Delighted

By Cheri Cowell –

There are times I really miss my Dad. It has been many years since he went to heaven, and yet there are times it seems like last year. Usually those are the times I really need my Dad to do what only a father can do for his child; I need my Dad to tell me how proud he is of me. I need him to beam from ear to ear at what I have accomplished. I need him to say that no matter what others may think, he believes that I have no competition.

If you are a father, this is the gift you give your children. Scripture calls this “delight,” and if you think about it, who does not want to be ‘delighted’ in? Our earthly father’s relationship is supposed to be a small taste of what our relationship with our heavenly Father is to be like.

I hope your father delighted in you, as mine did in me. If you did not have that kind of relationship, I know it is harder for you to understand how much your heavenly Father adores, cherishes, and delights in you. He is proud of you; beams from ear to ear when He thinks of you, and believes that you have no competition.

In the scripture below, Paul’s prayer for us is that we deeply know the reality of God’s transforming love that surpasses knowledge. How can we come to understand such love? Through our earthly relationships. It is only through loving and being loved that we learn God’s love is real. And only then can we be truly filled with Him.

PRAYER I thank You, Lord, for my earthly father, regardless of how imperfect that love was, and for the relationships through which You show me Your love today. Help me more fully understand the depth of Your love and to experience what it means to be delighted in. Help me show this kind of love to my children and those You put in my path this week.

“My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in. And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you’ll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ’s love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:14–19 MSG).

From Despair to Peace

By Janet Morris Grimes –

Have you ever noticed the difference between 22 and 23? In the book of Psalms, I mean. As many times as I’ve read through those passages, I never considered putting the two of them together. What a sharp contrast they bring to each other.

The twenty-second Psalm begins like this: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish?”

And then there is the twenty-third Psalm, perhaps the most well-known Psalm of all. The Psalm that calms the soul. “The LORD is my Shepherd. I lack nothing.”

Both are psalms, or devotional songs, written by David. Both exposed the depths of his heart in the truest of ways. And both demonstrate one of the key traits of a deepening relationship with God–the ongoing conversation.

I don’t know what transpired between the 22nd or 23rd Psalm. How much time passed between them? Were they written one after another, chronologically? Or were they just placed in that order by happenstance?

It really does not matter. What matters is that they represent two extremes of the bond between David and his God.

David doubted. He begged. He pleaded. He laid his fears and longings on the altar, releasing his anger along with them. He wondered what was taking so long, or if God was even listening at all.

These are feelings each of us can relate to; at times, we all feel that God is more distant than ever.

So, how did David get from the depths of his despair to the place of peace, beside the still waters mentioned in Psalm 23?

In order to reach that same destination, we must follow the path left by the rest of Psalm 22. David first reminds himself of who God is, and who He has always been. In verse 10, he says “from my mother’s womb, you have been my God.” In verse 11, David recognizes that no one else can help him; “trouble is near, and there is no one to help.”

He then begins to cross over the bridge that leads to the place of peace—the place we most desire. David claims the victory God was already providing, even before he saw the evidence. In verse 31, David rejoices, “they will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn, ‘he has done it!’”
PRAYER: Dear God, help us find your path to peace. Thank you for allowing us to ask the tough questions, and thank you even more for answering them. Lead us beside the still waters; to the place where we fully understand that we truly lack nothing.

“He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for His name’s sake” (Psalm 23:3 NIV).

Appropriate Vacation Worship

By Art Fulks –

It is almost summer time and for many this means vacations. Recently, I heard a radio commercial that declared what most of us know to be true. Visiting family is wonderful and you can call it anything you want. But we all know that it is rarely a vacation.

With multiple children, especially in diverse age brackets, parents can often need to go back to work in order to get any rest. Resort activities, amusement parks, beaches, and swimming pools can drive you to the brink of exhaustion. As a father of four, let me encourage you that most kids eventually begin to appreciate their sleep.

Eventually, you may find yourself alone, sitting in front of a large window overlooking an incredible mountain view like I am right now. It is mid-morning and my first cup of coffee is still too hot to drink. Everything is quiet as I pier over what seems a limitless supply of peaks and valleys. As I asked myself what would be an acceptable act of worship, the words of Psalm 8 came to mind. In the quiet of the moment, it seemed God spoke to me and said, “Thanks for taking time to notice and admire My handiwork.”

