Tag: God

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

God’s hedges

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Piotr AMS on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Hosea 2.

Because God’s people have a tendency to be unfaithful, he plans to plant a hedge around her so she can’t wander. It’d kind of like grounding the kids to discipline them.

“Therefore I will hedge up her way with thorns,
    and I will build a wall against her,
    so that she cannot find her paths” (Hosea 2:6).

But other times God puts a protective hedge around a person. According to Satan, that’s why Job was so faithful.

“Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land” (Job 1:10).

So I guess the question is, “What kind of hedge surrounds me right now?” Are there thick, plant-like walls around me to keep the world out, or to keep me confined? Because let’s face it, there’s a lot of bad stuff out I should avoid.

In a recent bible study, an author challenged his readers to explore God’s purposes in “unfulfilled aspirations.” In a world that praises productivity and achievement, failure is not an option. But what if God has something completely different in mind? What if being stuck in one place, in a dead end job, without a home, or no longer able to do what you used to do is a place where God needs you to be?

I don’t like the thought of that any more than you do. I would much prefer to have God simply watch my back while I go off and do whatever I want to do.

But that’s not the way it works. God knows me too well and loves me too much to simply let me wander off. My shepherd comes looking for me, keeping me in the sheepfold and keeping predators out for the night.

What hedges of protection has God placed around you? What hedges of confinement has he set in place? Be thankful for both.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Imagining the temple

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Ezekiel 40-42.

To be honest, I don’t find chapters 40-42 of Ezekiel inspiring. There’s little devotional material here.

Twenty-one years ago, as my church made plans to build a new sanctuary, the architect included a thick volume of specifications for the construction along with the blueprints. It was not inspiring either. But we had one man, retired from construction, who took them home and digested them!

However, the architect also supplied us with artist renderings of the finished building, along with a scale model to display in the entryway of the church. That was inspiring! That got everyone excited. That fueled the fund-raising which made the new building possible. Not only could we see the finished structure, but we could picture ourselves worshiping there.

So I figure that these chapters from Ezekiel helped his audience picture the restored temple when God brought them back to Jerusalem to rebuild what the Babylonians had destroyed. It was intended to inspire and excite those who would undertake that effort. They would once again be worshiping there.

A few years after, our church attempted a capital campaign to pay down debt and reduce our mortgage payment. It was a flop. No one gets excited about debt reduction.

But a building program? Everyone loves that! Maybe Ezekiel’s description encouraged the hearts and minds of the exiles waiting to go home.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Physical Benefits of Spiritual Practices

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

Yesterday, I promised to explore spiritual pursuits that have physical benefits. I’ve been pondering that throughout the day. To tell you the truth, the converse was easier. But (as usual) I came up with a few examples.

  • The obvious example is healing. Prayers for healing are powerful. Healing may come through medication, doctors, time, or rest. But it’s all ultimately from God.
  • Spiritual activity brings you into the church, where surrounded by other believers, we find mutual encouragement and support. We help meet the physical needs of others; they meet ours.
  • We often pray for and give thanks for tangible things. Safety. Protection. Homes. Food. Whatever we need to live. All physical blessings from a spiritual source.
  • Fasting as a spiritual discipline has a physical benefit, at least according to the intermittent fasting experts. Who knew?

God knew what he was doing. Spirit and flesh, body and soul, physical and spiritual. It all works together.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

I’ll just have a salad

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Nadine Primeau on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Daniel 1.

When Daniel and his friends are taken in to exile, they are quickly selected for education and training, to work in the king’s palace. Rather than the usually fare of food and wine, Daniel asks that they be given vegetables to eat and water to drink. In a place far from his home and family, he has little control over his destiny. This small request is a way of sidestepping food that may have been an offering to an idol. It is one small corner of his life where he can still have control and still be faithful.

After ten days, Daniel and his friends are in better health than any of their classmates. They also surpass the wisdom and abilities of all the other magicians and enchanters in the kingdom. In a sense, they become better Babylonians than the Babylonians!

