Grains of Sand

clarionenterprises.com (Google Images) An old friend went home to be with the Lord over the weekend. Bob was delivered from cancer, Parkinson’s, and all the beating and battering of life that remind us that, though this world will one day be restored to the pristine beauty and perfection of creation before the fall, it is now only our temporary home. As I read Psalm 33 this morning the last few verses would describe Bob’s hope, and mine. He has now seen the realization of this hope as he stands in the presence of Jesus, whom he loved greatly and served faithfully. For those of us who remain the promise lacks its crowning moment, but it is nonetheless a promise that can be trusted even while we wait to see it completely fulfilled. “ …the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust ...

Google Images Judah has fallen—several times! In a succession of invasions, the Babylonians, as instruments of God’s judgment, have taken the royal city. They have removed most of the inhabitants and taken them into captivity. Only the poorest are left behind (2 Kings 25:12). But what is worse is the total destruction and dismantling of the city and the temple as described in 2 Kings 24 and 25. Solomon’s glorious expression of worship is reduced to a pile of pebbles and its riches are either destroyed or carried away. In passages like Psalm 137 we discover the depth of the despair all this caused in the Hebrews. The were devastated. But to add insult to injury the captives were commanded by their captors to sing songs! How could they be expected to sing under these circumstances? “ By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion. There on the poplars we hung our harps, for there our captors asked us for songs, our tormentors demanded songs of joy; they said, ‘Sing ...

“ Though the fig tree   does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are sheep on the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior ” –Habakkuk 3:17, 18, NIV. The community of Slave Lake in northern Alberta has virtually disappeared off the map. A brush fire, pushed by strong winds, roared through the town of 7,000, and wiped out most of the major buildings and many homes. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/prairies/slave-lake-reeling-as-alberta-wildfires-cause-devastating-destruction/article2023343/ As I read the verses for this morning I wondered how many residents of that community are rejoicing in the Lord. I pray constantly for a writer friend, Lisa Mikitarian, and her husband, Sam, as they search for their daughter, Katalina, who went missing last week. http://www.nvdaily.com/news/2011/05/police-aiding-in-familys-search-for-m...

“ This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it ” —Psalm 118:24, NIV. She took too many pills, not enough to hurt herself, but more than she should have. It’s a warning sign. She promised not to do it again, but last night she was slipping into the same hole that had caused her to want to pull the earth down over her head just a couple of days earlier. Miles away, a older women wraps her loneliness around her. Her beloved soul-mate is gone. She has barely recovered, even after several years. She is ill, making her even more isolated. Her circles of friends has shrunk. She is not a “couple” anymore. Some have died. Some are simply not able. The younger generation doesn’t seem to care, too busy with their own lives to think about an old woman alone. The world marches on, filled with itself. More about me and less about Thee. The thunder from the pulpit is distant. It has collapsed into a whimper of self-help platitudes and what passes for worldly wisdom. Th...

How would the Old Testament, written centuries before Christ was born, describe salvation? Here's a hint from Zephaniah. " 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 " (3:17 NIV). Luke tells us that the angels of God rejoice in heaven over one sinner who repents (15:10). They aren't the only ones who sing with joy over me and you when we come to faith through Christ. Even God sings with joy for us. That God is with me, that He is able to save me, are huge truths. But that He wraps His arms around me and tells me how precious I am to Him, that He stills my fears and anxieties about my unworthiness with His unlimited and unconditional love, that He sings for joy over me just as He finds me; those leave me disarmed before Him.

Over the last several years, shortages have become routine for us here in Venezuela. Flour, sugar, milk, grains, coffee, rice, chicken, and lately, margarine, are among the items that disappear out of the stores for long periods of time. They tell me car parts are scarce too, but since I don't drive, they are not high on my priority list. So when I read this morning's verse, I had to laugh. It couldn't be more appropriate to our reality—materially, and oftentimes at the level of ministry as well. " Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior " —Habakkuk 3:17, 18. No matter what else might be scarce in our lives, the Lord is always generous with His presence, His mercy, His love, and His forgiveness. And that deserves joy, praise, and continual thank...