pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: everlasting


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With Us, For Us

Reading: Isaiah 40:26-31

Isaiah 40:28 – “Don’t you know? Haven’t you heard? The Lord is the everlasting God.”

Photo credit: Greg Rakozy

As we turn to Isaiah 40, much of Israel is dispersed across the vast Babylonian empire. In this disconnected state it was hard to hold onto hope. So Isaiah invites Israel to look up at the stars, to remember who created this vast array. The prophet invites them to remember who brings the stars out “one by one, summoning each by name.” Ah yes, it is God. This God of “great strength and mighty power?” Yes, God knows you by name. Yes, God will summon you out of exile.

So then, Isaiah ponders, why do you say that God doesn’t know your plight, that God ignores your exile? We too ask these questions. We think God is absent at times, that God is not powerful enough at other times. We can think that God ignores our great needs. We too need to look up at the sky in awe. We too need to hear, “Don’t you know? Haven’t you heard? The Lord is the everlasting God.”

Our everlasting God does not get tired or even know weariness. Our great God’s understanding is far, far beyond our understanding. So, yes, sometimes we don’t get what God is doing. But if we trust God, we find that God does give us power when we’re tired, that God does revive us when we’re exhausted. We will be tired and exhausted. These things happen. And the promises remain: God is present. God will renew our strength, enabling us to “run and not be tired” and to “walk and not be weary.” Our God is with us. Our God is for us. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord God, when we are tired, when we are weary,v when we feel defeated or all alone, call us to look up. Whether the stars at night or the vast blue sky, remind us that you are present in all of creation, that you are present within us. Fill us with hope, renew our strength. Thank you. Amen.


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Home, Belonging, Connection

Reading: Psalm 90:1-6

Verse 1: “Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.”

Today’s and tomorrow’s time focuses on Psalm 90. Today’s portion is about the everlasting nature of God and about our dwelling place in God. In our mobile and super busy version of life, “home” has become less about where we physically live and more about where we feel connected, about where we belong.

Psalm 90 is attributed to Moses. It is set during the time in the wilderness. The people spent 40 years wandering from place to place. It is no wonder that their constants – God and one another – defined their sense of connection and belonging and home. Since almost the beginning of time, God has walked and talked with Moses’ ancestors. Moses knows that this will continue to be the relationship and connection because God was and is and will be “from everlasting to everlasting.”

God was their constant. God wants to be our constant. Moses does acknowledge our very limited time on earth relative to God’s eternity – “a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by.” And yet, to us and to God, our days matter. Each day matters. So, today, I ask: where will you find “home?” It may be at work or at school or at practice or at youth group. It may be on a walk or in a time of prayer. We are created for relationship with God and with one another. May we each find times and places of belonging and connection today.

Prayer: Lord God, since forever you have sought us out, seeking to walk every day in relationship with us. Since then you’ve created us to be in community and in relationship with each other too. Help us to connect to you and to each other in ways that deepen our sense of belonging and of home. Draw us closer to you and to one another. Amen.


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Who Is Our Woman at the Well?

Reading: John 4:5-26

Verses 13-14: “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.”

Our passage in John 4 begins with Jesus alone at the well. A woman comes alone to the well to draw water in the heat of the day. There are a few cultural reasons that this encounter should not happen, but it does anyway. All that matters to Jesus is ministering to this woman, to this lost soul.

After feeling each other out a bit, Jesus says to her, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.” In the first part Jesus is saying that this water – the things of this world – they never truly satisfy. This connects into his statement about having had five husbands and now a boyfriend. Significant others are one way we can try and find satisfaction and happiness. Some collect cars or other forms of wealth. Some turn to alcohol, drugs, pornography, gambling, working out… None of these things satisfy our inner thirst for joy, peace, contentment…

Jesus continues, offering her the greatest gift ever: “whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.” In Christ she can find something the world cannot offer: everlasting love, an eternal relationship, a place to always belong, to always have worth. These are the things that the woman needs at her core. These are things we all need. We try and fill our hearts and souls with many things. But only God in Christ can make us complete and whole. There we find the joy, the hope, the peace, the contentment, the meaning and purpose we all need.

The question that sticks with me today is this: Who is the woman at the well in your life, in my life? This was not a chance encounter in today’s passage. Jesus was at the well, waiting just for her. How will you and I make connection with that lost soul that we know?

Prayer: Lord God, by the power of your Holy Spirit, lead and guide me to the well, to connect, to enter into relationship, to draw another closer to you. Amen.


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Reign Forever

Reading: Isaiah 9:2-7

Verse 6: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.”

Photo credit: Kelly Sikkema

Isaiah brings the words that we read today to a people living in fear. The powerful Assyrians are coming. To the Israelites, it feels like God has abandoned them. The peoples’ unfaithfulness has brought them to this point but they fail to see this. At times like these it can be hard to look in the mirror.

