My Orange Roughy

“Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.” (Pr 31:29 AV)

Proverbs chapter thirty-one is a prophecy taught to King Lemuel from his mother.  When we read of the virtuous woman, it is this king’s mother who is giving a description of the character of the woman who should the king’s wife.  She is giving her son advice as to the help-meet he would need in order to effectively lead the kingdom.  This is in stark contrast with the woman she briefly describes in verse three.  If we forget the lengthy passage of the virtuous woman is also given to Lemuel by his, we might assume she is telling her son never to give his heart to any woman.  This is not the case.  She is simply sharing with him the wisdom of extreme discernment when choosing a mate because she will do more for his success than he would ever appreciate.  Having laid the foundation for the description of this virtuous woman, we want to focus in on one particular phrase.  That is, the phrase we have underlined above.

Have you ever noticed there are favorite dishes at your favorite restaurant that you tend to always go back to when ordering a meal?  I am not that much of a sea-food eater.  At least I wasn’t until about a decade ago.  I had the most amazing walleye at a local restaurant in the Milwaukee area.  That got me experimenting with other seafood.  I found myself eating tilapia, white fish, cod, walleye, catfish, and eventually, lobster.  Each dish was always a pleasant dish.  Nothing to write home about, but tasty enough to eventually order them again.  The coup-de-grace was when I was brave enough to try mussels and crawfish.  Not together, mind you, but at separate times and in separate dishes.  Mussels, not so much.  But I would do that crawfish dish again in a New York minute!  There is one dish, however, that when given the opportunity, I order it every time.  There used to be a restaurant in Paducah, KY called Whaler’s Catch.  Their fried oysters were amazing.  Their lobster pots were pretty good, too.  But there was one dish that was out of this world.  It was the stuffed orange roughy.  This amazing meal was orange roughy stuffed with crab meat and a whole lot of magic.  Baked in a small little porcelain dish, it looked like a child’s portion.  However, there was something about that dish that made the taste buds party and the stomach feel completely satisfied.  It was the kind of dish where you savor every bite.  You are not in a hurry to satisfy hunger.  Rather, one takes very small bites and rests the ingredients on the tongue so one’s senses can appreciate every ingredient and the combination of them.  Truly amazing.

Outside of the LORD, there is no such thing as a perfect anything.  It all depends on what is best suited for the needs and desires at hand.  So, the phrase above is not intended to suggest that if one lined up all the ladies a groom could ever marry, there is one that is the best no matter the personality of the groom.  However, there is the best one for him.  She excels them all.  This is the proper attitude one should have for his spouse.  When comparing her against all others, she should excel them all.  This does not mean she is without fault.  I am sure if I looked hard enough, I might just be able to find one in my dear Lisa.  But I can tell you, without hesitation, she excels them all.  Sorry ladies.  You cannot compare.  There isn’t even a close second.  That is how far above the rest of the population my wife is compared to all of you.  I know.  That may seem like an exaggeration.  But it is not.  It is the honest-to-goodness truth.  My Lisa excels them all and there isn’t anyone who can hold a candle to her.  A truly amazing person with all the qualities of a queen, she is not just my help-meet.  She is my perfect-meet.  She excels them all.

Hope From Afar

“Yet, behold, therein shall be left a remnant that shall be brought forth, both sons and daughters: behold, they shall come forth unto you, and ye shall see their way and their doings: and ye shall be comforted concerning the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, even concerning all that I have brought upon it. And they shall comfort you, when ye see their ways and their doings: and ye shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in it, saith the Lord GOD.” (Eze 14:22-23 AV)

What a picture of the evangelizing saint!  The context here is a small remnant whom the king of Babylon leaves behind to tend the land.  The vast majority of Israel and Judah are carried away to Assyria, then Babylon, as captives for their sins against God.  Yet, there is a small number of the poor and humble who remain free to serve the king by farming the land and sending back to Babylon fruits of the fields.  Their job is to continue to keep the land cultivated so it does not go back to its natural state.  It appears from the text above this remnant could communicate with their captive brethren.  It even appears they could visit if they so choose.  This would mean they had some kind of passage that allowed them to go freely.  Like an ambassador who would send word from the home country, they would encourage those held in captivity of the goodness of the land.  It was a message of God’s grace.

The church has been called to reach a lost and dying world.  This message of hope comes from people just like them.  The remnant was not the remnant because they were better than those who were not.  The king chose them because they were willingly humbled.  They identified with the sins of the nation and their forefathers and did not rebel when judgment came.  Because of this humility, the king felt they could be trusted.  They were no less sinful than those who would not be humbled.  The found grace because of their willingness to respond to the correcting hand of God.  The same is true of the N.T. saint.  We are no better than the worst of society.  God considers all sin equally wicked when compared against His holiness.  There are no degrees of holiness.  There are no such things as mortal or venial sins.  They are all mortal.  We are all in need of forgiveness found only in Christ.  We are all in desperate need of God’s mercy.  We have not earned it.  We don’t deserve it.  But we need it more than our minds can comprehend. 

