@ the crossroads

The brilliant English Christian writer G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936) once responded to a newspaper editor’s question, "What is wrong with the world?" with the simple, yet profound editorial: "I am." Chesterton, as a follower of Christ, understood his sinful condition and was humble enough to recognize the brokenness and moral corruption he contributed to the world. We are often quick to point fingers at other people and blame them for the messes we see in this world, yet in our judgmental mindset we unwittingly place ourselves in a position of superiority as if we are the only ones who are living in true, upright fashion.

The cross of Christ is the great leveler of all humanity because it communicates clearly to the world that each person represents the problem for which the cross itself serves as the remedy. We all need salvation, forgiveness, reconciliation. The Apostle Paul’s popular words to the church in Rome: for all have sinned, contain monumental, far-reaching truth that demands unpacking.

To be a sinner is to be a rebel against the authority of God, a person who "misses the mark" of God’s standard of righteousness, and a human being who is characterized as morally corrupt, perverse, and polluted. Scripture also describes the twisting nature of sin through the use of the word iniquity. In King David’s penitential psalm 51, he writes, "Wash away all my iniquity (literally: twistedness, crookedness) and cleanse me from my sin" (v. 2). Then, in verse 5 of that same psalm, David writes, "Surely I was sinful (twisted) at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me." Sin entangles and binds us up in knots. Only Jesus Christ has the power to untie our twisted natures.

Luke’s Gospel has a powerful story revealing the power of Jesus to straighten what is twisted:

On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years.  She was bent over and could not straighten up at all.  When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, "Woman, you are set free from your infirmity."  Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God. (Luke 13:10-13) 

Even though this narrative describes Jesus straightening a woman’s spine through miraculous healing, I believe she also serves as a powerful physical example of what Christ can do for us spiritually. Through his death and resurrection, Christ has made possible the straightening of hearts and lives. Crooked people can receive salvation. Twisted people can experience the untying of knotted lives.

I encourage you today to confess your sins to our God who alone can save.  Tell him how you are twisted.  Seek His straightening power.

The crooked roads shall become straight…and all mankind will see God’s salvation. (Luke 3:5-6)

One of the things we all have in common is the experience of being let down by people at various points in our lives.  Friends make promises and then proceed to break them. Co-workers gossip.  Teammates criticize.   Clients refuse to pay.  Patients don’t follow medical instructions.  Children rebel.  Parents abuse.  Spouses may even cheat.  To put the universal problem succinctly: people disappoint. 

Sometimes, when we have been hurt by the words and actions of others, we transfer our lack of relational trust onto God himself, as if He is revealed as the ultimate promise-breaker, gossiper, criticizer, and abuser.  We easily forget that God makes himself known over and over again in the scriptures as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob–the God of the covenant–who perfectly fulfills his promises. If there is one word missing from the divine dictionary, it is renege.  What God says he will do, he does.  Period.  No questions asked. 

Perhaps one of the greatest litmus tests we can use to determine our level of trust in God is to reflect upon the level of worry in our lives. Worry is the opposite of trust. When we allow ourselves to become consumed with worry, we forfeit confident trust in God’s power to deliver and provide.  Worry takes matters into one’s own hands; unfortunately, human hands can’t deliver what is needed because, ultimately, humans are not in control.  Worry feeds perpetual disappointment. 

Abraham was a man of deep trust in God’s promises.  He wasn’t perfect, and he surely let others down from time to time, including his own family members.  However, the overall trajectory of his life was trust, not worry, for he truly believed that the God who promised him that all nations would be blessed through him was perfectly capable of delivering on that promise–no matter how the circumstances of life seemed to contradict the ultimate fulfillment of God’s word. 

In Genesis 24 we find Abraham sending a servant on a journey to find a wife for Isaac in Mesopotamia.  After all, Abraham is advanced in years and Isaac will need to get married and have a son so the promise of God may move forward.  After receiving instructions from Abraham, the servant replies, "What if the woman is unwilling to come back with me to this land?" (Gen. 24:5).  Abraham’s response is significant.  He says, "The Lord, the God of heaven, who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring I will give this land’–he will send his angel before you so that you can get a wife for my son from there" (Gen. 24:7). 

