Kingdom Citizens

Joshua 4:14-24 You might read this passage and wonder, "Where I have I read this before?" or, "Didn't I read this already?" I love that what God did for Moses, He did again for Joshua. God can part the waters in our lives not once, but as many times as He needs to. We serve a God who moves mountains for us -- and He can do it again. We serve a God that can part the waters for us -- and He can do it again. My favorite verse in this passage is the second part of verse 18: "No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and ran at flood stage as before." Isn't that just like God? This verse reminds me not to be too quick to call "coincidence." We don't serve a God of coincidence -- we serve a God of intentionality. There is intention behind all that He does. When those waters came crashing back down, at flood stage, that was a reminder to the people as if God was saying: ...

2 Corinthians 4:16-5:5 Here in this passage, Paul reminds us of the Heavenly perspective. We must first remember that Paul is writing this in response to the suffering and affliction he endured. While many of us won’t find ourselves relating to that kind of suffering and affliction, we can find ourselves relating to Paul’s words on a different level.  We often find ourselves feeling overwhelmed and discouraged. I find this to be true in ministry from time to time. Paul talks about not fixing our eyes on the things that are seen — but those that are unseen. Sometimes what we see in front of us is discouraging. Many times, it's what we don't see that is even more discouraging. But Paul is talking about not fixating on what we see (or don't see) but what is unseen -- the eternal fruit.  What is it that you are waiting to see? Talk to the Lord about it. He will guide our hearts and minds to where they need to be to see the heavenly perspective. Remember, He left H...

Luke 13:18-21 While this passage is short and sweet, it serves as a powerful illustration and reminder for us. Jesus' ministry was the beginning of something new. This was a new beginning of God's Kingdom. The rebuilding of God's Kingdom didn't come in the way most expected it to -- full of power and wealth and overthrowing the current power. It began with Jesus' humility and service. And that was only the beginning.  Like the tiny mustard seed or the spoonful of yeast, God's kingdom would continue to grow. Millions would be added to the story and participate in the narrative. This would be difficult to imagine if you were in Jesus' time, only hearing about these things, not yet seeing them. And even though we only get a small glimpse, we see how the Church and the Kingdom have grown since it began.  What a beautiful sight it will be to see this come to fruition in Heaven! The next time you feel alone or feel as though you can't possibly see ...

Psalm 39  This is one of those chapters in the book of Psalms that sort of makes us scratch our heads and then turn the page to one of the more chipper chapters. However, this was a glimpse into David's heart and at times, David's reality. And if we are being honest, perhaps there have been times in life where we can relate to these words and David's context. Have you ever found yourself frustrated with God or at God and tried to keep it to yourself? (As if He doesn't already know what we are thinking/feeling?) Try as we might, it's only a matter of time before we burst. We can only take so much and hurt, anger and frustration builds up until we can't hold it in any longer. It appears that's what happened with David here. Perhaps today, you find yourself in the wilderness and you find yourself feeling hurt, angry or frustrated. Perhaps you want to talk to God about it, but you aren't sure how. Open up to Him. As we have established, He knows what i...

Romans 2:1-11 One could argue that it is fairly easy to get worked up in "righteous anger" when talking about the sins of others. It honestly takes a good deal of restraint to refuse to participate in judging others, whether that is out loud, with someone else, or in our own minds. We can judge someone, without even speaking to them, in about two seconds or we could go as long as two hours having a conversation about the sins and shortcomings of others. Either way you look at it, it is easy to judge others and we could spend a lot of time talking about that. What stands out to me most in this passage is how equally easy it is to miss God's plan and God's guidance for our lives when we are so concerned with the lives of others around us. Imagine what it would be like to get to heaven and have our Lord show us the time we spent judging others while we continued to miss opportunities to look to Him for own growth and guidance. The fact of the matter is, we ALL fall...

Psalm 63:1-8 Perhaps the most beautiful thing about this Psalm is the simple fact that David had written it while he was in the wilderness of Judah. You see, sometimes we retire to the wilderness on purpose, like we are during this season, to spend more time with God and less time with our own distractions. Other times we find oursleves in the wilderness of our lives, wandering, searching, aching, longing, seeking. Like David describes, we find our souls parched in a weary land where there is no water. I was just talking to someone yesterday about an awful incident that happened to one of their family members. A deaf man, while minding his own business trying to find a parking spot, had apparently taken the spot that someone else wanted, and was verbally threatened, had his car beat, and his tires slashed. This took place where he works, and his fellow employee was not fired and there were no consequences for what he had done. The family member of this person was venting about the ...

Luke 13:22-30 There could be many ways this question was posed. One of those being a man who looks at how evil the world is, how bad the world is, then looking at Jesus and asking, "Will only a few be saved, in such a fallen world?" Again, there could be many angles here and you never know how the mystery person might have wanted to trap Jesus. Instead of directly answering the question, Jesus sort of shifts the conversation. I think that Jesus answered his question in a way by saying, "Work hard to enter the narrow door to God's Kingdom, for many will try to enter but will fail." What does this say to us? After all, Jesus' response is literally, "Strive ye" meaning that He isn't speaking to him only who asked the question, but to all. We can deduce that we won't get into heaven by accident. Furthermore, we can see that Jesus teaches in His response that many will expect to enter, but will be sadly mistaken. "We ate and drank wit...

