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Confidence

Ivey Rorie On July 10, 2023 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Psalm 27: 13 – 14 (NIV)

I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

You know, life isn’t always easy. We know that we have the victory of the Lord, but sometimes living in the fulness of that victory is a challenge. I want to encourage you today. Don’t give up. Don’t despair. If we persist, we shall see the goodness of the Lord and I have no doubt.

This passage was written by David. He had a most interesting relationship with Yahweh, our God and Father. In fact, I think it is a good exercise to read David’s psalms solely with an eye on relationship language, looking at how he interacted with God.

David went through some trials, to say the least. One of the most informative examples of his life was how he faithfully served Saul only to find himself persecuted by the very same Saul to whom showed such honor and servitude. There is a life lesson there alone. Young David found himself pursued by Saul’s troops for no reason. He had no peace or rest, in the natural, but learned to find his solace and peace in the love and protection of the Father.

David urges us to stay strong and take heart as we await the goodness of the Lord. It is what he did. Although Saul persecuted and harassed him, God established the throne of Israel in David. In fact, Jesus is of the house of David. So, although David may have, at times, been down, he was never out, and he knew it because he knew who his father was. He knew that God would not fail him and that he would see the goodness of the Lord on this side of heaven.

My hope is that David’s experience and his words offer encouragement today. God is alive and He is attentive. He loves you and sends this word to lift your spirits and give you hope. Be blessed.

Lovingkindness

Ivey Rorie On March 31, 2021 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Psalm 25: 10

All the paths of the Lord are lovingkindness and truth to those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.

God wants to constantly lead you onto paths of goodness. He wants to give you a life of joy, peace and prosperity. He is a good God. But we have a part too. First, we have to yield to Him enough to let Him guide us. That means that you can’t be headstrong and independent.

Secondly, we need to learn to keep His Word. The covenant is our bargain with the Lord. It represents our promises to God and His to us. We are supposed to heed His commands and honor Him, and He is to meet all of our needs. That means our every need, every need you can even imagine. We choose to participate in this love fest, or we opt out. You participate by doing those things that you see in the word. But even that, we do not have to do on our own. We can pray and ask the father to help us to grow and to change. We can use His strength to forgive someone we would rather not forgive or whatever it is that we need to do. We move through our love for the Father and then His love for us sustains us in all things. Then all our paths will be lovingkindness and truth.

The Test

Ivey Rorie On November 17, 2020 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Matthew 7: 16

You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they?

Jesus gave us the method by which we can know whom we can trust. We can know people by their fruit. We saw last week Paul’s elucidation of this principle. Colossians 3 shows the fruit of the chosen of God and also the habits and traits of those not reformed by Christ. Some of the traits Paul identified for Christians are: “a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other,” (Colossians 3: 12 – 13). In this list he also included the pursuit of unity (See the Word of the Day for 11/13/20).

Jesus’ teachings give us the principles. Paul’s teachings explain Jesus’ principles. He expounded on them to give further understanding. In his letter to the Galatians, Paul further described what the life of a Christian looks like. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus crucified the flesh with its passions and desires,” (Galatians 5: 22 – 24).

When I was practicing law I came to despise when a client offered that they were Christian. Why? Ask many business owners and you will get the same response. It is code language for, “I’m not going to pay you.” It is as though they offered that bit of information in order to cover a defect in their character. As I said last week, pretend I am from the Show Me state. Let your actions identify you as a Christian. As my friend, Robin, said yesterday, “Actions speak louder than words.” Anyone can say, “I am a Christian.” It is an entirely different matter to walk it out. Most people who wish to deceive and take advantage of others will not identify their motives. Instead, they will use some covering ploy and claiming to be a Christian is one of the best. So, how are we to know who is the real deal?

That is the purpose of this series of devotionals which began last week. I know who you are and how you strive to live in the light of Christ. I also know that you are the most vulnerable because you are attracted to people who self-identify as Christian. Now, you don’t have to take their word for it. Look at their lives. Are they givers? If no, then you needn’t ask any more questions. They are done because Yahweh and Jesus are mega-givers. You can’t be in them and be stingy. Beyond that run the test of Galatians 5 and Colossians 3. Here it is synthesized for you.