We, like Abraham’s servant, often find ourselves asking "what if?" when it comes to God’s plans.  Our lack of trust in God’s ability to make good on his word promotes a skepticism that always seeks an "out" or a "contingency plan" before moving forward in faith.  Abraham’s rebuttal to the servant’s question is a confident confession of God’s demonstrated power in the past.  Abraham had seen God move in miraculous ways over the years and he was sure God would not disappoint in this situation. The action of God in the past is a sure indicator of how he will move in the present and the future because he acts according to promises, not whims. 

The Hebrew word hesed occurs four times in Genesis 24.  This word, while translated kindness in many Bible versions, literally means covenant faithfulness.  God delivers on his promises 100% of the time.  This is the truth Abraham took to the bank.  And its the truth that God wants us to embrace as well.

Do you trust the Lord?  Do you really trust him?  Are you willing to cast all your worry upon him?  Are you willing to stop living under the power of contingency plans and wholeheartedly embrace the life of faith?

May you stop asking, "What if?" and start saying, "He will!"

Several years ago, the fashion craze in Christian circles revolved around the letters WWJD (What Would Jesus Do?).  This is not a bad question to ask oneself.  After all, Jesus never sinned, so if we do what Jesus did we must be doing pretty well, right?  The challenge with slogans, however, is they are not equipped to communicate the fullness of truth on a given subject.  There is more to the story.

Doing for Jesus is necessary for sure.  James wrote that faith without works is dead (James 2:17), and a watching world definitely needs to see faith in action.  But doing is surely not the entire picture.  Lately, I have been drawn to the biblical exhortations that call us to allow Christ to transform our minds and thinking processes.  Just as important as giving Christ authority over our hands and feet is the daily surrender of our brains. 

We are frequently bombarded with images and messages that steer our brains away from Christ-centered thinking.  Even our fast pace of living can make it difficult to really reflect on a subject with any depth.  Our minds can skip from one superficial thought to another with relative ease, like a trapeze artist swinging from one set of waiting hands to another; we only dip so far before being yanked upward once again.

When Kristie and I were married a little over twenty years ago, we selected a congregational hymn to be sung during the ceremony.  The title of the hymn is May the Mind of Christ my Savior.  Here are the lyrics to this beautiful worship song:

May the mind of Christ, my Savior,
Live in me from day to day,
By His love and power controlling
All I do and say.

May the Word of God dwell richly
In my heart from hour to hour,
So that all may see I triumph
Only through His power.

May the peace of God my Father
Rule my life in everything,
That I may be calm to comfort
Sick and sorrowing.

May the love of Jesus fill me
As the waters fill the sea;
Him exalting, self abasing,
This is victory.

May I run the race before me,
Strong and brave to face the foe,
Looking only unto Jesus
As I onward go.

May His beauty rest upon me,
As I seek the lost to win,
And may they forget the channel,
Seeing only Him.

This hymn does a wonderful job of communicating the importance of loving God with our heart, body, and mind.  It represents the full story.  We are not only called to do what Jesus does.  We are also called to love like Jesus loves and think like Jesus thinks.

Paul, in his letter to the church in Philippi, wrote:

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.  (Philippians 4:8)

What messages and images are filling your mind?  Have you been allowing impure thoughts to dominate your thinking processes?  Remember, we have been called to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind (see Luke 10:27).  This week, allow your mind to be filled with the Word of God and the beauty of Christ.  WWJT (What Would Jesus Think?)!

As we approach the beginning of another school year, I’m sure there are many students who are dreading the numerous tests they will be taking in the coming months.  To many, tests represent a tremendous source of anxiety and stress because so much can be hanging in the balance depending upon a particular test score.  In general, we would rather not have to deal with the testing process.

However, in spite of how people may feel about tests, being confronted with the reality of regular testing does indeed serve an important purpose.  Tests present real challenges that must be met, and there is process of preparation that is undertaken if one desires a successful outcome. 

