Daily Light - May 27, 2010

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience,

went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last.

And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst."

John 8:9

Shame. Guilt. Terror. Anger. Hurt. Fear. These are just a few words that describe the emotions that surround our sin. The woman in our story was caught in the very act of adultery. She had been dragged through the streets with the shame of her sin completely exposed. There was no one that knew her guilt more than she did. This mob of accusers was terrifying enough, but now she stood in the holy place of the temple before the one some said was the Messiah. She had every right to be angry, because it was only her that they brought to Jesus. Where was the other party that was "caught in the very act"? It had to hurt to know that someone you had given yourself to emotionally and physically wouldn't stand with you during your greatest trial. Now, fearful and alone, she waited for the verdict.
Jesus told those that stood by to feel free to begin throwing stones, but only if they could say that they had not felt the guilt and shame of sin in their life as well. Can you imagine the mental inventory that each man begin to take? They stood with stones at the ready and a smirk on their face. They at least had this woman to judge, and they hoped in a few moments they would have Jesus as well. The blood coursed through their muscles and they gripped tightly to those stones. However, when Jesus confronted them with their own sins, the stones of judgment and accusation grew too heavy to hold. They were now no longer the accusers; they were the accused.
Jesus has a way of doing two things in our life: 1) making us understand our guilt, and 2) letting us experience His forgiveness. There is not a one of us that is not guilty. What you are guilty of may be different than what I am guilty of, but either way, we are both condemned men walking. We have felt the shame that accompanies our sin. We know the hurt that it has caused, and we desperately understand the need for forgiveness. Jesus never condones our sin, but He does offer forgiveness for it. You will always have accusers. There will always be people with stones at the ready. Satan himself is the accuser of the brethren. However, decide in your heart that you will no longer listen to those voices. Listen and follow the voice that says, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." Follow that sweet voice of forgiveness. Recognize that His voice is all that matters. Can you hear the thud of stones falling around you? Embrace forgiveness and live a changed life.
May you know the joy of forgiveness today!

Daily Light - May 26, 2010

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things shall be added to you."

Matthew 6:33

What is it that you want most in life? Maybe it is something internal: happiness, peace, joy, etc. Perhaps it is something external: possessions, wealth, notoriety, etc. It is a good idea to take some time to reevaluate what really matters in our lives. What things do we really need? What is most important?
In this passage Jesus was teaching His followers that, just like the rest of us, they were worried about things that really didn't matter in the light of eternity. There are many times in our life where the things of this world began to cloud our way of thinking. We get so wrapped up about areas over which we have no control. Jesus was trying to show us that He is in control and therefore our trust should be in Him alone. Some in the crowd that He is speaking to did not probably know where their next meal was going to come from. I don't know if you have ever been in this situation, but it is surely a desperate thought. Jesus chose to use the birds of the air to illustrate that He had put all things in order to supply for them. Beautifully, He tells us that we are the crowning achievement of His creation, and we are more important than the birds of the air. If we but trust Him, we will see the supply of an almighty God. Remember the children of Israel in the wilderness. Every morning they woke up with a fresh supply of food directly from the hand of God. Jesus also pointed out the ridiculousness of worrying about things that are completely out of our hands. He asked, "Which of you by worrying can add one cubit (18 inches) to his stature?" Why did He use a cubit? He wanted to show us that whether it was one inch or eighteen inches there is nothing that we can do about certain things. Leave it all in the hands of God. He then followed up this with our clothing or our material needs. He exceptionally reminded us of the wild flowers that grow in the fields. He clothed them with their beauty which is above what any man could fashion with his own hands. Their beauty however is fleeting. Here today, gone tomorrow. God has promised to never leave us nor forsake us for eternity if we follow Him.
The answer is to seek spiritual things. Seek His heart. Seek His will. In the middle of all of our asking for things, have we stopped to ask Jesus for Himself? Or is that what we really want? Would we be more satisfied with all this world has to offer than we would with Jesus? I often hear people say that you can't have both: Jesus and things. According to this verse that is not true. Understand, however, that Jesus gives us what we need not necessarily all we want. If we seek Him with all of our heart, we will have His everlasting presence as well as our daily supply. God's supply is the benefit of having His righteousness. The psalmist said that even in his old age he had not seen the righteous forsaken nor having to beg for bread. What is it that you really want from God?
May you seek God's righteousness today!

