Look for God’s Appointments in Your Life 

Last weekend I saw a commercial that contained the statement, “Some things are too obvious to be a coincidence.” That declaration expressed how I felt about something which I had experienced just a few days prior to viewing the ad. I had come away from it with the clear sense that God had orchestrated the encounter.

It began routinely enough as I took my wife’s vehicle to get it serviced. As I was waiting on the work to be done, another man entered the establishment asking if he could hang around until the nearby car rental business opened. He came into the waiting area, we exchanged greetings, and almost immediately he asked if I was a pastor and suggested that I looked familiar to him. As it turned out, he had read my newspaper columns regularly, even making numerous copies of one in particular that he had distributed to people over the years. This fresh revelation of someone finding my writing to be meaningful even to the point of sharing it with others came at a time when I needed such encouragement. However, the story doesn’t stop there.

 After further conversation, I discovered that the reason this gentleman was getting a rental car was because he was traveling to attend a Christian writer’s conference. He was in the process of writing his first book and seeking to get it published. Therefore I was able to share some of my experiences with him and hopefully was of some assistance as he pursued this new endeavor. So not only had he encouraged me, but possibly I was a blessing to him in some way too. Before this man departed to procure his car, we took a moment to pray for each other. I was left with a joyful assurance that the Lord had brought us together that morning.

Don’t get the wrong impression. Such obviously God-directed meetings aren’t a daily occurrence for me. This was the clearest such event I had experienced in a while. However, I do believe God is daily directing the steps of His followers and often setting up encounters with other people whether or not they are as evident as this one was to me. I did not have any specific guidance from God that led me to the car shop that day. My being there was because our vehicle needed some attention. However, I had prayed that morning, as I usually do, for the Lord’s direction about what I would do that day. In contrast, the other man involved told me how he had specifically prayed for where God wanted him to go while he was waiting for the rental car business to open. He felt a definite divine push to go where he went.  

The point is that the Lord has places for us to be and people to meet each day. It may come as part of our everyday routine, or it may happen as the Holy Spirit nudges us in some unusual direction. We need to be seeking His guidance, receptive to His leading, expecting opportunities, and ready to walk through the doors He opens for us. It may be that He wants to use you to be a help and blessing to someone, or it could be that He wants to send someone to you who will encourage or bless you in some way.

When I walked into that car shop, the man behind the counter asked if I had an appointment. I told him that I didn’t. However, I found out that God had set up a different kind of appointment for me that day. He has appointments for you too. Look for them as you cross paths with people each day. Those encounters aren’t just coincidences.

 

Let Jesus Be Your Everyday Companion 

Recently my wife and I ate dinner at a rather expensive restaurant which we had never visited before. The only reason we were dining there at this point was due to my wife having won a gift card for that establishment through a contest on a Christian music radio station. It was great food and an enjoyable experience, but because of the cost I am not sure we will do it again, unless we can win another gift card. When we made our online reservation, the website asked if we were coming there because we were celebrating some kind of special occasion, listing several specific options, such as a birthday or anniversary. We ended up selecting one of the last-mentioned choices – “just because”. Apparently this business considers itself to be geared more for an occasional experience rather than being a restaurant customers will tend to visit on a regular basis.

As Easter approaches in a few weeks, we are reminded how some people see church in a similar manner. It isn’t their regular hangout, but they will visit there for special events or significant occasions, such as Easter, Christmas, weddings, or funerals. They may find those encounters to be meaningful, but don’t intend to make it a part of their everyday lives. Those of us who are regular worshipers should welcome those visitors and seek to make the most of those opportunities for the Lord to impact their lives while they are there.

However, this isn’t just the way some people view attending church, but how some look at God or Jesus in general. They treat Him more as someone to resort to in certain specific situations rather than as an everyday companion. When they get sick or receive bad news from a medical test, they suddenly remember Him and reach out to Him. When they get hit by other trials in life, they start looking for Him and His help. Maybe they haven’t given much thought to Him in a while, but at a funeral or in a hospital they are reminded of Him. They aren’t willing to pay the cost of discomfort and guilt over their neglect of Him or their disobedience to Him in most cases, but in those situations they are willing to endure it for a moment before returning back to their usual world where God is either ignored or relegated to a rarely-opened closet in the back corner of their lives.

