Ruth and Boaz

I’m going through the Chronological Bible which has me transitioning from the book of Judges to the story of Ruth. What a change! The clans of Jacob have been fighting each other over a land grab and almost wipe out Benjamin after a shameful scandal of the abuse of a concubine. Judges leaves us with a mess in Israel, because it says, “Everyone did what they thought was right in their own eyes.”

The love story of Ruth is much more encouraging. A foreigner, Ruth, a Moabite woman marries into a Jewish family and learns to love her mother in law and the ways and God of Israel. Ruth sacrificially gleans in the fields of a relative of Naomi’s and brings enough grain home to keep Naomi and herself alive in tough times. Boaz, a righteous man, and kinsman redeemer, ends up looking after Ruth and Naomi, and redeeming the women and their former lands for a heritage.

Boaz is touched by Ruth’s love for her mother in law, and her willingness to cast her lot with him, self described as an older man, not as young and handsome as men more Ruth’s age. But they happily marry and put a family together. Ruth gives birth to Obed, who later becomes the father of Jesse, and the grandfather of King David. God really honors this family’s selflessness and desire to do what’s right.

In fact, the name “Ruth,” has come to mean Love! You may be more familiar with the negative “ruthless” meaning without any love or regard for one’s fellow man. Quite a change from the selfishness of Judges to the selflessness of Ruth! Read this inspiring story when you have a chance.

Knowing God, part 1

A few weeks back, in a blog article we saw a Happiness Equation. It asserts that the road to a happy life, or having joy begins with getting to know God. This leads to the question, “How does one get to know God?”

First, a man has to believe there is God, and that he’s not Him. And without faith it is impossible to please Him (God), for he who comes to God (gets to know Him) must believe that He is (exists) and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6

The creation tells us there must be a powerful God. “because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.” Romans 1:19-20

Still, many people, not wanting to be accountable to a higher power, reject the idea of God. The bible verse Psalm 14 tells of the special Holiday for atheists on April 1^st. ‘The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” There is no one who does good. The LORD looked down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.’ Psalm 14:1 (April Fools Day)

But which of man’s religions points to the true God, and what is He like? The bible asserts that Jesus, is God, and the best and only true way to get to know Him. “For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form,” “For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” Colossians 1:19-20

The good news is that God wants a relationship with man. He wants to reveal himself to us. Jesus came to be known, and wants us to get to know Him. “Here I am! I stand at the door (of your heart) and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:20

Getting to know God then begins with a heartfelt desire to seek a relationship with the Savior, Jesus Christ.

Next time: Pursuing God

Locked and Loaded

(Having your sword at your side ready to defend and do battle for the kingdom…)

God's word describes the Bible as being alive and powerful, and as the sword of the Spirit. When Nehemiah and the boys were rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem, they had their swords in one hand and were working with the other. If you are attacked, or if you need to do battle, having your Bible back on the shelf at home won't do you much good. We need the sword in the scabbard at our side. We need our gun loaded and in our holster. We need key passages of God's Word in our minds and hearts, ready to go. As Christian ambassadors and soldiers, we need to be "locked and loaded."

1. I John 5:11-13 “And this is the testimony; God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God (Jesus) so that you may know that you have eternal life. “ I John 5:11-13

2. II Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! “ II Corinthians 5:17

3. I Peter 5:8-9 “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” I Peter 5:8-9

4. I Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” I Corinthians 10:13

5. Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23

6. Philippians 4:6-7 “Do not be anxius 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

7. I Peter 3:15-16 “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” I Peter 3:15-16

8. II Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” II Timothy 3:16

9. Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

10. Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship, Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:1-2

11. Mark 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45

12. I Chronicles 29:11-12 “Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is Yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all. Wealth and honor come from You; You are the ruler of all things. I Your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.” I Chronicles 29:11-12

13. I Corinthians 7:24 “Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to.” I Corinthians 7:24

14. II Timothy 2:2 “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” II Timothy 2:2

The Happiness Equation (aka “The Joy Formula”)

A few years ago, actor Will Smith played the lead in a movie called “The Pursuit of Happiness,” a modern day Horatio Alger story where a down and out single dad uses pluck and determination to begin a successful career in financial services. Ask yourself, Isn’t that what all men and women want, to achieve happiness?

The Bible describes Joy as being superior to temporary happiness, or a short term, emotional high, and it gives a formula for Joy in the gospel of John:

Joy, comes from being fruitful or productive. (Serving God’s Kingdom) “I have told you this so that My joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” John 15:11 “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10

Fruitfulness, comes from abiding with God. To abide, means to remain with, or live with daily in communion or fellowship. “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

Abiding with God comes from being obedient to His Word. “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in His love.” John 15:10 “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.” John 14:21

The key to obeying God, is to Love Him. “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” John 14:14 “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and foremost commandment.” Matthew 22:37b

The better we know God, the more we will love Him. “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” 1 John 4:7-8 “O righteous Father, although the word has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me; and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them. “ John 17:25

There it is, do you want to be happy, to have joy? Get to know God. If you know Him, you will love Him. If you love Him, you will find you will be able to obey Him. And if you obey Him, you will abide in fellow ship and sweet communion with Him. And, when you abide with Him, you’ll bear much fruit, which will bring you lasting Joy! KNOWING -> LOVING -> OBEYING -> ABIDING -> FRUITFULNESS -> JOY!