This remnant would come and go at intervals according to the Spirit’s leading.  They would leave their fields and homes to come and visit with their countrymen in captivity.  They would send correspondence when they could.  They would not sit, busy with their own lives, never having thought about those held in the grasp of an ungodly king.  Their minds were on those held in bondage.  Their message was one of hope.  God had not forsaken the land.  God was still honoring the covenants.  The LORD was still interested in the nation whom He had planted and is counting down the days when they could reunite.  There is a message of hope for those held in captivity.  That message of hope for a lost and dying world is that Jesus Christ died for them.  All they need to do is repent of their sin and place their faith in what He has already done on His cross.  Calling out to Him, they can be saved from their sin and the hell that awaits them.  There is also a message of hope for those saints who are going through deep waters.  It is those who are not in those deep waters who can be of great encouragement.  There is hope on the other side.  This captivity will not last and when it ends, they can join those who are not in those waters.  It is so important to have a tether to the land of hope.  To hold back that tether because we are too busy or we feel too disconnected is not right.  When one thinks about it, it is actually cruel.  Send out the lifeline!  There is someone struggling today.

The Trap of Fear

“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.” (Pr 29:25 AV)

In the interest of full discloser, the fear of man here is the fear we may have of individual men or mankind in general.  The fear is what they might do or what they might think of us.  However, what the LORD wishes for me to contemplate this morning is the ensnaring nature of fear regardless of its source.  We often say that fear is paralyzing.  When faced with something that is overwhelmingly frightful, we seize up and fail to act.  Or, we run for the hills.  Often, what fear may not do is turn on the ‘fight’ instinct.  It may not motivate us to conquer that which we fear.  This is not an absolute part of our nature.  We may have the flight instinct with certain threats, but the flight instinct kicks in when other enemies appear.  The thing is, fear has a way of freezing us in our tracks.  Worse yet, it has a way of digging a pit deeper and deeper which makes escape all that much harder.  This trap is one that by nature, we often walk into.  It is one that we feel comfortable in for a short duration.  However, as fear turns to terror, it becomes less and less comfortable.  By then we are so ensnared, we cannot see a way out.  Even if we did, the journey there is a long one and often seen as a terror in and of itself.

My wife and I were watching the coverage of hurricane Laura.  They mentioned something about a ride-a-long on a hurricane plane that went through the eye of Laura.  My immediate thought was that I would love to ride on a flight like that.  Now, this is significant.  I do not like flying all that much.  I will do it if I have to, but I prefer not to.  Trapped in an enclosed space 30,000 feet in the air is not my idea of ideal safety.  The last flight I took was a six-hour flight from Boston to Ireland.  I had to take a sleeping pill to get through it.  So, flying in a hurricane chaser would seem to be the last thing I would want to do.  I will admit, if a flight like that ever came available, I know what would happen.  They would have to drug me up so that I wouldn’t go into cardiac arrest.  I would probably puke all over the place.  But to fly through storm clouds and then see that eye has to be one awesome sight.  Turbulence would be out of this world.  But, hey, those pilots fly those missions all the time and almost always come back just fine.  Big monsters don’t seem to scare me.  Those little pesky ones do.  If forced to let go and yield myself to a dramatic experience, the decisions pretty much make their own.  But faced with a large scale threat compiled of limitless detail, that scares me.  Fight off a charging bear with a shotgun, sure.  Keeping a thousand plates spinning so that one does not crash, no way.

Lisa has been diagnoses with the COVID-19 virus.  When we got the news, many thoughts went through my head.  One thought was relief.  The monkey is finally off our backs.  The fear of catching the disease was finally over.  It is in our household.  However, the medical community and the world wants to scare the living daylights out of you.  They want you to react in complete fear.  The thing about this virus is, it is a virus.  There is no cure.  The body must fight it off on its own.  That means, there are no decisions we can make that will automatically lead to a cure.  The decisions will pretty much make themselves.  If she needs more oxygen, she will be given supplemental oxygen at home or transported to a hospital.  The care she is receiving is out of this world!  There are three different agencies checking on her throughout the day.  She has been given medical equipment to monitor her own numbers.  There is nothing more we can do.  The Great Physician is the only cure for this virus and thus, the instruction is quite important.  If I allow fear to take its grip, I will never be free.  If I, instead, choose to trust the LORD, then the snare disappears.  What is interesting about this is God is going to do what God is going to do.  He will heal her.  Of this, I am relatively assured.  So, if the virus is a foregone conclusion, fear is the only monster that needs to be slain.  And slay it we will!

True Escape

"But they that escape of them shall escape, and shall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them mourning, every one for his iniquity.” (Eze 7:16 AV)

This verse seems a bit contradictory.  On the first hand, you have mourning doves that are free to fly.  On the second hand, they are mourning.   On the first hand, they have escaped.  This escaping is total.  On the second hand, they are mourning for their inequity.  What gives?  The context is the battle for Jerusalem.  The inhabitants are told to go into captivity to Babylon lest the Chaldeans see their flight as rebellion and destroy them.  They do not heed and those who tried to escape were slaughtered.  So, we know those who escape above are not this group of people.  There is a remnant left behind by the Chaldeans who are tasked with caring for the land.  These are the only Judeans who escape the captivity of Babylon.  If I were one of these folks, I wouldn’t be mourning.  I would rejoice that I had escaped judgment.  Not these folks.  They have thoroughly escaped.  There is no threat of any pending judgment.  Yet, they mourn.  BTW, the mourning dove gets its name from two behaviors.  The first is its call.  It sounds like a survivor mourning the loss of a loved one.  The second is the mourning dove mates for life.  If its mate dies, it often keeps vigil on the deceased for a time.  There can be no misunderstanding here.  The process of mourning is also the process of escaping.