The good news is that the Lord never intended to be our expensive restaurant for special occasions. He wants to be our neighborhood diner or our family kitchen. He desires for us to come and dine with Him every day. He wants to free us from the guilt that makes us feel bad when we encounter Him. He can replace it with peace and joy as we come into a right relationship with Him. We don’t even have to go to any particular location to find Jesus. He comes right to our door. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” (Revelation 3:20). Jesus can be our ever-present guest. He can be with us wherever we go. We can draw strength from Him throughout our day. We can lean on Him when we need support. We can feed on His word. We can look to Him for courage, comfort, and hope.

Jesus isn’t just someone to resort to at the end of life or on some special occasion. He can be our Savior, Friend, and Lord every day and every hour. Open up the door of your heart and experience Him for yourself.

 

Share Your Faith with the Fearful  

As I looked at some pictures my daughter had posted of her family visiting a show involving robotic dinosaurs, one of those photos stood out to me. Her older son and his same-aged cousin were pretending to be scared of the prehistoric creatures surrounding them, posing for the photo-op with terrified looks on their faces. Meanwhile her younger son was clinging to his mother with an uneasy expression on his face. His fear and uncertainty appeared to be more genuine. While others feigned being scared, he was experiencing some degree of the real thing.

Sometimes we are the ones who struggle with fear as we face the trials and uncertainties of life today. However, as followers of Jesus, we are often reminded that we don’t need to be afraid. If we know the Lord as our Savior, are confident that God is still the King who is in control of everything, and are assured of a home in heaven, we can often face our scary circumstances and ferocious-looking adversaries with faith, courage, and peace. Sometimes we are right there with Jesus, sleeping peacefully in the boat while the storm is raging all around us.

On those occasions when we stand boldly in the face of this world’s terrors, knowing that they can only do so much to us – that ultimately we are safe in the arms of God, let’s not forget about those around us who may not share our fearless spirit. As the time seems to be getting closer when Jesus will return, we may be looking forward to it and praying with the apostle John, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20). Nevertheless, there are others who are uneasy, if not terrified, about such a prospect. They know they are not ready to meet this One who will be coming to execute final judgment on the inhabitants of the world. Likewise, as we see the moral decline and resulting deterioration of our society, we can be confident that no matter how bad it gets, the Lord will be with us and will see us through it. However, there are those around us who are discovering that the things they tend to lean on for support are unreliable and may let them down. Such realizations can be unsettling. In the midst of uncertainty about tomorrow, we know that our futures are secure as long as we are in a right relationship with Christ. Meanwhile, the future can look scary and bleak to those who don’t have that hope.

 So on those occasions when we are experiencing victory over fear ourselves, let’s not forget about those around us who are still struggling with it. How can we be a help to them through those times? Sometimes we may simply need to be there – to be present as someone they can lean on or hold tightly to, as my young grandson was clinging to his mother in the presence of those dinosaurs. However, we can often offer more than temporal comfort. We can point others toward the reason for our faith, peace, and hope. We can encourage them to put their trust in the same Savior whom we are trusting. We can share about our own relationship with Christ and let others know they can have a similar experience. We can remind people that God is still on His throne fulfilling His plans and purposes, even if we may not fully understand them. We can comfort and encourage others with the same comfort God has given us.   

Our world can be a troubling place at times. Even when we are living by faith instead of fear, others may not be. Let’s seek to be an encourager and help to those who are fearful.

 

Jesus Should Be Our Main Influencer  

On her recent birthday, my wife received a precious video message featuring our youngest grandson. He was wishing her a happy birthday, telling her that he loved her, and blew her a kiss. However, at only two years of age, he wasn’t doing this without some needed guidance. His father was nearby cueing him on what to say and do. Nevertheless, our grandson followed those directions willingly and gladly, as if his words and actions truly expressed what was in his heart and mind had he been able to initiate it all by himself.

 From what or whom are we taking our cues? I am not suggesting that we aren’t capable of thinking for ourselves and of expressing our thoughts through what we say and do. However, we all are influenced by sources outside of ourselves. As followers of Jesus, we should primarily be taking our cues from Him. And I am not just talking about what we think Jesus would do in a given situation. We should be living in accordance with the written Word He has provided for us, as well as obeying the promptings of His Spirit who lives within us.

God’s Word is a faithful guide for us to live by. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (II Timothy 3:16-17). Additionally, Jesus declared that the Holy Spirit would guide us into all truth (John 16:13). The Bible states that “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” (Romans 8:14). Therefore, as believers, we should be receiving and following guidance from the Bible and the Holy Spirit.

 I am concerned that many who profess to be Christians today are taking their cues primarily from other sources. Many are being influenced more by our culture with its changing viewpoints rather than the eternal truths of God. Some are allowing themselves to be deceived and led down less-than-Christlike pathways by their favorite podcaster, news personality, or political leader. There are those who are letting themselves be guided more by what it means to be a “conservative”, a member of a particular political party, an “independent”, or an “evangelical”, or a member of a particular denomination, instead of being directed by what it means to be a Spirit-led follower of Jesus.

