It Don't Come Easy

Our reading during this time period includes the book of Job—the book of HARD questions about suffering and the nature of God. Rabbi Harold Kushner, in his book, When Bad Things Happen To Good People, looks at this story of Job’s sufferings, his friends’ counsel, and God’s involvement. He notes three statements which everyone in the book, and most of its readers would like to be able to believe:

A. God is all powerful and causes everything that happens. Nothing happens without God willing it.

B. God is just and fair, and stands for people getting what they deserve, so that the good prosper and the wicked are punished.

C. Job is a good person.

As long as Job is healthy and prosperous, we can believe all three. But when Job loses everything and suffers, we have a problem. We can no longer make sense of all three propositions together. We can only affirm any two, IF we reject the third.

Job’s friends are prepared to stop believing (C). They want to “comfort” him by telling him that God is just and fair and in control, and we all get what we’ve got coming. Blaming the victim is still popular today! Job maintains his innocence, and is prepared to reject (B). Perhaps God is so powerful that God is not bound by concepts like justice or fairness.

The author of Job takes a position that neither Job nor his friends take. He is prepared to give up his belief in (A): that God is all powerful. Bad things do happen to good people in this world, but it is not God who wills it. Sometimes cruelty and chaos and havoc claim innocent victims. To do so changes the question from, “God, why are you doing this to me?” to “God, see what is happening to me. Can you help me?” _ Dr. Steve Winter, Executive Pastor

Books Tell of Faithful Servants

I hope you have had an opportunity to catch up on your Bible reading – or at least to get to the book of Nehemiah and Esther. If you haven’t, you may want to just go ahead and read them today! I think you will discover that both of these books are engaging, encouraging and wonderful reflections of God’s willingness to use ordinary human beings to do extraordinary things.

As I read these the accounts of these two faithful servants of God, I made a few observations that I think can be applied to my life and yours! I hope that you will find them to be inspiring and helpful:

Nehemiah

Nehemiah began a task (rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem) – that appeared to be impossible and many sought to stop him. Yet, with God’s help, Nehemiah was able to complete the task before him.

Nehemiah didn’t try to do this big task alone – but along with God’s help, he strategically invited other people to participate in the mission with him.

Nehemiah never gave up – no matter what obstructions or complications came along.

Nehemiah believed in God, worshiped God, gave thanks to God and prayed to God.

Esther

Esther was a humble orphan who became a powerful queen – and she allowed herself and the position she found herself in to be used by God in order to save her people.

I love that before taking the risk of approaching the king, Esther, along with her community, fasted and prayed.

Esther risked her own life in order to save the lives of many and the risk paid off!! And her story is still told today.

Friends, oh that we would be people who make ourselves available to God – to be used by God, in whatever ways God calls us. Oh, that we would be people who invite others to join us in ministry. Oh, that we would be people who are persistent in serving and doing good. Oh, that we would be people who believe, worship and pray to God. Friends, oh that we would be people who make ourselves available to God. Oh, that we would be people who before making big decisions would fast and pray. Oh, that we would be people who lay down our lives – in order to bring life to others.

See – the Bible is still relevant to our lives today!

I am praying that God will speak into your life, as we continue together in this adventure of reading the Bible. _ Rev. Wendy Cordova, pastor of Evangelism and Lay Ministry.

Finding Joy in God's Presence

Are you as tired as I am of the flip-flop nature of the kings of Israel and Judah. One king does what is evil in the sight of the Lord. The next king does what is good and right in the sight of the Lord. One king kills all his family. The other king prospers with God’s blessings and is buried near David and his ancestors. One king has no one show up for his funeral. The next king has thousands giving thanks for his leadership as his life is celebrated and his body buried. My head is spinning at this ebb and flow of faithfulness to disobedience to faithfulness again.

Here’s my question: Why is so difficult for us to get it? Why can’t we see that faithfulness is the way of blessing, and disobedience is the way of curse? Why are we so thick-skulled and hard-hearted? How can a son of a great king like Hezekiah not follow in the steps of his father’s faithfulness? Was Hezekiah a great king while at the same time being a horrible father to his own son? I guess that it is always possible because we see it in our time. Our greatest leaders can be so consumed in their leadership they forget their primary place of leadership in the family.

But I have a hunch (call it a "spiritual nudge") that there is a lesson here that is important for me and maybe for you to digest. And that lesson is the capacity of the human spirit to miss the joy of God’s presence is large. God never gives up on me or you, but God will not force God’s way into our life. God will do all that can be done to love us into relationship but it is ultimately up to us to desire God’s presence and thus follow God’s ways.

I pray that we will all "do what is good and right in the sight of God." If we do, then blessings and life will follow. - Dr. Terry Walton, senior pastor