By Hap

 

“She gleaned in the field after the reapers: and her hap was to light on the part of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech.”

—Ruth 2:3 KJV

Sometimes the language of the King James Version of the Bible catches my attention in a way that the modern translations don’t. When Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote his devotional book, Morning and Evening, he used the word “hap”—a word that was quite familiar at the time of his writing in the mid-1800s. It means “by happenstance,” or “taking place by coincidence, or chance.”

The unknown author of the Old Testament Book of Ruth tells the story about how Ruth, seemingly by chance, gleaned in the field of her mother-in-law’s relative Boaz. Here’s what Spurgeon wrote about the story: ¹

Ruth had gone forth with her mother’s blessing, under the care of her mother’s God, to humble but honourable toil, and the providence of God was guiding her every step. Little did she know that amid the sheaves she would find a husband, that he should make her the joint owner of all those broad acres, and that she a poor foreigner should become one of the progenitors of the great Messiah. God is very good to those who trust in Him, and often surprises them with unlooked for blessings.

If we stop to consider carefully the days of our own lives, most of us would see times when things that seemed “by hap” actually turned out to have occurred by the design of our Sovereign God. Along this vein, I read an account of the day Christian artist and author, Joni Eareckson Tada, had the diving accident that left her a quadriplegic for life.

Joni’s sister, Kathy, was at the beach with Joni. She stayed near the shore and suddenly felt a sharp pinch by a crab and screamed to Joni to watch for crabs. Because Joni didn’t respond, Kathy immediately went looking for her and ended up saving her from drowning. Kathy writes, speaking of God: ²

From the big events in life down to the tiniest of details, He is great, He is sovereign, and He is in control.

When we are tempted to think that we have experienced a coincidence, we must remember that, as God’s dearly loved children, our Heavenly Father sovereignly looks out for us, directs our ways, uses us in the lives of others, and yearns to have us honor Him with our thanksgiving for all that He so graciously does for us. In the lives of those of us who belong to God through the Lord Jesus Christ, there simply is no such thing as “by hap”!

______________________

1 Spurgeon, Charles Haddon. Morning and Evening. McLean VA: MacDonald Publishing Company, Public Domain. p. 599.

2 Tada, Joni Eareckson. Pearls of Great Price. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing Company, 2006. Devotional for July 19th.

 

 

Beyond

 

“No one is like you, O Lord; you are great, and your name is mighty in power … Among all the wise men of the nations and in all their kingdoms, there is no one like you.”

—Jeremiah 10:6-7

Sometimes I hear people questioning to what the “Beyond” in the chain store Bed, Bath and Beyond^® refers. But, it got me thinking about that English word, and two Scripture passages containing it.

Perhaps the first passage came to me in an especially difficult time. From 2 Corinthians 1:8, I recalled:

We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.

Many will say that God never gives us any burdens we can’t bear alone. I’m not so sure. He wants to grow us to the point in which we have no strength left in ourselves, so that He can show us His mighty power at work in and for us. When we run out of our ability to endure, we can count on His power to take over.

I know this because I read about this power in another of the Apostle Paul’s words found in Ephesians 3:20-21 (NASB):

Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.

Our God gives us trials beyond our abilities to endure so that He can do what goes abundantly beyond all that we could even imagine!

In response, I repeat to you from a contemporary hymn:¹

O God beyond all praising,
    we worship you today
And sing the love amazing
    that songs cannot repay;
For we can only wonder
    at every gift you send,
At blessings without number
    and mercies without end;
We lift our hearts before you
    and wait upon your word,
We honor and adore you,
    our great and mighty Lord.

The only thing we can do when God shows His “beyondness” over our weakness is to offer Him our thanks and praise in such a way that honors His wonderful name. Amen and Hallelujah!

______________________

1 Perry, Michael. O God Beyond All Praising. Carol Stream, Illinois: Hope Publishing Co., 1982.

 

 

The Cows are Out!

 

“You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.”

—Psalm 139:5

“The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.”

—Psalm 16:6

Usually the call came from my dad, frantically yelling into the house, “The cows are out!” That meant everyone had to jump into action and move out into the backyard, or road, or wherever the family herd had meandered.

Cows do not seem to have the intelligence that you would expect from animals that produce so much of our food. So, they quite frequently get themselves into serious trouble.

The cows, when out of the barn, or a fenced in area, have to be corralled and driven back where they belong. If the barn door gets accidently left open, or the gate gets broken down by weather or struck by a piece of farm equipment, the animals take that as an invitation to explore a world they have only observed from afar.

On the several farms my family members own, stray cows have been known to peer into house windows—even licking them repeatedly. They will stand ankle deep in freshly seeded lawns or flower gardens. And yes, they have even ended up in the family swimming pool.

Cows are curious creatures, and sometimes they just want to try new adventures. And, it seems that they believe the grass might truly be greener and taste sweeter outside the fenced-in meadow.