Daily Light - May 25, 2010

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city."

Revelations 22:12-14

Sitting at the Captain's Table

One of the clearest principles taught in the Word of God is responsibility. Luke 12:48 tells us that the one who has been given much, much will be required of him. This is truly especially in marriage. God has entrusted us with a unique relationship that has its great comparison Christ and His church. We will give account to God for what we did with our marriage and how we glorified Him through it. What a joy it will be to enter into God's presence knowing that we have honored Him by honoring our spouse.
There are four principles of marriage that are good to consider before we take our seat at the Captain's table in eternity.
1) Marriage is a testimony of our love for God. God is love and those who abide in God will live with a loving spirit (1 John 4:16). Our love for our spouse is very simply a reflection of our love for God. You cannot love one or the other. If we truly love God, then we will have no problem loving our spouse as we ought. It is only when we understand the love of God that has been given to us that we are able to love our spouse properly.
2) Marriage is a test of stewardship. The beautiful life of our spouse has been given to us as a trust. That person does not belong to us in a sense of ownership; they belong to almighty God. He has allowed us to demonstrate faithfulness (1 Corinthians 4:2) to Him by being faithful to this precious person. We must be faithful to our spouse recognizing marriage as both a responsibility and a privilege.
3) Marriage is an opportunity to experience God's pleasure. In a world where every one talks about marriage as a prison and a hindrance to really enjoying life, we must see that this is not God's perspective. God has given us the gift of marriage to enjoy life and even better, the abundant life. One day as we sit at the Captain's table, we will understand the words of 1 Corinthians 2:9: "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him." While we do not know what awaits us, in the present we are allowed to taste the joys that God has for us through our marriages.
4) Marriage is the opportunity to experience God's presence. We know that the Bible says that none will be given in marriage in Heaven (Matthew 22:30). I do believe however that we will still enjoy eternal life with those who God has given us to love here on this earth. God knew that it was not good for Adam to be alone in the garden. In our eternal home there will never be loneliness, we will be continually encompassed and enthralled by the presence of God. I thoroughly enjoy the presence of my wife. When we are not together, I am miserable. I look forward to seeing her face each morning, and when I come home during the day, I immediately seek her out. Her presence is both comforting and exhilarating. If she is that much to me, how much more is the presence of God? We enjoy now the companionship of marriage that will be played out for all eternity. I for one cannot wait.
May you look forward to that moment today!

Daily Light - May 24, 2010

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth. As a loving deer and a graceful doe, let her breasts satisfy you at all times; and always be enraptured with her love." Proverbs 5:18-19

Enjoying the Journey Together

Have you ever looked at the beauty of the stars in the sky and asked yourself why God created all of them? I believe there are two answers to that question that apply to your marriage as well: 1) for His pleasure and 2) for you to enjoy and delight in.
When God saw fit to allow you to enter into the marriage covenant with your spouse, it was not simply a legal transaction that He had in mind. He created each of you to lovingly complete the other. God looked down on man in the Garden of Eden and said that it was not good for him to be alone. Whose good is He talking about? Obviously when God created Eve it was for Adam's good. Not only was he now not alone, but he had someone that he could delight in for the rest of his life.
As Solomon passed on wisdom to his son, he made sure to tell his son to enjoy life with the wife that God had given to him. There are a number of facets to the verses above but some of them are glaringly obvious.
1) Marriage is a blessing from God - Let your fountain be blessed.
2) It is God's intent that we enjoy life TOGETHER - rejoice with the wife of your youth.
3) Sexual intimacy is a beautiful pleasure to be carried out between a husband and wife - let her breasts satisfy thee at all times.
4) Marriage is a life-long commitment and joy - ALWAYS be enraptured with HER love.
Never let the world cheapen the joys of what God intended for a husband and wife to have together. He gave you your spouse to live with so that He might be glorified and so that you would experience joy here on earth. ENJOY what God has given the two of you in each other, and enjoy it TOGETHER.

