PRAYER IN BATTLE

"They were helped in fighting them, and God handed the Hagrites and all their allies over to them, because they cried to him during the battle. He answered their prayers, because they trusted in him." I Chronicles 5:20

Where's your battle? Is it at work? Is it at home? Is it within yourself? Your finances? Where ever the battle is, cry out to God from the battlefield! 

Sometimes we forget that we are to seek God in the middle of the struggle. You think you have to fix everything first. You try to get yourself together, clean yourself up a bit. In the meantime the battle is still going on around you. Don't wait, pray. Cry out to God. "Lord, give me the strength to do your will. Give me victory!" 

If you are like me, there are days you when feel like you leave one battlefield to fight on another. During one of the early battles of the civil war, General US Grant, rode from skirmish to skirmish urging his men to fight on until they finally were victorious. Sometimes that is what we have to do. Go from battlefield to battlefield and cry out to God for help, for victory, until the battle is won. 

The word says, "He answered their prayers because they trusted in him." So, cry out to him! That is your mustard seed of faith. Crying out to him. Keep fighting and keep trusting. The victory will come.

Father, we cry out to you from the middle of our battles! Answer our prayers and give us the victory! Praise be to you in us today!

GOT TROUBLES?

"I will sacrifice a freewill offering to you;
     I will praise your name, O LORD, 
     for it is good.
 For he has delivered me from all my troubles,
     and my eyes have looked in triumph on my foes."
 Psalm 54:6-7

I think there are few types of troubles. 

• You can have the "that's just life" troubles. Things like the tires on your car wear down, the three-millionth flush is apparently the most you toilet can flush, your daughter needs braces and her dentist needs a new Porsche. Just life.   
• Then there are the "well, you asked for it" troubles. You choose to say it, do it or avoid it and the consequences are you have to pay the price.  
• Maybe you've experienced the "what mine is thine and thine is mine" troubles. You know, your boss makes a promise to deliver something and you have to make it happen. They leave early and you stay late. You get a ticket, so now that isn't enough cash to buy groceries for the family. 
• My personal favorite, the "open the door, step on the burning bag of crap" troubles. You're minding your own business, trying to do the right thing, and the next thing you know you find your self holding a nasty can of worms. You're coaching your sons baseball team and two parents get in an argument, that come to find out, has something to do with that time the thing happen that one year.  

Whatever the kind of trouble you are in, God can deliver you. Look to him and call on his name. 

Father, help us to look to you and call on you in the midst of all our troubles. Thank you for the countless times you have delivered me! Praise be to you in us today!

ONCE AND FOR ALL, DONE!

"Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once and for all when he offered himself." Hebrews 7:27

Every now and then I'll notice an extra charge on my visa card and think, "I didn't buy anything, what's that for?" It's a renewal fee for my blog or something. High priests had to offer sacrifices for themselves and for the people. Because they themselves were sinners just like everyone else. Kind of like that renewal fee, they had to offer sacrifices day after day. The debt was never paid in full. 

Jesus, who being holy,blameless, pure, set apart from sinners and exalted above the heavens, does not need to do that. He sacrificed himself, once and for all. Paid. That means, our sins are dealt with, once and for all. His death was for all our sins. That means our past, present and future. All our sins were in the future to Christ when he died upon the cross. From our perspective we our sins are in the past, present or future. Not to God. The sacrifice has been paid. Once for all. Done.

Father, thank you that you are my high priest. Thank you that you dealt with my sin, once for all. Done. Praise be to you in us today!

YOUR NEED IS MET!

"Such a high priest meets our need - one who is holy, blameless,  pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens."  

Hebrews 7:26

When my two oldest boys were teenagers we, for a while, had a mini-van. Their legs would stretch from the back to the front. Then, when our daughter was born, it was obvious that it no longer met our needs. We had to move up to a large urban assault vehicle, also known as a Yukon XL. We could fit the kids and our luggage in it without being too cramped. It met our need, space wise. 

Let me ask you a question (I sound like my friends from the south here). Does your faith meet your need? What I mean by that is: does your understanding of who Christ is allow you to rest in him? 