As chapter 9 begins Isaiah points the people’s eyes towards the future. It is a future with hope. It begins with “the people walking in darkness have seen a great light.” Light at the end of the tunnel – what hope! He goes on to tell of how God will “shatter the yoke” – the oppression will not last forever! Peace will reign: “Every warrior’s boot… will be fuel for the fire.” And the great promise: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.” A new ruler will come to lead and guide the people of God. Yes, there will be good kings, ones who will be godly and righteous.

But only one “will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Only one will “reign on David’s throne… establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness… forever.” Solomon will give great counsel. Other kings will be mighty warriors. Others will reign over a time of peace. Some will rule justly and in righteousness. Yet only one will be all of this and more. Only Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, only he will reign forever. What hope. What promise. What joy. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for the one who increases our joy, for the one who causes us to rejoice. Thank you for the one who shatters the chains of sin and sorrow. Thank you for the one who reigns in our hearts – yesterday, today, and forevermore. Amen.


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Rock of Refuge

Reading: Psalm 71:1-6

Verse 3: “Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go.”

Psalm 71 speaks of our dependence on and connection to God. My relationship is one that has ebbs and flows. There are times when I am more dependent on God than at other times. These tend to be seasons of doubt and those times walking through the valleys. Pain or grief or suffering drives me towards God, strengthening our connection to one another. This is where the Psalm begins. God is the psalmist’s refuge. The author asks God to rescue and deliver, to hear the pleas and to save him or her. Verse 3 declares, “Be my rock of refuge, to which I can always go.” God is everlasting. We can always turn to our rock, to our refuge.

There are times too when I feel less dependent and therefore less connected. Things at church and in life seem to be going good. It is not that my faith has lessened or changed. God is still present; I just feel less needy. The lack of need for rescue and deliverance lessens the intensity. Yet I know that God is still right there. The everlasting God remains my rock and refuge. If I cry out, I know God is right there.

Verses 5 and 6 explain this trust, this knowledge. What is true for the psalmist is true for many. God has always been our hope. It feels like faith has always been a part of our lives. For as long as we can remember – “from birth” – we have relied upon God. Again, we create or allow ebb and flow, but looking back we see and know a God who is ever steadfast and true, who has always been there. God is our rock of refuge – always. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord God, no matter the degree of my engagement, you are always fully present. In those seasons when I feel like I need you less, you are never away. You are always right there, walking with me. Thank you for your unwavering faithfulness. Amen.


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Bread of Life

Reading: John 6: 41-51

Verse 47: “I tell you the truth he who believes has everlasting life”.

Photo credit: Pablo Heimplatz

As Jesus explains who he is and what he offers to those who believe in him as the Messiah some in the crowd doubt. They cannot see past what they know – “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph”? How can he be born of God – came down from heaven – if we know his parents? With words alone Jesus cannot convince them of who he is and what he offers.

Jesus goes on to explain that no one comes to believe in him unless drawn to him by God. Quoting from Psalm 78 Jesus reminds them that those who listen to the father come to learn and then are drawn to Jesus. When I consider my faith journey I see the truth of Jesus’ words. He is talking about and inviting his audience and us into a personal relationship. Just reading the Bible or even talking to other Christians does not make us have faith. Most often this learning is the start of our journey of faith but the “knowledge” must move from head to heart. The working of God alone – sometimes in big steps but most often in tiny steps – leads us to accept the truth that Jesus speaks: “he who believes has everlasting life”. As we draw near and worship the bread of life today may we seek to deepen our relationship with the Lord.

Prayer: Lord, draw me in deeper today. Connect me to you in a personal and meaningful way as I worship today. Amen.


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Covenant God

Reading: Genesis 17: 1-7

Verse 7: “I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant… to be your God and the God of your descendants”.

Photo credit: Geda Zyvatkauskaite

Yesterday as we looked at this passage we focused on how we are to keep the covenant. We are to “walk before God and be blameless”. God set this as the goal and Jesus lived out the example, giving us a goal to aim for, a model to follow. This is “how” we are to live out the covenant. Today we turn to the “why”.

God chose Abram to be the father of not only many nations but of God’s children. This was not something Abram decided and then set out to accomplish. God is the one who offers covenant relationship to Abram and Sarai. God is the one who invites them to be a partaker in the covenant. God is the one who upholds the covenant as God rules over the earth. The question for Abram and Sarai is this: will they trust God to be the covenant keeper?

