The Prince of Peace has come

The story is told “about a certain kingdom wherein there was a handsome prince, searching for a woman worthy enough to be his wife and to become queen of the land. 

One day while running an errand for his father, the prince passed through a poor 

village.

As he glanced out the window of his carriage his eyes fell on a beautiful peasant maiden. 

During ensuing days, he often passed by the young lady and soon fell in love with her by sight. 

But he had a problem. How could he seek her hand in marriage?

He could command her to marry him, but the prince wanted someone who would marry him out of love, not coercion. 

He could show up at her door in his splendid uniform in a gold carriage drawn by six horses, attendants in tow, and bearing a chest of jewels and gold coins. 

But then how would he know if she really loved him or if she was just overawed and overwhelmed with his splendor? 

Finally he came up with another solution.

He stripped off his royal robes, put on common dress, moved into the village, and got to know her without revealing his identity. 

As he lived among the people, the prince and the maiden became friends, shared each other’s interests, and talked about their concerns. 

As time went on, the young lady grew to love him for who he was and because he had first loved her.

My friends, This is the good news of Jesus!. The Prince of Peace Himself, Jesus Christ, laid aside the robes of His glory, garbed himself as a peasant, became a human being, and moved into our village, onto our planet, to woo us to himself.” (NCBSIQ, 483)

John reminds us that: “The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.

11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 

12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.” (NIV84)

Jesus, the Prince of Peace, makes peace with God and peace with ourselves possible. Because He became one of us and paid the sin-price for us, we can be at peace. 

For us to be at peace, we must receive the Gift of Jesus the Prince of Peace. 

In a culture where it seems that rest, security, freedom, stability, and safety seem to be disintegrating on a daily basis; you can receive Jesus the Prince of Peace. 

You can receive the gift of being at peace with God and you can receive the gift of being at peace with yourself. 

These gifts are available to you, and these gifts are what we need if we are going to make it 

in this messed up world.  

God knows this and that is why He has given us the gift of Jesus the Prince of Peace. He has come to make peace a priority in your life. 

Will you receive the peace that He has to offer you?

The Baby changed everything!

Bret Harte—the author not the wrestler—tells the story of Roaring Camp, in his short story called “The Luck of Roaring Camp”

Roaring Camp was supposed to be, according to the story, the meanest, toughest mining town in the entire West. 

More murders and more thefts occurred at Roaring Camp then at any other place. 

It was a place inhabited entirely by men, and one woman who tried to serve them all. Her name was Cherokee Sal. And she died while giving birth to a baby. 

The men took that baby, and they put him in a box with some old rags under him. 

When they looked at him, they decided that didn't look right, so they sent one of the men eighty miles to buy a rosewood cradle. 

He brought the cradle back, and they put the rags and the baby in the rosewood cradle. But the rags didn't look right there. 

So they sent another man to Sacramento, and he came back with some beautiful silk and lace blankets. 

And they put the baby, wrapped around with those blankets, in the rosewood cradle. 

It looked fine until someone happened to notice that the floor was filthy. So these hardened, tough men got down on their hands and knees, and scrubbed that floor until it was clean. 

Of course, what that did was to make the walls and the ceiling and the dirty windows without curtains look absolutely terrible. So they washed down the walls and the ceiling, and they put curtains on the windows. 

Now things were beginning to look as they thought they should look. 

But of course, they had to give up a lot of their fighting, because the baby slept a lot and babies can't sleep during a brawl. 

Soon the whole temperature of Roaring Camp seemed to go down. 

These men used to take the baby out and set him by the entrance to the mine so they could see him when they came up. 

Then somebody noticed what a dirty place that was, so they planted flowers, and they made a nice garden there. 

They would bring the baby shiny little stones and things that they would find in the mine. 

But when they would put their hands down next to the baby, their hands looked so dirty. 

Pretty soon the general store was all sold out of soap and shaving gear and perfume... 

The baby, you see, changed everything.   

Just as this baby changed these rough and tough men, the Baby that was born in a manger over 2000 years ago has also come to change our world. 

John wrote the following: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” (John 1:14)

Author and Pastor Max Lucado, in his book Next Door Saviour, writes: “a just-God Jesus could make us, but not understand us. A just-man Jesus could love us, but never save us. Jesus was not a godlike man, not a manlike God. He was God-man.”

