Regret and Repentance.

"The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart."

Genesis 6:6

It seems that there are probably many times where the Lord could be sorry that He created man. We mess up so often.

As a reminder and rebuke to myself, what sins do I insist on repeating that might make the Lord regret having made me? Am I headed down the road to death?

As an encouragement and challenge to myself, how am I confessing those sins and living in the grace that God has given through Jesus and His blood shed for me on the cross?

I want to live a grace-infused, repentance-laden daily walk with the Lord. Where are you in this journey? Let's pray for each other to walk daily in this way.

Blessings

God be gracious to us and bless us,

And cause His face to shine upon us.    Selah.

That Your way may be known on the earth,

Your salvation among all nations.

Let the people praise You, O God;

Let all the peoples praise You.

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy;

For you will judge the peoples with uprightness

And guide the nations on the earth.    Selah.

Let the peoples praise You, O God;

Let all the peoples praise You.

The earth has yielded its produce;

God, our God, blesses us.

God blesses us,

That all the ends of the earth may fear Him.

{Psalm 67}

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Why does God give good things to His people? Why does He give good things to anyone at all?

After all, we are at His mercy and we are entirely sinful - God does not owe us anything. Come to think of it, He does owe us something: wrath, judgement, and eternal punishment. "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of an angry God," for God is holy and can do nothing but condemn sinners.

And yet, God does not judge or condemn us. Why? Because Christ stood in our place. He lived the life we could not live. He died the death we ought to have died. So, if we are united with Christ, then we have every reason to praise God endlessly for the good gifts that He blesses us with, not the least of which is our salvation.

But there's more.

Psalm 67:7 indicates that God's blessing has a purpose. In fact the whole chapter points to the purposeful blessing of God, poured out so lavishly upon us.

"God blesses us, that all the ends of the earth may fear Him."

In my own words, it would say something like this: "God blesses me so that the testimony of my life, in word and deed, would cause the rest of the world to know, love, follow, serve and fear Him." In other words, God's blessing is not only for you. It's for the world. It's for the fulfillment of the Great Commission through His people. God's blessing should drive us to the mission field - whether international or our own backyard - in bold testimony of all that He has done.

Yes, it is good to praise God for the great things He has done and is doing in your life. Yes, it is good to revel in the blessing that He has richly bestowed upon you. But if your walk with God does not lead to action, then you have missed the point. God wants the world to know Him. And we are His "Plan A" for accomplishing that.

Just don't forget that there is no Plan B.

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That you might know Christ,

The Lord

"Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it—the Lord is his name: Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. [Jeremiah 33:2-3]

The Lord.

The One who made all of the earth.

Who formed and crafted it into existence...

With. A. WORD.

The Lord is His Name!

Why would we NOT call out to Him?

Why would we NOT trust Him with all that we fear?

With all that concerns us?

With all that we are?

He is awesome. He is mighty. He is sovereignly reigning over all things.

Trust Him. Cry out to Him. Worship Him.

He is worthy to be praised.

Understatement

"'Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,'

Let Israel now say,

'Had it not been the Lord who was on our side

When men rose up against us,

Then they would have swallowed us alive,

When their anger was kindled against us;

Then the waters would have engulfed us;

The stream would have swept over our soul;

Then the raging waters would have swept over our soul.'

Blessed be the Lord,

Who has not given us to be torn by their teeth.

Our soul escaped as a bird out of the snare of the trapper;

The snare is broken and we have escaped.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,

Who made heaven and earth."
Psalm 124

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More often than not, I think I severely understate God. You might ask, "What do you mean by that?" It's a valid question.

Here's what I mean:

I say "God's in control." so casually!
Or "He knows what He's doing." so nonchalantly!

Talk about the understatement of the millenium! More often than not I just flippantly toss these phrases around without actually thinking about the implications of what I just said. Think about this for a moment.

GOD. IS. ALL. POWERFUL.

That means He's bigger than my problems. He's bigger than my stress. He's bigger than me in every single way and entirely more capable of dealing with things than I ever could be. The psalmist reminds me here, perhaps more convictingly than I've felt before, that God really, truly is inconceivably BIG.

Why is that so convicting? It seems like such a simple thought.

It's so convicting because I was reminded as I read through this passage that if I really believe that what the Bible says is true, if I really believe that God is who He says He is, then there ought to be an appropriate response from me as I live out my faith.

