Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“The Blame Game”

Eccles. 6:1-2

“There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy on mankind: ² a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God does not give him power to enjoy them, but a stranger enjoys them. This is vanity; it is a grievous evil.”

Whenever something goes wrong in my house, my wife will ask, “What did I do now?”  This frequent pattern has led me to one of two conclusions:  First possibility, my wife is mistake-prone, and she knows it.  Or the second, she is employing sarcasm to make the point that I tend to blame her for things that are probably my fault.  I choose to believe the former because I cannot possibly be the problem!

In all seriousness, the blame game is literally as old as humanity (Genesis 3 records Adam blaming Eve for giving him the fruit to eat, and Eve blaming the serpent for deceiving her) and ingrained into its nature (my three-year-old blames her brother for “starting it” whenever she hits him).  People just hate taking responsibility for their actions and shortcomings.  

Read today’s passage carefully.  Does anything stick out to you?  When we carefully read verse 2, we see that the writer of Ecclesiastes actually blames God for his greed, saying, “…yet God does not give him power to enjoy them [wealth, possessions, and honor].”  What are we to make of this text?  Is the theological truth of this passage that God is some kind of childish and mean deity who allows us to accumulate wealth, but does not give us the power to enjoy them or allows another to take them away? Or, is the writer of Ecclesiastes (likely Solomon) a little jaded and his perception of reality a little off?

I would vote for the latter, but before we label Solomon an ingrate, let me ask you this question: Are you content with your life, circumstances, and wealth right now?  Have you ever felt like God was holding out on you or trying to deny you happiness?  Although most of us are too churched to say it out loud, I think we have all felt this way about something.  But here is the truth: our lack of contentment has less to do with not having enough, and more to do with our desire for more.  Sometimes we are so greedy that we cannot enjoy what God has already given us.  This day, try to cultivate a thankful heart. Stop blaming God or others for the things you don’t have, but instead, thank him for all that you do have.  

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I need to stop the blame game, but it is so hard to avoid it.   Help me to see clearly my reality so that I take responsibility for my failing actions; and then go to You for forgiveness and restoration. Amen. 

Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 40

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Pastor Yohan Lee, a friend of AMI, was first posted on September 6, 2014.  A graduate of University of Pennsylvania (BA) and Cairn University (MA), Yohan served as a staff at several AMI churches in the past. 

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“God’s Timing”

Eccles. 3:11

“He has made everything beautiful in its time.  He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God had done from beginning to end.”

As my family and I are in the process of relocating from Philadelphia to San Francisco, we’ve   learned that in his timing, God shows his incredible love and care for us.  If I had it my way, our family would have moved in early summer (May or June); however, we are scheduled to move later in September.  

The largest hurdle that we had to overcome was finding employment for my wife (S. F. is too expensive to make it solely on a pastor’s salary).  For months we had been scouring the Internet trying to find a right part-time position since we have small children.  Surprisingly, part-time nurse practitioner positions are very rare in the Bay Area; so when the seemingly perfect job finally came up at a city hospital last April, we did everything in our power to get it.  On the surface, this seemed like the perfect fit; not only for our family life, but for every skill set that my wife had gained over the last 10 years.  In fact, many people that we talked to had “that sense” that this was the job God prepared for us.  But after a long, arduous process, we got rejected; and it was quite discouraging.

But within a week, my wife received an e-mail from the UCSF School of Nursing requesting a video interview.  On a whim, my wife applied for a part-time teaching position at UCSF, although she had never formally taught. And within three weeks, she got the job!  Truthfully, this position seems even more perfect for our family than the hospital job: The hours are more flexible and much work can be done at home.  Also, with others in the UCSF faculty with four children, we envision them empathizing with our family’s needs.  The only drawback is that I now have to call my wife “professor.”   

On a personal note, not being able to move until now allowed me to spend a couple more months with my mother, who recently went to be with the Lord.  Since I found out that she was sick in June, I’m grateful that we hadn’t moved to the West Coast in early summer. There may be many reasons why our move did not occur until now, but personally, I think the Lord wanted me to spend a little more time with my mom.  Though it was hard to see at the time, in retrospect, even in his timing, I see God’s love, care, and provision in my life.