God stuffed Himself into a Baby and lived among us to make it possible for us to dwell with Him in heaven now and for all eternity. Will your life be changed by the coming of this God-Man

Life lesson from the OT #2.

I have been working my way though Pastor Craig Groeschel’s new book: Hope in the Dark. Excellent Read. I cant recommend it enough. Do yourself a favour and head-on over to Amazon and pick up this book.

While I am not here to review this book in it’s entirety— this is above my pay-grade— I did get a few sermon ideas, and I am currently working on one now— you can pray that I will be asked to share this at a church near you… especially if you’re reading this from Ghana or Florida.. but I digress. 

The character that Pastor Craig directs out attention to is the Old Testament Prophet by the name of Habakkuk. Not much is known about this old book; however this small book packs an enormous punch. 

God’s chosen people had been worshipping idols and rebelling against Him for years and refusing to listen to each prophet that God had sent their way to remind them to turn from their wicked ways and turn back to God… but the people would not listen. 

Habakkuk was upset that the chosen people were  running around sining; so he talked to God about it, and then he found out that the evil empire, AKA the Babylonians were on their way to bring ruin to the chosen people of God. (This kinda gives us a date of this book… the fall of Judah occurred in 586, but that’s neither here nor there.)

When Hab. learns of the impending destruction at the hands of the evil empire, he goes ballistic… He begins to question God and ask Him if He knew what the Babylonians were truly like…

God reminded Hab. that though the evil empire would destroy Judah, they would eventually get what’s coming to them. they themselves— the evil empire— would get it. 

The interesting part of all the exchange that Hab. had with God was how God interacted with him. To me, it reinforced how we have a God who is Completely Sovereign, but yet at the same time very personal and approachable. God wants to be involved in our lives. He wants to be consulted, He wants to be involved in our every day lives. 

another thing that stood out to me was Habakkuk’s response to the whole event that was going to transpire— here is chapter 3:16-18

I trembled inside when I heard this;

    my lips quivered with fear.

My legs gave way beneath me,

    and I shook in terror.

I will wait quietly for the coming day

    when disaster will strike the people who invade us.

17 Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,

    and there are no grapes on the vines;

even though the olive crop fails,

    and the fields lie empty and barren;

even though the flocks die in the fields,

    and the cattle barns are empty,

18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord!

    I will be joyful in the God of my salvation.

Basically he is choosing to believe that God is God and He can be trusted. Though His current situation didn’t make any sense to Habakkuk still trusted in God. 

I think there is a lesson in this for us. 

Sometimes things can happen to us that leave us scratching our heads. We hear of wildfires completely destroying parts of the world, and his being shot, and chaos seems to be the rule of the day. 

Its here that we need to join in what Habakkuk is saying: “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,

18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord,

    I will be joyful in God my Savior.” (NIV2011)

God can be trusted. All. the. time.

Life Lessons from the Old Testament #1

So, I have been doing some thinking and some reading and some meditating and I have been thinking about some good blog entires and well, here is something to think about. 

as I may have mentioned before, I have been working my way though the Old Testament with help from the good folks over at thebibleproject.com and my reading earlier on in the week took me to Deuteronomy chapter 10. 

In this chapter, Moses is reminding the Children of Isreal of their not-so-distant past, basically a reminder of all the things he’s been teaching them over the last 40 years or so. Chapter 10 kind of jumped off the page for me— see if you can pick up what I’m lying down:

And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? He requires only that you fear the Lord your God, and live in a way that pleases him, and love him and serve him with all your heart and soul. 13 And you must always obey the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good.

14 “Look, the highest heavens and the earth and everything in it all belong to the Lord your God. 15 Yet the Lord chose your ancestors as the objects of his love. And he chose you, their descendants, above all other nations, as is evident today. 16 Therefore, change your hearts and stop being stubborn.

17 “For the Lord your God is the God of gods and Lord of lords. He is the great God, the mighty and awesome God, who shows no partiality and cannot be bribed. 18 He ensures that orphans and widows receive justice. He shows love to the foreigners living among you and gives them food and clothing. 19 So you, too, must show love to foreigners, for you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt. 20 You must fear the Lord your God and worship him and cling to him. Your oaths must be in his name alone. 21 He alone is your God, the only one who is worthy of your praise, the one who has done these mighty miracles that you have seen with your own eyes. 22 When your ancestors went down into Egypt, there were only seventy of them. But now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars in the sky!” (10:12-22, NLt2)

Just a few take-a-ways from this passage:

1. God is looking for obedience.Even and especially in the OT where the sacrificial system was everywhere and everything, God was really interested in His people’s obedience to Him. this is still all God is looking for, from us today. He wants obedience. while I don’t have time today to explain the complete context, read John 21:22— “You must follow me”- JESUS!

