Proverbs 18:24 – “There are “friends” who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.” NLT

I like this particular rendering of this passage because of the simplicity of how it phrases the statement.  Truly, we have all had “friends’ that turned out not to be true friends and did more detriment in our lives, and we were in theirs, than good.  We also have known those individuals who proved to be closer than “blood kin.”  They are true treasures. One has few of them in a lifetime and should treasure them and treat them as treasures.  Yet, we have in Jesus a friend that, although He is a brother, stands closer than any “blood kin” could or would ever stand.  He will Never Leave us nor forsake us.  His Love is Unconditional and Inseparable. 

I am reminded of the old hymn – “What A Friend We Have in Jesus,” written by Joseph M. Scriven as a poem in 1855 to comfort his mother, who was living in Ireland while he was living in Canada.  The tune to the hymn was composed by Charles Crozat Converse in 1868, and William Bolcom composed a setting of the melody.  It has had many modifications and transitions through the years, but the baseline theme has remained the same – – The unequaled friendship of Jesus in all life’s trials is the bedrock of the song.

Consider the words:

What A Friend We Have in Jesus Hymn

What a friend we have in Jesus, 
All our sins and griefs to bear! 
What a privilege to carry 
Everything to God in prayer! 
O what peace we often forfeit,
O, what needless pain we bear, 
All because we do not carry 
Everything to God in prayer. 

Have we trials and temptations? 
Is there trouble anywhere? 
We should never be discouraged; 
Take it to the Lord in prayer. 
Can we find a friend so faithful 
Who will all our sorrows share? 
Jesus knows our every weakness; 
Take it to the Lord in prayer. 

Are we weak and heavy-laden, 
Cumbered with a load of care? 
Precious Savior, still our refuge; 
Take it to the Lord in prayer. 
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? 
Take it to the Lord in prayer! 
In his arms, he’ll take and shield thee; 
Thou wilt find a solace there.

As you read and probably sang those verses, at least in your hearts, you immediately had a sense of His presence, promise, provision, and power.  How true we forfeit peace by failing to come to the Cross with those things that trouble our souls.  We bear needless spiritual pain that He would gladly lift if we would learn to roll it onto Him, accepting His sacrificial offer as seen at the Cross. 

We all face discouragement, despondency, and even bouts of depression from time to time.  However, if we turn to the Lord, our true friend, we rise out of the ashes of hopelessness into the bliss of optimism in His Promises.  As we find that we can hardly go on another mile, He lightens our load, allows us to be carried in His arms over the rocky part of the pathway, and renews our strength so that we can walk, run, and soar with and in Him once again.  It is all because of His commitment to Covenant Friendship that we are afforded this bountiful place.

As you begin this day, consider who it is that you call a friend.  After you have enumerated the many names you will call, ask yourself who is the one friend who not only would die for you but has died for you and has also risen for you and made full atonement for you before the Throne of Heaven giving you access to the very presence of the Father at all times!  JESUS is His name! 

Let this song travel through the corridors of your mind and heart as you go through your business today, and I believe that you will find the difficulties easier to handle, the joys even more blessed, and the beauty of life even more beautiful.  

God bless you richly as you enjoy living your life in Him today!

Ezekiel 3:16-21 – “At the end of seven days the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 17 “Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman to the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, warn them from Me. 18 “When I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn him or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way that he may live, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. 19 “Yet if you have warned the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered yourself. 20 “Again, when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I place an obstacle before him, he will die; since you have not warned him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand. 21 “However, if you have warned the righteous man that the righteous should not sin and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he took warning; and you have delivered yourself.”  NASB