If you are struggling to see what God is doing in your life, take solace that you are in good company: The writer of Ecclesiastes was also struggling with this.  Although he acknowledged that mankind has eternity in their hearts, he also seemed frustrated that he would never know what God was doing eternally.  But even in your lack of understanding, can you put faith in God that He makes everything “beautiful in its time?”  What are you struggling with right now?  Are you having a hard time seeing how God is working in your life?  Can you acknowledge that you lack perspective?  Please be patient. It might be a month, a year, or even longer, but trust me, you will see a little more clearly; and you will experience his love, care, and provision.  

Prayer: Lord, as I see my life unfolding right before my eyes, I admit that I lack perspective.  Lord, I acknowledge that I am impatient.  So, HELP!    

Bible Reading for Today:  Jeremiah 38-39

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, first posted on April 27, 2015, is written by Pastor David Son who pastors the Thrive Church in Taipei.  He is a graduate of University of California, Berkeley (BA) and Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary (M.Div.). Stay up to date with the church plant by following them here: https://www.instagram.com/thrivechurchtaipei/

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“I Was Only Trying to Help”

2 Samuel 6:5-8

And David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the Lord, with songs and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals. And when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and God struck him down there because of his error, and he died there beside the ark of God. And David was angry because the Lord had broken out against Uzzah. And that place is called Perez-uzzah to this day.

At 5 years old I was a very curious child. One of my earliest memories was when my father was fixing a broken VCR cassette rewinder (yup, VCR) in our house. He strongly warned me not to touch the electrical components. But being quite a smart child, I couldn’t help notice that the cord was unplugged! Even with my little knowledge, I knew that the cord had to be plugged in for the machine to work. And so, while my father was busy working on the machine itself, I went over to the electrical outlet, grabbed the two pronged plug, and confidently inserted it into the socket. WHAM! It all happened so fast, the next thing I knew, I was on the ground, seeing stars and an incredible pain was running from the tips of my fingers all throughout my body. I screamed and cried out in frustration and agony. What happened!? I was only trying to help!

Poor Uzzah. He was only trying to help! If we read this passage from the human perspective, God seems very unjust! How could he kill Uzzah?—his intentions were good! He was trying to prevent the ark from falling into the dirt, and he died for it. From this perspective, we can all understand why King David became angry with God, because of this seemingly unjust punishment.

However, to understand this situation more fully, we must acknowledge that God is supremely holy. So holy that nothing sinful can come into contact with Him and survive. This is not an issue of intentions! The fact is that not even the most well-meaning person can come into contact with the raw holiness of the Almighty God… and expect to live. Uzzahgrossly underestimated the holiness of God. Uzzah made the incorrect assumption that he was cleaner than the dirt of the ground!

What is our posture towards the holiness of God? Have you ever been angry at God for something in your life that seems unjust? Often, we need to take a step back and recognize the awesome holiness of God; only then can we act with true wisdom.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” -Proverbs 9:10

Prayer: LORD, You are holy, holy, holy. Help us to meditate on Your holiness today. Humble our hearts to see You as You are. If we have become irreverent, wise in our own eyes, or if we have somehow lost the fear of the Lord, we repent. Teach us how to live in the wisdom that comes from the fear of the Lord. Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 37

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Lunch Break Study

Read Isaiah 6:1-7: In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!”And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”

Questions to Consider

1. What is Isaiah’s initial reaction as he enters the presence of God?
2. Why do you think Isaiah reacted this way (as opposed to running to God and giving him a big hug?)
3. How is Isaiah’s sin dealt with?
4. Verse 6 indicates that there was a burning coal and an altar. What do you think these symbolize?

Notes

1. Isaiah declares, “Woe is me! For I am lost…” Isaiah is basically saying, “I’m a dead man!”
2. The passage indicates that in light of God’s holiness, Isaiah’s uncleanness certainly guaranteed his death.
3. One of the seraphim touches Isaiah’s lips with a burning coal from the altar and declares, “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”
4. Usually, when there is an altar that is on fire, there is also a sacrifice. We know that Jesus Christ is the atoning sacrifice for our sins. We can safely infer that the act of atonement that happens here in Isaiah’s vision is a symbolic gesture of the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ!

