“The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin” (Exodus 34:6-7a).

The words above describing God’s steadfast love and faithfulness are an attempt to translate the Hebrew word “hesed,” which appears 248 times in Scripture. According to various lexicons, when this Hebrew word is used in Scripture, it is translated as one or more of the following words: grace, kindness, goodness, piety, beauty, favor, good deeds, lovingkindness, mercy/merciful. Sally Lloyd Jones talks about “hesed” as God’s never-stopping. never giving up, unbreaking, always and forever kind of love. Is that not beautiful? I cannot read or repeat this without a catch in my throat.

This love is ours for the asking, for the receiving. Notably, Jonah, in the belly of the fish, said, “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace (hesed) that could be theirs” (Jonah 2:8).

Jonah was learning. He knew intellectually about the grace of God, but he did not want it extended to Nineveh. He felt they were undeserving. The problem here is that it is not up to us as to who is deserving of God’s grace and mercy. (Thank God!). Jonah tried to run from God, both literally and in his disobedience. But God pursued him and yet allowed him to reach the depths of his mess in the bottom of the sea in the belly of the fish. Finally, when ‘Jonah could run no more, he prayed to God. “In my distress, I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry” (Jonah 2:2).

And when Jonah prayed, God answered. “And the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land (Jonah 2:10).

God loves us with an everlasting love, yet we must realize our desperate need for him. We must cling to him only. If we grasp for other sources of help, we will miss the grace, the hesed, of God. Remember, in the words of the Apostle Paul: “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12).

“Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the Lord.” (Jonah 2:8-9).

In Christ,

Judy

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” (James 4:10).

This verse paints a beautiful word picture in my mind. I see someone bowing low before Jesus, and Jesus gently holding them as He raises them up. There is another picture that Jesus paints in Luke:

“When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Luke 14:8-10).

Jesus has an amazing way of turning things on their heads, as when he says, “The first will be last, and the last will be first.” This passage from Luke speaks of humility as a position—in this case, the lowest place (or farthest from the host). In the same way, humility is our position in relation to others, and to Christ. Bottom line, humility is not getting down on yourself. Humility is properly submitting to authority.

Jesus set the example. He humbled himself to be incarnated as a man, to die a horrible death on the cross; to be the lamb, the atoning sacrifice to take away the sins of the world. And then God raised him from the dead, and Jesus ascended to the right hand of God. And from there he will rule and reign. He knew that if he was obedient to his Father, that his Father would lift him up.

In the same way, we should be obedient to our heavenly Father, knowing that he will lift us up. James Chapter 4 leads off with why we have strife with our fellow brothers and sisters. “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (v.4). He then proceeds to tell us how to change this dynamic: “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. (James 4:7-10)

“God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (Proverbs 3:34).

In Christ,

Judy

“My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Besides Jesus, most of us would probably say that the Apostle Paul had the strongest faith of anyone in the New Testament. And certainly, there were heroes of the faith in the Old Testament such as Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and all the others listed in the Faith Hall of Fame (Hebrews 11). However, when we read their stories, we learn that they all experienced times when their faith was weak.

One of my favorite stories is about one of the most famous prophets in the Bible, Elijah. In 1 Kings 18, Elijah calls down fire from heaven in a showdown with the prophets of Baal.

“At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: ‘Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again. Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, ‘The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!’” (1 Kings 18:36-39).

Elijah exhibited great faith when going up against the most evil King Ahab and his 400 prophets of Baal, and God rewarded him with a miracle. You would think that Elijah would be filled with great confidence as a result. Yet when the wicked Queen Jezebel threatened him right after this miracle, “Elijah was afraid and ran for his life…he prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, Lord,’ he said. ‘Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.’”

Have you ever felt like that? Afraid. Had enough. Just can’t do this anymore. It’s just not worth it. Where do these feelings come from?

A clue to the answer to this question is in the question itself. Specifically, it’s the word “feelings.” Our feelings are an important component of our emotional health. God created us with emotions, and even Jesus wept. But we all know that our feelings are also changeable, we can’t really depend on them. I might be terribly upset immediately after hearing bad news, but the next day it won’t seem to matter so much.  The Bible tells us about the misleading nature of our feelings: “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9). The Bible also tells us about the unpredictability of our feelings: “Even in laughter the heart may ache, and rejoicing may end in grief (Proverbs 14:13). That said, human feelings can reveal spiritual truths and help us grow toward Christian maturity. Our emotions can expose our need for God, our dependency on Him, and the frailty of our human existence (2 Corinthians 12:7–10). 

So, understanding this about our feelings, what do we do when our faith is weak? Oddly enough, it’s the same thing we do when our faith is strong and we feel invincible, and for all the same reasons. Because we need to understand what faith is and where our faith lies. When I sit down in a chair, my faith is not in my proficiency in sitting. My faith is in the chair. We need to understand just who or what it is that we have faith in. If my faith is in myself and my abilities, I’ve been known to fail. If my faith is in others, they have been known to fail.  But if my faith is in Jesus, He is Trustworthy and True. Jesus never fails. His timing is perfect, and his Way is always the right way.

When Paul was feeling weak, he remembered God’s grace. Throughout Scriptures, time after time, we read about the power of God and how he always came through, just like with Elijah in the passage above. We need to remember these wonderful stories of God’s compassion, his grace, his might, his victories, and his promises. This is why Moses could write with all confidence:

“In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling” (Exodus 15:13).

Judy

“Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58).

We have just celebrated Labor Day, and although I know that many workers get the day off to rest from their labors, many of you worked right on through. I sincerely hope you know how appreciated you are, and how godly it is that you remained at your post, working for the Lord.

This devotional is “bookended” by words spoken by the Apostle Paul to his brothers in sisters in Christ to encourage them in their faith. Their faith was a dynamic faith in many ways. For example:

• These new believers were actively converting from their old religion, whether it be Judaism or paganism, giving up their old ways and exchanging them for the ways of Christ. This involved continuous decision-making and taking action regarding what to think, what to say, and what to do. This is stressful and exhausting.
• In many cases, they were rejected by their families of origin because of their Christianity, and as a result having to relocate and develop new relationships and new resources. This, too, is challenging and stressful.
• And perhaps most importantly, they were actively involved in the expansion of Christianity, winning souls for Christ and supporting the missionary efforts of others. And while rewarding, it was dangerous and stressful work.

This is why Paul so often used metaphors of running the race and fighting the fight, because these new believers were so actively contending for the faith.

Many of us, early in the throes of any major change, are energetic and enthusiastic about what we are striving to do. And then, over time, we become complacent, maybe even bored, and possibly even revert to the older, “easier” ways. I bet you can relate; I know that I can. When I start a new job, I am so excited about coming to work every day and what I am going to learn and accomplish. And then it can sometimes just become routine, going through the motions. We can forget what our true motivation for the change was in the first place. Marriage can be like that also. That’s why John wrote to the church at Ephesus “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first” (Revelation 2:4).

How can we overcome this tendency to slack off, to forsake the first love and excitement?

1. Continually pray that our priorities are in the right place. In other words, focus on doing the Lord’s work. It is our “labor in the Lord” that is not in vain.
2. Remember that we are not doing this on our own— “he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
3. Surround yourself with partners in the gospel, to pray and be prayed for, to encourage and be encouraged by, and to work alongside.
4. Focus on the prize, the crown, the wreath, the commendation of “well-done good and faithful servant”, the “harvest.” “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7-8).

Jesus has promised that our labor “in the Lord” will not be in vain and that he will carry it through to completion. Therefore, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9).

“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1:4-6).

In Christ,

Judy