In this account, a physical habit has a spiritual benefit. Their choice of foods becomes a way of being faithful, of demonstrating their trust as they obey the statutes of God.

So I’m wondering: What other physical habits benefit someone spiritually?

  • Closing our eyes to pray. Shutting out visual distractions heightens our other senses, helping us focus on both speaking and listening. The folding of hands brings us fully into that moment.
  • Walking in the morning heightens my awareness of the creation around me, which reveals God’s glory and power.
  • Some will fast to escape the habitual shopping for, preparing, eating, and cleaning up after meals to focus on prayer.
  • When I enter a church that burns incense, the aroma seems to say, “This is a sacred space.” The smell of candles and wine proclaims that reality, too.
  • Some of my best devotional thoughts have come to mind while walking or running.

Those are just a few things that come to mind. As people with both bodies and souls, our physical and spiritual selves are vitally connected.

Next time: how does spirituality affect our physical lives?

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

A night with an angel and lions

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Jonathan Cooper on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Daniel 6.

First, a summary of the classic Sunday School story. Then, some unorthodox thoughts that come to mind.

When other officials fail to dig up any dirt to discredit Daniel, they decide they will use his faith against him (Daniel 6:5). They set him up, getting the king to establish an ordinance that no one can pray to anyone else but him for the next thirty days. The penalty? Offenders will be cast into the den of lions (6:7).

When Daniel deliberately disobeys and prays to God has he always did, the king has no choice but to throw him into the den of lions, wishing him the best: “May your God, whom you serve continually, deliver you!” (6:16).

The next morning, Daniel is safe and sound, explaining, “My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not harmed me” (6:22). It’s not that the lions weren’t hungry. Those who conspired against Daniel, along with their wives and children, were immediately torn apart when they were thrown to the lions (6:24).

Wouldn’t you like to spend the night with an angel? I would. Perhaps I need to consider what radical faithfulness would look like for me, so that I could have that opportunity.

In the same vein, wouldn’t it be great to spend the night with lions, especially knowing that they wouldn’t harm you? We used to line up early for feeding time at the Philadelphia zoo, eager to see the lions sink their teeth into some large slabs of beef. How great would it be to stroke their manes and hear them purr?

Daniel got to experience both of those things by simply giving God thanks on a regular basis. That simple spiritual habit was not only courageous and faithful, but resulted in a night he would never forget!

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

God is really good at the game of Risk

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Jeremiah 46.

“The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations” (Jeremiah 46:1).

It turns out that God had a message for the whole world, not just Israel or Judah. God speak of judgment for Egypt, Philistia, Moab, Ammon, Edom, Syria, Persia, and Babylon. Their violence, cruelty, pride, oppression, and idolatry has not gone unnoticed. Don’t worry. God will deal with them.

As I read through these chapters, I jotted down two notes in my journal. First, God is not a spectator in human history. He doesn’t passively watch it unfold. He’s the star. He’s on the stage, causing and working through current events.

My second note is, “God is playing the game of Risk.” Risk was one of my favorite childhood games. We left the Risk board on a basement table, since an ongoing game might take days to complete. Ours was an original game with wooden pieces representing armies and tens of armies. Risk taught me geography and strategy, along with statistics and luck. With a large enough army, I could defeat anyone, even if the dice seemed to be against me.

When it comes to God, there’s no luck or odds. He’s in control of the board, and he comes out on top. I too often forget about God’s role when I read the news. For better or worse, he’s behind all the headlines. He’s not a passive observer of human ambition. God is the headliner, the main event, and the star of the show. Nothing happens outside of his control. There may be a lot of players in the game of Risk (I think six is the max), but when it’s all said and done, God always wins.

My memories of playing Risk with my brother and sister and neighborhood friends helps me understand the Old Testament. There are lots of nations in play, we think it’s all random and luck, but God reveals himself and his plans as nations rise and fall.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

You should have seen it coming

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Jun Weng on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Lamentations 2.