Rarely do Christians talk about the tests that God administers to his children.  We would much rather focus our discussions on the love, grace, and mercy of God rather than on the tests of God.  Yet scripture lets us know that because God loves us, he tests us; it is precisely because he extends grace and mercy that he also brings the occassional test, for it is through these tests that some very significant purposes are fullfilled.  Let’s look at a few of these important functions of God’s testing in our lives.

1) Testing affirms that we are in relationship to God because God tests people of faith.  One of the most intense stories of testing from the pages of scripture is the testing of Abraham in offering up his son Isaac as a sacrifice to the Lord (Gen. 22).

Some time later God tested Abraham.  He said to him, “Abraham!”  “Here I am,” he replied.  Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah.  Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about.” (Gen. 22:1-2) 

I, like Abraham, am the father of a son, and I cannot imagine the depth of emotion surging through one’s heart when hearing such commanding words that present, in many ways, the ultimate test.   Yet we need to remember that it is because Abraham is in deep, intimate relationship with God that a test of this nature is even possible.  Testing is born from relationship.  When God designs specific tests for our lives that are unique to our life situation, personality, level of emotional and spiritual maturity, and weaknesses, we can know that the individually tailored tests are meant for our good.  They are tests founded in love.

2) God uses testing to prove the true nature of our faith.

Recently, I went to Publix to purchase a few food items.  When I handed the cashier a twenty dollar bill, the employee promptly held the bill up to the light to make sure it was not counterfeit.  She wanted to guarantee it was a real twenty dollar bill.  God is looking for real followers, not those who exhibit a superficial, fake faith. 

When Abraham was confronted with God’s testing process, he rose to the challenge and demonstrated radical faith:

Early the next morning, Abraham got up and saddled his donkey.  He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac.  When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. (Gen. 22:3)

The tests we experience in life reveal the true nature of our faith and character.  Job, a man who knew horrendous suffering in life, said, “When he has tested me, I will come forth as gold” (Job 23:10).  The true essence of our faith comes forth out of seasons of testing and refining.  James writes, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” (James 1:2-4). 

3) The testing of our faith reveals our greatest treasure. 

Throughout Abraham’s test he remains remarkably focused on God, his ultimate treasure.  He is willing to offer up to God his most valued earthly treasure—Isaac, the child of the promise—for the sake of holding on to his relationship with God and remaining faithful in his worship of the One who alone is worthy of praise. 

Abraham’s conversation with his servants and Isaac on the journey to the region of Moriah is centered on worship and God’s miraculous provision.  He tells his servants, “We will worship and then we will come back to you” (Gen. 22:5).  In response to Isaac’s question about the location of the sacrifical lamb that will be used for the offering, Abraham responds, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering” (v.8).  The writer of Hebrews tells us that when Abraham was experiencing this incredible test he was trusting in God’s ability to raise the dead:

Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death. (Heb. 11:19)

The fact that Abraham trusted God and treasured him above all else reveals radical faith in the face of testing.  We know from the rest of this story that God did indeed provide an alternate sacrifice for Abraham and Isaac’s life was spared.  God’s provision of the sacrifice meant life for Abraham and Isaac.

This story of Abraham and Isaac, as extreme as it may seem, points us to the greater reality of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross for the atonement of our sins.  Martin Luther once read the story of Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac in his family devotions.  When he had finished, his wife Katie said simply, “I do not believe it.  God would not have treated his son like that.”  “But, Katie,” Luther answered, “he did!” 

You see, Isaac carried the wood for the sacrifice up the mountain; Christ carried the wooden cross.  Then, Christ’s resurrection from the dead, an event prefigured in Abraham’s belief that God could raise Isaac from the dead, is the defining event that gives us the power through God’s Spirit to remain faithful in our own seasons of testing. 

You may currently find yourself undergoing a time of testing in your life.  Be encouraged as you face the test, for by walking through it you will know more fully God’s personalized love, his faith-stretching call, and his miraculous provision along the journey. 

