What an incredible family line! Moses’ father-in-law Jethro was the ancestor of the Kenite family line, and from this family tree came a man named Recab.
The Recabite family was of immense help to the Israelites. They served as scouts for them, and they joined in the battle to defeat the Canaanites in Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron. Years later a Recabite named Jonadab was with King Jehu when he rid Israel of King Ahab’s evil influence of Baal worship.
Jonadab called the Recabite family to follow him in living a holy lifestyle. He set some incredibly high standards for them, but for the next 200+ years the Recabite family held to these standards. Even as the nation of Judah was carried into captivity because of their gross sin against God, the Recabite family stood solidly for God, never getting caught up in society’s pull toward sin.
Their fidelity toward God wasn’t without notice. Here’s an incredibly powerful statement: God said, “Jonadab son of Recab will never fail to have a man serve Me.”
Think about that. A family line that is always serving God for generation after generation after generation. That’s what I want. It took Jonadab making a dramatic counter-cultural stand for his faith in God and then passing that on to his family. Wow!
For the sake of never failing to have my descendants serve God, I am willing to make a stand. I am ready to live counter-culturally. I’m going to stand strong. What about you?
It was a beautiful sunny evening. All of my work was done, Betsy was home from school, our cooler was packed, and we were off to the park. We were all looking forward to spend this lovely evening grilling some hotdogs, splashing in the water, enjoying the breeze off the lake, and just spending time as a family.
But like an unexpected rear-end collision, all our plans for a fun evening were smashed in a single moment. As we were carrying our cooler and towels and toys toward the picnic tables, a couple of my kids acted up… they broke some of our family no-no’s.
Their actions took less than two seconds. It was just between two of them. But the entire family was affected. We turned around and headed home. No hotdogs on the open grill, no beach time, no after-dinner walk on the trails.
Two made a mistake, but all suffered because actions have consequences.
Isaac Newton said for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. We often think of this when, for instance, in a game of billiards the cue ball hits another ball. The energy from the cue ball is transferred to the other ball, moving it in the direction it was struck. Sometimes we might be tempted to believe that the only two balls affected were the cue ball and the ball that was struck. But that is not correct. Since those two balls have now been moved to another position on the table, their new positions now affected the entire table—the entire game is now different because of action and reaction.
There are consequences for our actions. And almost always those consequences are felt by someone other than the one who acted. Sometimes the consequences are pleasant and sometimes they are painful or even disastrous.
In Old Testament history, we see good consequences. King David was a righteous man, one who loved God and obeyed God’s commands. About 300 years later King Hezekiah sat on the same throne of Israel. When the Assyrian army was headed toward Jerusalem, Hezekiah prayed and asked for God’s help. God responded, “I promise that the king of Assyria won’t get into Jerusalem, or shoot an arrow into the city, or even surround it and prepare to attack. … I will protect it for Myself and for My servant David.”
And we see bad consequences. There was a wicked king of Judah named Manasseh. He is not only one of Judah’s longest-reigning kings, but he is also widely regarded as Judah’s most wicked king. Yet in his lifetime, his kingdom seemed to prosper. And even though his grandson Josiah turned away from evil and turned toward God like no other king ever had done before, just four years after his death Jerusalem fell. King Jehoiachin was defeated and all of Judah was carried off into exile by Nebuchadnezzar as a consequence of Manasseh’s sinful behavior.
Our kids that acted up wrote notes of apology which they read to the family (as we ate our hotdogs at home) and we all forgave them. And we had a nice evening playing around the house. But the evening still had the tinge of regret for what could have been.
Our choices today will have consequences tomorrow. Our actions always affect more than just ourselves—they affect everyone close to us. The people in Hezekiah’s day were grateful for the blessed consequences of David’s right choices. The people in Jehoiachin’s day were grieved for the disastrous consequences of Manasseh’s wrong choices.
What about you? What will your descendants feel about the consequences they are experiencing because of your choices today? It’s up to you, and it’s for them, so live right today.
Have you ever seen the 1970s game show Let’s Make A Deal? Contestants were given some tricky choices to make. They usually held something in their hand that was fairly valuable and were given the opportunity to trade what they could see for what they couldn’t see.
The anxiety about making this decision almost caused some people to have a nervous breakdown on the spot! And, oh, the emotional highs and lows when the contestants discovered what they won or lost!
I was reading about a let’s-make-a-deal moment in the Bible. Jerusalem is facing an imminent threat from an incredibly powerful man (2 Kings 18-19). Sennacherib sent this message to King Hezekiah, “Let’s make a deal” (18:23).
