A retelling of John 21. The sun was coming up and we were tired. We had fished all night, the seven of us, and had come up empty handed. Hard to make a living when you have no catch. Looking back toward the shore I could see a figure standing looking in our direction. I couldn't tell who it was. Then the person shouted to us wanting to know if we had any food. Nope, we shouted back. Nothing to show for a whole night of fishing. Throw Out Your Nets Then the man said something kind of odd. He told us to throw our nets on the other side of the boat. What?? Nobody who knew anything about fishing would suggest something like that, but what did we have to lose. We decided to humor him, so we threw out the net, laughingly, until we felt a very hard tug on our net. It was fish and a lot of them! It's Jesus! It was John who realized it first. The man was our Lord! It was Jesus! Appearing to us again as he had before. Not until we caught the fish did we realize just who it was that was directing us where to place the net. As soon as John said something, Peter excitedly jumped into the water and swam ashore. The boat was too slow for him. Nets Overflowing The rest of us followed in the boat, dragging the net filled to the brim with fish. There, Jesus was standing by a fire He had made with freshly cooked fish and bread. Jesus, always the servant. Jesus, always doing more for others than for Himself. Breakfast smelled so good in the clean morning air. Jesus instructed us to bring Him some of the fish we had caught. Peter raced into the water and hauled that heavy net in by himself. Peter counted 153 fish. What a haul! Come And Have Breakfast Jesus then invited us to breakfast, sharing the fish and bread He had prepared. "Come and have breakfast, friends." How I had missed these moments with our teacher, Jesus. Three times now Jesus had showed Himself to us since His death and resurrection. But now he wanted to talk to Peter. He wanted to ask Peter some questions. Do You Love Me? Three times he asked Peter if he loved Him. Three times Peter said yes, but by the third time you could see that Peter's heart was aching at having to continue to reassure Jesus that, yes, he really loved Him. Each time Jesus's reply was similar and yet different. The first time Jesus replied, "Feed my lambs." The second time Jesus replied, "Tend my sheep." and the last time Jesus replied, "Feed my sheep." Asking Peter this question three times must have brought back to Peter the three times he had denied even knowing Christ. Peter, sadly, denied Jesus even after he had said that he loved Him more than any of the rest of us. How terrible Peter must have felt. Follow Me Peter understood that Jesus meant that the sheep were His people. Peter's job was to care for them, teach them and grow them up in the knowledge of Christ. Then Jesus went on to let Peter know that he would be faithful to Jesus from then on. Faithful to a death like Jesus's own, on a cross. Then Jesus spoke His last words to Peter, "Follow me." Now that Peter knew exactly what his fate would be, Jesus encouraged him. Jesus's first words to Peter had been "Follow me" and now they were His last to him. For John, Jesus would have a different fate, but for Peter, the road had been laid before Him. Peter took up his cross and never looked back. He was His master's faithful servant from that day forward. I will never forget that beautiful morning when we were met with a delicious breakfast served to us by the Son of the King, the Holy One of Israel who served us with His very life. I adore you O Lord and I praise you. For by Your Cross and Resurrection You have set us free.

As a child most of us have enjoyed climbing trees. I remember climbing an old pear tree in my grandmother's yard to reach the gnarly, not so ripe pears, that we absolutely loved as children. Trees are a symbol we can relate to. Most of us think they are beautiful and yet another sign of God's handiwork. The Trees Will Sing Then shall the trees of the wood sing out at the presence of the LORD, because he cometh to judge the earth. I Chronicles 16:33 What a beautiful image that creates for me. Just imagine the trees singing in the presence of God. All creation testifies to the glory of God. We will do the same one day in Heaven. Trees In The Bible Trees have an important place in many stories in the Bible from the beginning to the end. From the tree in the Garden of Eden that Eve ate from in Genesis, to the tree that stands in Heaven, the Tree of Life, described in Revelation 22. The Purpose Of Trees Trees offer us shade, they offer us fruit, they provide heat in the form of firewood, they can be places of safety behind their sturdy trunks or in their leafy branches. Trees stand in the storm, they give the birds of the air and many other animals shelter, they are a place of refuge. I Shall Not Be Moved Many times the Bible compares us to trees. In Jeremiah 17: 7-8 God says “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit." When I was a child, we sang a wonderful song called "I Shall Not Be Moved". The first verse goes like this: When my cross is heavy, I shall not be moved, when my cross is heavy, I shall not be moved; like a tree planted by the water, I shall not be moved. I shall not be, I shall not be moved. I shall not be, I shall not be moved; like a tree planted by the water, I shall not be moved. (refrain) Like A Tree? Are we like trees? Do we bring forth good fruit? Do we stand immovable? Do we sing before the Lord? Do we gain our life from the living waters that is the message of salvation? In time of trouble and loss will we be free from anxiety knowing our roots are deep? No matter how bad things get will we continue yielding fruit? Deep Roots In our world today we need deep roots to withstand the evil we face daily. Deep roots nourished by prayer. We need the living waters of the Lord's word to sustain us. We need to sing the praises of our God. We need more than ever to bring forth good fruit - love, patience, joy and more. We need to be a refuge for those who don't know God. Someone they can turn to who can show them a better way. Blessed In Revelation 22:14 one of the last references to trees occurs. It says, "Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city." Let us pray that we are among the blessed!

