Rest for His People

On November 13, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 37: 7 a

Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him.

Pick a word in the verse that you don’t like. Go ahead; there are plenty of opportunities there. Let’s see, how about rest, wait and patiently? How can such a short verse have so many challenges in it?

I am learning that this is a powerful idea even if it is very difficult to do. For all of you Type A personalities who model action and doing this verse probably poses a few trials for you as it does for me. How then are we to attain such an ideal state? I really think there is great power in this verse but to reach this restful state we are going to have to slow down ourselves for a bit. Here is where mediation can be a strong ally. How do you slow yourself down so that you can quietly and patiently wait for the Lord? Sometimes exercise can help you burn off the stress and excess energy so that you can be still and rest in God. Music may work for you, perhaps art. For me it is often about just getting outside. There is serenity in simply admiring God’s great creation. Each of us must find our own strategies for slowing ourselves down so that we can enter a quiet state. When we can be still then we can hear what God is speaking to us and that inevitably leads to rest.

There is also an element of trust imbedded in this verse. In order to rest in God and wait patiently for Him you must trust that He will answer you. Otherwise you will want to work in the might of your hand. As we learn these principles we find that God can do more while we meditate than we can accomplish through hours of striving. A heart that honestly believes in God will be a heart that is at rest. The moment we begin to feel stress then we know that we have moved out of that divine peace which is the hallmark of a life lived in and through Christ. However, if we truly trust our God to meet our need, then our hearts will remain peaceful.

There is more in this idea of resting in and trusting God than I think most of us have comprehended. How can we do all that we need to do and remain in a restful state? There is a revelation on partnership with the God of creation that we have just not grasped yet. Perhaps you are the one who can teach this to the rest of us. This is the essence of faith; trusting rather than striving. I welcome you, all of you, to go to the blog site where we post this daily devotional and enter your comments. Perhaps we can begin a dialogue and share our experiences. Those of you who are more successful at resting in God can help the rest of us. The blog site is www.iveyministries.blogspot.com. 

Be at peace. Rest, knowing that He is God.

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Peaceful Mediations

On November 11, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Joshua 1: 8

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

Let us talk about meditation a little today. Yesterday we looked at Psalm 62:5 and Psalm 46: 10 which teach us to be still and quiet in the presence of God so that we may know Him as God. In the still, quiet peace of our souls is where we most easily connect with God. However, it is quite one thing to agree that you need to be still or that you need to meditate and another to actually do it. At least that was my experience. 

I decided one year that I was going to pray for an hour a day and I actually did it for quite a while. Now, you would expect my life to have exhibited a dynamic metamorphosis after praying for an hour a day. There is, however, an element of prayer that is necessary for it to have any power at all. That would be God. My prayer was an endless stream of syllables but I believe it lacked substance. It probably was noise in the ears of our Lord. I never bothered to connect with Him or the Holy Spirit so it was a soliloquy rather than a dialogue and prayer is not meant to be one-sided. Prayer is communication with God through the three persons of the trinity. My spirit, soul and mind were rarely quiet, still or silent. So, I would try with all my strength to be still and quiet. I would try to meditate. How many of you know that when you try that hard and apply power that you just create more noise. There is no effort in stillness. Remember, Psalm 46: 10 says to cease striving. So striving to hear the voice of God or striving to meditate is just not going to work. I was in violation of the principles of prayer and the kingdom of God. God teaches us that we connect and have deep fellowship through peace and ease. David commanded his soul to silence so that he could hear what the Father would say. David knew in whom his hope rested because he had many times experienced that saving grace of the Lord. 

It is exceedingly unfair for teachers to constantly intone about meditation and never teach us how to meditate. For some of you I understand this comes easily. I cannot even fathom. Others of you may have struggled with me. How then do we enter that rest that we often hear about? 

My revelation was not my own. A dear friend and mentor led me, this year, to two ministries which in conjunction have opened the prison doors and set me free. The first of those ministries is Communion with God Ministries whose founder is Dr. Mark Virkler. How appropriate. Now, do you think a ministry with that name may be able to help you find God and assist you in communing with him? Absolutely! And it was certainly true for me. Dr. Virkler’s foundational program is 4 Keys to Hearing God’s Voice. If you want to hear God’s voice speaking directly to you, then this program will make it happen for you. Dr. Virkler very subtlety teaches us left brained people to stimulate the right side of our brains bringing us into greater balance and causing us to experience the other half of the world (maybe more than ½). His website is a great beginning place and it is loaded with tons of free content. Free is good. I learned how to use the 4 keys just from his website and had an immediate breakthrough. The website is www.cwgministries.org. 