Ezekiel 33:7-20 – “Now as for you, son of man, I have appointed you a watchman for the house of Israel; so you will hear a message from My mouth and give them warning from Me. 8 “When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require from your hand. 9 “But if you on your part warn a wicked man to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your life. 10 “Now as for you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus you have spoken, saying, “Surely our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we are rotting away in them; how then can we survive?”‘ 11 “Say to them, ‘ As I live!’ declares the Lord GOD, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’ 12 “And you, son of man, say to your fellow citizens, ‘The righteousness of a righteous man will not deliver him in the day of his transgression, and as for the wickedness of the wicked, he will not stumble because of it in the day when he turns from his wickedness; whereas a righteous man will not be able to live by his righteousness on the day when he commits sin.’ 13 “When I say to the righteous he will surely live, and he so trusts in his righteousness that he commits iniquity, none of his righteous deeds will be remembered; but in that same iniquity of his which he has committed he will die. 14 “But when I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ and he turns from his sin and practices justice and righteousness, 15 if a wicked man restores a pledge, pays back what he has taken by robbery, walks by the statutes which ensure life without committing iniquity, he shall surely live; he shall not die. 16 ” None of his sins that he has committed will be remembered against him. He has practiced justice and righteousness; he shall surely live. 17 “Yet your fellow citizens say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right,’ when it is their own way that is not right. 18 “When the righteous turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, then he shall die in it. 19 “But when the wicked turns from his wickedness and practices justice and righteousness, he will live by them. 20 “Yet you say, ‘ The way of the Lord is not right.’ O house of Israel, I will judge each of you according to his ways.”  NASB

I am aware that I have used a very large amount of scripture and that those scriptures alone could serve as the entire devotion.  I used a massive amount intentionally.  I realize that this was spoken to the prophet in Ancient Israel, but the heart of the message is applicable today on every level of life.  I believe this applies to individuals, churches, governmental entities, schools, and other organizations that can be privy to information and have the opportunity to sound this alarm.

It applies to what we would classically call “sin,” but does it not equally apply to every facet of life?  If we see something morally, ethically, socially, politically, spiritually, relationally, domestically, economically, or historically wrong, are we not obligated by our Christian values to sound the alarm?  But what if the Government warns us to be silent?  Would that not place us in the same predicament as the disciples of our Lord when they were warned to speak no more in the name of Jesus?  Peter’s response should be our response, “Whom shall we obey, God or man?”

What are some things we are commanded to warn about?

• If I, as a Christian, see people heading down a path to moral destruction, my Christian obligation is to warn them. 
• If I, as a Christian entity, church, organization, or political party, see a path destroying people’s freedom to worship freely and live rightly, dare I remain silent? 
• If I see the murder of innocent unborn babies and remain silent, what does God think of my silence? (Read the above passages, and I believe you will get the idea of how He feels.) 
• If I see the inalienable rights of individuals trampled upon by political manipulation that separates and divides peoples and nations, dare I sit back and say, “Separation of Church and State as my excuse for silence?”  Does the threat of the I.R.S. pulling my 501-C-3 status justify my silence, or do I have a larger mandate regarding right?

If I saw someone about to unknowingly ingest poison, would I be morally and spiritually okay to be silent?  If I saw a crime being committed and had the ability to call the police or give a warning and failed to do so, would my silence be justified, or would I be guilty of the innocent blood being shed through my silence when speaking out? Would it have prevented it or minimized it?

We Must proclaim the Good News of the Gospel to whomever, whenever, and wherever.  We Must also warn of impending perils as we see them coming upon individuals, nations, and peoples, no matter the cost to us personally.  To do less is an affront to the Grace of God. 

Therefore, I call upon individual believers, pastors, churches, politicians, and other leaders to Become Watchmen on the Walls in these perilous times.  Christianity is more than passively living in our little circles, disturbing no one, and flying under the radar.  It may mean putting your head on the line for what is right, which may be costly.

My question is, “How much is your faith worth to you?”  “How much does God expect of us as we become aware of wickedness or wicked actions or policies?”  Today, it is time for the Body of Christ to rise up and stand as the prophets of old, get in the faces of kings when necessary, and declare, “You are the one from whence the trouble is originating.”  God will protect or take us home, but we will have stood for right either way!

May God bless you as you go through this day in Him!