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Evening Reflection

Today, let us take a moment and reflect on two things: One, the awesome holiness of God whom we must learn to approach with reverence and fear, a God whose holiness leaves no room for compromise and whose justice is beyond appeal. Two, the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, who washes away our guilt and shame so completely as to usher us into the breathtaking presence of God. Praise be to God!

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Pastor David Kwon who heads Journey Community Church in Raleigh, North Carolina, was first posted on November 25, 2013.  He is a graduate of Drexel University (BS) and Columbia International University (M.Div.).

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“All the Praise, Honor and Glory to Him”

Psalm 114:1-8 (NIV)

When Israel came out of Egypt, Jacob from a people of foreign tongue, 2 Judah became God’s sanctuary, Israel his dominion. 3 The sea looked and fled, the Jordan turned back; 4 the mountains leaped like rams, the hills like lambs. 5 Why was it, sea, that you fled? Why, Jordan, did you turn back? 6 Why, mountains, did you leap like rams, you hills, like lambs? 7 Tremble, earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob, 8 who turned the rock into a pool, the hard rock into springs of water.

This is a psalm that God’s people would sing at Passover. It tells of God’s deliverance of His people from slavery in Egypt and of his sparing them from the plagues of judgment (particularly the death of the firstborn). As we now know, God’s deliverance of Israel from Egyptian slavery and the Passover celebration (to remember that time) all pointed to Christ’s coming – when God would not only deliver the Israelites, but all of humanity from not mere physical bondage, but spiritual slavery to sin and death. 

The notable element of this praise is that it highlights an appropriate response to the salvific work of God. All of nature yields to the work of God. The sea, river, mountains, and hills all tremble before the Lord and move according to His will. We see this literally displayed when the Red Sea parted before the people of God during the exodus. Likewise the psalmist calls for all of humanity to follow suit and appropriately respond to God’s salvific work in the world. We should tremble before the Lord – in awe of His power and in full submission to the amazing things He’s doing.  

Spend some time in awe of God’s power and salvific work in the world and in your life. Declare His awesome power and mighty deeds!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we thank You for having done EVERYTHING for us!  Praise You. You are the only One worthy of praise, honor, and glory. Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 36

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Lunch Break Study

Read 1 Peter 1:13-21: Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17 And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. 

Questions to Consider

1. What does Christ perfect sacrifice give us?
2. What are the three commands given to us? 
3. What is your hope set on?

Notes

1. Christ was the perfect sacrifice giving us freedom from our old ways of sin. Because of Jesus, we are able to live life to the fullest. Peter ends this section by explaining that Jesus came for us. Christ was made known to us so that we may have faith and hope in God. Therefore, we do all these things because of what Christ did for us – not because we’re obligated, but because Jesus makes it possible. Christ died so we could have life to the full! 
2. (a) Set our hope fully on the grace we receive through Christ: Not merely grace in this life but in the life to come. We have to live with eternal perspective of what God is doing for us through Christ – giving us eternal (b) No longer be conformed to our passions: We should no longer give ourselves over to the desires of our flesh because we are called to be like Jesus (holy). We do this through our obedience to the word of God by the power of the Holy Spirit within us.(c) Conduct ourselves with fear: Instead of living whatever way we want during our time on earth, we live our lives with reverence for God. We do this by being mindful of what He’s done for us through Christ. He sacrificed His own son so that we may have a life free from sin. Our proper response to this is complete devotion (Romans 12:1-2).
3. Personal response

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Evening Reflection

Romans 6:3-4

“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”

Jesus died as the perfect sacrifice for our sin. For those of us who’ve put our trust in Him, we have died with Christ so that sin no longer has control over us. And we’ve been raised with him, so that we can (through the power of the Spirit within us) live a new life. Take time to reflect on God’s perfect sacrifice. Ask God to help you take full advantage of the new life offered in Christ. 