The truth is: Christ, the High Priest, meets your need. You need him to be God over your life and in your heart. You need your sins forgiven and path straightened. Christ does that. You need your conscience cleaned. Christ does that. You need to know the way and the truth and the life. Christ is all that. 

Thank you Lord Jesus Christ for being my High Priest! Praise be to you for being holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. Reveal your Priesthood in us today! Praise be to you in us today!

CHRIST'S INTERCESSION, EVERY WHEN

"but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them." Hebrews 7:24-25

One year, early in my teaching career, I was out ill three different days during the year. Each time, the day I came back, there was a new Assistant Principal! I waited to see if she was still there the next time I was out sick. She made it through. Sometimes things and people around us, come and go. But Jesus, he remains. 

That is the beauty, the confidence, the rock of our hope. Jesus is our permanent High Priest. He saves us perfectly and completely. That salvation is not just once in the past or once in the future. No, it is for every day, every moment of our lives!

Have you ever heard someone use the expression, "I live for this!" That's Jesus and interceding for us. One of the ways to interpret the word for ever in the Greek is "every when". When is Jesus interceding? Every when. He was, he is, and he will be interceding for you and me. When you are seeking to be faithful and when you are not. He's interceding. When you think he is, and when you feel like he's not. He's interceding. When you see him working and when you don't. He's interceding. Before you knew him and since you've known him. He's interceding. Every when, he's interceding. 

Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for being our High Priest, saving us completely, always living to intercede for us. Help us to rest in this truth. Praise be to you in us today!

FIRM, SECURE, ANCHORED

"We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become  a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek." Hebrews 6:19-20

There are at least two reasons for an anchor that I can think of. One, to keep the boat from just floating away. Two, to keep the boat in place during a storm. In the same way our faith in Christ keeps us from floating all over the place, pulled away by false hopes and firmly holding our faith on Christ when the storms of life seek to toss us against the shore and wreck our faith. 

Christ, is our high priest, anchoring us in him, forever. Remember, God, who is eternal, chose to send his Son to die on our behalf and to be our High Priest. He anchors us in him, keeping us firm and secure. His work, his intercession for us, is forever. 

Father, thank you for Jesus, that he is my High Priest. Help me to be anchored in him by faith. Praise be to you in us today!

WHO IS YOUR HELP?

"Surely God is my help;
     the LORD is the one who sustains me." 
 Psalm 54:4

I was watching that moonshine show about the Hatfields & McCoys a while ago. I think I watched maybe two episodes. Well, one of them thought they could get a loan because a relative of theirs was the manager of the bank. The relative/bank manager said, "No." They were of course mad and said a bunch of not so flattering comments about their relative/bank manager.

Sometimes we look to what is familiar to get help and a lot of times it doesn't work out. David learned that God was his help and that in the darkest of times God sustained him. 

You may not have someone trying to kill you but sometimes it does feel like our whole world is caving in. If you are like me you might find yourself looking around all over the place, anywhere but to God. Stop, take a breath and call out on the Lord. Remember, you may be surprised but, God is not. You may be perplexed but, God is not. 

Father, you know the end from the beginning. You knew that we would be where we are right now, before the world began. You also know where you are going to take us. We call on you to be our help and to sustain us! Praise be to you in us today!

YOU CALL, GOD ANSWERS

"Save me, O God, by your name;
     vindicate me by your might.
 Hear my prayer, O God;
     listen to the words of my mouth." 
 Psalm 54:1-2

Jesus died to save us from our sins. He sits at the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf and defending us from the accusations of the accuser of the brethren.  

Wonderfully, God is also concerned about are day to day lives. David wasn't praying about salvation from sin when he wrote this Psalm. He was calling out to the God about when Saul was chasing him (to kill him) and people were trying to give him over to Saul. 

What is it that you need salvation from at this moment? How do you need to be vindicated at this present time? Ask him to save you! Call upon him to vindicate you! Call on his name and rely on his might. I don't know how and I don't know when, but, I know God is faithful to complete his work in our lives!

Lord, we call on your name and we rely on your might! Thank you that you hear our prayers! Praise be to you in us today!

