Ask! O Mighty Man (Woman) of Valor

"The Lord is with you O mighty man of valor"

Judges 6:12

    As I read through Judges chapter 6,  the people of Israel were doing what the people of Israel were good at doing, not obeying God's voice.  He had shown Himself to them more times than they could possibly count but yet they still did not believe Him.  We are like that too.  God has revealed Himself to us on many occasions but we choose to forget or not to see at all.  As I look back over my life, God was there in all of it.  We made unwise choices a few times, but God worked them for good.  Now as we are faced with yet another mountain to climb, we want to languish in our fears of climbing that mountain and the "what ifs" that present themselves in our minds.  We are not "obeying His voice".        Gideon was the same way, God was calling to him and calling Gideon a "mighty man of valor" but Gideon's response was "who me?".  Just as we say the same.  Gideon questioned God as to why all these things were happening to them. Again, we do the same.  God told Gideon to go and save Israel from the land of the Midian.  Gideon pleads why me, why my tribe, we are weakest of all the tribes.  Excuses and more excuses as to why we can't do it His way.  But the Lord speaks again and tells Gideon "I will be with you, and you will strike the Midianites as one man."(Judges 6:16).  But Gideon, being the weak flesh that we all are, says show me a sign that it is really you, God, that is speaking to me.  

     Oh, how I want a sign!  Maybe even a big whack up the side of my head!  But you know what happened to Gideon,  God did just what Gideon wanted, not once but three times.  He gave Gideon the signs he asked for specifically.  God is just waiting for us to ask Him.  I am not one to ask for something.  I hate asking for help.  I hate asking for something I need or even something I want.  Why?  Because I don't think anyone will listen or help and it's easier to do it myself, or so I think.   God listens.  God helps.  God will give us what we ask as long as it is for our good.  James 4:2 says, "you do not have, because you do not ask.". So for us to have what we ask we need to only ask,  but the next verse reminds us "you ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.".  We are to be bold and ask God for whatever we need specifically.   John 14:13 tells us, " whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.".  But we are to ask with the right motives, to glorify God when He answers, then He will answer and give us what we ask.   So as we stand at the base of what seems an immovable mountain, we need only ask God specifically to help.  He will listen and He will help.  We need only to believe that He is able.

"If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it."

John 14:14

Open Doors

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek,

 and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you."

Matthew 7:7

      Doors.  Everywhere we go there are doors.  Some push inward, some you have to pull to open. Some say do not enter, others are standing open wide for all to enter without hindrance. Some doors swing freely between rooms with no locks to keep them closed.  Other doors are secured with multiple locks and bars to keep everyone away.  When we approach a door we do not always know if it will give us entrance or remain closed to us.  Much like the doors of our lives that we approach on our road to following God.  We ask is this door going to open to use?  Or will it remain closed, locked tight?  

     There have been many times in my life that I have had to approach a door.  Uncertainty my companion as to whether I can open this door and walk freely through it or will it slam shut in my face just as I step forward or will it close tightly after I have walked in, giving me no chance to change my mind and turn back.   

      The walk with God is full of doors.  Each door leading somewhere.  Some doors leading to happiness and tranquility, at least for the moment.  Other doors leading to anguish and discouragement which again is only for a moment.  A moment in God's eyes, not a moment to ours.  Even in times of discouragement and disappointment, God has been at the door.  Matthew 24:33 says so, "even so you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.".  God is always near the door, no matter which one we approach and walk into.  We should approach each door in our lives with the confidence that no matter which we choose God is near.  God is there to lead us through the open door He wants for us to take.  He is there to bar the door if it is one that will lead us to destruction.  And if we barge on through the door that is closed, He is there too, waiting with open arms to remind us that He will not leave us. So as we navigate this life full of doors that are both opened and closed, remember that God is near the door.  All we need to do is ask, seek and knock and it will be opened to you. 

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock; 

if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me."

Revelation 3:20

PEACE

"You keep him in perfect peace

whose mind is stayed on you,

because he trusts in you."

Isaiah 26:3

     Peace!  Peace be with you.  Peace, Man!  Let there be peace on earth.  Peace and quiet.  The word peace is used in so many ways.  The definition of peace is "quiet, calm, absence of hostility".  As I laid wide awake in the middle of the night, I was thinking about peace.  Mainly so I could drift back to sleep but sleep wasn't coming.  My mind has been rolling in turmoil for several weeks now and all I want is peace.  I don't want to think about a job.  I don't want to think about money or the lack of it.  What I want is peace, the quiet calm peace.  How do I get that peace?  How do I turn off my brain to the turmoil that keeps swirling around me? 

    I turned to the One that holds that peace.  Paul spoke of peace in Philippians 4:6-7, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.".  The peace of God which surpasses ALL understanding.  We can not begin to know the peace of God in a way our human minds can wrap around.  His peace surpasses all understanding, He guards our hearts and our minds in Jesus with His peace.  I know that when I feel His peace, it is calming and quiet. The turmoil eases away and is replaced with a calm and quiet that only God can provide.  If we set our minds on things above and not on the things which are here on earth, we can feel the peace of God seeping into our souls.  Just like on a cold winter day as we sip a warm cup of tea and the warmth spreads through our bodies, God does the same with His peace, warming our souls that are cold and anxious.  He brings an end to the turmoil of our brains and reaches in and soothes with His peace. 

    People are crying out for peace.  They are crying for wars to end and the discord to stop.  People want peace but have not looked to the One who gives that peace.  We, as Christians, need to remind people who will provide the peace that calms and quiets our hearts and minds when they are in turmoil.  We need to look to the One whose very name is "the prince of peace".  He will fill us and provide for us in a way no one else can.  Call upon His name, Emanuel, the prince of peace when you are in turmoil and do not feel peace.  He will fill you with His peace, calmly and quietly it will fill your soul.   

"Peace I leave with you;  my peace I give to you...Let not

your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."

John 14:27