There was a young man who the LORD placed in my way for the purpose of ministry.  He had made a mess of his life.  There was drug abuse, a pregnancy out of wedlock, a divorce, unemployment; the list goes on and on.  We were able to help him get back on his feet.  We found him a job.  We got him a car.  We provided a place for him to sleep.  Then, he lost this good job and got another.  He slowly got back on drugs again.  He held a job in which he delivered furniture.  These deliveries were cash pick-ups.  He would drop off furniture and would collect cash for the items.  He then returned to the warehouse and dropped off the money.  I got a call from his employer one evening looking for him.  I hadn’t heard from him.  One day turned into two days.  Two days turned into five days.  He finally called me and told me he had embezzled the money from his company.  It took some doing, but I convinced him to contact his employer and tell him he wanted to make it right.  I told him to tell his employer he was willing to work with one hundred percent of his wages going to paying off the debt.  They made an arrangement and I drove him to the company.  Unfortunately, the employer had misled him and he went off in cuffs.  Later, when I took him to his court date, his name did not appear on any docket.  We enquired and they had no record of it.  As far as the county clerk’s office was concerned, he had no case in which to appear.  It seemed as though the grace of God came on this young man and he escaped the consequences of his actions.  But did he really?

The children of Judah, like their northern brethren, were carried off their land because they turned their backs on God.  They turned to other religious systems.  They worshipped idols.  It is one thing to escape the consequences of sin.  Quit another to escape that sin altogether.  When the remnant escaped the hand of the Chaldeans, they also escaped the grasp of the sin which brought this chastisement.  This required mourning over their iniquities.  Paul writes, “For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.” (Ro 6:20-22 AV)  To escape, one must escape that which caused them to be entrapped, to begin with.  Otherwise, captivity lurks right around the corner.  One cannot escape from iniquity unless they mourn over it.  Escape requires mourning.  Escape from the sin which does easily beset us means we turn our back on it and mourn over it.  Consider it dead.  Consider it never to be enjoyed again.

Internalize For Effective Ministry

“Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.” (Eze 3:10 AV)

This, in particular, would have been hard to do.  Ezekiel is a prophet who was a contemporary of Jeremiah.  His ministry spanned the occupation of Jerusalem and the carry away into captivity.  Which means the majority of his visions would encompass the failures of Judah and their pending judgment.  To internalize nothing but doom and gloom messages would have been a difficult thing to do.  When dealing with bad news day in and day out, it is a temptation to cauterize one’s emotional state against the feelings that would have come by way of the prophecies.  He would have been tempted to harden himself against what he saw so that he didn’t have to live in the reality of tragedy day in and day out.  Yet, the LORD tells Ezekiel to internalize the word of God.  Let it sink in.  Let it bother you.  We see him arriving at his congregation and for the first seven days, does nothing but sit with them.  The word of God tells us he was astonished.  Knowing what he knew and also knowing they would never listen, the full reality of his ministry hit him.  To grow those callouses means to discharge one’s duty in a passionless manner.  In doing so, the urgency is lost.  One must internalize the message or there is no hope of it ever accomplishing anything.

As I have written before, I served in the capacity of a hospital Chaplin.  We had many duties.  We were required to make rounds at least once a night and then be on call overnight.  Most of the time, the calls or visits were uneventful.  However, once in a while we were asked to accompany a doctor or social worker as they delivered bad news.  It always impressed me how a doctor whose job is to deal with life or death, can seem somewhat detached from his patient as he or she shares the bad news.  They would tell the Chaplin he should not get too emotionally involved with the patients.  If he did, he would drive himself into deep despair.  There is some wisdom in that.  This is the reason Chaplin worked in shifts.  We would often deal with the same hospice situations, but since we shared the load, not all of the emotional consequences lay on one single Chaplin.  However, we could not effectively do our job if we did not get emotionally involved.  The diagnosis of cancer is a hard one to deliver.  If we deliver it with a heart that is hardened against another’s pain, we cannot help them through it.  We have to feel what they feel.  We have to understand, at least emotionally, what they might be going through.

Paul put it this way.  “Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.” (Ro 12:15 AV)  The only way we can do that is to let the truth of what they need to anchor itself deep in our own hearts.  Truth is stoic.  The nature of it, that is.  Truth is simply absolute fact.  There is no emotion associated with the existence of truth.  Applying truth, on the other hand, involves a great deal of emotion.  It is one thing to say all those who reject Christ are hell-bound.  Quite another when those in the ‘all’ include people that you love.  Living in Chicago for nine years, the sheer number of people was overwhelming.  It was too easy to allow the reality of their eternal soul to get to me.  It was easy to turn off the emotions so the horribleness of the situation didn’t come.  But like Jeremiah, it didn’t last long.  It has to bother us.  It has to be internalized.  To do otherwise would to give the impression what we say is not all that important when it is of the utmost importance.