And he made a pretty compelling argument to take the deal. Sennacherib said, “No one who has ever stood up to me has survived before. I’m undefeated. I have a bigger, meaner army than you; more horses and chariots than you; and I’ve blocked your attempts to call on someone else to come rescue you. There’s no way out of this. C’mon, let’s make a deal!”
What makes a deal like this so appealing is that it’s all visible. It’s hard to say “no” to what you can see and say “yes” to what you can’t see.
Hezekiah knew God could deliver them, but would He deliver them? Hezekiah couldn’t see God, but he could see all of Sennacherib’s forces. What to do, what to do??
Hezekiah made the right deal. He put his trust in God! Although He was unseen, Hezekiah believed that God’s deal was better than Sennacherib’s deal. And Hezekiah was not disappointed in the deal he made (19:35-37).
What about you? Are you facing insurmountable odds today? Do you feel like you need to make a deal? Is what you can see more compelling than what you can’t see? I can promise you that any deal that you might make that doesn’t throw your trust entirely on God is a bad deal. A very bad deal!
So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without His unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18, The Message)
Don’t give up! Don’t make a bad deal! Trust God. His way is always the best deal!
In our backyard kickball games, the competition is sometimes intense. Given the fact that our field is unusually shaped—a big rock for first base, a third base (the middle tree of a group of three trees) is closer to home plate than first base is, the neighbor’s fence jutting out into right field—there are sometimes disagreements. Imagine that!
Of course, the quickest way to resolve some of these disagreements is to call, “Do over!”
But do-overs never work out well. One team might be happy with the results while the other team still feels they got an unfair advantage to get their way.
So, too, with God. He does not allow do-overs. Ever. Nor would I want Him to allow me to have a do-over. There are things I have learned from painful episodes that have made me stronger, wiser, more empathetic, and more merciful than I would have been if I missed out on those experiences. If I could have called “do-over” I wouldn’t be the same person today.
In 2 Kings 6, the king of Israel wanted a do-over. He had an opportunity to kill some Aramean soldiers, but Elisha said, “No, give them dinner instead.” The entire Aramean army returned later and blockaded the capital city of Samaria, making for horrendous living conditions in the city. The king said, “If I only I would’ve rejected Elisha’s advice and killed those soldiers I wouldn’t be in this tough spot now. I want a do-over!”
But here’s what the king—and all of Israel with him—would have missed out on if they got their do-over. If the king got a do-over only a few Aramean soldiers would have been killed. But by not getting his do-over, the entire Aramean army was disarmed, defeated, and disgraced as they ran home scared and naked (see 2 Kings 7:5-7, 14-15).
NOT getting a do-over led to a greater victory! Not getting your do-over will also allow God to do something greater in you and through you. If you got your chance at a do-over for something in your past you wouldn’t be as strong, wise, empathetic, or merciful as you are today.
Check out what God says—
I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. (Jeremiah 29:11, The Message paraphrase)
And we know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God. (Romans 8:28, The Living Bible)
Don’t ask God for a do-over; instead, ask the Holy Spirit to show you what He’s doing in your life because you didn’t get the do-over. I promise you that God is doing something far, far greater—instead of defeating a few enemies, He’s defeating whole armies!
Feel free to share what lessons you may have learned by NOT taking a do-over.
Have you ever noticed all of the different ways that God reveals Himself to people? He is original with every original person.
I love looking at the Aha! moments that people have. You know, the moments when the light comes on and they understand Who God is to them?
When Jethro heard how God delivered Moses and the Israelites from Egypt he said, “Now I know that the true God is greater than all other gods.”
When Elijah raised a dead boy back to life the boy’s mother said, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that you only speak His words.”
When Naaman was healed of leprosy he said to Elisha, “Now I know that there is only one true God.”
When David recalled all the ways God has delivered him from certain disaster he sang, “Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed.”
When Peter was delivered from prison by an angel he said, “Now I know that God did this.”
(check out the references for these examples by clicking here)
God reveals Himself uniquely to everyone because we’re all unique originals.
“Let God be as original with other people as He is with you.” —Oswald Chambers
Here’s the problem with God’s originality: We try to make our unique experience with God a universal experience for everyone else. We think that because He did it such-and-such a way for us that everyone ought to experience it the same way.
Wrong!
Think about the deliverance from lions in the Bible. In Samson’s case, God gave him supernatural strength to kill a lion with his bare hands; Benaiah went into a pit to kill a lion with his club; Daniel never even touched the lions, and they couldn’t touch him either.