Abram falls face down before God. He recognizes that God is supreme, almighty, all-powerful. This is Abram saying “yes” to God’s invitation into covenant relationship. In response God changes his name to Abraham, which means “father of many”. Later in the story God also changes Sarai’s name to Sarah, reflecting her role as the mother of nations. God defines the covenant this way: “I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant… to be your God and the God of your descendants”. God will be the God of Abraham and Sarah and their descendants forever. The time frame of the covenant again reinforces who is in control and who is the covenant keeper. Like Abraham and Sarah, we are finite, limited, human, flawed. God is eternal and forever and perfect. Abraham and Sarah would seek to walk blamelessly before God, just as we try to do. They would not be perfect, just as we are not perfect. Down through the generations, Abraham and Sarah’s descendants would break the covenant over and over. Again and again, God would keep the covenant of grace, loving us forever. Over and over we end up at the table of grace, being made right again, being restored back into relationship again. This is God’s nature, it is his character. God remains our God. God will always be our God. This is his covenant promise, sealed by his love. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Loving God, you are forever, you are in total control. You are steadfast and true in keeping the covenant to be our God – to be my God. You love us no matter what. Thank you, God, for loving even me. Amen.


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Love and Strength

Reading: Isaiah 40: 27-31

Verse 29: “He gives strength to the weary and his understanding no one can fathom”.

Photo credit: Kelly Sikkema

The second half of our passage from Isaiah 40 continues the theme of yesterday’s verses: God is everlasting. Isaiah again asks, “Do you not know? Have you not heard”? Just as we need to be reminded over and over, so too do the Israelites. God is still our God, unchanging and eternal. When we get weary and when we feel isolated and alone, we too need to hear again that “the Lord is the everlasting God”. Isaiah goes on to remind the faithful that God doesn’t get weary or tired and that God’s understanding is unfathomable. How often we grow weary and fail to understand the depth of God’s love and wisdom and might!

Although almost none of our trials or struggles or even seasons of separation from God or one another are as long as the forty years Israel spent in exile, we can all relate to their situation. We’ve all walked through the valley for so long that we feel like we cannot take another step forward. Sometimes, though, we are to blame for the weariness and/or the isolation that we “suddenly” find ourselves in. We get caught up in chasing the things of this world until the moment we find ourselves wrung out and exhausted and alone, hitting the wall and realizing it was all for naught. However and why we got to the place of weariness or isolation, verse 29 speaks balm to our souls: “He gives strength to the weary and his understanding no one can fathom”. Our everlasting, eternal God is right there. God understands. Our wise and mighty God is right there to give us his understanding and his strength.

This is goods news for us, yes, but it is also good news that we are meant to share. When God gives us strength and understanding, it is a wonderful gift. It is life changing for us to realize that we are not alone, that the God of the universe is on our side. Experiencing those touches of God draw us deeper into our relationship with God. In that place, we know what it means to be truly loved. Filled by that love and strength we are equipped to share that with a broken and needy world. Going out into the weariness and loneliness of the world, we bear God’s presence into the lives of those who are hurting and who are thirsty. May we each bring hope into the world today and every day.

Prayer: Loving and almighty God, guide me today to those who are weary, to those who are lonely, to those who need to feel and experience your love and strength, even if they do not know it. Fill me with the words or actions to help others know you today. Amen.


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Unto Us, To Us

Reading: Isaiah 9: 2-7

Verses 6-7: “For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given… He will reign with righteousness and justice… forever”.

Early in the book of Isaiah the prophet writes to a people living in the darkness and suffering of exile. They are enduring the consequences of their corporate disobedience to God. At the start of chapter nine Isaiah writes, “there will be no more gloom” – the time in exile is coming to an end – and he writes, “in the future he will honor Galilee of the Gentiles” – a region containing Nazareth, hometown of the Lord.

Our passage today begins with these Christmas words: “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light”. The light of the world is coming. Almighty God, born in the flesh, will bring light and holiness into the world, driving away the darkness and evil. In verse four Isaiah again speaks Jesus words, saying, “you have shattered the yoke that burdens them”. The Prince of Peace will give all for humanity, forever breaking the bonds of sin and death, bringing true peace to all who believe.

In verses six and seven we read these words of Isaiah that draw our minds to the Messiah: “For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given… He will reign with righteousness and justice… forever”. Born of the virgin Mary, conceived of the Holy Spirit, the child is for us, given to us – to save, redeem, and restore us and our world, to be our Wonderful Counselor, to die for us, to rise and dwell in us and with us forever. The Everlasting Father, born of the flesh, comes to be a part of our world and our lives… forever! His birth we celebrate today. Thanks be to God for the gift of Light, unto us, for us, forever.

Prayer: God of all the universe, in a humble way you came into our world. You walked among us seeking to do nothing but give of yourself in love. You left this world doing just that once again. And now and forevermore you rule with love and mercy, hope and peace, justice and joy. Thank you for being my Savior. Amen.