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1251 days ago
Mistaking “Success” for the “Blessing of God” Readings for today – II Kings 13:1 – 14:29 I think many people in our culture feel that there is no need of seeking God because they already have everything they need. When I can pay all my bills, when everything is going well in the family, when there is plenty of time and the “good life” is easily affordable – why would I need God? Eat … drink … and be merry … signs of success, and therefore they must be signs that the blessing of God is on me. Not so fast. In today’s lesson, there are two men who are having great success. One is Hazael of Aram. In 13:3, the writer alludes to the fact that Hazael and his son are having great political success. The other is in chapter 14:23 (and following verses). It’s the story of King Jeroboam II of Israel, and he too (inspite of the fact that he did evil in the eyes of the Lord) had great political success. Verse 25 ...
1257 days ago
Seeking Godly Counsel Readings for today – II Kings 3:1 – 4:17 With all the power that the OT kings had, the wise ones knew that there was a time to “inquire of the Lord”. And they also seemed to sense that they would need outside help in this inquiring. In today’s lesson, three kings, Joram of Israel, Jehoshaphat of Judah, and the king of Edom had allied together against Moab. The circuitous route they had chosen for the attack led them through wilderness, until they reached the end of their physical strength. At this point of despair, one of the kings said, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here that we may inquire of him?” There comes a time when we all need outside help. I believe that the will of God is better found in community, than when sought only by oneself. By one’s self, it is too easy to hear our own desires and mistake those for the voice of God. But together, in community, ...
1258 days ago
Like a Breath of Fresh Air Readings for these days – II Kings 1:1 – 2:25 Her name is Jenn, and she was one of the sharpest teenagers I had ever met. When she was 14 she personally started a “Send Kid’s to Camp” program that enabled dozens od kids to attend a summer camp. (She ultimately made a brief appearance on Oprah for that one!) She was one of those teenagers who brightened every room that she entered, and it was a joy to be around her. The narrative of Elijah that ends in today’s lessons was like that for me. We had been plodding through dark scene after dark scene. This king did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He died and was succeeded (temporarily) by his son, who followed in his father’s footsteps, and did more evil than any one who had ever gone before him. In the book of Judges, we identified what we called a downward spiral in the life of Israel. In the book of I Kings, it seemed as if ...
1259 days ago
I Can't Make a Choice I Kings 17 – 19 Anyone who ever said the Bible is boring must have forgotten to read these chapters in I Kings dealing with the life of Elijah. We noted in yesterday’s article that the kings were becoming increasingly wicked, and these chapters are explosive vignettes about good battling evil. There are too many “highlightable” verses for me to even choose a favorite, so today let’s just read the Word. - In 18:18 King Ahab accused Elijah of causing trouble (by doing the work of the Lord). Elijah’s response? “ I have not made trouble for Israel … but you and your families have. You have abandoned the Lord’s command, and followed Baal.” - 18:21 – Elijah is speaking to the people gathered – “ Hw long halt ye between two opinions. If the Lord is God, then follow him, but if Baal is god, then follow him.” - 18:36 – Elijah’s simple prayer at the “sacrifice ...
1260 days ago
Breaking the cycle When we lived in Nova Scotia, Lorraine and I did a lot of work with the Children’s Aid Society. (I never will forget the day I first went into their office and told them we’d like to work with teenage girls. Their mouths flew open and they somehow managed to say, “No-one ever asks for teenagers; they always want the babies.”) I must confess our intention wasn’t really high-minded when we started. There was a friend of one of our daughters who was in trouble, and we thought we might appeal to the Society to let her live with us. That never did happen, but over the last three years in NS, we had 10 people live with for varying lengths of time, and enjoyed (most of it) very much. During that time, I also sat on the Board and helped with the training of some other prospective foster-parents. One of the things that we noticed was that the people involved in foster-care often had been foster-children ...