Imagine if Samson was there with Benaiah: “Hey, brother, if you’re going to go after that lion, just wait on God to give you supernatural strength. If you really had faith, you would lose that club!”
Imagine if Benaiah and Samson were giving lion-killing advice to Daniel: “My friend,” Benaiah might say, “Please use my club.” And Samson would interrupt, “How many times do I have to tell you? No clubs!” Yet in Daniel’s case, God wanted the lions alive.
Perhaps you had your “Now I know” moment after a prolonged struggle in a particular area. Your tendency would be to tell others, “Get on your knees and pray and pray and pray. Pray really hard! It might take years, but God will eventually help you breakthrough.” Perhaps God wants to deliver someone else instantly.
Perhaps your “Now I know moment” came while reading from the King James Version of the Bible. Your tendency is going to be to hand out KJVs to everyone. Perhaps God is going to speak to someone through the New Century Version.
Let God be original with you. Let Him uniquely work with others too. Don’t make your “Now I know” experience the theology which rules everyone around you.
I’m so glad God is unique with every unique individual because each of us is a one-of-a-kind original!
It seems like we never have enough. Enough time. Enough money. Enough food. Enough friends.
As weird as it sounds—the cure to have enough is to give what you have away.
Imagine a drought … famine … despair. Lakes drying up and wells running dry. The dairy cows aren’t producing as much milk as usual, and the beef cows don’t have as much meat on them as they used to. The wheat fields aren’t growing as abundantly, and the corn is dry and mealy. Men don’t work as much, their wives don’t visit as much, and the kids don’t play as much.
Now, what if you found out you were going to be fortunate enough to host a VIP at your home? How do you prepare a decent meal? How do you think this VIP is going to react to the meager meal set before him? What if someone came from a distance away and brought you 20 loaves of freshly-baked bread?
Do you know how Elisha responded in these settings? He said, “Give it to the people to eat” (2 Kings 4).
Elisha shows up at his guests’ home and says, “Put the large pot on the stove and make some stew.” The large pot?!? Don’t you know we’re in a famine? Don’t you realize that we don’t have very much to spare?
“Put the large pot on the stove and make some stew, then serve it to the people to eat,” Elisha said. He didn’t ask for the food to be prepared for himself, but for others. And not just a little stew either—he said make stew in the large pot. It’s interesting to me, too, that the householders had all the ingredients for a stew, but they were trying to stretch it out and make it last longer. They were hoarding what they had.
Then a friend arrives from a distant land bringing Elisha 20 loaves of bread.
Do you know how Elisha responded to this gift? “Give it to the people to eat.” Give it to the people?!? There are over 100 people here and we only have 20 loaves! That seems a bit cruel to just whet people’s appetites with so little; why don’t we just keep it for ourselves.
But Elisha said, “Give it to the people to eat. Not only will they all eat, but there will be leftovers too.”
When we hoard what we have, we rob others. We rob ourselves too because we miss out on the blessing of seeing others satisfied, and we miss out on the miracles that God wants to do right before our eyes.
“Why does God bless us with abundance? So we can have enough to live on and then use the rest for all manner of good works that alleviate spiritual and physical misery. Enough for us; abundance for others.” —John Piper
So, when you think about it, don’t you really have enough time to help someone in need?
Don’t you really have enough money to alleviate someone’s suffering?
Don’t you really have enough food to satisfy someone’s hunger?
Don’t you really have enough love to make a new friend?
Don’t rob yourself by hoarding. Don’t buy into the scarcity mindset that looks away from others.The more you give away, the more you will have. Try it, it works!
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I sort of remember the days of full-service gas stations. My Dad would drive in and say, “Fill ’er up!” and the gas station attendant would jump into action. Filling up the gas tank, cleaning the windshield, checking the oil level, and even checking the air pressure in the tires.
But, alas, those days of full service seem to be long gone, replaced by highly-efficient, less-personal self-serve stations. And I’m not necessarily talking just about gasoline stations either.
All of our lives seem to have become more efficient and less personal. We are a more do-it-yourself, leverage-technology kind of society today. And I wonder if the result is that many people aren’t getting filled up like they used to.
There is a well-known Bible story in 2 Kings 4. A widow is facing what would amount to foreclosure today. Except this foreclosure was on her sons. Her husband, a God-fearing man, had died and left her with debts she could not pay. The practice in that society was for her sons to be “sold” to pay off the debts. These boys would have to work all day long for someone else, and whatever money they would have earned for their labors would go to the creditors.