Truthfully, in all too many cases, we’re not unlike those cows. Sometimes we just wander off. For no apparent reason we take advantage of an “open gate” and launch off into someplace we really shouldn’t go. We just drift away from the safety of God’s best place for us. We, like the cows, don’t see the warning signs—like “speeding traffic” or “a pool of water eight feet deep.”

How many times do we get dissatisfied with certain aspects of our own lives and take it upon ourselves to explore new vistas, even sinful ones we know will lead us down the wrong path. Discontent can provoke us to move into dangerous territory. How do we avoid getting “outside” the boundary lines that God has assigned to us?

First of all, we need to stay close to our Heavenly Guardian. If we ask, He will remind us that we are getting too near unhealthy and ungodly associations, temptations, or influences.

Secondly, we need to very insistently and very carefully watch out for ourselves. Proverbs 4 instructs us to guard instruction, guard our hearts, and pay close attention to our paths. We do this by staying close to God’s written Word, and by remaining vigilant against the evil suggestions of our culture and of our enemy, Satan, who 1 Peter 5:8 tells us:

“…prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

We should gratefully submit to the instructions of God’s written Word and to His known will for us. In addition, when we seem penned-in to some place where we would rather not live, we should consistently trust God’s grace.

If we belong to Christ, when we do stray from the center of His will for us, we can be assured that He diligently calls out His heavenly crew of angels to get us back inside the fence of His divine and perfect will. But, how much better for us and for our witness to the watching world, if we stay out of the places where we don’t belong—places of ruin that we can certainly avoid!

 

 

Fill 'er Up

 

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit.”

—Ephesians 5:18

Patrons at gas stations didn’t used to pump their own gas. Instead, they stayed in their cars and let the attendant on duty “fill ’er up.” Every service station provided full service. Full service meant checking the oil level, cleaning the windshield, checking the air pressure in the tires, and filling the tires with additional air if necessary. Once you drove away, you felt that you could travel safely until your fuel level once again hovered near empty.

As Christians, God gives us the seal of His Holy Spirit when we turn to Him for forgiveness from our sins (Ephesians 1:13-14). And, as we live out the Christian life, the Holy Spirit continues to fill our spiritual “fuel tank.” Like empty vehicle gas tanks, we need that “filling” in order to travel through this life living for Christ. None of us has the ability to faithfully serve Him without the intervention and help from His Holy Spirit.

Have you ever noticed one of those yard inflatables that has lost air and droops over and looks half dead? Sometimes, after a particularly difficult time of spiritual warfare, I feel like one of those lost air inflatables when I come to God asking for a “fill-up.” On our own, none of us has the strength, the grace, the power, the energy, or the wisdom we need. In fact, God purposefully gives us tasks and circumstances for which we need His help. Without His divine aid, we are rendered useless.

How does God fill us? If we allow His written Word to soak into us, He gives us direction and faith in His ability to live through us. If we ask Him, He will govern and empower our way with the filling He wants to provide. One of my favorite hymns puts it like this:¹

Jesus, Thou Joy of loving hearts,
Thou Fount of life, Thou Light of men,
From the best bliss that earth imparts,
We turn unfilled to Thee again.

______________________

1 Bernard of Clairvaux. Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts. Public Domain.

 

 

Not an Easy Game of Telephone

 

“Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation.”

—Joel 1:3

Nearly everyone has played the “Game of Telephone.” A simple phrase gets secretly passed from one person to another until the last person proclaims it aloud. To the enjoyment of everyone, the secret phrase has often drastically changed from the original whisperer. The game seems more fun, the more outrageous the change.

When the Gospel of our Lord passes from one generation to another, we should aim at accuracy above all else. We all know people who come from a long line of faithful Christians, but who may have heard a twist to the story that changed them into doubters or cynics of the faith, or even deserters from the faith. Other voices get into the “Game.” In fact, one who sows lies joins the circle and, before long, what the the last “hearer” receives completely disavows the truth of the original message.

How do we keep the children of this generation from those who would try to influence them away from the Truth of the written Word of God? Parents can’t always prevent their children from hearing wrong voices. However, if they have carefully orchestrated whom their children hear the most, and find ways to introduce them to winsome Christian friends, this generation can carry on the faithful truths of our great Christ-centered heritage.

When I taught elementary music, folk songs became the “fodder” of my curriculum. Not only did they supply the musical elements I taught, they also provided students with the “mother tongue” of their heritage as Americans. Scripture is the “mother tongue” of our Christian heritage. Our children need to hear faithful preaching and faithful teaching. They need to know faithful Christians in the church and observe their lives of service and devotion to Christ and His Kingdom.

Children need to see and hear people who have made the Christian life a firm foundation for their personal lives and whose devotion they can emulate. They need to learn the songs and hymns of their Christian heritage.

