‘Then Gideon built an altar there unto the Lord, and called it Jehovah Shalom.’ Judges 6:241/12/2024 God called fearful, humble, insignificant, lowly Gideon to lead His people to war against the Midianites who had been raiding the people of Israel for years. In doing this, God did not reveal Himself as Jehovah Nissi - the Lord who fights our battles. He didn’t reveal Himself as Jehovah Mephalti - the Lord, my deliverer. Neither did He reveal Himself as Jehovah Jireh - the Lord who would provide everything required. No, in calling Gideon to lead the people to fight, God revealed Himself as Jehovah Shalom - the Lord of peace. Gideon encountered the all-encompassing, enveloping depth of God's peace; from that place alone, He had the confidence to fight in the name of the Lord.
The Hebrew word shalom means more than peace: it denotes wholeness, completeness and well-being. Do you, like Gideon, need to war against the enemies of God? Meditate on Jehovah Shalom - the God who provides peace, wellness, wholeness and well-being. From that place, you will find the security, confidence, strength and hope to put the enemy to flight, and Jehovah Shalom will be glorified.
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What would be the most precious thing in your life if you were asked to identify one thing? Would it be your family or your friends? Would it be your health? A house, a car? A diamond ring?
What is our gold and precious silver? What areas of our lives are we putting our confidence in? What are we relying on? Who are we relying on? We must challenge ourselves daily as there are hundreds of things each day, pulling us in all directions, that would distract us from finding more of God. We must challenge ourselves to make the Almighty our gold and precious silver. It does not mean we do not value other things, but it does mean that they are in the right place. Love for Christ and God should be on a different level from any other love. The most valuable thing in our lives is Christ. If we have Him, we have everything. We are not called to live a life that is in love with the things of this world. We are children of another world, a spiritual world. God will lead and guide us in the straight, pure and holy way. He would show us how to make the Almighty our gold and most precious silver. The Apostle Paul knew this, “What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ.” Philippians 3:8 NIV It is a beautiful thought that the Almighty can be gold to us, our most precious possession. It is also exquisite to think that in God’s eyes, we are His most precious thing. His most precious possession! His jewels! Christ is our Saviour, and He has loved us with an everlasting love. He left heaven’s throne to die for us and redeem us to Himself to save us from all of our sins and to make us his treasure. “They shall be Mine,” says the LORD of hosts, “On the day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him.” Malachi 3:17 NKJV The moment we determine in our heart to make the Almighty our gold, in that moment, we will delight in Him, and we will lift our faces to God. He will make us radiant, and our faces will not be ashamed. We will come into what He wants us to be – a life of joy, peace, light, and liberty. Life is a gift from God, and many blessings are given to us along the way. But we were never promised a smooth course.
Sometimes we go through times in our lives where we cannot see the plan of God, such is the pain we face. A deep disappointment when something is not given, the loss of a loved one that can come so suddenly, or issues with ill health - the list is endless! We all face times of pain, and often the deepest pain we experience we can never really share fully with another. Even our nearest and dearest, who may do their best to help us, often don’t fully understand what we are going through. In these times, often crucial times for our spiritual life, we have a choice to make. Where will we lean? Where will we find our strength and our healing? Dear friend, I would encourage you today, in the midst of your pain, to set your mind on a pilgrimage towards Jerusalem. In other words, set your mind upon the Lord Jesus Christ. Fall into His arms of love when you have no strength to stand. There will be weeping, but you’ll find His refreshing. Suddenly, you will realise that there is one who fully understands, and you don’t need to explain any of it to Him. The One who suffered so deeply for you knows it all. His compassion will never fail you. His promise to us is not protection from difficulties, but He does promise that we need never face anything alone. You’ll come through your trial stronger, and He shall be more precious to you when you have allowed Him to carry you through it. Others will look on and say: “Who is this coming up from the wilderness, Leaning upon her beloved?.” Song of Solomon 8:5 NKJV Trust Him, and you will find that your place of weeping can be a place of refreshing springs. “Are you able to drink from the bitter cup of suffering I am about to drink?” Matthew 20:22 NLT10/11/2024 James and John had no idea what the bitter cup of suffering was, but they answered confidently,
