YOU HEARD ME
Psalms 4:2
You heard me when I called, O God of my righteousness.
You strengthened my heart when I was in distress;
Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.
Encouraging Words
Throughout the history of mankind, we see over and over again where God always responds when we call upon Him. The reason we seldom see Him respond is that we really do not call out to Him. We have created a culture where we call out to everything but God for our help and support. If we do not truly know Him then how can we see His hand at work in our lives? Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
RETURN TO THE LORD
1 Kingdoms 7:3 (1 Samuel 7:3)
Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, if you put away the foreign gods and the sacred groves from among you, and if you prepare your hearts for the Lord and serve Him alone, He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.”
Personal Challenge
In our modern-day, it may sound strange to tell people to put away their foreign gods and the sacred groves from among us. We may not have these in the same manner as the Jews did in the day of Samuel, but we do have things in our lives that we treat as gods and put before our Lord. It may be the stuff that we have poured our wealth and our hearts into. It may be those sports or other events that we put before participating in our church activities. We must be careful to look into our lives to identify those things that we put above our God and put them away from us so that we can serve our God unencumbered. Only then will we see His hand of deliverance. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
OUR PROTECTOR
Psalms 3:4-7 (3-4)
But You, O Lord, are my protector,
My glory and the One who lifts up my head.
I cried to the Lord with my voice,
And He heard me from His holy hill. (Pause)
I lay down and slept;
I awoke, for the Lord will help me.
I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people
Who set themselves against me all around.
Encouraging Words
I love how David loves the Lord. In his psalms, he both praises his God and argues with Him. His relationship with his God is intimate to the point that God called him a man after His own heart. And yes, David was still a human like the rest of us. He sinned and failed his God. But he always ran back to Him for His forgiveness. We can do the same, by doing this on a regular and consistent basis, we too will see God as our protector, the One who lifts our head, the One whom we can cry out to knowing that He will hear our voice and respond. He is our God and we are His children. Glory be to God!
Saint of the Week
St. Theophan the Recluse
BLESSED IS THE MAN
Psalm 1:1-3
Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the way of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the troublesome;
But his will is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree
Planted by streams of waters,
That produces its fruit in its season;
And his leaf shall not wither,
And whatever he does shall prosper.
Encouraging Words
Don't we all want to be considered blessed in the eyes of our God and in the considerations of our neighbors? Here the Psalmist provides the formula for being considered a blessed person. We are to avoid walking in the counsel of ungodly people, to avoid sinful ways, and not hang around with troublesome people. Instead, we are to align our wills with the will of God and meditate on Him and His precepts day and night. By living this way we will be like the tree planted next to a stream; vibrant, refreshed, growing, and fruitful. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
HONORABLE TO ALL MEN
3 Maccabees 3:3-5
The Jews, though, maintained their goodwill and unswerving faith toward the throne. But because they worshiped God and lived by His precepts, they kept themselves separate from others with regard to food, and therefore appeared hateful to some. But they adorned their way of life with the good deeds of righteous people, and thus established themselves as honorable to all men.
Personal Challenge
At this point in time in the Maccabees, the rebellion by the Jews has been thwarted and they are once again under the rule of a foreign nation. They had a history of giving themselves over to foreign gods and then suffering the consequences of separation from their loving God. Don't we do the same today? Even in the midst of all of that, including threats from the leaders that they are under, this group chooses to live in a way that showed their love for their God, our God, and their commitment to His ways. By doing this, they were perceived as honorable to all men. We too can live this way in this world around us. We can live for Christ and by His teachings. We can love our God and our neighbor, even when it is difficult and different from everyone around us. We can adorn our lives with good deeds in order to glorify God.
WHO DO WE TRUST
2 Maccabees 8:18
“For they trust in arms and bold acts,” he said, “but we trust in Almighty God, who with only one nod is able to overthrow both those who come against us and the entire world.”
