Why Israel Fell

^7 All this took place because the Israelites had sinned against the Lord their God, who had brought them up out of Egypt from under the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. They worshiped other gods (2 Ki 17:7, Niv)

Israel fell for the same reason people and nations fall today:  sin.  The amazing thing about God was and is that it doesn't have to be that way.  In fact it never has to be this way.  God ALWAYS provides a way out or a means of escape, and if that isn't enough He warns over, and over, and over before He does something:

^13 The Lord warned Israel and Judah through all his prophets and seers: “Turn from your evil ways. Observe my commands and decrees, in accordance with the entire Law that I commanded your fathers to obey and that I delivered to you through my servants the prophets.” (2 Ki 17:13, NIV)

God gave Israel and Judah multiple chances over and over to change their ways.  In the same way God warns us over and over, and keeps telling us if we will just turn from evil and turn TO HIM, things would be much different.  The unfortunate thing is here is what happened:

^14 But they would not listen and were as stiff-necked as their fathers, who did not trust in the Lord their God. ^15 They rejected his decrees and the covenant he had made with their fathers and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. They imitated the nations around them although the Lord had ordered them, “Do not do as they do,” and they did the things the Lord had forbidden them to do. ^16 They forsook all the commands of the Lord their God and made for themselves two idols cast in the shape of calves, and an Asherah pole. They bowed down to all the starry hosts, and they worshiped Baal. ^17 They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire. They practiced divination and sorcery and sold themselves to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, provoking him to anger.

(2 Ki 17:14-17, NIV)

Their Sins were stacking up against them, they practiced so many things that God told them, in no uncertain terms, not to do.  Guess what, they did it anyway..... they had to do what so many of us have to do, and that is that there is a time that we have to face the consequences.

^22 The Israelites persisted in all the sins of Jeroboam and did not turn away from them ^23 until the Lord removed them from his presence (2 Ki 17:22-23a, NIV)

It doesn't have to be that way, It never has to be that way.... remember this:

^9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. (1 Jn 1:9, NIV)

God ALWAYS forgives when we confess, i love that thought. Here is another one, in the NT the word "forgive" means "as if it never happened", I love it "as if it never happened".

I know today was a little long, but God had really spoken to me in my devotion time today, and i wanted to share.

blessings on you and your day, remember to go somewhere and worship this Lord's day :)

chris

kings and knights

If you want to read a book (or books) that read like the movies "First Night" or "Kingdom of Heaven", i strongly recommend 1 & 2 kings in the Old Testament, I had not read them in a while and was amazed and reminded of the conspiracies, battles, and double crossing records of what happened in Judah and Israel.

As i had stated in an earlier blog, Judah and Israel where both "stuck in a rut", periodically in the rotation of kings they would get a good one that "Did right in the eyes of the Lord", however for the most part they did not.  Interestingly enough, in each situation God handled it. see verses:

^8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned six months. ^9 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as his fathers had done. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit.

^10 Shallum son of Jabesh conspired against Zechariah. He attacked him in front of the people, assassinated him and succeeded him as king. (NIV 2 Ki 15:8-10)

^23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah son of Menahem became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned two years. ^24 Pekahiah did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit. ^25 One of his chief officers, Pekah son of Remaliah, conspired against him. Taking fifty men of Gilead with him, he assassinated Pekahiah, along with Argob and Arieh, in the citadel of the royal palace at Samaria. So Pekah killed Pekahiah and succeeded him as king. (NIV 2 Ki 15:23-25)

 

^27 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah son of Remaliah became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned twenty years. ^28 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit.

^29 In the time of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh and Hazor. He took Gilead and Galilee, including all the land of Naphtali, and deported the people to Assyria. ^30 Then Hoshea son of Elah conspired against Pekah son of Remaliah. He attacked and assassinated him, and then succeeded him as king in the twentieth year of Jotham son of Uzziah. (NIV,  2 Ki 15:27-30)

Do you see the common denominator in each account.  One they did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and two they where assassinated.  Thought for the day is this, God will not allow those who do evil, blatantly in His sight to go unpunished.  God is not a mean God, or a God who controls us like robots.  However, those who are openly shaking their fists at God, and blatantly doing wrong, will somehow someway eventually "get theirs" (so to speak).

As you and I spend each day seeing those around us who make fun of what we believe, belittle what we do, or question our motives, remember God will handle it.....

blessings on you, and have a good day :)

He was HOW OLD???

How old do you think you must be to make a difference?  Now before you answer think about that.  Our first response is "at any age", but come on think about it.  Do you think you must be 16, 21, 30, 40, 50, 60+, before you really can make a difference in people's lives.  I was challenged this day by this thought, see the following verse:

^21 Joash^ was seven years old when he began to reign.

12     In the seventh year of Jehu, Joash^ became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty years. His mother’s name was Zibiah; she was from Beersheba. ^2 Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the years Jehoiada the priest instructed him. ^3 The high places, however, were not removed; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.