2 Chronicles 20:1-34 – – – [I ask that you read that lengthy passage later]

First, giving you virtually an entire chapter to read is probably a bit much for a devotional post. Still, I thought it necessary, and I will keep my remarks as brief as possible because the account itself is so descriptive of what I want to say.

Judah was facing what was likely “complete destruction” from a unified advancing army of multiple nations.  The people were “fearful,” and there was tremendous danger of “revolt” unless there was “clear” and “courageous” direction from their leader, King Jehoshaphat.  He was afraid and turned to the Lord, which was the right thing to do.  If something is causing fear, whether justifiable or not, the “first place to turn” is to the Lord!  He gathered the entire nation to a solemn assembly to seek God.  How I long to see America do the same!

I find verses 5-13 incredibly informative as Jehoshaphat addressed God, and his prayer reflected his fear and faith.  In some ways, it appeared that he was trying to convince himself that God was who he believed God to be.  He seemed a bit uncertain at the moment. 

Then, at his prayer’s conclusion, he makes a powerful and much-needed statement, “…we are powerless before this great multitude…. Nor do we know what to do… But OUR EYES ARE ON YOU.”   He got it!  That is the secret to the whole thing.  We find an acknowledgment of the situation, an admission of our inability to handle it, and an expression of hope and faith in God.

In verses 14-19, we find God responding to their honest, open prayer and promising deliverance and victory!  It is not just a promise to help them in battle but to do the battle for them, and there is a difference!  Sometimes, God allows us in the battle, and sometimes, He fights the battle for us and tells us, “You just stand there and watch.”  This is one of those times!

In verses 20-25, we see what took place.  I love Jehoshaphat’s declaration and instruction to the people found here.  “…put your trust in the LORD your God, and you will be established.  Put your trust in His prophets and succeed.”  Let that get into your hearts; you will find a key to success if you receive it.  Then, he takes another step that is certainly not taught in “Schools of Military Tactics.” 

He put the choir or the praise team out in front of the army.  That took a great deal of courage and faith on their part.  They would be the first people the enemy encountered, and they would be “unarmed,” just singing the Praises of God! 

The incredible reality is that their only weapon would be the Praises of God in their mouths!  As they sang, God, not Judah, put ambushes against the advancing enemy army, and incredibly, they turned on each other.  Judah did not have to shoot an arrow, throw a spear, or wield a sword – GOD DID IT for them!  It took three days to gather the spoils of the battle.  That is a lot of booty to gather!

The result was a rekindled faith and commitment from Judah toward the Lord and a fear of God instilled in the enemies of the people of God.  Devils fear and tremble when the people of God obey God’s directive in humble obedience and faith! 

They were completely vulnerable and trusting, and God came on the scene.  He will do the same for you, so stop trying to figure it out and do it yourself.  Instead, “call upon Him” in honest, humble sincerity, and I will guarantee that He will respond.  He will guide you and even fight the battle for you, but He will give you the direction you need to go through the situation.

May God be with you as you go through this day in Him!  Blessings abundantly!

Luke 21:19 – “In your patience possess ye your souls.” KJV

I am fully aware of the context of this passage but want to use it to speak to a particular issue that I have been aware of in my life and much of the Christian world – IMPATIENCE! 

Most Christians have been trying to live as Christians with a“Microwave Mentality” for way too long.  We have been spoiled with the instant everything in our lives.  Unlike our parents and grandparents, generations where they had more of a “Farmer Mentality,” we have a “Magician’s Mentality.”  We want it yesterday!

My mother and grandmother cooked most things from scratch, as they called it.  I remember when my mother bought an “instant cake mix” and baked a cake with it rather than from “scratch.”  Then, we were introduced to “instant potatoes” rather than real potatoes that had to be peeled, cooked, and mashed.  Next was “instant coffee,” which did not make it in our house because my dad could not tolerate the thought of not having his coffee brewed or boiled. 

