The God Who Follows
December 30, 2007
“The upright shall dwell in Your presence.”
Psalm 140:14 NKJV
Lazarus was three days dead in a sealed tomb when he heard a voice, lifted his head, and looked over his shoulder and saw Jesus standing. God had followed him into death.
Peter had denied his Lord and gone back to fishing when he heard his name and looked over his shoulder and saw Jesus cooking breakfast. God had followed him in spite of his failure.
God is the God who follows. I wonder…have you sensed him following you? We often miss him…But he comes.
Through the kindness of a stranger. The majesty of a sunset. The mystery of romance. Through the question of a child or the commitment of a spouse. Through a word well spoken or a touch well timed, have you sensed his presence?
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in Traveling Light
Love that Lasts Forever
December 23, 2007
“Love never fails.”
I Corinthians 13:8 NIV
“Love,” Paul says, “never fails.”
The verb Paul uses for the word fail is used elsewhere to describe the demise of a flower as it falls to the ground, withers, and decays. It carries the meaning of death and abolishment. God’s love, says the apostle, will never fall to the ground, wither, and decay. By its nature, it is permanent. It is never abolished.
Love “will last forever” (NLT).
It “never dies” (MSG).
It “never ends” (RSV).
Love “is eternal” (TEV).
God’s love “will never come to an end” (NEB)…Governments will fail, but God’s love will last. Crowns are temporary, but love is eternal. Your money will run out, but his love never will.
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in A Love Worth Giving
God Sent Himself
December 16, 2007
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”
John 1:14 NKJV
Don’t we love the word “with”? “Will you go with me?” we ask. “To the store, to the hospital, through my life?” God says he will. “I am with you always,” Jesus said before he ascended to heaven, “to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28:20 NIV). Search for restrictions on the promise; you’ll find none. You won’t find “I’ll be with you if you behave…when you believe. I’ll be with you on Sundays in worship…at mass.” No, none of that. There’s no withholding tax on God’s “with” promise. He is with us.
God is with us.
Prophets weren’t enough. Apostles wouldn’t do. Angels won’t suffice. God sent more than miracles and messages. He sent himself; he sent his Son. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in Cure for the Common Life
Deliver Christ to the World
December 9, 2007
“Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter.”
Exodus 20:9-10 NKJV
God knows us so well. He can see the store owner reading this verse and thinking, “Somebody needs to work that day. If I can’t, my son will.” So God says, Nor your son. “Then my daughter will.” Nor your daughter…“I guess I’ll have to send my cow to run the store, or maybe I’ll find some stranger to help me.” No, God says. One day of the week you will say no to work and yes to worship. You will slow and sit down and lie down and rest.
Still we object…“What about my grades?” “I’ve got my sales quota.” We offer up one reason after another, but God silences them all with a poignant reminder: “In six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day.” God’s message is plain: “If creation didn’t crash when I rested, it won’t crash when you do.”
Repeat these words after me: It is not my job to run the world.
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in Traveling Light
Christmas Every Day
December 2, 2007
“Sing praises to the LORD…Tell the nations what he has done.”
Psalm 9:11
You have Christmas every day. Your gift bears, not toys and books, but God himself! His work: on the cross and in the resurrection. As a result, your sin brings no guilt, and the grave brings no fear.
His energy: it’s not up to you. You can do all things through Christ, who gives you strength.
His lordship: he is in charge of you and looks out for you.
His love: what can separate you from it?
Who could imagine such gifts? Who could imagine not opening them?
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in Come Thirsty
Why Did He Do It?
November 25, 2007
“He gave up his place with God and made himself nothing.”
Philippians 2:7
Holiday travel. It isn’t easy. Then why do we do it? Why cram the trunks and endure the airports? You know the answer. We love to be with the ones we love.
The four-year-old running up the sidewalk into the arms of Grandpa.
The cup of coffee with Mom before the rest of the house awakes.
That moment when, for a moment, everyone is quiet as we hold hands around the table and thank God for family and friends and pumpkin pie.
We love to be with the ones we love.
May I remind you? So does God. He loves to be with the ones he loves. How else do you explain what he did? Between him and us there was a distance—a great span. And he couldn’t bear it. He couldn’t stand it. So he did something about it.
“He gave up his place with God and made himself nothing.”
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in Next Door Savior
When Love Is Real
November 18, 2007
“Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”
Romans 12:15 NASB
The summer before my eighth-grade year I made friends with a guy named Larry. He was new to town, so I encouraged him to go out for our school football team…
The result was a good news-bad news scenario. The good news? He made the cut. The bad news? He won my position. I tried to be happy for him, but it was tough.
A few weeks into the season Larry fell off a motorcycle and broke a finger. I remember the day he stood at my front door holding up his bandaged hand. “Looks like you’re going to have to play.”
I tried to fell sorry for him, but it was hard. The passage was a lot easier for Paul to write than it was for me to practice. “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”
You want to plumb the depths of your love for someone? How do you feel when that person succeeds?
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in A Love Worth Giving
He Understands
November 11, 2007
“God even knows how many hairs are on your head. So don’t be afraid.”
Matthew 10:30-31
Why did Jesus grow weary in Samaria (John 4:6), disturbed in Nazareth (Mark 6:6), and angry in the Temple (John 2:15)? Why was he sleepy in the boat on the Sea of Galilee (Mark 4:38), sad at the tomb of Lazarus (John 11:35), and hungry in the wilderness (Matt.4:2)?
Why? Why did he endure all these feelings? Because he knew you would feel them too.
He knew you would be weary, disturbed, and angry. He knew you’d be sleepy, grief-stricken, and hungry. He knew you’d face pain. If not the pain of the body, the pain of the soul…pain too sharp for any drug. He knew you’d face thirst. If not a thirst for water, at least a thirst for truth, and the truth we glean from the image of a thirsty Christ is—he understands.
And because he understands, we can come to him.
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in He Chose the Nails
God Uses the Common
November 4, 2007
“Those who try to keep their lives will lose them. But those who give up their lives will save them.”
Luke 17:33
Heaven may have a shrine to honor God’s uncommon use of the common.
It’s a place you don’t want to miss. Stroll through and see Rahab’s rope, Paul’s bucket, David’s sling, and Samson’s jawbone. Wrap your hand around the staff that split the sea and smote the rock. Sniff the ointment that soothed Jesus’ skin and lifted his heart…
I don’t know if these items will be there.
But I am sure of one thing—the people who used them will.
The risk takers: Rahab who sheltered the spy. The brethren who smuggled Paul.
The conquerors: David, slinging a stone. Samson, swinging a bone. Moses, lifting a rod.
The caregivers: Mary at Jesus’ feet. What she gave cost much, but somehow she knew what he would give would cost more.
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in And the Angels Were Silent
Words of Hope
October 28, 2007
“Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that…we might have hope.”
Romans 15:4 NIV
Encourage those who are struggling. Don’t know what to say? Then open your Bible…
To the grief stricken: “God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you’” (Heb. 13:5 NIV). To the guilt ridden: “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1 NIV). To the jobless: “In all things God works for the good of those who love him” (Rom. 8:28 NIV). To those who feel beyond God’s grace: “Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 NIV).
Your Bible is a basket of blessings. Won’t you share one?
1 of 365 devotionals in Grace for the Moment, Volume 2
Originally printed in A Love Worth Giving
