God's Call Girl

“A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ: …Salmon was the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab…” Matthew 1:1&5

She was the one Mama warned you about, not the one you wanted to bring home to Mama. Her business was good. Her reputation was bad. I’m sure Rahab didn’t begin life planning to be a prostitute, but she ended up running Jericho’s most famous Hole-In-The-Wall Motel. Why settle for room and board when you could get room, board, and a broad? Whatever turns her life had taken, nothing compared to the evening two Jewish spies showed up at her front door, quickly followed by demanding soldiers in hot pursuit. Rahab’s choices -- turn the spies over to the king or turn herself over to the spies.

Rahab knew Jericho’s walls were no match for a God who had parted the Red Sea and defeated powerful armies. She wasn’t just concerned; she was terrified. Rahab realized her idols weren’t real gods at all and that the God of Israel was the Lord of it all. In a jumbled mixture of fear and faith, she courageously lied to the soldiers, hid the spies on her roof, and saved the lives of her family when Jericho was destroyed. She moved in with the Israelites, married Salmon – a leader of the tribe of Judah, and became a mommy!

Had Salmon been one of the spies? Was it love at first sight? We won’t know all the juicy, joyful details until heaven, but what we do know is that God picked up a scared streetwalker, held her close as Jericho’s walls and her world tumbled around her, and gently set her down in the center of His special family.

In the middle of her fear, Rahab found God to be a mighty fortress. She was scared. He was strong. She was timid. He could be trusted. Rahab was a harlot. God was holy. Her life had been full of lust. He filled it up with love. She was nothing to write home about. He recorded her story for all eternity.

No wonder Rahab gracefully glistens on Jesus’ family tree. She deserved nothing and God gave her everything.

Isn’t that what Christmas is really all about?

Time for a Little R&R
RECOGNIZE
What scares you right now – your past, present, or future?

RESPOND
God wants to be your mighty fortress. Bring Him your fear and your faith. You will find Him sweetly strong.

Trimming the Tree

“A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ: Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac was the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah, Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar…” Matthew 1:1-3

Ah, the family tree. Often found on walls in offices and living rooms, it hangs as a noble tribute to the lives and legacies of relatives near and far. Let’s be honest – in most families some branches might be better sawn off or at least not climbed! But when Matthew framed the genealogy of Jesus at the beginning of his gospel, he didn’t cover up anything or anyone! Instead of cutting limbs away, he highlight the lowlights (or low lives) of our Savior’s kinfolk! Amazingly, the facts and feelings of those forefathers - and foremothers – reflect the deepest cries of our own hearts and echo our greatest needs. Their stories trim the family tree of Jesus as ornaments of grace hanging on a garland of Divine design.

“…whose mother was Tamar.” Tamar – the first “by the way” on the family tree. Abraham fathered Isaac. Isaac fathered Jacob. Jacob fathered Judah. Judah fathered Perez and Zerah, whose mother, by the way, was Tamar. Who was she? Why is she here? Call Geraldo! Her story seems better fitted for shock TV than a royal ancestry. Tamar was the mother of Judah’s children but she wasn’t his wife. She was actually his daughter-in-law. No, her husband wasn’t mad. He was dead. In fact, both of her husbands were dead. And the man who should have been her husband, wasn’t. That’s why she had her father-in-law’s babies. True story.

Tamar, filled with the hopes and desires of every young bride, had married Judah’s oldest son Er, but he was so wicked that “the Lord put him to death.” (Gen. 38:7) Judah instructed his next oldest son Onan to marry Tamar so Er’s family line would continue. (Yes, this was the lawful and legal.) Onan didn’t want any kid of his counting for his brother, so before he took care of things with Tamar, he took care of things on his own. God killed him too. Judah told Tamar to go back to Daddy, live as a lonely widow, and wait for his youngest son to grow up, but when little Shelah was big enough to marry, Tamar wasn’t the bride.

The pain of shattered dreams, unfulfilled expectations, and broken promises drove Tamar to a wild plan. She posed as a prostitute, accepted Judah’s proposition, and ended up pregnant. When her baby bump became too big to hide, Judah wanted her burned to death until she publicly proved his paternity by the items given for payment. He relented and repented and provided for her and the boys. Yes, the boys. God gave her twins, taking away her disgrace and filling up her arms and heart.