The other ministry that has radically altered my life this year is Impact Ministries with Dr. James Richards. Dr. Richards has many areas of expertise which can impact your life but the Heart Physics program is what has taught me how to be still. It was amazingly easy too. I was absolutely astounded at how quickly I began having significant breakthroughs. In fact, during the first week I had several major ideas just “come to me.” That which Dr. Richards teaches can alter every area of life. And while it takes a few minutes to go through the heart exercises, that time and more is added back in productivity and creativity. He also teaches you how to have more energy. You will be amazed at the peace you gain through heart physics and I guarantee you will learn how to calm yourself down and to meditate. It is a very fruitful program. Find all of Dr. Richards’ resources at www.impactministries.com or www.heartphysics.com.

We can all have peace. We can all find God in the stillness of our hearts. These two ministries can help you find that place of calm serenity where Jesus is waiting for you. Be still and know your God and savior. Find peace and truth in meditation.

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Be Still

On November 10, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 62: 5

My soul, wait in silence for God only, for my hope is from Him.

The first thing I needed to understand about this verse in order for it to minister blessing to me is that David is actually addressing his own soul. I think there is an entire message in the truth that sometimes we need to speak to our souls commanding them in a particular direction but what I really want to talk about today is being still before God so that we can enter into deep communion with Him. 

This has been a contemplation of my heart for a long time now and a focus for this year. I have never been very good at being still. Psalm 46: 10 tells us, “Be still and know that I am God” or as it reads in the NASB version, “Cease striving and know that I am God.” Either phrasing is equally difficult. Being still relates to both physical stillness and mental quiet. I found being still and quiet physically challenging but mental quiet near impossible. I would sit down to pray and my mind was all over the place. I thought I had a quick, active mind but in truth I had an undisciplined mind. In my experience, it is very difficult to have an active communication with God when my mind will not shut up for one moment. Something, therefore, really struck me about the silence David commanded to his soul.

It turns out that this “silence” is an interesting word. It is the word “damam”. Its primary meaning is “to be or grow dumb, silent or still – ceasing.” Not surprisingly, we see the expected silence but there is also the concept of stillness that is found in Psalm 46: 10 as well as the mandate to cease striving. This is a profound silence then, akin, in my mind, to peace. When we look at all of the definitions and synonyms for this word “silence” we find the words relax, rest and wait. There is an imperative tense too in made silent, kept silent, stand still, stay still, wait in silence. These are the commands David spoke to his soul. He tells his inner being to be still, quiet, relaxed, etc. knowing that God will speak into the silence.

We know David to be a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13: 14). We also see in David a person who fully expected God to be an active player in his life. I have to conclude that this internal discipline that David exercised and his core belief that God would speak into the silence were critical factors in the enviable relationship that He enjoyed with God. There is nothing, however, that God did for David that He will not also do for you and me. Therefore, it may be wise for us to look into this man’s behaviors and attitudes, no, not to observe only but rather to model his behaviors so that we may enjoy the same fruit. For I am convinced that if we sow the same seed that David sowed, we will reap the same fruit, that of a close, personal, Psalm 23 kind of experience with the Father of lights, the God of the universe, our very own dear father.

Finally, for some of you quiet contemplation may come easily though that is beyond my comprehension. Others of you may find this topic challenging. All of us probably need to meditate (think on, cogitate, ponder) over this topic. Quiet spirits, still minds and bodies are not the stuff of modern society. If, however, we want to enjoy daily communion with our Father, if we want to hear His voice speaking into our everyday life then we are going to have to master the art of silence, the skill of still.

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Precious Peace

On November 5, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 14: 27

Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you.

So here is the question. If Jesus gave us his peace then why are we not more peaceful? I have been playing in a week long bridge tournament and it is a great place to study peace (or the lack thereof). I just wonder what a psychologist would say if he or she studied people in bridge tournaments. It is an amazing dynamic. There are a lot of great people and I really enjoy getting to see the people from my mother’s bridge club that I do not get to see often. My goodness, it warms my heart just having my eyes filled with the visage of these beautiful people. Then you sit down at the table and start playing cards with someone you probably have never met before and you get to see human relationship dynamics at their loudest. I have said before, bridge can really highlight your shortcomings. If you are, impatient, bossy, rude, controlling, or have any of a number of character flaws, the game of bridge takes a 25,000 lumens spotlight and shines it right on your weakness. It pulls the brokenness right out of you and puts it on the table for everyone to see. This is especially true when you play in a week long tournament. As Saturday and Sunday roll around the rude behavior increases. Some folks are so impolite you would have a hard time believing me it I told you about it. 

Probably my greatest weakness (having to choose between several here) is that I don’t like to let anyone push me around. I am a fighter and have been since I was a child. So when these bossy, rude people get in my face I tend to push back. Now, I don’t think I am usually rude back but I don’t let their bad-mannered comments to me slide either. So Jesus said to me this week, “Why are you letting them have the peace I gave you?” Whoa!!

