From Start To Finish

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appy New Year!  These words will be repeated thousands upon thousands of times over the next several days as people return from holiday vacations and settle back into their daily routines.  Well-wishers the world over will call friends and relatives to express their hopes that the new year will bring peace, health, and prosperity.  It really is a wonderful way to start the new year but as we stand on the threshold of 2017 with hope, we are very much in the dark of what this year will unfold.

For over four hundred years the Children of Israel had spent every new year in captivity and bondage to Pharaoh and his task masters.  Each new year resembled the year before and God's people, those whom He considered that apple of His eye, remained captive and enslaved with little reason or cause for hope.  But they clung to the promise that one day God would deliver them; and deliver them He did!

He had promised to lead them into a good land, "a land flowing with milk and honey" but in order to enter the land, they would have to learn to trust the Lord, to follow Him faithfully, and to look to Him to supply their every need.  God honored their faith and fulfilled His promise even though they disobeyed Him in the wilderness and wondered in a circle for forty years.

Still, God assured them that He would fulfill His promise.  In Deuteronomy 11:12 God makes the following statement, "It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end."  What wonderful words of assurance and promise and we can claim this same assurance and promise today as we embark on a new year.

The Children of Israel had no idea what the land looked like.  They did not know what the land contained but they knew that God had promised to provide for them and to bring them into this land.  Like the Children of Israel, we do not know what 2017 will bring.  We cannot see all the circumstances that will come our way.  But we do know that God sees it.  We know that He is already there and that He cares for us.  He has promised that every circumstance, every trial, every blessing, and every triumph will be for our good because He loves us.

Notice the last line of today's passage.  God's eyes were continually on the land from the beginning of the year to its end.  The same is true today.  God knows where we are.  He sees everything we do and is aware of everything we are facing.  His eyes and His presence are with us not only on January 1 but also on December 31 and every day in between.  God is continually with us, continually leading us, and continually working for our good.  That is His promise and it will not fail.

So as we take the first steps into this new year, let us do so with confidence, knowing that we serve a God who is faithful, who will fulfill all His promises to us and who stands guard over us every moment of every day of every year.  God is continually with us from start to finish.  Forward march! 

Step Right This Way

E

ach summer, the high desert of New Mexico in the southwest United States, becomes home to a host of young people eager to hike the trails, scale the mountains, explore the valleys, and walk the meadows of Philmont Scout Ranch. Some of these crews have waited several years to visit the ranch and to experience scouting's ultimate challenge.  However, before these eager youths can begin their journey, they must first get   directions for the road ahead.  They arrive with great expectations of what the backcountry holds; but they must develop a definite plan of action before beginning their wilderness experience.

One of the most important stops the crew makes at base camp is a visit to logistics. Here, the crew leader meets with a trip planner who provides vital information on the various aspects of the hike. Before their arrival, logistics is aware of the crew’s wishes and needs. Each crew is assigned a trip planner who indicates on a map the appropriate places to get food, fresh water, and to pitch camp. Every aspect of the trip is planned out BEFORE the crew leaves base camp.  They arrive with a selected trek in mind but logistics determines the route they will take and the time period they will follow.

This process teaches us a great truth about the plans God makes for us.  In Proverbs16:9, Solomon writes, "We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps." In this brief, but all-important passage of scripture, Solomon unlocks one of the great truths about God.  He is constantly and fully aware of our plans but he decides the paths we take to reach our destination.  How many of us have prayed for patience only to find that the pathway lies through difficulty and hardship until we learn what patience truly is?  How many times have we asked God to give us a forgiving spirit, only to be placed into situations that demanded us to forgive those who wronged us?  And how often have we asked God to teach us contentment and found ourselves removed from comforts and familiar surroundings until we learned to be at peace no matter what the circumstances?

Our heavenly father knows what we want, but more importantly, he knows what we need.  He also knows that the easiest route is not necessarily the best one or the one that will mold us and shape us according to the plans he has for us.  God is very interested in us and the paths we choose to tread; but he reserves the right to determine the paths we take to reach our destination. 

