Tag: god’s presence

4 Promises from God to You

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Exploring Church Ministry BlogLeave a comment

 

            When you’re between a rock and a hard place, it’s good to know you are not alone.  When you feel that no one really gets what you’re going through, its good to know that there is a powerful Protector and Provider who is present with you in the valleys of life.
            God has promised to be with his people.  I don’t think there is any better place to turn than Psalm 23 for some solid robust theology that can help you through every adversity, each trouble and time of need.
            Psalm 23, unfortunately, has been so closely associated with death and dying that it does not get the attention it deserves.  More than once, I’ve been told by grieving families to not use Psalm 23 in the funeral because it’s so tied in their minds to sadness.  We need a fresh reading of the psalm, in times that we aren’t in distress, to begin appreciating it and using it when we do face the unwanted and the unthinkable in our lives.
            One of my bedrock assumptions in ministry is that people need God.  They need to discover Him, get to know Him, grow in their understanding of Him, and learn to completely place their trust in Him.  I have that presupposition going into ministry because another foundational truth I believe is that God is good – there is never, and I mean never, a time when God is not always good, just, merciful, gracious, and kind.  God is pictured in the psalm as a Good Shepherd, the One who lovingly and pastorally leads us.  Psalm 23 is a great fortifier of faith, giving you and me the stout knowledge which we need to navigate the valleys, as well as the peaks of our lives.
            Take some time and carefully read the psalm several times, preferably in several different translations.  You will find characteristics of God which come shining through – attributes which we can internalize for our own connection and help, and externalize to others in their trials of life.  Here are four promises based in those attributes to bank-on through any circumstance:
1.      God is present with His people.
            God wants to be with you.  He really likes you.  He doesn’t begrudgingly put up with you.  God is not fickle.  He doesn’t promise to be somewhere with you, then not show up.  It does not matter whatsoever what valley you’re walking through – family discord, marriage problems, church strife, work issues, prison-time, or financial ruin – He is there.  God goes before you, with you, and after you, every place you go.
2.     God’s power is available to His people.
            God super-duper wants to empower you through your valley.  But we must understand this: God has never promised to overpower a situation and leave you unchanged.  Instead, God uses His good and benevolent power to buoy you through your trouble.  He’s more interested in developing your character and perseverance.  God wants your faith to be strong enough to serve you well throughout your life.  Faith can only grow if it is exercised and put under strain.
3.     God is in the protection-racket for His people.
            God, as the Good Shepherd, uses his shepherd’s rod to make us feel safe and secure in the middle of any hardship.  Whereas you and I tend to about the business of seeing God beat up our enemies and give ‘em a decent spanking they won’t forget, God turns the attention to us.  Judgment and wrath are God’s business, and He makes it clear it isn’t ours.  The wolves out there seeking to take advantage of us will be taken care of by God.  We can rest our heads on the pillow at night secure in the knowledge that God never sleeps and stands watch over us all the time.
4.    God surrounds His people with abundant provision.
            God more than meets our needs – He meets them lavishly.  Maybe we can survive on thin porridge and water, but God wants you to thrive, flourish, and be satisfied with a feast.  This is all done with people who don’t like us right there to watch.  God doesn’t just fill the cup, He causes it to overflow.

 

            Sometimes we dream of having a miracle.  Those are great.  I’d like to see more of them.  But the greatest need we have is of God Himself – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – working to manifest His good presence among us with power, protection, and provision for each day.  This is what the church needs to hear, experience, and pass-on.

