Living In The Gap

As a teen, our daughter would have loved to live in The Gap, the trendy clothing store at the mall.  Many of us live in the gap, but it’s a gaping hole between jobs or perhaps relationships.  There are gaps in our health (I had three surgeries at three hospitals in two months for one stubborn kidney stone).  No one wants to live in those gaps, but they are inevitable.

There are two major gaps in the life of Jesus.  Twelve years separate the story of Christ as an infant and Christ as a twelve-year old.  Then an eighteen-year gap between twelve-years old and the beginning of His ministry at age thirty.

Luke 2 fills in those gaps with two short verses.  Between infancy and pre-teen:

“And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom, and the favor of God was upon him,” Luke 2:40 NET.

And between twelve and thirty:

“And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and with people,” Luke 2:52 NET.

We rarely think of Jesus, the Son of God, needing to grow in wisdom and maturity, but that is exactly what Luke records.

As gaps open up in my life, my first reaction is to panic or get depressed.  But the gap is also a time that God, in His grace, can help us to mature and grow through the experience.  And pray it doesn’t last twelve or eighteen years!

PRAYER: Father, may Your grace and blessing be with me during life’s gaps.  And may I use them as a time of spiritual growth.

Today’s devotion by James N. Watkins is reprinted by permission from www.jameswatkins.com  copyright © 2009.  He is the author of fifteen books, including Squeezing Good Out of Bad, and over two thousand articles.  He has spoken across the United States as well as overseas.

The First Mystery Writer

Do you like a good mystery?  I love to watch mystery movies; you know the ones that give clues along the way but don’t give the whole picture until the very end. The really good ones toss some turns in there to throw you off so when the mystery is finally revealed you say, “Ohhh, I missed that!”

Did you know that God was the first mystery writer?  Yes, and just like in a good movie, He gave the real clues all along, but many people missed it. And just like at the end of movies, we turn to our friends and say, “Did you get it?” Paul is saying that now. In fact he explains the whole mystery to us because so many missed the clues. People began to think that God might have tricked them with some of His turns, but Paul explains that God’s timing is perfect. He was not withholding the mystery from past generations, but was revealing it in His perfect timing. Praise God, the mystery is revealed: God’s plan includes all the people of the world.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You that from the beginning of time You have scripted the greatest mystery ever written to include all the people of the earth.  We praise You today for revealing the mystery to us and for giving us a role to play in revealing the mystery to others.

“Now this secret was not disclosed to people in former generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit, namely, that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus.”  (Ephesians 3:5-6 NET)

Today’s devotion is written by Cheri Cowell, a student at Asbury Theological Seminary (Orlando).  Cheri writes and speaks on the deep questions of faith.  Her first book Direction: Discernment for the Decisions of Your Life (Beacon Hill) is called a biblically sound, no nonsense approach to making God-centered life choices.  For comments, or to inquire about her speaking schedule; visit www.DirectionAndDiscernment.com.

I Dream of…Genealogy?

I love to write suspense.  Out of nothing—poof. I dream and worlds appear.  It’s fun to make up characters.  Maybe my protagonist should have purple highlights, drive a Karmann Ghia, and walk with a limp. And the food! I can whip up grilled pork roast, guilt-free Alfredo sauce, and crème brûlée. The setting? Antarctica. Or a planet of my own making, complete with talking chimera.  Whatever I do, one thing is certain: My plot must hold readers captive so they neglect the laundry, the bathtub, sleeping, and breathing.  The last thing I do if I want to tell a dramatic story is include a long list of names in my story’s climax.  That would be like rolling the credits as the main action in a movie.  Yet leave it to God to break all the rules when breathing inspiration into the best-told stories of all time.

Ending with a genealogy is exactly what He did through the human of the Book of Ruth.  And once we “get” what He’s doing, we have to admit He has provided an utterly dramatic landing.  The readers of “Ruth” lived in a world before moving pictures.  No photos; only drawings.  When a loved one died, the bereaved had no hope of ever seeing that person’s face again.  The only thing left was a memory, and a name. So for the descendants of Abraham, genealogy ruled.  What might seem anticlimactic to us thrilled the readers of Ruth’s story.  Why? The last name on that list was King David.

