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God Never Forgets

He May Be Slow, But He Is Never Late

God keeps all of his promises. He can’t help himself. Fulfilling them is just his nature. He had promised through the prophets a redeemer for Israel hundreds of years before it happened, but it happened. 400 years of silence ensued between the last prophet Malachi’s messianic oracles until the time the angel Gabriel revealed God’s redemptive plan to Zechariah, but it happened. He hasn’t forgotten you either. While his promise to you may be slow in coming, it won’t be late. In God’s time, it will happen!

Enduring Truth // Focus: Luke 1:67-68

Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people.”

Over the years the church has given Zechariah’s song the title, “The Benedictus,” or “The Blessing.” The lyrics of this brief song, which we read in Luke 1:67-79, were sung by one of the proudest and oldest first-time fathers of all time. But more than being just a happy little ditty from a happy old daddy, Zechariah proclaims two timeless and timely truths about God’s character that you and I probably need to hear again today.

First, we are reminded that God never breaks a promise! John’s birth was living proof of God’s faithfulness. In His song, Zechariah belts out to all who will listen, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come and has redeemed his people.” (Luke 1:68)

God keeps his promises—every one of them. He can’t help himself; it is just his nature. He had promised through the prophets a redeemer for Israel hundreds of years before, and 400 silent years had passed since the last prophet Malachi had uttered the oracles of God until the time the angel Gabriel revealed God’s plan to Zechariah. Though God’s promise had been ever so slow in coming, it was nonetheless fulfilled.

Zechariah’s song reminds us that even though God may be slow, he is never late!

Second, God never forgets. Zechariah’s name meant “God remembers.” And in his song, Zechariah exploded with the joyful realization that God does remember: “God has remembered his oath…” (Luke 1:72-73)

Zechariah must have been discouraged. He was a priest of a nation that had turned its back on God. He and Elizabeth, whose name meant “the promise of God,” had been faithful to God all their lives—they lived up to the meaning of their names. Yet God had not blessed them with a son, and wayward Israel continued to be oppressed by its pagan enemies.

But Zechariah clung to this truth: Our Creator remembers! God knows who we are, where we are, and what we need. He remembers us. He remembers his promises, and God graciously acts at the proper time.

Isaiah 49:15-16 reminds us, “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.”

God can’t forget!

If you are reading these words today and feeling a little forgotten by God, thank God you’re wrong! Zechariah reminds you from first-hand experience through his song that God remembers you and will fulfill every single one of his promises to you at the proper time!

So be faithful!

Thrive: Take a moment to thank the Lord for his unfailing faithfulness. He remembers his promises to you and he will fulfill them all. Rejoice in him today, then offer your life faithfully back to him and his purposes.

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Pressed Into Knowing No Helper But God

The Place of Testing is a Place for Trusting

David ran into a cave to escape Saul, but the thing is, he ran right into God. That’s what happens in caves. And though the cave was the most frustrating experience of David’s life, in hindsight, it turned out to be the most fruitful. You see, the cave became the place of testing and separation and forging for David, until, as an unknown poet has said, he was, “pressed into knowing no helper but God.” Don’t fear your cave—God does his best work there.

Enduring Truth // Focus: Psalm 57:1

Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed.

This psalm is a song for cave-dwellers. Most English translations of the Bible subtitle it, “A miktam of David when he fled from Saul into the cave.” A miktam was most likely a musical term.

At this point in his life, David had expected to be king with a kingdom, but instead he ended up in a cave hiding from another king, Saul. And this wasn’t just an overnight stay; the cave became his home for a spell—months, if not years—and with no prospect that it would ever be different.

David had run into the cave to escape Saul, but the thing is, he ran right into God. That’s what happens in caves. And though the cave was the most frustrating experience of David’s life, in hindsight, it turned out to be the most fruitful. You see, the cave became the place of testing and separation and forging for David, until, as an unknown poet has said, he was, “pressed into knowing no helper but God.”

Pressed into knowing no helper but God—that’s what happened in the cave, and that’s the one thing David was going to need if he were to be a great king.

By the way, it was there in the cave that David wrote three of his most moving psalms—Psalms 34, 142, and our psalm for today, Psalm 57. So I would like to make an observation from each of these three psalms that are especially relevant if you are in a “cave” of your own right now:

To begin with, if you’re in the cave, look up—God is there! In his cave, David penned Psalm 34:18, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” The cave is where a brokenhearted David came into a profound experience of the God of the brokenhearted. And so will you if you’ll look for God there.

