Tag: trust

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Lessons from Habakkuk on Sin and Judgment

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Habakkuk.

O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
    and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!”
    and you will not save? (Habakkuk 1:2)

Habakkuk’s displeasure with God sounds familiar. Why doesn’t God do something? Why doesn’t God do something about the violence, wickedness, and injustice going on all around us?

It’s a great question. Why doesn’t God do something? Why does he seem remote, aloof, and unconcerned about our situation? From our limited point of view, there are two answers. Either God doesn’t care, or God can’t fix it.

God’s response is shocking. He’s assembling the Chaldeans (Babylonians) to sweep through and put an end to the horrible behavior and inexcusable idolatry of God’ people.

Well, that’s one way to deal with the problem, isn’t it? Let’s bring in an even great evil. Let’s burn down the house because the roof leaks. Cut a hole in a shirt to get rid of a stain. Trade in the car for a new one because the brakes are squealing. Put the TV on the curb because of an offensive word from a person in one episode of one TV show.

Would you consider any of those things be an overreaction? I would. Fix the roof. Remove the stain. Repair the brakes. Patch the roof. Watch a different TV show.

Clearly their sin was beyond repair. Their sin and idolatry called for extreme measures. Like foreign invasion. Destruction. Exile.

Bottom line: don’t challenge God unless you are willing to hear some hard truths about your sin, his holiness, and judgment.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

God’s got a lot of pieces

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by T.J. Breshears on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Nahum. Chances are you haven’t read the Old Testament book of Nahum for a while. Or ever. I’ll do my best to pique your interest.

The Old Testament book of Nahum begins with a list of God’s attributes

  • Jealous
  • Avenging
  • Wrathful
  • Slow to anger
  • Powerful
  • Indignant
  • Angry
  • Good
  • A stronghold

Interesting. Is that how you think of God? If so, do you find it easy to talk to him? I think most people either think of God as a nice guy or aloof and detached. You either love God and what he’s doing, or you’re disappointed and wonder what he’s up to. You like him or hate him. He’s either your safe place, or your worst nightmare. It’s a challenging dichotomy.

Nahum challenges us to think of God in terms of all his attributes. Not just love and forgiveness. Not just righteousness and justice. Not just kindness. Not just wrath.

Instead, the whole package.

A friend of mine said it was like one of those huge cheesecakes you bought at a big box wholesale food store. Sixteen slices of cheesecake all different. God is like that whole variety pack. You never get just slice or attribute. You get the whole thing. Wrath and mercy. Justice and grace. Forgiving and avenging. A whole bunch of opposite traits that compliment each other, comprising a God who isn’t so easy to comprehend.

So how will you (I) respond? Run from a wrathful God? Or run to a stronghold God? Avoid a jealous God? Or pursue a good God? Try to assuage an angry God, or be thankful that he is “slow to anger?”

Yeah, I know. We don’t have God all figured out. And that’s the way it’s supposed to be. He’s way more powerful than we know. And he is far more personal than we realize.

In Nahum, God cares about what the nations are doing, not just people. He sees the big picture. And he knows our personal challenges. It all matters to him.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

A basket of fruit

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Nataliya Melnychuk on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Amos 8.

“This is what the Lord God showed me: behold, a basket of summer fruit” (Amos 8:1).

Old Testament prophets have great object lessons. Amos’s “basket of summer fruit” reminded me of one of my high school youth group’s favorite games, “Fruit basket upset.” (Yeah, this is how we had fun back in the 1900’s.)

We arranged our chairs in a circle, one fewer than the number of youth there. Everyone picked a fruit to identify with, including the person in the middle of the circle who started without a chair. That middle person would then call out two or more of the named fruits. Those fruits would have to exchange chairs, as the person in the middle attempted to steal one of their seats. The person left in the middle without a chair would then shout out fruits.

Every once in a while, the middle person would call out, “fruit basket upset!” which meant everyone had to leave their seat and find another. The ensuing chaos was hilarious.

A basket of summer fruit actually sounds delicious. Imagine strawberries, cherries, and ripe peaches. Add in a few blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries, and you’ve got a wonderful bowl of fruit.

Fruit doesn’t last long in the biblical world with no refrigerators. In other words, time’s up. It’s the end of a season, and God’s judgment for a nation that has gone bad with injustice and greed is just around the corner.

There’s an interesting contrast here. Are our lives more like Amos’s summer fruit or the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23)? On any given day, it could be either. When our greed gets the best of us, we don’t worry much about the needs of others. When the Spirit moves us, though, we bear the fruit of love, kindness, and goodness, as well as other Godly qualities.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

It’s so simple. It’s so hard.

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Adam Nemeroff on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Micah 6.

He has told you, O man, what is good;
    and what does the Lord require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
    and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8)

On any given day, it’s easy to resolve first thing in the morning to humbly walk with God, be kind, and do the right thing.

Then life happens. I forget. I get preoccupied. I get busy. I get defensive. And suddenly it’s all about me. Suddenly, I’m no so humble, nice, or interested in “justice.”

It sounds so simple. But it’s so hard to do. It’s not my problem. I don’t want to be nice. And I want to be recognized and appreciated. My natural inclination is just the opposite of what God wants.