Personal Challenge
One of the joys of reading the Old Testament is to see how many times the people of old were rescued or redeemed because they recognized their sin, turned from it, and put their trust in God. Our God is trustworthy, even if we are not. We have come to a point where we put more trust in our government, our job, or the wealth that we have been given by God. All of this is fleeting and not trustworthy. We need to let go of these things of the world and hold onto our God alone. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
A NOBLE EXAMPLE
2 Maccabees 6:24-28
“For to pretend such things,” he said, “is not worthy of our time of life, lest many of the young should suppose that Eleazar in his ninetieth year has gone over to a foreign religion, and because of my pretense for the sake of living a brief moment longer, they should be led astray through me, while I earn only pollution and defilement in my old age. For even if for the present I should avoid the punishment of men, yet whether I live or die, I shall not escape the hands of the Almighty. Therefore by manfully giving up my life now, I will show myself worthy of my old age, and leave to the young a noble example of how to die a good death willingly and bravely for the venerable and holy laws.”
After he said this, he went straight to the rack,
Personal Challenge
The days of the Maccabees was a very dark time for the nation of Israel. Israel has been oppressed and occupied by the Hellenists for quite some time now. The Maccabees have risen up from the ranks of Israel and started rebelling against these oppressors who are trying to wipe out their religious beliefs and their worship of their God, JAHWEH. Eleazar, a 90-year-old Maccabean, has been chosen by the Hellenists to publicly reject his God by eating forbidden food. The punishment for not doing this will be death on the rack. Surely, at the age of 90, he has nothing to lose by submitting? However, he knows that it is more important to show the young men coming up behind him the integrity of living a life for God than submitting to the threat of death. Would I do the same? This passage is his final statement of His love for his God and the importance of giving your all for Him. And then he walks up to the rack to give his life as a noble example. Glory be to God in all things.
THE MANY VERSUS THE FEW
1 Maccabees 3:18-19
Then Judas said, “It is easy to hem in many at the hands of a few, and it makes no difference before heaven to save with many or with few. For victory in battle does not come from the size of the army, but from the might of heaven.”
Encouraging Words
Do we really believe this as Christians today? Do we believe that the army of heaven that we cannot see, touch, or hear is far more powerful and victorious than any army or power that this world can muster up? I am not sure that we believe this the way that we should, for if we did, our lives and the lives of those around us would be changed forever. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
Saint of the Week
St. John Chrysostom
OFFER YOUR LIVES
1 Maccabees 2:50-51
Therefore, children, be zealous for the law, and offer your lives for the covenant of our fathers; and remember the deeds our fathers did in their generations, and receive great honor and an everlasting name.
Personal Challenge
Am I willing to offer my life for the covenant of the fathers that have gone before me? Am I willing to truly give up my life for my God? It is easy to say, "Yes!" to these questions when I am in the comfort of my home, but what will I really say, and do, when the occasion arises where I really need to give my life for Him? If we wait until those dire situations come upon us, it will be too late to make that choice. We are supposed to be offering our lives to Him every moment of every day, which prepares us for that day when we are asked to lay down our lives for Him. Am I being kind and loving toward my neighbor, even that one that is always rude and obnoxious toward me? Do I go that extra mile in everything that I do because I know that I am doing it as unto the Lord? Am I spending time with Him in prayer, worship, and reading His scriptures? Am I serving Him at all times? These are the times that we offer our lives unto our God in order to glorify Him. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner!
WHO KNOWS THE REASON
Esther 4:13-16
And Mordecai said to Hathach, “Go and say to Esther, ‘Do not say to yourself that you alone will be saved in the kingdom apart from all the other Jews. For if you choose not to heed this request at this time, help and deliverance for the Jews will arise elsewhere, but you and your father's house will perish. Besides, who knows whether it is for this occasion you reign as queen?’ ” Then Esther dispatched the one who came to her to Mordecai, saying, “Go and assemble together the Jews in Susa. Fast for me; do not eat or drink for three full days and three full nights. I and my maids will also fast. Then I will go to the king, contrary to the law, even if I am to perish.”