One of the most challenging truths for people to receive is the reality of God’s faithful love–that He loves us as we are, with all of our imperfections, weaknesses, sinful natures, shortcomings, and rebellious spirits. You see, we know, at least to a certain degree, yet definitely not in totality, the wickedness of our hearts and the darkness that ominously lurks beneath the surface of our lives. Jeremiah 17:9 says, "The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" Even our most faithful behaviors and thoughts are often tinged with the stain of impure, selfish motivation. However, it is right into the thick of these murky waters that God shines the light of love, grace, and redemption. When God in his sovereignty chooses us to be his children, and when we respond to this initiative of grace in faith, we experience new birth and begin the process of spiritual growth and transformation.

On my family’s recent vacation, we engaged in several games of wiffle ball with Kristie’s extended family. Prior to one of the games, I selected two people to be team captains who had the responsibility of selecting players for their respective teams. One of the captains selected was my daughter, Abbie. When it came time for Abbie to select her first player, she chose me. For a brief moment, I experienced some emotions that God must feel when the children he has graciously selected respond affirmatively to the divine choice.  

The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the church in Ephesus, wrote these powerful words: In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory (Eph. 1:11-12). 

Your chosenness by Christ is intended to result in praise to Christ.  One of the worship songs we sing at Crossroads contains this line: Every blessing You pour out, I’ll turn back to praise.  These words reveal a Christ follower’s desire to not hoard the blessing of God for selfish purposes, but to share the blessing with a desperate world–all for the glory of God.

I am thankful to be a part of Crossroads, a church that is full of people who are seeking to turn God’s blessings of chosenness and grace back to worship.  This worship of God then gets "fleshed out" in humble, loving service to others. 

The Cubs lost again last night.  Their relief pitching continues to offer up anything but relief.   Home run pitches?  Yes.  Bases on balls?  Yes.  Relief?  Not so much.  My perpetual frustration with the Cubs relief pitching has got me thinking about how important it is to discover true relief in this life.  

Our culture gives us a buffet of options when it comes to finding relief from the stresses, pains, and strains of life: various medications, exotic vacations, the purchase of a new car or home, etc.  But where are we to really turn when it’s the bottom of the ninth in our lives and we need certain relief, not speculative relief?

Psalm 111:1-9 speaks truth to our lives regarding the 100% reliable relief that can be found in the Lord:

Praise the Lord.  I will extol the Lord with all my heart in the council of the upright and in the assembly.

Great are the works of the Lord; they are pondered by all who delight in them.  Glorious and majestic are his deeds, and his righteousness endures forever. 

He has caused his wonders to be remembered; the Lord is gracious and compassionate.  He provides food for those who fear him; he remembers his covenant forever.

He has shown his people the power of his works, giving them the lands of other nations.  The works of his hands are faithful and just; all his precepts are trustworthy.  They are steadfast for ever and ever, done in faithfulness and uprightness.

He provided redemption for his people; he ordained his covenant forever–holy and awesome is his name.

In short, God delivers.  He never blows a save.  He can be completely trusted to get the job done and bring relief.  Our job is to trust Him, allow Him to take the mound at the center of our lives, and yield to His control of the game.  Why wouldn’t we?  After all, He’s undefeated….something I can’t say about the Cubs.

One of the biggest issues we face in our relationship with Christ revolves around God’s timing.  We often find ourselves asking questions such as… 

*How long, Lord, will I have to suffer with this illness?

*Lord, how long will I have to search before finding a job?

*Lord, when will this incredibly painful season of life finally end?

This morning I was reading in Genesis 21 and stumbled upon this sentence: Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him.

Seven words jumped off the page; they are seven words worth repeating and memorizing.  These seven words can transform pain and despair into a gleaming ray of hope.

The seven words are: at the very time God had promised.

Our faith is not based on worldly wishful thinking.  It is deeply rooted in God’s trustworthy promises and these promises are flawlessly fulfilled in God’s perfect timing. 

I recently returned from a family vacation which entailed traveling approximately 3,500 miles by minivan.  During this long roadtrip, I heard a song on the radio called While I’m Waiting.  The lyrics to this song spoke to my heart:

I’m waiting
I’m waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I’m waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait
I will move ahead, bold and confident
Taking every step in obedience
While I’m waiting
I will serve You
While I’m waiting
I will worship
While I’m waiting
I will not faint
I’ll be running the race
Even while I wait
I’m waiting
I’m waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I’m waiting on You, Lord
Though it’s not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait
I will serve You while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting
I will worship while I’m waiting on You, Lord

The words of this song communicate the truth that biblical waiting is not passive.  In Scripture, waiting is active, expectant, hopeful.  We serve, worship, and move ahead–while we wait for God’s promises to be fulfilled.

