Micah 1-4; Romans 9

So this morning we find ourselves in the middle of chapters that theologians have argued over for millennia. And 66Books A Year is a devotional not a theological treatise. So where do we find the devotional point in these chapters.

In Romans 9 and Micah 1-3 God is seen as punishing and setting aside His chose people. They have left God and gone their own way and depending on the way one may read the Romans chapter it may be of God’s own doing. But then we see in Micah 4 the hope for not only Israel and Judah, but for us all. Two verses give us this hope:

6 In that day, declares the Lord,
I will assemble the lame
and gather those who have been driven away
and those whom I have afflicted;

7 and the lame I will make the remnant,
and those who were cast off, a strong nation;
and the Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion
from this time forth and forevermore. (Micah 4:6&7 [ESV])

God has always been for the marginalized. Here we see Him caring for the remnant and the lame and the disenfranchised. There is coming a day when things will be set right and we will enjoy the presence of the Lord forever. In the meantime He meets out His judgement and carries out His will and it can be hard to understand all that. But the promise is sure. We who have put our faith and trust in Him alone for our salvation will be forever with Him. Praise be to God!

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1 Kings 10; Philippians 1; Ezekiel 40; Psalm 91

Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare about the LORD: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. (Psalm 91:1-2 NLT)

You’re my safe place. I can go to you whenever I need to, because I have access to you every second of my life. Through you I find shelter.

Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the day. Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday. Though a thousand fall at your side, though ten thousand are dying around you, these evils will not touch you. (Psalm 91:5-7 NLT)

You’re with me through everything. Because of you I don’t have to be afraid. You already know what will happen before it even begins, and you always bring something good out of the bad.

Paul’s Life for Christ

For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die. For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better. But if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ. So I really don’t know which is better. I’m torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me. But for your sakes, it is better that I continue to live. (Philippians 1:20-24 NLT)

You’re my confidence. I can trust in you. You’ve kept your promises. Even when you’re angry, you never break your word. I want to make a better effort of living for you.

Live as Citizens of Heaven

Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing together with one spirit and one purpose, fighting together for the faith, which is the Good News. (Philippians 1:27 NLT)

I can learn so much from you. I’m so excited to see what you have in store for my life! Thank you so much for everything, God. Even just a glimpse of what you can do is truly amazing. I love you. Amen

Lanie (llilly2017)

Isaiah 4-6; Matthew 23

Maybe it was the emotion of the weekend – sending our oldest off to his first year of college, our second child starting her first official week of a paid internship in an area of God’s gifting, our third child getting baptized and publicly, clearly sharing her testimony.

Or, maybe it was the constant stirring of God and a teeny glimpse of His Glory as I sat and soaked in Isaiah 6 this morning:

• his robe filled the temple
• Above him stood the seraphim
• And the foundations of the thresholds shook
• the King, the Lord of hosts
• I heard the voice of the Lord

Either way, God spoke afresh of the need to follow Him with a pure, motivated heart as I sang in church this weekend.

Arms high, heart abandoned, tears flowing – it would have been impossible to not worship.

Moving from a time of worship in His throne room, I then sat in on a scathing attack on hypocrisy in the lives of those that claimed to follow Him. Matthew 23 holds this rebuke, “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?”

How had the Pharisees strayed so far from the heart of the law they claimed to follow? They stopped looking at God.

You can tell by their response. When Isaiah saw God in His holy temple he cowered as his own sinfulness became painfully obvious. Many generations before Jesus spoke these woes aimed at the Pharisees, the Jewish leaders had likely had a similar response as they responded by placing God’s Word physically close to their hearts and minds and putting boundaries in place to protect against sinful habits. Their faith drove them to do all they could to remove sin and follow God.

But, they didn’t stop there. They forced it on others. They looked at the habits and traditions as if they had some saving value. They forgot.

God, draw me close again, to see You, not just the law that You fulfilled, not just my own sinfulness that You already atoned, just You. And, then let me walk in worship, constant worship, all for You. ~Amen.

Genesis 1-2; Psalm 19; Mark 1

We used to live in a big field. The morning sunrises were spectacular and the sky seemed endless. If anything sang glory, that sky did each morning.