He usually would take a stovetop percolator, remove the insides, leaving just the pot, put his water in, pour in the coffee grounds, and boil the coffee.  That was fine until you reached the bottom of the pot, and your cup would be filled with those pesky coffee grounds.  He did graduate to the more modern coffee makers, such as Mr. Coffee, and that was a significant step for him. 

The Farmer knows that the seed he plants today will not be harvested for weeks or months and has no expectation of waking up the following day and having corn ready to harvest or any other crop.  Today, we expect our food and everything else to be virtually instant.  We do not like to wait! 

I am probably one of the world’s worst about waiting, especially at a restaurant.  I do not like to sit and wait 30 minutes or an hour for a table.  I would rather go somewhere else.  I do not like waiting at the doctor’s office or in the examination room.  I want my computer to operate with blazing speed, and when I go to the ATM, I expect my cash to be instant. 

Unfortunately, that also spills over into our relationship with others and God.  I am virtually Never late unless it is beyond my control, and then I do everything I can to notify those waiting for me.  I do not like waiting for someone who habitually arrives late because I consider it inconsiderate and an expression of the lack of value of my time.  I like meetings to begin on time, and I want an immediate answer when I pray.  God works on me on that part quite a lot.

We need to learn the value of a patient spirit.  It will help you eliminate frustration and even enhance your health and well-being.  Amazingly, with my lack of willingness to wait on many things, I love to fish and can sit all day long fishing without getting a bite and be content.  I am patient.  I can hunt the same way.  So, I realize it is a mindset I can change concerning other things I cannot control.  I can learn patience and, in so doing, learn to rest in the confidence that God is in control, and I can trust Him.

If you are an “impatient” person, you need to hear what I am saying today and, as I’ve been told before, “chill out.”  I know that is not a term used today and dates me.  I remember once being single before my wife and I married. I was out on a date, and the lady with me slapped my shoulders and said – “Roy, relax.”  I had no idea I was tense, but it was so apparent that she did that.  God has done the same thing to me on more than one occasion. 

So, as you go through this day, ask the Holy Spirit to help you to be patient.  In developing patience, you will encounter things that test your patience, and you may not like my advice, but it is worth it to learn patience!

May the Lord be with you as you go through your day!

Galatians 3:1-5 – “You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? 2 This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? 3 Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? 4 Did you suffer so many things in vain — if indeed it was in vain? 5 So then, does He who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?”  NASB

At the risk of upsetting my entire readership, I will say that most Christians have some difficulty in the area of ‘Performance Orientation.’  It is easier to be a legalist, walking in bondage to man-made rules and regulations, than to walk free. 

If you maintain a ‘list,’ you can easily measure how you are doing (performing) by your standard and compare yourself to those around you.  In that mode of operation, developing a relationship is unnecessary because you have a ‘balance sheet’ in which you can see if you have kept more rules than you did not.  It is fleshly security.

When I first came to Christ after Vietnam, many in the church had a list of rules they were eager to share with me.  That list included all the ‘do not’s’ – – No to movies, tobacco, cards, dominos, dancing, alcohol, doing virtually anything on Sunday, etc. 

The list was exceptionally long and sometimes quite detailed.  Of course, the way God made me caused me to question WHY?  That did not go well.  Many who had their lists and touted them piously were guilty of exhibiting – hate, bitterness, judgmentalism, back-biting, and more.  They could never see the real issue was that they were performing, not developing relationships, and it was all flesh!

People who ‘perform’ to be accepted have difficulty experiencing or giving Unconditional Love!  Their mindset of needing to ‘perform’ (though they would never have called it that) caused them to judge and respond to or accept others based on performance!  There is something in us that strives for ‘acceptance.’  Even though we have been set free by the Blood of Jesus, the Grace of God, and the Spirit of God, we often tend to drift back into the ‘fleshly mode’ of earning acceptance via performance.