In her desperation, the widow turned to the prophet Elisha. He asked her if she had anything of value in her house, and she replied, “Just a little oil. But not enough to pay off my debts.” The counsel Elisha gave her is applicable for our self-serve society today—
Elisha said, “Go around and ask all your neighbors for empty jars. Don’t ask for just a few” (v. 3).
Elisha asked the woman and her family to humble themselves—ask all your neighbors. Sometimes this is one of our biggest hindrances: pride which keeps us from admitting we have a need. And this was no small task because she had to ask ALL her neighbors to, “Fill ’er up!”
Elisha asked them to be persistent—don’t ask for just a few. Not just a jar here and there, but ask for every available jar to, “Fill ’er up!”
The principles in this story shouldn’t just apply to times of desperation in our lives. Because maybe if we worked on being around our neighbors and asking what needs they have, and sharing our needs as well, maybe we wouldn’t get into such desperate situations.
In the story in 2 Kings, the oil stopped flowing only after every available jar had been filled. If I want God to continue to pour His oil of blessing into my life, He has to have room in which to pour. That means that I need to be pouring into others’ lives as often as I can. Listen to the blessings when we, “Fill ’er up!”—
I want you to know how delighted I am to have Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus here with me. They partially make up for your absence! They’ve refreshed me by keeping me in touch with you. (1 Corinthians 16:17-18, The Message paraphrase)
In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted to see how happy Titus was, because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you. (2 Corinthians 7:13)
God bless Onesiphorus and his family! Many’s the time I’ve been refreshed in that house. And he wasn’t embarrassed a bit that I was in jail. The first thing he did when he got to Rome was look me up. May God on the Last Day treat him as well as he treated me. (2 Timothy 1:16-18, The Message paraphrase)
Your love has given me much joy and comfort, my brother, for your kindness has often refreshed the hearts of God’s people. (Philemon 7 NLT)
Get around other “full” people and let them fill you up.
Seek out “empty” people and pour abundantly into them.
The more you pour out into others, the more room there is for God to pour into you.
God is always pleased when our lifestyle is one of “Fill ’er up!”
In 2 Kings 3 the combined armies of Judah, Israel and Edom set out to attack the country of Moab. To try to take Moab by surprise the armies marched for seven days through the desert.
But there’s a problem with deserts: no water! And when you have three combined armies with all of their soldiers and horses and cattle, no small amount of water is needed. So on the verge of battle, this massive army is unable to fight because they are parched. To find a solution to this problem, the prophet Elisha is consulted, and he gives some very unusual counsel—
Make this valley full of ditches. For this is what the LORD says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink (verses 16-17).
Dig ditches in the desert? Yeah, right, sounds like a great strategy… NOT! But—
In the morning—it was at the hour of morning sacrifice—the water had arrived, water pouring in from the west, from Edom, a flash flood filling the valley with water (v. 20, The Message).
The story goes on to tell us that when the Moabites looked out into the desert the water looked to them like blood. They assumed that the armies had a disagreement between themselves during the night and their partnership dissolved into civil war. The Moabites rushed out to the battlefield—thinking they would now have an easy victory—only to walk right into the newly-invigorated and still-unified armies!
Many times the way God provides for us is contingent upon the level of our faith-filled obedience. Imagine this scenario: The army captains instruct their men, “Start digging ditches! Dig lots of them because we have lots of men and livestock to water.” The obedient soldiers jump to their work and begin digging. Out in the hot desert sun, digging through sifting sands, imagine how cynical the soldiers could have become.
“This is stupid! We’re in a desert, for crying out loud! There’s no water anywhere and not a cloud in the sky as far as the eye can see. I’m already parched and now I’m breaking my back digging ditches?!? I don’t think so! This is pointless: I quit!”
But catch this—God could only send as much water as they were willing to dig ditches. If they didn’t have the ditches ready when the water started flowing in, none of the men nor livestock could have contained the water to be able to quench their thirst. The floodwaters would have been useless to them!
Many times I think God is calling us to dig ditches so He can provide for us. What do you need to do to be ready for the flood of blessing He wants to send to you? What blessing would be wasted if you didn’t already have ditches ready? What ditches do you need to dig? Maybe you need to…
Get certified
Finish your degree
Make that phone call
Setup that meeting
Paint that room
Train those teachers
Some of those “ditches” may seem pointless now—as pointless as digging water ditches in the desert!—but when God pours out His blessing, won’t you be glad that your ditches are ready? What ditches do you need to start digging today?
What an incredible family line! Moses’ father-in-law Jethro was the ancestor of the Kenite family line, and from this family tree came a man named Recab.
Have you ever noticed all of the different ways that God reveals Himself to people? He is original with every original person.
Craig T. Owens 