“So the Jews said to him, ‘What sign do you show for doing these things?’” (John 2:18)

Driving down the highway, I was deluged with signs. There were billboards, fast food restaurant and gas station signs high in the air, traffic signs telling me which exit to take, speed limit signs, and mile markers. My mind had to choose which to observe and which were a distraction I didn’t need. If I glanced at a sign too long I might run into the car in front of me.

When I saw the needle on my dashboard was hovering above the “E”, I started looking in earnest for the gas stations signs that matched the charge card in my wallet. There had been tons along the journey, so where were they now that I needed one? Sure enough, in a few miles, there it was.  I had to exit, take a side road and cross the bridge to get to it, but it was worth it. The gas there was actually cheaper than at the few non-brand ones I had passed. Go figure.

The same is true in our lives. We travel down life’s road and there are signs everywhere. Some signs are informational, others offer directions and some are only a distraction. But which ones are from God? There are some signs that are obviously not from God – signs that lead us off the path – but what about the less obvious signs? Are all the signs meant for us?

Recently I was in deep prayer about which direction I should take. But once I got off my knees I immediately began to look for the solution. Was this God-orchestrated? Was that? Is this the answer? No? Well, what about that? Like a child on a scavenger hunt, I was looking everyplace I could. “God, just show me a sign,” I prayed. “How do I know this is from You?”

The answer is everything is from God because He is in control. But, because of our free will, we can use or abuse what He provides. I had not trusted in Him to provide the answer in His timing. Instead, I was impatiently looking for it in all the wrong places, and in a few of the right places, just at the wrong time. I was seeking answers where none existed, then wondering why that sign was given to me. Maybe, it was not for me as much as it was for someone else, and I was just distracted by it, like so many on the highway. Just because the exit is there didn’t mean I was to take it. So, why did I think every sign I saw in my life was an answer to my prayer? And, why did I not trust the right one would be there when I needed it?

On the highway, I could have pulled off at the first gas station sign and paid for it with my debit card. I could have pumped in a few gallons of inferior gasoline to tide me over instead of the kind I knew my car needed to run well. But, I chose to trust that the right sign was still up ahead. Sure enough it was, even though it temporarily led me off the path I was on.

Question: Are you looking for signs, or waiting for God to show you the sign?

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)

Have you heard of the Action Principle? The Action Principle chastises inactivity and pleads for the collective church body to get off their proverbial (and literal) butt to do something, anything, for the Kingdom. While there is truth and wisdom in this call to action, it is secondary to a greater, more fundamental message.

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33)

It is in the search for God where we will find the world. It is in loving God where we find ourselves loving His creation. It is in the pursuit of righteousness where we find fruitful, kingdom-building activity. We are busy enough already without the Action Principle. Christ does not need more chaotic striving in the Church. Rather He is looking for disciples who will sit at His feet and hang on His every word.

Will there ever be action involved? Oh yes, plenty of it! The harvest is ready and the workers are few indeed. The Great Commission is action-oriented. But notice that the eleven were sent out only after they had fully seen and heard and believed their Lord, having learned from the Rabbi and having obtained a vision of His desire. Christ is always concerned with the heart first and foremost.

Check your heart today. Is it kingdom focused?

Consult the LORD. Where do your allegiances lie? To whom do your will and your passion belong? Action is good, no doubt about that. It has been the catalyst for many discoveries and advancements. But action will follow the one who seeks God first.

God, Give me eyes to see the world as You see it. Help me to sing with praise when you rejoice; to burn with anger when you burn. Let me  weep when you weep. Once my heart is aligned with yours, send me! Your servant is ready… I will go. Amen.

Question: Why is so easy to choose action over contemplation?

I love the word juxtaposition—to place two things or ideas side by side to see how they click and clash to make new meaning.  Today two flyers came in my mail, and their juxtaposition made me chuckle.

One was a glossy black, yellow, and red multi-sheet flyer with “CRAVE” at the top in 72-point font.  A double-patty hamburger and fries completed the picture along with the promise of “up to $41 in savings” inside.  The flyer was a booklet coaxing me to crave and cave to my fast-food inclinations.