The Bible has, surprisingly, a lot to say about being a fool. In the Old Testament we are told many things about what kind of person a fool is. They: Despise wisdom and instruction. (Proverbs 1:7) Bring grief to their mother. (Proverbs 10:1) Utter slander. (Proverbs 10: 18) Are reckless and careless. (Proverbs 14: 16) Have a hasty temper. (Proverbs 14: 29) Despise their father's instructions. (Proverbs 15:5) Don't care about knowledge but just want to say what they think. (Proverbs 18:2) Have lips that invite a fight. (Proverbs 18: 6) Enjoy quarreling. (Proverbs 20:3) Say what they think, while a wise person holds back. (Proverbs 28:11) Say in their heart, "There is no God." (Psalm 14:1) There is more, much more but the general theme is the same. They don't listen to others, they are quick tempered, they talk too much, they don't believe in God, they are angry, they don't like to be instructed or listen to people who know more than they do. Weakness Shames The World In the New Testament, Paul says in I Corinthians 1: 27 that God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. He tells us that God chose weak thinks to shame the mighty. Indeed, through the power of the Holy Spirit working in poor, uneducated men, men that the world would have considered to be foolish; Christianity spread throughout the known world. Jesus showed the educated and powerful that, by dying willingly on a Roman cross, weakness would put the world to shame. God continues to use those who have no power in themselves to show the world the one true power - Christ our Lord. The Rich Fool In Luke 12: 13-21 we read the parable of the rich fool. He stores up more and more riches for himself only to die, lose his money, and be declared a fool. He was a fool because he did not use his riches to bless the lives of others. He only wanted more for himself. Foolish and Wise Virgins In Matthew 25: 1-13 our Lord has yet another parable about foolishness. The wise virgins took oil with their lamps to be prepared for their bridegroom coming in the night but the foolish virgins did not. While the foolish ones were away trying to buy oil at the last second, the bridegroom arrived, and since they were gone, they were not invited to the wedding. His point being that we must be ready at all times for His (our bridegroom's) return. To The Perishing The Cross Is Foolishness Writing in I Corinthians 1:18 Paul explains that to those who are perishing the cross is foolishness but for Christians it is quite the opposite. The cross is the power of God. For the lost the message of Jesus and the cross is ridiculous. They have no understanding and want none. They are complacent. But when we encounter God, and His Spirit fills us, we understand that the cross IS the power of God. Paul continues in I Corinthians 2: 14 to say this: "But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." Without God in your life all of this "Christianity stuff" seems like words on a page. Words written 2,000 years ago that don't apply to today. The words of a foolish group of people believing that a carpenter was God, sent to die and be resurrected for the sins of the world. Only through the Holy Spirit can these precious words of salvation be understood. All of our wise talk will convince no one of the truth of the cross. Only the Holy Spirit can do that. We Once Were Foolish Titus tells us in chapter 3 verse 3 that we were once foolish, before we became a Christian. Since we were once foolish, we are to be gentle, humble and peaceable when we talk with non-believers. We don't boast about being wise. Whatever we have become is only by the power of the Holy Spirit working in us. A Fool Or A Fool For Christ To be a fool for Christ is to willingly accept being made fun of, accept persecution, accept being called a fool and an idiot. To be a fool for Christ is to love others more than yourself, to forgive those who hate you, to do things that Christ calls us to do whether they seem to make sense to us or not, to reach out and touch others for God, but not in our own wisdom. "Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Corinthians 12: 10 Why is Paul strong? Because he knows that in his weakness all he can rely on is God. So, it may seem foolish to the world to "take pleasure" in bad things, but when it is for the sake of Christ it will make us stronger than we can imagine. Let us embrace the cross, the very thing the world views as foolishness, so we can be made perfect in weakness.

