Nothing Belongs to You

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.

Psalm 24:1

This simple verse from the psalms tells us in no uncertain terms that everything and everyone belongs to the Lord. Donald S. Whitney drives the import of this verse home to us in his powerful book Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life when he says... 

The house you live in, is God’s house. The trees in your yard are God’s trees. The grass that you mow is God’s grass... The car you drive is God’s car. The clothes you wear and those hanging in your closet belong to God… You don’t own anything. God owns everything and you are His manager… You are just a temporary steward of things that belong to God.*

We don’t use the word ‘steward’ very often, but a steward is someone who has been entrusted with the care of something that does not belong to them. It’s not their property, but they are responsible for managing it. And they are held accountable by the owner for what they do with it.

Whether you know it or not, you are a steward! You manage and safeguard and even spend that which does not belong to you. And, just like any other steward, one day you will have to stand before the Owner and give an account of how you managed what He entrusted to your care. As Romans 14:12 says, “each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.”

If you had to stand before the Lord and give an account of your life today, would you be happy with how you have used the time and money God has given you? Has God been glorified? Have lost people heard about Jesus because of you? Has the church been strengthened? Have God’s people been encouraged in their faith because of what you did? Have you spent your life in service to the Lord or in service to yourself?

If you aren't so sure that you have been a faithful steward of what God has entrusted to your care, then make today the day you start doing better. 

*Whitney, Donald S. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. (NavPress: Colorado Springs, CO) 2002, p 141.

Devoted to Prayer

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.

Colossians 4:2

The great Reformer Martin Luther once said, “As it is the business of tailors to make clothes and of cobblers to mend shoes, so it is the business of Christians to pray.”*  But many simply don’t! And those who do, often don’t dedicate any real time to prayer. They don’t pray fervently. They don’t pray earnestly. They toss short, half-hearted prayers up to the Lord here or there, but that’s all.

Colossians 4:2 says that God expects you to be devoted to prayer. When you’re devoted to something, you make it a priority. You make sacrifices for it.** 

David Brainerd sets an example for us here. He was a man devoted to prayer. Brainerd was an 18th century missionary to Native Americans. He used to go outside to pray in the woods. He would kneel in the snow to pray. By the time David was done praying... a big ring of snow would be thawed all around him from his body heat alone.*** That's devotion to prayer! 

Are you devoted to prayer? Do you consistently set aside time just to pray? You should! Let me encourage you to establish a regular practice of prayer. Start with 5-10 minutes a day of focused prayer. Pray for your spouse, for your children, your grandchildren, your church, yourself, and for the lost. You may never know what great tragedies are avoided and or what great victories are won simply because you made time to pray.

*John Blanchard comp., Gathered Gold (Welwyn, Hertfordshire, England: Evangelical Press, 1984). page 2. Quoted in Whitney, Donald S. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life (Coloardo Springs, CO: NavPress, 2002) Page 68.

**Whitney, Donald S. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life (Coloardo Springs, CO: NavPress, 2002) Page 67.

***https://footstepsinthedeep.wordpress.com/2012/05/15/the-life-and-diary-of-david-brainerd-by-jonathan-edwards/

Give It Time

What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

John 2:11

When Jesus changed the water into wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee, His discples believed in Him right away. They knew this was something that no ordinary man could do. They didn't need to process that miracle or sign. Right away they understood that it meant that Jesus was the Messiah.

But later in the same chapter Jesus does something that took the disciples longer to understand... a lot longer. Jesus made a whip out of cords, drove the sheep and cattle out of the temple courts and scattered the coins of the moneychangers. When the Jews questioned Jesus about this He said, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” (John 2:19). In the moment, no one (not even the disciples) understood that Jesus wasn't talking about the massive temple complex but about His own body. But, John 2:22 tells us something that I think is important. 

After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken. (John 2:22)

It wasn't until after Jesus was raised from the dead that His disciples understood and believed what He had said. That particular saying was too hard for them to receive at that moment. They couldn't understand it and therefore they couldn't believe it. They weren't ready for it. They needed time and further revelation from God to make sense of it.

Sometimes it's the same for us. Sometimes we read something in the Bible or hear the Spirit whisper something to our spirit and we just don't understand it. We aren't ready to receieve it. We can't bring ourselves to believe it... yet. 

In those moments, I want to encourage you not to give it more time. As Christians we don't reject what we read in the Bible and don't understand. We give it more time. It's okay to admit that you don't understand something that God says or does. Keep chewing on it. Keep thinking about it. Give God more time to help you  understand and believe it. 

Some parts of the Christian faith are easy to accept, and some... take time.

Plant Yourself by the Stream

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers, but His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever he does prospers.

Psalm 1:1-3

This passage says that God’s Law (or His Word) is like a stream of water that refreshes and strengthens us. If we'll plant ourselves beside the Word and meditate on it day and night, then we'll be like a tree planted beside a stream. A tree whose leaves never whither and whose fruit never fails. This analogy tells us that we can grow and prosper endlessly in our faith if we will only ensure a steady flow of God’s Word into our lives. 

Never underestimate the importance of God’s Word in your life. Never believe the lie that you have grown beyond needing to read it. The Bible is endlessly refreshing and nourishing. Its treasures are never-ending. You always need more of it.

But notice that we need a steady flow of the Word, not an occasional dumping. Imagine a tree planted in hard ground. If a big raincloud dumps a bunch of water on that tree all at once, most of the water will run off that hard ground. Very little will have time to saturate the ground and get down to the roots where the tree can take it in and retain it. The tree benefits very little from that kind of rain.

We often make this mistake in our Bible reading. We rush through our Bible reading. We do it quickly just to get it done. And because of that we get very little benefit from it. Instead, I encourage you to read your Bible slowly. Give it time to sink in and saturate your soul and produce life change. 

Often, I will read the same chapter of Scripture everyday for a week and only then move on to the next. This helps me to make sure I don't miss anything in the chapter. It gives me time to think about and understand the more difficult parts of the passage. And it makes it much more difficult for me to ignore the parts that I don't like. Try it in your own life. Here's a Scripture Meditation Plan I am using this year. I invite you to read the Bible slowly with me in 2025.

W.o.W. Rewind- Laid Bare

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Hebrews 4:12-13

God’s Word is living and active. It doesn’t just lie there. It has power to accomplish God’s purposes. 

God’s Word is like a double-edged sword, so sharp that it can cut through the most minute dividing lines. It can divide joints and marrow. It can even divide soul and spirit, two things which we often think are the same. So, God’s Word is like the sharpest and most exacting of blades.

The passage goes on to say that “everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” That phrase “laid bare” is really interesting, and it’s a beautiful picture of what happens to you and I when we come face to face with the power of God’s Word. Laid bare is the same word that was used of animals when they were sacrificed. It describes an animal being led to the slaughter with its head thrown back and its neck (the most vulnerable part of its body with the largest arteries) exposed before the sword of the slaughterer.

Now, that’s not a very endearing metaphor is it? But the truth it drives home is this... we all lie fully exposed and vulnerable before the greatness of our God and His powerful Word. God’s Word is living and active. It overpowers us and cuts us like a double edged sword. But, we serve a good and loving Father who puts us in that position of vulnerability not to harm us but to heal us. Like a surgeon with His scalpel, God uses His Word to cut the cancer of sin out of our hearts. But in order for Him to do that for us, we must first be “laid bare” before him completely exposed and vulnerable.

So if you are tired of being overrun by sin and if you are willing to climb on the surgeon's table, then get more of God's Word in your life. Here's a link to the Bible Reading Plan my church is doing in 2025. Why don't you join us?