2. I also see the Love of God at play in this passage. (Vs. 15) God did not chose the biggest baddest nation on the planet to rescue and redeem, He chose the smallest nation and made them into HIs own special possession. Don’t doubt God’s Love for you. (See John 15:16

3. There is no one like our God! (17, 20-21) In a world where everyone wants to be king, this passage reminds us that there is only One King of kings and One Lord of lords. One. 

While He was here on earth, several times Jesus also claimed to be the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. (see each time Jesus used the Name that was reserved for God alone, I AM. At my count, it’s 8x in the Book of John. Also, See John 1:14.) There is only One God. His Name is Jesus and He has come to help you. He has gone to incredible lengths to come and look for you to bring you home where you belong. 

So, have you surrendered your heart and life over to the King of kings and Lord of Lords? What God is looking for from all of us is obedience. Will you surrender your way over to His Perfect way?

Sometimes life happens.

I purchased a new Bible the other day- I probably have, well more than my fair share. but, hey its what I do.. anyway, the copy of the Scriptures that I picked up was the NIV 2011 edition. 

Now, for most of my life I have used the NIV 1984 edition, and love it. I have most of the verses memorized in that 84 edition, but from the moment I saw this new bible I purchased it.

when I got home the first place I opened it up to was 2 Chronicles 32.

SIDE NOTE-While I do recommend you opening up your bible and reading it, I don’t recommend opening it up anywhere and reading— if you do that you’re missing out on so much.. content, context…

Anyway the verse that I opened up to is this: “ After all that Hezekiah had so faithfully done, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah. He laid siege to the fortified cities, thinking to conquer them for himself.” (NIV2011)

I immediately thought to myself: “Isn’t that the way it goes! We are are faithful to God and then the bottom falls out of life. We are diligent in our Bible reading, with our service to our church, and then the wheels fall off the cart, and we are left scratching our heads.  

Sometimes life happens. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it bad.

In this case, Hezekiah was burdened at the news that Sennacherib was about to invade his space. so Hezekaih did something about it. they got to work and shut off the water supply and made plenty of weapons and appointed military leaders and got everyone together for a pep-rally and reminded them to be: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. 8 With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said.” (NIV2011)

We would do well to remember these words from King Hezekiah. 

No matter what comes our way, God is bigger than it all, and He can handle whatever comes our way. 

So the next time life pins you down, go to God and remind Him that the battle belongs to Him! 

Follow the Cloud

Fresh new post today… Sorry it has been a while. Have been in hospital for 15 days and then needed the time to recoup from that, but I read a nice passage this morning in my devotional time and I wanted you to read it and ponder it and maybe even pray it. 

just to set this passage up, Moses had been speaking with God and giving the Israelites rules and commands to live by and where God would live and how the people were to interact with God Himself— He is holy, therefore not just anyone can walk right in to HIs presence—(remember, this is the Old Testament… Now, because of Jesus, we have access to God 24/7/365, but that was different in the Old Testament. 

Just before the People of Israel were about to pick up camp and begin to set out in the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land, we are come up against this passage, found in Numbers 9:

On the day the Tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered it.[a] But from evening until morning the cloud over the Tabernacle looked like a pillar of fire. 16 This was the regular pattern—at night the cloud that covered the Tabernacle had the appearance of fire. 17 Whenever the cloud lifted from over the sacred tent, the people of Israel would break camp and follow it. And wherever the cloud settled, the people of Israel would set up camp. 18 In this way, they traveled and camped at the Lord’s command wherever he told them to go. Then they remained in their camp as long as the cloud stayed over the Tabernacle. 19 If the cloud remained over the Tabernacle for a long time, the Israelites stayed and performed their duty to the Lord. 20 Sometimes the cloud would stay over the Tabernacle for only a few days, so the people would stay for only a few days, as the Lord commanded. Then at the Lord’s command they would break camp and move on. 21 Sometimes the cloud stayed only overnight and lifted the next morning. But day or night, when the cloud lifted, the people broke camp and moved on. 22 Whether the cloud stayed above the Tabernacle for two days, a month, or a year, the people of Israel stayed in camp and did not move on. But as soon as it lifted, they broke camp and moved on. 23 So they camped or traveled at the Lord’s command, and they did whatever the Lord told them through Moses.” (NLT2)

There is so much going on in this awesome passage! Just let me highlight a few. 