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Pastor Barry Kang who heads Symphony Church in Boston, was first posted on April 18, 2013.  He is a graduate of Stanford University (BA), Fuller Theological Seminary (M.Div.) and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (D.Min.). 

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“Don’t Need to Pretend; He Already Knows”

Psalm 38:1-4

All my longings lie open before you, O Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.

Psalm 38 was written in a time when David was physically ill.  David believed that his suffering was a result of his own sinful choices.   In desperation, he prays in faith to a God who he believes despite the circumstances is loving and merciful.

As an expression of this faith, David cries out to God, “All my longings lie open before you, O Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.”  In other words, David has laid himself bare before God.  He has opened his heart, sharing every desire and every discouragement.  He has hidden nothing from the Lord, aware that God sees all, anyway.

God knows every longing of our hearts, even our evil desires, and He loves us still!  We don’t have to pretend when we pray.  Rather, we can confidently and freely pray to God, knowing that His acceptance of us is not based upon our goodness but on his grace!

Do you ever try to hide from God?  Why?  What encourages you to open your heart freely and fully to him?   Today, let us go before God in confidence knowing that He knows every longing of our hearts and still invites us to come.

Prayer: Father, I thank You for Your incredible grace.  You know all the longings of my heart.  The ones that give You glory and the ones that are wicked and self-centered.  Yet, in Your grace, You have accepted me and invited me into your presence.  I am now part of Your flock, not because I am worthy, but because You have chosen me in love.  Help me to live in the reassurance that You know every longing of my heart.  Help me to learn to live with You in every moment, seeking to give You more and more glory.  In Jesus’s name, I pray.  Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 35

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Lunch Break Study

Read Matthew 6:6-8 (NIV): But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. ⁷ And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. ⁸ Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 

Questions to Consider

1. Why does Jesus command us to pray in our rooms?  Is Jesus instituting a rule against public prayer?
2. Why does Jesus tell us not to “babble like pagans”?
3. If God knows what we need before we ask him, why do we need to pray at all?
4. What is the purpose of prayer?

Notes

1. Jesus is not instituting a rule against public prayer, but rather warning against hypocrisy.  Indeed, every recorded prayer of Jesus in the gospels is a public prayer!  But Jesus knew that when we pray in public, we are in danger of formulating our prayers not for the ears of God but for the ears of other listeners.  Instead, the main purpose of prayer is to communicate with God.  
2. When we babble like pagans, we speak words without meaning, our lips move but our hearts are empty.  The form and style of our prayers become more important than the content.  Christian prayer is a meaningful communication with God, rather than a meaningless loquacity.  Since God knows what we need even before we ask, we can ask with confidence without trying to impress him or persuade him.  As John Stott writes, “He is neither ignorant, so that we need to instruct him, nor hesitant, so that we need to persuade him. He is our Father—a Father who loves his children and knows all about their needs.”
3. The first reason to pray is simply that God commands us to pray.  Second, Calvin writes, “‘Believers do not pray with the view of informing God about things unknown to him, or of exciting him to do his duty, or of urging him as though he were reluctant. On the contrary, they pray in order that they may arouse themselves to seek him, that they may exercise their faith in meditating on his promises, that they may relieve themselves from their anxieties by pouring them into his bosom; in a word, that they may declare that from him alone they hope and expect, both for themselves and for others, all good things.”  More succinctly, through prayer we draw nearer to God.  God commands us to do this for our sake, but also because he delights in hearing and answering his children’s requests.  
4. The purpose of prayer is for us to communicate with God (remember communication goes both ways).  We are not praying primarily to inform God of what is going on in our lives, we pray so that our hearts would become connected to his heart.   We don’t have to impress him with our prayers.  Rather, when we pray, God impresses his will and love on our hearts.

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Evening Reflection

How is your prayer life?  What goes through your mind when you pray?  Has God been working on your heart today?  What has he been saying to you?  

REPOST Today’s Spiritual Food for Thought, written by Pastor Sam Lee who leads Catalyst Agape Church in Northern New Jersey, was first posted on July 30, 2014.  He is a graduate of University of Wisconsin (BA) and Biblical Theological Seminary (M.Div.).

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“When Suffering Comes Our Way . . .”

