In life, problems tend to magnify themselves so they become all you see.  And, if they linger in your life long enough or become numerous enough, the world seems to be reduced to nothing but problems.  Problems are not all of life, of course, but they seem that way in the moment.  And, when problems consume our view, they inevitably cause us to drift into hopelessness and despair.

So, today I would like to offer a few biblical directives for dealing with life’s problems.  They have helped me in recent times of trouble, and so I hope they can be of some help to you as well.

1. God will never allow a problem into your life that you cannot endure – 1 Corinthians 10:13.  This verse basically says that God “sizes us up” and knows what we can handle.  Psalm 103:14 reminds us that God “knows our frame” and is acquainted with our fragility.  Because He is faithful and loving, God will never allow something into our lives that we cannot handle.  So, if there is a problem in your life right now, take courage from this passage – you can handle it!
2. We are instructed to cast our problems on God – 1 Peter 5:7.  And, this is not like a cast when you go fishing.  You do not cast your problems to God and then reel them back to yourself.  You are to cast them and leave them.  Only God can allow a problem into your life, and only God can remove the problem from your life.  So, he invites you to give the problem to Him…to let Him “worry” about it, and to let Him solve it.  In the mean time, you can be free of the worry and the stress and the fretting.
3. Problems reveal your spiritual condition – Deut 8:2-5.  When pressed with a problem, the real you comes out.  So, problems give us a chance to examine our hearts.  The nation of Israel failed their test, but Job was a success (see Job 1:21-22; 2:9-10).  What have your problems revealed about you?  Anger?  Impatience?  Lack of trust?  Bitterness?  Your problems should not be an occasion for you to fail, but an opportunity to shine for the glory of Christ and the good of others.
4. Problems have a purpose – James 1:2-4.  Most things in the world become weaker by testing.  When continual pressure is put to them they eventually bend or break.  Case in point, I had a snow shovel break on me last week.  The shovel had not become stronger from all the years of practice, rather it became weaker.  Not so with humans.  James tells us that our testing is designed to make us stronger…to produce new ability within us.  We may not like our tests, but without them we would remain weak.  God tests us, not so that we would fail; but so that we, through the strength of Christ, would emerge the victor.

It is true, problems are a part of life.  But, they are not all of life.  What problems are you encountering right now?  May these words challenge you to guard yourself so that you do not let the temporary destroy the eternal, nor the immediate destroy the ultimate.  Rather, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths,” Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV).

Alive2Christ,

Kendall C.

Sourced from: Devotions to Help you Marvel at our God!

Tuesday 11.17.09

Every child probably experiences a similar memory – falling asleep in the car during the drive home.  This situation always affords dad the opportunity to become a hero by opening the back door, unfastening the seat belt, and scooping the sleeping child into his arms.  Then, after bumping the car door closed, he somehow manages to open the house door with his forearm.  On the way down the hallway he fumbles to remove shoes, socks, and a jacket.  Dad places the sleeping child into bed and pulls the covers up snug.  It is the perfect picture of a father carrying his helpless child.

In Deuteronomy 1:31, Moses reminds the Israelites that the Lord has been faithful to care for them.  To illustrate his point, he uses the analogy of a father carrying a child.  The verse says it this way: “You have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.”  What a beautiful picture.  God carrying His people.  Weak, inexperienced, and unable to walk on their own strength – God scooped them up and carried them in His unfailing love and unwavering strength.

Christian, you are a child of God.  And, as His child, He watches over you and protects you.  He keeps you.  And, especially during those moments when you cannot walk on your own – He carries you.  Is your spirit tired today?  Are you anxious in your heart?  Are you weary and feeling like you can’t take another step forward?  Then, hope in God.  Let the truth of God’s deep love and care for you settle profoundly into your mind.  Rest in the arms of the Almighty and let your heavenly Father carry you!  He is able, He is strong, and He is willing.

Alive2Christ,

Kendall C.

Sourced from: Devotions to Help you Marvel at our God!

Tuesday 10.20.09 From Kendall Coffman

The annual Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain is one of the world’s most recognizable events.  The goal of the event is simple – to run in front of 12 bulls and beat them to a given destination.  But, not everyone has been successful in their attempts.  Over the last 100 years, there have been 15 confirmed deaths, and each year hundreds more are injured during the run.

The fascination of this event is obvious – breakable, human bodies are pitted against the unmatched strength of a seemingly unbreakable animal.  For the person participating, it’s really more about cheating death rather than a display of courage.  But, one thing is clear in the minds of all those watching, the horns of a bull are an unmistakable picture of strength.