We also had some major issues with the hotel in which we stayed and one young guy who worked there almost made me lose my testimony. Well, truth be told, he cannot make me lose my temper. I am the only one who can make that choice. So Jesus challenged me all week long to hang onto that which he gave me. If Jesus gave me his peace then why would I let some jerk steal it from me? 

One lady at the bridge table got me a little. She and her partner played the first two hands and took their jolly sweet time in so doing. No problem. I am not going to cause them stress or boss them to hurry. Unfortunately, when it came to the last hand I was trying to play and she kept interrupting my chain of thought to tell me to hurry. Well, who died to make her the boss of the world, right? So eventually I pushed back (didn’t I tell you I hate to be bossed around?). I told her that her interruptions were making it hard for me to think quickly. I wasn’t rude but I think I was at least firm. Well, one thing led to another and we left that table with less than cordial feelings. It certainly was not mine nor my partner’s intention to be rude or contrary but I have a hard time not pushing back when someone gets in my face. That’s my damage showing. But here is the thing, I have a lord who loves me more than life itself and as he left this earth he gave me his sweet peace. Why, then, am I letting some goober steal it from me. 

The peace of the Lord is precious, sacred even. Moreover, Jesus left his peace for us because he knew that we needed it. His peace is not just a gratuitous offering. It is necessary for life. If we abide in his peace we will manifest much better health than those who let the turkeys get them down. So many of today’s medical malconditions result from allowing our peace to slip. It is called stress and every time we allow stress to replace peace we are allowing damage to be done in our bodies. We can recover but we need to do so as quickly as we possibly can. Say a quick prayer (even while you are sitting at the bridge table) and repent if need be. Repentance may be a simple as, “Lord, I am sorry I let your peace get away just then. Forgive me and help me to move back into peace right now.” That is not difficult, is it? Then you might take a deep breath, close your eyes for one second and let his peace flood right back into you. It really does work but you have to be intentional about it. This is not a magic formula. It is all about setting your heart and mind on living in Jesus’ peace and being determined.

There is one other point I would like for us to think about. What does it say about the person who is acting out? Maybe they are fussing at their partner or being crabby but what they are really saying if you listen well is, “I am hurt and broken! I need help.” You see, the damage in our personality is showing and it really is a cry for help. Now, you cannot always intervene in the person’s life at that moment but you can pray for them. And I think I am going to get better at praying for all of my opponents before the games. I will say that we only had that one encounter with an opponent but I did pray for all of the players before the tournament began. Maybe as each new opponent comes to my table I can say a very short prayer and thus avoid those issues. Hey, and remember to pray for your partner (not about them). It is up to you and me to be the carriers of the blessing. Criticizing our partners and feuding with opponents is not part of the blessing. There is something much more important going on here than just our master points. We are the actual ambassadors of Christ to a hurting world. We are affecting eternity with our words and attitudes so let us keep everything in perspective and live and love, in Jesus’ name.

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Righteous Reward

On October 22, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Proverb 13: 21

Adversity pursues sinners, but the righteous will be rewarded with prosperity.

Let’s talk about prosperity for one moment. There are some people who think that prosperity is not part of the Christian ethic or that God is against prosperity. When you read the Bible, though, you find prosperity verses all over the place. It was a given by the time of the New Testament that prosperity followed the people of God. That is why Jesus’ disciples were so surprised when he said that it is hard for a wealthy person to enter the Kingdom of God (Luke 18: 24). They were astonished in fact saying, well, if the rich cannot get into the kingdom, then who can. You see, they had an expectation that the people of God were rewarded with prosperity.

Even in our own culture we have the same underlying expectation even if we have not cognitively accepted it. We expect the Jews to be the diamond merchants, bankers and generally to be people of substance. Why? It all goes back to this verse and others like it. We understand that wealth is part of the blessing of God.

But let us go a bit further. We are so obsessed with financial wealth that we do not receive the fullness of the prosperity verses. Half of us are consumed with the hope and belief that this verse means that we can have money while the other half of us fight against the idea. Ultimately all of us have missed the real point. In God’s eyes prosperity is a much bigger idea than money alone. That is one part of it, yes, but true prosperity is so much larger. In fact, the Strong’s concordance says “in the widest sense.” In other words, prosperity touches every area of one’s life. It is wellness (the state of being well) in every area of life. In truth, prosperity is most fully recognized and expressed in “Shalom” which means everything in place, nothing missing, nothing broken. It is wholeness. Interestingly, if you look up prosperity in your Strong’s concordance and you look up the word peace you will find that both refer you to key word 7965. Looking up word 7965 reveals Shalom – well, happy, health, prosperity, peace, favor, welfare, all is well, wholeness. To be in God is to be in shalom, complete wellness. It means family, health, finances, everything is well. Nothing is sick, nothing is broken. That is the blessing of the Lord. That is the reward of the righteous. And we know that we have become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus, not of ourselves, but because we are in him (2 Corinthians 5: 21).

