Shall the Dead Arise? (2 Kings 13, 2 Chron 24) – June 19

Even the embers from the fire of the Holy Ghost can spark new life.  I love the story of the man who came back to life just by touching Elisha’s dead bones.  He was completely dead – no life in him.  Elisha had done 13 miracles at this point.  Elijah had done 7.  Elisha asked for a double portion of Elijah’s spirit, and it was granted to him.  One more miracle was to come when he died. How can someone do a miracle after he is dead? 

 This Sunday, I will be preaching at my church, and my direction right now is to preach out of Psalm 88.  It is a Psalm of discouragement and talks about someone having a really bad day – really bad.  Everything seems to be going wrong, and it is a lamentation over the situation the writer is in.  But then along comes verse 10, which asks the question “Shall the Dead Arise to Praise You?”  This question caused me to write a poem 4 years ago that rings out with praise.  Yes, the dead shall arise to praise God.  Here we see that happening.  

In Jesus we see that happening. We were all dead in our trespasses and iniquities.  But Jesus took upon hHimself all our sins, all our shame. all our guilt, all our wrongs.  He stretched His arms out on the cross to die for you and me.  He was laid in a borrowed tomb and rose again from the dead on the third day.  He arose to praise God.  He arose to give us a way to the Father.  He arose to be with us forevermore. He arose so that we could all rise from the death of sin we were in, and live to praise God, for His mercy endures forever!

We serve a powerful God.  A God that has all authority in heaven and earth.  Perhaps today our Spirit lies dormant, barely breathing.  Perhaps I have fallen back into some of my sinful ways.  Perhaps I feel dead inside me because of the quilt and shame of my recurring sin.  I shall not fear.  By the power of Almighty God, I can rise from that death and praise Him once again.  He will pick me up out of that miry clay, and set my feet on the rock to stay. He is my deliverer and my redeemer.  I shall arise again and praise Him!

Miracles Enjoined (1 Kings 17-20) – June 11

The stories of Elijah have always intrigued me.  How could such amazing miracles happen in Israel and they still disregarded God?  I have to wonder how many of the Israelites were aware that Elijah had done these things.  They knew about the fire coming down from heaven to burn up the altar and the offering because they were all there. But did they know it was Elijah that said there would be three years of famine?  I am sure they did not know about the woman of Zarephath and the miracles done for her.  They certainly did not know about the still small voice.  It also intrigues me that so many events were recorded in Kings and Chronicles, yet Chronicles says nothing about a great man like Elijah.

It makes me wonder how much we  are paying attentio\n to what God is doing in our midst today.  There was an incredible move of God at Asbury College in Kentucky, and many of us heard about that.  But how about the move of God that is taking place today in Iran, Thailand, Myanmar, Algeria, India and Africa?  If I look up modern day miracles, there are all kinds of stories about miracles happening around the world.  I don;t even have to go that far, as I have witnessed several miracles in my own life.  Cancer healed, storms moved,finances met.  There are stories all around us that the world discounts, but we as believers know are true.

It is time that we took a step back and listened for that still small voice.  Elijhah travelled about 250 miles to hear from God, then returned that 250 miles.  We should not have to go any further than our prayers closet to hear from God.  We need to still ourselves so that we know it is the voice of God.  All that Elihah did, He did because he was hearing from God.  How often am I taking the time to hear from God, and how often am I quiet enough that I can hear His voice?  AMong all the chaos and noise of this world, God is still doing miracles and He is still wanting to talk with us.  He wants us to figure out what we are DOING here, and what we are doing HERE.  God has placed us where we are, and He has a plan for our lives.  Am I listening close enough to hear that plan?  And am I moving out, once I have heard from God and doing what He has asked not to,

Take time today to get still before God and listen for that still, small voice. He is calling you and asking you to make Himself known among your neighbors and friends.  The field is ripe for harvest, and He has sent each one of us to be that miracle for someone else.  There are no greater miracles than that of a life transformed by Jesus Christ.  Share your miracle with others today because you are a walking miracle.