"HOLD TIGHT, BUCKAROO, SHE'LL HOLD."

"We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek."  Hebrews 6:19-20

God's purpose is to save us and mold us into the image of his Son, Jesus Christ. He does not change and he will do what he said he would do. So, no matter what goes on around us God is holding us on a steady course. 

I'm kind of a goof ball when it comes to some movies. One of my favorites is Buckaroo Bonzai. In the beginning of the movie he is trying to break the dimensional barrier using a jet powered Ford Bronco equipped with an oscillation overthruster.  He breaks off course and heads toward a mountain and the people who were not privy to his real plans are shouting into the mics to "Abort, Buckaroo, ABORT!" In the meantime his number one man is calmly telling him, "Hold tight, she'll hold." 

I get this picture in my mind sometimes when I think about what I perceive to be chaos around me. The world around me is shouting to forget trusting God. But, the Holy Spirit is gently telling me, "Hold tight, God has a hold of you." The truth that God is in control, anchors our soul. 

So, hold tight, God is in control.

Thank you, Father, for never changing and always being in control. Praise be to you in us today!

"I WILL BLESS YOU"

"Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope  offered to us may be greatly encouraged." Hebrews 6:17-18 

The thing about God's purpose in our lives is that it does not change. We change. God doesn't. We change our purpose all the time. We change our goals, hobbies and jobs. But God's purpose in our lives does not change. 

If we look back at verse 14 (which is a look back at Genesis 22:17) the author of Hebrews is pointing out that God told Abraham he would bless him and give him many descendants. Abraham is the father of our faith. He is part of this amazing chain that the brings the Messiah and provides a way for us to be children of God. 

Do you get that? What God says it, "I will surely bless you and give you many descendants." God's entry point of assuring Abraham is "I will surely bless you"! God's nature does not change. God's purpose in our lives does not change. Being his children, knowing him and being made into the image of Jesus Christ is his will. Being used by him in his kingdom is his will. He is faithful and will do it. That means he is going to bless us and use us. That's encouraging!

Father, thank you that you do not change! Thank you that you promised to bless us. Praise be to you because you do not change! Praise be to you in us today!

DO YOU NEED TO GET IT TOGETHER?

"We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised." Hebrews 6: 11-12 

One of the things I don't appreciate about some of the online "devotional" pages on say Facebook or Google+ is that they are all about the warm fuzzy. You're supposed to read it, get a little warm fuzzy inside and move on to a blessed day. Sometimes (a lot of times times) we really need something more substantial.

I remember once my wife and I were experiencing a bit of a trial and we were blindsided by something and didn't really know what was going on. I ran into a friend and pastor of mine. He didn't tell me, "Everything is going to be all right. Just trust God." No. He basically gave me a verbal face slap and told me to get it together because my wife needed me to be strong and to know that I knew God was in control and would, like always, take care of us. It was what I needed. It was what my wife needed from me.

The writer of Hebrews is giving us a bit of a verbal face slap. Not what we may want to hear, but, what we need to hear. I think most of the time we need to stop trying to wait to feel like God is going to work all things for good and start acting like we know God is going to work all things out for our good! 

We need to be diligent. We need to have faith and be patient because God is doing what he wants (which is working out all things for our good) in the time that he knows is best. I must tell you that I don't always get why God does things the way he does them or with the timing that he does them. But, my inability to see things from an eternal perspective does not inhibit or alter what God is doing in my life. I just need to be diligent, have faith and patiently wait on God. 

Father, help us to be diligent and wait upon you. Praise be to you in us today! Show us yourself! 

WHAT HAS GOD DONE FOR YOU?

"I will praise you forever for what you have done; 
     in your name I will hope, for you name is good.
     I will praise you in the presence of your saints."
 Psalm 52:9

What has God for you? Take a moment and remember what he has done for you...

I know he created me and formed in the womb. He knew me from the foundations of the earth. He sent his one and only Son to die for my sins. 

He gave me a godly wife and great children. 

Although I am not always aware of God's presence in my life he is always there. 

Just to remember a few...

What has God done for you?