Faithful Messengers Needed

“He that sendeth a message by the hand of a fool cutteth off the feet, and drinketh damage.” (Pr 26:6 AV)

There is broad understanding here concerning the feet and the damage.  Whose feet are cut off and who drinks the damage?  What do those phrases mean, anyway?  To make sense of it, if we look at the feet and the drink as part of the process of delivering the message, it will make complete sense.  To cut off the feet means the message will be very late in getting to where it needs to be, or it may not arrive at all.  The drinking which results in damage is the message arriving, yet so distorted, it does not accomplish that which it was sent forth to do.  There are many reasons these two realities might be the case.  However, it all boils down to the character of the messenger.  That is what we want to consider this morning.

A story is told of an unlikely hero of the Revolutionary war.  Sixteen-year-old Sybil Ludington was the daughter of a nearby militia.  Word came to young Sybil of an imminent attack on the city of Danbury by the British who were targeting an arms depot in the area.  There was no one to ride and warn the Revolutionaries, so she mounted her horse and set out to warn the militia stationed near Danbury, CT.  Her trip was in the middle of the night and covered nearly 40 miles.  Twice the distance as Paul Revere’s famous ride.  Along the way, she was accosted by highwaymen and fended them off with a switch.  When gazing upon a statue erected in her honor, it can be seen she is holding a stick.  She kept that stick with her for the duration of her journey.  When she arrived, it was discovered the British were already engaging the city of Danbury, but the militia was unaware.  They were able to mount a resistance that made the battle a bit more difficult for their foe, even though the effort was eventually lost.  There are so many excuses little Sybil could have made that would justify not riding to Danbury.  She was a female and not a member of the army.  It wasn’t her job.  It was too dangerous.  She was a lady and she may ride into harm's way.  It wouldn’t get there in time to make any difference.  Her message would have fallen on ears who could or would do nothing about it.  It simply wouldn’t make a difference.  All these reasons were no good enough.  She rode anyway.  She had a message that someone else needed to hear.  This message, and her devotion to it, spurred on the Connecticut militia to finally enter the war.

We are tasked to share the gospel message of salvation to a lost a dying world.  This is the only message worth dying for.  This message of faith and grace is being muzzled by a world that hates the LORD.  However, there are those who will listen and who need it desperately.  It is not someone else’s job.  It is ours.  It is not just the preachers’ job, the deacon’s job, the Sunday school teacher’s job.  It is your job.  It is my job.  Of course, there will be hazards along the way.  I have had a firearm pulled on me twice.  I have had dogs chase me off their property.  But that is part of being a messenger.  As to whether it matters or not?  Regardless of the fruit that may or may not come of it, since the LORD askes it be done, that is sufficient.  The gospel message of repentance from sin and faith in Christ as one’s personal Savior is a message that will change a life.  It is a message the world needs to hear.  We need faithful messengers.  We do not need those who will halt for any reason or not show up at all.  We need faithful messengers who will not change the message just to make it more acceptable.  No fools needed.  Only the faithful.  You are in a battle whether you like it or not.  There is no option.  So, take up the conscript, pick up a stick, get on your horse, and ride.  Someone’s battle relies upon it.

Don't Muddy The Waters

“A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring.” (Pr 25:26 AV)

 The phrase ‘falling down’ means to waver.  There could be many meanings of wavering.  One writer equals this to a refusal to stand against the wicked.  He believes when a righteous man does not stand against the actions of the wicked, it is like clear water that had become fouled.  Another writer believes the ‘wavering’ or ‘falling down’ is manifested by the choice to fall into sin.  He believes the ‘falling’ is succumbing to the temptations which a wicked man might bring.  Still, another believes this ‘falling’ is a falling down to worship the wicked.  In fact, all these possibilities could have the same outcome.  That is, the integrity of the righteous is brought into question by those who have observed his character over a period of time.  What is more, the fountain or spring which always ran clean and pure is not brought into doubt as to the duration of its purity.  Was it corrupt all along?  Falling before the wicked doesn’t just affect our present character.  It brings into judgment our entire life’s character.  Even if the lapse of character just happened.

I’ve spent a lot of time in the outdoors.  I have seen my share of water sources.  From lakes to ponds, from puddles to springs, I have seen many sources of freshwater.  One of the skills we were taught was to always boil your source of water before you consume it.  In this day and age, the outdoorsman can use purifying tablets that will kill any nasties that may be lurking in your water supply.  Back in my day, we had to boil it and store it before we consumed it.  Boiling water was a safety precaution.  If our source was running water, then it was more than not, safe to drink.  There were times when in a desperate situation, we would fill our canteens with running water.  Some of the best tasting water was a groundswell stream.  That is where rainwater overfills the ground and it bubbles up like a coffee percolator.  The ground is usually sandy or stony, so it is well filtered.  I have filled my canteen from a source like that a few times in my life.  A funny thing happens though.  If I filled my canteen from such a place, and then step away from it only to see mud or dirt rise from it, the purity of the contents of my canteen was brought into question.  Was the source always this dirty and it was simply too small to tell?  Can it be trusted?  Even if the source was as pure as the wind-driven snow, a sick feeling rises in one’s stomach of the littlest of contamination might be possible.

