The writer to the Hebrews reminded the folks that they needed endurance. I want to start off this new year with an endurance reminder. The Strong’s defines the Greek word hupomone as, constancy, continuance, bearing up, steadfastness, and holding out. It combines two words, “under” and “to remain.”

I love this note in my Bible. Endurance is described as the capacity to continue to bear up under difficult circumstances, not with a passive complacency, but with a hopeful fortitude that actively resists weariness and defeat.

Hebrew 10:35-36 says, “…do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.”

One of the keys to perseverance is maintaining a grateful heart. By the way, that is the will of God according to 1 Thessalonians 5:16. Hebrews 13:15 described it as a sacrifice. When we want to grumble and complain, we lay that fleshly desire on the altar of praise!

Thanksgiving is a pleasing heart aroma to the Lord. In 2004 the Holy Spirit taught me to combat negativity with gratitude, and He placed a little running melody in my heart. It became my default. I barely heard it and didn’t think others could. 

However, when I was taking care of my elderly hard of hearing friend she did. I had folks turn and thank me for my happy song while standing in lines. Colossians 3:16 recorded it as, “…singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” It lifts our spirit and glorifies the Lord.

Perplexed means to not have understanding. Think of Job. What was God’s commendation? Job 1:8 says, “…Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?”

There was no one like Job ~ a man of heart integrity. Like a domino effect, one chaotic event followed another. Job’s response was to fall to the ground and worship. Job 1:22 says, “In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong.”

What a portrait. In Job 19:23 he said, “Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book!” We read them as spectators, he lived them moment by moment. Job had no clue ~ it was a perplexing trial. All through his account we catch glimpses of how the Lord revealed Himself to Job in ways he never knew Him before.

So it is with our lives. We have all of God’s words at our fingertips. 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.”

Today is the beginning of a new year. Yesterday, and all the days and years behind that have passed. We cannot change them or alter what happened. We are given the present only. Galatians 5:16 says “…Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Our flesh does cartwheels and flips trying to figure perplexing things out. Our spirit man trusts in the One Who knows all things.

To

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Trials

Words from Jeremiah 31:14, became part of a new song that bubbled up as I fixed breakfast. It says, “I will satiate the soul of the priests with abundance, and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the Lord.”

Satiate means to fill to the full. Are you consciously grateful for the fullness of His goodness? Psalm 34:8 says, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!”

Taste is an interesting word. I’ve been experimenting with a breakfast dish. I’ve made it three times now, and each time I consider the taste. How can I make it more satisfying? Tasting of the Lord’s goodness requires a heart that embraces all the trials and hardships that He has allowed to take place.

Psalm 145:9 says, “The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works.” I savor David’s words of tender mercies. We could stroll down the hallway of the lives of countless folks who turned to the Lord through blessings disguised as tragedies. 

I know that I was never the same after I fell into the ravine. The Lord used that event to woo me into intimate communion with Him. I’m sure you have your own stories ~ how He turned something catastrophic into an enriching blessing.

We are at the end of another year. Only the Lord knows what lies ahead. Let us savor His goodness as we face the unknown. Let us drink deep of His river of pleasures, delight in Him as our Source of Strength, and sing praises that glorify Him throughout our day.

God had an assignment for Moses. He was about to use something totally natural to Moses in a supernatural way. He asked him, ‘What is in your hand?’ Just a typical shepherd’s rod until he threw it down.

Pharaoh opposed God’s ways and His will. After the children of Israel had left Egypt, the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart again. Exodus 14:4 says, “Then I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, so that he will pursue them; and I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army…”

Pharaoh was fashioned to bring God glory. Think of Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven from men and ate grass like oxen. At the end of his humiliation, he gave God glory. Daniel 4:34 says, “…I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever.”

God is not a cookie cutter. Each one of us is uniquely fashioned according to His purpose. He uses our specifically designed trials, divine orchestrations. and encounters, to fulfill what He has begun. Nothing is in vain. 

Even though Job was in a severe trial, his focus was on the Lord. Job 5:9 recorded his words. It says, “Who does great things, and unsearchable, marvelous things without number.” Job 11:7 says, “Can you search out the deep things of God? Can you find out the limits of the Almighty?” 

Psalm 145:3 says that His greatness is unsearchable.” Verse 5 says, “I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty, and on Your wondrous works.” Verse 20 says, “The Lord preserves all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy.” All are fashioned by God for His glory.

Isaiah 43:7 says, “Everyone who is called by My name, whom I have created for My glory; I have formed him, yes, I have made him.” Psalm 119:73 says, “Your hands have made me and fashioned me; give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments.”

Let’s consider how Adam was made. Genesis 2:7 says, “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.”

Can you picture it? I’ve seen some sand sculptures. The sand is wet and easily formed. It stays in one place. Dust? It scatters easily. Adam was perfectly formed. Did you notice his nostrils? When the Lord breathed into him the breath of life, Adam was a fully functioning man. I marvel when I think about it. His cognition was brilliant. 

You and I have the same breath in us. As Adam was given the responsibility to keep the garden, we are given the same stewardship of our bodies. 1 Corinthians 6:20 says, “For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

We are fashioned for His glory. Glorify means to bestow honor. In Jesus’ priestly prayer, John 17:4 says, “I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.” What has the Lord given you to do? 