“Oh yes,” they replied, “we are able!” Such gallantry has to be admired in the hearts of young men. It is far better to think you are brave and strong than to walk away like a wimp and avoid suffering at all costs. And we must give these brothers their due. They were faithful to the end despite the fact that they had no insight into what the future held for them both. As we read through the Book of Acts, James was martyred for his faith (Acts 12:2), while John lived a long life, exiled to the island of Patmos for preaching the word of God (Rev 1:9). Now, how would you respond to this question? “Are you able to drink from the bitter cup of suffering I am about to drink?” Oh, I can hear the modern-day answers. “If I have to ...” “What do you mean?” “No, I don’t want that!” We pull away from anything that could cause us pain, suffering or inconvenience. So why were these men so gallant and brave? It was because they had caught sight of the Christ. They had seen His power when He healed the sick and cast out demons. They had seen His glory on the Mount of Transfiguration. They had heard His outstanding wisdom in preaching and teaching. They were caught like a fish on the end of a hook. For the church to be like that today, we need to want to be caught, dangling at the end of His heavenly hook. We need to meditate on the words in the Bible, reflecting on His healing and delivering power, comprehending the glory, finding His compassion and forgiveness, and being overwhelmed with His strength and anointing. Then, we will answer as confidently as James and John, knowing that no matter what happens, we will serve Him forever. Recently, I have had the pleasure of working with one of our ministers from another church branch. What has been especially lovely about this is that we have the same vision for a particular part of the work.
I have had secret hopes for some time over one aspect of church work and I found that my friend had the same hopes. We decided to begin a new work together so that we might see the burden that God had given us fulfilled. We had our first meeting, and I was very nervous that it would be a flop. I knew that God wanted me to do it, and that should have been enough, but you know how your human heart gets involved! I was very grateful to God that it was a success. My friend and I worked together spiritually and practically to see this happen. What joy in serving Him together selflessly and seeing His kingdom come amongst us! A few days after this venture, I began to feel another drive in a different direction. What joy when the same friend contacted me to share the vision and drive she had felt in a particular direction, which turned out to be the same as mine. It gave us both the confidence to hope and pray for more. So much can be accomplished when lives are united in Christ. Our Lord understood the power of spiritual unity and encouraged us to stand together; how the devil fights against it! We hear of bickering in the church, offence taken, people leaving, and churches diminishing. It grieves the Spirit of God when such things occur because lives won’t live selflessly for Christ. We must learn to turn the other cheek and nail ourselves to the cross. So much can be accomplished when two agree on earth. How beautiful is the unity when souls are knit together and catch sight of the glory of God and the vision for the extension of His Kingdom? We read in the Bible: “The soul of Jonathon was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathon loved him as his own soul.” 1 Samuel 18:1 NKJV “And Jonathon took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armour, even to his sword and his bow and his belt.” 1 Samuel 18:4 NKJV What deep and self-sacrificing love between two souls. What power would be in the church today if we were prepared to take off our robe, armour, even our sword, bow and belt for His glory? If we humbled ourselves, laid down every part of our defence, and were united in Christ. “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” John 15:13 NKJ Is this what we do when something upsets us? Do we go and tell the King of Kings? How much grief would we be spared if we took everything to Him immediately?