The second flyer, equally glossy, asked the question “Is the ‘good life’ killing you?”  It pictured a woman, exhausted on the floor, surrounded by her cell phone, rolodex, business binder, and office supplies. Its flipside promoted a seminar by an international speaker and life coach as to the true ‘good life’ and how God plays a part in it.  While I’m not prone to signing up for such events, I was impressed that the speaker promised to offer a biblically-based approach to financial, physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional health.

Thus the juxtaposition.  One business promoted the good life through indulging my cravings with double cheeseburgers, lattes, sugary soft drinks, and greasy fries.  The other assumed the good life requires balance, faith, and personal direction.

Is it possible that fearing (respecting) God can influence our diet choices?  Possibly.  I don’t imagine wise and knowledgeable people lining up regularly at the drive thru.  Can knowledge of God make a difference in our relationships?  Or our finances?  Some people don’t make these connections, but the writer of the proverb does.  God-like wisdom probably helps us make wise decisions which better guides us to the good life.

Questions:  What really is ‘the good life’?  Is it one of financial responsibility and relational bliss?  And if these are part of it, what role does our relationship with God play in achieving them?

What do you pray for your kids? Beth Scholes has some excellent prayers from a parent’s heart.

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things.” (Philippians 4:4-8)

There’s a picture on my windowsill of my three children, smiling back at the camera. Taken years ago, they’re so little in this picture.  Our daughter looks so much like me. God has made an extension, a likeness of myself. She is her own person and she lets us know it. She was created for her time, for such a time as this. However, she bears my image.

In that family image captured three years earlier I see our happiness and the closeness that we share, a closeness that is still growing today. I pray our children will have been blessed with an upbringing that will undergird their lives for the purposes the Lord has for them. May their childhoods adorn the testimony of their lives for the glory of the Lord.

We have a quiver of children. What are we aiming them at for the trajectory of their lives? What path are we setting for them in childhood? When we let the arrow go and they move out of our home, which target will they fly toward?

The child, unlike the arrow, has a mind of its own. That thought could make me anxious. So I bring this as well to the Lord in prayer.

Lord, I praise you for your never ending, never forsaking, always hoping, love for us. Thank you for the blessings you have bestowed on my family. Thank you for our love. Have your way in our family. Help us to serve you as you desire. Remove anything from our lives, from our relationships, that would be contrary to your will. May we be found at the end of our short time on earth faithful to you, and having fulfilled your purpose for our lives. I pray that in all things, we will display your image. May you be glorified. In the strong name of Jesus Christ I pray.

 Question: How can you help direct a child to Jesus in your life?

“…he came to a cave and lodged in it; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?’” (1 Kings 18:9, Amplified version)

Elijah had seen God do miraculous things- things that validated his ministry – but he was now exhausted.  After hearing of threats on his life, Elijah ran over 100 miles into the desert where he sat under a tree asking God to take his life. He had had enough. But God was not finished living in and through Elijah and so he was revived with rest and food from the hand of an angel. Then, “Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb.”

Surely now after this very personal ministration by an angel, Elijah would be ready for a new ministry beginning. Instead we find him in a cave where God asks the haunting question, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” Wasn’t the presence of an angel enough to assure Elijah that God had been—and would continue to be—faithful?

Elijah was human just like we are. He was too tired, too afraid, too spent to go on. Perhaps he wondered if that angel was just a dream. Perhaps he wondered if his ministry was over. Perhaps he had forgotten the promises of God. And so he finds a cave.

God reveals Himself to Elijah in the gentlest of whispers, but then He begins His new message with these simple words: “Go back the way you came…” Get out of the cave, retrace your steps, do the job I have called you to do.

While caves can be dark and forbidding, they can also seem safe – away from the elements, far from the people who threaten (or merely disturb) us, distant from the unending call of responsibilities. But eventually we will hear God’s question: “What are you doing here?” And often the answer is the same as the one spoken to Elijah: “Go back the way you came.”