Courage is an inner strength that is continually fortified through the promises to us in God’s word. Courage is never achieved through self-effort. He empowers us to do what He has called us to do. See 1 Thessalonians 5:24. 

God’s command to Joshua was connected to the essential truth that He would be with him no matter what he was doing or where he was going. So it is with us. Psalm 46:1 promises that He is Ever Present.

What holds us back from pursuing all that God has for us? Fears from our past often rise up to stop us in our tracks. We are insecure because we are looking at our weakness rather than His strength. 

When I think of the word embrace, I picture a barnacle clinging to a rock or the hull of a ship. Years ago I wrote an article for our local newspaper entitled, “Barnacle Faith.” I had a great picture of a barnacle.

I have another picture from Psalm 63:8 in the Amplified. It says, “My whole being follows hard after You and clings closely to You; Your right hand upholds me.” Thank You Lord for Your continual upholding, sustaining, and uplifting Presence! 

As you read this verse, I want you to picture a trapeze artist. They have just let go of the first bar, as they are reaching for the oncoming bar. Paul wrote in Philippians 3:13 says, “…one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.” The empowerment to reach comes through forgetting the past. We have to let go of the past to embrace the present.

I read through the book of Philippians three times. Paul is an excellent example for us of one who embraced courage. When the plot against his life was discovered, the commander sent Paul to the governor Felix.

In Acts 24:10-21 he made his defense before the governor. His declaration in verse 16 is one we can aspire to as well. It says, “This being so, I myself always strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and man.” 

After he made his defense before Felix, he also stood before King Agrippa. When Felix had listened the second time, in verse 24 he shouted, “…Paul, you are beside yourself! Much learning has made you mad!”

In verse 27 Paul embraced courage. He said, “King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets…?” When the Lord intercepted Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus, what did He tell Ananias? 

Acts 9:15-16 says, “…he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” If you need a refresher of his sufferings, go back and read 2 Corinthians 11:23-33.

God commanded Joshua to embrace courage. He encapsulated it with the promise that He would be with him. Joshua 1:9 says, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” We have the same promises.

How did you feel inside when you read Titus 3:2? If you have recently gossiped it might have made you cringe. If you had been acting in pride, then the Holy Spirit would use that verse to finger that. By the way, speaking evil is the same as keeping a record of wrongs buried in your heart. Truth is like a stop signal. It makes us stop, look into our heart, before we proceed with our reading.

The next time you sit down to read your Bible, I encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to help you mine truth that will set you free from your fleshly reactions that spring up when you least expect them. Reactions are the catalyst that reveal hidden strongholds.

A chemical catalyst is any substance that increases the rate of a reaction without itself being consumed. How does a spiritual catalyst work? By the same principle: truth exposes the lie which has been causing our flesh to react. We heed what the Holy Spirit has revealed. We confess and renounce it ~ its hidden consuming work is stopped in its tracks.

We are coming to the end of another year. Here is a suggestion. On January 1, you begin reading the book of Proverbs. There are 31 chapters. One chapter for each day of the month.

Talk about a book that makes our flesh squeal. Proverbs 18:21 says that life and death is in the power of our tongue. All words are first thoughts. Hmm, that means that we need to be diligent to be mind ~ keeping (back to the devotional on the 23rd).

There is a beauty and mystery in daily reading through God’s word. No matter what season of life we are in, His word is relevant. It effectively illuminates the things that are hidden from our consciousness.

Yesterday’s devotional ended with the mention of spiritual sacrifices. God’s word clearly describes what condition our heart needs to be in. In the Old Testament they offered animal sacrifices. What sacrifices are offered as a member of Christ’s body of believers?

Amos 3:3 says, “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” There are specific instructions as to how we are to walk together in our priesthood journey. Psalm 51:17 says, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart—these, O God, You will not despise.”

Let’s visit Romans 12:9-21. It is like a magna carta to help us maintain humility in our interactions. Verse 9 says, “Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.” This verse requires us to sacrifice our flesh in order to put it into practice.

Here is another. Verse 18 says, “If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.” I have a corralling verse on my refrigerator to help me walk in it’s boundaries. Titus 3:2 says, “To speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men.” That is a flesh-squealer verse.

Paul’s stance is one that we can imitate. It is not wise to just pick and choose what we want to read, excluding most of God’s counsel. Otherwise, we will miss the truths that will set us free from the hidden inner strongholds that keep us ensnared.

In 2 Timothy 2:26, Paul explained another important truth. We are ensnared to do the devil’s will. Systematically reading God’s word will help us, “…come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.”

We are chosen, called, and appointed to do God’s will. Romans 12:3 says that we have each been given a measure of faith. 2 Peter 1:5-7 recorded the inner graces that we are to add to our faith so that we can prosper in our walk with the Lord.

Our progressive sanctification is a journey not a sprint. Isaiah 28:9 asked a question. It says, “Whom will he teach knowledge? And whom will he make to understand the message?…” Verse 10 recorded the steps. It says, “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, line upon line, line upon line, here a little, there a little.”

It reminds me of building a wall brick by brick. Peter described it this way. 1 Peter 2:5 says, “You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

How will we know what spiritual sacrifices are unless we are reading His word systematically? We wouldn’t. Hidden truth is there, but we have to mine it out as we read for understanding.