The AMI QT Devotionals from December 17 to 24 are provided by Pastor Yohan Lee of Remnant Church, New York City. Yohan graduated from University of Pennsylvania and Cairn University, where he studied theology. He is married to Mandie, and they have four adorable children.
Devotional Thoughts for Today
“Grasping at Straws”
Genesis 30:1-8
When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, she envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I shall die!” 2 Jacob’s anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?” 3 Then she said, “Here is my servant Bilhah; go in to her, so that she may give birth on my behalf, that even I may have children through her.” 4 So she gave him her servant Bilhah as a wife, and Jacob went in to her. 5 And Bilhah conceived and bore Jacob a son. 6 Then Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice and given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan. 7 Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son. 8 Then Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister and have prevailed.” So she called his name Naphtali.
One of my favorite social games is Scattergories. If you’ve never played, the premise is that at random, all players will get a category and a letter of the alphabet; and you have to come up with items that fit the category that starts with the letter. For example, if the category is “comic characters” and the letter is B, Batman would be an easy answer. But here’s the catch: you only get points for unique answers, so if other contestants used Batman, too, no one would get points from that answer. What makes the game fun is that if you come up with an “out of the box” type answer, you have to convince other players of its validity, and by “convince,” I mean argue. My wife hates playing Scattergories with me—she says that I cheat. Case in point: the last time we played, the category was “type of footwear” and the letter was F. I gave the answer, “Famous Footwear” (you get double points for double alliteration), which is footwear store vs. a specific footwear brand. Anyway, I argued passionately for that one, but ultimately got overruled by my collaborating, narrow-minded co-contestants. If you are the type of person who is good at grasping at straws and twisting reality, then this is your type of game.
Sadly, I think Rachel would have been good at Scattergories, because I don’t really see how any rational person could have looked at her situation—resorting to having children through her maid-servant—as a victory over her sister. Yet, here we see it: she names her first son Dan, thinking that God has judged her as right, and her second son Naphtali, arguing that she has wrestled with her sister and won. This instance makes me realize how desperate Rachel must have been to twist this situation, and her actions in it, so that she comes out right and justified. Or perhaps, Rachel was just grasping at straws, trying to convince herself and others that what she did was noble or something. I don’t know.
Now, before we get too hard on Rachel, I think most people lose objectivity when faced with dire circumstances. Perhaps you recently felt like you had to lie to get out of a bad situation or you had to compromise in some other manner. Or maybe you’ve convinced yourself that the ends justified the means or your actions actually honored God. Did it feel like you were twisting the circumstances or grasping at straws? Desperate people tend to do that, don’t they?
Prayer: Lord, help me to see things truthfully and objectively. Help me not rationalize or grasp at straws to get my way, but help me to speak and live with absolute integrity. If I am in a desperate situation, please help me to trust You through it. Amen.
Bible Reading for Today: 1 Corinthians 3
Lunch Break Study
Read Matthew 15:10-20: And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: 11 it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” 12 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” 13 He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up.14 Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” 15 But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” 16 And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? 18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. 20 These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”
Questions to Consider
- What are the things that defile a person and from where do they come?
- What do actions, thoughts, and words indicate about a person?
- What do your thoughts, words, and actions say about your heart?
Notes
- Jesus says that sinful actions and thoughts come from a person’s heart.
- The implication is that if a person is consistently doing/saying/thinking sinful things, then his heart is not as clean as he may think. Those who consistently think, say, and do good things have transformed hearts.
- Application question.
Evening Reflection
Today’s theme was integrity. Where do you stand when it comes to living your faith consistently in all areas of your life? Ask the Lord, who searches hearts and minds, to examine your life and bring to light any areas that need to be reexamined.
My wife and I recently purchased our first home. I don’t know if it’s always like this, but I feel like our home buying process was not the most civil affair—the seller and I fought over everything, from the price of the house, to repairs, to appliances, etc. To make matters worse, during the final walk through on the day of closing, we noticed that this guy switched out the washing machine, claiming that the one that was supposed to come with the house broke. Who does this?!?! What a childishly crooked thing to do!!! I didn’t believe it then—and I still don’t— but in the end, I wasn’t going to let my family go homeless over a washing machine. So I just kind of seethed internally for a while.