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, a heart of compassion, humility, bearing with one another, and forgiving each other.

You might want to cut and paste this bit into your own document or print it. We are not asking people to be perfect, but we are looking for a pattern of behavior. I hope you identify with people who are patient and kind, gentle of speech and generous. We can encourage and expect these traits of people. We should, in fact, expect these kinds of behaviors. More than ever, we need to be considerate. We need to concern ourselves with the best interests of all people. We need to think of others instead of ourselves. That is the Christian mandate. It’s the Word. Let the Word prevail over the lives of us all.

Father

Ivey Rorie On April 17, 2020 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

John 16: 25, 27

But (I) will tell you plainly of the Father . . . for the Father Himself loves you.

Have you ever wondered why God, chooses to be called “Father?” I mean, He is Lord High King, God Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. Why does He call Himself Father to a bunch of rag a muffin humans? He could choose any title or name imaginable yet He chose to be a Father. Why does He ask us to love Him rather than just to serve Him?

That is an amazing question, isn’t it and an interesting perspective. I think it highlights that, above all else, God is love. He wanted a family to spend His love on. Love requires someone to share it with. Love demands acts of kindness and goodness. Wouldn’t those be a bit lost on servants? No matter how good God treated a servant, they could never rise above that station. They could never receive His intimacy. A servant doesn’t crawl up in the Father’s lap and take a nap. God wanted children He could dote on and spoil. He chose to have kids instead of slaves.

I think this question tells us more about God than many of the questions we might ask. It explains why He does many of the things He does and even how He feels. Ultimately, His desire is that all people join His family and let Him save and bless them. He is a good God and above all else He loves us. That is truly amazing and wonderful. Fill yourself with that good news today.

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Goodness

Ivey Rorie On January 6, 2020 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Psalm 83: 16- 18

Fill their faces with dishonor, that they may seek Your name, O Lord. Let them be ashamed and dismayed forever, and let them be humiliated and perish, that they may know that You alone, whose name is the Lord, are the Most High over all the earth.

This is a very human sentiment. In fact, I would wager most of us have had this same feeling at one time or another. Sometimes we might feel these emotions towards our foes. At other times, perhaps, it is the thought we have towards the unsaved critics of our Lord. In either instance, it is a perfectly natural human reaction. It may even sound righteous. It is not, however, the evangelistic plan of our Father. Nor is it the way He deals with antagonists.

God said that His ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55: 8) and this is one of the ways we see our differences. That is not to say, however, that our ways cannot mirror His. We must see His ways first, though, before we can model them. That is one of the ways that I pray the Word of the Day serves you, illuminating God’s thoughts and ways. As we peruse the Bible, or even the verses from the Word of the Day, we get to know Yahweh better because He is revealed in the pages of the book. The more we look at the scriptures the more we see how Father approaches situations.

Today’s passage brings to my mind the goodness of God. Though I might pray a sentiment like Asaph’s our Father would not react the same way. He is full of love and reacts from a position of love. He is chagrined by those who fail to include themselves in His love. He wants them to know peace, love and wholeness. Rather than shaming them forever, allowing them to be humiliated and to perish, He sent His son to save them. He sacrificed His son for the very people who wanted to obliterate Israel from the face of the earth and even from memory. Love is a crazy thing, isn’t it? It makes large demands, one of which is unfailing compassion.

I like this verse because it forces me to think about God’s approach to the world and His ultimate goodness. And, it is good to meditate on God’s goodness. The more we think about how God responds with goodness, the more we understand His position in all things. Meditating on His nature brings understanding at a very deep level. The more we meditate on how God thinks and acts, the more automatic those responses become in our lives. Our meditation on God plants the seeds of His ways in our hearts so that we begin to react as He does. That is the stuff of transformation. If you want to be like God, ponder His ways. Soon, those seeds will begin to produce a harvest and you will be more and more like Yahweh and living in the fullness of His peace.

