wisdom and power are his.

He changes times and seasons;

    he deposes kings and raises up others.

He gives wisdom to the wise

    and knowledge to the discerning.

He reveals deep and hidden things;

    he knows what lies in darkness,

    and light dwells with him.”

Daniel 2

Believe it or not there is a King in heaven in charge of everything.  He rules the kingdoms of this earth.  He raises up one leader and removes another.  HE is in charge, he rules the Universe…every molecule of it.

HE is King.

Then why are we afraid?  Why are we fighting over this politician or that one?  None of them can help us.  None of them can fix our problems.  They are just men placed there by God.

Why are we so angry, so afraid?  Why all the frustration, the name calling?

Is there a God in heaven or not?

If there is a God who rules then trust him.

If there isn’t then you aren’t fearful enough!

I’m saddened by what I see in the Christian world as “Christians” verbalize their fears in the public forums as if a man will be our solution.  Why do we trust in man?  Even David wrote of the foolishness of trusting in the strength of men.

Like Daniel, I’m so glad there is a sovereign and he does not rule from Washington or any other city.  He rules from heaven!

One of the worst kings of all time said this about that God, words that came after God humbled him,

King Nebuchadnezzar,

To the nations and peoples of every language, who live in all the earth:

May you prosper greatly!

It is my pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High God has performed for me.

How great are his signs,
how mighty his wonders!
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures from generation to generation.

“The Most High God”

There is a ruler over the affairs of man.

Oh that we would trust him and rest in his care.

He is in charge of everything, even who rules this little nation of ours.

Visit Mike at Finishing Well.

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So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.…

The portion of this passage that had eluded me were these words,“For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.” Then, this week for the first time, I saw it. The pagans don’t have a heavenly Father! They are orphans! Orphans have to be worried about food, clothing and a place to stay because they have no one to watch out for them. They are responsible, but the Christian has a Father. We have someone who is taking care of us. We have someone who loves us and like a child in a home with a dad we don’t even think about the house payment, the electric bill, will we have food…those are the things that Father takes care of. As his child I run into his house and take whatever I want from the fridge without a worry. Father takes cares of all those things so I can focus my attention on seeking HIM and his rule in my life. He has the rest taken care of. He cares for me. I have a father, I’m not an orphan. When I saw this the whole passage came alive for me. I wept over this amazing truth. Even as I tried to share it with my wife the next day I couldn’t get through it without tears…..we are not orphans on our own, caring for ourselves, worried about how we will get food, clothing and somewhere to stay. We have a father. He loves us and is fully able and willing to care for us.

So, today you can resign as general manager of the universe, you don’t need to worry about all the things that take up your thoughts. You are not an orphan, you have a father and he loves to care for his children who will trust him.

Visit Mike at Finishing Well.

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It’s a much quoted verse, but I think we miss so much that it’s trying to say. May I rewrite it in Mike’s paraphrase?

“Hush, be quiet, stop, rest, don’t move….just pause for a moment and know that I am God.

That I am God over your joys and over your sorrows.

That I am God when you are at peace and when you are afraid.

That I am God when your health is good and even when it isn’t.

That I am God when you have food and when you are hungry.

That I am God when there is abundance and when there is nothing.

That I am God when you have a job and when you don’t.

That I am God when you have hope and even when you are in despair.

That I am God over everything.”

The one theme I see throughout the bible is this very important truth- The Lord is God, He is Lord of everything, both good and bad, both smiles and tears.

He’s Lord and you can trust him, he’s got it all under control. So, be still, rest, relax, let down your frown, exhale, stop worrying, stop trying, stop everything and rest in the Lord who simply wants you to know that HE is LORD.

One of my favorite verses is Psalm 29:10. In this short verse is a very important truth. Here it is, “The Lord sat as king at the flood, the Lord sits as king forever.” At the worse time in human history God was seated on the throne fully in charge. At the worse time in your life God is seated on his throne fully in charge of your life. Relax, he’s got it. Stop, cease, be still. The God of the universe loves you and is Lord of your everythings. Trust him. “Be still and know that HE is God.”

Visit Mike at Finishing Well.

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If you were listening closely you had to wonder, who could possibly believe any of this? With no apology or embarrassment he declared evolutionary events of the last 13 billion years as if they had really happened. I was amazed, humored and honestly surprised anyone stayed through the whole speech, but they did. Maybe what kept everyone distracted were the beautiful PowerPoint slides he used. Maybe it was his British accent, but whatever kept the crowd enthralled with his speech simply missed me. I could not believe he could make such bold statement in complete contradiction to his opening statement and yet declare it all with great flair and confidence.