1 Peter 4:12-13

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15 If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. 16 However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.

What does it mean here, the “Spirit of glory and of God rest on you”? From the context, it clearly means that the glory of God is revealed when we know how to suffer for righteousness. If suffering comes as a result of leading a sinful life, than this person is receiving what he deserves. There are people living and embracing unrighteousness, yet they get upset at God for their suffering.  Instead of getting upset, they need to humble themselves and repent. But on the other hand, there is a special glory that comes upon a believer when suffering for the sake of Christ and His Kingdom.                                                                                                                                                                 

In oppressive countries today, thousands and thousands are suffering because they will not deny Christ. They are being persecuted for the simple reason of wanting to worship the Lord. People are being disowned for their faith. The Bible says that those who are suffering for Christ, the glory of God is upon them: There is no shame or condemnation, but a badge of honor, and there is rejoicing instead of disgrace.  

This indeed is a sobering thought to many of us in the West who complain to God at the slightest inconvenience.   So, let us be thankful while praying for those who are being persecuted right now for the sake of upholding the honorable name of Jesus Christ.

Prayer: Merciful Lord, I lift up my heart to you in my suffering. No matter what happens, I will put my trust in you. Remember me, my Lord and Savior!  Amen.

Bible Reading for Today:Jeremiah 34

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Lunch Break Study

Read Romans 8:28: And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Questions to Consider

1. Romans 8:28 says that God will work for the good for those who love him. How can you practically show that you love God in the crisis you are facing currently?
2. How can God use the crisis in your life to prepare you for your calling and purpose? 

Notes

1. Instead of complaining, we can thank God for allowing trials in our lives for our own good, as well as not allowing something worse.
2. There is nothing like crisis and trials to build character in us without which we aren’t likely to finish well.

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Evening Reflection

Let’s stop listening to what the crisis in your life is “saying” to you.  But spend some time listening to what God is saying to you.

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Pastor David Kwon who heads Journey Community Church in Raleigh, North Carolina, was first posted on November 20, 2013.  He is a graduate of Drexel University (BS) and Columbia International University (M.Div.).

Devotional Thought for This Morning 

“A Brutally Honest Psalm of David”

Psalm 109:1-31

[1] Be not silent, O God of my praise!

[2] For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues.

[3] They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause.

[4] In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer.

[5] So they reward me evil for good, and hatred for my love.

[6] Appoint a wicked man against him; let an accuser stand at his right hand.

[7] When he is tried, let him come forth guilty; let his prayer be counted as sin!

[8] May his days be few; may another take his office!

[9] May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow!

[10] May his children wander about and beg, seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit!

[11] May the creditor seize all that he has; may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!

[12] Let there be none to extend kindness to him, nor any to pity his fatherless children!

[13] May his posterity be cut off; may his name be blotted out in the second generation!

[14] May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!

[15] Let them be before the LORD continually, that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth!

[16] For he did not remember to show kindness, but pursued the poor and needy and the brokenhearted, to put them to death.

[17] He loved to curse; let curses come upon him! He did not delight in blessing; may it be far from him!

[18] He clothed himself with cursing as his coat; may it soak into his body like water, like oil into his bones!

[19] May it be like a garment that he wraps around him, like a belt that he puts on every day!

[20] May this be the reward of my accusers from the LORD, of those who speak evil against my life!

[21] But you, O GOD my Lord, deal on my behalf for your name’s sake; because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!

[22] For I am poor and needy, and my heart is stricken within me.

[23] I am gone like a shadow at evening; I am shaken off like a locust.

[24] My knees are weak through fasting; my body has become gaunt, with no fat.

[25] I am an object of scorn to my accusers; when they see me, they wag their heads.

[26] Help me, O LORD my God! Save me according to your steadfast love!

[27] Let them know that this is your hand; you, O LORD, have done it!

[28] Let them curse, but you will bless! They arise and are put to shame, but your servant will be glad!

[29] May my accusers be clothed with dishonor; may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a cloak!

[30] With my mouth I will give great thanks to the LORD; I will praise him in the midst of the throng.

