“next to him Amasiah the son of Zichri, who volunteered for the Lord” 2 Chronicles 17:16 Volunteered – It’s wartime and the call goes out: Enlist Now! Volunteer to Fight for Your Freedom! God’s army is the opposite of human military organizations. God never drafts the foot soldiers, only the generals. God drafted Moses. He was…
“She is emptied! Yes, she is desolate and waste! Hearts are melting and knees knocking! Also anguish is in the whole body and all their faces are grown pale!” Nahum 2:10 Anguish – HEADLINE NEWS: The great city is doomed! God has spoken. Judgment is coming. Everyone will be destroyed. This is perfect 6 o’clock…
“Now Jacob loved Rachel” Genesis 29:18 Rachel – Hebrew names are not chosen from a book in the library, from television personalities or from months of the year. Biblical names often have root meanings that describe the personality of the one who bears the name. “Nahum” for example, is from a root that means “comfort”. …
“also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,” Ephesians 1:11 Purpose – Purpose has become the by-word of the day. With so much attention placed on the idea of God’s purposes for us, it is worth reflecting for a moment…
“Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but they will not find me.” Proverbs 1:28 Find – This is the last Act of the play. In this story, when the play ends something essential is missing – and it can’t be found. In order to see…
“to know wisdom and instruction, to discern the sayings of understanding.” Proverbs 1:2 Instruction – Oh, my! This word (musar) is so completely different than what we usually think. When we hear the word “instruction”, we probably imagine a classroom and a teacher. We think about books and homework, tests and quizzes. But those images…
“to know wisdom and instruction, to discern the sayings of understanding.” Proverbs 1:2 Wisdom – Do you remember Alice’s world? One pill makes you taller and one pill makes you small. The red bottle does one thing, the blue does another. Sometimes we let the imagery of alternatives seep into God’s view of the world….
“Daughters of Jerusalem, stop weeping for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.” Luke 23:28 Weep – Is it a warning or a proclamation of great compassion? On the surface, we might hear a warning. “Don’t weep for me. I am not the one who will really suffer the consequences of this event. …
“He restores my soul” Psalm 23:3 Soul – David was just out of touch. If he really knew about restoring, he would have grabbed a Powerade or an energy bar. He might have taken extra multi-vitamins or gone to the doctor to get a prescription for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. But David was stubborn. He believed…
“Why is it that you were looking for me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?” Luke 2:49 House – This “house” is empty. In fact, the word “house” in this verse is not really there at all. By inserting it, we might get the idea that there is…