Personal Challenge
The story of Esther and Mordecai is such a testimony to the power of faith and the understanding that God is in the middle of everything that happens in our lives. God does not force us to do anything that we do not choose to do with our own free will. He will orchestrate the events and circumstances around us so that we can be used as His instruments for the glory of His Kingdom, but the final decision to be that instrument is still ours. This passage speaks so well to this orchestration of circumstances and of people that choose to obey God. Mordecai is a Jew and an advisor to King Artaxerxes. Esther is his beautiful niece and the queen chosen by Artaxerxes. The Jews are a conquered people and not liked by the other people of the land. Haman, another advisor to the king has devised a plan to get the king to make a proclamation to kill Mordecai and all of the Jews of the land. Mordecai has petitioned Esther to go before the king and to reveal that she too is a Jew and that Haman has deceived the king. The only problem is that anyone going before the king without an invite from him is put to death. Mordecai reminds Esther that maybe she is the queen because God put her in this position just for this occasion and that she must trust God. But, if she chooses to not do this thing for her people, God will raise up another person to do His work. The rest is His-story. This is a great read about God's faithfulness to us and the consequences of us being faithful to Him. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
GOD'S MIGHT
Judith 9:11
“For Your might is not in numbers, nor Your power in men who are strong, but You are the God of the lowly; You are the helper of the oppressed, the defender of the weak, the protector of those who are forsaken, the savior of those without hope.”
Encouraging Words
Judith, a young widow, has just finished chastising the leaders, both religious and civic, of her community for devising a plan to test God in the midst of their trial. The trial is a pending attack by the ruthless commander of King Nebuchadnezzar's army, Holofernes. Now she has devised a plan to rescue the people of Israel from this pending siege. But before she does anything, she prays to her God, the God of Israel, the God of all Christendom, and reminds all of us that all we need to deal with the trials and battles in our lives, is God. He is more powerful than any army or any nation. He is the helper of the oppressed, the defender of the weak, the protector of the forsaken, and the savior of those without hope. He is the one that we can claim as our Abba, our Father. Glory be to God!
SET AN EXAMPLE
Judith 8:24-25
“Now my brothers, let us set an example for our people, for their very lives depend upon us. Furthermore, the sanctuary, the temple, and the altar rest upon us. Besides all this, let us be thankful to the Lord our God, who is testing us just as He did our fathers.”
Personal Challenge
Judith finishes her chastisement of the rulers of Bethulia by encouraging them to be good examples before the members of their community. In all aspects of our lives, whether it be work, our church, our families, or any other group, if we are in positions of leadership and authority, then as Christians we must be leading as examples. We must lead in such a way that those who follow us see Christ in everything we say and do. This is how we can lead others through the tests of life that come our way. Glory be to God!
WAITING UPON GOD
Judith 8:17
“Therefore, while we await His deliverance, let us call upon Him to help us, and if it pleases Him He will hear our voice.”
Personal Challenge
We are an impatient part of God's creation. Maybe it is because we were given free will. I don't know, but I have never met a fellow human being that can easily wait upon God to see how His timeline will unfold. Throughout the scriptures, we are reminded to wait upon God for He knows what is best for us. We are told to trust in Him for He will deliver upon His promises. We know that He is our God and yet we still try to take things into our own hands. No wonder we mess things up so much. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
DEPTHS OF UNDERSTANDING
Judith 8:14
“You cannot plumb the depths of the heart of man, nor grasp the thoughts of his mind. How then do you expect to search out God, who made all these things, and come to understand His mind or comprehend His purpose? No, brothers! Do not provoke the Lord our God to anger.”
Personal Challenge
Judith continues to chastise the leaders of Bethulia for their attempt to test God in their dire situation. This is a great passage to remind us that we are finite in our understanding of the things going on around us, but that God is infinite in the depths of His understanding. We have the promise from our God that all things work for the good for those who love Him. If this is so in our lives, then why do we resist Him in virtually every situation, especially those that are challenging? God always knows more than we do and He always knows what is best for us. His desire for us is to trust Him, to submit to Him, and to trust that He will guide us through the storms of life. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
Saint of the Week
St. Comghall
TESTING GOD
Judith 8:11-13
They came to her, and she said to them, “Listen to me now, rulers of the people of Bethulia! Your words spoken today to the people are not right, nor is the oath you have sworn and pronounced between God and yourselves, promising to surrender the city to our adversaries unless the Lord turns and helps you in so many days.”
