Jonah, where have you been?

I heard a Christian comedian some time ago and he was talking about how Jonah had fled from God and gotten swallowed by a whale. Then, after 3 days in his belly, the whale spit him up on dry ground. The comedian said that Jonah went home to Mrs. Jonah who began to question him. "Jonah, where have you been?" "You are a mess!" "What happened to you? You left here last Tues and you are just now getting home"! Of course, we know that isn't exactly the way things went, but it makes for some humorous dialogue. Let's go back to good ol' Jonah and see just what God might have said. "Jonah, where have you been"? "I sent you to Nineveh 3 days ago and look at you now!" God knew exactly where Jonah was, because He was instrumental in the events that transpired during those 3 days. But, had God asked that question of Jonah, it would be have been for Jonah's sake and not for God's enlightenment. And, He would not have been asking about specific details, only to remind Jonah that he was out of God's will and trying to get away from God. God had made His will very plain and specific to Jonah and when he fled from God it was an act of rebellion. God dealt severely with him because this was an act that effected so many more than just him. Later, we will find that Jonah does go to Nineveh and preaches the imminent judgement of God on their sin and hundreds of thousands are saved. You see, there was a lost world waiting for Jonah to obey God. Now, when God makes His will plain to you, does God have to come back and ask "where have you been"? By the way, when we try to run from God, we too, end up a mess.

I Can Do All Things, I Really Can

Sometimes we read a passage of scripture like "I can do all things through Christ which strengthenth me" in Phi 4:13 and the reality of it just doesn't sink in. Maybe it is because we see that it was written by the Apostle Paul and as we study his life, it is apparent that he could do just about anything. But, when we do that, the emphasis falls on the ability of Paul. We need to realize that Paul said he could do anything, but it was through the power of God. So, what does that mean to us? In a nut shell, it means that when we know God is asking us to do something and we are sure we know what it is, but we begin to make excuses, that God has assured us that we can do it. When we were born, God blessed us with certain talents or abilities that we have refined over the years. Sometimes, God uses those talents in the people that He knows will recognize their origin and give God the praise. Sometimes, God asks us to do things that are out of our "comfort zone". "I don't know how to do that", we confess to God. Only to hear the returning words, "but I do"! As good as we may be at making excuses, God far exceeds that with His overcoming them. And the joy comes in watching God work through us doing something, for His glory, that we could not possibly do of ourselves. Yes, I can do all things! But, I can't do everything. So, know what God wants you to do, and just do it. Leave the rest up to God.

What Does Your Future Hold?

As the story goes, a Pastor was talking to a young man in his church and asked what his plans were now that he had graduated from High School. He said, "I am going to college". To which the Pastor replied "then what"? The young man quickly replied "I am going to get married, get a good job and raise a family." Again, the Pastor asked "then what"? "Well", he said "I guess someday I will retire". Without hesitation the Pastor posed the same question as before - "then what"? Somewhat puzzled at the dialogue, the young man thought for a few minutes and said "I guess I will eventually die". At which point the wise Pastor once again replied "then what". The point of the conversation was to show the young man how that we make plans for the immediate future, but with little concern for the eternal future. Making plans for tomorrow is a wise thing to do. But, this present life is oh so short. James tells us in chapter 4:14, that it like a vapor that comes quickly and goes just as fast. Even if you lived to be 100, your stay on earth is but a spec in time, compared to eternity. Make sure that you know without a doubt what your future holds. And even more importantly, Who holds your future.

Making Right Choices

Here we are in a new month and 2008 is well past half way. I am quite sure that 8 months ago, as the year began, that you had determined to make some changes in your life. That was a choice that you made, and a good one, no doubt. The question isn't so much what happened to those changes that were going to take place, as it is why did you make that decision in the first place. Decisions are made based upon the information that we have at hand. Sometimes we make rash decisions because we get in a hurry and don't take the time to get enough information. Sometimes we have all we need to know to choose rightly, yet, we think we can change the circumstances - a part of our knowledge - and we make a wrong decision. Joshua urged the nation of Israel to "choose you this day whom you will serve". Josh 24:15 I guess, when all things are considered, that is the ultimate decision - who are we going to serve? Will we serve self and our own satisfactions or will our heart's desire be to serve God? Joshua realized one very important fact and that was that he could only make that decision for himself. I know that he went on to say "as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord", but all he could do was to lead them in the right path so they could make the right choice. They had to determine the right course of action for them. It making the right choice simply consider these facts - what has the world done for me and what has God done for me? Enough said!

The Tomb, It Is Empty?!

Yesterday was Easter. We most often associate Easter with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. And rightly so, except that Sunday is the day that He rose from the dead and not the day that He was crucified. One of my favorite verses in the Bible is found in Matt 28:6 where the angel of God spoke to Mary and said "He is not here, for He is risen, as He said...". It was no mistake that I added the question mark along with the exclamation mark in the title. Yes, this was a statement to be proclaimed loudly, yet there could be no real confidence because there was no real understanding. After all that Jesus has told them in the last days and weeks, they still came to the tomb, expecting to find a dead body, so that they could prepare it for it's "final resting place". What a surprise to see the stone rolled away, the fierce Roman guards in shock and the tomb empty. But now what? Typically, they decided to see what man had to say rather that remember what God had said so they ran to find Peter and the others. Jesus told them He would be crucified - and He was. He told them He would rise again - and He did. With proof from the first event, why was it so difficult to believe the second statement? As mentioned, they ran to get the disciples, who came and saw for themselves that Jesus was not there. Once again, there was the opportunity to begin spreading the word that Jesus had risen from the dead, "just as He said". But, instead, they went back to their upper room and remained there until evening, when Jesus came to them with a message of peace. (John 20) It is hard to have peace when we refuse to believe God, even in the face of undeniable proof. Now, before you get to pious and condemn Peter and the others for not sharing this wonderful news with the whole world - who have you told? The news of the empty tomb is just a relevant today as it ever was and so is the responsibility to proclaim it. The tomb "is" empty! Do you believe it?