[31] For he stands at the right hand of the needy one, to save him from those who condemn his soul to death.

Some psalms are soothing, such as Psalm 23 and others, like Psalm 91, are comforting. And then there are soul-stirring psalms, which inspire us to worship and praise, such as Psalm 103.  But Psalm 109, composed by David, is very troubling to most because it is perhaps the strongest imprecatory psalm in the psalter. (Imprecatory is praying for or calling down curse on one’s enemies.)   Here, David calls upon God to destroy his enemies in the most horrible ways; he not only seeks the punishment of his enemy but also the painful consequences brought on his family (9-10): “May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow! May his children wander about and beg, seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit!”

Suffice it to say, this is a brutally honest psalm composed by a very upset David. 

The problem we face in Psalm 109 is not restricted to this psalm, however.  Other Psalms contain similar prayers for the punishment of evildoers (27-28): “Add to them punishment upon punishment; may they have no acquittal from you. Let them be blotted out of the book of the living; let them not be enrolled among the righteous” (Psalm 69:27-28).

So what can we learn from this Psalm?   Here are a few lessons that we can meditate on this morning:

• God is the one who deals on our behalf (v.21) – David is saying, “Save me so that you may be known as a God who is on the side of the righteous and against evildoers.”  Remember that for all the wrongs and evil in this world (and those who have wronged you), it is up to the Lord to deal with them, not us.

• We are weak but God is strong (v.22) – In appealing to God for help, we are confessing our utterly weak and helpless condition.

• God’s steadfast love (vv.26-29) –The final grounds for appeal is God’s love; that He is both willing and able to do to help the psalmist.  David’s enemies may curse, but God who loves to bless His people, will surely bless them and put their accusers to shame (vv.28-29).

Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me to love my enemies.  In the meantime, let Your justice be meted out against the wicked according to Your righteousness.  Amen.   

Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 33

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Lunch Break Study

Read Ephesians 4:25-32: Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. [26] Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, [27] and give no opportunity to the devil. [28] Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. [29] Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. [30] And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. [31] Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. [32] Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Questions for Thought

1. What does Paul say about anger?
2. What should make us angry?  
3. How does anger play in your daily life?  Does it cause you not to forgive others?  If so, why?

Notes

1. Jesus’ perfect example proves that being angry, in and of itself, is not sinful (John 2:13–17). Even though it may be difficult for fallen people to remain righteous in our anger, it is possible to be angry without transgressing God’s law. In fact, the New Testament tells us not only that it is possible to be angry without sinning, but that we must get angry at times. 
2. The exploitation of the weak and helpless should arouse our outrage, for the Lord’s anger is directed at the oppressors (Ex. 22:21–24). Since Jesus’ wrath was directed at hypocrites, we must also be angry with ourselves and with others when it is clear that our words do not match our deeds. This is Paul’s point in Ephesians 4:25–32.
3. Due to our fallenness, we are prone to sin when we are angry, so we must always check our hearts to make sure our anger is an expression of righteousness. If we are angry without a just cause, we give Satan an opportunity to destroy lives and reputations (v. 27). Human beings can abuse any legitimate emotion, especially anger, so we must also set it aside as soon as we can (v. 31). Our anger may be godly and righteous at the start, but it can be easily warped into a grudge and malicious designs instead of hoping for the offender to repent. 

How are you doing with anger these days?  Is there any unrighteous anger in your life?  Ask the Lord that anger would be put away and you would be able to freely forgive others in your life.  

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Evening Reflection

Joshua 19: The meditation for today focuses on our horizontal relationship with others.  As you think about the relationships in your life, ask yourself:

• Are there people I need to forgive?
• Am I harboring anger or bitterness toward others?
• Have I not been as loving as I ought to a particular person?

Take some time and lift up those people in your circle of relationships.  Ask the Lord for forgiveness or greater love for the people in your life.  

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Pastor Yohan Lee, a friend of AMI, was first posted on September 14, 2014.  A graduate of University of Pennsylvania (BA) and Cairn University (MA), Yohan served as a staff at several AMI churches in the past. 

