Zechariah 4, 6; Revelation 18

Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts…Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. Zechariah 4:6, 8-10

I just finished reading a book called “Return to Me” by Lynn Austin. It is a historical novel based on the life of Zechariah during the years that God called His people back to Jerusalem, after having been exiled for 70 years in Babylon, and commanded them to rebuild His temple. After many years of disobedience, rooted in the fear of man, the people opened their eyes to God’s glory and were reminded once more that when God puts something in motion, nothing will stop it from happening.

I love reading the Bible, and yet sometimes, especially when I am reading from the Old Testament, I have a difficult time connecting to the story. Today seems so distant from the happenings that are shared about in the Word, and when I have so much going on in my present life, the past doesn’t always seem relevant to what I need right now. But the truth is that the past can teach me so much; the lessons that the men and women of the Bible learned are the same things that I need to understand for my own life.

Books that are Biblically and historically based, though of course mostly fictional (because no one alive today truly has a firsthand account of the actual moment by moment events), help me put a face on the impersonal stories that I have read over and over. They help me connect to the ‘person’ of the story and help me understand even better that they weren’t people who should be placed on a proverbial pedestal, people who never had problems, never had struggles or crises of faith. They were just like me.

One of my favorite parts of ‘Return to Me’ is when Zechariah is coming into his gifting as a prophet to the people of Jerusalem. God gives him the Word “Not by might, nor by power – but by My Spirit.” This is something that I have often needed to remember, especially in the midst of trials, when I start believing that I am all alone in my battles.

Everything that I do, everything that I accomplish, is because of God’s Spirit within me. When I do anything in my own strength and by my own power, it amounts to nothing. But when I fully rely on God to help me achieve what I know He has called me to do, trusting Him to complete a good work in me, it doesn’t matter what the circumstances are I will always be successful. I don’t need to fear anything, I just need to depend on God and believe in His Truth.

Yesappa, Thank You for Your Spirit within me, always giving me strength and always giving me power. Thank You for never leaving me alone. And, thank You for bringing Your Word in my life to pass. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

 

Blessings – Julie (writing from the U.S.A.)

 

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Zechariah 1-3; Revelation 17

‘See the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day. Zechariah 3:9

The holidays are infamous for bringing us together with the one or two family members we dread seeing: the person who inevitably drinks too much and becomes volatile, the bitter soul who can’t seem to withhold cruel, cutting words. I have no problem identifying the difficult person(s) in my life. It takes more effort for me to understand to whom I am that “difficult” person.

So that is the curse and the blessing of the holidays. Take frail, sinful human beings, throw in the pressure of the rush, unrealistic expectations, old wounds and bring us all to the table and we find ourselves in a vulnerable state. The holidays provide rich material for the making of memories both good and bad, that seem to define us.

As the years go by, I am learning that the holidays are not about me and my memories. They are HOLY-days, sacred to God and dear to me. They are about God incarnate humbly coming into this mean world to bring light and healing. Thirty three years after the birth of Jesus, his death on the cross would remove the power of sin over us in a single day. All my efforts at self improvement and being good enough are futile compared to what Jesus did for me. Because I am forgiven, his grace is reflected humbly through me. That’s a miraculous work of the Holy Spirit in itself; that doesn’t come naturally from me.

All Zechariah’s hopes and dreams were found in the person of Christ. I enjoy the privilege of knowing how beautifully Zechariah’s prophetic words were fulfilled. That is a game changer, especially at the holidays; I can let go of having to have everyone behave. I can let go of old wounds. I can focus on the goodness of God and the beauty of his love and receive the wonder of what he has done for me. My heart sings the words of the Christmas carol, “long lay the world in sin and error pining ‘til He appeared the soul felt its worth. The thrill of hope, the weary world exalted for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.” 

Lord, I fall on my knees and take hold of what you have done for me. Keep gratitude in my heart always. Amen

Klueh

Haggai 1-2; Revelation 16

I have a friend whose mother harbors longtime unforgiveness over a matter. This woman is very flip about it, saying, “I guess that’s just my sin! Everyone has a sin they can’t shake and that’s mine.” She has no intention turning from it.

¹¹ “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says. Ask the priests this question about the law: ¹² ‘If one of you is carrying some meat from a holy sacrifice in his robes and his robe happens to brush against some bread or stew, wine or olive oil, or any other kind of food, will it also become holy?’”

The priests replied, “No.”

¹³ Then Haggai asked, “If someone becomes ceremonially unclean by touching a dead person and then touches any of these foods, will the food be defiled?”

And the priests answered, “Yes.”

¹⁴ Then Haggai responded, “That is how it is with this people and this nation, says the Lord. Everything they do and everything they offer is defiled by their sin. Haggai 2:11-15, NLT.

That sin that she doesn’t think of as such a big deal has contaminated so many aspects of her life. She will not acknowledge it. That sin has cost her many things, including freedom.

Unrepentance cries out from Haggai to Revelation.

A temple, neglected.

³ Then the Lord sent this message through the prophet Haggai: ⁴ “Why are you living in luxurious houses while my house lies in ruins? ⁵ This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you! ⁶ You have planted much but harvest little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes!” Haggai 1:2-5, NLT.

