The Shepherd's Apprentice

___________________
April 12

... If you are walking in darkness,
without a ray of light, trust in the Lord ...
Isaiah 50:10

I love that verse!

a) A problem is presented -- darkness surrounds us.
b) A solution is given too -- trust in God.

What has brought darkness into your life? Chances are it's caused by one of three things -- situations, depression, and sin.

When we put ourselves in bad situations through poor choices or sin, trusting more in God is obviously a better alternative.

But so many of life's hurt's are not by our choice. What happens when the situation is our company going bankrupt? Lay-offs, for example, can be a dark situation. What happens when another person's sin harms us? Paralysis can be a darkness that is caused by a drunk driver. And what happens when our body chemistry seems to betray us and we fall into the darkness of depression.

We are not responsible for all of life's hurts and darkness can set in. I've known people who are truly "without a ray of light." What's the solution? True trust is knowing that God is light even when you can't see it. True trust is knowing that "Weeping may linger for the night, but joy comes with the morning" (Psalm 30:5). True trust is believing that there will come a time when "death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more [and God] will wipe every tear from [your] eyes" (Rev 21:4).

In Christ's Love,
a guy who has more crust than trust some days

____________________
April 11

"Do not fear or be dismayed at this great multitude;
for the battle is not yours but God's."
2 Chronicles 20:15

Yesterday's verse was "do not worry." Today's is "do not fear."

Think about it a minute ... do you know what we ultimately worry about and fear? Death.

+ We fear our death and worry about things like our health.
+ We fear a loved one's death and worry when our kids don't arrive home on time.
+ We worry about money because how will we live (i.e. not die) if our circumstances change.
+ We fear being embarrassed because when people think less of us, it's like dying a thousand little deaths.

All people -- even people of faith -- worry. Nevertheless, a growing faith is the best antidote to fear. Why? Because death is not as scary the more confident we are in heaven. And embarrassment and earthly judgments are not as scary when we realize our true worth in God's eyes -- loved!

This battle of life is not yours. As this passage suggests, trust in God's plan for victory!

In Christ's Love,
a guy who wants to be a tag-team wrestle
with God as his partner ...
because the battle is always his!

____________________
April 10

"Do not begin to be anxious"
Philippians 4:6

I don't know what the PBV translation of the Bible is, but I love this translation of this verse. I'm accustomed to the more familiar translation -- "Do not worry about anything." But without going to the Greek to see how accurate it is, I love the Barney Fife logic of this translation: "Nip it in the bud!" Stop it before it starts.

Wait ... not worrying is easier said than done, but after watching moments of worry-plagued paralysis in my life and in the lives many friends, it's a desperate need for many of us.

Now, all people -- even the most faithful people -- eventually and inevitably worry. Nevertheless, not worrying is truly a matter of faith. It is believing that God holds a good future in his hands. Therefore, the best way to lessen the effects of worry and grief is to grow our faith.

In Christ's Love,
a guy who's doing great today
... except for ... well ... oh no ...
what if that thing happens ...
and then ... wait ...
"do not begin to be anxious"

____________________
April 9

I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them;
I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.
Ezekial 11:19

Describing the differences between men and women, someone told me recently that ...

+ Men are waffles and
+ Women are spaghetti.

Imagine a fuss at home in the morning. The man goes to work and compartmentalizes. He leaves the fuss at home in the home box. When he gets to the office, he operates from the work box. When he goes to the water cooler, he talks to his buddy from the sports box. Men are waffles.

Women, on the other hand, are spaghetti. Everything is interconnected. No matter the task the bride is supposed to be doing -- work, shopping, kids -- the fuss with her husband is at the forefront of her heart. Spaghetti.

Re-read today's verse. God -- through Ezekial -- is not just talking about waffle-hearted men when he says we have a divided heart. When it comes to spiritual matters, virtually all of us have a godly box and a worldly life. Too often we worship on Sunday and forget God -- at least to a degree -- throughout the week.

The key to transformational faith is not being waffles.

In Christ's Love,
a guy who's loved blueberry syrup
(and the world) a little too much

____________________
April 8

The Lord blessed the latter days
of Job more than his beginning
Job 42:12

Here's the ultra-quick summary of the book of Job: Job lost everything. His friends pondered where God was. Job kept the faith. And God blessed him in the end. Quick enough?

Well, I had a wise old man come up to me once, saying, "In the beginning, Job lost everything -- his cattle, his sheep, his children. At the end, everything was restored to Job ... and not just restored, all was doubled ... except his children. Why?" said the old man, "Why did God double the return on Job's lowly sheep, but not the return on Job's precious children?"

"I don't know," I said.

"Pastor," said the old man, "you're thinking from a worldly perspective. From a heavenly perspective, it was unnecessary to double those children ... because those children were never really gone. Rather than being lost, Job would be near them again throughout all eternity!"

In Christ's Love,
a pastor who needs to be occasionally reminded
to think from a heavenly perspective


+