The thing about water is water is also a naturally reflective surface.  If it is muddied by someone stepping in it, then it ceases to reflect.  If the observer is using the life of another as a source to examine himself, if he falls before the wicked, this becomes impossible.  The point is this:  the water source is pretty much what it always has been.  For the most part, the fountain and spring are clear and pure.  When something enters it from outside itself, it can bring into question the past as well as the present purity of that water.  Those who benefit from the purity of the fountain or spring can temporarily no longer do so until purity can be assured once again.  How we interact with the wicked around us matters just as much to the wicked and those who observe us as it does us.  What we choose to do or not do effects those around us.  A fountain or spring will eventually run purely again.  It is only a matter of time.  The lasting effects might be there are fewer who will trust that spring or fountain because it was fouled in the past.  What we choose to do matters.  How we choose to respond to the wicked matters.  It will have lasting effects on personal being as well as all those who depend on our character as a matter of ministry to their own.

Pray Because He Cares

“I love the LORD, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications. Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live.” (Ps 116:1-2 AV)

The promise to commit to a lifetime of prayer is a noble and lofty one.  But it should be one that every child of God should make.  This decision is an especially impressive one because the vow is not made upon reflection of what God will do.  Rather, because the writer has experienced answered prayer in the past, he promises to continue in the future.  This prayer is not based on conditions.  He is not promising to pray for the remainder of his life because he expects the LORD to answer all his prayers in the manner He has in the past.  Rather, because the Creator is faithful, and the psalmist is grateful, there is a declaration of unbroken prayer offered to the LORD for the entire life!  There is something else that we need to notice here.  The writer chooses his words very carefully.  He uses the word ‘…voice…’ and ‘…supplications…’ here rather than prayers, requests, things, etc.  The voice is the emotion or intensity behind what is asked.  Supplication speaks to the earnestness of the request and not necessarily the content of the request.  Notice also the writer loves the LORD because the LORD has heard the voice and supplications of the sinner and not because the LORD gave ear to the content of the request.  In other words, the writer will pray for the remainder of his life, not because the LORD gave him the desire of his heart.  He will pray for the remainder of his life because the LORD hears, appreciates, and values the emotion and earnestness behind the request.  In short, the writer loves the LORD and will pray to him for the remainder of his live because he is convinced the LORD loves him and respects how he feels.

A father who learns to value his child’s emotional state will have a child who is closer than he could ever imagine.  I have three sons.  Each one played some sort of sport.  All three played basketball.  Two played soccer.  One loved baseball.  In different times of their athletic career, there was a great disappointment.  A game that meant a lot to their team came to a crashing end because of some failure on their part.  I was in little league.  I loved playing baseball.  I was the third-string pitcher.  This meant I didn’t have to, nor was I expected to, excel at batting.  My brother and I went out for the same team.  We were not the best, But we were not the worst, either.  It was the first round of playoff games and I hadn’t been inserted in the game.  It was the ninth inning.  According to the rules, all players had to be rotated in for at least one inning.  I was placed in left field.  The position to do the least harm to the team.  We were the home time and had gotten out of the top of the inning with no errors on my part.  But then came the time for the offense.  We were down by many runs and the likelihood of coming back to win the game was near to impossible.  There were two outs.  It was now my turn to bat.  If I can remember back then, there was at least one man on base.  My coach told me it didn’t matter what I did.  Just go out there and have fun.  I was a nervous wreck.  The entire season was on me.  If I struck out of flied out, the season was over.  This is exactly what happened.  I struck out.  Tears flowed down my face.  I was devastated.  My coach knew exactly what to do.  He gathered me up, gave me a long hug, and gathered the team around me to console my strike-out.  In the whole scope of things, that game means nothing.  But the knowledge that my coach cared how much of a failure I felt, did.

We treat our children’s emotions as something akin to silver or gold.  Never ever should a parent belittle a child’s emotions.  If they are misplaced, we can help them work through it.  If they are rash and undisciplined, we can correct them while still affirming how they feel.  But to treat every emotional manifestation as something to be ignored or criticized is to say to that child that he doesn’t matter.  If he is angry without cause, then correction is in order.  Helping him to see why he was in the wrong must acknowledge the anger but correct it.  When a child feels sad or upset because something to us which was minor happened, we cannot discount that to him, it was the end of the world.  God never does this.  He responds to our emotions by acknowledging them.  This is especially true in the matter of prayer.  He cares about how we feel about that which we are petitioning.  He cares that we care.  He cares that we are heartbroken.  He cares that we are anxious.  He cares that we think our world is falling apart.  It is not so much that He might answer to make it all better.  The reason we should pray without ceasing is not for an answer which we hope we be.  Rather, we should pray without ceasing because God cares.

