Paraphrase of Habakkuk 3:17-19 for March of 2020

17 Though my children’s growth is compromised by school closures, and the food shelves are bare and the toilet paper aisles echo, though the security of the ground beneath me gives way, and the comforts of life are at risk of no availability, though the funeral seats for loved ones passed are empty due to contagion, and the job hiatus produces no income,

 18 I will still say my God is good, I will tell others of the source of my joy.

 19 I am not in this alone. He has given me the tools I need and gives me His eternal perspective of my temporary problems.

 Could someone PLEASE write a song about this?

 Written by Shekinah Govero

If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied you, how will you compete with horses?  Jer 12:5

 Church, we live in difficult days. Being couped up in houses with (many of us) screaming kids who usually expend their energy on unsuspecting teachers. Spouses supposedly trying to WFH who are, in actuality, creating more work FOR the home. Like the lines from the old hymn we experience "Fightings within and fears without." But friends, the horsemen have not even arrived yet!!

Actually I wonder if the horsemen have even saddled the horses yet!!

Paul told us in 2 Tim 2:13 evil men would wax worse and worse before the end. And while what we are experiencing can easily be described as "worse" than what we experienced 2 months ago, I cannot conceive this is the "worse and worse" prophesied before the return of Christ.

And friends, if we lose heart now, if we lose strength now, if we lose our cool now, if we can't stand our kids being home from school, if we get frustrated at the spouse who is constantly underfoot now, if we get fearful at a lack of toilet paper and hand sanitizer now, what will we do when the horsemen arrive.

I am so thankful for the overall sense of "God has got this" we are hearing from so many in the congregation. I would like to challenge all of us to do this part of the battle well. Contend well with the temptation toward frustration and impatience. Face down the pull toward exasperation and fatigue. Let's contend well with the footmen so we will not be completely sidelined in future days, whether they be days away or years away, when darkness overtakes our world even more.

The One who saved us in the past, the One who has reserved for us an inheritance which cannot be stolen or corrupted, is the same One who walks with us today, who strengthens us today, who keeps us in His peace today (1 Pet 1:3-5).

"Dear God please, reveal Yourself and Your loving, keeping power more and more to each of Your children during these days. Please express Your incomprehensible peace through us today, and draw our neighbors to Yourself through the witness You manifest through us. For the sake of Your Kingdom. Amen."

Shelter in Peace

As we “shelter in Peace” (thank you David Christensen), what do you find yourself in need of?  What was the grocery store out of you cannot live without?  As we worry about the things we might not have access to, how easy it is to forget the things we DO have access to.

Did you ever think about the things Jesus promised to give us?  It makes for a fascinating list to ponder as we find ourselves with more time to think about things than many of us had a month ago.  Here is an amazing list of only eight of the things He promises to give.

Matt 11:28       Rest Wow!  No more laboring and struggling under a heavy burden.  Rest!  What a blessing!

Matt 16:29       Keys to the Kingdom  with authority to bind and loose on earth as it is in heaven.  There is no fear in heaven and we do not have to live in the fear the rest of the world lives in.  We have authority to bind up whatever it is that is causing us to be unsettled and put it under lock and key.

Matt 20:28       His life as a ransom for many            The very message of the gospel.  Jesus came to give His life for us.

Luke 21:15       A mouth of wisdom  so those who argue cannot withstand or contradict you.  In time of turmoil and accusation, if we will listen closely enough, Jesus promises to give us wisdom beyond our anticipation so we can rightly defend the gospel and silence the argument.

John 4:14         A spring of living water  which causes us to never thirst again, all the way to eternal life.  “What, never thirst again?!?”  “Nope, never thirst again!!”

John 6:27         Food (which is His very life John 6:51) which will endure through all eternity.  We are reminded of this every time we observe the Supper He instituted for us.

John 10:28-30 & 17:1-2           Eternal life which can never be taken away from us.  We cannot be snatched from Him and the life He gives cannot be snatched away from us.  When He gives a gift, IT STAYS GIVEN!!

John 14:27       Peace And this one is given, not like the world gives, neither the false peace of the world nor a promise made and then withdrawn, as the world so easily does.  This is a peace which is beyond understanding (Phil 4:7) and it is beyond understanding because spiritual truths are understood only by the Holy Spirit, who, BTW, is given by the Father (John 14:16).

 Now, what do you need?

Jesus, because of the Life You gave and the Keys of Your Kingdom which provide access to the riches of Your presence, I will Rest.  Thank you for the Food of Your Body and the Spring of Living Water you provide which, not only quiets my thirst, but is also a spring of life for those around us.  Thank you for the Mouth of Wisdom You give us to minister Your life to a world which is not at rest, which is not at peace, and thank you for the Eternal Life You have promised us.  Father, make us examples of Your peace, especially in a time of turmoil, so that we can be a witness to a world that is searching for Peace.  In Jesus’ Name.

Amen

We woke up to an earthquake this morning!!  Wow!  Way more intense than the massaging fingers beds at your local cheap hotel!!

 Friends these are some odd days we are living in. It is tempting to get discouraged, to wonder and in our wondering to wander. But we are steadfast, not because of ourselves, but because of Whose we are. Hebrews 12 says everything that can be shaken WILL be shaken, for the express purpose of revealing what CANNOT be shaken.

 Heb 12:28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe,

 Faith is not the absence of fear. Fear thrives on the unknown and unexpected. Faith is rooted in what IS known.

 We are a blessed people. God is so very Good, and He is our Rock, our anchor, our ever present help in time of need! He simply IS. . .

 “When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul.” ~ Psalm 94:19