God is familiar with life's terrain.  He knows its high peaks and its low valleys.  He understands the uphill climb and the long, dusty roads.  He understands our frustrations and our discomfort with life's situations at times.  That is why he chooses the paths.  He knows where and when we need rest.  He knows how to restore us and supply us from his own, infinite resources at just the right time. 

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od's paths are not always easy; but they are always rewarding; designed to strengthen us, mature us, develop us, and transform us into the image of Christ.  Are you walking his paths today?

Format Disk

O

ne of the most deflating experiences is to sit down in front of your computer, turn it on, and be greeted with a warning that its internal systems are not functioning properly. All your important information is locked in the computer with no way for you to retrieve it.

Although you know it won’t help, you restart the computer several times, check all the connections, turn the screen on and off, and fiddle with the mouse and the keyboard, hoping against hope you can get the thing up and running again.           

This happened to me several months ago.   If you are one of the lucky one’s who has missed out on this little joyride, all I can say is pray it doesn’t happen soon and make sure you back up your information.  

 The computer had crashed, leaving me only one course of action. I picked up the phone and called the customer service hotline. As soon as I read them the message on the screen, they confirmed what I already knew. Hearing it again didn’t make me feel any better.

The technician told me to type in a command to format my hard drive. This would effectively remove all the information on the computer so I could begin restoring it.

I put in the command and the computer asked me the following question: Are you sure? Y or N. I just sat there and stared. I knew that if I selected no, my computer would remain just as it was, broken. However, selecting yes meant that all the information on the computer would be eternally destroyed.

Essentially, I was being asked if I wanted to kill my computer! After a few minutes, the technician reminded me what I had to do, so I did it. The computer erased the hard drive, leaving it completely empty. With help, I slowly began rebuilding my hard drive, replacing all the programs with brand new copies and restoring it to working order.

This is a wonderful illustration of God’s plan for our salvation. Internally, there is something wrong with us. It is called sin. Although we may not be aware of its presence, it is there and it is an integral part of who we are.

We come to a point in our lives when we must make a decision.  We must completely destroy all previous information, completely do away with our old habits and our old nature, and completely erase all that we once were. This comes as the result of the will. We must decide to retain our old nature or to kill it and let God rebuild us.

This is what the prophet Ezekiel addressed in his writings. In Ezekiel 36:26, God says: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”

You want to talk about a complete overhaul of your system, this is it!   In the same way that the hard drive stores all the computer’s  information, the human heart stores everything that makes us who we are. As long as there are flaws in our programming, as long as there are glitches in our internal system, and as long as we store faulty information, we do not work the way God intended.

However, when we allow God to format our hearts, removing all the bad programming, all the messed up files, all the flawed thoughts, and all the sin in our lives, we then stand ready to receive his new programming. He replaces the old system with a new one.

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ith the right programs now running, we are able to build new files, store new memories, and experience all the joy and the wonderful relationship that come with God’s salvation  The choice, however,  is up to us. We must decide whether we want our hearts formatted.  God does not force this decision on us; but he is always ready to help us make that change when we ask him. Format Disk? Are you sure? Select yes! You will never be the same again! And that’s a good thing!

A Backward Glance

Monday mornings were no fun for Steven.  He hated getting up early and heading to work.  Actually, it wasn't the work he dreaded, it was the traffic he had to face every morning on his way to the office.  Monday's were the worst because no one on the road was the least bit interested in being courteous.  Instead, every driver was on a self-proclaimed mission to be the dominant force on the highway. 

Such was the case with the gentleman in the car immediately following Steven. He was playing a cat-and-mouse game with the other drivers around him.  He approached Steven's rear bumper, almost touching it, and then he would back off.  He would change lanes, only to return to his original place.  He cut people off and refused to let anyone get in front of him. 

Steven spent the vast majority of his time looking in his rear view mirror, enthralled with the man directly behind him.  He was so absorbed that he failed to notice the stalled car in front of him and when he turned his attention back to the road ahead, it was too late. He hit the car squarely in the rear, bringing his car and several cars behind him, to a screeching, halt.

Many of us can identify with Steven's plight.   .  What is behind us seems to hold more allure than what lies before us.   We constantly gaze in the rear-view mirror, more interested in where we've than in where we are going. 

