“Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty. (Malachi 3:7b)

Do you ever feel far from God? Like He has forgotten you? Do you ever feel spiritually empty? Our relationship to God, our closeness, our spiritual fullness, can vary from overflowing to emptiness. What is going on? What is wrong?

The book of Malachi speaks to this spiritual emptiness. Malachi is the very last book in the Old Testament; written to the Jewish people who had returned to Jerusalem from their literal exile to Babylon, but who are spiritually still in exile. In fact, God tells these Jewish people “Yes, I have already cursed you, because you have not set your heart to honor me” (Malachi 2:2). In other words, their religion was all show and outward signs. This is extremely distressing news to a person who calls him or herself a believer. A statement like this from God reveals a disparity between what we say and what is in our hearts, which is what causes this spiritual distance from God.

Malachi goes on to tell us what God is looking for.

“My covenant was with him (Levi), a covenant of life and peace, and I gave them to him; this called for reverence, and he revered me and stood in awe of my name. True instruction was in his mouth and nothing false was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and turned many from sin. (Malachi 2:5-6).

And then Malachi tells us what God is seeing at that time, the disparities between what God wants and what is actually happening:

1. Disobedience: “…you have not followed my ways but have shown partiality in matters of the law.” (Malachi 2:9)
2. Unfaithfulness: “Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the LORD loves, by marrying the daughter of a foreign god.” (Malachi 2:11)
3. Hypocrisy: “You have wearied the LORD with your words.” (Malachi 2:17)

Malachi was a prophet, the last prophet to prophesy in the Old Testament. God, speaking through Malachi, says in Malachi 3:7 “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me.” He is looking back to Isaiah 40:1-11, and he is prophesying about John the Baptist who will begin his ministry 400 years later: “In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’ This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: ‘A voice of one calling in the wilderness, “Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.”’” (Matthew 3:1-3).

God gives Malachi a strong message for us. He says in Malachi 3:5 – “’So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers, and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,’ says the Lord Almighty.”

God speaks of his character in Malachi 3:6, referring to the covenant promise he has made to the faithful in Jeremiah 31:31-34– “I the LORD do not change.”

And then God gives us a promise, a promise that we can count on- “’Return to me and I will return to you’, says the LORD Almighty.”

It’s never too late, until it is. Don’t wait!

In Christ,

Judy

Psalm 19:14

Therefore, tell the people: “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘Return to me,’ declares the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will return to you,’ says the Lord Almighty” (Zechariah 1:3).

Who of us travels far without our phone and laptop or iPad charger?  We just can’t afford for the battery to run down. We must stay connected to the Power Source to stay connected to each other and our daily responsibilities. But how about when your passion for your Kingdom Purpose subsides?  If we find that our passion for our Kingdom Purpose is waning, the very first thing we should do is plug into our Power Source.

The Bible explains this concept in using an agricultural analogy common to the culture of their times–of the branch which must remain connected to the main plant to bear fruit. Whatever the comparison, we were not made to operate on our own.  We were made to be dependent upon God.

I charge my batteries and plug into my power source by spending time with God. When I don’t take the time to read my Bible, pray, and spend time in worship, my love for God and my passion for his presence fades.  It is simply the single most important thing that I can do, and everything in my life is better when I do. We do get busy, and most of us have way too much on our plates. For myself, when I was a young working mother and taking classes, my only choice was to get up extra early, before everyone else in the house, so that I could spend time with God. I knew that the rest of my day went way better when I did. I have continued this practice.

Some of you recharge your batteries just when the power goes down to nearly zero, and maybe you scurry around looking for the charger most of the time; some of you recharge every night like clockwork. Some of you have other methods. I recommend that you figure out the best way for you to keep your spiritual passion, your Kingdom Purpose, charged at full power so that you can be at 100% for God.

The last three Chaplain’s Corners have focused on passion. We have talked what passion really means, about discovering and uncovering our Kingdom Purpose, and how to keep our passion fully charged.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:20-21).

In Christ,

Judy

Psalm 19:14

“Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house” (Matthew 5:15).

When my younger grandchildren spend the night with us, we take great pains to make sure their bedrooms are very dark. We have room-darkening drapes, we turn out the lights, and cover all the electronic devices that emit those blue and red beams. In other words, we extinguish all the light sources to remove the distractions so that they will sleep more soundly.

In the same way, I think we sometimes hide those light sources from ourselves by all the baggage that we carry and all the things that we do to fill and complicate our lives. We become so burdened that we cannot see the light of day.  Believe me, as a former young working mother, I know what it is like to have way too much to do. Some of you are working two jobs, taking care of family, and taking classes. But stay with me, it is not hopeless. There are many ways that we can lighten our loads so that we have more time and energy to focus on our Kingdom Purpose, as we discussed in the devotional last week.

1. We must prioritize our heart desires. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33). By the way, what does this passage mean by “these things?” Verse 31 tells us “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?”  Of course, we should take responsibility for the welfare of our families, but do your best, then trust God for the rest, and don’t spend emotional energy worrying. Let us keep our priorities in the right place and know that He will provide.

• We must be particular about what we say “yes” to.  Some of us are too willing to raise our hands to volunteer for everything that comes along, or too eager to spend time in unhealthy recreation. Even healthy recreation when engaged in obsessively can be unhealthy (talking to myself, here). Our motivations can vary all over the place. Perhaps we have an orientation toward service, so we want to help. Or we volunteer out of guilt or a feeling of “should,” or we let someone guilt us into it. I find lots of different things to be interesting, so I used to be prone to volunteer just to try it out or to be with my friends. None of those reasons are necessarily bad, and certainly being willing to serve is a good thing. However, if always saying yes keeps you too busy to focus on your Kingdom Purpose, then they are not the best things. I love the gospel’s analogy of pruning: “He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunesso that it will be even more fruitful.” (John 15:2).

• We must confess our sins daily (if not more often). Unconfessed sin is heavy; it weighs us down with guilt and shame. It clouds our thinking and contaminates our testimony. However, the act of confessing our sins is purifying. Asking the Holy Spirit to convict us of all our sins, shortfalls, and poor choices, and then confessing them with true remorse is so pleasing to God, and it is so life-giving.  “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

• We must forgive others, and ourselves. This is one of the most profoundly life-changing lessons I have ever learned. When we forgive, we are not condoning the offense. Far from it. We are instead letting go of the power that it has over us. Brothers and sisters, please don’t let someone else’s sin become your sin; please don’t let it destroy you. I am convinced that Satan revels in our unforgiveness because he knows how destructive it is. In the words of Elsa, “let it go.” And don’t “play God” by holding on to your shame after God has forgiven you.  “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins” (Mark 11:25).

So, as you are uncovering your passion–your Kingdom Purpose, be diligent about your focus, eliminating all the things that hide and crowd your passion so that your light can truly shine.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Hebrews 12:1).  

In Christ,

Judy

Psalm 19:14