The IF I DON’T Syndrome…

• If I do not go to church, God will not love me.
• If I do not read X number of chapters daily in the Bible, God will not love me.
• If I do not pray X number of hours each day, God will not hear me.
• If I do not witness, God will not love me.

Hear me, please!  It is good to be a part of a local fellowship and attend regularly.  It is good to read your Bible daily.  It is good to pray daily.  It is good to witness, but be sure that all of that is not focused on you and performance rather than relationship.  The motive should be Love, unconditional, unsolicited love.  Attend church because of Love, not to get God to accept you.

In Romans 8, we are reminded that nothing can separate us from God’s Love!  We are reminded that God’s Love empowers us!  That it is all God and not us!  Our problem as humans is that the entire world is a stage, and we learn early in life to perform.  Performance reaches not just into the actions but also the motives and is foreign to God’s desires.  We can be free!  We must be free!  The world needs us to be free! 

To be free from the Spirit of Performance and move into Relational Christianity requires the development of Trust, Knowing, and Becoming!  We have to Know God and ourselves.  We have to Become vulnerable, not performing to be loved and approved but acting out of love.  Remember, in 1 Corinthians 13, we are told that LOVE does not seek its own.

As children, we learn to ‘perform,’ have it reinforced as teenagers, and then practice and teach it as adults.  The mentality that says, ’If I don’t or can’t do what is expected, I will not be accepted.’  That produces fear, anxiety, striving, and shortens and diminishes the quality of life.  It does not necessarily produce insecurity because some are quite confident and secure in their own rules, list, and ability to perform, so they feel SAFE!

LET ME USE SOME LIFE EXAMPLES:

How about Potty Training – – When we tell a child, “You did good, Mommy or Daddy loves you.”  That easily translates to the child over the long haul that they would not be loved if they had not performed to expectation.  They did not hear, ‘You are loved no matter how often you soiled your clothing.’  The danger is that they hear, “IF I do it right, I’m loved, but if I do it wrong, I’m not.”   (Is that extreme? Possibly, but hopefully you can see what I am saying).

How about Appearance – – “Oh, you look nice in your new dress, pants, etc.  Mommy/Daddy loves you.”  But we love you regardless, right?  Can you see how the child might miss that point over the long haul and translate it to ‘good appearance earns love, sloppiness does not’?   (Is that extreme? Again, catch what I am saying)

How about Correction – – When the child misbehaves, ask, “Where did my little boy/girl go?  They were here a minute ago, but this cannot be my child because they do not act that way.”  We just told the child that they are unacceptable and have to be someone who is ideal to be acceptable, so they must perform to be accepted.

Let me go out on a limb and say that children are not always little angels, but they are ALWAYS to be loved!  Proverbs 22:15 says, “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; the rod of discipline will remove it far from him.”  The negative behavior is stopped by firm, loving, consistent discipline while constantly communicating that they are loved, and that love is unconditional while the behavior is not.  That is security!

I have heard people say, “I can’t love you when you act that way.”  What?  “Go to your room, and when you can act like you, you can come out.”  Okay, that is what the child did: act like themself!  “Leave the table, and when you can come back wearing a smile, you can be part of us.” 

Okay, so now you want them to be hypocritical to be accepted.  I am not saying that you allow any behavior to exist. We need to stop teaching performance and focus on relationships.  If we learn in the home to be ourselves and know that even when we do not perform to expectation, we will be loved, we can translate that into life and develop relationships!

The person bound by Performance Orientation has to work extremely hard for all the wrong reasons.  Some of the things I have observed are that the Person who is a PERFORMER:

• Requires Constant Affirmation.
• Cannot Handle Criticism.
• Is Dependent on the Reactions of Others.
• Any Reproof makes them Defensive.
• Cannot readily admit Guilt or Blame and never takes Responsibility.
• Often, they are afraid to try new things because of the fear of failure.

If you recognize any of this in your life or those you love, I urge you to take it to the Lord and ask His help to break the Spirit of Performance and move you from Performance to Relationship!

God bless you as you go through your day!