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“Silence”

Eccles. 6:11

“The more the words, the less the meaning, and how does that profit anyone?” (NIV)

The other day, my wife and I were out to dinner at one of those restaurants that puts a premium on space; in other words, we were about 14 inches away from the table next to us.  Although we do not particularly like being that close to random strangers, the seating arrangement did allow us to play a game of “Guess their Relationship”- trying to guess a pair’s status, based on the results of eavesdropping on conversations and observing things like dress and body language.  The couple next to us seemed to be trying too hard; and then there was another couple who were clearly out for the first time with their new baby girl. (Mom and dad seemed totally uneasy and unfocused.)

If the couple next to us were to have played “Guess their Relationship” on us, they probably would have thought we were going through marriage difficulties.  First of all, I wasn’t wearing my wedding ring (I might have misplaced it); second, we both kept checking our phones (we were waiting for important emails); and third and most incriminating, there were frequent periods of silence (no excuses here).  

Our society is uncomfortable with silence.  Think about where you would go if you wanted silence: probably a church or a library, but that’s about it.  Even the coffee shop, where I am writing this devotional, constantly needs to play background music.  The truth is that minimizing words and disciplining the tongue is a virtue that very few of us have cultivated (not even shy introverts), but the Bible does have much to say on the virtue of silence: “…but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God” (James 3:8-9); “When words are many, transgression is not lacking” (Prov. 10:19); and, of course, today’s devotional verse.  

Richard Foster’s chapter on solitude (silence’s first cousin) in his classic work, The Celebration of Discipline, makes the point that if we are too busy talking, then we might miss out on hearing God.  Hearing God feels like the best reason to keep silent to me.  This day, do your best to say only what needs to be said.  Then try to take time, five minutes, ten minutes, or even an hour, to sit in silence and listen to God; you know that he doesn’t speak unless he has something important to say.  

Prayer: Dear Lord, help me to measure my words.  Teach me to be silent before You, that I might sense what You are speaking to my heart.  Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 32

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional is a reprint of Kate Moon’s blog originally posted on December 27, 2014.  Kate continues to serve the Lord in E. Asia. 

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“Justice for the Poor”

Proverbs 29:7

“The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern.”

When was the last time you thought about justice for the poor?  What would it mean to have this kind of concern?  If this kind of concern is a quality of the righteous, is it something we need to be more intentional about cultivating?

One of the great things about the holiday season is that there is often a heightened awareness regarding helping those less fortunate.  At Thanksgiving, there are concerted efforts to provide food for the hungry.  As the weather gets colder, we donate coats and blankets.  At Christmas, we especially remember the children. I remember one year participating in sending gifts to children of incarcerated parents; I had never thought there could be this kind of need, but on hearing about the program, I realized, of course it would be difficult for a parent in jail to send a gift to his or her child, though they may very much wish they could.

In addition to physical or material needs, today we are reminded of another need that the poor have – the need for justice.  The poor are more easily taken advantage of as they have fewer resources to defend themselves or even fight for the same chances.  I once heard about wealthy parents who arranged for their child to spend time helping out at an orphanage they supported financially.  I was impressed that they were teaching their child such values until I later heard that these same parents were considering bribing the child into the college of their choice, never thinking about the inconsistency of how this meant that their child may be unfairly taking the spot of the more qualified orphans from the very institution they supported who were applying to the same college. 

In light of such things happening in our society, how can we, the righteous in Christ Jesus, be more concerned about the injustices that the poor can suffer?  It is a challenge for the majority of us who are far removed from such circumstances, whether physically by the neighborhoods in which we live, or socio-economically by the circles in which we move.  Because we don’t see the poor literally, it is harder for us to see them metaphorically, to see their needs and to care.

Though it is a challenge, as the Bible tells us that this is a quality that the righteous have, let’s consider today what we can do to cultivate this kind of concern.  Let’s consider what we can do.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, give me a heart for the poor.  Help me to have compassion for the lowly and the downtrodden.  Amen. 

Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 30-31

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Pastor Ryun Chang (AMI Teaching Pastor), was first posted on February 3, 2014.