^4 Joash said to the priests, “Collect all the money that is brought as sacred offerings to the temple of the Lord—the money collected in the census, the money received from personal vows and the money brought voluntarily to the temple. ^5 Let every priest receive the money from one of the treasurers, and let it be used to repair whatever damage is found in the temple.”

The Holy Bible : New International Version. Grand Rapids : Zondervan, 1996, c1984, S. 2 Ki 11:21-12:5

 

2 Kings 11:21 really jumped out at me, did you catch it? How old was Joash? 7 (seven).  Wow, at such a young age he was given the ability and was capable of being king.  Now keep in mind this, Judah had gone through such a long run of bad kings, blood thirsty kings.  A change begin to occur in 2 Kings 11:18, when Jehu gathered all the worshippers of Baal (a false god that was being worshipped) in the baal temple, surrounded it and killed them all; right, wrong, or indifferent that is what happened.  From that point on there was a turn back to worshipping God.  Jehoida has more of a religious reform (see 2 kings 11:17,18) that continued on until Joash became king at the age of (yes i will repeat it again) 7 (seven).

 

At seven years of age Joash made Godly decisions for the nation, mainly seeing to it that the Lord's temple (church) was being repaired and that those who worked on it were paid accordingly.  Verse 15 tells that the work was done with integrity :).  Unfortunately, Joash's servants conspired against him and assassinated the king (2 kings 12:21).  However, in his 40 years of reign he made a huge difference in Judah, as well as for the kingdom of God.

 

So the question is am I? Are you making a difference?  Here's the deal, no matter what age you are, and some of us are 2, 3, 4X the age of Joash, if you are determined to do what is right, in God's eyes, and not your own....YOU CAN AND WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE, NO MATTER THE AGE.

 

Have a blessed day :)

my greatest struggle

My greatest struggle, is probably yours too, if no it's close: trust.  Throughout life you and I will constantly be faced with some hard decisions, in which the hardest decision will be to trust God.  Too many times i let my circumstances affect my view of the outcome.  Sure we read and study and know scripture that tells us "with God all things are possible", however real life makes that easier said than done.

In my devotion this morning, these verses really challenged me:

^3 Now there were four men with leprosy^ at the entrance of the city gate. They said to each other, “Why stay here until we die? ^4 If we say, ‘We’ll go into the city’—the famine is there, and we will die. And if we stay here, we will die. So let’s go over to the camp of the Arameans and surrender. If they spare us, we live; if they kill us, then we die.” (1 kings 7:3-4) (NIV)

These four men where faced with death, literal death, they could either stand around and not make a decision (which by the way to not make a decision is making a decision) and die, OR they could wander into enemy camp and TRUST God to take care of their needs.  Well, let's throw something else in here, people with skin disease (leproasy) were not allowed to enter a camp or city.  So in fact not only where they going to TRUST God to walk into an enemy camp but they also where going to break to law.  Now that is trusting God my friends without knowing how things would turn out, at all!!! So here is the end of the story:

^5 At dusk they got up and went to the camp of the Arameans. When they reached the edge of the camp, not a man was there, ^6 for the Lord had caused the Arameans to hear the sound of chariots and horses and a great army, so that they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel has hired the Hittite and Egyptian kings to attack us!” ^7 So they got up and fled in the dusk and abandoned their tents and their horses and donkeys. They left the camp as it was and ran for their lives.

^8 The men who had leprosy reached the edge of the camp and entered one of the tents. They ate and drank, and carried away silver, gold and clothes, and went off and hid them. They returned and entered another tent and took some things from it and hid them also. (2 kings 7:5-8)

 

So they trusted God and EVERYTHING worked out.  Was a great challenge to me, I have GOT to learn to trust God with Everything!

 

Have a blessed day and weekend, be sure to go worship somewhere :)

 

Miracles

This morning I was reading in 2 Kings and read chapters 4 & 5, was a steady flow of miracles that God did through Elisha.  The widows oil miraculously multiplied (4:1-6), The Shunammite's Son raised from the dead (4:18-36), The Deadly stew (4:38-41), Bread Multiplied (4:42-44), Naaman's Disease healed (5:1-19), and of course who could forget the floating axe head (6:1-7).

Was thinking about how we downplay the word "miracle".  How do we downplay it? How often have we said these things:  It was a miracle i found a front parking space, It was a miracle that UNC won a game, it was a miracle that the light turned green, it was a miracle i passed the test, it was a miracle i made it on time, etc., i think you get the point.

Miracle is defined as:  an extraordinary event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs

(Merriam-Webster, Inc: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. 10th ed. Springfield, Mass., U.S.A. : Merriam-Webster, 1996, c1993)

 

We usually use the word according the first part of the definition "an extraordinary event", but often forget that all important second part of "divine intervention".

 

My definition of "miracle" is when God steps in and does something that Man couldn't.  The question is posed then, Does God still perform miracles today?  the answer is yes!!  Strange things happening that Doctors, scientists, and philosphers cant explain.  But always remember this, i believe that the greatest miracle that is performed today is when God changes a life, He did mine, and that my friends is a miracle.

