1 Samuel 10:6-9 ESV Then the Spirit of the Lord will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man….  When he turned his back to leave Samuel, God gave him another heart…

Saul was a tall, impressive man, but he was a coward.  However, when the Spirit of God came upon him, he was changed. And changed mightily.

Let us not underestimate what the Lord can and will do in us and in any other brother we know.

“…stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” (Luke 24:49)

Today, live in POWER, not in timidity nor anger nor discouragement nor sullenness. Live not in fear or selfishness or doubt. Live in power from on high, brought to me by the Holy Spirit sent from God. “You will receive POWER when the Holy Spirit comes on you.” Whoa. Power. And power from GOD. This is a SURPASSING power (Eph 3:16). This is a power brought into a weak jar of clay (2Cor 4:7).

How can I not live differently today with God in me? Cast off the flesh today. Mortify the deeds of the flesh (Col 3:5) by his power. Live victoriously, with no worry or shame or complacency.

Read this glorious story of prayer.

Mark 10:46-52 ESV ⁴⁶And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. ⁴⁷And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁸And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁹And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” ⁵⁰And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. ⁵¹And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” ⁵²And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

I love this story which is sad, humorous and exemplary at the same time.  Sad in that this man was blind and broke, resorting to begging for money.  What a humiliating and frightening situation, not knowing if you would even survive another day.  The story is also humorous in that he is shouting to Jesus to heal him, but many people tell him to shut up.  So how does he respond to their rebukes? Does he listen to them?  Does he get embarrassed that he is making a scene?  No, he just shouts all the more and all the louder!  (This reminds me of sibling rivalry, where one sibling will tell the other, “Stop it,” and instead of stopping they do it even more.)  Then the story is exemplary in that Bartimaeus persists in prayer to Jesus until he gets what he wants and needs.

Am I that persistent? Do I want something that badly that I will keep calling out to Jesus until I get it?  Do I believe so strongly that Jesus is both willing and able to help me that I won’t give up until He answers?

Fundamentally, prayer (which this story is essentially about) requires two basic attitudes in us:  1.  We must want something badly like Bartimaeus, and 2.  We must believe that Jesus has the power and the willingness to help us.

Examine my own prayer life. Certainly times when I have been most desperate in prayer is when my need has been the greatest.  So do not despise trials that make me desperate for Jesus’ help.  Rather, welcome the trials as friends.  And the times when I have been most persistent in prayer is when I am convinced Jesus loves me, cares deeply for me, AND has the power to give what I ask for:  “What do you want me to do for you?” Oh, what a beautiful question from Jesus.

Conversely, when my prayer life lacks, I may be able to simply examine these two attitudes and conclude either I don’t see that I have much need or I don’t believe Jesus cares and has the power to help.

Be like Bartimaeus in prayer! Be hungry and desperate for help. Let nothing or no one hinder me in prayer.  Let no obstacle in my life loom so large that Jesus cannot or will not conquer it.  Believe Jesus will hear; believe and do not doubt.

The word for the day is, “God is with me.”  In the two darkest moments in Joseph’s life– sold into slavery and thrown into prison– the very first words the Lord records in Genesis 39 immediately after these dark, wicked events are, “I was with Joseph.” Wow.  The beauty of those two repeating statements.  In our darkest hour, the Lord is right there.  We are never alone. Never abandoned.  Never forgotten.

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” (Ps 46:1).

May we draw strength from His very real presence.  He is not just some cosmic force in the heavens.  He is right here, right now, in me.   Emmanuel, God with us.

To all who say that the God of the Old Testament is only holy and terrifying but the God of the New Testament is only kind and benevolent, read this:  Israel provokes the Lord to anger over and over and over again, but here we see an astonishing patience and forgiveness.  

Psalm 78:36-39 ESV ³⁶But they flattered him with their mouths; they lied to him with their tongues. ³⁷Their heart was not steadfast toward him;  they were not faithful to his covenant. ³⁸Yet he, being compassionate, atoned for their iniquity and did not destroy them; he restrained his anger often and did not stir up all his wrath. ³⁹He remembered that they were but flesh,a wind that passes and comes not again.

Shout to the Lord praises for His overwhelming mercy to us through His Son, for we are just like Israel and He remains full of astonishing compassion!

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).  John the Baptist’s words here may be the most simple yet the most profound words ever spoken. A life-changing, earth-shaking statement.  Jesus, the Lamb who will be slaughtered, will take away sin.  Man’s greatest problem, sin before a holy God, will be dealt with by this meek Lamb, this gentle Lamb who also happens to be the ferocious Lion who will mete out justice and who also happens to be the mighty Creator from whom all living creatures eminate.

My sin has been taken away!  Breathe deeply and rest in this thought!  My sin, my burden, the wrath stored up for me– is GONE!  Gone!  The weight of judgment was laid upon his willing shoulders so that I, a mere mortal, could go free.

How can I say thanks for all He has done for me?!  “I’ll lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.” (Ps 116:13).

Worthy is the Lamb that was slain….literally, the Lamb that was slaughtered and butchered.  (Rev 5:9)

So rejoice today!  And rest today!  All my other burdens and concerns in my life this week PALE in comparison to this mighty burden that has been removed by the Lamb of God who took away my sin. Rest and rejoice!

The Word of God stands out with astonishing uniqueness in history.  Read the quote below.