Father, remind us of all you have done for us and open our eyes to see you in our lives. Praise be to you in us today!

YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN!

"God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them." Hebrews 6:10 

After walking with the Lord for awhile have you experienced a trial and felt a bit forgotten? You kind of feel like you have tried your best to serve God faithfully and sacrificially and it sure would be nice to a get a bit of a break from something. It sort of seems "unfair"? I don't know about you, but, I have. 

Hebrews reminds us that God is not unjust, he will not forget that we are trying. He may not answer us the way we think he should, but, he will not forget us. This new school year I was asked to teach an extra period. It's helpful for my pocketbook. It's not what I was praying for (which is an administrative position), but, it does help with what I need with my bills. It was encouraging because it reminded me that God has not forgotten me. 

I don't know how God will work in your life because there is no magic formula. God does what he know is best when he knows it is best. He hasn't forgotten you. 

Father, remember us and work in our lives. Be glorified in us to day!

TIME TO GROW UP

"Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance for acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hand, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment." Hebrews 6:1-2

I grew up in churches that emphasized the need to share the gospel with the unsaved world. That's not a bad desire. I remember sitting in a service while the preacher waited for someone to come forward to accept Jesus. Finally, some ninety year old lady would go forward, again, and we could all go home. They were sharing the gospel, fulfilling the great commision...

The author of Hebrews says it's time to grow up. Time to build on the foundation of the elementary teachings about Christ. Time to take your faith to the next level. 

So, the question is: Where do we need to mature? Where do we need to take our faith in Christ up a notch? 

Father, help us to mature in you. Praise be to you in us today!

DO YOU KNOW GOOD FROM EVIL?

"But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil." Hebrews 5:14

I think one of the more frightening things about the times we live in is the startling blur our society sees between good and evil. At the Democratic convention held just before the last presidential election there was a vote on whether or not to take the name of God off their platform and to not recognize Israel as a country. Former LA mayor Antonio Villaraigosa had to call the vote three times and the yes and no shouts were nearly equal!  

The reason we seek God on a daily basis is to train ourselves in righteousness. Part of that training is to distinguish good from evil. Honestly, isn't the beginning of this just trying to obey what we know the Bible says? 

Someone was trying to tell me that anyone could interpret the Bible anyway they wanted. I asked him, "So how do you "interpret" do not commit adultery?" 

The point is that obedience is the key to maturity. Obedience is my willingness to trust God's word to be true and live accordingly. My guide to knowing what is good or evil is the Bible. By "using it" on a daily basis I mature. 

Father, help us to live by faith. Set your word in our hearts that we will know good from evil. Praise be to you in us today! 

TEN YEARS,OR ONE YEAR TEN TIMES?

"In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who  lives on milk, being still and infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness." Hebrews 5:12-13  

Here is a tough question: Have you been a Christian ten years (or however long you have been a Christian) or one year ten times? 

The author of Hebrews lays it on the line and says that by that time in their Christian experience they should of been teaching someone else about the righteousness of God in Christ by faith that they were experiencing. Instead they were still struggling with the elementary truths of God's word again! 

Tell me this doesn't sound like most of the church today. I have to ask myself, does it sound like me? Ask yourself, does it sound like you? 

One of my mentors used to say, "I sleep good at night because I take advantage of the cross. Not abuse it, just accepting what Christ has done for me." My pastor yesterday reminded us that he always says at the beginning of the year that he will be surprised but God will not. So very true. 

The good news of the gospel is that Christ died for our sins and that when we accept that, when we confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised him from the dead, we willed be saved (Romans 10:9-10). God is not surprised by anything that we go through. Think of it this way, he died for our sins - past, present and future. 

Now what does faith have for me today?

Father, thank you for your forgiveness. Thank you Jesus for being our righteousness. Help us to build upon the truth of righteousness by faith! Praise be to you in us today!

THE ART OF REMAINING

"But I am like an olive tree
     flourishing in the house of God; 
 I trust in God's unfailing love
     for ever and ever." Psalm 52:8

My oldest son is a big LA Galaxy fan. I year ago when they won the championship he was given a piece of the field in a big baggie (which he was supposed to plant someplace). It's still in the bag and somehow hanging on. But, if you go to the now StubHub field where the Galaxy play the grass on the field is truly flourishing. 

