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Articles from September 2015

When God Calls: Close Encounter

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“By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.”

Hebrews 11:8, NIV

When I was seventeen God whispered my name, and I gave my heart and life to Jesus Christ. As a young person I didn’t find it hard to walk the aisle of that small country church and trust God with my eternity, so why as an adult is it sometimes difficult to trust Him with my days?

This week we’ll look at Abraham’s initial encounter with God, examine God’s call in his life, and discover some truths that we can apply to the Lord’s call in our own lives—even in the everyday.

 

Close Encounter

“The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran.” 

Acts 7:2, NIV

UFOIn the 1977 science fiction movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Roy Neary, an Indiana electrical lineman, is called out to investigate a power outage. In a blanket of darkness, his truck stalls, and a bright light lands on top of it. From this point in the story, Roy’s ordinary life is radically changed. He refuses to listen to others as they try to explain away his bizarre encounter, and he sets out in pursuit of the truth about UFOs. In his quest, he forfeits his family and life as he knows it.

Comparing Abram’s encounter with God to a fictional tale of a man’s encounter with aliens may seem a bit extreme, but please don’t miss my point: any time we encounter the God of glory, we are forever changed. Roy Neary was prepared to give up everything in his search for truth. Are we?

Abram was.

Because God chose Abram as the father of our faith, one might assume he had an extraordinary relationship with God. Although the facts of Abram’s life before his close encounter with God are sketchy, Scripture reveals that he was a Chaldean living in Ur, a city in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq). Due to its location at the mouth of the Euphrates River, Ur was a self-sufficient trade city, rich in the arts, advanced in science and technology, and the area’s political and religious capital.

AbrahamThe Hebrew verb that forms the base of the word Ur means to be light, to shine. Known as the “Moon City,” the progressive city of Ur did stand out in this wilderness area; however, it was a dark place—a pagan place. Many gods were worshipped in Ur, mainly the moon god, Sin, and Ur was known for the manufacture of idols. Historical accounts suggest that Abram’s father, Terah, was an idol maker. Whether that is true or not, Joshua 24:2 states that Terah and Abram’s relatives worshipped other gods.

Due to the pagan culture that surrounded Abram, we can assume he was not seeking God. However, God was seeking him. In the midst of Abram’s ordinary day, God showed up in all of his glory and interrupted Abram’s usual routine.

Wouldn’t you love to have heard the conversation in Terah’s household that evening? Sometimes our families can be the greatest hindrance to our decisions to follow God’s call for our lives. Even Jesus’s brothers doubted His summons to be the Savior of the world. When facing the opposition of those we love most, we’ll need more than courage to follow through—we’ll need the faith of Abram, who left all that he knew for an unknown land based on the word of his unproven God.

Remember, Abram’s faith walk began with a single step. Yours will too.

Step out.

Your traveling companion,

Starr

When God Calls: I Choose You

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“By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.”

Hebrews 11:8, NIV

When I was seventeen God whispered my name, and I gave my heart and life to Jesus Christ. As a young person I didn’t find it hard to walk the aisle of that small country church and trust God with my eternity, so why as an adult is it sometimes difficult to trust Him with my days?

This week we’ll look at Abraham’s initial encounter with God, examine God’s call in his life, and discover some truths that we can apply to the Lord’s call in our own lives—even in the everyday.

 

I Choose You

“You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last.”

John 15:16, NIV

Red_Rover,_wikimedia“Red Rover, Red Rover, send Starr right over!”

Perhaps you too have played the game of Red Rover on the school playground. If not, I’m sure you can relate to the desire to be chosen for a team. As a child, hearing my name called meant that others saw me as an asset to their team and not a liability. But above all, it meant I wasn’t going to suffer the embarrassment of being the last one chosen.

All of us want to know that our lives matter. Today’s text reveals that we matter to God and that He chooses us to accomplish specific tasks that have eternal value. Ephesians 2:10 states that God created us “to do good works”—works that He assigned prior to calling us. Our hearts long to experience those works and find fulfillment in the midst of them. Foot_of_cross

In a race, all of the runners begin at the same point—the starting line. In the believer’s life, the starting line is found at the foot of the cross. It is there, with a call to salvation, that God invites us to believe in Him (John 3:16). He follows that with a call to fellowship; He invites us to draw close to Him and remain in His presence (John 15:5). Finally, He initiates our call to serve, to partner with Him in numerous and varied tasks. Everyone’s starting line is the same, as is our final destination, but the tasks God lays out for us are specific and multifaceted, tailored to our personalities and our giftedness (1 Peter 4:10).

Most believers want to be used by God, but when He calls, are we ready to partner with Him? Or do we have our own agendas in mind?

Abraham_s_callGod’s Word tells us that “the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him” (2 Chronicles 16:9, NIV). Can you wrap your mind around the fact that God wants to use you to accomplish His purposes on the earth? When His eyes roam the earth seeking someone for a specific task, will He zero in on you—on me? Are our hearts fully committed to Him?

Tomorrow we’ll visit Ur and look on as Abram encounters the God of glory. In the meantime, consider the following question: When God calls me, how do I respond?

  • Yes, Lord, but I need to serve where I’m comfortable.
  • Not sure, Lord, but give me the details, and I’ll get back with You.
  • Yes, Lord, I’ll go, but can I drive?
  • Yes Lord, You lead, and I’ll follow.

Your traveling companion,

Starr

WE NEED A LAND HEALING

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In 1974 Coca Cola came out with a commercial song called It’s the Real Thing. This little ditty took the airwaves by storm for several years and had everybody in the country humming the tune and pattin’ their feet. “It’s the real thing … what the world wants today,” the young people sang. And so it is today. People everywhere are looking for something real …”the real thing.”

Click the link below, pat your foot along with me, and listen to the song. Then click back into today’s Dose of Encouragement as we start our week with a question. How do you know “the real thing” when you see it?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDSnjjdGh5M

 

WE NEED A LAND HEALING

if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:14

On Monday I talked about the day Jesus blasted the Sanhedrin, the governing body of religious and political leaders of His day, the conservatives, and the liberals. They were misleading the people – speaking lies to them as if the lies were the truth. They considered their man-made laws not just equal with God’s law, but above God’s law. At one point Jesus said they’d placed so many laws on the people it was impossible for anyone to obey them all. And he called them hypocrites for it.

In the process of putting their own laws above God’s, they totally left out the things the people needed most all. In

Matthew 23:23 (NLT) He said,

“…but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith…    

The Sanhedrin was made up of both the religious leaders and the governing leaders. It was the church house and what Americans call the White House all in one. The leaders adopted their own agendas – their own ideas and beliefs that often had no resemblance to the Word – the educational training – that the Lord had given to them through the years. They had adopted their own way and sent God’s teaching down the highway. And in the end, it led to the destruction of the nation.

So, as we go to the polls and vote for our Sanhedrin – let us take our cue from those in the Scriptures who listened to the wrong crowd – and let’s send up a cry for our nation that we would repent and turn back to God and His ways. For as it is written
…if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

2 Chronicles 7:14 (NKJV)

May we return to Him and see the healing of our land.

Until Next Time,

Your Traveling Partner,

Brenda