And that’s the problem, isn’t it? I’m on a whole different page than God. Justice? Only if it’s in my best interest. Kindness? Maybe, if I think I might like you. Humility? I mostly think about me. I’m not as humble as I like to think.

In context, God’s people wanted to bring more sacrifices and give more offerings. But that’s not what he wanted. He wanted them to be different, to be nice, to make the world a better place.

I think it comes down to this: God doesn’t want me to do more for him. He does something — everything — for me. My God is just, kind, and humble. For me. Because I’m not good at this.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

Can I have your attention?

Posted on by William Douthwaite

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Amos 4.

Through Amos, God declares, “I sent famine and hunger, drought and thirst, blight and mildew, sickness, and destruction…Yet you did not return to me” (Amos 4). Now what? “Prepare to meet your God!” (4:12)

I can’t help but wonder, “What does it take to get someone’s attention?” Or better, “What does it take to get my attention?” And then, “Does God always get our attention with bad things? Couldn’t he communicate through blessings, too?” I’ve got lots of questions and lots of thoughts.

When bad stuff happens, and bad stuff will happen, I usually blame someone other than God. From greedy CEOs to corrupt government to lousy neighbors to aggressive drivers to a liberal agenda to self-absorbed people in general, God’s not the problem. They are. (Whoever they are.)

God’s not even on the radar. I am constantly talking to, listening to, thinking about, teaching about, praying to, and actively questioning God. But when life gets tough, I look for someone to blame. Blame God? No way. Not me. God is great and God is good, right?

Okay, so when good stuff happens (and if I’m paying attention, there’s so much to be grateful for), I give God credit. I say, “Thank you.” And then I get on with the rest of my life without much thought.

So back to my original question, “What does it take to get my attention?”

My conclusion? The grace of God. It’s not challenges. It’s not blessings. It’s not success. It’s not failure. It could only be God’s relentless pursuit of my heart through family, classmates, friends, employers, employees, critics, fans, and strangers I’ll only meet once in my life. God gets my attention through people who put up with me, listen to me, ignore me, irritate me, praise me, and insult me. God always spoke through people. I guess he still does.

Go figure. Ultimately, God sends his son, Jesus, a person, to talk to us, to get our attention. He was direct, compassionate, no nonsense, and merciful. He fed, healed, fished, sailed, walked, slept, ate, and drank to get their (my) attention.

“Prepare to meet your God.” If you won’t pay attention, he’s coming. He’s coming to you. He’s coming in the flesh.

Want to meet him?

You may not have a choice.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

The journey of a lifetime

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by Brett Patzke on Unsplash

A few more “through the bible” thoughts from Jonah 1.

It’s a life and death situation when the sailors cast lots and find out Jonah is responsible for the raging storm that threatens to capsize the ship (Jonah 1:4,7). Jonah says, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land” (Jonah 1:9).

Wait a minute. Doesn’t Jonah’s story begins with his deliberate disobedience to God’s command to go to call out Nineveh for its evil? He doesn’t sound like someone who fears God. I guess Jonah didn’t fear God until the storm hit. Either than, or fear of God doesn’t equate to obedience.

Since “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31), “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). Just like us, Jonah had a lot to learn about God and a lot to learn about obeying God. It’s a journey. It’s a difficult journey. It’s the journey of a lifetime.

We don’t have to learn to fear God in dire circumstances, although those situations are a great classroom. But we learn from others, too. God’s people learned a lot of lessons that “were written down for our instruction” (1 Corinthians 10:11). Hopefully, we’ll learn to not make the same mistakes. In reality, though, we will, and we too will learn to fear God and maybe even obey him.

Posted in Through the Bible Devotions

He’s a safe place

Posted on by William Douthwaite
Photo by philippe collard on Unsplash

Some “through the bible” thoughts from Joel 3.

The Lord roars from Zion,
    and utters his voice from Jerusalem,
    and the heavens and the earth quake.
But the Lord is a refuge to his people,
    a stronghold to the people of Israel. (Joel 3:16)

In the 1950s and 60s, people built bomb shelters to survive radioactive fallout from nuclear weapons. In the midwest, people have storm cellars on their property to escape approaching tornados. Otherwise, go to an inner, windowless room in your house. Radio announcers urge listeners to “seek shelter now” when severe thunderstorms pop up on weather radar. When approaching hurricanes are a day or two away, shelters open where those who will get hit hardest along the coast can be safe.

We tend to think of a refuge or a stronghold as a place. But in the bible, it’s God. Ironically, in Joel, God is the one who roars, shaking the heavens and the earth, bringing judgment on the nations. And he is also the shelter from the approaching destruction and judgment.

Storms don’t always look like weather. Judgment doesn’t always come in the form of an earthquake or other “act of God.” Sometimes it’s a collision, cancer, or conflict. It could be failure at work or the loss of a job. Kids get in trouble and unexpected expenses pop up. You can run, but you can’t hide from the surprises of life.

The only thing that doesn’t change is God. That’s why he is the shelter, the refuge, the stronghold. Ultimately, with him, your life is safe.

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

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.