A call to rebuild.

I take stock of a year and look ahead to another. What worked? What didn’t? Did my actions underscore my priorities or bump them off my path? What things kept my heart in captivity? How did I serve the Lord? How did I follow him?

Looking ahead to a new year and a renewed focus. Thank you to everyone who has followed along in the Bible with us in 2014. I still haven’t read the Bible cover to cover in a year, but I have read it regularly and that’s made such a difference in my thinking, in my relationships with others, and especially in my response to and love for God.

This is my last post for the year, but we’ll be starting over in 2015 with a new plan that runs Monday through Friday. I hope you’ll join us here on January 1.

Merry Christmas, and very best wishes to each of you.

With gratitude,

Courtney (66books365)

Zephaniah 1-3, Revelation 15

The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.

The chorus of a song we used to sing over our campers as we said our final goodbyes for the week, Zephaniah 3:17 holds a special place in my heart. This verse culminates the love and compassion that I learned at a camp for the broken.

While there is a swift justice, fire and brimstone side to God that is apparent it is only because He is being deprived of the other side of His nature. Throughout scripture, God yearns to draw close and gather His people in embrace. He wants to be intimately connected with us. Our waywardness and disobedience prevent our approach to His holy throne, but His desire for closeness persists.

Zephaniah reminds me that in the most real way this Christmas, God came to be with me. He came to quiet me with his love. His song of love over me is the gift of his presence in Christ. He didn’t send a long email. He didn’t send a fruit basket. He didn’t send an entourage of angels or a cosmic Broadway show. He sent a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes to take away the sting of death and punishment for my sins.

This season I want most to take a pause and breathe that fact in. God didn’t love me in some grandiose, extravagant way. He loved me in the most intimate, necessary way. He loved me by doing something for myself that I could not. He loved me with the gift of His presence and the offer still stands.

I need to take some time to receive it.

Habakkuk 1-3; Revelation 14

Years ago, when my daughter was young enough to have her own baby pool, she would want to spend hours in the few inches of water that pool had to offer. Every time we told her to come out of the pool, first, she’d complain, but then, once she came out, she’d be shivering. And every time she’d get out of the pool and shiver, we would dry her off. Then, my daughter would walk back to her pool, pour a pitcher of water over herself, and walk back to us to get dried off again. That’s a smart girl. You see… she knew where her needs were going to be met. She came to me because she expected me to dry her off again. And I did — every time!

That’s the kind of relationship God wants with us. It’s what faith is all about — expecting God to act on our behalf. Sounds simple, right? Well… it is, but as adults, why do we always seems to complicate simple things?

I know… many of you are probably thinking “God hasn’t always come through for me. He hasn’t always done what I expected of Him.” How could He? God is so much greater than we are. There is so much we don’t understand about God. But I know I can trust him to love me no matter what. God will be here for me from now to eternity. Faith is expecting that even in the midst of what you’re facing now, God will keep loving us and keep being faithful. He’ll keep His plan all the way through eternity.

This couldn’t be more apparent than as I read through Habakkuk 1-3. Immediately a complaining attitude; not one of trust but of question. Our Lord graciously responds, but the passage screams disappointment from an expectation; perhaps a ‘closed door’ of sorts?

Do we consider God ‘closing doors’ as Him being faithful? I mean, after all, how can God closing a door on a desire of our hearts mean that He loves us and only wants the best for us? This is a big part of faith… trusting God when we don’t understand. Perhaps much of what we’re speaking about here is for us to adopt a paradigm shift in how we see God. Perhaps, when God closes a door, it’s happening because we’re believing too small. Consider this… if God were to open all doors we thought should be opened, perhaps it might limit what He wants to do in our lives. The door may close because it isn’t the right time, or there are other individuals involved and they aren’t ready yet.

The bottom line is… God has our best interest at heart. When a door is closed, we can’t know what God is potentially saving us from. As we grow in faith and wisdom, our prayers should thank Him for the closed doors just as much as we would likely thank Him for the open doors. And, just like a great father exhibits wisdom, God, our heavenly Father understands best that preparation for the next open door requires saying no, at times, until we reach our final destination in Heaven. However, many Christians, me included, at one time misinterpreted Jesus’ promise of abundant life to mean perfect health, a comfortable lifestyle, constant happiness, full realization of our dreams, and instant relief from problems through faith and prayer. Simply put, they expect the Christian life to be easy… they expect heaven on earth!

A closed door is often an indication that He has something else in mind for us to do or His way of refining us and preparing us for the door He would eventually open. Therefore, it might be that God’s will is focused more on how we respond to the door than in our walking through it. Perhaps, our life’s doors are more about our approach to life with Him. God is ready to show us His will, just as He did in Revelation 14, but because we don’t always hear His voice, He will use the circumstances of our life to direct and stop us. So, the next time a door of opportunity opens or closes, we should, in wisdom and faith, be asking “Lord… is this you? What is it that you want me to do or learn with or from this event?”

Amen… Merry Christmas!