The Lord has done what he purposed;
    he has carried out his word,
which he commanded long ago;
    he has thrown down without pity;
he has made the enemy rejoice over you
    and exalted the might of your foes. (Lamentations 2:17)

When I think of God’s promises, I think of positive ones. I remember promises of his presence protection, provision, and forgiveness.

But what about God’s promises of discipline, punishment, and destruction? As Jeremiah witnesses the siege, invasion, and destruction of Jerusalem, he recalls God’s promise of consequences for unfaithfulness and disobedience (Deuteronomy 29). Whether you like it or not, God keeps his word.

I used to have a little book that listed all of God’s promises by topic. Well, not all of them. Only the positive ones. It never occurred to me that the negative ones had been conveniently overlooked. I don’t think they would sell as many of those books.

Come to think of it, the first promise in the bible was a warning. “Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” (Genesis 2:17) I never see those words on a t-shirt or wall plaque.

So when you want talk about God’s faithfulness, don’t forget the warnings as well as the blessings. It’s all part of his word that teaches, reproves, corrects, and trains (2 Timothy 3:16).

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

I don’t want to do that

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Vidar Nordli-Mathisen on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Jeremiah 42 and 43.

Most of the nation has been taken into exile. The remnant who’s left wants Jeremiah to ask God, “Now what should we do?” They promise, “We will obey the voice of the Lord our God to whom we are sending you” (Jeremiah 42:6).

Jeremiah passes along this message from the Lord: “Don’t run away to Egypt. Stay here. I’ll take care everything” (42:10-12).

That’s not the answer they wanted to hear. “You’re lying!” they said, and “did not obey the voice of the Lord” (43:7). They all ran away to Egypt, dragging Jeremiah with them.

How often has someone asked you, “What do you think I should do?” Or, “What can I do to help?” After your thoughtful and loving response, they reply, “I don’t want to do that.” You’ve been that someone, haven’t you? Yeah, me, too. We don’t really want advice. We just want someone to affirm what we wanted to do all along.

It’s just like the man who asked Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Matthew 19:16) He had obey all the commandments, and wanted to make sure he had left nothing undone. When Jesus told him to sell his possessions, give to the poor, and follow Jesus, he walked away sadly because he had a lot of possessions. Jesus’s instructions were the last thing he wanted to do.

The fact that Jesus’s instructions are often the last thing I want to do reveals a lot about my heart. I need his grace a lot more than I like to admit.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Broken

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Brandon Stoll on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Jeremiah 19.

“Go, and buy a potter’s earthenware flask…break the flask…and say, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: So will I break this people and this city” (Jeremiah 19:1,10,11).

In contrast to clay being formed by a potter, Jeremiah’s subsequent object lesson is breaking a bottle made of hardened clay, an image of the disaster God will bring on his people, “Because they have stiffened their neck, refusing to hear my words” (19:15).

The first thing that pops in my mind is the scene in Rocky IV, Ivan Drago, the Soviet champion says to Rocky, “I must break you.” Other images include breaking a wild horse, breaking in a new pair of running shoes, breaking up a task into manageable parts, breaking up hard soil for a garden, or breaking a bad habit.

God’s people are no longer moldable, having forsaken God to pursue idol worship with child sacrifice. They’ve closed their ears to God’s repeated warnings and calls to repentance. Mercy isn’t working. It’s going to take enemy invasion and destruction to get their attention. It’s like a house that’s beyond repair. “We’re going to have to tear it down and start over.”

It must have been tough for Jeremiah to proclaim this “no more Mr. Nice Guy” message. Well, actually, it was, because in the next chapter, the priest beats Jeremiah and puts him in the stocks. Jeremiah complains to God about the violent response to the message. He hates this job.

It’s ironic that Jeremiah has been sent to preach to people who refuse to listen. Seems like a waste of time. Yet it sets up an, “I told you so” future moment, as God’s justice and righteousness prevails.

Ultimately, Christ’s body will be broken for so many, like me, who just don’t listen, who find so many other things to worship, and are impossibly stubborn. Just like God’s people always have been.