What Ruth could not have known, but those who heard her story would have quickly discerned is that God blessed her long after her death.  She was the grandmother of the greatest earthly king ever. And it keeps getting better: Much later Matthew records her name in the genealogy of Jesus Christ.  A Moabite girl with the wrong pedigree was grafted into the royal tree.  And all because she embraced the Lord as her God and showed loyal love to a helpless widow.

PRAYER: Lord, thank You that You love mercy and justice and humility, and You care for the needy and the vulnerable.  Thank You that You are able to do far beyond what we can even ask or imagine if we trust in You. Glorify Yourself through my life that I might shine forth something of Your glory.

“These are the descendants of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron, Hezron was the father of Ram, Ram was the father of Amminadab, Amminadab was the father of Nachshon, Nachshon was the father of Salmah, Salmon ^was the father of Boaz, Boaz was the father of Obed, Obed was the father of Jesse, and Jesse was the father of David,” Ruth 4:18-22 NET.

Today’s devotion is by Sandra Glahn, Th.M. She is an adjunct professor, Christian Education and Pastoral Ministries, at Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS), her alma mater while currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Aesthetic Studies (Arts and Humanities) at the University of Texas at Dallas.  Her books include The Coffee Cup Bible Study series and the medical suspense thriller, Informed Consent (Cook). She and her husband, Gary, have been married over thirty years and have a daughter who joined their family through adoption.

Reminders

God has a gentle way of reminding us that He is in control. Last month in Beaumont, Texas a tornado popped up without any warning. The TV weathermen all tried to figure out how they didn’t see it coming. One of them finally admitted that sometimes things were out of their control.

Sometimes? 

Giving God control of all things…big or little makes life a little less stressful.  When you aren’t in control, your only obligation is to do what you’re told—to obey. Well, that’s exactly how it is with God. People ask “How do I know what God is telling me to do; how do I know what to obey?” When you begin reading God’s Word you become familiar with His voice, His commands, His Words, His direction. It doesn’t mean that you’ll never go another way, but it does mean He will guide you if you give Him control.  Just like the weathermen in Beaumont, don’t be surprised when God pops in and does something unexpected.  It’s just a reminder that in this world of crazy control freaks and manipulators, He really is still in charge of everything!

PRAYER: Thank You Father for Your guiding hand that controls my life.  Help me to submit to those things You allow and to learn from the valleys and the mountaintops.

“Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power,” Psalm 150:1 KJV.

Today’s devotion is by Gina Stinson, wife to Bruce, mom to Savannah and Tucker and publicist assistant for Kathy Carlton Willis Communications.  In her spare time you can find her blogging, gardening and working in her community and church. Check out her blog http://journalinggina.blogspot.com

Are You Listening to God or Goliath?

David had a choice in 1 Samuel 17.  He could believe the promises of Goliath or God.  “The Philistine said to David, ‘Am I a dog, that you are coming after me with sticks?”  Then the Philistine cursed David by his gods.  The Philistine said to David, ‘Come here to me, so I can give your flesh to the birds of the sky and the wild animals of the field!’  “But David replied to the Philistine, ‘You are coming against me with sword and spear and javelin.  But I am coming against you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel’s armies, whom you have defied!  This very day the Lord will deliver you into my hand!  I will strike you down and cut off your head.  This day I will give the corpses of the Philistine army to the birds of the sky and the wild animals of the land.  Then all the land will realize that Israel has a God and all this assembly will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves!  For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will deliver you into our hand,’” 1 Samuel 17:43-47 NET.

As you know, it was Goliath who became buzzard meat.

We have a choice, whose promises will we believe: our enemy or our God?

“You’re a loser, a worthless failure” or “You’re a child of God.”

“You can’t do it” or “I will give you strength.”

“You’re out of work and you’re going to starve” or “I will provide for you.”

“You have six months to live” or “In Me, you have eternal life.”

“Your prodigal children are lost” or “I will guide them home.”

“No one loves you” or “I love you unconditionally.”

“You’re alone” or “I am with you.”

We have a choice whose promises will we believe: the loser or the winner?

PRAYER: Father, as we face our individual Goliaths today, may we believe Your promises, rather than the giant’s.  “For the battle is the Lord’s.”

Today’s devotion by James N. Watkins is reprinted by permission from www.jameswatkins.com copyright © 2009.  He is the author of fifteen books, including Squeezing Good Out of Bad, and over two thousand articles.  He has spoken across the United States as well as overseas.

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