The Cloud, represented God’s Presence. It was with the people of Israel as they were crossing the Sea of Reeds, (Red Sea), and the Presence of God is here, as well. 

The people of Israel were to take their cues from the Cloud. If it lifted, it meant the people of Israel were going for a walk. 

If the cloud remains were it was— hovering over the Tabernacle, the Israelites were staying where they were. 

Sometimes the Cloud stayed over the Tabernacle for a long time, sometimes it stayed for a very short time. The idea was that if the cloud lifted, the people were on their way. If the Cloud Stayed, they stayed. 

Verse 23 is especially sweet: “So they camped or traveled at the Lord’s command, and they did whatever the Lord told them through Moses.” (NLT2)

I love it.

this, at its core, is a picture of obedience. For this time period, the Children of Israel were being obedient to the Lord their God. 

The same can be said about us today. All God is looking for from is the same thing. He wants us to obey Him. To move when He tells us to move. To stop when He tells us to stop. 

Maybe you could take this passage and ask the Lord where He’d have you go; what He’d have you do, and where He wants you to go. All God is looking for is obedience. 

“What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice, and submission is better than offering the fat of rams.” 1 Samuel 15:22, NLT2

God is with us

AS I have no doubt mentioned before, I am working my way through the Bible, and I am using a www.youversion.com plan that is produced by https://thebibleproject.com/

(Great resource, BTW!)

The Bible plan that I am using has me reading the first 5 books of the Old Testament. Currently I am slugging away in Leviticus. This book demonstrates how Israel was to present Herself before a Holy God. It’s quite detailed, with the various offerings needed…

I’m also reading about the central character in this story, Moses. While much could be said about him, I want to keep this post at least short. 

When God called Moses in Exodus 3 and told Him that he was to go to Pharaoh and tell him to let the Israelites to go free, Moses suddenly came  up with severe excuses as to why he couldn’t do what God called him to do. 

Sounds familiar, but I digress. 

Verses 10-12 are of interest to us right now: “So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt."

 11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"

 12 And God said, "I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” (NIV84)

God had called Moses to go, Moses played the “Who-Am-I” card, and God answered His question but not in a way Moses had expected God reminded Moses that God would be with him. 

I think we need this reminder today. We need to know above all else that Our God is with us. His Name is Immanuel, which means: “God is with us” 

We don’t have to wonder if God has left us, we don’t have to question where God has gone, We don’t even have to send up a smoke signal to inquire of God’s presence. He promises to be with us. Always. 

On our good days. On our bad days. Especially on our bad days. This is who God is. He is with us. 

John 1:14 reminds us that “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (NIV84)

Not completely sure where I’m going with this, other than to remind us that some times God may not always answer questions that we have, but He will always be with us, and maybe that’s better than having our questions answered anyway. 

The King still has one more move

John Ortberg wrote in his book, “When the game is over, It All Goes Back Into the Box", the story of two men in a museum who saw a painting of a chess game. 

One character in the painting looked like a man and the other looked very much like the devil. 

The man was down to his last piece. The title of the painting was “Checkmate.” 

One of the two men looking at the painting was an international chess champion. Something about the painting intrigued him. He began to study it. He grew so engrossed that the man with him got a little impatient and asked what he was doing. The chess champion said, “Something about this painting bothers me. I want to study it for a while and you go ahead and wander around.”

When the friend came back, the chess master said, “We must locate the man who painted this picture. We must tell him he must either change the picture or change the title. I have determined there is something wrong with it.” 

His friend asked, “What’s wrong with the painting?” 

The man replied, “It is titled ‘Checkmate,’ but the title is wrong. The game is not over. The king still has one more move.” (Ortberg, 2007, 238-239) 

Click here to view image. 

Sometimes we think that the game is over, but we need to remember that the King still has one more move. 

He certainly did with Daniel. Daniel was thrown into the Fiery furnace because he would not bow down to the image the king of the day had set up… but The King still had one more move, and Daniel came out of the furnace with our a hair on his head singed. 