Eventually, if we hold to this practice, we will meet with Steven's fate.  It is impossible to move forward while constantly glancing backwards.  To continue this practice is to invite unwanted danger and to act irresponsibly

In 1 Kings 19:19-21, the scriptures describe for us the call of Elisha by the prophet Elijah.  "So he departed from there, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Then Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle on him. And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah, and said, “Please let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” And he said to him, “Go back again, for what have I done to you?” So Elisha turned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen and slaughtered them and boiled their flesh, using the oxen’s equipment, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and followed Elijah, and became his servant."

 When Elijah found Elisha, he placed his mantle on him, indicating he had chosen him.  Elisha's initial reaction concerned his family.  He wanted to return and kiss them goodbye and then follow Elijah.  While this seems noble and even the desirable thing to do, note Elijah's response.  He essentially tells Elisha, "Why do you want to go back after what I have done for you?" 

Elijah had called Elisha into God's service.  In response, Elisha went back, killed his oxen, his means of support and his livelihood, made a fire with his plow, cooked the oxen, and then became Elijah's servant.  In essence, he glanced back for just a minute to his life before Elijah's call and decided to look forward.  He removed anything that would keep him from becoming Elijah's servant.

Today, God calls us to follow him, to leave our comfort zone, to leave our past accomplishments, and to join him.  For some of us it may mean leaving home and family.  For others of us it means changing careers or locations.  But all of us must change our perspective, concentrating on what lies ahead instead of the view behind us.

 Jesus used this same illustration when speaking about the cost of following him.  His call was to leave the past where it belongs, in the past, and to join him in working for God's future kingdom.  His words, as recorded in Luke 9:62, demonstrate his expectation of those he calls, "No man, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

Are you content with the view behind or is your attention focused on the path ahead?  Are you looking forward or are you glancing backward?  Are you going to or are you coming from?

Come On In!

Carp's Daily Tidbits

"Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits." Psalm 103:2

Date: Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Today's Title: Come On In!

Today's Scripture: Joshua 1:1-3

I distinctly remember the first day my brother and I moved into our new home.  For eighteen long months we had worked, preparing the house for occupancy.  At last the long-awaited day arrived.  With the help of our parents and a few friends, we moved our furniture, our clothes, and all our belongings into the new house, cutting the apron strings with home and taking up the reigns of home ownership.  

It was exciting and frightening at the same time.  During the previous eighteen months, we had lived with our parents but our new home was across town, waiting for us to enter and set up house keeping.  During this time we were in limbo; we lived in one place but were looking forward to another.  Although we had enjoyed living with mom and dad, the time had come for us to move on and start a new life of our own.

A few days after moving into the house, I received a reality check. You know what these are, don’t you?  They are those little moments when you understand just how big the hole you’re in is and you know the shovel you are holding isn't large enough to dig you out.  It had never occurred to me that the money we borrowed had to be paid back.  I had written checks to pay for the plumbing, the wiring, and all the other needs we had.  But that was the bank’s money, not mine.  Now I was faced with the reality that I had to use my money to repay the loan.  Talk about scared!

I imagine this is the way Joshua must have felt as he stood on the threshold of the Promised Land, ready to make his entrance with the children of Israel.  For forty years they had been wondering in the desert, walking in a great circle, paying for their disobedience to God.  The Lord was using this situation to prepare them to take possession of the land. The wanderings in the desert would teach them about God’s faithfulness and His trustworthiness.

Finally, the day came when they were to cross the Jordan and enter the Promised Land.  There must have been wonderful excitement in the camp that day.  The promise made to Abraham hundreds of years before was about to be fulfilled.  God had opened the door and had extended an invitation for His people to go into the land of promise.  The responsibilities for leading the people into the land and for conquering it fell to Moses’ servant, Joshua.

Can’t you just imagine Joshua’s fears and worries?  For the past forty years, the people had received their instructions and their leadership from Moses.  This great man of God had stood before Pharaoh, he had led them through the Red Sea, he had given them God’s law, and he had built the tabernacle in the wilderness.  How would Joshua ever fill Moses’ shoes?  Would the people listen to him, would they respect him, would they carry out his instructions?  The fear of the unknown must have plagued Joshua and weighed heavily on his mind.  God, however, had great plans for him and gave him wonderful words of reassurance.