Next, if you’re in the cave, speak up—God is listening! Talk to God, he can handle it! That’s what David did, and it was great therapy. In his cave, David wrote these words in Psalm 142:1-2, “I cry aloud to the Lord…I pour out my complaint before him; before him I tell my trouble.” If you’re complaining about your cave to everyone else but God, you’re missing a great opportunity to talk to the only one who can do something about it. So try talking to him!

Finally, if you’re in a cave, toughen up—God is at work! Embrace your cave; God’s purpose is being served there. He’s teaching you, like David, how to “king it!” In the cave, David wrote Psalm 57:2, “I cry out to God, who fulfills his purpose for me.” Don’t short-circuit the cave—you’ll miss God’s purpose!

If you are in a cave right now, I want to encourage you not to worry. God’s got a lot of experience with caves. You see, he’s been there! The Son of David, Jesus, was put in a cave. When he died, they buried his lifeless body in a cave, and it looked like the cave would be his permanent resting place! But what his enemies didn’t know was that God does his best work in caves, because the cave is where God resurrects dead stuff! A cave was where a dead Messiah became a Risen Savior—and the cave is where your dead dreams or dead ministry or dead career or dead marriage will take on resurrection life.

I don’t know about your cave—how deep and dark and devastating it is—but I do know that God works in caves! David ran into his cave looking for refuge, and he found resurrection.

And you will too. So just hang in there—look up, speak up, and toughen up—resurrection is coming!

Thrive: What is your cave? A demotion? A rejection? A delay? A consequence of your mistake? Don’t fear the cave, God does his best work there. Instead, embrace your time there as curriculum in God’s school of forging.

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Why Sad Songs Make Us Happy

Turn Your Tears Into A Tune

The reason we keep coming back to sad songs time and again, for millennia — and will do so until sadness is banned from the created realm at the end of time — is because they work. As we listen to the plaintive music, the singer skillfully pulls from us the very same raw-edged emotions of pain, loss, and disappointment contained in the song, and somehow mysteriously, inextricably, we become a part of it. Strangely, a sad song done well makes us even sadder, yet we love it. But what’s even better is when a sad song turns us to God. So, what if you turned your tears into a tune? And if nothing else, sing your sad song to the Lord. You never know, someone may discover your lament and make it famous. It wouldn’t be the first time — just ask the psalmist.

Enduring Truth // Focus: Psalm 88:1-3

A maskil of Heman the Ezrahite: O LORD, the God who saves me, day and night I cry out before you. May my prayer come before you; turn your ear to my cry. For my soul is full of trouble and my life draws near the grave.

Country and Western music (they just call it “Country” these days) isn’t the only genre to have an over-abundance of sad songs. The truth is, all types of music have their fair share of lament. It may not be obvious at first, but the inspiration for so many of the songs we love have their origin in a broken heart or a dashed hope or a shattered dream.

The reason we keep coming back to sad songs time after time, generation after generation, millennium after millennium—and will continue to do so until sadness is banned from the created realm at the end of time—is because they work. As we listen to them, the singer skillfully pulls from us the very same raw-edged emotions of pain, loss, and disappointment contained in the song, and somehow magically, mysteriously, inextricably, we become a part of it. Strangely, a sad song done well make us even sadder—and we love it.

That’s what the psalm is doing here. He’s sad, and he has written a song about it that pulls us into the raw, jagged edge of his pain. This man despaired of death—perhaps from outside forces, or maybe from the inner pain of his heartbroken life. (Psalm 88:3) He felt abandoned by his closest friends, and all alone in the world. (Psalm 88:8,18). He was simply worn out with sorrow (Psalm 88:9) and was deeply disappointed with God for it. (Psalm 88:13-14) He had suffered a life-long devastation—with no relief in sight, and he was at a point of surrendering to the likelihood that his would always be a hard and sad life. (Psalm 88:15)

We know that this man, named Heman by the way, was a very wise man (1 Chronicles 4:31)—among the wisest of the wise. Yet all of his wisdom, talent (he was also a singer-songwriter according to 1 Chron. 15:19) and position in the king’s court didn’t prevent nor alleviate the pain that saturated his world. But Heman was wise enough not just to sit around and stew in his sad juices. Perhaps what made him so wise and talented was that he did something as therapeutic as anything else on earth to counteract his sadness: He wrote songs. He put his experiences and his emotions into words, and those words were set to music, and they were memorialized in the psalter of the human race, the book of Psalms. Maybe his pain never went away. We just don’t know, but I’m guessing—no, I’m sure—he felt a whole lot better knowing that others would be inspired and find strength for their own painful journey through his music.

So why don’t you give it a shot? You’ve got pain, too. You have your fair share of sorrow, and disappointment. Sometime you wrestle with the sobering sense that your sadness over a matter may just be your lot in life. Perhaps it never will go away—perish the thought—but that may be your reality. Go ahead and put your experience into words. Then turn your words into a tune. And if nothing else, sing your own song to the Lord.

You never know, someone may discover your sad song someday, and your lament may become famous. It wouldn’t be the first time.

Thrive: Try turning your complaint into a song—a song that turns to praise and thanks to God. Who knows, you may have a hit on your hands.

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The Unequaled Power of Encouragement

A Positive Impact is in Proportion to Our Words of Encouragement

The chief reason we stumble into sin, surrender to fear, slip into emotional depletion, sink into spiritual hardness and shrink back from reaching our faith-potential is from discouragement—or more precisely, the lack of encouragement. You and I not only have the spiritual responsibility, we have the awesome potential for making a huge impact in another’s life by simply living out the Biblical injunction to “encourage one another daily.” Someone needs you to encourage them today. Go make it happen!

Enduring Truth // Focus: Hebrews 10:24-25

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching

There is nothing quite so powerful as an encouraging person! I love to be around them, and I’ll bet you do, too. They even find ways to have difficult conversations that leave you feeling valued and hopeful. They are life-giving. They are a gift. May their tribe increase.

On the other hand, we all know people who seem to find fault in just about anything. They look on the dark side of everything and infect anyone who is near them with their negativity. And if we’re not careful, we can get pulled into their black hole of negativity, fault-finding and discouragement.

That’s why the writer of Hebrews gave us these two powerful admonitions:

We should keep on encouraging each other to be thoughtful and to do helpful things. Some people have gotten out of the habit of meeting for worship, but we must not do that. We should keep on encouraging each other, especially since you know that the day of the Lord’s coming is getting closer. (Hebrews 10:24-25, CEV)

But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. (Hebrews 3:13)

One of the chief reasons we stumble into sin, surrender to a spirit of fear, slip into emotional depletion, become spiritually hardened and shrink back from reaching our faith-potential is from discouragement—or perhaps more accurately, the lack of encouragement. As believers, we not only have the spiritual responsibility, we have the awesome potential for making a huge impact in the lives of others by simply living out the Biblical injunction to encourage one another daily.

This is especially important since the Enemy of our souls works overtime in his attempt to discourage, diminish and destroy us. But good, old fashioned, Christ-hearted encouragement is arguably the most powerful force for good we can unleash on one another. Just consider the power of encouragement in the following verses:

The mouth of the righteous is a tree of life…” (Proverbs 10:11)

The tongue of the wise brings healing…” (Proverbs 12:18)

An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up. (Proverbs 12:25)

Death and life are in the power of the tongue…” (Proverbs 18:21)

Wow—that is the amazing, life-changing potential in the words you can choose to deliver today. So why not try it! Let me suggest five different approaches you can take to unleash this power upon another:

  1. Through verbal compliments: Try showering someone with praise for something they have done.
  2. Through inspiring words: Speak affirming words to someone because of who they are, the beauty and potential of their character.
  3. Through acts of kindness: Encourage someone simply by doing something nice for them, when they least expect it, or maybe even don’t deserve it.
  4. Through indirect words: Talk about them behind their back—in a good way. For sure, it will get back to them, and it will be even more powerful coming from a third party.
  5. Through written words: Send someone a note of appreciation. It will have the added value of being enjoyed over and over again.

Encouragement—it’s the most powerful thing you can add to this world. So let me encourage you to go for it today!

Thrive: This week, write a word of encouragement and send it to someone whom God prompts you to bless. Or, before the week is out, use an indirect word of encouragement by telling a third party how much you love, appreciate a mutual acquaintance.

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The Spreading Cancer of a Bad Report

Negative Conversations Are Even Worse Than Negative Thoughts

We have been told that chronic patterns of negative thinking will corrode our being—body, mind and spirit. If that weren’t bad enough, even more destructive is when negative thinking turns to words of complaint that end up in conversations of criticism. Not only is it corrosive to the speaker’s soul, it taints the listener and ultimately breaks shalom in the family of God. That is why, throughout the Bible, divine judgment befell those who trafficked in spreading a bad report. Never forget, your words can heal, or they can harm—yourself and others. So choose your words wisely!

Enduring Truth // Focus: Numbers 14:1-3

Then the whole community began weeping aloud, and they cried all night. Their voice rose in a great chorus of protest against Moses and Aaron. “If only we had died in Egypt, or even here in the wilderness!” they complained. “Why is the Lord taking us to this country only to have us die in battle?”

As the children of Israel neared their Promised Land, their leader Moses sent out twelve spies on a reconnaissance mission. They were to probe enemy territory for weakness in order to reveal to the Israelite army the best place to invade the land and the best strategy to conquer the inhabitants that held “their” land. Of course, it was expected that these twelve spies, having seen the mighty hand of God extended time and again on Israel’s behalf, would come back full of faith for the challenge ahead.

But when the twelve spies returned from their mission with a first hand report of the land, ten of them were of a pessimistic perspective, and they turned the whole community into complainers. Their field reports started off well—it was indeed an incredible land their God was giving them—but it quickly turned from the promise of fruit to the problems they would face, namely giants and warriors. And it quickly threw cold water on the faith of the Israelite community.

That is so true of negativity—it can spread at the speed of a wildfire.

In spite of all that God had miraculously done up to this point, the people focused on how difficult things were in front of them rather than on how awesome the Power was behind them. The people got down, then they got mad, then they complained about their leader. Then, unbelievably, they complained about God. Then, incredibly, they actually whined that they wanted to go back to a more secure and predictable life of slavery in Egypt.

In essence, they were saying, “God, we don’t trust your sovereign plan, nor in your power to pull off the Promised Land for us. We don’t think you know what you’re doing and we don’t like one bit this mess you’ve gotten us into.” Though they didn’t say it quite that directly, that was the underlying spirit of their complaint.

The underlying spirit in all complaint is that we don’t trust God’s sovereign plan that has allowed us to be in the undesirable state about which we are complaining. Likewise, our complaining indicates that we don’t trust his power to see us through it and accomplish his purposes by it. That is why complaint, even if it is directed at another person or a situation, is really a complaint against the Sovereign Lord; it is a sin. Worse yet, complaining spreads like wildfire, leaving the ashes of doubt and distrust throughout our spiritual community. At all times and in every circumstance, we must reject spiritual temper-tantrums for tempered trust in the One who does all things well.

There is no greater gift that we offer to God than our trust—even when, or more accurately, especially when circumstances are difficult, enemies are great, and resources are few. In contrast, nothing disappoints God more than when his children complain, since it is in essence the worst form of distrust in the Lord’s goodness, wisdom, power and love. And this is precisely why God judges so harshly the deep and persistent complaints of the ones who should deeply and persistently lean into him.

As a friend of mine says, you are either a lean in-er or a lean out-er. I hope you are the former!

Thrive: Are you a lean inner or a lean outer? Do you trust or do you complain? Do you worship or do you whine? Re-read Numbers 13 and 14, then determine to offer yourself to God in complete, unshakeable trust.

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Hung By The Tongue

A Gossip Injures the Unity Jesus Died to Preserve

God hates the gossiper. No, really! Just read Proverbs 26:20. That’s how he feels about those who traffic in rumor, half-truths and conversations that are meant to tear down and break up. No wonder being the object of gossip hurts just about as bad as anything—if God himself hates malicious gossip and chronic gossipers, it’s got to be an activity which is birthed in the pit of hell.

Enduring Truth // Focus: Proverbs 26:20

Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down.

Have you ever been the object of malicious gossip? Stinks, doesn’t it? When you are in a position of visibility like I am, the gossip factor seems to go way up. My favorite tidbit of gossip was in a previous ministry where a lady who didn’t like me (imagine that) much pulled one of my church members aside and whispered in her ear,

“Hey, I heard the pastor traded his BMW in for a Lamborghini!”

Sheesh! I wish. I would have just been happy to have the BMW instead of the Toyota my family said looked like an old man’s car.

