Wednesday, May 30, 2012

II Kings 6:11-17

"Now the heart of the king of Aram was enraged over this thing; and he called his servants and said to them, 'Will you tell me which of us is for the king of Israel?" And one of his servants said, 'No, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.' So he said, 'Go and see where he is, that I may send and take him.' And it was told him, saying, 'Behold, he is in Dothan.' And he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city.
Now when the attendant of the man of God had risen early and gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was circling the city. And his servant said to him, 'Alas, my master! What shall we do?' So he answered, 'Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.' Then Elisha prayed and said, 'O LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.' And the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha."

Everything which fills our senses incessantly insists that it is real, and what is unseen is myth. Every moment of our days is filled with this message, skillfully impressed upon our hearts by the world's system, reinforced by our own flesh, and confidently confirmed by the enemy of our soul. Each sensing overlaps and is interwoven with another to reduce to nothing any thoughts of dependence upon that which cannot be touched, tasted, seen, heard, or felt. Such focus, such perspective on the 'seen-only', leads to fearings and frettings... overwhelmed by life's armies, both real and imagined... Elisha's servant found it so: he assumed that what he saw was all there was... forgetting the greater reality of the invisible living God. What a moment it must've been when the unseen armies were revealed, in all their spiritual might!

I John 4:4 comes to mind... a needed reminder that the Lord who resides within each of His children is greater than the enemy who attacks from without. James 4:7 promises that we can resist him and he will flee... Ephesians 6 describes the weaponry we are to use... what then? Stand firm!

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Luke 11:1

"And it came about that while He was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, 'Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples.' "


Such an intriguing thing...Jesus praying.  No mystery that I need to pray...my heart is desperately sick, my soul in deep dependency ever and always, continually in need of the Spirit's ministry, interceding with groanings too deep for words... but the Lord Jesus?  To fend off any hint of slighting His equality with the Father, we are instant in our defense of His deity (Colossians 2:9)... perhaps to the point of understating His humanity.  As 100% man, He modeled His dependency upon the Father through the same means He bids His elect ones use: prayer and the Scriptures.  From the outset of His public ministry, prayer preceded the calling of His Twelve...and use of the Word as a wonderfully-wielded weapon during intense temptation set the tone for the entire time of His earthly moving among men and spirits.
Yet, apart from the seventeenth chapter of John, and a smattering of other moments addressing His Father before a miracle, we do not know what He uttered in His times of prayerful solitude. And, despite the tendencies of theologians and theologian-wanna-be types to give quick responses.... there is actually answerless mystery here: the Son of God, praying. Yes, it pleased the Father, yes He was glorified... but still.....it's an intriguing thing... Jesus praying.

Monday, May 14, 2012

"Be still, and know that I am God."

The greater my vision of who You are, the better my perspective on the circumstances of life. When life looms large, You seem inadequate, and my vision is skewed. My soul's enemy will do all he can to scatter my thoughts with busyness...frenetic worryings...unlikely possibilities...dubious outcomes...incessant botherings...it makes him no difference...whatever it takes! So long as I am not still, to know You, my God. For when I still my spirit and quieten my heart... when my thoughts are taken captive to Your obedience, lost in the wonder and adoration that You deserve, he is forced to flee, praise to Your Name!