At the end of Moses’ life, recorded in Deuteronomy 31, he wrote a song and instructed the Israelites to teach it and sing it as a testimony of God’s work. Similarly, Psalm 78:1-6 speaks of writing parables to teach the next generation. Excerpts of those verses say:

I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter hidden things, things from of old … We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord … he commanded our forefathers to teach their children so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children.

Not only has God given us the means to teach the next generation, He can give us the courage, wisdom, grace, and all that we need in order to do so. Let us pray for this generation of children and for those who not only begin with the message of Christ, but carry it on throughout their lifetimes.

 

 

Joy

 

“But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.”

—Malachi 4:2

I could hear the squeals of delight as Jamie came down the hallway. In these first few days since he had learned to walk, he had the time of his life. Jamie had come to kindergarten in a wheelchair. Eventually, he learned to move beyond his ability to crawl, and through much therapy, began to use a walker.

Another year had Jamie walking with braces and crutches. And, then came the time, somewhere in the middle of his second grade year, when Jamie could walk on his own. He acted much like an ecstatic baby who had just learned to walk. Everywhere he went, the same joy and laughter accompanied him.

I remember thinking that when God makes us new creatures in Christ, our first days of “walking in the Spirit” seem like that of an ecstatic toddler. We walk in joy, for we have been healed from the bondage of sin. But, like Jamie, after we have walked perhaps somewhat unsteadily in this new life for awhile, the novelty of it wears off, and we start to behave like all the others around us.

Human nature causes us to forget our early joys. In Revelation 2:1-7, the risen Jesus gave the Apostle John words to send to the Church in Ephesus. After telling them the good things about their church, Jesus says this:

Yet, I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.

I don’t think our Lord intended for us to ever lose the joy of first love. He wants us to walk with Him every day in delight and gratitude, just as we did that very first day of our walk with Him.

Take time today to reflect on your new life in Christ. Remember your first excitement in following Him, and the freedom that kind of joy brings. Others will notice the difference Christ has made in your life. As you traverse the hallways of your life, may laughter and gladness accompany you!

 

 

Faded

 

“I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the desert, through a land not sown. ”

—Jeremiah 2:2

As a teacher, I always looked forward to the first day of a new school year. Summer came to school on the children’s faces and gradually faded into fall. I remember those pink cheekbones and glowing tanned arms and legs. Yet, without any advanced notice in another month, the sun’s influence on their complexions faded, just as their first intentions to behave and please the adults around them faded, as well.

God notices the glorious joy of new Christians. Luke 15:7 speaks of the rejoicing in heaven whenever a sinner repents. The parables of Jesus in Luke 15 speak of the “Lost Sheep,” the “Lost Coin,” and the “Lost Son.” In each case, the “finding” of these lost ones brings great celebration.

God also notices when the attitude of that one who once took great joy in the early relationship with Him drops off to a routine, or to the place of a forgotten “experience” at summer camp, or to a no-longer-remembered particularly blessed time of the Holy Spirit’s movement in a congregation.

In the Book of Revelation, Jesus speaks through the exiled Apostle John—imprisoned on the island of Patmos—to the Seven Churches of Asia Minor. This is the land now occupied by Turkey. In each instance, Jesus commends those in each Church for various aspects of their faith. Then, Jesus continues by speaking bluntly about those things in each Church that distress Him.

In Revelation 2:2, 4-5, Jesus speaks to the Church in Ephesus with these words:

“I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance … Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first.”

I often wonder what the Apostle John would write, if today he wrote to report Christ’s pronouncements to our current churches. Perhaps Jesus would say:

“You share your love with the less fortunate, and I like that. But, some of you work out of obligation, rather than from your hearts.”

Or, perhaps Jesus would declare:

“I enjoy the fellowship among your people and the strong sense of worship in your church. But, I don’t see you sharing the Gospel of Christ with others in the way that I intend you to share it.”

Or, might Jesus even state:

“You have obviously endured great suffering. But, You don’t pray corporately or personally like I’d wish you to pray.”

Now, let us please translate this example from a corporate church setting to our own personal relationships with the Savior. Has the personal bond we once had with Christ faded? Has this bond that once produced overwhelming joy become dull and lifeless? If so, what does Jesus, through the Apostle John, offer as a remedy for this lost first love? Jesus says in Revelation 2:5:

“Remember the height from which you have fallen and repent. Do the things you first did.”

Remember … Repent … Do …

Has our love for Christ and His church faded from the glowing beginning that we once experienced when we first came to a saving knowledge of Him? I urge each one of us to prayerfully remember when we first experienced the glorious awareness of His deep love for us. Let us humbly repent of our “backsliding” and begin again to do those things that pleased our Savior so much and, in turn, gave us so much joy. Said another way: “Don’t let the “Son”-shine fade!”