Are we the followers of Christ? The living God? Yes, indeed we are! Should we be timid and afraid? Should we look to the things of the world for happiness? No! Should we seek after Jesus and Him only? Yes absolutely! Should we be silent? No! Should we be loving, humble, kind, generous, and forgiving? Yes! Are We Appeasers? The church today too often has become an appeaser. That is a word you don't hear much anymore. When you appease someone, you say what they want to hear so you make them happy. You don't create conflict. Why does Jesus say He brings a sword (Matthew 10: 34)? Because Jesus speaks words that are truly counter cultural. His words tell us to love those who hate us. His words tell us to forgive those who hurt us, over and over. His words tell us to not be like the world. His words tell us to speak truth in humility when no one else will. His word requires us to NOT be appeasers. What Does Jesus Promise Us? Does Jesus promise us wealth? No! Does Jesus promise us a care free life? No! What we see is a world where some missionaries are saved from certain death and yet some are martyred for Jesus's sake. What we see is a world where some die as infants and some live to an old age. What we see are places where people who love God live in abject poverty and some live a comfortable life. Why? Even Paul, at some times in his life he was saved from ship wrecks and imprisonment and at another time he was slaughtered for the cause of Christ. We have a purpose known to God. Living According to God's Purpose Most telling is something that was recorded about King David's death in Acts 13: 36, "Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed." So according to Acts, when David had served God's purpose he died. This doesn't mean that David couldn't have done greater deeds or continued doing good for God, what it does mean is that God's specific purpose for the life of his servant David was finished. A greater joy awaited David than he could ever imagine. On his death bed David told Solomon to walk in obedience to the Lord (I Kings 2: 2-4). What greater advice can we give our children? The Bigger Picture We don't often see the big picture that God sees. Will our healing bring others to Christ or will people seek Him when they see us die with faith? Will our ability to accept poverty lead others to Christ or will we make His word known more by our ability to give from our wealth? Will our suffering help us to see what Jesus endured for us? God only sees the bigger picture. A person I know had a child die and donated many organs to others. This child's death gave life to several children who would have died. Only God sees the big picture of life. Only God knows the "why". What Can We Offer? We often find ourselves in a place where we feel we have nothing to offer God. Can we still pray? Are we laying in a sick bed teaching others the lesson of true serving, true giving? Can we do the job that no one else wants to do? The job that is looked upon as unimportant but to God is just one of many roles necessary for the body of Christ to function. No part of the body is more important than another. Living God's Purpose We pray more than anything that like David our lives will serve God's purpose in our generation. Will we stand for Christ when no one else will? Pray that God gives us Holy Ghost strength to live out our lives in His service - no matter the cost. We are a holy nation chosen to declare the praises of the One who called us out of darkness (I Peter 2: 9)! Enjoy this hymn, God of Purpose by Metro Life Worship. For more on this topic go here.

I live in a farming community and my husband is a farmer. He has a particular way that he likes to see a field worked, particular equipment he likes to use and a particular schedule to get his fields prepared for planting. In I Corinthians 3: 9 Paul uses a metaphor comparing the church to a field. "For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building." God's Field Paul discusses the fact that he and Apollos were both doing the job that God required them to do. They both prepared the field, the church, in their own way. They are nothing important. Only God, who uses them to do His will, matters. As Paul says, "God gives the increase." Christ is the Foundation As one farmer does things one way to produce a good crop and another farmer has a different way that also produces a good crop, so preachers and teachers come and go but the thing that matters is that Christ is the foundation of their teaching and preaching. We are not to align ourselves with a person, but with Christ. Act Like the Church We are not to align ourselves with a building but with the One who builds. We are the church, not our beautiful places of worship. When we act like the church, the true church grows. When we fail to act it does not. What good is a field if it produces nothing? What good is a building without a firm foundation? We Must Interact How do we "act like the church"? We throw around this expression a lot but what does it really mean? We are, as our Lord tells us, a light to the world. If we stay to ourselves all the time and never interact with others, how can we be a light? It is easy to say we don't have time to get involved with other people but that is our duty as children of God. We are to show the world hope when it seems hopeless, to love when it seems no one does and to care when others do nothing. Make a Difference Being the church doesn't require anything especially difficult. It just means not looking the other way when we see that we can make a difference. Does your neighbor's yard who has been out of town for a few days need some trash picked up? Does your elderly neighbor need to be checked on? Does someone need a shoulder to lean on, or a listening ear just so they know someone cares? Can you help in your community by volunteering in some way? Do we go the extra mile? Remember, we serve because He served. Take Your Opportunities We are all so busy these days it seems. It feels like we are too busy to attend to the needs of others, but that is how we are used as salt and