God Can Be Pleased

“My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine. Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things.” (Pr 23:15-16 AV)

Affirmation is important.  The world uses a term that is the wrong way to look at this.  They use the term, self-esteem.  Another way we can think of it is self-worth.  This also misses the mark.  We have nothing of which to be esteemed.  The only worth we have is in the LORD Jesus Christ.  The fact we are sons and daughters of God is the foundation of whatever worth we have.  So, the world’s understanding of it falls short.  What we are talking about is affirmation.  The idea that your existence means something and that there are those who deeply appreciate the impact of your life.  In the above verse, we see the importance of a father affirming the life of his son.  He puts conditions on that affirmation.  And rightly so.  The condition is the choices he makes.  As long as the son seeks to grow in wisdom and share that wisdom with others, Dad couldn’t be happier.  It is so very important to know the conditions upon which those under us can achieve that affirmation.  The problem is, there comes a time when a parent’s affirmation is not enough.  What we really seek is affirmation from our Creator.

Every child seeks his father’s approval.  It is so important to grant that approval.  I grew up in a large family.  Eight boys and three girls.  We always had the approval of our siblings.  Sometimes that was not enough.  We had our friends.  Our classmates who we hung with or went on fishing expeditions.  They affirmed our worth.  But sometimes that was not enough.  There would invariably come a time when our siblings ran us off because of some minor spat.  There would be times when a best friend fell out of favor because he wanted us to do something we knew our father would not approve of.  There were times of growing up when our friends and siblings would all go their separate ways, leaving us alone for a bit; looking for new affirmation.  There were times when we prayed for a mate and asked the LORD to provide that help meet that would fill the gaps in our lives where no one else could.  That soul mate who knew you better than you knew yourself and would love you unconditionally anyway.  But there are times when that affirmation is not enough.  There is an affirmation that only God can provide.  He is the Creator and He knows me best.

What really struck me this morning and what I really needed from the LORD was a word of affirmation.  There are times when one must stand alone.  I remember, returning from my honeymoon, unable to sleep right away, I had a discussion with the LORD.  I was impressed with the reality of my new-found role.  That being a leader and husband to my wife.  I knew there would be times when we would disagree, but I would be convinced of the LORD it was the right thing to do.  I asked the LORD for the courage to stand, even if it meant I had to stand alone.  Over the years, that has been a very rare occurrence.  My wife is the best and will always stand with me.  There are other roles we fulfill.  Other responsibilities in which we feel the affirmation of others is not sufficient for the day.  It is then we need to remember as long as we seek to please the LORD, He rejoices.  At the end of the day, that is all that really matters.  We cannot please all of the people all of the time.  At times, those who affirmed you will no longer do as much.  What we cannot do is allow the affirmation of others to be more important than the affirmation of God.  When I read the above passage, I could not help but feel a ‘warm-fuzzy’.  That God can rejoice, will be rejoicing, and is rejoicing over me is really all I should and do need.

Heavy Hands Are Hard

“Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood.” (Jer 48:10 AV)

 For me, this is perhaps one of the most difficult devotions I have ever had to write.  The LORD is speaking to those tasked to carry on the unfortunate responsibility to be the hand of God’s correction.  You would think after writing this that my children grew up to be undisciplined and rebellious.  The opposite is true.  I was the faithful authority figure in my home and diligently exercised the instrument of discipline.  I didn’t enjoy it and would rather have avoided it.  But to discharge my duties before the LORD and for the benefit of the spiritual well-being of my home, I had no choice.  The same is true when I was a business manager.  The same was true when I was a department head.  The same was true when I was a scout leader.  Being the arm of correction and discipline is not an enjoyable thing to do, nor should it be.  But for the sake of the individual(s) involved, it is necessary.  Woe unto the one who enjoys this ministry a bit too much!  LOL.  What we want to see this morning is the LORD’s attitude towards the one who decides foregoing his biblical responsibility to be that hand of the LORD meted out for correction.  There is a curse placed upon him.  He will not prosper anywhere he goes because discipline is part of his duties.

There are so many times in life I had to correct or discipline another individual for actions they took or failed to take.  I think the hardest is firing someone under your employ.  Other forms of correction keep open the possibility of a continued relationship.  But when you have to fire someone, they are forever severed.  Years ago, when I managed a pizzeria, such a situation arose.  We had an employee at a small outlet who was consistently late.  Not by much.  Just a few minutes.  This small outlet only required two or three employees to run it.  So, the manager got really close to his employees.  Being a small country store, it was slow most of the time.  Minor tardiness was not a huge problem because the pace of the business didn’t really mandate precise punctuality.  My boss called me and told me to fire that employee at the conclusion of our business day.  Personally, I thought my boss wanted him fired for personal reasons.  But I really didn’t have a vote in the matter.  As a manager, it was my responsibility to fire this employee.  I thought it was unfair.  I was worried about how he would make ends meet.  I was concerned we could not be used as a reference and if someone called, we would have to disclose his employment history.  I felt really bad.  But it needed to be done.

As one who has a position of authority, you and I are asked to do some hard things.  Things we would rather not have to do.  Things we wish we could pass off to someone else.  As someone who has helped families, I can tell you of Dad is not the disciplinarian and mom must pick up the slack, children do not turn out right.  Working with military families who must adjust to such a scenario, some military families can adjust and Dad is still the disciplinarian even though he is deployed.  Other families, Mom was the only disciplinarian regardless of Dad being deployed or on leave and at home.  In times like these, it is so important to seek the LORD’s strength in discharging one’s duty.  We need wisdom.  We need love and patience.  We need compassion.  But we also need resolve.  Secondly, we also need to remember our affirmation comes from the LORD and not dependent on how others might react to our authority.  Let’s face it, we don’t like to exercise that hand of correction because we do not like to not be liked.  It is often a lonely job.  We often stand-alone and those under us seldom understand why we had to do what we did. 