I am not suggesting that we mindlessly repeat some biblical mantra or robotically submit to behave in whatever way the Lord directs, as if we are marionettes whose strings are being pulled by the Lord. However, we do let God’s Word and His Spirit guide us. We listen. We obey. And like my grandson did in his video message, we make it our own. God’s will becomes our will. His desires become what we want. We don’t follow His directions with a grudging heart as if it is some unpleasant burden. We do it gladly. We know that it is good, right, and true. And we know that it is best for us and best for carrying out God’s purposes.

Be careful whom you are letting influence you today. While we need to be informed about what is going on in our world, we need to stay attuned to what the Lord says about it all, including how we should live and respond to these circumstances in which we find ourselves. Study His Word. Listen to that small voice of His Spirit. Let them be your main guide as we journey through this different and challenging world today. Always take your cues from the Lord.

 

Does the Lord Still Heal the Sick Today?  

It seems that currently there are many cases of people suffering from viruses and other sicknesses making the rounds. It raises questions related to the subject of divine healing. What can and should we expect when it comes to prayers for healing and the idea of God instantaneously and miraculously delivering people from their physical ailments? While we can’t thoroughly explore the subject in this brief format, here are a few points to ponder.

The Bible reveals that God can miraculously heal people. Such miracles were part of Jesus’ ministry. So we shouldn’t deny its reality or downplay its possibility. However, just because Jesus did it, does that mean divine healing is still available to us today? Consider the fact that Jesus gave His disciples the authority to heal sicknesses. We see such miracles taking place in connections with Jesus’ followers after His death and resurrection. Paul refers to the possibility of believers being given a gift of healing. And in the book of James, it talks about the sick being healed as others anoint them with oil and pray for them. While some people claim such miracles were limited to a certain time period, I see no evidence of that in scripture. I believe the Lord can still heal today.

The Bible also affirms that the Lord can heal all kinds of diseases. No case is too hard for Him. Jesus healed lepers, the blind, the lame, and various other ailments. Some of those had no cures and were considered hopeless cases. I believe there is still no sickness beyond the Lord’s ability to heal – not cancer or Alzheimer’s or heart disease or Covid. Isn’t that wonderful news?

However, the scriptural record indicates that Jesus didn’t instantaneously and miraculously heal everyone. He could have, but He didn’t. There were times when He healed all who were brought to Him. Nevertheless, He didn’t heal every sick person He came upon. Consider the case of the man He healed at the pool of Bethesda (see John 5:1-15). It appears that Jesus only healed the one man even though there were multitudes of sick people gathered at that location. So while divine healing is possible and available to us today, God doesn’t always choose to work that way. Instead, He may help us experience healing over time, not only as we continue to pray about it, but also as we make use of the medical professionals and medicines He has provided or us. We should also keep in mind that God can use such times of suffering to strengthen us and develop godly character in us.  As with Paul’s “thorn in the flesh”, sometimes God gives us the grace to endure the suffering.

Neither is such miraculous healing dependent on having enough faith. Faith can be an important factor when it comes to healing. When Jesus healed people, He sometimes pointed out their faith. Likewise, when Jesus went back to His hometown area, He was unable to do many miracles there because of their unbelief. The lack of faith can certainly be a hindrance to the Lord healing us. However, I would hesitate to fault Paul for a lack of faith in not experiencing healing from His “thorn in the flesh” or in the fact that he records having left a sick co-worker behind on one occasion. Why didn’t Paul miraculously heal him? It is further evidence that God’s will and purposes do not always include miraculous healing.

So as we deal with sickness in ourselves or in others, let’s be open to the possibility of divine healing and make it a matter of prayer, However, as with all prayer, we need to seek God’s will and submit to His plans and purposes, whether it is to heal instantaneously and miraculously or not.

 

Take Care of Spiritual Issues Today  

Recently my sister and I spoke to an attorney about some legal matters regarding our aging parents. This is something we and our parents have discussed numerous times over the past few years as needing to be done, but it has been easy to just talk about it without actually taking action. Since there hadn’t been any urgent crisis to spur us to act immediately, we had been guilty of continuing to put off pursuing these matters until now.

