Wednesday, May 20, 2009

HE’S SWEET I KNOW…

SCRIPTURE

Psalm 93 (NRSV)
God reigns above the floods

The Lord is king, he is robed in majesty;
the Lord is robed, he is girded with strength.
He has established the world; it shall never be moved;
your throne is established from of old;
you are from everlasting.

The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their roaring.
More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters,
more majestic than the waves of the sea,
majestic on high is the Lord!

Your decrees are very sure;
holiness befits your house,
O Lord, forevermore.

DEVOTION

I don’t know about you, but I’ve endured some flood waters in my life. I’m not talking about a literal flood, although some of you have gone through that. I am talking about a flood of trouble, trial, tribulation, heartache, pain, and/or betrayal that threatened to overwhelm and/or drown me.

As Christians, we don’t talk much about hardship and pain. For some reason, we seem to believe that if we are followers of Christ, we are supposed to tippy-toe through the tulips. Some people believe that hardship proves that we are not right with God; or that God is punishing us for some egregious sin.

But, this is not Biblical my friends! We are followers of Jesus and Jesus endured great suffering. He went the way of the cross--betrayed by friends, lied on by strangers, and murdered by the government.

As if Jesus’ example were not enough (which it is), we know that the Apostle Paul endured great physical suffering. He said he prayed three times for some affliction to be removed, but God simply answered, “My grace is sufficient for you (2 Corinthians 12:9).”

It is time for Christians to get some theology (God talk) around suffering. We need to be able to say “The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring!”

We need to be able to hear each other when a Christian is suffering. It is scary when we lose our jobs, can’t pay the bills, are facing foreclosure, or suffer the death of a spouse. It is devastating when we are betrayed by people we trusted, are lied on by a pal, or cheated by a neighbor. It is terrifying when we get a cancer, HIV, or Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis!

It is at these times, that---even as Christians—we ought to be allowed to say, “The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice.”

Acknowledging the pain, hardship, and tribulation of being human is not a betrayal of God. It is simply being honest and authentic in our journey with God. We need to learn to ask people to pray with us and to share the deepest places of our hearts with others who are trustworthy and know how to pray.

But let us also remember—even in the midst of the storm—that whilst the flood waters may threaten to capsize our little ships, we love and serve a God who reigns above the flood waters and is able to steer us safely to shore!

Today’s Psalmist drove this point home when he stated, “More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters, more majestic than the waves of the sea, majestic on high is the Lord!”

WOW!

God is not afraid of the storm clouds in our lives. God is not overwhelmed by the flood waters. God is in complete control!

This is why Jesus was able to sleep in the boat--without worry and fear--despite the great storm that threatened to capsize the boat he was in with his disciples.

When Jesus was awakened as a result of their fear, Jesus simply rebuked the wind and the waves and the storm ceased. In response the disciples asked, “Who is this man, that even the winds and the waves obey him (Mark 4:41)?”

The answer is simple. Jesus is the Son of God—fully God and fully man. Jesus is the one sent by God to show forth God’s great and unconditional love for humanity by dying on the cross and rising again on the third day.

Jesus is Alpha and Omega--the beginning and the end. Since this is so, he knows how all of our stories end.

And do you know what, my friends? When we are in Christ, all of our stories end…"and they lived happily ever after, The End.”

Oh hallelujah!

No matter what you are going through, God’s got it! God is in control and God is going to ultimately make things right.

Jesus is sweet I know! You can trust him during the “stormy” times in your life; only keep your eyes steadfastly fixed on Jesus on whom your faith depends from beginning to end (Hebrews 12:2)!

Will you trust God to lift you up out of the flood waters of your life?

If so, please pray with me.

Oh God, you are so majestic and strong. You are stronger than the flood waters threatening to overwhelm my life. Help me to keep my eyes steadfastly fixed on you. I love you and I know that you love me. I trust that you will work all things together for my good. Thank you for Jesus and for his death upon the cross that secures the forgiveness of my sin and eternal life with you. Lord, I stretch my hand to you now, in Jesus’ Name, Amen.






ANNOUNCEMENTS

Congratulations to the people who have recently put all of their faith in Jesus! We are so excited about your new-found faith in Jesus! You are in our thoughts and prayers!

If you would like to put all of your hope in Jesus today, please visit my blog entitled, “Putting All Your Hope In Jesus” located at
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/04/putting-all-your-hope-in-jesus.html

If you have additional questions about how to become a friend and follower of Jesus, please see the devotion entitled, "Come to Jesus"
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/03/come-to-jesus.html

Pastor Yolanda is now publishing another blog entitled, “A Spoken WORD” in celebration of Holy Hip Hop, Gospel/Christian Rap and Spoken Word. Please check it out @ http://aspokenword.blogspot.com/


You are invited to follow Pastor Yolanda on Twitter www.twitter.com/PastorYolanda

Good News has now added a Prayer Ministry. http://www.kindlejoy.com/groups/goodnews
You are invited to leave comments or questions regarding today’s devotional. These comments are public.

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Thanks for reading and please come again. Pastor Yolanda extends a very special welcome to all of our friends reading outside of the United States of America! We are honored that you are sharing with us today.

From Pastor Yolanda's blog http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com


1 comment:

  1. Pastor Yolanda,

    As usual it's the guest with the many questions :). This devotion is inspirational and real as really helps us acknowledge the suffering part of us as Christian.

    Another time in your devotional, you stated that even though sins are forgiven, there has to be some consequence. So i keep wondering, if you have to get consequences for sins, are sins really forgiven? I mean, when does it stop from being a consquence of sins committed to suffering because as Christ suffered so who are we not to? Take for example the case of Paul, was he suffering becuase of the Gospel or was it a suffering from consequences of having persecuted the early christians. Please shed some light on this. Thank you very much for your deep insightful responses to the questions I ask. God bless you!

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