I’m going to break one of the fundamental principles of hermeneutics for this morning’s devotional—the principle that if it’s not in the text, don’t make stuff up! That being said, am I the only one who has a hard time believing that Jacob didn’t realize that Laban had pulled the old bait and switch on him during his wedding night? Yes, I know they didn’t have electricity back then, but how dark was it in their tent? Pitch black—like 100 feet deep in a cave kind of darkness? I know times were different then, so I don’t expect Jacob to get all Song of Songs romantic, but didn’t he even say “Hi” to her that night or any kind of conversation beforehand? What kind of a “pig” doesn’t even talk to his wife on their wedding night? Without getting too graphic, wouldn’t you expect a bride who was about to consummate her wedding to at least take off her veil, and even if she didn’t, wouldn’t Jacob have been able to tell that this woman did not have strong eyes, that she clearly had “weak eyes”? What’s the point of mentioning her eyes (v. 17), if they don’t help you tell the difference between Leah and her sister?
When it comes to time, I think we all understand that old saying, “The days are long but the years are short.” When we look back, doesn’t it seem like your time in school, dating your wife, your kid’s childhood, your 20’s (30’s or 40’s), time you had with your parents, etc., just whizzed by? But when you look ahead, don’t things like finishing school, getting married, raising kids, retirement, seem like a never ending series of never ending days? This is why I don’t get how in v. 20, it says that Jacob’s love for Rachel made seven long years (2,555 days, not counting leap year) of labor feel like just a “few days.” When I was waiting to get married, there was only about a six month gap between my engagement and wedding—that time felt like forever to me! But perhaps Jacob—that heel-grasping deceiver—was more patient and more loving than I?
Today’s AMI Devotional QT is provided by Jasmin Izumikawa. She is a member of the Church of Southland and is currently a high school teacher. She has lived the miracle of healing through the prayers of her AMI church family through her battle with lymphoma.
There are times when everything looks very grim to me—so withered and dead that I have to remind myself what the garden looked like during the peak seasons. In the winter, we see very little growth, but to have a thriving garden in the spring and summer, it is necessary to wait with hope. When we see no bud of growth, we trust knowing what it will become, for a garden is built from hope. This empty lot of soil will be full of blue Hyacinth and yellow Ranunculus in the Spring, and in the warm summer, full of heirloom tomatoes and crisp cucumbers. In my waiting, that is what I hope for.
We are still facing the old power structures of the past—of powerful men using their positions to manipulate those who are vulnerable to do their bidding. This has been a story that has been perpetuated from generation to generation. It is the story of sin.
If you rushed through the verses above, take a moment to go back and read them once more (consider reading them aloud). What an amazing promise! We serve an awesome God who makes incredible promises to His people—promises of provision, prosperity, posterity, protection, and presence (His very presence with His people). What more could we ask for?
Today’s AMI QT Devotional is written by Jonathan Cho. Jonathan recently graduated from Emory University in 2017. He currently serves as an intern at Journey Church of Atlanta and specifically works with the college leaders of the church.
A friend once asked me, “Who did you make happy today? Why did you make them happy?” As I attempted a response, I realized it quickly became a list of who I want to please. When I got to the second question, I realized just how much their opinion of me shaped and defined my principles and values. I found myself stuck in the same cycle of the family in this passage.
“Build your ark, the flood is coming.” That’s what I constantly heard in prayer during junior year of college. Little did I know that my family doesn’t look much different from Isaac’s. I saw my family as a typical Chinese-American family where we all be independent, only talking when the topic was money or grades. It wasn’t great, but I was comfortable. Then, my mother called saying that my father was having an affair for two years. I was shaken. I had just raised my head above the flood waters of my depression and now this. I couldn’t understand what God’s plan was, but God showed me that He could redeem human failure and paint a glorious picture. It wasn’t ideal, but for the first time, I was able to talk to my parents honestly. I opened up to my mother and counseled her through the story of God’s faithfulness in my depression. I was upset with my father, but I saw that the brokenness he exhibited is the same depravity God saves all of us from.
Today’s AMI QT Devotional is provided by Jennifer Kim. Jennifer, a graduate of Boston University, spent a year in Shanghai as one-year intern from 2013-14. She is currently serving as a staff at Catalyst Agape Church (New Jersey), while attending Alliance Theological Seminary.
I have a vivid memory of when I was six years old, being filled with so much pain and confusion as I saw my dad leave on a cab headed to the airport. My parents had made the decision to open up a new branch of their business in Brazil in hopes of fulfilling the American dream for their kids, while my mom continued to run their business in New York and taking care of my ten-year-old brother and myself. Looking back, my parents could never have imagined the cost of their decision: a family divided for over two decades with consequences that our family is still overcoming.