A wicked husband, a wimpy brother-in-law, a wily father-in-law. Disappointment. Anger. Hurt. The rugged realities of life displayed for all to see. Why? Why mention Tamar? Why include her story? Because it reminds us that God is the one who can bring purpose to our pain. He loves us no matter what. He understands more than we know. He can take it all – the happy and the hurtful – and shape it by His grace. And then hang it beautifully on His family tree.


Time for a Little R&R

RECOGNIZE
How have shattered dreams, unfulfilled expectations, and broken promises caused disappointment, anger, and hurt in your life?

RESPOND
Honestly bring all your pain to God. Ask Him to shape it by His grace for His purpose. Ask Him to replace the junk with joy and to make you beautiful for Him.

Word Without End

“All men are like grass, and their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.” 1 Peter 1:24-25

The smiling salesman at Sears didn’t have a clue as we folded the warranty and drove off with a Forever DieHard battery newly installed in our family vehicle. He was certain we’d be back in a few years needing to purchase another one for our next car. I was certain he didn’t know my dad. You see, as a high school senior, I was blessed to drive the very same Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser station wagon (yes, complete with fake wood side panels) that we had purchased when I was in first grade. I’m not exactly sure how many Forever batteries Sears installed for free in our car – affectionately known as “The Land Barge” – but I know they were glad when our “forever” was finally over!

How wonderful that the warranty on God’s Word never runs out! It never expires. It doesn’t even contain a “For as long as you…” clause, because nothing about the truth and the timelessness of God’s Word depends on us. Everything depends on Him, and He never fails. “The word of the Lord stands forever.”

“All men are like grass, and their glory is like the flowers of the fields…” God’s Word endures past the best of today and the bad of today. Neither amazing accomplishments nor appalling atrocities affect God’s Word. It is the ultimate standard through which both will be evaluated and rewarded or rebuked.

“….the grass withers and the flowers fall…” All of us and all we do are always changing. We grow up and we grow older. Our waistlines shift. Our hair color varies. Our influence fluctuates. Our opinions adjust. Birth announcements eventually end up in obituaries. Don’t get down. Be delighted. Be delighted that in a world of change, God’s Word is a constant. A constant that we can count on, base decisions on, and build our lives on.

If forever had an ending, only God and His Word would be left standing.
Stand today on what will still be standing tomorrow.



Time for a Little R&R

RECOGNIZE
How has your life changed in the past year?
How has God’s Word changed your life in the past year?

RESPOND
Praise God that He never changes and that His Word never changes.
Begin to transform the temporary into the eternal by grounding every part of your life in His Word.

Fill 'Er Up!

“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” 1 Peter 1:18-19

The loud pinging reminder from the fuel gauge encouraged me to brave the chilly wind this morning and stop by the gas station. The warm days of “full service” when I could roll up to the pump, roll down the window, and simply say “Fill ‘er up!” are past, and left in their place are cold, impersonal transactions between me, my credit card, and the gas pump. But I had to stop. My only other option was to continue traveling on empty – unable to get anywhere fast and unconfident about actually getting anywhere!

Many people live in a similar way – powerless to engage as they should and unsure about arriving at their desired destination. They live life on EMPTY. Their calendars might be packed, their portfolios loaded, and their closets crammed, but their hearts are empty – void of peace, joy, or hope.

As Christ-followers, we are not to live that way. Peter reminds us that we have been rescued from an empty life by the blood of Jesus. “For you know that it was not with perishable things…that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers…” The Jewish Christians reading Peter’s letter had been taught piles of tradition mixed with partial truth, and they lived as legalists. The non-Jewish Christians had been brought up devoted to pagan deities and practices, and they lived like heathens. Both left those following full of fear and empty of faith.

But then came “the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” Jesus was the perfect sacrifice, sufficient to redeem us all – to free us from an empty life and to fill us with Himself.

The next time you find yourself “getting low” or “running on empty,” take a trip back to the cross. Let the truth of God’s grace and the reality of the redemption fill you up with hope and peace. And may you overflow with joy!



Time for a Little R&R

RECOGNIZE
How “filled-up” do you honestly feel today?
Where might there be a leak in your tank?

RESPOND
If you’re living on FULL – praise God and thank Him for His great gifts!
If you’re leaning toward EMPTY – know that your Father delights in filling up His children, so ask Him for what you need.

Wholly Holy!

“Just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy because I am holy.’” 1 Peter 1:15-16

“Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee. Holy, Holy, Holy, Merciful and Mighty, God in three persons, blessed Trinity.” Reginald Heber, a poetically-inclined Anglican vicar, penned the words to this great hymn in 1826 for use in robust congregational praise, but I quietly sang it over and over again to my precious babies as I changed their many diapers. I wanted the fact that God is holy – set apart, perfect, divinely majestic – to be the first truth embedded in their little minds.

