While negative news the economy is dominating our minds and wars and violence plague our world, there remains the promise of “Good News to All People”. 

Leading up to one of the more famous prophecies of Jesus’ birth are some verses that have equal impact for us today as we approach another Christmas celebration.  Consider Isaiah 7.  The Israelites had divided loyalties into two nations and were fighting among themselves while warring with other nations of the world.  They faced economic struggles and did not experience the prosperous “land of milk and honey” they had after Moses’ reign.  They were in constant turmoil. 

Read the words given to Isaiah “And say to him, ‘Be careful, be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two smoldering stumps of firebrands…” (Isaiah 7:4 ESV) That verse is a great reminder to me that God is fully able to meet all my needs, handle my every concern, and calm my every fear. 

God then tells Isaiah that none of the enemies against Jerusalem would stand.  Then God shares this sobering reminder: “If you are not firm in faith, you will not be firm at all.” (Isaiah 7:9 ESV)  The Bible follows this with the familiar prophecy of Jesus in Isaiah 7:14, which says, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” 

Let me ask you to consider your approach to Christmas this year. Are you afraid?  Are you in panic mode?  Do you fear the worst? 

Now let me ask a more poignant question.  Do you doubt the promise of God through Jesus?  When the angels appeared to the shepherds on the night of Jesus’ birth, they repeated this prophecy.  This is what they had to say, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”  (Luke 2:10-11 ESV) 

Two thousand years after the angel’s proclamation, the birth of Jesus is still good news! In fact, it is the greatest news the world has ever known!  Are you allowing that truth to determine your Christmas spirit this year?

Fear not! 

My 17 year old son Nate (www.nateedmondson.com) works with our church’s youth group. Recently a 6^th grader came to him with some questions.  He was struggling to understand two main questions.  1) How can God hear everyone’s prayers at one time?  And; 2) Why does God allow the suffering that has happened in his family?  My son asked me how he should address the boy’s questions. 

Of course, these are simple questions when you are as mature and experienced as a pastor as I am, so I quickly laid out for him the proper, convicting, easy answers for this 6^th grade juvenile.      

NOT!

If I had easy answers to those questions I’d write my book and retire!  Those questions are just as relevant today if you are a 6^th grader or a 60 year old.  God is big and I can’t fully comprehend all His ways. 

The dilemma of the ages is this: 

If God is all powerful, why doesn’t He stop all suffering? 

If God is all loving, doesn’t He care enough to intervene on our behalf?

If God is all knowing, then why doesn’t He stop the trials before they come into our life?

Yet the Psalmist David writes, “One thing God has spoken, two things have I heard: that you, O God, are strong, and that you, O Lord, are loving. (Psalms 62:11-12 NIV)

John writes, “Now we can see that you know all things and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions.” (John 16:30 NIV)

I don’t have answers to those questions.  I have some, but as soon as I attempt to answer them something else will happen that I don’t understand and I will be faced with a new dilemma.  No, in order to make peace with questions like this my only option is to believe in what I cannot see.  I must have a faith that’s larger than my experience.  I must choose to trust a God who is the answer to all the questions that I have. 

 I close with the “answer” God gave Job when he was asking similar questions.

Then the LORD answered Job out of the storm. He said: “Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. (Job 38:1-3 NIV)  You can read God’s complete answer HERE.   

Don’t ever be afraid to ask the tough questions.  I’m glad this 6^th grader is asking them.  Just know that God holds the answers and there are many questions in this life you and I may never fully comprehend. 

And now I want to urge you, dear lady, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we had from the beginning. 2 John 5 NLT  
  
Repetition is sometimes used to emphasize a point. If anyone closely examines John’s 2nd epistle they surely see the repetition John uses. The point John makes by repetition is that you and I are to “love one another”.   
   
If you have spent any time in church then you have heard that repeated over and over again.  The problem is that most of us are slow learners.  We can know the truth, but following through with it is often hard for us to do.  So let me ask you, Is there someone in your life that you really are having a hard time loving? Maybe you’ve told others that you’ve forgiven this person, that you have no hard feelings towards them, but the truth is there is still an element of hate in your heart that just won’t go away. If you think about the hurt this person caused you, you would get angry all over again. Maybe you would even secretly wish harm upon this person.  I have often said that if the first thought you have about someone is the hurt they once caused you, then you haven’t truly forgiven them.  Is that the case with your story?    
  
Today I dare you to listen to the encouragement of John? “This is not a new commandment, but one we had from the beginning….We should love one another.” Allow God today to look deep into your heart, examine your love quotient for those who have hurt you the most, and ask God to help you love these people (or this person) the way Christ loves you.  If you can ever get there you will find a freedom in true love and forgiveness that cannot be achieved any other way.

But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won your fight with these false prophets, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world. 1 John 4:4 NLT  
 
Of what are you afraid? Why has the world shaken your trust? Don’t you know that you are a child of the King and that everything is under His control?   
  