light. Even the smallest things we can do can make a difference in the lives of those around us. And if we have the opportunity to share Christ with them while we do it, so much the better. For those who are disabled and elderly, you can offer your prayers. Nothing is more needed now than that. Why Are We In Church If we believe the church is failing people these days perhaps, we should look inward. How are we failing Christ by not showing His love to others? Do we demand that those who preach and teach place Christ above everything else? Are we in church for a performance, for a feel-good message, for what WE can get from it, or are we there to worship our wonderful, loving God? Sharing Ourselves Years ago my pastor used to say that we should give God our time, our talents and our treasures. What we have in this world was given to us by Him, so it is our duty to share those blessings with others. We may find ourselves easily sharing our time but hesitant to share our talents. We may find ourselves sharing our treasures but jealously guarding our time. God wants us to open our hearts fully and completely to Him, so that people around us see Him in everything we do. For more on what God expects of us click here. Enjoy the hymn - He Wants it All by Forever Jones- here.

I remember as a child reading scary fairy tales. In one story a child wandered off into the woods alone. As the child realized he couldn't find his way back he would call out for his Mommy and Daddy. Further into the woods he would wander, still calling all the while, not realizing that because he had wandered so far from home his Mother and Father could not hear him. Inevitably the child would wander into some sort of danger, a witch's house, an ogre lair, or any number of things. Eventually somehow there would be a happy ending and the child would be reunited with his family. Dangerous Paths Lead Us Away from God Our lives are very much like this. We wander further and further down dangerous paths, all the while calling out to God in prayer, not understanding why He seemingly doesn't answer, but it is not He who has left, it is us. We live in unrepentant sin, doing things we know that God would not have us do and still we expect Him to give us the desires of our heart. (John 9:31) That dangerous path often leads to a terrible destination - the consequences of our sin. If we die before we find God we go to an awful place. Regardless though, that dangerous path has a price to pay. Perhaps it is wounded relationships, lost health, or any number of other things. (Galatians 6: 7-8) We Need to Want to Return In the story of the Prodigal Son, the son's path took him far from his father. He didn't think he needed him. All he needed was his father's money which he immediately wasted. When the son came to his senses, it was he who returned to his father. His father was waiting for him, confident that he would return, but his father did not go out and hunt him down and drag him back home. He wanted the son to WANT to return. He wanted the son to learn a lesson. (Luke 15: 11-32) Are You Distracted? Does God's voice seem to be far away? Is it hard to hear Him? Do you feel lost and alone? It may be that you have gone wandering. Sometimes it is so easy to do. We get distracted like a child on a woodland path. Children see a pretty flower or glimpse a cottontail and thinking they won't get lost, wander after it. We are the same. We see a pretty flower only to discover it is deadly poison or glimpse a cottontail only to realize it is really the tail of a bear. (Isaiah 59:2) Our Father Directs Us If you as a parent, have ever gone walking in the woods with your child, you know you can't let them wander to explore everything they want to look at. You have to guide them; you have to direct the paths they take. You do this because you love them and don't want them to get hurt. If we stay near our Heavenly Father, He also will direct our paths. He, above all, knows what is truly good for us. (Isaiah 58:11; Psalm 32:8) God Forgives One blessed thing is always true. God forgives. When we come to our senses, when we realize that God can't hear us because we've gotten too far from Him, we can come back. All He desires is our sincere repentance. He waits with His open, loving arms to wrap us up in love, to encourage us and to be there for us. (I John 1: 9) Not My Will Even as our faith grows there are times when it is difficult to hear His voice. Maybe it isn't the things we are doing that is the problem, but the things we aren't doing. As we progress in holiness towards being more like Him, He reveals more and more things to us that He wants us to give to Him. He wants all of us, holding nothing back, truly surrendering every thought and every deed to His will. He wants us to be able to honestly say, "Not my will, but yours.". (Ephesians 4: 20-24) Lord, Have Your Way The writer of the great old hymn, "Have Thine Own Way, Lord" was inspired by this simple prayer. "It really doesn't matter what you do with us, Lord–just have your way with our lives." When He has His way with us, we will be so close to Him that when He whispers, we will hear Him. What a blessed life that would be, and a life that we can have, walking next to our beloved Savior. (Colossians 2: 6)