Daily Light - May 23, 2010

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"This is the day the Lord HAS MADE; we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

What a precious opportunity every Lord's day is! We have been given this day to glorify the King of kings and Lord of lords! It is an awesome though to realize that this day did not just come upon us by chance. God HAS MADE this day for Himself and for us. It is by His sovereign direction and will that this day HAS been MADE. God makes no mistakes, and the fact that we are alive today is not simply fate. He has a plan for each of us today.
The Bible teaches us that He HAS MADE this day so that we might glorify Him. That is first above all things. None of us have any idea what we will be confronted with today, but whatever may come, let us choose to glorify God in it. When we think of all that God HAS MADE, we learn two things. First, what God makes is always good. When God created this world, each time He looked at His creation and said it was good. It brought Him pleasure and glory. Our Heavenly Father knew that this date was going to be on our calendars before time even began. He knew every situation that we were going to face this day. By His will He has allowed it, and even now He says it is good. He knows that whatever happens today He can receive pleasure and glory from it. We must realize that there is a bigger divine plan swirling around our lives and that God has not left us to circumstance and chance. Second, even you and I are MADE by God and considered good. Of course we are fallen creatures that fall short of God's glory. However, the Bible tells us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. We were knit together in the wombs of our mother. We were given everything that we need to live in this world and bring God praise. He HAS MADE each of us special in His eyes. You are beautiful and special because He HAS MADE you in His image. Don't let anyone keep you from recognizing your special place in the plan of God. I have no idea what today holds for any of us, but I do know Who holds today.
May this day God HAS MADE bring Him much glory!

Daily Light - May 22, 2010

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, 'Let us cross over to the other side.' Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, 'Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?' Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 'Peace, be still!' And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. But He said to them, 'Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?' And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, 'Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!'"

Mark 4:35-41

Surviving on the Stormy Seas

Somewhere we have gotten in our minds that storms should not affect us quite like they do. However, the Scriptures are full of reminders that we will have trouble in our lives and even in our marriages (John 16:33; 1 Corinthians 7:28). It is obvious that people see the storms that arise in marriage and desperately want to do something about them. Women seem to notice it much more than men. Stormie Omartian's book The Power of a Praying Wife broke a record because it was #1 on the CBA best-seller's list for 27 consecutive months.
John and Stasi Eldredge say, "Marriage is a love story and a war story together. Marriage is hard. Bring together a man and a woman - two creatures who think, act, and feel so differently you would think they'd come from separate solar systems - and ask them to get along for the rest of their lives under the same roof. That is like taking Cinderella and Huck Finn, tossing them in a submarine, and closing the hatch. What did you think would happen?
Why do we have storms in our marriages?
We are still suffering from the effects of the fall.
Where do storms come from in our marriages?
Internal (a storm of our own making)
External (an outside influence in our life)
Eternal (God allows them to shape us)
What can we learn from the storms in our marriages?
Jesus is with us in the storm.
Jesus has power over the storm.
What we need is to ask God to change our mindset about storms! For example, storms are good for fisherman because they bring nutrients to the surface that would have otherwise settled to the bottom. In the same way, God can use the storms of our life to bring His good to the surface. May you experience the presence of God in your marriage today.

Daily Light - May 15, 2010

Daily Light from the Lighthouse

"So teach us to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom." Psalm 90:12

Life is short. What a statement that is! We often take for granted the days that we have been given by our God. We fail to recognize the preciousness of each moment that we have to live. It would behoove us to see each day as a gift that is meant to be shared with others. How different would our days be if we saw each of them as an opportunity to do something of significance for Christ? Very soon each of us will stand before God and give account for what we have done with our lives. I read the following paragraph by Dr. James Dobson and thought it would be appropriate to share with you in this context.
"If we really grasped the numbering of our days, we would surely be motivated to invest ourselves in eternal values. Would a fifty-year-old man pursue an adulterous affair if he knew how quickly he would stand before his God? Would a woman make herself sick from in-law conflict or other petty frustrations if she knew how little time was left to her? Would men and women devote their lives to the pursuit of wealth and symbols of status if they realized how soon their possessions would be torn from their trembling hands? It is the illusion of permanence, you see, that distorts our perception and shapes our selfish behavior. When eternal values come in view, our greatest desire is to please the Lord and influence as many of our loved ones for Him as possible."
Let us take these words to heart. Never will you have this day again. Make the most of it for the sake of all that matters in your life. Do not fail to give God your best today. Don't miss out on the opportunity to express love to your family. See this day as a gift of God's grace and embrace it. Missionary C.T. Studd once said, "Only one life, 'twill soon be past. Only what's done for Christ will last."
May you experience the joy of God today!