  We tend to do the same thing when it comes to other areas of our lives, including spiritual issues. We may be aware that we have a need in our hearts that should be dealt with, but it is easy to ignore it as life plods on day after day. Before we know it, years have passed and nothing has changed. We keep thinking that we need to get serious about God, we ought to attend church, we should read our Bible and pray, or we should talk to someone about this hunger in our souls, but we fail to act on it. We think about it, maybe even mention it to someone, but keep referring to it as something we will do “sometime”. The only problem is that “sometime” never seems to be now.

I was reminded of this as I heard about the deaths of two young children in our area. One died suddenly from an undiagnosed physical problem. The other you may have heard about on the news who was struck and killed by a car as she was getting ready to board her school bus. It is a reminder to us that no matter our age, we don’t know when we could be facing our last moments of life on this earth. Interestingly enough, I understand that concerning the first child I mentioned that there was a discussion just the week before her death in her classroom at the Christian school she attended about that very subject. It was brought out that anyone could die in a sudden accident or some other such incident, and therefore it is important that we always make sure that our hearts are right with the Lord. Maybe God, who certainly knew the tragedy that was going to take place shortly, was preparing those students for what they were about to face.

Maybe this article is God’s means of preparing someone who is reading it for what they may have to deal with soon. If we have been procrastinating about dealing with our spiritual need, now is the time to start doing something about it. We need to quit neglecting this important issue. It could be too late for any of us at any time. We don’t know what tomorrow holds, or if we will even live to see another day. As these recent examples have reminded us, age is not a factor. Whether you are ninety years old like my father or just eight years old like the girl struck by the car, we could find ourselves leaving this world and standing before our Creator at any moment.

What is it that you have been telling yourself you need to do but have been putting off until some indefinite time in the future? Is there some issue with your relationship with God that you need to take care of today? The Bible also suggests that relationship issues with other people can affect our relationship with God. Maybe you need to take action to seek healing, restoration, or forgiveness in relation to some family member or friend. Don’t keep putting it off.

Time is passing. And one day we will be passing too. Let’s make sure our hearts are right with God and with others today.

 

The Biggest Battle Is with Ourselves  

Maybe you have seen the TV commercial where a man is walking across a busy street when he suddenly confronts another person right there in the middle of the crosswalk. The oddity of the encounter is that the other person is himself. These two identical individuals proceed to wrestle with each other for a few moments, although my wife suggests that at times it appears more like they are dancing rather than doing hand-to-hand combat. From what I can gather, the purpose of the advertisement seems to be to draw attention to the inner struggles veterans often face after their time of military service.

This striking picture of the battle that can take place within individuals reminds me of a reality concerning our own struggles with sin and evil in the world. On the one hand, we do need to keep in mind that there are external enemies who are seeking to do wrong and do us harm, whether spiritual foes or flesh-and-blood adversaries. However, we also shouldn’t lose sight of the enemy within. Sometimes the real struggle isn’t with the devil or those who take opposing views on politics, social issues, and religious matters. The most intense and dangerous foe to our spiritual well-being is often found right within our own skin. Too often the enemy is ourselves, with our pride, selfishness, ungodly desires, lack of self-control, envy, and other faults.

Those around us can only do so much to us. They are limited in the damage they can inflict upon us. They can certainly make life hard on us, can cause us pain, and can even go so far as to take our physical lives. However, they can’t destroy our relationship with the Lord unless we give in to the temptations that are offered to us. It is those battles with our own selves and the choices we make in those moments that determine whether there will be spiritual victory or defeat. If we falter, the blame doesn’t lie with whoever is President or some law Congress passed or a particular Supreme Court decision. It doesn’t fall on our difficult circumstances or on people around us who failed to support us or who maybe were even hostile toward us. It comes back to us, our struggles within, and the decisions we made. We are responsible.

We are living in a time when those who are seeking to stay true to the Lord and the teaching of His Word are facing growing hostilities from society and even from within sectors of the church. People who consider “evangelicals” or “Bible-believing Christians” to be the enemy seem to be growing in numbers. My concern is that in the current environment it is easy to get focused on the enemies without to the point that we lose sight of the enemy within. While we are battling with our culture over social, political, and religious issues, we are losing the war within us. Instead of handling these matters with a “Christian spirit”, we are sinking down to the world’s level. We are often standing for what is right and good, but doing it in ways that aren’t in line with the way the Bible says a follower of Jesus should act. While trying to win the war with the world, we may be losing our own souls.

Pay attention to those fighting the battles today, especially examining ourselves. Are we exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control? Or are we losing the inner battle and manifesting the works of the flesh, such as hatred, outbursts of wrath, contentions, and selfish ambitions?  

There are battles to fight today, but in the process of doing so, let’s not lose the most important one.