar in a case over in the corner. You’re not as likely to pick it up and play it as you would be if it were out on a stand where you can see it.
  • Own a dog? You’ll walk a lot more than if you didn’t have one.

God’s people didn’t create an environment for faithfulness. Over and over again we read, “[They] did not drive out the inhabitants” (Judges 1:30,31,33). As a result, “The sons of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals” (Judges 2:11). If you’ve got Baal worshipers living in the neighborhood, you’ll be tempted to join them. And that’s exactly what happened.

I wonder what happened. Did the people just get tired of fighting? Did they think the benefit of slave labor outweighed driving out all the inhabitants of the land? Were they simply disobedient? Yeah, I’ll bet it was the last one that got them into the most trouble.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

You have to make a choice

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Marques Thomas on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from Joshua 24.

I used to hear these words all the time: “We know there are many airlines to choose from, so thank you for choosing [our airline].” Maybe I just haven’t been paying attention. Or maybe there was commotion from passengers wrestling carry on bags from the overhead compartment. Most of the time, I can’t even understand what the flight attendant is saying over the intercom. It just seems like I don’t hear that any more.

It’s crazy how many choices are available to us. How many makes of automobiles can we choose from? One source I checked reported over a hundred. My grocery store has a whole aisle devoted to nothing but different kinds of cereal. Running shoes? There are endless manufacturers and models. Milk? Why buy it from a cow when you can buy milk made from soy, almonds, oats, cashews, peas, coconut, flax, or rice?

So, life is filled with choices. Every day we have to choose whether we will fear, love, and trust the one true God or some other god we have manufactured. Joshua put it this way:

“Choose for yourselves today whom you will serve” (Joshua 24:15).

What’s it going to be, folks? Those Egyptian gods you left when God brought you out of bondage? The local Canaanite gods worshiped in the land God brought you to? Or will it be the One who delivered you, provided for you, protected you, and led you to this time and place?

This choice is not just an intellectual exercise. Your choice will guide your actions. If you choose the one true God (and I’m thinking that most of my readers will be in that camp), you choose to do what he commands and avoid what he forbids. It means you’ll be kind, generous, forgiving, and merciful. It means you’ll tell the truth, obey civil law, and love your neighbor. It means you’ll keep your word, take care of your health, and clean up your language.

Don’t answer too quickly. Who will you choose to serve, obey, and worship? Are you sure? Final answer?

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

The day the sun stood still

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Patrick on Unsplash

A “through the bible” devotion from Joshua 10.

Ever have a day that seemed to go on forever?

Maybe it was a travel day, when you had delays, cancelled flights, and endless lines. It took you a whole day (or more) to get home.

Some of the days when hurricanes were coming through seemed to go on and on. The power was out and the storm was in no hurry to move along. The night seems even longer as the wind howls and you wonder what just hit the roof.

Or you’re sitting in the hospital waiting. You’re waiting for the surgeon to come out and tell you how the procedure went. Or you’re waiting for the baby to be born. Or you’re in the emergency room, waiting for lab results. The time seems to pass so slowly.

When I was growing up, the one-hour drive to my grandmother’s house on the other side of Philadelphia seemed so long. The 1-1/2 hour drive to the Jersey shore seemed to take a day and a half.

Our perception of time doesn’t actually change a time period. Only God can do that. He only does it a couple of times in scripture. One of those times is when Joshua fights an alliance of kings who have attacked Gibeon. In the account, Joshua asks the Lord to slow down time so Israel can avenge their enemies. God does just that. In fact,

“The sun stood still, and the moon stopped, until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies…The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and did not hurry to go down for about a whole day” (Joshua 10:13).

The Day the Sun Stood Still by Poul Anderson, Gordon Dickson, and Robert Silverberg is a collection of three science fiction novellas that explore that day. How would the world react if that actually happened? What would be the effect on religious, political, and personal life?

I read this book a long time ago. Having remembered the title, I need to go back and read this again! When I do, I promise to update this post.

There are moments when we wish time would speed up. Like when you’re hungry and it’t still hours till supper. There are others times when we wish we could slow time down and enjoy the moment a little longer. Like those times when our children grow up so quickly.

Are you someone who has plenty of time? Or not enough time? Ironically, we’ve all got the same amount of time, twenty-four hours, every day.