I’m currently making my way though the OT book of Exodus, and I’ve just read about how God parted the Red Sea— the Israelites were being chased by Pharaoh had his army, and as the Egyptians were approaching, the King had one more move, and He protected His chosen followers. 

On the worst day in human history, when Jesus was nailed to the cross, it seemed that all hope was lost. But, the King had one more move, and three days after His death, Jesus Rose Again. 

Remember loved, ones, The King has one more move. Every time. 

Jesus is

As I was enjoying my quiet time not too long ago, I read these words: "The same Jesus who called Lazarus back from the grave is calling you to abundant life. You may be lonely; He is with you always. You may be anxious; He cares for you. You may be tired; He is rest. You may be lost; He is the way. You may be angry; He is love. You may be broken; He was wounded to heal you. You may be addicted; He is freedom. You may be in darkness; He is a great light. You may be dying; He is the resurrection and the life." (You version bible plan. When God doesn't make sense) 

Interesting words those are. Whatever situation we find ourselves in, Jesus is there, with the right and appropriate action/response. 

Lost, scared, alone, afraid, Jesus has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. He is with us. Our Emmanuel.

What a difference a little bit of prayer can make.

As I read my Bible I'm making notes about various things. For example, I have a list of Names for God as He would reveal different Names to different people in the Old Testament. Some of the meaning of these names are wonderful to ponder on and use in prayer. 

I have also been keeping track of some of the Prayers recorded in the Bible. So far, I have quite the list. (some of these prayers can be found in Daniel 9:4-19,  Eph. 3:16-21, and probably the GOAT is Psalm 51.

But The prayer that I was looking at today is a close runner up. 

Its the follow up chapter to 1 Kings Chapter 18.

We all have a 1 Kings chapter 18, also known and a “mountain top experience with God”, and 1 Kings 18 was Elijah’s. God showed up that day in a powerful way and completely burned the up. It’s a wonderful story and deserves to be read again and again. 

But sometimes we forget the next chapter. If 1 Kings 18 is Elijah at his best, then 1 kings 19 is Elijah at his honest. One could make the case that Elijah had become depressed. Or stressed out. Or he wanted out. Or all of them. 

After all, there was a hit on his life. He wanted to end it all. He even thought he was the only God follower in left in the entire land. So, what Does he do. He sleeps. He eats. Then he sleeps some more. The he goes on a 40 day journey where he comes face-to-back with Almighty God, who encourages Him and Blesses Him and gives Elijah His instructions… read and Hear this for yourself:

“When Ahab got home, he told Jezebel everything Elijah had done, including the way he had killed all the prophets of Baal. 2 So Jezebel sent this message to Elijah: “May the gods strike me and even kill me if by this time tomorrow I have not killed you just as you killed them.”

3 Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. 4 Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.”

5 Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. But as he was sleeping, an angel touched him and told him, “Get up and eat!” 6 He looked around and there beside his head was some bread baked on hot stones and a jar of water! So he ate and drank and lay down again.

7 Then the angel of the Lord came again and touched him and said, “Get up and eat some more, or the journey ahead will be too much for you.”

8 So he got up and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Sinai, the mountain of God. 9 There he came to a cave, where he spent the night.

But the Lord said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

10 Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”

11 “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.

And a voice said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

14 He replied again, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”

15 Then the Lord told him, “Go back the same way you came, and travel to the wilderness of Damascus. When you arrive there, anoint Hazael to be king of Aram. 16 Then anoint Jehu grandson of Nimshi to be king of Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from the town of Abel-meholah to replace you as my prophet. 17 Anyone who escapes from Hazael will be killed by Jehu, and those who escape Jehu will be killed by Elisha! 18 Yet I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!” (NLT2)

We’ve all had an experience like this. What we need to do when we’re in the same place as Elijah is to follow his example. Get some rest. Eat some good food. Set out in prayer and hold nothing back. Tell God exactly what’s up and what’s going wrong, and see how He shows up in your life. 

I love reading some of the great prayers of the Bible. I love praying some of the great prayers of the Bible. God loves it when we pray some of the great prayers of the Bible, but He also loves it when we prayer our own, open and honest prayers, just like Elijah did. 

so, if you’re having one of those days, get some rest, get some food and start praying in a quite place.