"I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; For You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety." Psalm 4:8 How often do we lie down and toss and turn and worry? How often are we unable to sleep because we are surrounded by difficulties, problems, sickness, or death? As a Christian how do we say with David, "I will both lie down in peace, and sleep"? David Sleeps Peacefully When David wrote this Psalm he was being pursued, hunted by his enemies. At every turn it seemed he would be overpowered and killed. And yet, he tells us that it is the Lord himself who allows him to have peace and lie down at night to sleep. David is not tossed and turned by negative emotions. David knows it is God who makes him "dwell in safety." God is in Control It is not God's will for us to lie awake at night, worried and concerned. That doesn't mean that our concerns are not important. What it does mean is that we should be able to sleep peacefully knowing that our Lord is in control: "As the mountains surround Jerusalem, So the Lord surrounds His people From this time forth and forever." Psalm 125:2 knowing that our future is in His hands: "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11 and knowing that He wants to give us good things: "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!" Matthew 7:11 Wisdom Brings Sweet Sleep In Proverbs 3 Solomon extolls wisdom and understanding. This chapter in Proverbs gives us a guide for how to gain wisdom and understanding. He tells us: Do not forget God's commandments. (3: 1-2) Be merciful and truthful. (3: 3-4) Do not think you are wise, but fear God and let Him guide you. (3: 5-6) Honor the Lord with what He has blessed you with. (3: 9-10) Happily accept God's corrections. (3: 11-12) By keeping these things close to your heart, he says in verse 21: "When you lie down, you will not be afraid; Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet." These guidelines for living will bring us that sweet sleep that many of us are longing for. Rest is something in short supply for many. Our Lord, in His word, tells us if we are obedient to His word that we will be blessed with rest, something many of us desperately need. He Whispers Sweet Peace to Me Isaiah 26:3 tells us: "You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You." How wonderful it is to know that we can have "perfect peace" and that to have this we need to keep ourselves focused on God and trust Him with our futures. In this troubling world we live in today that is an important lesson to remember! Sleep peacefully! Enjoy the hymn He Whispers Sweet Peace to Me sung by Ponder, Sykes and Wright.

Parable of the Vineyard Workers The parable of the workers in the vineyard in Matthew 20: 1-16 has many lessons to teach us. One thing we know, the kingdom of God is an upside-down kingdom compared to the world. In this parable a landowner hires workers for his vineyard at the beginning of the day for a specified wage (a denarius). He then continues to hire workers all through the day until nearly quitting time. When wages are paid, he pays the ones hired last first and surprisingly pays them a denarius even though they only worked a short time. The ones hired first get a little excited, anticipating more money, but to their surprise they too receive a denarius. When they complain, the landowner tells them it is his money to do with as he pleases. Then he repeats a phrase we have heard before in verse 16, "So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen" Fairness v Grace In our world fairness would demand that the workers who worked fewer hours should have been paid less. In God's world payment isn't based on fairness but on generosity, on grace. If God is the landowner and the payment, the reward is Heaven, then thanks be to God that we don't receive what we deserve. God rewards us with His grace. Ephesians 2:8 tells us that we have been saved by grace and that it is God's gift. Thankfully God deals with us according to His nature and not ours. All Parts Are Needed But what does the reaction of the workers hired first tell us? It tells us that they were jealous, envious of the workers hired last. When we see God bless others in a way that we think they don't deserve how do we react? Do we think, "But God why them and not me? God don't you know what they did?" Shouldn't we rejoice that a member of God's kingdom was used for His glory? Since we are all part of the body of Christ and all parts are necessary for the proper functioning of that body, we should share their honor. As I Corinthians 12:21 reminds us, no part of the body can say to the other that they are not needed. All are needed. Laborers are Few It is interesting that the landowner had so much work for these laborers that he continued hiring them, even into the later part of the day. In fact, he asks these workers why were they standing idle. This reminds me of Matthew 9:37 where the Lord tells his disciples, "The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few." Are we guilty of "standing idle" in the service of God? The laborers replied that they were idle " because no man had hired them ." As Christians, we can't say that we haven't been hired. 2 Timothy 2:15 says that we should be a worker without shame , approved by God. Our God is the Lord of the harvest (Matthew 9:38). An Upside-Down Kingdom This parable shows that God's value system is the opposite of the worlds. In God's Kingdom the first are last; strength is perfected in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:10); the proud are opposed by Him but the humble are blessed with grace (James 4:6); the foolish shame the wise (I Corinthians 1:28); and in Matthew 21:31-32 Jesus tells the Pharisees, those great rule followers, that tax collectors and prostitutes would live in God's kingdom before them. In the Beatitudes, in Matthew chapter 5, our Lord lists those who are blessed and it is not who the world would consider blessed; the meek, the mourners, the persecuted. God's values are not the worlds. Stewards of Grace When we work in God's kingdom what should we expect? Our labor may cause us to experience suffering and death. This is what it cost our Savior . When we serve in the Kingdom of God, we may not be very happy about where that service may lead us. God does not call us all to such extreme sacrifice but each in his own way is expected to use their gifts to serve others. Why? Because we are stewards of God's grace . (I Peter 4:10) A steward is someone placed in charge of something that is not their own. We are workers in the service of our King and this labor is not in vain (I Corinthians 15:58). Gift of God Our King has a heavenly reward for us all. We thank Him that the length of our service or even the extent of it, is not what determines this reward. All of us must labor in the vineyard (James 2:26) but grace, and not what we deserve, is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8).