That is a bit like us and our relationship with Christ. Sometimes we feel isolated and we're just hanging in there somehow surviving. Plant yourself where God has you and let him work, let God grow you where you are at. If he doesn't like where you are, he can move you. He can open doors and close doors, he can even move doors. 

Most importantly he can make you fruitful where you are at. Our job is to trust in him. Jesus told us in John 15:5, "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." We just remain in him. He is faithful and he will keep us in him until the day he comes to take us home.

Father, help us to remain in you. May we be fruitful and flourish as we remain in you. Praise be to you in us today!

OBEDIENCE, SUFFERING, PERFECTION

"Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designed by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek." Hebrews 5:10

Think about that, Christ learned obedience. He learned it from what he suffered. His obedience has brought us salvation. This perfection, this completeness of Christ's obedience and suffering results in our perfect salvation. 

Our obedience is our acceptance of his salvation. We obey because we do believe. We accept that we our sinners in need of forgiveness, mercy and grace. We look to him to intercede on our behalf. He does so perfectly. He is the source we continually look to for our salvation. He forever is our High Priest. 

Father, help us to obey. Thank you for our perfect Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to you in us today! 

GO ON IN! IT'S OK!

"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:16

Our greatest need is to be right with God. Christ, our High Priest, allows us to enter into the presence of God without fear. So come on in!

Knowing that I am right with God, because of Jesus Christ, I can receive mercy and find grace to help me. Mercy is God not giving me what I do deserve. Grace is God giving me what I don't deserve. So, go on in and pray!

Everyday I need God's mercy and grace. In Christ I receive that mercy in grace. I also get to enter into the presence of the Father and ask for help with confidence. Go on in.

I think of David when I think of someone who boldly went before the Father.   "Rise up, O LORD, confront them, bring them down; rescue me from the wicked by your sword" (Psalm 17:13). If you read the Psalms of David you see that he was very straightforward  you might say blunt, in his prayers. That confidence, knowing that God loves us and hears our prayers, is the confidence we can have when we pray. So, let's go on in and approach the throne of grace!

Father, help us to enter your presence with confidence. Thank you, Lord Jesus Christ, for being our High Priest and giving us access to the throne of grace! Praise be to you in us today!

CHRIST GETS IT

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are - yet was without sin." Hebrews 4:15 

Have you ever heard a leader say that leadership should be on a higher level than the people they are serving? Well, I get that they should be a strong experienced believer with a special call upon their lives, but, when they start thinking they actually are more spiritual than everyone else, that's when problems usually begin. 

You see, that is the difference with Jesus. He is God. He is above everything yet, he came down and was like us to sympathize with us and minister to us. He understands temptation at its' deepest level. The temptation that he endured assures us that he understands whatever we are going through when we are tempted. 

Jesus gets that you are tempted by whatever tempts you.

He gets that it beats you up. 

He gets that the enemy condemns you for even being tempted, but that being tempted is not sinning. 

What ever you are feeling, he understands.

That is why we hold firmly to the faith we profess (verse 14)! We hold on to him because in him we have the victory. 

Jesus, thank you for being our High Priest that sympathizes with our weaknesses. Help us to hold on to you especially when we are tempted so that we, like you, will not sin. Praise be to you in us today!

DON'T LET GO! HE WON'T!

"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess." Hebrews 4:14

Jesus, unlike some so-called prophets or gods, actually died and rose again. His life was to make God knowable. His death was in our place and his resurrection was to give us victory over death. Victory for the present not just the future! 

Jesus IS our High Priest. Not was. Not will be, but, is. That is why we hold firmly to the truth that Jesus died for us and that he ever lives to intercede for us. Right now he is on the job. At this moment he is interceding for you and me!

Hold on! He is working...

Father help us to hold on to the faith we profess.  Thank you that Jesus is our faithful High Priest who ever lives to intercede for us. Open our eyes to see you in our lives! Praise be to you in us today!