In Joshua 1:1-3, God gives these words of encouragement to Joshua, “After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them-to the Israelites.  I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses.”

There are three things we need to learn from this passage of scripture today.  First, Joshua must face reality.  Moses is dead!  The people can no longer rely on his leadership.  This left the people and Joshua with not only a sense of loss, but also caused them great anxiety.  Their security blanket had been ripped right out from underneath them.  But God does not stop here.  The next sentence demonstrates that God’s plans do not change. 

Second, God tells Joshua that the people will cross the Jordan River and take possession of the land He promised on oath to Abraham.  What wonderful reassurance this must have been.  God’s promises are not dependent on one individual or set of circumstances. God’s promises are dependent on Him and, therefore, can never fail. 

Finally, God restates His intention.  That intention is to fulfill His promise, to be with the people as they cross over and to settle them in the land just as He told Moses and just as He promised Abraham.  No matter how daunting the circumstance and no matter how impossible and hopeless the situation may seem, God’s promises remain true.  He will keep them all!

This morning, as we face the day ahead, we can and must draw great strength from these verses.  The events of yesterday are gone.  All of its successes, all of its comforts, and all of its security are forever in the past.  God is calling us to move forward into territory unknown to us but very familiar to Him.  He is calling us to move from where we are into the promises He has given us.  We can not dwell in the desert when God has called us to a land flowing with milk and honey.  We must get up, move forward, leave the past behind, enter the land, and possess it.

God has opened the door on this morning and He extends to us the following invitation:  “Come on in!”  The rest is up to us.  Personally, I’m going to wipe my feet on the welcome mat and go on in!  How about you?

From Start To Finish

Carp's Daily Tidbits

"Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits." Psalm 103:2

Date: Thursday, January 1, 2015

Today's Title: From Start To Finish!

Today's Scripture: Deuteronomy 11:12 

 

 

Happy New Year!  These words will be repeated thousands upon thousands of times today.  Well wishers the world over will call friends and relatives to express their hopes that the new year will bring peace, health, and prosperity.  It really is a wonderful way to start the new year but as we stand on the threshold of 2015 with hope, we are very much in the dark of what this year will hold.

 

For over four hundred years the Children of Israel had spent every new year in captivity and bondage to Pharaoh and his task masters.  Each new year resembled the year before and God's people, those whom He considered that apple of His eye, remained captive and enslaved with little reason or cause for hope.  But they clung to the promise that one day God would deliver them; and deliver them He did!

 

He had promised to lead them into a good land, "a land flowing with milk and honey" but in order to enter the land, they would have to learn to trust the Lord, to follow Him faithfully, and to look to Him to supply their every need.  God honored their faith and fulfilled His promise even though they disobeyed Him in the wilderness and wondered in a circle for forty years.

 

Still, God assured them that He would fulfill His promise.  In Deuteronomy 11:12 God makes the following statement, "It is a land the Lord your God cares for; the eyes of the Lord your God are continually on it from the beginning of the year to its end."  What wonderful words of assurance and promise and we can claim this same assurance and promise today as we embark on a new year.

 

The Children of Israel had no idea what the land looked like.  They did not know what the land contained but they knew that God had promised to provide for them and to bring them into this land.  Like the Children of Israel, we do not know what 2015 will bring.  We cannot see all the circumstances that will come our way.  But we do know that God sees it.  We know that He is already there and that He cares for us.  He has promised that every circumstance, every trial, every blessing, and every triumph will be for our good because He loves us.

 

Notice the last line of today's passage.  God's eyes were continually on the land from the beginning of the year to its end.  The same is true today.  God knows where we are.  He sees everything we do and is aware of every thing we are facing.  His eyes and His presence are with us not only on January 1 but also on December 31 and every day in between.  God is continually with us, continually leading us, and continually working for our good.  That is His promise and it will not fail.

 

So as we take the first steps into this new year, let us do so with confidence, knowing that we serve a God who is faithful, who will fulfill all His promises to us and who stands guard over us every moment of every day of every year.  God is continually with us from start to finish.  Forward march!