In a world filled with despair, gone crazy as many people say today, our hope is in Christ. Paul tells us to be filled with joy and peace. How does this happen? By the power of the Holy Spirit, hope can fill us (Romans 15:13). Rejoice In Hope When I was in my 20's I was told that I would not be able to have children. I simply would not accept that. I had hope that God would give me the desires of my heart and that was to have a family, to have children. For me the Bible verse that I repeated nearly every day was Hebrews 11:1 which says this, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." In His time the Lord answered my prayers. My husband and I's first child was born when I was 39, our second at 42 and we adopted a third child at 45. I thank God for the precious gifts of my children. There really IS always hope. The Bible is filled with hope. In Romans 12: 10-13 Paul reminds us to rejoice in hope. Paul was imprisoned, beaten, and eventually killed for telling the world about Christ. His hope didn't just lie in his present life, his hope was in his future life with Christ in Heaven. Hope In The Word In Romans 15:4 Paul reminds us that we find our hope in the word of God. "For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope." Paul says that the Scriptures provide patience and comfort and that that will give us hope. Through God's word we find hope in knowing that God has provided us a way to be with Him eternally through the gift of His Son. Through God's word we learn more about God, that He can be trusted, that He is faithful and that He loves us unconditionally. The Lord takes pleasure in those who have hope in His mercy (Psalm 147:11). We know the Lord is merciful because "while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8b). The Holy Spirit who lives in us, if we are Christians, testifies to His mercy in our lives. We know we can never deserve His blessings that we receive every day. Hope Renews Us In Isaiah 40:31 we read this: "But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." The word "wait" is often translated "hope". Our hope in the Lord renews us and gives us strength to go on no matter what challenges or trials we may face. We won't be tired when we hope. We won't faint when we hope. Often, we feel like the world is waying us down and that it is impossible to go on and this is exactly how the Devil wants us to feel. Christ, however, offers hope. Hope of a blessed future with Him. Faith and Hope Once more in Romans 8:18 Paul calls us to hope. Our hope is truly, as Paul says, "in the glory which shall be revealed." Our faith itself is "the substance of things hoped for". Our faith is the "evidence of things not seen." The Bible has so much to say about hope. When you feel like giving up, go to the Word, find your Hope. Not in yourself, but in the One who sees you and loves you, our Savior. In Him we rejoice in hope. Jesus, Lover of My Soul - Charles Wesley Jesus, lover of my soul, let me to Thy bosom fly, While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high. Hide me, O my Savior, hide, till the storm of life is past; Safe into the haven guide; O receive my soul at last.