Sometimes the Christians look like everyone else when it comes to how we deal with the pressures of life. We tend to allow stress to be our motivator, instead of relying on God’s light to direct our paths. Christians should have a power that the world cannot measure. We have been bought and paid for with the blood of our Savior Jesus Christ.   
  
Recently, during one of those really hectic days, I saw myself getting caught up in the fast-paced rat race of life. I was moody, sarcastic, easily angered, all because the world was tossing more at me than I could handle. I walked into my son’s bathroom and my eyes were attracted to a plaque on the sink which reads: WISE MEN STILL SEEK HIM!   
  
I realized that I was fighting this “battle” completely on my own. I don’t have to win the victories of life. My battle is over! I am on the winning side! My life can now be focused on building eternal treasures. I am now in the process of decorating my Heavenly mansion.   
   
Suddenly my disposition changed. I had a new perspective as I reflected on who He is and who I am with Him instead of the problems surrounding me. It was a great way to end the day!   
  
Do you need a new perspective? Is life getting you down? Focus on your victory in Jesus! Remember you are on the winning team!

We are studying Purpose Driven Life together as a community group. Each week I ask questions pulled from the material in the book.  Here are the questions for Purpose Week 4. 

1. What does the statement “You were saved to serve God” mean to you?  Do you agree with it/understand it?
2. Do you agree with it/understand “You’re not saved by service, but you are saved for service”?
3. Have you ever experienced what you felt was a specific “calling” to serve or to do something for God?
4. Can you recall a “missed” opportunity of when you should have served but didn’t?
5. Do you know your spiritual gift?  (Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:28-30)
6. What positive experiences have you had that you can use to help others?
7. What negative experiences have you had that you can use to help others?
8. What is one need you are aware of in the community specifically or even in the world that you think someone needs to be    addressing?  Could God be calling you to address it in some way? 
9. Honestly, are you more concerned about serving others or being served by others?
10. What weakness do you have that prevents you from being all God would have you to be?  What’s your “excuse”?

Figuring out who to trust these days is tough.  Years ago, while I was going through a difficult trial, I wrote these words really as a reminder to me of where to place my trust.  Seems like I need to read them again.   

Do any of the worthless idols of the nations bring rain? Do the skies themselves send down showers? No, it is you, O Lord our God. Therefore our hope is in you for you are the one who does all this. Jeremiah 14:22

What is the price for your hope?  By what standard do you judge the things in which you put your faith? Let me offer one for you today: Can it/he/they make it rain?

Say you have a new shiny convertible? Can the car make it rain? So you have a great family? If they do just the right jig, do I need to get my umbrella? You have the job of your dreams? Do your responsibilities include sending down showers? You have worked hard to build a fat retirement account? Is there enough in there to buy one good ground soaking? What about just a little sprinkle? Could you fill a teaspoon? With all your wealth could you maybe afford just a little drop?

Can the things in which your hope is in make it rain?

Okay, let’s get elementary for a minute. Who makes the rain? Come on now, once again, who made the rain? That’s right, God did! Good! You’re learning.

Now put your hope in Him today…and in nothing less than anything than can’t at lease bring for rain. 

I would be interested in watching your family do that dance, however. I need a good laugh!

After a break to do another study centered on our church’s desire to serve others, my community group went back to reading “Purpose Driven Life” by Rick Warren this week.  In Session Three we offered some challenging questions to supplement the reading.  I think these questions are worth all of our consideration as followers of Christ.  (The quotations are from the “Purpose Driven” book.)

1.      What do you think of when you hear the term “you were created to become like Christ”? 

2.      How does the statement “God’s ultimate Goal for your life on earth is not comfort, but character development” strike you?

3.      How do you interpret “abundant life”?  What does that mean in your life?

4.      If “God is far more interested in what you are than in what you do” are you better or worse off if the opposite is true?  Is your heart better than your actions? 

5.      What is the deepest desire of your heart in a spiritual sense?

6.      What are some markers of spiritual growth from your own life? 

7.      How much control of your life does God have?  What areas do you need most to yield to Him?

8.      How faithful are you at reading God’s Word? What keeps you from reading it more?

9.      “What has God already told you in his Word that you haven’t started doing yet?”

10.  “What is one dark area of your life that you can now look back upon and see spiritual growth?”

11.  Are you currently closer to the calm or closer to the storm?

12.  How do you resist temptation?

13.  Do you need someone to hold you accountable in an area of temptation? 

14.  Are you old enough to realize you can’t do it on your own and you won’t get there overnight?

15.  “In what area of my spiritual life do I need to be more patient and more persistent?”

There is a king in the Bible who when I have thought of or studied prayer, I have often come back to him. The king is a man named Hezekiah. Hezekiah ruled over Judah and he was a good king. He tried to honor God in everything he did and because of his faithfulness, God honored Hezekiah greatly.

