Peace Live A River

This is what the Lord says—
    your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
    who teaches you what is best for you,
    who directs you in the way you should go.
If only you had paid attention to my commands,
    your peace would have been like a river,
    your well-being like the waves of the sea.

                                    (Isaiah 48:17-18 NIV)

 

Indeed! The Lord does know what is best for us. But, we often think we know better than God. We often choose the wrong paths and find ourselves in chaotic messes trying to figure out what went wrong and how in the world we're going to find some semblance of peace. What went wrong sometimes happens to be is that we rejected the Word of the Lord; we have rejected those things that our Father in heaven has sought to teach us. We have rejected the good gifts that He desires us to have and have chosen to follow in the ways of the world and we ultimately find ourselves wallowing in the depths of despair.

 

The world is a mess. We've helped to make it that way. But, no matter what kind of mess you find yourself in you can know peace. It is the peace that only God can give to us. In the midst of the storms, we can know peace that flows forever like a river. We can know peace as refreshing as the cool waters of a gently flowing river.

 

Do not fear! Do not despair! God is with you. Listen to Him and know the peace that only He can give. 

 

God's Peace - Pr. J

Mark 13 - Keep Alert! He Will Come Again!

Mark 13 NIV
No one knows. No one knows when our end will come; not for the individual; not for the world. There have been days when I thought "isn't it about time, LORD?" So many wars and threats of wars; families fighting within themselves and with their neighbors; congregations and communities battle with one another; will there ever be peace?

These are not things that should lead us to despair. Jesus tells us that all these things and more will and must happen before the end. We must be prepared. We cannot give up hope. We cannot let our faith lie dormant or die. Be alert! Watch! Wait! He has come. He is present now. He will come again. “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens." (Mark 13:26-27)

“Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’” (Mark 13:35-36)

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Psalm 69 - End of Days

Today is 12/21/2012.  It is the day that so many false prophets told us would be our last day.  I do not know what is in store for the world today, what kind of pain and suffering humankind will inflict upon itself and the earth.  But, I am convinced that today is not the end of it all.  Jesus told us that no one would know the day or hour. (Matt 24:36) So, when someone tells me that they do know. I believe Jesus, first.

In the meantime, while those who are waiting for the day when the LORD returns in full glory, the world is busy destroying itself, individuals looking to save and prosper their own skins, rather than considering ourselves to be a part of something greater - a gestalt, if you will.

We are foreigners, even to our own families, as each looks to the preservation of self.  We tread water or sink in the miry depths of our own selfishness and greed, not understanding that unity in Christ, with one another, is the only thing that will lift us out of those deep waters.  The world thirsts for something... But, they know not what it is. They search in all the wrong places for peace.

There is only one answer to all of this despair.  It is found in seeking the LORD.  It is found in seeking His Kingdom. It is the LORD who will save us and none other.

I am rambling again...  The troubles and the despair that dwell upon this earth this Advent season are reason enough to look for the LORD.  Oh, how I pray, that the world would do just that. Save us, O' LORD, from ourselves.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Psalm 6 - Lord, Have Mercy!

Despair!  David prays, "Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am faint; heal me, Lord, for my bones are in agony. My soul is in deep anguish. How long, Lord, how long?" (Ps 6:2-3 NIV)

Like David, we, too, often find ourselves in a state of despair, with no where to turn.  Well, actually there is one to whom we can turn.  We bow before the LORD and pray, "Have mercy on me, Lord!"  This prayer, for me, usually sounds like this:  "Lord, have mercy.  Christ, have mercy.  Lord, have mercy." 

And then it ends:  "Thank you LORD, for in your mercy, you have heard my prayer and answered." (see vs 9)

I don't always see the answer when I thank the LORD for answering.  But, I am confident that He has answered it.  God is with me.  He is with you. He will deliver those who trust in Him.

May the peace of the LORD be with you always.  Pr. J

Job 3 - Succumbing to Despair

Job is succumbing to despair.  He wishes to die.  He wishes that he had never been born so that he would not suffer what he now suffers.  Yet, even as he curses the day of his birth; he does not curse the name of the LORD.

At one time or another, I think that most of us come to a day when we consider that death would be preferable to the life that we live.  For some this may come in the prime of their lives and although they may have no hope at the time, they will live through those days and even grow in them.  For others it may be in the last days, weeks, years of their lives, when the old tent that they reside in is worn and ready to collapse.  How do we find hope when we can see no light at the end of the day? 

There is only one place to find hope in times like these.  Hope can be found in the light and that light is Jesus Christ.  When all is dark, the light shines.  "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." (John 1:5 NIV)

"Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near."  (Isaiah 55:6)  "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble."  (Psalm 46:1)

Have a blessed day and may the peace of the LORD be with you all. 

Pr. J