There will always be upsets in this life, and we will not be perfect until we are in heaven, so we must learn to deal with all the little upsets that come our way. There will be upsets between husband and wife, parent and child, between siblings and even in the church. If we fell out with everyone who upset us, we would have very few friends and acquaintances left! So, when you deal with upsets with your loved ones, how do you do it? You find ways around the upset by discussing it with the one who has upset you or by withdrawing for a little while until your temper is past. You do it because you love the person so much you overlook their faults. You wish for harmony in the home, so you close your mouth and don’t even let on that there has been an upset. I always think there is a victory for me when something upsets me, and no one knows about it. If I can get to the end of the day without showing any hurt or huff, then I can forget about it when I lay my head on my pillow and rise to a fresh new day. That is a victory for me. It leads to selflessness in our reactions to others when we are upset. We do this in our homes for harmony and happiness; we must learn to apply the same principles in the church. Even when you are ‘very upset’ as in this story, take the matter to the King. It will help enormously as you talk to Him about it all. He may lift the burden, give you a deeper understanding of the situation, or suddenly fill you with compassion for the one causing the upset. He may even ask you to deal with the situation. “Whatever He says to you, do it.” John 2:5 NLT And if we do whatever He says, it will keep us on the right path and lead to victorious Christian living. If we were all to do exactly what He has said to us, the church would be a better place. There would be greater unity, a deeper understanding and a deeper dying to self. Then, we would be ready for whatever He brings our way. We would be a church united and strong with His strength. We would fit the description in the Song of Songs. “Who is this, arising like the dawn, as fair as the moon, as bright as the sun, as majestic as an army with billowing banners?” Song of Songs 6:10 NLT This is what God wants for His church. And so when you are very upset, take it to the King and tell Him everything that has happened. I guarantee it will lead to peace. “He was a godly man, deeply devoted to the law, and well regarded by all.” Acts 22:12 (NLT)13/10/2024 These words describe Ananias, who led Paul, the greatest apostle, to Christ. This is about as much as we know about Ananias. There is speculation that he was one of the 70 and led the small Christian community in Damascus.
We would do well if this became our goal in life. Firstly, to be godly. Secondly, to be deeply devoted to reading our Bibles. Thirdly, to have a good reputation amongst all. If we practised these three things daily, we might be instrumental in leading a ‘Paul’ to Christ. We don’t need to be involved in evangelistic events to be successful. We don’t even need to run a church, but we do need to be godly and devoted to reading our Bibles and absorbing the truth. We should have a good reputation amongst our neighbours, friends and family. Make these three things the top priority in your Christian life, and watch the change, not only on yourself but on those around you. Some will pull away and find you ‘too holy’ whilst others will be drawn to the Christ you serve. Jesus taught the greatest commandment was to: “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.” Matthew 22:37 NLT Those who seek God’s highest strive to achieve this, and this is how we do it. Spend time with your Bible. Let your delight be in the teachings of Christ. “They delight in the law of the Lord, meditating on it day and night.” Psalm 1:2 (NLT) And so practise these three things. Examine your heart at the end of each day and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal how you can draw even closer to Him. Be godly. Devote yourself to reading the Bible. Be a good example to others. We seek to follow Christ, and the rest we leave with Him. We are called to be faithful, not successful. If He should bring a ‘Paul’ into our lives, we will endeavour to lead them to the One who is changing our hearts and bringing us ever closer to Himself. I love the directness of the words of Christ. The teachers of religious law had said within themselves that what Christ was saying was blasphemy. They hadn’t even voiced it aloud, but He heard it clearly in their hearts. And then there came that fabulous direct question:
“Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts?” It was like an arrow, straight from His heart to theirs, from the One who can discern all things. It reminds us to keep our hearts pure from all wicked thoughts. It’s good to examine ourselves from time to time and to make sure our attitudes towards people and situations are right. Recently, we have heard the news of war in Ukraine with Russia and of terrible difficulties between Israel and Gaza. It’s frightening the power of hatred and anger that can arise in the human heart. Somewhere along the way, these thoughts began in one mind and heart. Thoughts of hatred, unforgiveness, bitterness and resentment exploded in minds and hearts until a country or president declared warfare, thereafter senseless killing followed and many lives were lost. Watch out for those wicked thoughts. They might not multiply until our