Hezekiah became the target of warring nations. The king of a rival nation to God’s people, Assyria, decided he was going to try and take over Hezekiah’s kingdom. Yet throughout it all, Hezekiah consistently used the same battle plan. He went before the Lord in prayer and followed the Lord’s commands. Hezekiah relied on prayer to rule his life. This man knew how to pray and pray in a way that got results.

Some time ago, in a message at Grace Community Church we looked at one of the recorded prayers of Hezekiah to see what we can pull from it. To understand the prayer we should know that the Assyrian nation was stronger than Hezekiah’s nation. They would have easily been favored in a war. The Assyrian king launched a huge smear campaign against Hezekiah with his own people. It scared all Hezekiah’s people to death.

Hezekiah heard about it and went before the Lord. God assured Hezekiah everything would be ok, but the Assyrians wouldn’t let up. They kept taunting and taunting, throwing threats towards Hezekiah. They sent a letter by messenger to Hezekiah that basically said, “The Assyrians are tough and they are coming for you next.”

What do you do when you are backed into a corner about to face something bigger than your ability to handle? Well, Hezekiah received the letter with all the threats and began to pray.

Now find a Bible and read 2 Kings 19:14-19 (Or click on the passage to read it online.)

What can we learn from listening in as Hezekiah prayed?

First, Hezekiah got alone with God. There is corporate prayer like we do at church, and there is prayer where a few are gathered, but probably some of the most effective prayer time of your life will be the time you invest alone with God.

Second Hezekiah’s prayer was Immediate. It wasn’t an afterthought. It was prior to making his plans. We are so geared to react that it’s hard for us to go first to God. He may be second or third or when we get backed into a corner and have no choice, but as a habit we need to make God the first place we turn in our lives.

Third, Hezekiah’s prayer was Open and honest. Hezekiah was transparent before the Lord.  I love the imagery here in this prayer story of Hezekiah. He took the letter, went to the house of the Lord, and spread it out before Him. I get this visual image of Hezekiah, and this letter…laying it there on the table, and saying, “Okay, God, what now? What do I do next?”

Are you in a tough spot right now? You may just need to get you some note cards right down all the things you are struggling with….lay them out on a table…then say, “Okay God, here are my struggles…I can’t do anything about them. What now?”

Writing your prayer requests before God is a great idea for 2 reasons.

a. It helps you remember to pray for them.

b. It helps you to watch as God answers. We get more answers than we realize if we only ask.

Hezekiah’s prayer was Honoring, humble and respectful of who God is.  Hezekiah knew his place as king….and he knew God’s place in the Kingdom. Hezekiah was king of a nation and that is an important job, yet Hezekiah willingly humbled himself in prayer, because he knew his place before the King of kings.

Hezekiah’s prayer was Bold. He said, “Give ear, O LORD, and hear; open your eyes, O LORD…” Hezekiah had the kind of relationship with God where it wasn’t a surprise when Hezekiah showed up to pray. They talked frequently; probably throughout the day. Because of that relationship, Hezekiah didn’t wonder if God would be there when he came before Him. He knew he could ask God to act on his behalf.

The more you grow in your relationship with God, the bolder your prayers can become, because the more your heart will begin to line up with God’s heart.

Hezekiah’s prayer was Dependent. In verses 17-18 he prays, “It is true, O LORD, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste these nations and their lands.” Hezekiah knew he was out of his league facing the Assyrians. From the way I see that Hezekiah responded to life, however, I don’t think it mattered the size of the battle Hezekiah was going to depend on God.

Finally, Hezekiah’s prayer was certain…Because it was based on his personal faith and trust in God.  In verse 19, Hezekiah prayed, “Now, O LORD our God, deliver us from his hand, so that all kingdoms on earth may know that you alone, O LORD, are God.”

Hezekiah had a faith in God that allowed him to pray with confidence. You need to understand that faith is always based on the promises of God. Some things God has promised to do…some He hasn’t. God has promised to always get glory for Himself and always work things for an ultimate good. He hasn’t promised to rid everyone of cancer or to heal every bad relationship.

(That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t pray for everything. We don’t know His will, but we can’t guarantee God to do that which He hasn’t promised to do.) Sometimes we get upset because God doesn’t do something we asked or wanted Him to do but the fact is He had never promised to do it.

Hezekiah knew God had promised to save His people. He knew God had placed him in the position of authority over them. He had confidence that God would do what He had promised to do. Hezekiah trusted God to be faithful to His word so he was willing to act in faith.

What situations are you dealing with today that you know you are helpless to do on your own and you desperately desire God’s answer?

Get alone with God, spread your problems out before Him, honestly, humbly and boldly and dependently on God; and then allow His will to be done, as you wait for His response.