Vindication

The “problem of evil” with which we intellectually grapple and are personally burdened will one day be a distant memory. God will “take his great power and begin to reign” (Rev.11:16). The world’s attempts at society will be set aside as heaven observes with relief: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ” (v.15). As Isaiah had foreseen God himself will “make the crooked straight” and “the rough places plain” (40:1-5). But in the meantime we are forced to wait for this great day of biblical vindication. Slander, deception and misunderstanding may rule the day but God prompts us to rest assured and not lose heart. Jesus told us, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (Jn.16:33). For now, as Peter directed may we “commit ourselves to our faithful Creator and continue to do good” (1Pt.4:19).

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Fleeting Life

Talk about perspective! The lyrics of Psalm 39 boldly prompt the worshipper to consider the brief nature of his or her time here on earth. Verses four and five read: Show me, O Yahweh, my life’s end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life. You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. While that may be a depressing part of the Bible for our youth-idolizing culture, God isn’t trying to make us feel bad, his goal here and elsewhere is to get us to reprioritize our lives and motivate us to invest wisely with the days we have left. Consider the book of Ecclesiastes that reminds us that our short lives are often wasted chasing after things that, in the end, amount to nothing. Today, it is variously reported that the average American lifespan is approximately 75 years. That’s only about 27,394 days. It is enlightening to do the math and see how many days you have already spent and how many days you might expect (but not presume) to have left on this journey. If you do the math, don’t get depressed! Get motivated to make each remaining day count. Let us consciously invest in things that matter for eternity. May this daring perspective drive us to step up and stop waiting to make a difference for Christ!

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Intellectually Engaged

Jesus told us that we are to love God “with all of our mind” (Mt.22:37). Of course, he listed other aspects of our humanity with which we are to love God, but this one (our mind) may seem odd, especially in a day when many people perceive their relationship with God to be an emotional or purely “spiritual” endeavor. If we don’t recognize the responsibility to fully engage our minds as we seek to draw near to God we will surely miss out on what it means to really love God. While his transcendent nature may have several aspects which are “beyond tracing out” it is the “depths of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God” that call our limited minds to bow in respect and adoration of the inscrutability of our amazing God (Rom.11:33). So whether it’s at a Bible study, in a worship service, or during a prayerful walk in the park, make sure your brain is never checked out as you aspire to connect and commune with our great God.

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Uplifting Church

When, in Psalm 73, the psalmist finds himself frustrated by his daily struggles and aggravated by the inequities of life, it is amazing how quickly and simply his angst is resolved. This is especially true when you begin to sympathize with the depth of his annoyance. He says “all day long” he is “plagued,” “grieved” and “embittered.” Those are strong words to which most of us can relate when life gets tough and we run into harsh disappointments. The fix? Simpler than you might imagine. The psalmist confesses that the turnaround came when he “entered the sanctuary of God” (v.17). He speaks of a profound and needed adjustment to his perspective as he encounters God and God’s people in a place of worship. Remember that while many may view church as an extracurricular activity, it is in reality God’s essential prescription to keep your life, your heart and your emotions out of the gutter. With that in mind, we’d be wise to reaffirm our commitment to never “give up on meeting together” at church each weekend (Heb.10:25).

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Healing Grace

Because of God’s grace, our lives are full of potential usefulness for Jesus Christ. God has a proven track record of consistently reaching out to restore his stumbling servants. Proverbs 24:16 compares the “falling” of two kinds of people – those who get up and those who don’t. Thankfully, as Jesus demonstrated by extending forgiveness and restoration to Peter after his threefold denial (Jn.21), God’s mercy and grace extend to his people to stand them up, dust them off, and move them forward into productive and fruitful Christian lives. God wants your life to count. He wants you to make a difference for someone this week. So if your focus is on yesterday’s failures, get a biblical new year’s perspective: agree with God about your sin, affirm his promise of forgiveness and say to him, “Here am I, send me” (Is.6:6-8).

For more devotionals sermons and resources go to http://www.focalpointministries.org/