Genesis 16

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            I’m blind as a bat without my glasses.  They’re the first thing I put on when waking in the morning, and the last thing I take off before retiring at night.  Without them I can’t distinguish anything well.  I can’t see others unless they are inches from my face.
            As bad as it would be if I didn’t have my glasses, it would be even worse if you were not seen by anyone.  I believe that one of the great tragedies of modern Western civilization is that we can live among so many other people, yet not be seen by so many of them.  The loneliness of not being seen is a terrible situation.
            The ancient woman, Hagar, certainly felt that way.  She felt an even worse circumstance: Hagar neither believed that anyone saw her and cared, nor that God saw her at all.  It was as if God lost his glasses somewhere.
            In a convoluted series of decisions, mostly outside of her control, Hagar became pregnant with Abraham’s son.  Then, Sarah, Abraham’s “real” wife got pregnant with another son.  It got complicated.  Dysfunction was all around, leaving Hagar and her young son out in the wilderness all by themselves with no one to help.  Hagar simply expected the two of them to die.
            You can feel Hagar’s despair and desperation.  She saw no hope, and nobody saw her… but there was someone watching: God.  He saw everything that happened to her – all the craziness, and all the mistreatment – and he stepped-in and acted on behalf of Hagar and her son.
            As a result, Hagar began to call God, “The God Who Sees Me.” She never again had to wonder or doubt whether she was seen.
            You might feel today that God doesn’t see your pain, is aloof and distant from your hurt, and is blind to your deep wounds.  But he sees.  He sees it all, everything.  God may not be working on the same timetable as you and me, but nevertheless he sees you.  You never have to wonder about it.

 

God of Hagar, just as you saw her in the desert and the desperate position she was in, so I ask that would see me and act according to your great mercy; through Jesus Christ, my Savior, with the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Psalm 139:1-6

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            How do you talk to yourself?  You know what I mean.  The kind of speech that goes on inside your head.  The things which you say inside your heart that no one knows but you.  I think you will agree with me that you are rather hard on yourself.  In the reclusive parts of your mind, you speak to yourself in ways that you would never say to others, nor tolerate others saying about someone else.  Only you know the depth of your own sorrows, hurts, fears, insecurities, and worries.  Except….
            God.  He knows it all.  He knows it all intimately.  And He is not repulsed.  You see, God knows that the answer to all the doubts about yourself is His protection.  You have the freedom to plumb the recesses of your heart and soul – to bring out all that is inside the cluttered closet of your mind and lay it out on the floor without fear of God calling you what you call yourself.
            Slowly read out loud these verses for today several times.  Allow the protecting God to wash over you with grace and understanding.
139 You have looked deep
into my heart, Lord,
and you know all about me.
2 You know when I am resting
or when I am working,
and from heaven
you discover my thoughts.
3 You notice everything I do
and everywhere I go.
4 Before I even speak a word,
you know what I will say,
5 and with your powerful arm
you protect me
from every side.
6 I can’t understand all of this!
Such wonderful knowledge
is far above me. (CEV)

 

Amen.

Psalm 145:1-5, 17-19

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
I will praise you,
my God and King,
and always honor your name.
2 I will praise you each day
and always honor your name.
3 You are wonderful, Lord,
and you deserve all praise,
because you are much greater
than anyone can understand.
4 Each generation will announce
to the next
your wonderful
and powerful deeds.
5 I will keep thinking about
your marvelous glory
and your mighty miracles
17 Our Lord, everything you do
is kind and thoughtful,
18     and you are near to everyone
whose prayers are sincere.
19 You satisfy the desires
of all your worshipers,
and you come to save them
when they ask for help (Contemporary English Version).
 
            Wherever I go and whomever I speak with as I move about my congregation and community, there is a great deal of anxiety, even fear, about what will happen in our nation.  Certainly, our political process of the past year along with its spirited dialogue has spawned much apprehension of the future.  And, yet, there is this angle of the psalmist to consider.  We are to think about and carefully consider some solid robust theology.
 
            God provides.  He protects.  The Lord’s presence is continually with his people.  God is good for his promises.  He deals with injustice.  Yes, our God deserves all praise, glory, and honor because standing behind all the anxiety of a puny human election of candidates is a very large deity who does his own election based in his good pleasure and purpose.
 
            In these next days, I encourage you to read this psalm again and again.  Internalize it, and let its message and theology seep into the pores of your soul so that by next week your confidence will not be in the ups or downs of your candidate and political platform, but in the Lord God Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.
 

 

            Mighty God, along with the psalmist I will always honor and praise your holy name.  You are far greater than I can even think or imagine.  Let my trust in you be a strong ballast in the days and years to come, both for me and for the next generations of those who believe in Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.