Psalm 105:1-6 The first part of this passage is a much-needed reminder that not only do we have so much to praise God for, but we also have so much to thank Him for. He has done such great things for us and we shouldn't pass up opportunities to thank Him. Too often when we pray, we are talking to God about things we need, things we want, things that need to be better, etc. It's very easy to do -- and we know that He wants us to come to Him with these things. However, let us not forget that He is worthy of our praise and our thanksgiving. Take a moment to write down some things you are thankful for that God has done for you. Do this often so that you get in the habit of coming to Him with a thankful heart. The second part of this passage is a great reminder, too, that our God is a safe place. The author invites us to search for the Lord and His strength -- through Him we are strong. The author reminds us to remember the miracles and wonders God has performed, the many things...

Philippians 3:17-20  Here we see Paul's emotional plea to the Philippian people. In verse 18 he speaks of those whose actions show that they are enemies of the cross. What does that mean, exactly? One scholar describes these people as "advocates of easy religiosity and 'cheap grace'." These are people that denied the way of the cross for they did not die to self. Dying to ourselves and our fleshly desires can be incredibly difficult. It's much easier to think about this life on earth rather than lean into the Kingdom. However, Paul quickly points out that this is in fact destructive thinking and living. Paul shifts gears in verse 20, which happens to be the theme verse for this blog: "But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior."  Living as Kingdom citizens means leaning into a disciplined, set-apart life. One that does not look to satisfy earthly desires which ofte...

Philippians 3:7-11 This is such a powerful passage for so many reasons. I love how you can feel the redemptive work of Christ in Paul's writings. There is a "divine obsession", if you will.  There is a beautiful longing that Paul has to be found in Christ--so much more than he longs to be found in anything else. He wants to know Christ and be found in Christ so much that he wants to know and experience the power of His sufferings, death and resurrection. Paul considers all things gained at one time a loss compared to knowing Christ. Nothing could compare to the newfound life he has in Jesus. I read a scholar compare this to a man of the sea throwing everything overboard in a storm to save his life –– in the same way Paul discarded every trace of his personal merits, or anything he thought to be great before he knew Jesus. I wonder if we are aware of the possible transformation that can take place in our lives if this was our desire as well. If we are being brutaly h...

Ecclesiastes 3:1-13 Have you ever had a hollow chocolate Easter bunny? Maybe as a kid, you slowly opened the shiny foil of the bunny-shaped treat, and slowly bit off a corner of the ear, only to find that the taste faded oh so quickly? It's then that you realized, it's hollow! You might even feel a little bit cheated! That, in short, is what this passage is saying. We can easily read this passage and walk away feeling somewhat sad, especially if we just leave it at that. After all, the words of this passage imply that life is empty, futile, and as hollow as a chocolate bunny. If we look at life from this viewpoint, it is very easy to say, "Yea, life is pretty meaningless! You're here for a short amount of time, and then you're gone. Let's just enjoy ourselves and have a good ole time while we can!" In fact, this is where (so I've read) the phrase "Eat, drink and be merry" comes from. It's easy to walk away with that attitude. Until th...

Exodus 6:1-13 One of my favorite stories in the Bible is Moses and the burning bush. I have taken a liking to the story of Moses since I was a kid, especially after The Prince of Egypt came out. (Where my 90s kids at?) There's something so incredible about how Moses received his calling while in the wilderness. He had just run away from his life as a Hebrew turned Prince, and had escaped all he had ever known. There, in the quiet of the wilderness, after starting his new life, he received his calling. Even though he questioned his qualifications the Lord had clearly spoken to Moses about what he was to do. God answered, "I will be with you."  Fast forward to Exodus Chapter 6. Or maybe first the end of Chapter 5...you with me? Moses has a hard conversation with God, that probably looks similar to conversations we have all had with God. Perhaps we have found ourselves saying things like, "Lord, why are you letting this happen? Why did you let this happen? Things ...

Psalm 91:1-2 (NLT)  "Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him."  I often think of my home as my safe place. I know I'm not the only one, right? No matter what I face during the day, no matter what I face during each week, I go home to my safe place. There, I rest with my people––my husband and my kids. We watch a movie, we make cookies, we play games, or we simply just enjoy each others company. It doesn't matter how awful my day is––rest at home, in my safe place, with my people, always makes me feel better. Home is my shelter when I've experienced a storm, it's a laugh when I am sad, it's a safe space when I need to vent. As safe and as wonderful as my home is for me, I can't help but think of how much safer it is to be in the shelter of the Most High God. Because while my home is all the goo...

Isaiah 58:1-12  Ash Wednesday - The first day of Lent. Ash Wednesday reminds us that " From dust, we come and to dust, we shall return." (Ecclesiastes 3:20) This day also marks day one of fasting for the next forty days. Perhaps we are fasting a meal, reminding ourselves that Jesus is the Bread of Life and can satisfy our hunger in ways that food never will. Perhaps we are giving up soda or coffee, reminding ourselves that Jesus keeps us going through each moment of the day and we, therefore, do not need these sugary, caffeinated beverages to make it through. Or, maybe we are fasting social media or television, to eliminate wasted time and spend intentional time with our Lord. Whatever it is that we choose to fast during this season, we should remember why we are doing it. Are we fasting because we are religious and we know it is what we are supposed to do? Are we fasting out of obligation? Perhaps we don't want others to think poorly of us because we aren't parti...