In Numbers 23:21-22, a unique description of God is used that likens His strength to that of a bull’s horns.  We are told that, “The LORD their God is with them…God brings them out of Egypt and is for them like the horns of the wild ox.”  The ox spoken of here is the now extinct aurochs (search online to learn more about it).  In ancient times this ox was the traditional picture of supreme power and dominance, for who was able to take on the strength of the ox and win?  The obvious answer was no one. He stood alone in strength.

The wonderful promise of this verse is that God is for His people like the horns of a mighty ox.  He is for us in power and protection.  He is for us in love and forgiveness. He is for us in help and success.  As Robert Murray McCheyne has beautifully written, “Under a sense of your sin, flee to the Savior of sinners.  As the timid dove flies to hide itself in the crevices of the rock, so flee to hide yourself in the wounds of your Savior.  And when you have found Him, like the shadow of a great rock in a weary land, when you sit under His shadow with great delight, you will find that He has slain all the hostility, that He has accomplished all your warfare.  God is now for you” (The Best of Robert Murray McCheyne, Edited and Compiled by Stephen W. Sorenson, p. 54).

No longer running helplessly to avoid the bullseye of His wrath, we now have become beneficiaries of His great strength.  Because of Christ, God is now for us!  His strength runs before us and clears the way. How much better to be behind the horns of a bull than in front of them!

This is the strong God in whom we trust.  Evil scurries and scatters before Him.  His light breaks through and divides the darkness.  His horns have demolished the demonic powers and authorities.  He has triumphed over sin, and death, and hell.  Be at peace today, Christian – for, when God is for us, nothing can be against us (Rom 8:31)!

Alive2Christ,

Kendall C.

Sourced from: Devotions to Help you Marvel at our God!

Tuesday 10.13.09

“Why do men kill?” That is the question my young son put to me one afternoon.  To be honest, my first thought was a hope that I could somehow shelter him from the graphic sins of the world.  Murder, abuse, rape, and the like are words I wish he’d never know.  Frankly, I wish they were words none of us would ever know.  But, we live in a sinful world, and so we seek somehow to make sense of it all.

I paused for a moment and then put a question back to him, “Well, have you ever been angry?”  “Yes,” he replied.  “Did your anger lead to hate,” I asked?  Again, “yes” was his admission.  “Then you were already on your way to killing,” I advised.

I went on to share with him that most likely, no one ever grows up with a life goal to kill.  It always happens slowly, and it happens because sin is deceitful.  Sin lies to you.  It tells you that you can control the inner sin (thoughts of it) and it will never go all the way to the action.  Sin promises that you can knock down only 1 domino, and leave the rest standing.  It might happen that way hundreds of times.  But then in a moment’s notice, the whole line of dominoes tumbles out of control.  And then you realize you were grossly misled.  Sin was, in fact, deceiving you.

So, that afternoon, I took the time with my son to obey the words of Hebrews 3:13, “But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”  Then, I shared this little formula:

• Anger leads to hate,
• Hate leads to harm,
• Harm leads to murder.

If anger is stewing in your life today, get rid of it.  It will not remain satisfied.  It will crave harm.  It will crave revenge.  It will crave hurt and  misfortune for the one with whom you are angry.  May you never be forced to speak the words of thousands before you who have said, “I never intended to kill.”

The only way to avoid the last step is to avoid the first.  And, the only way to avoid the first is to have your eyes fixed firmly on Jesus.  He alone will keep your heart soft towards what is good and right.  May your love and desire for Christ triumph over your love for anger and hate and revenge and murder.  In the strength of Christ, confess your anger and let love and patience rule your relationships.  I am exhorting you today, do not be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin…instead be softened by the truth that Christ loved you and gave Himself for you (Gal 2:20).

I leave you with a thought from the great John Owen, “Sin is modest in its first motions and proposals, but having once got footing in the heart, it constantly makes good its ground, and presses on to some farther degrees in the same kind.  This new acting and pressing forward makes the soul take little notice of what an entrance to a falling off from God is already made” (Overcoming Sin and Temptation, p. 53).

Alive2Christ,

Kendall C.

Sourced from: Devotions to Help you Marvel at our God!

Scripture paints a very gloomy picture of our lives prior to God.  Leviticus 26:13 says, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that you should not be their slaves.  And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect.”

In this verse, God is heralded as our great rescuer.  He comes upon us in our desperate and trapped condition unable to hear or obey the commands of anyone but our current evil master.  And then He intervenes.  With a strong arm, He breaks the yoke of severe bondage and servitude that is draped across our shoulders.

