Do the challenges in your life make you desperate for God? Do they cause you to evaluate what is really important? And do you turn to Him in the midst of rising inflation, heart-breaking news stories, and financial and cultural issues? Or do you spend your time complaining and focused on worldly solutions? I have to ask myself the same questions.
If the latter is true, could many years of prosperity and comfort have infected us with a deadly disease? Jon Bloom describes this disease as “spiritual leprosy, damaging spiritual nerve endings so that we don’t feel the erosion and decay happening until it’s too late.” Has it robbed us of our thirst for God and replaced it with a taste for the things of this world? Did it deaden us to the realization that we are desperate for Him? Could it even have revealed something much more serious? If so, what can and should we do now?
Things happen in life. Sometimes we’re sinned against. Someone hurts us. A friend betrays us. Other times, it’s a temptation. Someone or something looks good to us. We think we’re not getting something we need … or want. Like Eve, we see something that’s desirable. We may even believe God is withholding something good from us. How will we respond? We’re at a point of decision.
How will you handle your next point of decision and what can help you make a better decision?
Things in our culture are changing rapidly. Many believe the attacks on biblical principles, the marginalization of our beliefs, the loss of our freedoms, and the persecution toward us as believers will continue to increase. How will we respond to the challenges? Will we stay true to what we say we believe? Will we continue to stand up for biblical truth when it’s unpopular? What if it were outlawed? What can we do to prepare ourselves for what could happen?
Music has the power to do good and evil. The songs we sing can be powerful tools for teaching, persuading, and helping us remember things. They can trigger the imagination and stir our hearts.
Have you ever heard a song and been quickly taken back to a different time? And how many childhood songs do you remember 20, 30, or 40 years later? Why is music so powerful?
What kind of music do you listen to? Does it help you walk closer to God? Or does it draw you into the world? What kind of worship music do you sing? Does it make much of God or much of man? Why are the songs we sing so important?
Probably few of us could have foreseen the damage an invisible virus would do to our economy, sense of security, and national attitudes before 2019. And while we all know there are aggressive, hostile nations in the world, few expected Russia to brazenly invade her neighbor Ukraine. Even fewer would have expected that war to go on for over two years. Add to that rising inflation, concerns about our border, contentious politics, and growing hostility toward people of faith and there is much that could tempt us to worry.
Yet, none of this was a surprise to God. And if we understand His sovereignty, we must admit that He not only knew each situation was coming, He allowed, possibly even ordained, all these circumstances. And all that has happened as a result, including our responses, has happened in the presence of God, coram Deo, literally before His face.
As we contemplate that fact, we should also remember that what God allows and ordains in our lives serves His purposes. He has general purposes for us all, but He also has specific plans and purposes for each of us. Those purposes are always for our good and His glory. And those two are never opposed to one another. They work in perfect harmony. So, how can understanding these things help us respond better in times of adversity?
I will still be here in the coming year blogging through the Bible in a Year. But beginning this January, I’ll also be posting Bible in a Year videos on YouTube. You can view several of them right now including...
Why a fresh start through the Bible? Why “through” the Bible? Why not just read here and there, perhaps finding a subject that interests you? Or how about a short devotional? As long as you read something every day, isn’t that good enough? Today’s reading from the book of Psalms gives us a very good illustration of why it’s so important to read God’s Word in context.
The psalmist in Psalm 1 talks about a man who is like a tree planted on a riverbank where it gets plenty of water and is always fruitful. The psalmist goes on to say that God prospers whatever this man does.
I don’t know about you, but I want my life to be like that. But despite some who teach that God wants to make every believer prosperous, there are requirements for this prosperity. There are things we must do and other things we are to avoid. We also need to understand what the psalmist meant when he wrote about prosperity. If we don’t, we may find ourselves disillusioned, even angry, with God.
But this is just one example of the importance of understanding God’s Word in context, in its entirety. One of the biggest problems I find among believers is a failure to know God, to know His character, to know how He works through our tests and trials. As a result, far too many lead faithless, defeated lives.
But when we read through all of Scripture, we begin to see the big picture. As we go through the book of Genesis, we’ll look at the creation account and what it tells us about our incredible God. It will launch us on a journey through the history of God’s people and some of the most fascinating stories even recorded. As we go through the Prophets, we’ll see the many examples where their prophecies have already come to pass and our faith will grow. We will, also, come to better understand what was really happening in the book of Job, how much the psalmists were like us, and see the wisdom we can gain from Proverbs. In the New Testament, we’ll walk with Jesus and the Apostles, read Paul’s letters with fresh understanding, and marvel at the glories of eternity future.
So, why read “through” the Bible and not just here and there? So we understand the whole counsel of God and so we know the God of the Bible and not God as we think He should be.
Perhaps the question should be, “Why not read through the Bible in 2022?”
2022. A new year stands before us. 2021 and 2020 before that have been challenging to put it mildly.
Viruses. Bombings. Senseless murders. Shut-downs. Financial hardships. Crime. Dirty, partisan politics. Suicide. Sexual immorality. Anger. Road rage. Persecution. The loss of religious freedoms.
The world around us has been and continues to be in upheaval. Everything is changing right before our eyes.
Even within the church world, there are many false gospels.
So, how will we know truth from lies? How can we stand strong in a changing world, when life gets hard, or stays hard?
This year is fast drawing to a close and many of us are thinking about our goals for 2022. And there are many important goals and resolutions we can make as we look forward.
Certainly, these last two years have reminded us all that it’s important to take care of our health. And while, as believers, we shouldn’t live in fear, we should use wisdom in that area. Maybe you have career, financial, or other personal goals for 2022, as well.
But we should never neglect the most important area of life … our spiritual life. One of the most valuable goals is to read the Bible regularly. And I would like to suggest one of the best ways is to read through it in a systematic way. So, how about you? Do you want to grow spiritually in 2022? If so, what is your plan to do so?
Why is reading through the Bible so valuable? Can’t we get everything we need by going to church, reading a verse or two each day and listening to podcasts here and there? Isn’t it just too time-consuming? One more thing on a long to-do list?
Or what if you’ve tried in the past, only to fall behind and give up? How can you do it successfully in 2022?
Have you thought about reading through the Bible, maybe know you should, but keep saying, “Maybe next year”? Here is a 15-day catch-up plan so you can make this year your year!