“No book has attracted so much attention, provoked so much opposition, outlived so many persecutions, called forth so much reverence and gratitude, inspired so many noble thoughts and deeds, administered so much comfort and peace from the cradle to the grave to all classes and conditions of men.  It is more than a book; it is an institution, an all-pervading omnipresent force, a converting, sanctifying, transforming agency; it rules from the pulpit and the chair; it presides at the family altar; it is the sacred ark of every household, the written conscience of every Christian man, the pillar of cloud by day, the pillar of light by night in the pilgrimage of life. Mankind is bad enough, and human life dark enough with it; but how much worse and how much darker would they be without it?

“Christianity might live without the letter of the New Testament, but not without the facts and truths which it records and teaches. Were it possible to banish them from the world, the sun of our civilization would be extinguished, and mankind left to midnight darkness, with the dreary prospect of a dreamless and endless Nirvana.

“But no power on earth or in hell can extinguish that sun. There it shines on the horizon, the king of day, obscured at times by clouds great or small, but breaking through again and again, and shedding light and life from east to west, until the darkest corners of the globe shall be illuminated. The past is secure; God will take care of the future.”

From Philip Schaff’s “The History of the Christian Church,”

There is no one like Jesus Christ.  Read the inspiring quote below.  Proclaim Christ fearlessly.

“Taking our position at the close of the apostolic age, and looking back to its fountain-head and forward to succeeding generations, we cannot but be amazed at the magnitude of the effects produced by the brief public ministry of Jesus of Nazareth, which sends its blessings through centuries as an unbroken and ever-expanding river of life.

“There is absolutely nothing like it in the annals of the race. The Roman empire embraced, at the birth of Christ, over one hundred millions of men, conquered by force, and, after having persecuted his religion for three hundred years, it died away without the possibility of a resurrection. The Christian church now numbers four hundred millions, conquered by the love of Christ, and is constantly increasing.

“The first century is the life and light of history and the turning point of the ages. If ever God revealed himself to man, if ever heaven appeared on earth, it was in the person and work of Jesus of Nazareth. He is, beyond any shadow of doubt, and by the reluctant consent of skeptics and infidels, the wisest of the wise, the purest of the pure, and the mightiest of the mighty. His Cross has become the tree of life to all nations; his teaching is still the highest standard of religious truth; his example the unsurpassed ideal of holiness; the Gospels and Epistles of his Galilean disciples are still the book of books, more powerful than all the classics of human wisdom and genius.

(From Philip Schaff, author of “The History of the Christian Church.”)

Romans 16:19  says, “For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. “

Am I quick to obey?  Am I known for my obedience, as the Romans were?  Obedience is NOT a four-letter word! Obedience is not evil.  Rather, it is a beautiful, glorious, joy-provoking quality.

What is obedience? Simply stated,  doing what we are commanded.  A soldier is disgraced when he defies an officer, but his life and the lives of others are saved when he obeys orders.  A rebellious child brings little joy to his dad, but an obedient son brings gladness to both dad and son.  Insubordination at the workplace may get you fired, but someone who does they are told, and does it well and with a whole heart, is commended and may even get promoted.

So if obedience in the world and in our families is good, why do we sometimes view it as bad or legalistic in the Christian life, like a four-letter word?  That perspective is warped.

Obey today, and experience the commendation of the Lord. Acts 13:22 says it well: “I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.”

What is the Lord prompting me to obey today?   To cast my burdens on Him and not be anxious?  To humble myself and ask forgiveness from someone I offended?  To work diligently, not lazily?  To rejoice in the God of love instead of complaining in my heart?  To use my tongue to encourage and praise someone instead of offering sarcasm and criticism?

Like the Romans, may many rejoice over my obedience!!

A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” ⁴¹ Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” (Mark 1:40-41 NIV)

Jesus was “Filled with compassion.” Another version says, “Moved with pity.” God Almighty is a God who is easily moved to compassion.  We don’t have to beg and urge and plead to get Him to pay attention to us.  Repeatedly throughout biblical history, He comes to the aid of any who are hurting, even when they haven’t yet asked for help.  The greatest example of this is the Cross itself, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son…”

Too often I don’t run up to Jesus like this man and expect Him to even want to help me.  I think He’s too busy.  Or my problems aren’t significant enough.  Or perhaps He’s not even that interested, since He figures I can handle it myself.  Interesting word I use:  “Myself”.  Isn’t that just my independent thinking?  “Oh, I’ll be fine on my own.  You take care of your business, and I’ll take care of mine.”

Would I be part of the crowd in Mark 3:10– “…He healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed around him to touch him.” Would I press around Him to get healed?  Or would I think, “Nah, He won’t want to heal me.  Besides, it’s my own fault I’m ill.”

Why do I hesitate to believe God is easily moved to pity for me? Pity to know my pain of wayward sheep or my pain from failure to shepherd the sheep well.  Pity not to say, “You got yourself into this mess, so get yourself out.”  Pity to care about my physical pain.  Do I believe that He is easily moved to compassion?

Am I afraid to allow myself to receive His grace out of fear that I might give myself an excuse to sin or whine?  Or does pride stand in my way, unwilling to acknowledge my need for pity?

Our God LOVES to rescue. He IS love.  He HAS compassion.  Let Him be the God of all comfort and compassion. LET HIM IN!!

Psalm 103:13-14 says,  “As a father show compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.  For he knows our frame;  he remembers that we are dust.”

Lord, grant me grace to have that simple childlike faith that when I accidentally or even willfully “scrape my spiritual knees” I would run to you like the man in Mark 1 and like the crowd in Mark 3 and beg for your compassionate help. And then grant me grace to believe that you will be “filled with compassion” and will kindly help me in my hour of need.