nation is at war, but corrupt thoughts are infectious and spread like cancer. Perhaps someone in the church or your family has wronged you, and you cannot forgive them. Or the truth could be that you won’t forgive them! You tell one or two close friends about the difficulties, and they, out of loyalty to you, feel resentment towards the individual. Before long, others discover what the person has said or done, and they begin to feel ostracised and excluded. The person may have done wrong, but you have also done wrong. You should have forgiven. Your sin becomes greater than theirs because you have allowed your lack of forgiveness to touch other hearts. Instead of love, you have spread discord and resentment. Our Lord Jesus could ask us, “Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts?” And we dare not point our finger at the one who has wronged us but must hang our heads in shame and admit our flaws. “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Matthew 6:14,15 NLT Be careful of your thoughts today. Isn’t it lovely to call your church folks ‘dear friends’? Friends are those who remain loyal through thick and thin. Christ said:
“You have stayed with me in my time of trial.” Luke 22:28 NLT What words to hear from the lips of Christ for those disciples who had remained with Him through His trials. These words imply it hadn’t been easy: many had turned away, but they had remained. They were His dear friends. And so, for those who continue to follow, we must use our most holy faith to build ourselves up until we are strong. Did you know that your faith was something you used to build yourself up? We can do this by singing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to ourselves and the Lord. We can do this by reading our Bibles and embracing the words we read. We can do this by being together at church, standing united as one in Christ, discussing our faith, and sharing our testimonies and the stories we hear throughout the years. We can do this by reading about the lives of other Christians and learning from them. And we can do this by ‘praying with the Holy Spirit.’ What a lovely thought that as we kneel in prayer, the Holy Spirit is with us, kneeling beside us, helping to give us the words we should say and the requests we should make. He is there to help us praise and offer thanks, to still our hearts when we are restless, to calm our spirits when we are anxious, and to give us courage when we are fearful. He is there to convict us of sin when necessary, to convince us of righteousness, and to help us learn to love Christ more than we love ourselves. The Holy Spirit of God can help us more than any other. He is known as the Helper. Pray with Him. He will help you. He will take you to the throne of grace. He will lead you right into the presence of the Father. This is how you “use your most holy faith to build yourselves up strong.” Dear friends, continue with us in our trials. Begin today, reach out and ask the Holy Spirit to help you pray. The rough path shall lead to blessing. There is promise on the road ahead. “For the Lord in His mercy will lead them.” Isaiah 49:10 NLT. “The Lord will surely comfort Zion; and will look with compassion on all her ruins.” Isaiah 51:3. NIV He who knows our human hearts gives such wise advice in just a few words.
How often have we heard of family feuds that last a lifetime, arguments that last for years, or grievances against one another that are never forgotten? They turn the soul cold and bring bitterness to the heart. The Bible says: “Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.” Hebrews 12:15 NLT Bitterness comes from holding on to anger and unforgiveness. It is a troubling root that turns life sour. A soul who is bitter in life corrupts others. Things are distorted from their point of view, and in turn, others are affected by their bitter words. Our Lord’s advice is to deal with these differences quickly. Don’t let them remain so they begin to twist your soul in bitterness. If you argue with someone, go and settle it. Apologise for your part. Let nothing remain but love. The longer you wait to sort a difference, the harder it becomes to bridge the gap. Do your part and reach out with the hand of friendship. Be kind, and do a good turn. He who sees will reward you. We had a neighbour who fell out with us once. It wasn’t difficult as we had three rowdy boys who loved playing football whilst their girls didn’t like football! The children clashed, and there were sore words spoken. And then came the year of the ice and snow. Our neighbour couldn’t manage to clear their driveway and came and asked for help. Well, we couldn’t help quickly enough! We didn’t want this upset. Our eldest son went over straightaway and cleared their driveway of several feet of snow. It was the end of years of tension with one another. Now we are friends: we wave and greet each other in the street, and it always makes me smile. The kindness of Christ and a willing heart broke down the barriers. It was good to settle our differences with a good turn. We felt enriched, our spirits warmed by the love of God. May you find His blessing also as you reach out to settle your differences. Not only will relationships be restored, but the kindness of Christ will fill your heart, and the root of bitterness that could trouble you and corrupt many will be broken. “Now, hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” Romans 5:5 NKJV |