This yoke – placed upon all humanity at the garden of Eden when sin entered this world – is a bitter and heavy master.  Consider a few descriptions that our passage implies about this yoke:

1) It is a yoke of slavery.  This is slavery to Satan, and it manifests itself in our acts of sin.  Before God breaks us free of this yoke, we are forced to do the works of the evil one (see Romans 6:17-18).

2) It is a bitter yoke. This is why the Jewish people eat bitter herbs while partaking of the Passover (Ex 12:8).  It is to remind them of the bitter taste that was left in their mouths from their slavery to the kings of Egypt.  How bitter is the aftertaste of our former life of sin as well.

3) It is a heavy yoke.  This yoke of sin causes us to live a hunched-over life.  It is heavy on our souls.  Our faces, countenances, and lives bear the weight of sin and guilt.  We have no freedom to serve God – just oppression and heaviness as we do the bidding of our evil slave master.

4) It is a yoke controlled by God’s adversary.  At the helm – the slave driver – is none other than Satan himself.  He wants us to plow his fields, do his work, and plant his kingdom.  We are yoked under his command with no hope of escape.

5) But, it is a yoke that is smashed apart by God’s mercy!  How wonderful of a phrase that God uses in Leviticus 26 – “I have broken the bars of your yoke.”  The heavy and taxing service to Satan is ended.  The yoke is broken from our shoulders and left to lie upon the ground where it belongs.  We are free!!  Free at last to stand upright.  Free to turn and gaze upon our Deliverer.  Free to praise and thank Him.  Free to learn of Him.  Free to worship.  Free to follow this Good and Great Deliverer!

Christian, take joy and delight in the God who approached your sad and helpless condition, stretched out His arm, and broke to pieces your life of slavery and doom.  May the thought of Jesus Christ and His work on the cross (Col 2:13-15) bring you much strength and encouragement for your soul.  May you walk with upright shoulders and a light and happy heart today!

Alive2Christ,

Kendall C.

Sourced from: Devotions to Help you Marvel at our God!

Last Wednesday night I had the privilege to teach Proverbs 3:1-2 on the Blessing of loving God’s Word.

1.My son, do not forget my teaching, But let your heart keep my commandments ;
2.For length of days and years of life And peace they will add to you.

One of the blessings that is promised to us if we order our lives according to God’s Word is “Peace.”  The Word for Peace in Hebrew is Shalom.  It is quite an incredible word.  Shalom means “Completion and fulfillment – of entering into a state of wholeness and unity, a restored relationship” Isn’t that what we all long for in this life?  To be restored in our relationships with God and others and to find completion and fulfillment?  The ultimate way that God brought about “Shalom” was through the Cross of Jesus Christ.  It was on the Cross that Jesus made the way for us to be restored into a relationship with our heavenly father and to find the purpose we were made for… to Glorify God with our lives.  It was on the Cross that our sin was paid for and God’s wrath was satisfied!

There is a story in “The Pilgrims Progress” that is a beautiful word picture of this “Shalom”  In the story Pilgrim has left the city of Destruction and is going to the celestial city to find the king, but he is laden with a huge burden on his back that causes him great trouble.  Then He comes to the cross…

Now I saw in my dream, that the highway up which Christian was to go, was fenced on either side with a wall, and that wall was called Salvation. Isaiah 26:1. Up this way, therefore, did burdened Christian run, but not without great difficulty, because of the load on his back.

He ran thus till he came at a place somewhat ascending; and upon that place stood a cross, and a little below, in the bottom, a Tomb. So I saw in my dream, that just as Christian came up with the cross, his burden loosed from off his shoulders, and fell from off his back, and began to tumble, and so continued to do till it came to the mouth of the Tomb, where it fell in, and I saw it no more.

Then was Christian glad and lightsome, and said with a merry heart, “He hath given me rest by his sorrow, and life by his death.”

Shalom is only found at the Cross.  If you are burdened by your sin and the weight of your guilt… you can find Shalom at the Cross.

1.Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
2. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.
3. For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh,
4. so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. flesh

Romans 8:1-4

Sourced from: Devotions to Help you Marvel at our God!

Tuesday 8.4.09

A good God does not always mean for us a smooth road.

A good God does not always mean for us an easy path.

A good God does not always mean for us a short and painless journey.

Sometimes, a good God brings a dark cloud over us.

When this happens, the road will be rough.

The path will be hard.

And the journey will be long and painful.

But, when that dark cloud settles in, our good God does not abandon.

For, when the road is rough – He is there to encourage.

When the path is hard – He is there to strengthen.

And, when the journey grows long and painful – He is there to comfort.

When God moves the dark cloud over us,

It is never without His strong arm around us.

Exodus 15:2

Alive2Christ,

Kendall C.

Sourced from: Devotions to Help you Marvel at our God!