Maybe that’s the secret….maybe all you need is a British accent, a few credentials and a boldness to declare the impossible. In fact, that’s exactly what David did. Without evidence or proof he described how the Universe came to be. As he spoke my thoughts raced, “how does he know that? where’s the proof? that’s a bold statement you can’t prove!” On and on I debated him in my mind as he spoke. Surely even a simple man like me could see through this silliness, why do so many buy into this without question or rational thought?

It’s clear, after listening to David’s speech, that to believe in evolution takes more faith that it does to believe in the Bible. Yes, I said it, but just to make sure I’m clear let me repeat it, it takes more faith to believe in order coming from disorder, something coming from nothing, complexity coming from simplicity, all breaking the second law of thermodynamics than it does to believe in the Bible and the God who says very clearly and simply, “I made all of this!”

After watching David I’m more convinced than ever that this is a faith discussion, not a knowledge discussion. I wonder if they realize that?

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Yes, I am a Christian. I’m a pastor. I do love the Lord, BUT I often think, act and live like there is no God. The bible calls me a fool and it’s right to do so. If God is really there then my thoughts and life should be different because of that.

If there really is a God who is there then that will affect what I look at on the internet and on television. For any man or woman to get involved in sin, whatever the flavor, is to say in your heart, “there is no God…no one is watching…no one will ever know.” If you’ve ever done that, and I have, then you’re a fool. I speak from first hand experience. When you make a decision to sin, in any way, you’re saying in your heart “there is no God…no one will know.” But he does. He sees. You’re being a fool when you do that and so am I.

If there really is a God who is there then that will affect what you worry about. If God is there and caring for you then your worries about your life and finances are saying, “there is no God…I have to worry this myself…if I don’t worry about it and fix it no one else will.” If you’ve ever done that, and I have, then you’re a fool. You’re saying that the God who made the universe can’t take care of you? Foolish little human, don’t you know he holds you together? Can’t he meet your needs as well?

As I think about this I could go on for pages with the things that declare to the world “I AM A FOOL!” but I think you have an idea of my thoughts. Clearly the fool is one who lives like God is not there even when he declares to the world he believes in him.

I had always reserved this verse for the agnostic, the atheist, but this morning it convicted me! Any time I live or think that all of this is on me, about me or for me and make choices, worry or live like God is not there….I’m a fool. Well, let me be the first to make this clear so there is no doubt. “Hi, my name is Mike and I’m a fool.” But, my hearts desire is this- I want to live and think and act like God is there, part of my life and intimately involved in what is to become of me. It’s either all true or none of it is!

Just a few thoughts on being a fool……from one.

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Psalm 46

One Sunday morning not long ago, I was doing some daily Bible reading. Ps 46 was in the que. As I was reading it, the song Peace Be Still came to mind and I decided that I should memorize this passage in an effort to learn a verse a day.

Being able to quote this passage from memory has served me more than I would have imagined. Here are my thoughts on this amazing passage of comfort:

Vs. 1-3 – God is our refugee and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea. Thought the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.

Daily, everyone of us can stand to hear a reminder that God is our strength. He is with us in trouble. We face trouble on daily basis.  More often than we want to admit, we are weakened and are driven to our knees.  If we would only grab ahold of this verse and cling to its Holy Promise! During the moments in my life when the mountains seem to be falling into the sea, I have been able to pull comfort from these verses. Praise the Lord for being my strength and help in trouble.

Vs. 5 – God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.

 This verse reminds me that God Will help and wants to help.  That I do not have to go through my journey alone and scared.  God, the creator of the universe, the Master of the seas, the One that the winds obey his very voice, is in the midst of MY journey.  How amazing is that?

Vs 10a – Be still, and know that I am God…

Worry has a way of grabbing ahold of us and not letting go. We drag our worries around with us, fretting about tomorrow. We wonder what are we going to do, we waste precious time that we could be making a difference for Heaven on worry. That is what satan wants from us. He wants to distract us, so that we forget about this verse. We need to remember to be still and KNOW that God will take care of us, he wants to take care of us and will continue to take care of us. Instead of looking around at the raging storms and taking our eyes off of our Lord, we need to remain focused on him. We need to fix our eyes our heavenly Father and run to Him. We need to crawl right up into his lap and just be still, knowing that He is in control, that He wants to bless us, guide and direct us. Knowing that He is God!

I’m just as guilty as the next person about worry, about discouragement, about distractions.  Having hid these verses in my heart, where I can grab them at a moments notice has proven beneficial so many times. Speaking with my best friend on the phone who is afraid for her prodigal daughter. Consoling my daughter when she feels like the school can’t protect her. Re-assuring my son that God will provide the necessary funding for college. When my own heart is aching, with the desire to give big, with the need to see my son, with various heartaches and breaks – I too, claim these promises from the Lord.

Have you hidden these words in your heart? Can you grab them when you need them? You know the storms are coming, you know the battle will rage? What other passages do you need to hide in your heart?

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