The Best Bargain of All

 “The poor will eat and be satisfied; they who seek the Lord will praise

 him – may your hearts live forever!” Psalm 22:26 (NIV)

 

My husband loved to shop for groceries. The only problem was that he almost always shopped on his way home from work in the evening. Translation: he walked down each aisle with an empty stomach and came home with an empty wallet.

  If that wasn’t enough, a strange phenomenon occurred. My husband’s poor memory: (“Huh? You asked me to take out the trash? When? I don’t seem to recall . . .”) suddenly came alive and he was able to remember every name-brand food item ever seen on television! And THAT translated into a huge grocery bill made up of items that we absolutely did not need.

  Another big part of that phenomenon included so-called bargains. If it appeared to be a good deal, the bargain found a resting place in my husband’s grocery cart. For example, he was very excited about the twelve jars of baby food advertised at $3.00 off but we didn’t have a baby. And yes, the sack of cat food on sale for $6.00 off WAS a steal . . . IF you owned a cat!

  Walking in a grocery store with an empty stomach can be costly. But even more costly is walking through life without a relationship with Jesus.  Please hear my heart on this one: we can shop around to find something else to fill our “shopping carts.” And In our hunger to fill the void inside each of us, we can look for bargains that we don’t really need, like a bigger home or a more expensive vehicle. We may even try filling our carts with drugs or alcohol or time spent in chat rooms on the internet.

In our emptiness, we may search for the perfect bargain and overlook the Perfect One who meets all our needs and satisfies our hunger as nothing else can. My husband came home with grocery “bargains” that he would never have bought if his physical hunger had been satisfied.

  In the same way, when our spiritual hunger is filled with a relationship with Jesus, we will avoid falling into the trap of filling our hearts with “bargains” we do not need. Satisfy your spiritual hunger with a “shopping cart” filled with mercy, love, and forgiveness from the Lord and you will never need to shop for “bargains” again.  

 

Father, I am so grateful that you desire a relationship with me. Thank you for filling up the emptiness in my heart.  In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

 

R.A.P. it up

 Reflect

• Have you ever tried to fill the emptiness of your life with “bargains” that did not satisfy?

• Did you feel “full” of satisfaction or still empty?

Apply

• Journal each “bargain” that you have ever considered to fill the hunger in your heart. Beside each one, journal whether or not your hunger was satisfied. 

• Then look up a Scripture that shows how Jesus can fill that hunger, write it down and praise Him for His faithfulness.

Power

• Psalm 22:26 (NIV) “The poor will eat and be satisfied; they who seek the Lord will praise him – may your hearts live forever!”

• Romans 15:13 (NIV) “May the God of hope fill you with joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

• Matthew 5:6 (NIV) “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Listen for the Voice

                                         “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock.  If anyone

hears my voice and opens the door, I will

come in and eat with him,

and he with me.”

Revelation 3:20 (NIV)

 

            The crowd coming out of the church auditorium was especially talkative one Sunday morning several years ago. Hundreds of voices with different pitches, tones, and accents joined together in laughter and friendly chatter throughout the foyer and down the hallways.

             Suddenly, in the middle of all the commotion, one voice instantly caught my attention. It was a sweet little voice quietly calling over and over “Gaamaa! Gaamaa! I’s here. I’s coming!”

             I quickly knelt down among the sea of people and saw the source of that voice. My two-year-old granddaughter Ella. She had seen me in the crowd and was calling my name, trying to get my attention.

            How did I recognize Ella’s voice out of all the others? After all, she wasn’t screaming or yelling. It’s simple. I spent a lot of time with her because I love her. I listened to her tell me stories she made up. I was familiar with her voice because I heard it almost daily.

             Let me ask you something: isn’t that the way we should be when it comes to the Lord? If we spend time with Him daily, it should not be hard to recognize His voice in this loud, screaming world that demands our attention.

             Revelation 3:20 is very clear in what it says and what it doesn’t say. “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”

             It doesn’t say that Jesus is beating on the door of your heart. He isn’t demanding to be heard. He isn’t threatening you if you don’t answer. What it does say is that He is simply standing quietly and knocking as he waits for you to hear His voice and open your life up to Him.

             Something else occurred to me. Jesus doesn’t say that He only knocks at the door on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. He doesn’t whisper your name on Sunday mornings and leave you on Sunday evenings.

             He never ever stops calling your name! He stands, waiting for you to give Him permission to live in your heart.  And when you open the door, He never leaves. Ever.

             The only way we will recognize the voice of the One standing at the door and calling us is to be in His word – every day. And as we seek Him, His voice will become more clear in our lives and the distractions of the world will fade away.

             Listen for the voice of Jesus – you can hear it!

 

Father, I get so distracted by the voices of this world instead of hearing your voice. Please help me to find time to meet you in your Word. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

R.A.P. it up

 

Reflect

·         Have you ever felt like you could not hear the voice of the Lord in your heart because the demanding voices of the world were louder?

 

·         Can you identify a moment where you realized heard less of the Lord and more of the world??

 

Apply

·         Journal all the voices of the world that crave your attention. Make a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the quietest and 10 being the loudest voice. Rank each worldly voice along with the voice of the Lord.

 

·         Determine which voice has the power to change your life for the better. Then throw out all the competition and focus on the Truth from the one who stands at the door and quietly knocks.