Do you want to be happy? To have Joy? Then, get to know God! “More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,” Philippians 3:8

The World System

In Operation Timothy, cbmc’s one on one discipleship program, we’re learning that as Christians we are soldiers in an ideological war. Our enemies are the devil, our own fleshy human nature, and the world system.

“You only go around once in life, so grab all the gusto,” “If it feels so right, it can’t be wrong,” “The one with the most toys wins,” “If it feels good, do it,” “You deserve a break today,” “Just do it,” “You are a god,” “Get all you can, can all you get, Sit on the lid, and poison the rest.” These are some of the slogans that typify the world system’s philosophy. The bible says this world system is based on 3 areas of sin, The Pride of Life, Lust of the Eye, and Lust of the Flesh.”

Contrast this with biblical philosophy, “Love the Lord God with all your heart and all your mind and all your soul.” “Love your neighbor as yourself.” “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself.” “Put first the kingdom of God, and all these things will be added to you.”

Quite a contrast for us to contemplate isn’t it? It’s easy for us to slip into the mindset of our culture, but God’s word says, “Do not be conformed by this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Are you conformed, or being transformed? How much time each day do your feed your mind on the things of God, or the things of the world system?

New Year Change Part 2

Last week I shared some thoughts and quotes about New Year’s Resolutions and the opportunity to change things in one’s life for the better. I thought I’d continue the theme and share some more thoughts from a couple of sources.

First, from a business coaching company, here are some thoughts on goal setting and keys to making effective change.

From Priority Mgmt some more keys to effective change:

1. Set high goals or stretch goals for yourself.

2.State goals in a positive way as Opportunities, rather than a negative way, as problems to overcome.

3. Put your health and physical wellbeing at the top of your agend, so you have the energy to be successful.

4. Make sure that your goals are consistent with, and an expression of your values and beliefs.

5. Focus on behavior versus thoughts. As Nike says "just do it" This year try not to think your way into a new way of acting. Rather act your way into a new way of thinking. We tend to think that ideas always come first, which leads to new behaviors. As a rule, theory seldom precedes practice. Start immediately and you'll see your performance and happiness soar.

As God said to Cain, "If you do well (behave well) will not your countenance be lifted up (Your attitude will improve!)." Cain didn't listen, and it didn't work out well for he or brother Abel.

From the biblical counseling foundation’s manual, here are a couple of more thoughts on what it takes to make effective change…

You can change biblically!

“The most significant decision you will ever make concerns your willingness to follow God’s plan for your life as revealed in the Bible. This decision directly impacts your daily life and your eternal destiny.”

“After you receive salvation by God’s grace through our Lord Jesus Christ, your growth in Christ and fitness to help others biblically will be in proportion to your faithfulness in biblically examining yourself and applying God’s truths to your life.”

Blessings as you work on positive change this year!

New Year's Resolutions

The Apostle Paul says we should put off the old and put on the new, and the beginning of a new year is a time we reflect on what we’d like to change and do a little goal setting for the future. Researchers tell us that top New Year’s Resolutions have to do with Weight Loss, Exercise,To Stop Smoking, Better money management, and Debt reduction. (Some of those are on my list.)

Researchers also say that making resolutions actually does help effect change. Here are some statistics:

· People who explicitly make resolutions are ten times more likely to attain their goals than people who don't.

· 64% are still keeping resolution after one month

· 46% are still keeping resolution after six month

Proactivechange.com says some keys to making resolutions successful are:

• Making the goal specific and measurable with a timeframe
• Writing your goal down
• Having accountability (getting support) Tell somebody about it.
• Tracking Your Progress against the goal
• Viewing failure as part of the process, and getting back on the wagon if you fall off

Have you thought about making some Spiritual New Year's Resolutions? Here are some possible spiritual goals for 2011:

· Attend church more regularly

· Read through the Bible this year (or for the over-achievers in 90 days)

· Establish a daily quiet time for prayer or reading the Word.

· Join a small group at church (or be more regular at the Fishersmen weekly breakfast)

· Participate in an outreach or evangelistic event this year

· Journal your prayer requests to see God’s faithfulness

· Become a mentor to someone this year (A Paul in Operation Timothy?)

How about sharing your New Year’s Resolutions with an accountability partner?

How about writing down a commitment or two at spending more time with God in 2011?