Do my prayers reflect trust in a God who is bigger than any of my problems?

       Do my actions reflect that trust?

              Do my thoughts reflect that trust?

I think there's something to be said for praying over a situation. Absolutely. But how many times do we pray for something and not really expect God to do anything about it?

How many times do I ask the Lord to show me the opportunity to share the Gospel, but then never leave the house? Can I really blame God for not presenting me with an opportunity to tell someone about Him when I didn't even go where people were in order to share?

In Psalm 124 David is praising God for deliverance, but he closes with this powerful truth, "Our help is in the name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth."

How often do I say I'm trusting in the God who made heaven and earth but actually place my trust in the god of self?

Is not our God bigger than that?
Is not our God more worthy than that?

This passage should bolster our confidence in the Lord of all creation. It should lead us to believe Him when He says He will do something. This Psalm should lead to a confidence in the Lord that completely and utterly trusts in Him, even when we don't understand His purpose or plan.

Deeper still is the resulting boldness of the believer. How bold are you when it comes to trusting God to do what He says He will do? How bold are you when it comes to accomplishing things for the sake of God's kingdom? If we really trust God, if we really believe Him, then that should lead to action. Our lives should reflect the complete trust that we have in our God - to save us, to sanctify us, and to send us out in His name.

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That you might know Christ,

Madness

The other day I found myself, yet again, saying something to Isabella that I felt like I needed to hear more than she did. We were talking about obedience and why it's important for her to listen to and obey her parents. It went something like this:

"It's important for you to listen and obey because we can see the big picture. Like, if you chased a ball into the street. Daddy says stop, not because I don't want you to have your ball, but because..." 

"Because a car could hit me?" 

"Yes, baby, that's right. I might see a car coming that you don't see. You have to trust me. You may not know why I want you to do or not do something, but I promise there's a reason. There's a method to the madness. Sometimes obeying is not because you understand but because you trust me to take care of you."

It blows me away how much I learn about God's love and care for His children through parenting my own. "There's a reason." "Trust me." God says the same thing to us on a daily basis. I've been reading in Jeremiah this week and I don't think it's coincidence that this verse has been stuck on repeat in my mind:

"Are there any among the idols of the nations that give rain? Or can the heavens grant showers? Is it not You, O Lord our God? Therefore we hope in You, For you are the one who has done all these things." Jeremiah 14:22

Nothing provides for us, cares for us, treasures us like our God. The rain in this passage is just one example of the incredible blessing that God pours out on us each day. It's hard for me to look at how broken this world is and not wish that somehow God would put an end to all the suffering. But if I think about it for any length of time, I always end up at the same conclusion:

So much could happen that doesn't.

The Fall ruined it all. Sin should have resulted in the complete destruction of all things. We should expect nothing less from a holy God. And yet we experience good things. Everything in this world that brings happiness is a gift, one that we don't deserve. For every bad thing that happens, a thousand good things happen that we never should have experienced. Every sunrise. Every rain shower. Every newborn baby. "Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above..."

That immense blessing is God's grace lavished upon us, a grace that is freely and undeservingly given to us. When we deserved condemnation, God offered forgiveness. When we deserved death, God offered life.

So, Jeremiah says, hope in Him. Trust Him.

He is worthy of our trust. Even when we can't see the "method to the madness," we can trust that God has our best interests at heart because He has already blessed us so much more than we could ever deserve.

Stop doing things your own way or in your own strength. His plan is perfect. His strength is sufficient. His timing is impeccable.

There is a reason.

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That you might know Christ,

Salvation

'Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the LORD GOD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation.' Therefore you will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation.

Isaiah 12:2-3

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This week I'm reading through the book of Isaiah. This verse stood out particularly for me this morning. Most English translations say something like the New American Standard quoted above, "you will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation." But, I love the distinction in one version of the Bible that lies in this verse. The Orthodox Jewish Bible reads, "...out of the wells of Yeshuah." Salvation is distinguished then, not just as the act of saving, but as the personification of that act. It is the Messiah Himself from whose springs we are to joyfully draw.

What an incredible thought for today! Consider all that the Lord has done. Praise Him for His marvelous works. And remember, it is not an impersonal stream from which we draw our salvation. It is the Living Water that is found in a personal Savior. He did not just give us life. He gave His own that we might live.

Worship Him. He is more than worth it.

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That you might know Christ,