“Now who are you to have put God to the test this day, setting yourselves up as God's equal among the sons of men? You are testing the Lord Almighty, but you will never come to know anything!”
Personal Challenge
Holofernes was one of the commanders in king Nebuchadnezzar's army. He was ruthless in battle and had destroyed many adversaries. In this part of Judith, the Jews that live in Bethulia are about to be sieged by Holofernes and his mighty army. The leaders of the community are fearful that they will not be able to withstand the siege. Their leader, Uzziah, tells them to give God five more days to help them, and if He doesn't, they can surrender and save their lives. In essence, he is putting God to the test. Oh, how often do we do this in our own lives? "God, I will do thus and so, if you will only do..." Judith, a recent widow, heard of this and challenged Uzziah, the leaders, and the entire community. She saw that what they were doing was testing God and not trusting Him. We cannot put God on our terms. We must live our lives according to His terms. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
NO LAWLESSNESS
Judith 5:20-21
“Now my lord and master, if there is any sin of ignorance in this people and they sin against their God, then we will identify their offense and will go up to defeat them. But if there is no lawlessness in their nation, then let my lord leave them alone, lest their Lord shield them, and their God defend them, and we will become a reproach before the whole earth.”
Encouraging Words
Once again, we find the nation of Israel, God's chosen people under attack by a foreign nation. The commander of the attacking army has sought out a prophet in the land who is familiar with the Israelites to tell him about them so that he can formulate his battle plan. The prophet, Achior, informs him of the God of the Israelites and that if the Israelites have been living godly lives, lives without lawlessness before their God, then there is no way that the attack will be successful. We need to remember this. If we are living for God then we are under this protection. Glory be to God!
BEFORE THE NATIONS
Tobit 13:3-4
Give thanks to Him before the nations,
O children of Israel,
For He scattered us among them.
Make known His greatness there;
Exalt Him in the presence of all the living,
For He is our Lord and God;
He is our Father unto all the ages.
Personal Challenge
Just as God scattered the Israelites throughout the known world of their early days, so has He scattered His Church throughout the world today. Why has He done this? He has done this so that His message, His Good News, can be shared with every people group in the world. He is not ready to end this age until everyone has had the opportunity to hear of Him. This is where we come in. We are the ones that are to be giving thanks to Him before all the nations. We are the ones that are to be exalting Him in the presence of the living. He is our Lord and God, our Father onto all ages, and we are to be proclaiming Him everywhere. Glory be to God!
PRAYER AND THANKSGIVING
Tobit 12:8-9
Prayer is good with fasting, almsgiving, and righteousness. A few prayers with righteousness are better than many with wrongdoing. It is better to do almsgiving than to lay up gold. For almsgiving rescues one from death, and it will wash away every sin. Those who do almsgiving and are righteous will be full of life.
Personal Challenge
Living a godly and righteous life is not just about attending church services that make us feel good. If we desire to be godly and righteous before our Lord and show our appreciation for the redemption and salvation that He has bestowed upon us, then we will do those things that He asks us to do. Raphael instructs Tobit and Tobias that it is good to pray unto our God. However, he also teaches that our prayers must be accompanied by fasting, almsgiving, and righteousness. Yes, these are still acts of worship that we should be practicing today, for if we do them with the right motive in our hearts, they will draw us closer to our Lord. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
BLESS GOD
Tobit 12:6-7
Then Raphael secretly called the two of them, and said to them, “Bless God and give Him thanks. Ascribe greatness to Him and give thanks in the presence of all the living for what He has done for you. It is good to bless God and to exalt His name. Make known the words of God's works honorably and do not delay to give thanks to Him. It is noble to keep hidden the secret of a king, but glorious to unveil the works of God. Do good, and evil will not find you.”
Encouraging Words
Who is this Raphael guy that Tobit and Tobias were about to reward for the help that he had given to them? He was none other than Raphael, one of God's archangels. He did so many miraculous things in the lives of Tobit, Tobias, and their loved ones that they were ready to give him half of their wealth. But he redirected them to focus their praise, thanks, and blessings onto God. It is God that deserves our praise. It is God that deserves our thanks. It is God that deserves our blessings, our all. Our doing good should be all wrapped up in blessing God, for He deserves it. Glory be to God!