 

Power

·         Revelation 3:20 (NIV) “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”

 

·         Jeremiah 33:3 (NIV) “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”

 

·         Psalm 5:3 (NIV) “In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.”

 

 

 

 

Delay With a Purpose

  

 

“’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your

 ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher

 than the earth, so are my ways higher than your

 ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”

Isaiah 55:8-9 (NIV)

 

            I had our trip all planned. My granddaughter Ella and I were driving to Kansas City. Car packed: check. Seat belts on: check. Stopped to fill up the car at the gas station: check. Well, semi-check.

            We pulled up to the pump and she hopped out to get a drink and stepped into something that appeared to be a mixture of kitty litter and silly putty. Her new flip-flops were covered. Delay #1.

             “Just hit them together and we will pull around to another pump,” I told her. But as she did that, the mixture went everywhere: in the car, in her hair, on her clothes. Everywhere! Delay #2.

             We pulled around to another pump and wiped off as much of the gunk as we could with a towel. And she went inside for her drink as I slid my card, hit the buttons and tried to pump the gas into my car tank. Again and again. Nothing. Delay #3.

             After the third try, I walked into the gas station and found out that I had picked the one pump that occasionally gave customers problems. “Try again, please” I was instructed. Delay #4.

             I did – a fourth time. Nothing. But finally on the fifth try it worked! Hallelujah! The car was filled up, the drink was purchased, seat belts were on and we finally left town after a 30-minute delay.

             A delay that had us shaking our heads in frustration but one that quickly changed to praise and thanksgiving a few miles from our destination. There had been a wreck.

             A semi had swerved back and forth on the highway before running off the right side and into a huge ditch, destroying a long metal protective rail in the process. The highway patrol and two ambulances plus several other vehicles were lined up along the side of the road.

             It instantly occurred to us that if we had not had all the delays before leaving town, we could have been exactly where that wreck occurred. What a great reminder for us of God’s protection and plan for our lives!

                 Isaiah 55:8-9 says 'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”

I get upset and frustrated over trains stopped on tracks and long lines in grocery stores because I have MY lists and MY priorities for MY life. And I seldom stop and consider that the delays I experience may be part of God’s plan for me. My timeline is not always the same as His and I truly believe that my checklist is not a top priority for Him either.

If you struggle with your plans not going as you think they should, join me in deciding to stop, take a breath, and consider that God has your delay planned for a purpose.

 

Father, forgive me when I act like I know better how to lead my life. Help me to look less at my check lists and more in your Word to guide me. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

R.A.P. it up

Power

• Isaiah 55:8-9 (NIV) “’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”
• Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV) “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”
• II Thessalonians 3:3 (NIV) “But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.”
• John 10:10 (NIV) “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
• Psalm 46:1 (NIV) “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”

 

            

My Hiding Place

 “You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.” Psalm 32:7 (NIV)

 

 “Come find us, Grandma! Bet you can’t find us!” the voices giggled and then were immediately silent. I stood at the back door of my daughter’s house and looked around the yard.

 

Not in the playhouse. Not behind the shed. No one in the loft of the swing set. I scanned once more and then I saw it: a small chunk of dirt at the top of the huge dirt pile that my son-in-law had deposited by the fence was evidently knocked loose by an unseen force and tumbled to the ground.

 

I pulled back the green lid from the sandbox that had been pulled over the dirt pile to find a rather large hole and two dirty little faces grinning at me. “How do you like our hiding place?” they asked me together. “I love it!” I replied. “Tell me how you did it.”

 

 Ella and Jude explained that they had used two small buckets and a shovel to dig a hole wide enough for them both to fit in and then pulled the lid to their sandbox up the side of the “mountain” to cover the hole.

 

“You know why we did that? It’s ‘cause of that crazy dog that keeps coming around. We know we can hide in there and we are safe from that dog!” explained Ella. “And bad guys! Don’t forget the bad guys!” Jude chimed in. “They can’t find us in our hiding place!”

 

I love Psalm 32:7. The Lord is my hiding place. I know without a doubt that I am safe with Him and that He will protect me. He delivers me from “crazy dogs” and “bad guys” every single day of my life.

 

What is your hiding place? Where do you take refuge when the tough times slam into your life? Some will hide in their careers or their wealth; others will choose drugs, including alcohol. Still others will hide behind an outward appearance of indifference to whatever is going on around them.

 

These hiding places may seem to help for a while but they are just temporary and will only protect from the “dogs” and “bad guys” for a short time.

 

On the other hand, a permanent hiding place, with the Creator of the Universe, will provide a refuge for us to heal, receive His mercy, and be strengthened for what lies ahead.

Don Moen wrote a song based on Psalm 32:7 that begins this way: “You are my hiding place. I run to You. I need Your mercy and grace to see me through. So I run to You.” Where is your hiding place?

 

Lord, I long to hide in the shelter of your wings when everything around me seems to be falling apart. Thank you for covering me with your love. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

 

 

R.A.P. it up . . .

 

Reflect

• When situations come up that are difficult, where or who do you turn to first?

 

• Is that refuge temporary or permanent?

 

Apply

• Memorize Psalm 32:7 and sing it as praise to the Lord.

 

• Journal Scriptures that talk about the hiding place that the Lord has offered to you each and every day.

 

Power

• Psalm 32:7 (NIV) “You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.”

 

• Psalm 31:19 (NIV) “How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you.”

 

• Psalm 31:2 (NIV) “Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.”