Judgment Rendered

Ivey Rorie On November 11, 2019 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Psalm 76: 8 – 9 GW

From heaven you announced a verdict. The earth was fearful and silent when you rose to judge, O God, when you rose to save every oppressed person on earth. Selah.

There is so much confusion surrounding God’s judgment. Well, today you can bask in the good news because when God arose to render His judgment, it was to save every person on earth. Selah!

If you say anything about God’s judgment, most people are as described in this verse, fearful. When God arose to give His judgment, the world held its breath. There was complete silence in fearful anticipation of His wrath. It seems generations of people have misunderstood God. He is always good. He is benevolent and kind. Therefore, when He stood to give His judgment it was so that He could save every person on earth. He was compelled by love and compassion, not anger.

We think God is angry because of our own guilt feelings. We transfer our feelings of unworthiness onto Him so that, in our eyes, the only logical response a Holy God can have is vengeance and wrathful indignation. That, however, is a human perspective born of brokenness and guilt. God’s perspective is completely different. He looks through the eyes of love. He is motivated towards actions which help us. We know we don’t deserve His goodness, so we don’t look for it. Further, we recharacterize His kindness into something which is coherent with our feelings about ourselves. None the less, God is good. He is nothing but good. He is only good and every act of His is good and for our well-being. That is why he pronounced judgment, so that He could be good to us, so that he could save us.

If you will always look at God through this lens, you will see Him clearly and come to know Him as He is.

Good God!

Ivey Rorie On July 25, 2019 / Word of the Day / Leave a comment

Psalm 73: 1 TPT

No one can deny it—God is really good to Israel and to all those with pure hearts. But I nearly missed seeing it for myself.

I have just returned from an Impact Ministry conference with Dr. Jim Richards. It was a special weekend with a special acknowledgement of Jim’s sister, Pat Richards. I am sure as time goes on, more and more will filter through my mind about what I learned. The takeaway that I loved most, though, was this statement from Dr. Richards, “God is good, and only good.” That is the point of this scripture, that God is good. And let’s get this part right – who is Israel? Well, that would be you. You have been made a royal heir according to your ingrafting into the family of God. However, some of us have nearly missed understanding about God’s goodness.

I’ve been teaching on the goodness of God for a long time, but the way Jim phrased that really resonated with me. We often hear, “God is good all the time” but it seems people don’t believe that. Perhaps we’ve heard it so many times that we have ceased to actually hear it with our brains. It amazes me how often Christians talk about the bad things God has given them. They will even praise God for it and tell you how it made them stronger. That comes from a misunderstanding of God but more particularly of Romans 8: 28 which teaches us that although bad things happen, God will take them and turn them for good. I call it the “Lemonade Scripture” because it basically says that God will take lemons and make lemonade. Because good comes out of a situation, does not mean, though, that God created the situation. That is very poor logic and just wrong. God is a good and benevolent God. He is good ALL the time and He is only good. He is never bad.

John 10: 10 reads, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” Of course, these words were spoken by Jesus. If you understand, and even memorize, this verse, you will understand a great deal of the Bible and you will have a solid personal theology. First, you have to understand who the thief is. Jesus spent most of this chapter explaining the difference between a good shepherd and a bad one. He identifies himself and the Heavenly Father as good. They care for the sheep. The bad shepherd is, of course, the devil. We need to get this settled in our hearts and minds. You can imagine how funny the devil finds it when he sends bad into the world and our benevolent, good and gracious Father gets the blame for it.

Settle this once and for all in your heart and you will understand much about life and the world. When you see good, that is your Father because He is good and only good. Heaven doesn’t have any bad for Him to give you. There is no cancer in heaven. There is no hunger. There is only good in heaven. Our Father is only good, therefore always good. Don’t let this be a point of confusion for you any longer. Satan doesn’t bless you, he only curses. Goodness is of the Father. He is the source of all goodness in the earth. Satan comes to steal, kill and destroy. Therefore, if you see theft, death or destruction, you should be able to identify the author. The devil is a corrupter of good. He twists and perverts. He steals whatever is good and turns it inside out. There is no goodness in him.

Your Father knows how to give good gifts to His children, and He knows how to care for the sheep. He is the good shepherd for He is good and only good.

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