MORE ON ALMSGIVING
Tobit 4:16
From your bread, give to him who is hungry, and from your clothing, give to the naked. If you have more than you need, do almsgiving, and do not let your eye envy the almsgiving when you do it.
Personal Challenge
In the Old Testament church, the Jewish nation, tithing was an expectation, not an option. At a minimum, it was 10% of everything. Almsgiving was above and beyond that and pretty much expected as well. The difference was that tithing was an obligation and almsgiving was from a spirit of gratitude for all that one had. Tobit ends his admonition to Tobias by once again reminding him that he needed to take care of those around him who were hungry and naked without envy or remorse, but eagerly and lovingly. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy as me, the sinner!
Saint of the Week
St. Paisios
ALMSGIVING
Tobit 4:5-7
My son, remember the Lord our God all your days, and do not desire to sin or to disobey His commandments. Do righteousness all the days of your life, and do not walk in the ways of wrongdoing. For if you walk in the truth, you will be successful in your works. Do almsgiving from your possessions to all who do righteousness. When you do almsgiving, do not let your eye be envious. Do not turn your face away from any poor man, so the face of God will not be turned away from you.
Personal Challenge
The book of Tobit, an apocryphal book in the Old Testament, is an awesome book to read about a godly man who clearly loves His God. The whole book revolves around the lives of a few people who walk with their eyes on their God and how He rewards that by being active in their lives. In this passage we see Tobit preparing his son, Tobias, to launch out on his life as an adult. Tobit has recently lost his sight and is concerned that he will not be around long enough to prepare his son for his life. In this passage, Tobit teaches Tobias to first take care of his mother as she gets older. He then focused on teaching Tobias to take care of those around him that are in need, the poor, the widow, and the orphan. This definitely shows us where God's heart is. Glory be to God!
AS IT IS WRITTEN
Tobit 1:6
But I alone traveled frequently to Jerusalem for the feast days, as it is written for all of Israel in an everlasting ordinance. I would carry the firstfruits and the tithes of my harvest and the first-shearing.
Personal Challenge
Life is not easy. We all have challenges in our lives. Sometimes they are of our own doing, but often they are pressed upon us. It is given that while we are in these temporal bodies, the fallen world will present challenges. What is important is how we handle these challenges. In the story before this verse, we find that Tobit and his people have been captured and exiled far away from their homeland where his precious Jerusalem was. For him, because he loved his God dearly, it was very important to follow the teachings of his forefathers and return to Jerusalem for the feast days. This was not easy. It was not convenient. It cost him much time and money. But for him, it was important to exercise His spiritual beliefs. Do we live this way today? Is our God important enough to make our way to church when it is inconvenient? Do we spend time with Him when we would rather sleep in or do our own thing? Are we willing to put Him first above everything else in our lives? Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
WORK DONE BY GOD
Nehemiah 6:16
And it happened, when all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations around us saw these things, that they were very disheartened in their own eyes; for they perceived that this work was done by our God.
Personal Challenge
Do we live our lives in such a way that others look at the fruit that we produce and proclaim that God must have been working through us? We so often live our lives, even as we proclaim to be Christians, so far removed from God, that there is no evidence of Him working in our lives. I know that I am guilty of this. It is becoming more difficult to proclaim our God and His involvement in our lives because our society is moving so far away from God. But it is our responsibility to proclaim Him in both our words and our actions, even to the point of persecution. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
BE PREPARED
Nehemiah 4:7-8
Therefore I positioned men behind the lower parts of the wall in the sheltered areas, and I positioned the people by families with their swords, their spears, and their bows. And I looked and arose and said to the nobles, to the leaders, and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember our God, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”
Personal Challenge
The Boy Scout motto is, "Be prepared!". It is important for us to be prepared for the things in life that might come our way. Nehemiah did this for his people as he prepared them for battle. But it is much more important to make sure that we look to God for our ultimate preparation and guidance for every aspect of our lives. He is the One who will carry us through every battle in our lives. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