So, we are entitled to financial prosperity. We have not been left orphans without an inheritance. We are also guaranteed wholeness in all areas of life. Don’t deny yourself any part of God provision, of His blessing. Don’t live out in the barn when God has prepared a place for you in the big house. You are an heir, a child of the king. Live like it.

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Consolation

On September 29, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 94: 19               NIV

When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul.

It should come as no surprise that God can ease our souls even in times of great anxiety. What may be easily overlooked, however, is our contemplation of God’s abundant grace in our time of need.  

When we are under pressure or worried it is easy to retreat within ourselves. I call it the turtle syndrome. We withdraw into our shells in an attempt to protect our vulnerabilities. While it may be a completely normal reaction to stress or anxiety, it is the worst thing we can do. Walking with God is not always intuitive though. That is why the Bible tells us that we must renew our minds (Romans 12: 2). God is our strength and our fortress in our times of need. So, instead of drawing in on ourselves we must learn to extend our hearts to Him. This is walking in faith. It is the path of walking in the Spirit also. The very essence of walking with God is that we turn towards Him at all times. We can learn to live in a state of always looking towards Him.

Another key element of receiving the consolation of God in those anxious moments is to seek Him with your heart. How do you do that? For me it is always a matter of shutting up my mind for a few minutes. When you can get quiet in your mind and in your heart then you will find that you can hear God. In times of high anxiety, though, it feels like your insides are running on caffeine. Slow down, take some time to quiet down and look to God to be the consoler of your heart. Pick up your Bible and turn to the Psalms. God will give you peace and comfort. He always does. He will trade your anxiety for His consolation and peace. In times of great trouble, He is there with you. He has joy ready to pour into your heart. Train your heart to turn to Him and receive.

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War and Peace

On September 22, 2014   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Proverb 17: 19       NIV

He who loves a quarrel loves sin; he who builds a high gate invites destruction.

Have you ever known a person who loves to fight? I certainly have. I have known people who did not seem happy unless they were embroiled in some kind of conflict. I never understood how they could live in the midst of that turmoil. Every time I talked with them there was some new battle. To love to fight and feud with folks is to love sin. Why? Because God is peace. Hebrews 12: 14 tells us to pursue peace. We cannot operate in love with all people and at the same time be in continuous conflict.  

Ephesians 6: 15 teaches that our feet are to be shod with the gospel of peace. That must mean that we are to walk in peace. We are not told to put on the mittens of peace or the ring of peace. No, we prepare ourselves with the gospel of peace by putting on our shoes. We need that preparation because many things and people we encounter in the course of the day are going to attempt to cause angst. If we have not properly prepared then we are going to find ourselves in the tumult all day long, struggling for a breath.

Our losing our peace is only one of the casualties of this conflict though. When Jesus left the earth he left us his peace (John 14: 27). That peace was supposed to comfort us so that we would not be troubled or fearful. The other aspect of our having Jesus’ peace is that we can, and should, extend his peace to others. We are not meant to be contentious people. Instead we should be conduits of peace and blessing. We are called to be lovers, not fighters even to the point that we love, bless and pray for our enemies. We are to hold our peace in the face of trouble so that we are a source of peace for those who are in turmoil. We should live in a no conflict zone. Now, I know this is a tall order and most of us are not that advanced in our journey with Jesus but it is a laudable goal. We should shun quarrels and attempt to make and keep the peace. If we are not in peace then we have probably stepped out of God’s presence because there is always the peace that passes understanding when we are in him.  

When you find you have lost your peace, your heart is agitated or you are bothered, back up in your memory and figure out when you last felt peaceful. Then move forwards slowly and discern what event, thought or words chased the peace of God from you. Rectify the situation. Repent if it was your act that caused your peace to flee. If it resulted from someone else’s actions then pray for that person immediately. Try to see him or her from God’s point of view. See how He loves them and pray for them from that perspective. Lastly, and this is a tough one, if you find that there is a person with whom you are associated and that you just cannot retain your peace when you are with them, then give yourself some space. You must guard your peace and not be a quarrelsome person. If that person is constantly provoking you into unrest then segregate yourself from them, at least for a time. If it is a family member then try to limit the time you must spend with them and make sure you have prayed for yourself and them before the interaction. Prayer is the great peacemaker.

God likens quarrelsome behavior to sin so we must avoid it. Remember, some people love quarrels so we must guard our hearts and avoid being provoked. Peace is the calling card of the saints. Pursue peace with everyone.

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