Moses Sings In Deuteronomy 32 Moses sings a song to the people of Israel. This song of Moses was to remind the people of who their great God was. He sang to remind them of how without God they would still be in Egypt as slaves. He sang to warn them of becoming too 'fat' with all the blessings that God had provided for them (Deuteronomy 32:15). How easy it was for them, and for us, to forget where our blessings have come from. How easy to lose our way if we don't pay attention to what is truly important. Worshipping Other Gods The Israelites would forget their God and run after new gods. They would worship idols. Who do we worship? Who do we give reverence, respect and awe to? Is it to God or to celebrities, to politicians, to the rich and powerful, or perhaps just to ourselves. Is it to an ideology, to science, to academics? We may not bow down in front of a statue but people can still worship other 'gods'. God Hides His Face What comes from forgetting God? Moses says in verses 19-25 that initially God would "hide His face" from the people. The people would not so easily sense His presence. They would not feel the burden of their sins so greatly. When that does not bring them to their senses, He says He will bring famine, pestilence, plague, wild beasts, venomous snakes and the sword to the land. It is then that the people will see their sin, then they will realize what they took for granted and then that they will call upon God to save them. Words of Life All of this is to remind the people of what can happen to them when they forget God. Moses tells the people to take his words to heart and he goes on to say in Deuteronomy 32: 47 (a) NIV, "They are not just idle words for you--they are your life." Moses emphasizes the importance of obedience. What happens when we become so satisfied with our easy lives that we forget God. That is when disaster strikes. Wouldn't the Devil like us to believe that the word of God is "just idle words"? Wouldn't he like for us to believe that whether we obey God or not is not important? Wouldn't he like for us to replace God with idols, or better yet, put ourselves on the throne of our heart? But Moses tells us that these words are so important that they "are your life." These thoughts are reiterated in Proverbs 4: 20-23. Here Solomon tells us to pay attention to these words because in them is life. In John 6: 63 (b) Jesus (who is the Word made flesh) says, "The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." Wandering Ways In our nation today we see the problems that come as successive generations drift farther and farther away from these words of life. G.K. Chesterton once said, "When people stop believing in God, they do not believe in nothing. They believe in anything." Today too many people have replaced God with other gods. They have replaced Him with other belief systems. They don't understand who He really is. We need to pray for ourselves that we don't wander from these words of life. As Proverbs 21: 16 says, "A man who wanders from the way of understanding Will rest in the assembly of the dead." Return We must pray also for our nation that it will return to the God who has blessed us so greatly and seek His face while we still can. We will pray to never forget that, "He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he." Deuteronomy 32:4 (NIV)

It is easy to give in to the feeling that we have been abandoned by God. Our circumstances may be bleak, our health gone, our loved ones no longer with us or our path uncertain. In Isaiah the Israelites felt the same way. They had been in captivity in Babylon for many decades. They felt abandoned by God. A Just Punishment But this abandonment they were experiencing was the punishment of a just and righteous God. A God who loved them more than a woman loves her infant (Isaiah 49:15). God informed the Israelites that even though a woman might, though rarely, forget her love for her child He would never forget. Their captivity in Babylon was a punishment that would certainly end in due time. Engraved On His Palms In Isaiah 49:16 God says that He had "engraved them on the palms of His hands." Of course God does not have real, physical hands. This was a metaphor for His relationship with His people. In this time, pagan worshippers often would place marks on their palms to signify who it was they worshipped. In this verse we learn that it is God, the One we worship, who has placed us on the palms of His hands. Engraved With Nails This engraving points to something deeper. In the past it was man who sacrificed to their gods, but in the person of Christ, it was Jesus who made the supreme sacrifice for us. This sacrifice was visible in the nail scars in His hands. How much plainer could God have made it, that His love was so great that He sent His Son to die for us? Engraved Permanently The choice of the word, engraved, which is khakak in Hebrew, means to carve or etch deeply. This was not a superficial mark. This would be similar to what one would see on a tombstone. This was not a mark that would fade with time or wash away. This mark would be permanent. Always Loved We are ever mindful to our God and Father. We are the sheep that our Shepherd tends. Each of us so important, so loved, that He would leave the ninety-nine to search for the one lost (Matthew 18: 10-14). Israel, the Church, and each of us individually, are engraved on His palms and in this we find our great hope. Bound On Our Heart In similar terms the Lord told the Israelites that His words should be in their heart and bound as a sign on their hand (Deuteronomy 6: 6-8; 11:18). The one to whom we are devoted is the one whose name is on our hands and in our heart. In Revelation, the Antichrist places his mark on the hand or forehead of his worshippers (Revelation 13:16; 14:9; 20:4). Never Abandoned We may even believe, collectively, that the church has been abandoned by God as the people of Israel were. Writing almost 200 years ago a famous Bible commentator, John Gill had this to say about the church in the days he was living in, "...because of the low and declining state of the interest of Christ, as it now is; few being converted by the ministry of the word; great opposition made to the truths of the Gospel with success; the ordinances of it perverted or neglected; the presence of God in them very little enjoyed; great indifference and lukewarmness among professors of religion, and discord and dissensions in churches..." The temptation was to believe the church had been forsaken by God. But it has not, nor will it ever be! Never Forsaken We are promised in Deuteronomy 4:31 and in Deuteronomy 31: 6-8 that God will never leave us or forsake us. These words are repeated in the New Testament in Hebrews 13:5. As Christians we may have periods in our life where we don't feel God's presence as strongly as in past times or perhaps we have waited a long time for a promise from God. This doesn't mean God has abandoned us. We are still engraved on the palms of His hands. Remember these words from Psalm 103: 17, "But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children" Enjoy the beautiful song, Never Alone, by Jason Upton, here.