It seems these shingles just do not want to go away.  One day things seem better and then the next, they are back to the same state.  I think I am just learning to cope with it better most of the time.  I covet your continued prayers.

It’s No Coincidence

What miraculous signs has God given you in your life?  You may say none, but I would endeavor to guess that they are there if you really look for them.  Perhaps you have never seen them as miracles, but mere coincidence.  I can say with certainty that there are no coincidences in life.  God orders the steps of the righteous, and brings things about even in the unrighteous man’s life in order to draw Him closer to a decision for Christ.

When I was around 11, we lived on Goodale Street in West Boylston, Mass.  There were two very large maple trees in our yard, and they were perfect to climb.  One day, I climbed to the very  top – high enough to stick my hand out of the top of the tree and wave to my friend on the ground.  It was not a smart thing to do, but it gave me bragging rights, which are all important to an 11 year old.  I should have dropped through that tree as the tender, small branches bent under my feet.  But I did not.  That’s a miracle. In my early twenties, I was an alcoholic, and was a crazy driver.  We would drive down unfinished Interstate highways at 110 mph passing beers back and forth from car to car.  I should not have survived that.  My  friend and I were driving my Triumph Spitfire down a back road, very drunk and way too fast for the curves that lurked ahead, and hit a patch of sand while going around a corner.  We flipped the car several times and landed on the tires.  It’s a miracle we did not get a scratch on us. On my way back home from  my first trip to Iowa, after getting saved in my friend’s mobile home, I drove a good part of the way with a wobble in the car.  I typically drove between 70 and 80 back then, never getting caught for speeding – a miracle.  But when I arrived home, my mechanic said I had a broken tie rod.  It’s a miracle the wheel did not fall off during the journey.  Meeting my wife was a miracle, and too long of a story to write here.  Moving to Iowa and leaving a cushy job in Mass was a miracle.  Surviving cancer, driving back to visit home with a detached retina safely, having a chemo induced dead shoulder come back to life so quickly, my daughter going from high school dropout to a double masters in accounting and another daughter becoming drug free.  All miracles.

These miracles have made me realize that God is always with me.  I can not understand how the nation of Israel could forget about the miracles of Egypt, the crossing of the Red Sea, manna, water and quails from nowhere, and a pillar of fire and a cloud leading the way.  How could they not think that God would help them in this new land?  They had seen so much!  I guess maybe they thought all these things were just coincidence, that God had not really delivered them.  That is the only explanation I can think of that would make them want to go back to the slavery of Egypt.  And it made God angry.  He wanted to destroy them all because they had forgotten Him.  

But Moses – ah, the humility of the man.  He prayed to God and turned His anger.  He explained to God that if He destroyed the people in the wilderness, it would tarnish His name.  God does not want His name tarnished.  It is a sacred name.  It is holy and true, long-suffering and gracious.  God will glorify His name at any chance He can, and we should do the same.  Our country was founded by people who were seeking, among other things, religious freedom.  But we have forgotten all the miracles that have kept this country strong through the decades.  They are too countless to list here, so I ask you to consider them.  Then, let us bow before God and admit we have sinned.  Let us come before His throne with all humility and plead the case for our great nation, that we would return to God.  We have already killed off a generation through abortion.  It’s time to turn the tide, and return to the God who is the only one that can save this nation from destruction.  Donald Trump can’t do it.  Joe Biden can’t do it.  No politician can do it.  No laws can be put in place to accomplish it.  Only a deep, spirit-filled revival in the hearts of men, women and children can bring this about.  It is no coincidence you have been out on this earth at this time.  You are here to rescue this nation.  It’s time for the church to put aside denominations ,and dissension and bickering about doctrine or what version of the word is best. It’s time to humble ourselves, and pray, seek the Lord and turn from our wicked ways!  A miracle is in the works!