Devotional Thought for This Morning 

“When Things Go from Bad to Worse”

Malachi 1:1-2

“The oracle of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. ² ‘I have loved you,’ says the Lord.  But you say, ‘How have you loved us?’” 

The truth is, when things go from bad to worse, the mature people as well as the immature wonder, “If God really loves me, how could he stay aloof?”  But while the immature may complain aloud for the whole world to hear, the mature would say it when no one is around, or if they are married, only to their spouse.  As a young pastor, I remember wondering aloud, while standing alone by the church’s porch, whether God was still with me after another discouraging service that was poorly attended.  

Here, when the Israelites were told how God loves them, they retorted, “How have you loved us?”  Some parents know how stinging that comment can be, having been told that by their children.  Of course, kids are known to question their parents’ love whenever they aren’t allowed to do this or eat that, while forgetting all that they have received.  Frustrated parents typically resort to reminding them of all the things they have done for them, which leaves a sour taste in their mouth. 

Sadly, we do the same to God by focusing on what we don’t have rather than what we have received from Him.  We should be better than that since we have known the Lord for a long time, right?  Maybe not.  After all, these Israelites should have known better since they were the only people in the world to whom God personally spoke through the prophets for 1,400 years.  There wasn’t going to be any more revelation from God after Malachi’s passing, yet they still acted like pouting children who demand proof of their parents’ love for them.   And that sums up what humans—mature or immature—are truly like: wholly ungrateful fuelled by selective memories. 

Ultimately, God, unlike the annoyed parents who rattle off their good deeds to justify themselves before the ungrateful children, will simply point to the Cross wherein is expressed His greatest love for us.  It is there that all our complaint, pouting, and grumbling come to a stop because we see clearly that none deserves such love.   Should this day turn out to be really bad, it can never be that bad because of the Cross.  As you start this day, isn’t it great that you already have a good day in Christ.   So, share that good news with someone.

Prayer: Lord, I know I complain whenever things do not go my way; sometimes, I even blame you.  I suppose you won’t believe me if I vow that I will never do that again, right?  But God, it’s never about my resolution but your persistent love for me that will change me little by little.  Thank you.  How I praise you and enjoy your amazing grace.  Amen. 

Bible Reading for Today:  Jeremiah 29

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Lunch Break Study

Read Malachi 1:2b-4: “Is not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob 3 but Esau I have hated.  I have laid waste his hill country and left his heritage to jackals of the desert.” 4 If Edom says, “We are shattered but we will rebuild the ruins,” the Lord of hosts says, “They may build, but I will tear down, and they will be called ‘the wicked country,’ and ‘the people with whom the Lord is angry forever.’” 5 

Obadiah 1:11-2: “ On the day that [Edomites] stood aloof, on the day that strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them. 12 But do not gloat over the day of your brother in the day of his misfortune; do not rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their ruin; do not boast in the day of distress.”

Rom. 9:10b-3: . . . when Rebekah had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, 11 though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad—in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls— 12 she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” 13 As it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

Questions to Consider

1. How does God respond to the pouting Israelites?  (Remember, since they lived long before the appearance of Christ, God couldn’t simply point to the Cross as alluded in the morning.)
2. What was so “wicked” about the sin of Edomites committed against their brother-tribe Israel?
3. What is one practical lesson we can learn from what made God indignant against Edom (1 Thess. 5:15; Prov. 24:17-8)?

Notes

1. God reminds the Israelites (from Jacob) that they had been chosen over the Edomites (from Esau), not because they deserved it but simply because God, in His grace, elected to do so.  He also reminds them how the Edomites were punished because of their sin against Israel. 
2. When Israel was being attacked by her enemies, Edom refused to help out; in fact, they gloated over what was happening to their close kin; they even joined in. (“You were like one of them.”)
3. We should “not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles, lest the Lord see it and be displeased, and turn away his anger from him” (Prov. 24:17-8). Rather, “make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else” (1 Thess. 5:15), even those whom we dislike or who are our competitions. 

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Evening Reflection

A day goes by so fast, with so many things happening, including things that make us lose our peace, often leading to complaining.  What happened today?   Regardless, end it with a prayer of thanksgiving.