Living in a youth centered culture today it is interesting to look at the Bible and what it has to say about being old. Old people today are usually considered unnecessary. Older people's opinions or advice is often ignored or thought to be uninformed. It is the young who have the knowledge and wisdom to guide us and inform our important decisions. The Bible has a totally opposite view of things. With The Aged Is Wisdom In Leviticus 19:32 we are told to honor the elderly and fear the Lord. Job 12:12 tells us that wisdom and understanding are with the old. In the New Testament, Peter tells us in I Peter 5:1-5 that the young in the church should be subject to the elders. I Timothy 5:17 explains that the ruling elders should be doubly honored. The Wise Heed Advice Perhaps more important even than age is the ability of someone to take advice. Proverbs 19:20 says that to grow wise we should listen to advice and accept instruction. Proverbs 12:15 says that the wise listen to advice but the fool thinks he is always right. Proverbs has much more to say about the difference between the wise and the foolish. Rehoboam Asks For Advice There is a story in the Bible about King Rehoboam who asked for advice (I Kings 12: 1-24). First a little about King Rehoboam. He was the son of Solomon and the first King of Judah (King of the South) after Israel split into two kingdoms. His reign lasted seventeen years. The King was approached by Jeroboam who asked that the heavy load of labor and taxes be lightened on the people of Israel. They had been heavily burdened by Rehoboam's father, Solomon, for the building of the temple in Jerusalem. It was at this point that the King asked for advice. It was a good thing that he sought advice. This is what wise people do. But it is important to be aware of who is giving the advice and why. His older advisers counseled the king to listen to the people and lighten their burden. If he did this the people would be loyal to him. His younger advisers who he had grown up with, perhaps wanting to feed his ego, told him to threaten the people with even harsher burdens. He took the younger adviser's counsel and the result was that the people of Israel rebelled and made Jeroboam their king (King of the North). Rehoboam's story is a good example of why it is a bad choice to surround yourself with what is referred to as "yes men". These are people who, for whatever reason, only tell you what you want to hear. Often times our companions and friends, our peers, will be more likely to agree with our decisions and less likely to challenge us when they think we are making a mistake. God Is The Ultimate Source For Wisdom Is older always wiser? Certainly not! Every old person we meet is not necessarily wise. Any advice we take should be from someone who loves and serves God. Who we ask is as important as how old they are. Even then God is our ultimate source for what is right for our lives. Prayer and Bible study should go with every decision we make. We also have to remain open minded when we receive advice. If we have already made up our mind what we are going to do and only pray or seek advice basically "for show" then it is pointless. Older and Wiser Proverbs 11:12 says that the humble person is a wise person. In the New Testament James says that if we ask for wisdom from God, He will give it to us (James 1:5). It is not so much that a person is old and that is what makes them wise, no, it is that they have learned to listen to God. They have learned humility. Our elders, practically, have learned to take advice from the One who is the Wisdom of the Ages. This is contrasted against the "wisdom of this age" that Paul refers to in I Corinthians 2:6. This is the world's wisdom. This is what Proverbs 14:12 is talking about when it says that there is a way that seems right to a man but it leads to death. Is Pride Stopping You? Pride, ultimately, is what often keeps us from seeking advice from older and wiser people. Pride keeps us from also seeking God's counsel on decisions we make in our lives. Too often we think we can make good decisions alone, with help from no one. We often think we are smarter, perhaps more sophisticated in worldly things, than our elders. Older, godly people have much to offer us. They have learned from God, in their mistakes and in their good decisions. Seek God first and then seek wise counsel because this is God's word to His people. Don't let pride be the reason for bad decisions. Proverbs 16:18 reminds us of what happens to a prideful person, "Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall."