When We Do Not Understand

"When We Do Not Understand"
By Zach Wood
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.


There are times in life when we simply cannot understand things.  There are situations that come up in which we have no clue how to deal with.  There are times when people say things to us and we have no idea how to reply or respond.  There are circumstances we find ourselves in that can suddenly change in an instant and we are left feeling completely hopeless and wonder what will come next.

We do not understand when a spouse suddenly says he or she is leaving and calling it quits.

We do not understand when our job is suddenly terminated without notice and or any indication of problems.

We do not understand when our child or teenager expresses their hate toward us as parents.

We do not understand when the house we have waited to buy for so long suddenly goes off the market or the deal falls through.

We do not understand when a close friend or family member takes their own life and so many questions flood our minds and hearts.

We do not understand when a child dies of some sickness or disease and we are left questioning our faith.

We do not understand when a possible job placement we have worked hard to get suddenly falls through.

"Lord, there are so many things in life I just cannot understand.  There are situations and circumstances that truly leave me speechless and challenge my faith in You.  I know You are real and that You are Lord of Lords and King of Kings, no matter what happens.  I must admit Lord that I am weak and You are strong.  I do not know the future or what You have planned, but I do know that You are in control.  Help me Lord to trust You in all things, no matter how challenging, confusing, frustrating and heart-breaking.  Without You, I am nothing."

There is a lot in life we do not understand.  There are times when our hearts break and we are in so much pain and we feel we can no longer go through life with strength.  Sometimes, we just hit the bottom and feel there is no way back to the top to breathe and have life again.  However, there is a way and His Name is Jesus Christ.  He is the Light and He knows the way.  We must trust, we must believe and we must hold on even when we do not understand. 

My prayer is that whatever you may be going through today, this week or this month, that you would completely trust in Him with all your heart and lean on Him.  His ways are not our ways and His thoughts are not our thoughts.  I encourage you to not lean on your own understanding.  Trust in Him.  You will make it through and He will provide strength. 

Where Is Your Treasure?

"Where Is Your Treasure?"
By Zach Wood
Matthew 6:19-21
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

If there is one thing I struggle with more than anything, it is the priority I put on things that are not important and the lack of importance I put on what matters most.  I ask myself often, "What do I spend most of my leisure time doing?"  When I am not at work or at a scheduled activity during the week, what am I spending my time doing?  Am I devoting that time to my family and personal growth in the Lord?  Sadly, I have to admit I am not as much as I should be.   

Where are you putting most of your time and attention?  Is your priority going out and getting the latest and greatest gadgets on the market?  Is your priority becoming a workaholic so you can make more money to spend on leisure things?  Is your priority on spending every single bit of free time in the yard just to have the best looking lawn in town?  Now, please do not misunderstand what I am saying  There is nothing wrong with having high tech gadgets, making good money at work, or working in the yard with your free time.  However, when we are putting more time on those things and less time with family and building a growing relationship with them and in our personal relationship with Christ, then we have a problem.

What is most important to you?  Where is your treasure?  This is a question we must ask ourselves each and every day.  What are spending most of our free time doing?  Hobbies are good in moderation, but we cannot use those hobbies in excess and sacrifice precious time with our spouse, children, friends and our personal walk in Christ. 

These things we spend time doing in life are only temporary.  If we are so focused on these things and less interested in the time we invest with our families and our relationship with God, our treasures will rot, mold, rust and decay.  There is no solid value to be put on the things of this world.  They are only temporary.  We must put importance and priority on the treasures that will last for an eternity.  Our relationships with family, friends and others who we witness to will last. 

I pray that each of us will seriously consider and re-evaluate where our treasures are and what they really should be.

Search My Heart O Lord

"Search My Heart O Lord"
By Zach Wood
Psalm 139:23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

If a stranger were to come up to you and tell you that you needed to change your life and get your priorities correct, you probably not only would be shocked, but feel a bit violated.  First of all, that person does not know you.  Second, that person has just crossed a line that should not be crossed unless he or she really knows you.  Each of us have had people, at some point in our lives, come up to us and tell us that we need to change our attitude, our priorities or get something else correct in our lives. 

Now if a good friend or family member were to approach you and challenge you with some things, you might react and respond differently.  This person probably knows you better and has more of an idea of what to say to encourage and challenge you.  Granted, it is different for each person and for each situation someone is in.  But we would probably all agree that only a few people in our lives really "know us" and can make those comments to us without setting us off. 

You might feel violated if someone at your work place would come into your cubicle or office and start cleaning without your permission.  You might feel violated if some stranger came to your house and started going through your personal things.  Kids might feel violated if a parent suddenly walks into their room and starts rummaging through things.  These are all instances where our privacy becomes violated.  None of us like this.  We like to keep certain things to ourselves and keep it that way. 

When I think about how we lives our daily lives, I believe this is how we sometimes treat God in our relationship with Him.  We live our lives the way we want to and only invite Him into certain areas that we feel safe for Him to be part of.  Other areas of our lives, we do not want Him part of. 

These past couple of weeks, I have been listening a lot to Hillsong United song "Search My Heart".  This song has ministered to me so much and I began reading over and over through Psalm 139.  Especially the last two verses where David talks about how he wants God to search his heart and remove any offensive ways in him.  How powerful of a prayer is that??  I began feeling that toward God and asking Him to seriously come in and find offensive ways in me. 

When we allow God to search our hearts and find offensive things in us, it can be scary.  We may feel violated at first, just like we would feel if someone we did not know challenged our priorities.  We get set in many ways and we do not want to change.  However, God is not intending to violate us, but simply desires to change who we are and what we have allowed ourselves to become from worldly influences and our own desires to chase after things that do not please Him. 

Truth is, God has every right to come in and remove what is nasty and filthy in our hearts.  That is truly the only way He can fully cleanse us and restore us.  We must be willing to let Him in and "clean house". 

I would encourage you to go online and listen to that song "Search My Heart" by Hillsong United.  It is a wonderful and powerful song of worship that will challenge and inspire you to allow God to mold you and restore you.  It has been a blessing to me and has really ministered to me the past couple of weeks.

Will you allow Him to search your heart and restore you?

Do We Truly Want To Be Filled?

"Do We Truly Want To Be Filled?"
By Zach Wood
Matthew 5:6
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.


Do you enjoy eating good food?  If you say no to that, you are probably in no way human!  Each one of us enjoys good food.  Why would any one of us even think of eating food that tastes disgusting?  Whether it is a home-cooked meal, going out to fine dining or to a fast food place, I enjoy it.  There are some meals that are planned that I might think about for hours or even days.  Just the thought makes my taste buds dance!  We all enjoy good meals.  We long for them to fill us and give us nutrition.

We also thirst for good beverages. We need to be hydrated.  Our bodies need this stuff to stay healthy.  We must also make good choices in what we choose to drink.  Keeping ourselves hydrated is healthy and we must be conscious about it. 

When I think of food and drink, however, I cannot help but think of my desire to be filled with God's Word.  Physical food and drink is vital to being nourished, but spiritual food and drink is even more vital to keep living the life I desire in God.

I was reading this passage recently in the Beatitudes and it really shook me.  I honestly asked myself if I was truly hungering and thirsting for Him.  Do I find myself seeking Him and being more and more hungry to receive what He has to offer me?  Do I find myself thirsting for His Living Water?

If we hunger and thirst for the world, we will constantly be filled with unhealthy things.  We will never receive the nourishment we need to be strong in our faith.  No matter where we look, the world simply will never fulfill that longing and desire for true nourishment.  Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for something more in life.  We are blessed when we seek to hunger and thirst for the spiritual nourishment only God can provide. 

Choosing To Love

"Choosing To Love"
By Zach Wood
1 John 4:19
We love because he first loved us.


The last devotional I shared with you talked about God's crazy love for us through His son Jesus Christ.  I still cannot help but think about how God loves us so much, yet, many choose not to love Him back.  Am I saying some of us choose not to love Him?  Well....possibly.  Do we not all have times when we fail to show God love?  Do we not have times when we completely go our own ways and refuse to show Him love and love others as well?

This passage I have shared is very short, but proves a powerful point.  As Christians, we are called to love God for what He has done for us, but also are called to love others.  If we fail to show love to others, we cannot love God in the way we are called to love.  He desires for us to show love to Him and to others.  Failing to do either of these acts of love is choosing not to love.  You may think this is pretty elementary thinking, but if you take a moment to apply it to your life and your actions, do you really find yourself loving God and loving others?  

Why in the world would we choose to love God, but then choose not to love other people as He has called us to do?  Because people are all different and it becomes very challenging when personalities do not mesh and differences set in.  You may have co-workers you cannot get a long with because of personality differences.  You may not get along with your kids because you have different ideas of what is acceptable and unacceptable behavior.  You may not get along with your spouse because you do have hold the same values and are constantly bickering because you cannot agree.  You may not work well with another volunteer at church because you have different ideas how a program should be run.  There are so many different situations and scenarios in which we do not get along with others.  That is just part of learning to love others and get along with them.  God never gave us permission to blow someone else off just because they do not agree with how we do things. 

As I write this, I am even convicted in my own life how I do not love others as I need to.  At work, at church and even in my own family, I tend to show more love to some than others just because of how my personality and differences work out in the various relationships.  God calls me to love because He gave His own life to show me love. 

If we claim to love God, we must show love to others.  If we are to be effective witnesses for the Kingdom, we have no choice but to show God's love to others.  Why would we not choose to love Him in return for all that He has done and continues to do for us? 

I pray that your choice would willingly be to love God and love others as He has called us to do.

This Is Crazy Love

"This Is Crazy Love"
By Zach Wood
1 John 4:9-10
This is how God showed his love among us:  He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.  This is love:  not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

 

Usually when you hear of people doing crazy things, it involves jaw-dropping and eye-opening actions that bring high risk and some type of endangerment to their lives.  I have seen many crazy things in life and have heard people say some crazy things.  This world is full of surprises when it comes to crazy acts and crazy things that are said.  

I have honestly never though about God when I hear the word "crazy".  I have never really associated that word with anything God has done.  It just has never come to mind.  However, after recently having picked up the book "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan, I have thought about that word in a whole different way.  And since I have been reading the above passage, God's Love has a new perspective in my mind and heart now.  

How do you feel that God, the Creator of the Heavens and the Universe, came to this earth as a human being and gave His life on a Cross for you?  Do you really take the time to stop and just ponder this act of Love?  The more I ponder it, the more it does not make sense to me now.  This is an act of Love I cannot wrap my mind around.  I cannot comprehend its full meaning.  I cannot make sense of it at all.  I cannot analyze it.  It it not logical.  It is unexplainable.

Can you make sense of it?  Can you fully comprehend what He did for you?  If not, then good!  This is all a part of His Crazy Love!  This is an insane act of Love that the Creator of this world did for you and for me.  We are so imperfect and so selfish.  However, God loved us so very much that He paved a way for us to come back to Him through Jesus Christ.  That is Crazy Love alright!  He chose to die for us, even though many refuse to follow Him.  

Love is not about us loving Him, it is truly about what He did for us.  Read the passage again.  Love is not that we loved Him, but that He came here to earth and gave up His life so that you and I would not have to pay the punishment for our sins.  For the first time in a long time, it blows me away that my Lord and Savior did that for me?  

I pray that this devotional makes you just stop and think about His awesome sacrifice.  I hope that you will see His Love in a whole new way.  I encourage you to read the book I suggested.  It will show you just how crazy God's Love is for us.  With a love this crazy being given to us, wouldn't we want to give that kind of love back to Him?  Shouldn't we be totally sold out for Him no matter what comes our way?  I think so.  God stopped at nothing to give us life through Christ.  We should stop at nothing to love Him and serve Him in return.  

This is Crazy Love.  Not that we loved Him, but that He loved us enough to come and die for us. 

We Must Love With Our Actions

"We Must Love With Our Actions"
By Zach Wood
1 John 3:16-18
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.  If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?  Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.


Each day I live, I try to fulfill several constant roles.  I strive to be a devoted servant, husband, and father.  I try hard to be a devoted servant in the areas of ministry service I am committed to.  I strive to be a devoted husband to my beautiful wife to show her I love and appreciate her.  I strive to be a devoted father to my two girls and show them I love them and want to spend time with them.

However, what if.......I never showed up to any ministry activities?  What if.....I never gave my wife a hug or kiss or spent any time with her and expected her to feel appreciated and loved?  What if......I never told my girls I am proud of them, love them or spent any time with them?  If I failed to do any of these things, I would not be thought of very highly by others, my wife or my kids.  I need to tell and show those around me that they are important and prove that to them by doing things that would show my devotion.  I cannot just say that I am devoted without following through with actions.

As I have pondered this thought the past few days, I am constantly thinking of my relationship with God and whether or not I truly show the gratitude and appreciation back to Him that He deserves.  I can say that I love Him and tell others I am devoted to Him, but if my actions do not back those words up, those words are useless and worthless.  If I love those around me and am devoted, I will do my best to show actions that prove my love.  Without these actions, I am showing nothing. 

Am I devoted to sharing what I have and helping those around me who are in need?  Am I showing the Love of Christ by meeting the needs of those who are in need?  Am I loving others the way God has commanded me to?  Am I sacrificing what I have in order to bless someone whose need is greater than mine? 

Verse 16 is powerful.  We know what love is when we look at Jesus Christ.  That is a Love that is beyond comprehension.  We can never fully understand His Love.  We can never wrap our minds around His Love.  That is truly Love: Jesus Christ laying down His life for us.  Wow!  That is powerful!  How can we possibly look at the sacrificial Love Jesus Christ had and has for us and not have the desire to love and meet the needs of others? 

If we are to truly show God's Love, we must have actions that prove and show our love.  Whether that is love shown to our friends, love shown to our spouses, love shown to our kids, love shown to our parents, love shown to our church family or love shown to those who do not know Christ. 

When loving with your actions seems too difficult, just remember the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for you and for me.