“You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely” (Psalm 119:1-4).

God knows each and every one of us intimately. He knows our thoughts, our deeds, every word we speak. The word for this is “omniscience,” which means all-knowing. Yes, he knows all the scientific facts, all the information in every encyclopedia, the truth behind every mystery. But He also knows all the mundane information about our daily lives, as well. That should be comforting for us, because there is no need to try to hide from Him. And because even though he knows everything about me, it does not and will never change anything. That is because He has saved me; I am His because of who He is and what He has done, not because of anything I have done or have failed to do. And the same goes for all believers.

One thing we should delight in is that even if no one else notices, God sees our every victory. When you battle with temptation of any kind and win, God sees it, and He smiles. When you bite your tongue or curb your attitude, God sees your struggle and victory and he rejoices. When you overcome your fears to reach out to someone with the gospel or any encouragement, God smiles on you. When you reach out to anyone with love and compassion, he receives it as if were for Himself. Of course, he also sees the missed opportunities, but when we belong to him, He does not condemn us for them (even though we may be beating ourselves up). He is still loving, encouraging, and understanding. In fact, if you can even imagine it, God is singing over us as he rejoices in all our daily victories, no matter how seemingly insignificant. There is no other God like our God. God loves you; he delights in you. He sings over you.

“The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17).

In Christ,

Judy

“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).

My pastor preached on this passage this past Sunday. In this passage, the author has just finished extolling the heroes of the faith in Hebrews 11 (the Hall of Fame of Faith). He goes on to say, “therefore,” which looks back at chapter 11, and then offers the rationale “since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses” with the thought being that all those who have gone before are in heaven cheering us on and encouraging us. He follows with the directive that we should throw off everything that hinders us in the race that has been marked out for us.

My older son hiked the Appalachian Trail many years ago. He started out with all the gear that he thought he would need, but it did not take long until he followed the lead of those who had gone before on this trail and began to shuck anything he didn’t absolutely need to lighten his load to be sure he could finish. As he evaluated his walk every day, he determined what was unnecessarily weighing him down, and he ditched it..

This is a good analogy. Paul used the analogy of a race. My son completed a long trek. Both are significant endeavors that require intention, planning, fitness, and continuous assessment and adjustment to be able to finish well.

I have realized that I tend to go on “autopilot” and do not even realize when some of my habits and activities get in my way, even those that anyone would consider to be good things. By examination we can determine if those things are the best ways to live our lives both for ourselves and for those who are watching us. For example, I like to play all the various word games on my phone. I rationalize that they are good for brain health. However, when they become an obsession that takes time away from other better things, then I need to stop and reassess.

Using the passage from Hebrews 12:1, my pastor called our congregation to a 21-day period of fasting and prayer. Fasting can be a temporary cessation of anything, not just food. Prayer with fasting then enables us to examine and understand what God’s better plan is for us and to exercise the fruit of the spirit of self-control in the healthiest way. As a disciple of Christ, while not running a footrace or attempting a trek, I am on the move. I am headed to my destination, and as I travel, I want to keep my eyes fixed on the prize and shed anything that hinders my ability to finish well. “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23).

 “…fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).

In Christ,

Judy

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7).

This devotion will unpack the miracle of Jesus feeding the five thousand, as told in all four gospels; we learn these facts and teachings that we can apply to our situation at Nashville Rescue Mission.

1. “When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd” (Mark 6:34).

We are experiencing larger than average numbers of guests, especially among our women and children. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, that when Jesus sees our guests, he is filled with compassion for them for the same reasons—they are like sheep without a shepherd. Let us pray to have the mind of Christ, so that we will experience this same compassion.

• “Send the people away so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat” (Mark 6:26).

The disciples observed the large crowd, and knowing their own financial situation, especially being in a remote area, decided on a very logical course of action. The people were hungry and needed to go somewhere else for food. We may feel the same way—seeing that our capacity is finite, and our numbers are exceeding all expectations, it seems logical to tell our guests that they should go somewhere else to find a place to stay.

• “But he answered, “You give them something to eat” (Mark 6:37).

In this case, Jesus disagreed with his disciples about sending the people away. Jesus knew that he was the source, not only of earthly food, but also spiritual food. That is the danger of sending anyone away from a place of spiritual refuge when they are hungry, needy, and unprepared.

• “… he gave thanks and broke the loaves.” (Mark 6:41b).