 

blessings on your day, chris.

 

 

No Success without a Successor

^9 When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?”

“Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied.

^10 “You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise not.”

^11 As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. ^12 Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them apart.

^13 He picked up the cloak that had fallen from Elijah and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan.

 2 Ki 2:9-13 (NIV)

 

I love this point where Elijah was taken up into heaven right in front of Elisha, makes you wonder the thoughts running through Elisha's mind as he witnessed this.  Anyway moving on, this little tidbit from scripture is a wonderful illustration of what i am calling "no success without a successor".  Elijah had been pouring his life into Elisha for sometime now, so that when He left someone would be ready and willing to take over his responsabilities.  That someone, of course was Elisha.  When that time had come (vs. 13) you see where Elisha picked up immediately where Elijah left off and carried on the work.  This is not the only example either, Joshua 1 shows us that when Moses had died, Joshua was well equipped and trained to be able to take over.  If you look at the New Testament, Jesus's main ministry was pouring His life into the Disciples so that when He left, they could carry on the work (Acts 1:9-11).

 

Here is the point:  We have seen some growth in our group in the last several weeks, and we have several that are moving on or moving up, and as new are coming in or you are moving on or up, are you pouring your life into someone else?  You have much to offer.  Who is going to take your role when your gone?  I have mentioned many times to my high schoolers and college students that the middle schoolers really need student mentors.  Whether you want to be one or not, they look up to you, so grab hold of the opportunity and see how God blesses you for doing so and also leave a lasting impression in their lives.

 

Prepare someone to be your successor :)

Is it Worship, or Isn't It?

Is it really worship, or isn't it? that's a great question, one I have really been pondering today....

² Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them.  ³ The LORD hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.

(psalm 126:2,3)

 

Have you ever felt like you where at a funeral instead of a worship service on a Sunday (or wednesday for that matter).

 

I don't get it, if we believe with all of our heart what vs. 3 says, then why are we so complacent when it comes to our worship.  Now i may not be suggestion turning penticostal (no offence friends) or putting on a show while in a "worship" service, but how about atleast a smile.  I know what many are thinking, "we all worship in different ways", and though that may be true, I still believe many are holding back.  For instance, those that have been to Fort Caswell with me, I have seen YOU worship, I have seen YOU praise God and not be ashamed of how you are praising God.  Now, that may truely not be for all, but ask yourself this question:

 

How am i showing God (not man) how thankful I am for what He has done for me, while I am worshipping?

 

Have a great Sunday and I hope you worshipped somewhere...

 

Comments welcome :)

Advice and instruction

^{Proverbs 19:20-21}

^20 Listen to advice and accept instruction,

and in the end you will be wise.

^21 Many are the plans in a man’s heart,

but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails. (NIV)

ok, so seriously we have talked about advice, both when we have received good and bad advice.  As a student you a probably constantly bombarded by good meaning people giving advice.  You will get it from me (haha), sunday school teacher, school teachers, parents, friends, family, coaches, and sometimes even someone you don't know may overhear a conversation and they will tell you what to do.  So the million dollar question is how do you know whether or not to take the advice or not.  Suggestion one, if i say it do it :-)......  Suggestion two, you really know what The Bible says about it, hence forth why a daily Bible study comes in handy... Suggestion three, use a little common sense. 

Verse 21, really addresses alot of what we deal with on a daily basis.  We all make plans; we may plan to go visit someone, we may plan to go to a movie, we may plan to go to a certain college, we may plan a certain career.... But what happens when our plans seemed to get "foiled". ?  Frustrating isn't it?  Yes, it is very much so.  But here is the thing: some way some how God's plan or purpose get's fulfilled in our lives.... So, when a plan get's foiled for some reason or another keep your eyes open because God altered your plans because He has something else for you to do.

 

Blessings, and have a good day.

Here is something a little fun, comment on some bad advise that someone once gave you, unless it was me of course :)

January 13, 2011

The past snow days have really gotten me into thinking about this whole series we have been studying about "Bringing Balance into our lives".  We have talked alot about balancing Church, FAmily, Friends, etc., and how God is wrapped around the whole thing (Matt. 6:33).

The greatest example of what happens when things get out of balance, has been the past week.  You think about it a minute.  A normal day of a student is you spend time at school, with friends, and with that significant other.  However when snow days come along, it knocks all of that out of balance.  As in no school, not seeing friends, and oh my gosh don't get to see my gf or bf (haha).  Think of how you felt, or feel when snow impacts your day or days.  It knocks everything out of balance doesn't it? haha.  oh sure it was fun the first day or two, but after several days you want to be back in school, you want to see your friends, and you want to see gf/bf.

Unfortunately when it comes to balance and equality whithin our pie (our life) the question is do we WANT to have balance between them all, there is a need for that balance, but do we want it?

Do we want to spend time with God?  Do we want to spend time in Church? Do we want to spend time with family? and so forth?  Each piece of the pie is essential.....This Sunday is one of my favorite pieces of the pie to work on.... FUN