If you are in a "How long, O Lord?" season of life, don’t stop pressing forward.  Continue to worship and serve Christ.  He is the One who loves you and He is in the process of fulfilling His plan for your life–even while you wait.

There were a few years during my childhood when I celebrated my birthday at an ice cream parlour called Farrell’s.  This restaurant was an exciting party place because the Farrell’s employees took their hospitality responsibility seriously.  As the birthday boy, I would stand on my chair and the waiters and waitresses would run around the restaurant singing "Happy Birthday" while sirens were sounding and lights were flashing.  The atmosphere was festive, joyful, and full of life; in fact, if I remember correctly, this whole experience was called a "Three Ring Circus!"  The circus made me feel special. 

What if the church recaptured the importance of hospitality?  The Bible refers to hospitality quite often because of its significance in  furthering the Gospel message.  The word hospitality literally means to love a stranger.  As the church extends the love of Jesus Christ to strangers in the world, the mission of the church moves forward.  True hospitality puts people at ease, opens doors for meaningful conversations, and fosters an atmosphere of grace, all of which are key components in effective evangelism.

Ironically, in an American culture brimming with technological advances that make it easier for people to communicate, there is an overall increase in loneliness and depression.  Connecting over the Internet can never completely fill the need that humans have to develop meaningful, face-to-face, hospitable relationships.  To illustrate the incredible relational void that an overuse of Internet-based relationships can cause, consider a popular website that offers friend rental.  The home page of this particular website says:

RentAFriend.com is the largest "Rent A Friend" website on the net with thousands of Friends from all over the US & Canada available for rent.

Whether you are looking to hire a friendly companion to attend a social event or party with you, someone to introduce you to new people, or someone to go to movie or a restaurant with, RentAFriend.com can help. Hire a friend to show you around an unfamiliar town, teach you a new skill or hobby, or just someone for companionship.

If there is a market for friend rental in our culture, I believe there is a need for the church to practice radical hospitality and help people discover lasting, healthy, relationships in the body of Christ. 

Here are a few observations about Biblical hospitality and its relevance for the mission of the church today:

1)  In the ancient world, people were often dependent upon hospitality for survival.  In hot, arid regions where people often lived as nomads, a timely cup of water or piece of bread could often mean the difference between life and death.  How would your actions change if you loved others, including strangers, as if their lives were on the line?

2)  Loving and serving people is connected to loving and serving Christ.  In the Bible there is a close connection between hospitality and the presence of God.  Matthew 25 records these words of Jesus that illustrate this point:

Then the King will say to those on his right, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.  For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me."  Then the righteous will answer him, "Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?"

The King will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."

3)  Hospitality is looking out for the overlooked.  Our tendency as humans is to gravitate toward comfortable relationships that are based on affinity and similarity.  Often, we are even guilty of doing some type of cost-benefit analysis to determine whether investing in a particular relationship is "worth our time" or if a particular person has anything of benefit to offer us in the fulfillment of our agendas.  Jesus offers some radical words on this subject:

Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid.  But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed.  Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."  (Luke 14:12-14)

In the midst of a culture screaming for meaningful friendships, the church finds herself in a wonderful position to live hospitably and, through the radical love expressed to strangers, lives will be forever changed; strangers will encounter and receive Christ, thus discovering the greatest Friend.

According to a Barna Research Group study, if a child is not regulary active in the life of the church by age 12, the chances of them becoming active drops dramatically in their teen years and beyond.  The research shows that adults who attended church regularly as children are nearly three times as likely to be attending a church today as their peers who did not attend church during childhood (61% to 22%, respectively).