Question: Is God calling you to leave a cave in your life? Have you been running into safe caves and not into the arms of our loving Father?

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“For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

Have you experienced a prod from God while reading the Bible?

“God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:7)

Tap, tap.

“If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” (Psalm 66:18).

Poke.

“But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:15)

Nudge, nudge.

The Bible isn’t merely a classic ancient text that has stood the test of time; it is more than a masterpiece of literature and wisdom. God’s word is alive.

When I read the Bible in a spirit of readiness to hear God speak, He does. Words leap off the page as if they were written for me alone. Conviction burns through the fog of my denial and goes straight to my heart. God’s word is living and actively engages the one who reads it.

It comforts: “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted.” (Psalm 34:18)

It instructs: “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” (Romans 12:12)

It motivates: “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:24-25)

And it encourages: “Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:23-24)

The God of the Universe is waiting to speak to you. Open the Bible today and listen to what He has to say.

Thank you Almighty God that You have given us the Bible – Your word – and that it is living and active. Help me to daily read and listen to what you say.  Amen.

Questions: When has God’s word come alive for you? How can we use the Bible to test the attitudes of our hearts?

“Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.” (Hebrews 3:15)

“Seize the day.”

“There’s no time like the present.”

“Today is the first day of the rest of your life.”

You’ve heard it before, from ancient philosophers to modern day motivational speakers, the call to make the most of the present is all around us. So also is the urge within us to procrastinate. The weakness of our will, the laziness of our flesh, the fickleness of our hearts all say, tomorrow.

Do you realize that every time we say, “tomorrow” when we hear God whisper to our hearts, we are actually hardening our hearts against Him?

·    Every time we fail to respond to God’s urging it gets harder to hear Him.

·    Every time we put off doing what He asks, our hearts get more resistant to doing His will.

·    Every time we choose to listen to the lie that there will always be time to follow God tomorrow, the fact that we’ll ever seek God becomes a little less likely.

When the writer of Hebrews uses the word “Today” repeatedly (3:7; 3:13; 3:15; 4:7) – capitalizing it where ever it appears –he is pointing out the urgency of responding to God when He speaks.

“See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” (Hebrews 3:12, 13)

Paul too, writes, “I tell you, now is the time of God’s favour, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:2)

Let us heed God’s voice. Today.

Heavenly Father, thank you that You have called me to be Your child. Help me to listen for Your voice, to believe what You say and to follow Your commands, today and every day. Amen.

Questions: Why is it so important to follow God today? If resisting God hardens our hearts, how does responding to God affect our hearts? How have you experienced this?

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” (Psalms 32:8)

Have you ever tried to find a building in a town you have never  visited before? Asking for directions from a citizen of that town can be frustrating. “Turn right at the red barn which is just down the road from the white store with a purple sign out front.”

Maps are helpful but reading them in the dark can be difficult. Modern Global Positioning Systems (GPS) found on many telephones and in cars usually take us to the correct address but even this unique  technological device occasionally errs.

The best method for finding a sought destination is when a friend takes us by the hand—or sits in the car with us—and personally leads us to where we need to go.

The Israelites found themselves traveling into new territory. They had left the familiar and were about to set out for the land promised to them by God. There was no map or GPS, but God did give direction:

“When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God carried by the priests, set out from where you are and follow it… that you may be able to know the way you must go, for you have not passed this way before.” (Joshua 3:3 & 4)

The ark of the covenant represented the presence of God to these people. Today Christians have God’s Holy Spirit within and the written Word, the Bible, to give guidance as we travel ways we have not passed before.

Our friends Tom and Sue are following God into new and exciting challenges of ministry. In recent years they have had opportunities to be living witnesses in unimaginable places in the world in response to God’s call. And then came a heart attack. Although doctors have said Tom is now well recovered, is it still possible to follow God? Had they misheard God’s call? What now?

When we find ourselves on paths new and challenging, the words to Tom and Sue, and to all of us, are found in God’s original instructions, paraphrased here, “Set out from where you are and follow Me.”

Question: What resources has God given us to provide reliable directions for our life?