Want others to Know

"Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter.  If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

Daniel 3:15-18

Lord, do things get worse than that?  Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were in a terrible situation.  They had refused to worship the statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had raised up.  The magnanimous king gave them a second chance: worship the statue or die.


Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had no specific promise from You, Lord, that you would save them from this threat.  Yet they didn't flinch.  They didn't even TRY to defend themselves, because of their understanding of  your power and your worth. They were armed with the  knowledge that You could save, and they knew that you do not forget your own.   


Despite their dire situation, their priority was wanting the king to know about their loyalty to the Living God. They wanted their enemy to have a very clear picture of the truth: these 3 men would give the king civil allegiance, but they would not worship his gods.  Only the Living God would receive  devotion from them.


I think there are two things going on here.  1) Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego  honored You by offering themselves as living sacrifices. Give me this boldness to actively cherish You above all else no matter what the cost. 2) Speaking Your truth in the midst of difficulty created a platform for the King and his court to understand your power and greatness. I also want others to know about my faithfulness to You. 

Keep Silent

"The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent."

Exodus 14:14 (and see Exodus14:25 as well)

Keep silent.  Be still...


OK, Lord.  I do this best when I'm sleeping.  Otherwise, whew!  I'm so full of myself, my opinions, my agenda that words just spew out all the time.  It's like I've always got a reservoir of remarks waiting to push over the spillway...


Keep silent. Be still...


OK, Lord.  You're telling me you've got it under control.  You don't need my help.  You don't want my help.  You want my attention.   


Keep silent. Be still... 


OK, Lord.  Otherwise, I'll miss seeing your deliverance.

Stand By

"Do not fear!  Stand by and see the salvation of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today..."

Exodus 14:13

Lord, we Americans are really good at standing by and seeing things like college football, for instance.  In some ways, our culture is all about being a spectator. However, in the realm of crisis, we find that simply standing by and watching makes us crazy.   We hate that feeling of helplessness when calamity strikes.  We feel frantic if we can't do something to help.


Those Israelites standing at the edge of the Red Sea with the Egyptian army rumbling toward them in chariots must have been beside themselves.  Yet, Moses' advice was, 'Don't worry; watch and see what God's going to do.'   


Holy Father, sometimes there is nothing we can do to save.  But we know You, the good, powerful, and living God who is in charge of it all. So Moses' counsel still rings true, no matter what the situation.  Let us marshall our emotions and thoughts, clinging to the truth that You can save.*  


Sometimes you reach in and deliver us in the most astonishing ways!  Sometimes you free us from our circumstance.  Sometimes you free us in and through our circumstance.  Either way, let us stand by and see  your saving work.


* God is with us when we suffer and He promises that those believers who suffer don't do it for nothing. So what happens when the rescue we're looking for doesn't occur?   Check out my brother's video called "Is God Good?" for more on this difficult topic:


 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rfd_1UAjeIA&feature=related

Take Captive

‘We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.’

2 Corinthians 10:5

Father, you desire  outward and inward obedience.  Both actions and thoughts are involved in this kinetic submission to your Lordship. My natural tendency is to let my thoughts wander... drift... daydream.  Passive rebellion?

It's astounding how much time can be wasted brooding in 'the drift'.  What if blah, blah, blah...then I could blah blah blah.  If only I hadn't blah blah blah.  I also marvel at how far astray I can end up if I deviate even slightly from Your solid truth.  Christ crucified and risen must be my center.


Paul, on the other hand, seems very purposeful and intentional with his thinking. It's almost like he's staged a coup in his mind that establishes the priority of immediate obedience to Christ.  Paul entertains no wishful musings, what ifs, false rationalizations, or vain notions.  He measures life by the standard of the Gospel of Christ.


Lord, remind me to measure every thought against your truth.  Bring me back when You see me distracted or dissipated in my views.  Give me the guts to aggressively tear down systems of thought that set themselves up against knowledge of You.  Empower me to constrain my thought-life to conform to Your way, Your truth, and Your life.

Want to do Good

"So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me."  

Romans 7:21

Do I REALLY want to do good?  Yes!  And... no.  Paul dialogues the inner struggle so well!  Like him, my heart is corrupt.  And down deep, I think we'd all rather be God than be good.  That's sort of the Garden of Eden dilemma, isn't it?


Thanks be to You, God, that you rescue me in this continual struggle.  Give me the power to both want and do your will moment by moment!

Teach New Disciples

"Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given to you."

Matthew 28:20

That seems easy.  If I just tell young believers the principles in Your Word , they'll do it, right?  Not so much...  Teaching and telling are not synonyms.  And simple commands often contain hidden levels of complexity.


"Put on your shoes!"  Lord - it's something I tell my kids every day.  You'd think it was a no-brainer command.  However, that is not the case.   What's involved?  First, the kid has to FIND the shoes.  No, no - first, the kid has to be WILLING to find the shoes now instead of continuing in his present course.  So, when the child hears a command like that from me, in his heart he has to say something like, "OK, because Mom told me  and I love her, I'll be glad to do it.  I'll  make her agenda my priority now." 


First he has to be willing.  Second, he must recognize the unspoken subcommand - he has to find the shoes.  Compliance comes more easily when he has established routines.  My kid has to have the  habit of putting his shoes away in a certain spot if he wants to be ready obey the command that he knows will come at some point in the day.  


Lastly, the kid's got to follow through; actually get the shoes on his feet.  He can't be distracted by the marbles on his closet floor, or by the telephone ringing.  He has to be on it!


People need practice at obeying even simple commands.  Telling isn't enough; teaching involves one person giving practice and patiently correcting problems, and the other person offering a willing heart and immediate action.   Teaching involves time.  Teaching a new disciple is an investment.   Lord, I  am willing.  Show me new routines to establish in my daily life that will put me in a position to obey at the drop of a hat. Help me to follow through, because your commands are my priority.   Lord, renew my dedication to teaching the younger disciples in my life.  

Do As Jesus Did

"For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did."

John 13:15

Lord Jesus, You spoke these words to your disciples right after you washed their feet.  You came to serve;  You came to love your own to the fullest extent.  And You called them (and by extension, me) to do as You did.  Washing feet is humble work, especially for a teacher who washes the feet of his rather dense students.  Yet in this case, astoundingly, You also washed the feet of one student whom You knew to be plotting your demise AND one student whom You knew would deny You.  


The love you call your disciples to imitate is not always  warm & fuzzy love.  It's self-sacrificial and demanding. In this humble service, you loved your disciples in a peculiar and particular way that provoked consternation, questions, and thought.    You even asked them, "Do you know what I have done to you?"  In other words, 'Why do you think the Son of God would perform this lowly task?'   Maybe your act seemed reckless or foolish... prodigal even...  Certainly it was baffling, and the disciples gave no answer at the time. 


I think I know what you did to them.  You gave an example of loving and serving with grace and without pride.  The disciples didn't deserve your service.  You loved them despite their lowly position, despite their impending betrayals and denials.  You loved them fully, no holding back.  You love me fully, no reservations; not because I deserve it, but because of your astonishing grace.


Lord Jesus, empower me to love and serve others profoundly, not looking to reward those who deserve it; but rather seeking to imitate and be a conduit of your love and grace so that others would know You.