God seemed to know that I needed a couple of days away from the fast paced race I have been running to sit in quiet mountain cabin and acknowlege His Sovereignty. Through an unexpected invitation, here I sit. And God seems to be reminding me that the beauty of His creation is all around me every day. It is in the starlit sky at night and morning sunrise. It is in the eyes of the people I love so much, as well as the eyes of those that I should love more.

Whether your vacation pace is relaxed or faster than normal life, God can use the change of scenery to speak. He can show you something new, or just to help you refocus. Either way, I am learning that the proper response in worship is to pay attention! That is something the Psalmist seemed to get.

AUTHOR QUOTE: Whether you go to the mountains, the ocean, or to some brightly lit kingdom dedicated to a popular rodent, God desires to speak to you.

“O Lord, our Lord, How majestic is Thy name in all the earth, Who has displayed Thy spendor above the heavens!” (Psalm 8:1 NASB).

Eyes of Faith

By Carin LeRoy –

I love thinking, reading and learning about faith. It must be because I lack so much of it in my spiritual life, and God keeps trying to teach me. The word “believe” and “faith” are used over 4,000 times in the King James Bible, so He must have thought it a pretty important concept for us to grasp! If I can put faith in my fellow man and society each day, I wonder why I have such a problem trusting God?

Driving on the road takes faith. We hope that people aren’t drunk and are going to obey the traffic laws. We believe that the traffic lights are working correctly as we drive through them. Stepping into an elevator, I trust it’s not going to break down and trap me inside. Walking into a restaurant, I have faith it has clean sanitary food that won’t make me sick. I go to a doctor believing he made a correct diagnosis and prescribed the right medicine for me. These are ways we put trust in our world each day.

If we can believe in an imperfect and flawed society, why do we struggle to trust in a perfect and all-knowing God?

We like to be in control. We want to plan our own future, to believe in what we see as tangible and to hold on to things dear to us. How can we trust God with our lives if we want to control our own destiny? How can we believe if don’t trust in the promises in His Word? How do we let go of things that are important to us?

Eyes of faith see God for who He is. The vastness of His power and the greatness of His love are the foundation upon which our faith must rest. His purposes are far bigger than mine and His knowledge and love for me is more than I can understand. When my faith becomes blurry and I can’t see God with a clear focus, I put on those eyes of faith. One lens focuses on His great love; the other on His limitless power.

PRAYER: Thank You for Your great love and vast power. Keep my heart focused on that as I learn to trust You. Give me eyes of faith that will see You.

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith,” (Hebrews 12:2 NIV).

Abundantly Blessed

By Carin LeRoy –

Shortly after our second anniversary, my husband and I found out we were expecting a new addition to our family. As we anticipated the birth of our baby, I was excited to prepare and get ready. At the time we lived on a remote station in the jungle as missionaries, so I could not go shopping or prepare a nursery like most mothers. A friend purchased some material in a local town and sent it to me, and I began sewing a blanket and some nightshirts. As I worked I wondered how to get the necessary things needed to care for our little one. As my tummy began to grow, so did my concern. I figured when I flew into the capital city, Port Moresby, to await the delivery that I’d race around hoping to find things I needed.

Months later I received a letter from my mother that our church in South Carolina had given us a baby shower. My mom was the guest of honor and opened all the gifts. She listed all the items that were given for our new baby—clothes of every size for a baby boy or girl, shoes, diapers (Yes, cloth ones!), bottles, playpen, foldable crib, toys, blankets. You name it, they had given it. While reading my mom’s letter, I burst into tears. God had more than provided for this baby; He had abundantly blessed her with provision.

Short term missionaries coming for the summer brought everything to the capital city. When I arrived in town preparing for the baby’s delivery, a trunk, suitcases and duffel bags full of all the items awaited me. Overwhelmed, I sorted through the gifts. I had everything I needed—and more.

If God sees the sparrow fall and knows the number of hairs on our head, then doesn’t He know our needs? Let’s claim the scripture “and my God will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19 NIV). God’s provision that day showed me that God loves to bless us with His abundance and to show us His love and care. Whether He provides for us in unexpected and copious ways or chooses not to, we need to trust that whatever He chooses for us is what we need. He is a God that is active in our lives and will meet our needs according to His desires for us.

PRAYER:  Father, thank You for Your promise to supply my needs. Keep me mindful that You are a faithful God who loves to bless me with Your provision. Help me keep my eyes on You for meeting what need I have today.

“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:20, 21 NIV).

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