After making an inventory of available resources and finding only the lunch packed by one young boy, Jesus gave thanks. He then distributed the food among the people. He gave thanks. He did not bemoan their lack of foresight, lack of generosity, or lack of anything. He simply gave thanks. We are to do likewise. The scriptures speak often about giving thanks. We are not to be anxious about anything but instead give thanks. We are to give thanks in all situations. Giving thanks should be the continuous word on our lips.

• “Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all.” (Mark 6:41b).

God used the meager gift from the boy, which of course was not meager to the boy. It was his entire lunch, yet he gave it willingly. And Jesus used the disciples in the distribution. What an honor! God does not need our gifts. He does not need our hands and feet. But we need to be used by Him. Let us be thankful that God has called us to this place of ministry to be his hands and feet.

• “They all ate and were satisfied…” (Mark 6:42).

Not only was everyone satisfied, but there were also leftovers! With God all things are possible! We know this, so let us live it out. Let us be thankful for the facilities that we have, the staff that we have, the generosity that is exhibited by staff, donors, and volunteers. Let praises always be on our lips, even as we lift our petitions and supplications. Let us be faithful to our calling, and faithful to our own growth in sanctification. Jesus will bless our faithfulness.

“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 Christ,

Judy

“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36).

Freedom. Last week we celebrated freedom as a country—freedom from the rule of England and freedom to be our own country. We celebrate our individual freedom every day—freedom from the rule of Satan and freedom to live as Christ wants us to live.

The concept of freedom would suggest no restraints—physical or otherwise. However, as humans created in the image of God to live in unity with others, freedom in its highest state can only exist within the bounds, or restraints, of moral law. Even the secular Psychology Today states that “From an existential perspective, freedom and responsibility are inseparable. They constitute the foundation for understanding our experience, developing our sense of identity, and leading a purposeful and meaningful life.”

Even with all its flaws, I am proud to be a citizen of the United States of America. I am thankful to live in a country where we are free to worship as we please. Even when others choose not to worship or to worship in a different way, I am grateful that I still have the freedom to worship my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And I will do everything in my power to preserve this right and freedom as provided in the first amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

It is a challenge and an opportunity to be an evangelical Christian in a country where every citizen has the freedom of religion and freedom of speech. I have the right to worship as I please, and my God commands me to share the gospel. And those to whom we share the gospel have the freedom to accept or reject it. The challenge is to share the gospel in a loving way, modeling the love and compassion of Jesus, and praying that the Holy Spirit will open hearts to receive. We are to be bold, to not bow to the culture, and to trust God for the results.

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1).

In Christ,

Judy

“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge
of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love” (2 Peter 1:3-7).

We started this series on Godliness several weeks ago, looking at Peter’s instructions about growing in our godly life. We are instructed to make every effort to add certain character attributes to the foundation of our faith so as to participate in God’s divine nature.

If you have worked your way through these past few Chaplain’s Corner devotionals, you might feel fairly proud of yourself, and that is okay. (It is okay to take pride in what God is doing in your life, as long as you give God the credit.)

And then we top it all off with making “every effort to add…love.” Love is a tricky word. We overuse it, applying the feeling of love to things that are inanimate and fleeting, such as chocolate (guilty!). Love as a feeling can be so fickle—one day I “love” my neighbor, and another day not so much. The best way to sort this out is to realize that “love” is a verb. It is an action. Feelings can be fickle; but with the fruit of the spirit—self-control—I can take responsibility for my actions.

Back in 2019, I did a series of devotions on 1 Corinthians 13, sometimes called the “Love Chapter.” Below are links to those devotions which explain this marvelous teaching on what it means to love. I hope you will take some time to read them.

• The Greatest of These Is Love
• Love Is Patient
• Love Is Kind
• Love Does Not Envy
• Love Does Not Boast; It Is Not Proud
• Love Is Not Self Seeking
• Love Is Not Easily Angered
• Love Rejoices with the Truth
• Love Always Protects
• Love Always Trusts, Always Hopes
• Love Never Fails

When Paul writes that the greatest of these is love, he is not saying that love is more monumental or more important than faith or hope. What he is trying to get across is that love is transcendent. Other attributes such as faith and hope will be answered and resolved by our death and subsequent entry into heaven. But love will transcend death into eternity. John Piper says, “…in this present life, every relationship of love, and faithfulness, and loyalty, and sacrifice, and care will be celebrated for all eternity in tribute to the grace of God and the faithfulness of his obedient child. The ‘well done, good and faithful servant’ that Jesus speaks to his faithful followers at the resurrection is a well done in every fruitful relationship. Well done for that beautiful love. Well done.”

Love is eternal: “Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless…. Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:8-10, 13 – NLT).

In Christ,

Judy