One of the things these statistics tell us is that families in general, and parents in particular, play a crucial role in the spiritual formation of children.  Parents cannot abdicate their responsibility to disciple their children and expect someone else to pick up the slack.  Deuteronomy 6:5-7 says:

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.  Impress them on your children.  Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

Whether you are a parent, grandparent, aunt, or uncle, you have the God-given responsibility, through your words and actions, to point the children in your family toward Jesus Christ and the church.  Don’t buy the lie that if you talk about Jesus in the home and make your child go to church they will end up hating you, the church, and God.  Impress the truth on your children through intentional, spiritual conversations.  Sit around the dinner table, have a time of family devotions, and pray together.  You’ll never regret it because you will be fulfilling the most important role of a parent. 

Susanna Wesley (1669-1742), the mother of John Wesley who was the founding father of Methodism, had 19 children, although only ten of them lived beyond their childhood years.  Susanna would fervently pray for her children and guide them in spiritual matters.  In one of her letters, Susanna writes these words about the spiritual education of her children:

Though the education of so many children must create abundance of trouble, and will perpetually keep the mind employed as well as the body; yet I consider it no small honor to be entrusted with the care of so many souls.  And if that trust be but managed with prudence and integrity, the harvest will abundantly recompense the toil of the seed-time; and it will be certainly no little inheritance to the future glory to stand forth at the last day and say, ‘Lord, here are the children which Thou hast given me, of whom I have lost none by my ill example, nor by neglecting to instill into their minds, in their early years, the principles of Thy true religion and virtue!’

Starting this Sunday, Crossroads is offering a wonderful opportunity to partner with families in the discipleship and spiritual education of children.  Egypt: Joseph’s Journey from Prison to Palace is the summer VBS ministry that will run from Sunday, June 13 through Thursday, June 17.  VBS will go from 6:30-8:30 each night.  Don’t miss this opportunity to bring your children, grandchildren, nephews, nieces, and neighbors to hear the Gospel! 

Nearly every day I have conversations with people about the impact of the current economic recession.  Many people have lost their jobs and, even among those who have managed to keep them, the work hours, pay, and benefits have often been greatly reduced.  Yet, in the middle of the economic crisis, there is a consistent stream of testimony giving witness to the fact that God does indeed provide what we need.

When Jesus taught his disciples to pray, he told them to include this line: "Give us each day our daily bread" (see Matthew 11:3).  Perhaps one of the silver linings of the economic downturn is the refocusing of our lives.  Lean times have a way of forcing us to live fully in the present and trust God in the moment.  The Lord’s Prayer calls for God’s miraculous provision each day.  We are not taught to pray for enough bread for the week, month, or year.  Daily bread will suffice.

George Mueller, a Christian evangelist who started orphanages in England and cared for over 10,000 orphans in his lifetime, relied completely on God to provide for the vast needs of the children.  He had a personal policy of never asking for money to support the ministry.  He and his wife would simply pray and trust God.  Regarding this radical stance, Mueller writes in his autobiography:

Some may say that such a way of life leads a Christian away from the Lord and from caring about spiritual things.  They say it may cause the mind to be occupied with questions like: "What shall I eat, what shall I drink, and what shall I wear?"  I have experienced both ways and know that my present manner of living by trusting God for temporal things is connected with less care.  Trusting the Lord for the supply of my temporal needs keeps me from anxious thoughts like: "Will my salary last and will I have enough for the next month?"  In this freedom I am able to say, "My Lord is not limited.  He knows my present situation, and He can supply all I need."  Rather than causing anxiety, living by faith in God alone keeps my heart in perfect peace.

I believe the present recession offers a wonderful opportunity for followers of Jesus Christ to demonstrate peaceful living in turbulent, anxious times.  Since our God knows our situations, there is no need to live in a state of anxiety.  Jesus told his disciples, "Do not worry about your life."  Interestingly, this statement comes right after a portion of teaching in which Jesus states, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal."  In other words, I think Jesus makes the connection between anxiety and an abundance of earthly treasure.  The more we have, the more tempted we are to put our ultimate trust in the bank account balance, and this will inevitably lead to perpetual nervousness.

Wherever we find ourselves in today’s economic climate, may we all be encouraged to pray for God’s daily provision.  And may we be content with daily bread so we can discover the peace that comes by allowing God to care for us.