Do You Really Want To Know?

“For ye dissembled in your hearts, when ye sent me unto the LORD your God, saying, Pray for us unto the LORD our God; and according unto all that the LORD our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it.” (Jer 42:20 AV)

There is much context to consider before we become a bit too critical of those involved in the passage above.  In the previous chapter of Jeremiah, we read the historical account of abuse which happened after Babylon invaded Judah.  When Nebuchadnezzar conquered Judah and Jerusalem, he left a man named Gedaliah as governor.  Gedaliah was secretary to the last king Judah had before captivity.  He was allied with Jeremiah and thus garnered Nebuchadnezzar’s favor.  He was left as an overseer of the poor of the land for the purpose of dressing and keeping the vineyards.  Along comes a man named Ishmael who killed Gedaliah, his attendants, and his loyalists.  This Ishmael then takes all the souls of the government of Gedaliah as captive and recedes to the land of the Ammonites.  These captives also include Chaldean guardsmen left to keep the government safe in compliant to Babylon.  If word of this got back to Babylon, surely Nebuchadnezzar would send more forces to deal with a territory that seemed out of control.  So, a man named Johanan with a  small force entered the land of the Ammonites, fought with Ishmael and his forces, and recovered all that was taken.  Johanan then takes all that he has, material and the souls of people, to Egypt for fear that Babylon will come and deal with it all without any care of the details.  Johanan asks Jeremiah for prayer.  He asks Jeremiah for the word of the LORD regarding their situation.  He does so with his mind pretty much made up.  This is the meaning of Jeremiah’s remarks in the first part of our verse.

It is not uncommon for a saint to ask the pastor to pray for him even though the mind was made up a long time ago.  Having experienced this many times, one can spot it right off.  Over the years, I have had requests from individuals who were dating or engaged, asking for God’s guidance concerning the possibility of marriage.  Emotions being what they are, a decision has already been made.  A young lady who recently divorced asked me to pray for her as she began to date again.  I gave her the counsel that the word of God forbids remarriage after divorce in most cases.  In the cases it does not explicitly forbid it, there is no permission given to remarry.  That does not mean in rare situations the LORD would say no, but what I couldn’t do was give her the comfort I could pray the LORD would lead her to a new husband.  In my view, biblically speaking, she was not permitted to remarry.  This did not go over well.  She left the church and became an adamant critic.

The word ‘…dissembled…’ means to vacillate.  In the case of Johanan, he was vacillating between wanting to know the word of the LORD verses staying put because he feared what the Babylonians might do.  The sad thing is, he would have been safer going back to Jerusalem than staying in Egypt.  The application is very simple.  Whether it is asking for prayer or searching the scripture, if we are not open to that which the LORD would answer, then we are vacillating between a request and the answer we might get.  I can imagine the LORD asking, “Well, do you or do you not really want an answer?”  We might respond, “Of course I do.  I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want an answer.”  However, there are times we are asking because we want a pre-determined answer to bless the decision we have already made.  I don’t blame Johanan for his vacillation.  He had just rescued the remnant of Judah from an opportunist who killed Chaldeans.  If I am he, I am thinking the same thing.  Nebuchadnezzar will come and avenge the blood of his slain guardsmen without regard to justice or truth.  Johanan had every reason to be afraid.  Except one.  God promised as long as the people of God were subject to the authority of their captors, they would be just fine.  Faith and openness to obedience is the foundation required before we ask for guidance.  Otherwise, we have vacillating hearts.

The Need For Someone to Draw Our Water

“Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water; but a man of understanding will draw it out.” (Pr 20:5 AV)

This verse has confused commentary writers across the board.  Some believe the man of understanding, seeking counsel, will draw it out of another who has plenty of wisdom.  Others, like myself, see the first statement as a statement of the condition of mankind.  We have within us wisdom and understanding of which we are unaware, and a man of understanding will counsel with us to draw it to the surface.  I have seen this play out more times than not.  When someone comes to me and asks advice, generally speaking, they probably know the answer.  Due to confusion, inner turmoil, fear, or forgetfulness, they cannot see what they know to be true.  Much counsel is framed by asking questions with self-evident answers.  The reason a counselor does this is the internalize the answer on the heart of the inquisitor.  It is better for the individual to draw correct conclusions with his own reasoning than to simply be given the answer.

One of the greatest joys of life was teaching my children at home.  I had the privilege of starting out the first two in kindergarten and first grade.  To this day, I can remember the ‘oi’ boys.  You would have have been there.  Anyway, I used phonics as the method of teaching them how to read and write.  Something I was never taught.  We were taught rhymes and exceptions.  Anyway, I can remember the drills we used to use and asking my little students to put sounds together to form words.  Rather than seeing words as whole words and memorizing words by the shapes of the letters, I had them combine letters to form words.  It was fun having them create words that didn’t exist.  Funny sounding words or nonsensical words were a hoot.  One of my sons fought me some of the way.  He didn’t want to do the work.  Once I convinced him a time or two that he really didn’t have a choice, he hunkered down and learned his lessons.  When they began to realize they had the pieces they needed to read, they began to sound out letters and form words all on their own.  They had knowledge.  What they were missing was understanding the rules that governed a combination of letters and then the meaning of those combinations.  They had what they needed.  They just needed a guide to show them what they already knew.