The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
    The skies display his craftsmanship. Psalm 19:1, NLT

Now we live in the woods, and I never really expected to see the sunrises because of the trees. I’ve learned to appreciate seasons in a different way living in the woods, and winter is no exception. I’ve even learned to love winter in a way I never thought possible. It is still and quiet, and the sunrises sneak up on me through the woods line–only visible because all the foliage has fallen away.

Day after day they continue to speak;
    night after night they make him known.
³ They speak without a sound or word;
    their voice is never heard.
⁴ Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
    and their words to all the world. Psalm 19:2-4, NLT

Sometimes it takes a barren season and stillness to become aware of what has always been.

I have a friend who is like a father to me. He is eighty, and the years have stolen ability and freedom from him. He has long periods of time and stillness to reflect on life. He told me his lack of busyness has birthed wonderment in the world around him.

I praise God that in the winters of life, we can see something in a new way.

I try to find a connection between the readings. In Genesis, creation of heavens and earth, creation of all things and mankind. In Psalm 19, the glory of the heavens proclaiming God and his goodness, and reflection on the frail and faulty heart.

How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart?
    Cleanse me from these hidden faults.
¹³ Keep your servant from deliberate sins!
    Don’t let them control me.
Then I will be free of guilt
    and innocent of great sin. Psalm 19:12-13, NLT

And in Mark 1, a way is made, the first disciples follow Jesus, and Jesus travels a region healing people and telling them of God’s kingdom.

It is January 1, and I look at a new year with a mental list of changes I want to make. I can’t help it. Like the psalmist, I’m aware of the visible and the existence of the unseen–I know how sin wrecks a life. But Jesus didn’t tell his disciples to make a list of their faults and a list of how they proposed to fix it all. He just said, “Follow me.”

Thankful for a savior who is bigger than my mess.

Lord, help me to keep my eyes on you. You have the power to create heavens and earth with a word; you have the power to (restore broken relationships, heal the sick and hurting, make the impossible possible, change a heart …). Whether through your word or your creation, help me to seek and see you with wonderment.

Courtney (66books365)

Jeremiah 1, 2; II Thessalonians 2

I’m not a superstitious person, but I grew up with a mother who will grab your arm and in alarm warn, “It’s bad luck to leave a house through a different door than the one you used to come into it,” and refuse to do so herself. I’ve heard many such sayings, and of course, most people have heard of the superstition – break a mirror and you’ll have seven years bad luck.

So I had to smile the other day when the director at work came to me and said the mirror she had kept in her office for years fell off of the wall and broke. However, it did seem uncanny the next morning at work when I reached for my lipstick and found that the miniature mirror I had transferred from purse to purse over the years had cracked from the middle out to each corner of the frame.  Well, I can tell you that the director and I who have both been hired within the last two months thought it a hoot that we should both be cursed with seven years of bad luck (which by the way is about the number of years left before I retire)!

The thought occurred to me that in reality this new job will be a challenge to me as a first time supervisor. Providentially (not coincidentally), in my 66 Books in a Year devotional reading this week, I recognized Jeremiah’s timidity at God’s call to be His prophet. God has to encourage Jeremiah several times by saying, “Do not be afraid of their faces,” and again, “Do not be dismayed before their faces … for I am with you…” (Jeremiah 1)

With any call from God comes my responsibility to answer, “Yes, Lord,” and my expectation that the Lord Jesus Christ will “comfort [my] heart and establish [me] in every good word and work,” (2 Thessalonians 2:16). If I truly believe that God has a purpose in placing me in this environment, then it would be foolish to look to any other source for wisdom, courage, strength, and mercy.  Not just so that my day to day is a path of roses, but so that every moment spent with God will reveal a deeper level of trust and faith in Him. It’s a win-win situation, really. The more I am challenged, the deeper I dive into God’s word. The closer I walk with God, the more His Spirit is able to do for and with me. I believe this not because of an old wives tale, but because it is written in Scripture that “our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and our God and Father has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope by grace,” (2 Thessalonians 2:16).  Given these beliefs, how then am I to view the job ahead that God has given me? What if the changes needed bring difficulties like those experienced by Jeremiah who endured decades of abuse, threats, apathy, and humiliation? Will I be faithful and obedient, and will I persevere in doing what is right not just expedient? Will the next seven years be someone else’s bad luck or golden opportunities for others to see Christ through me? I’m not about to look to any mirror for those answers!