Gossip stinks. It hurts. It is meant to divide, demean, and destroy a person’s character in the eyes of others while in some sick way building up the esteem of the purveyor of the gossip. The only game the gossiper knows how to play is a zero-sum game: They can win only if the object of their gossip loses.

Gossip destroys reputations, it ruins friendships, it wrecks homes, it hurts businesses and it even messes up what Jesus loves so dearly—the church. And something else about gossip we need to realize: God hates gossip…and God hates gossipers!

Ouch! You think I am being too hard-nosed about that? Okay, decide for yourself:

There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers. (Proverbs 6:16-19)

Yeah, that’s what God thinks about those who traffic in gossip, half-truths and conversations that are meant to tear down and break up. No wonder being the object of gossip hurts just about as bad as anything—if God himself hates malicious gossip and chronic gossipers, it’s got to be an activity which is birthed in the pit of hell.

Now here’s the thing: If you’ve had that horrible experience of being gossiped about, you’ve probably been the source of some gossip yourself, or if not the source, the conduit. But without a source, and without a pipeline, gossip dies—which is the only fitting outcome for gossip.

He that gossips and he that listens should both be hung
One by the ear and the other by the tongue!

So the next time you’re tempted to pass on a juicy tidbit about someone else, or listen to someone who can’t wait to tell you something about someone else who isn’t there, just remember what God feels about gossip—and don’t!

Thrive: Go on a “gossip fast” this week (okay, a permanent gossip fast is preferable, but let’s just start eating this elephant one bite at a time). Refuse to either say anything or listen to anything that wouldn’t be said if the object of the conversation were standing right there. And if you are in a relationship with a chronic gossiper, the next time they start to do their thing, stop them and ask, “would you mind if I brought [the subject matter] here so they can hear this?” or “do you mind if I quote you on that?” Believe me, do that a few times and you’ll put a stop to the gossiper.

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Reach For The Sky

True Worship Requires All of Me—Spirit, Mind and Body

The Eleventh Commandment is not, “Thou shalt lift thy hands when thou singest.” God wants worshipers who worship him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24), which means that it must come from the heart, not the hands. Yet it requires all of us—our spirit, our intellect, and yes, our body—perhaps even raising our hands. If you came to Christ in a tradition that expressed worship without physical demonstration, I would encourage you to challenge that assumption. The next time you are offering praise, go ahead, reach for the sky.

Enduring Truth // Focus: Psalm 134:2

Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the LORD.

Raising your hands in worship is not a pre-requisite for God-pleasing praise—not necessarily! There is no rule that says, “Thou shalt lift thy hands when thou singest.” The Father wants worshipers who worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:24) In other words, God-pleasing worship must come from the heart, not the hands, and in a way that is congruent with Scripture, that is, it is authentic.

Yet true worship requires all of us—spirit, mind and body. Obviously, our hearts must reach out to God when we worship him, otherwise our worship would be nothing more than heartless ritual (and there is already far too much of that among his people today). God wants not just formulaic expressions of worship; he wants it to come from the overflow of a loving and grateful heart.

Our mind should be engaged in worship as well. If we park our brains in neutral when we praise, our worship is incomplete—and open to all kinds of weird and wild expressions that sometimes occur among certain groups of believers. To worship in truth means to worship with theological knowledge of the One being worshipped, and that is most pleasing to him.

Yet can we truly worship in spirit and in truth if we don’t engage our entire being? Authentic “spirit and truth” praise must even include engaging physically as well. Balanced worship honors God with heart, mind and body. (Rom. 12:1; 1 Cor. 6:20) That is why you will find various physical expressions of praise throughout Scripture: singing, shouting, clapping, kneeling, prostrating oneself, dancing, and, quite frequently, the raising of hands.

Perhaps you came to Christ in a tradition that expressed worship without physical demonstration. I would encourage you to challenge that assumption. The next time you gather with the body of Christ and the singing starts, try lifting your hands to the Lord. I think you will find it quite freeing. In fact, you may want to practice it first in your own private worship time just to get used to the action.

When my children were small, they would often come to me and lift their hands, hoping I would pick them up. Of course, I would. In that moment, they would have yet another indication that I accepted them and cherish them. And of course, I was delighted to know they loved me, too—with all of their being.

Don’t you think that is true of your Heavenly Father as well? Of course it is! What is true of earthy parents is infinitely more true of the Father.

Thrive: The assignment for today is pretty simple: Lift your hands to God and offer him yourself—and of course, your praise.