The word of God is very precise here.  The one who draws out the counsel has understanding.  In the book of Proverbs, knowledge is simply the gathering of facts.  Understanding is how those facts relate to one another.  Wisdom is the discipline to apply those facts in a way that produces fruit to God’s pleasing.  Above, the one who can draw out counsel is one who has understanding.  The one with whom he is drawing out that counsel is lacking understanding.  Which means, he has knowledge.  The gift of the counselor is to help the one who knows the answer to what he seeks but cannot see it because he hasn’t put it all together.  In other words, the man of understanding can see the weakness in reason the others cannot, and leads him to put it all together and realize the answer he had all along.  How do we apply this?  Well, one of our frustrations in life is being confronted with situations in which we are at a loss as to the solution.  Because we cannot see what needs to be done, we are discouraged, confused, or even anxious.  I am faced with one as I type.  However, I wrote a source for counsel and he responded by asking I call.  That I did today.  Immediately when he wrote he gave me peace that there was a solution to my quandary even though I might have to wait a day or to for it.  After a lengthy conversation, it occurred to me I had the correct insight all along.  The lesson is clear.  Just because we feel anxious that we may not have a solution does not mean we don’t.  It is there.  All it takes is counsel from someone who can help us see what we have known to be true all along.

Leading Means Listening

“Hear counsel, and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end.” (Pr 19:20 AV)

I have been reminded recently that listening and considering that which we hear is part of leadership.  All too often, we make decisions without taking the time to gather as much input and information as we can before we make a decision.  Sometimes, it works out.  Sometimes, it does not.  When we know exactly what needs to be done and there is no other option, then listening and receiving instruction may not change the outcome, but it does show respect for those who have a differing opinion.  Respect is another trait that is sorely lacking in our society today.  But that was another blog a while back.  Anyway, listening is a valuable habit to form.  We are forced to listen while sitting in the classroom.  Unless the teacher calls on us, we are generally listening to learn and pass our tests.  When it comes to relationships, we are challenged in our listening capabilities.  It is easier to debate than to listen.  Listening requires humility.  Humility is something of which we are in a short supply.  Listening requires the assumption one may not know as much as he thinks and there is value in the thoughts of others.  Listening is one of the wisest practices a leader can exercise.  As he listens, his position is strengthened no matter what he hears.  He is either validated in the course of action he will take, or he modifies it to a stronger position.  Either way, there is everything to gain and nothing to loose in listening.

One of the churches I pastored was a committee run church.  I cannot biblically support that form of Church polity for several reasons.  First and foremost, it is an unbiblical form of church government and affords more authority to the congregation that is not biblically theirs.  Second, it severely hampers the preacher and deacons in their own spiritual maturity and growth as leaders.  Third, it is a tremendously inefficient and slow manner of church polity that seeks consensus above all else without consideration to opportunity, resolve to absolutes over preferences, and politics over principle.  However, there was one great lesson I learned through pastoring this church that I would not have learned any other way.  And, I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to learn this lesson.  The thing about a committee run church is the leadership is forced to listen to all points of view before a decision is made.  No matter the value or validity of the opinion, it was always entertained.  Even if the opinion was misinformed or misguided, it was still on the table.  What I learned was to appreciate the value of the wisdom of the men who shared what they were thinking and offered advice on how to resolve a challenge.  This advice was worth more than gold itself.  During our meetings, it was my job to moderate those meetings and guide the discussion so that we could come to a mutually agreed course of action.  Listening to about twenty men (and sometimes the ladies) discuss and issue, each with an input slightly different than their own revealed to me just how much I didn’t know and how blessed I was to have the experience and talent before me.

We are quick to share our opinion.  If we do listen, it is often with an attitude of patronization.  We listen because we feel we are required to listen.  Or, we hear without listening.  Listening is more than giving an ear.  It is an exercise of mutual respect that says to the other, “Your opinion matters to me, and I will humbly consider your point of view.  If your point of view can help guide my thoughts, then I will humbly consider modifying my opinion.”  I cannot begin to tell the reader how many times I have had a course of action set only to change it by listening to the input of others.  Sometimes, we get this idea that a leader is supposed to stand alone and lead.  We don’t consult our wives, our children, our family, our fellow church members, or our fellow citizens.  We get this idea that to ignore their input means we are a stronger leader.  It takes humility to listen to a subordinate.  Especially if they might be right.  It takes compassion, respect, love, and humility to place on the burner a decision that was already made so that it can be made again with more informed input.  However, the art of listening is more effective if that door swings both ways.  We cannot expect others to listen to us unless we are willing to listen.  If we are not willing to listen, we cannot expect others to listen to us.  Listening.  We need to do more of it.  We need to keep an open mind and remember, unless we are God, we will never have all the information.  We need one another.  We need opposing points of view.  Iron sharpens iron.  That is the only way both can be honed.