God wants that truth embodied in our little lives. In everything we do today, in all of our thinking, speaking, feeling, and acting, we should be holy – set apart (different), perfect (right), divinely majestic (Godly). May I say it seems like no small task? May I honestly say it seems like an impossible task? It would be, if the first part of the verse wasn’t there. “Just as He who called you is holy.” On our own, an attempt to “be holy in all you do” would be hopeless, but because He “the Holy One” has called us, the unattainable is now achievable.

God has called us into a relationship with Himself and has given us His life. He is the one who makes us what we are. The Holy One is living in us, and He wants to live through us. God doesn’t call us to “do holy.” He calls us to “be holy.” As we do all the things we do, He desires for us to be all He has made us to be – holy! Let who He is show through in what you do.

Be wholly His in all you do.
You’ll find yourself holy right in the middle of it!



Time for a Little R&R

RECOGNIZE
The truth that God is “Holy, Holy, Holy,” is continually declared in heaven (Revelation 4:8).
Stop for one minute and consider God’s holiness.

RESPOND
Be wholly His. Thank Him that He called you and commit all of yourself to Him for the rest of today.

Lights! Camera! Action!

“Prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.” 1 Peter 1:13

I’m married to a wonderful Boy Scout, an Eagle Scout to be exact, but his mom is the one who lives by the group’s motto – BE PREPARED! No matter what the need – a band aid for a her granddaughter’s blister, the exact location of a “lost” item for her husband, a really yummy snack for me (OK, maybe that’s a want and not a need) – but it seems that whatever the situation calls for, she’s ready. I’ve decided that she is able to do this by considering the circumstances and preparing for the possibilities to become realities.

Peter is encouraging us to do the same. Our hope is set on the grace of Christ’s return, but until He does come back, we must live in the current circumstances. Be prepared! Today will be full of action! Satan will be trying to bring you down. Jesus will be holding you up. The world will be screaming for your attention and affection. And a battle between the divine and the disobedient will be raging in your own soul.

“Prepare your minds for action.” Preparation starts with how you think and what you think. It starts in your mind. God gave you one, so use it! Begin by filling your mind with Him. Gear up for each day by getting into God’s Word. No substitute exists, and no other preparation is remotely as effective. Equip yourself for interaction with others by considering in prayer what they need or what you need to deal with them. Use your mind to recall what God has done and remember to give Him praise and thanks.

Each morning as your alarm goes off, the lights are turned on, the camera starts rolling, and the curtain of your day begins pulling back. Don’t go out without getting ready. Consider the circumstances and prepare for the possibilities to become realities.

Fill your mind with God’s Word.
Focus on Him in prayer.
And you will find yourself prepared for all the action of the day!


Time for a Little R&R

RECOGNIZE
How do you currently prepare each morning for the action of the day?

RESPOND
Thank God for your mind and start filling it up and focusing it on Him.

Sight Unseen!

“Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and even though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” 1 Peter 1:8-9

“We’ve just seen Jesus! He’s alive! He’s alive!” Thomas listened to the delighted exclamations of Peter, John, and the others, but shook his head and said, “Unless I see Him myself, I will not believe.” So Jesus came to Thomas. “See my hands. Touch my side. Ditch your doubt. Believe.” Thomas saw and surrendered. He touched and he trusted.

But Jesus knew we couldn’t. He knew we wouldn’t be able to trace His scars with our fingers; we would have to touch Him with our faith. And He gave us a special commendation. “Blessed are those who have not seen me and yet have believed.” (John 20:29) “Though you have not seen Him, you love Him…” As we love Him, sight unseen, we will be blessed – happy, glad, contented.

Jesus fills us with “an inexpressible and glorious joy” as a special grace gift for our faith. We don’t have to see Him to be saved by Him. He has filled the world - and our lives - with endless reasons to believe. He transforms us with His truth and guides us by His Spirit. We are awed by His power and amazed by His love. He has turned our lives right-side-up. How can we not respond with trust?

One day we will see Him.
The reality of our faith will be right before our eyes.

Until then, live in His joy. Bask in His love. And keep on believing.



Time for a Little R&R

RECOGNIZE
What reasons for belief would you give someone who is curious about your devotion to a never-seen-by-your-own-eyes Jesus?


RESPOND
Thank God for His glorious joy and ask Him to help you see Jesus better all throughout today.