The Everyday Prayer

Re: Verse reading–Genesis 41:25-57, 45:4-8 (day one)
“Since God has made all this known to you, there is no one so discerning and wise as you.”  (v 39)  “So heavenly-minded that they are of no earthly good” is an accusation frequently hurled at believers.  It isn’t true.  Not always.  Joseph is an example of a man who has both spiritual insight and practical wisdom.  Able to interpret Pharaoh’s dream.  Able also to recommend positive steps to prepare for the coming famine.  Practical.  Bottom-line-wise.  Notice Pharaoh’s words.  “No one is as discerning (able to see the truth) or wise (knows what to do with the truth that is seen)”.  As followers of Christ, we are to see invisible things with spiritual eyes.  We are also to be very practical as we deal with material realities.  Budgets, health care, leadership strategies, timely communication. . .none of these are contrary to a spiritual life.  “Select from among you, brethren, seven men. . .full of the Spirit AND wisdom.”  (Acts 6:3)

Re: Verse reading–Ruth 1:1-19 (day seven)
“Go back each of you. . .Turn back, my daughters, go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. . .and bear sons.” (v 8, 12)  At one level it seems unselfish of Naomi.  She doesn’t want to be a burden to her daughters-in-law.  At another level, it is very unwise of her to speak to them this way.  “Go back”?  What was she thinking?  She was thinking of herself and her own limited capacities!  Note her focus.  I am too old to have a husband.  I cannot give you sons to marry.  Maybe you recognize the trap of the enemy.  Whenever we focus on ourselves and our own resources the path of faith appears impossible.  Only as the God of glory and mercy and infinite creativity comes into view are we led to follow forward with our eyes on Him.  “With God all things are possible.”  (Matthew 19:26)  Shall we go back?  No!  Forward!

Re: Verse reading-Ruth 1:1-19 (day six)
“The hand of the Lord has turned against me.” (v 14)  We are all  prone to it.  I don’t know why.  Rather than look at our own choices and attitudes, we tend to blame God for the outcomes of our lives.  Naomi is a believer.  Her early faith influenced  Ruth.  But the death of her husband and then her sons has changed her, caused her to believe that God has turned against her,  become her adversary.  Strange logic.  It was not God who sent the Elimelech family to Moab.  It is not God who sponsored death into the world.  Thankfully, Naomi will soon return to her original faith.  At the end of the story, a grandson is born to Naomi and hope is reborn.  It will be a Job-like moment for Naomi.  “I have declared that which I did not understand. . .I retract, and repent.” (Job 42:3,6)  May it be so for all who blame God.

Re: Verse reading–Ruth 1:1-19 (day five)
“The Lord grant that you may find SECURITY, each of you in the house of your husband.” (v 8)  Naomi is not thinking clearly.  She frames her ideas in religious language (“The Lord grant you. . .”) but her advice is not wise when she counsels Orpah and Ruth to seek security in Moab.  The Hebrew word  means “resting place, a place unruled by anxiety”.  Naomi makes a common mistake.  We all are tempted to think that security can be found in circumstances.  In marriage.  In a better job.  Perhaps Naomi is worried by the discrimination these women will likely face in Israel.  Perhaps she is so disappointed by her own faith-journey that she no longer remembers the true truth.  THERE IS NO SECURITY EXCEPT IN GOD.   I am grateful today for the gospel. “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”  (Romans 5:1)  “Come unto Me,  I will give you rest” says the Lord.  (Matthew 11:28)

Re: Verse reading–Ruth 1:1-19a (day four)
Today is Independence Day.  To live in freedom is a great blessing.  Freedom is the opposite of oppression or enslavement.  There are many things that can oppress us in life…Naomi and Ruth were oppressed by their circumstances.  The culture of the day dictated how they could survive financially after the death of their husbands.  God provided for their needs and brought freedom.  To follow the blessing to the final result, Ruth and Boaz had a son who carried on the lineage leading to the birth of King David and ultimately the Savior.  What is it that has you enslaved?  Is it sin?  Is it a difficult relationship?  Is it a financial need?  Is it the circumstances of your life or the culture surrounding you?  There is freedom in Christ.  Just as Ruth placed her life in the hands of Boaz, we can place our lives in the hands of Christ.  The freedom He brings is true freedom.

Re: Verse reading–Ruth 1-4 (day three)
“And they named him Obed.  He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.”  If you reckon that a matter will end the way it began, you will be far more than disappointed; you will be correct.  You will stop working for what could be if you’ve already resigned yourself to the way things are.  When you begin to understand that the universe doesn’t run on a clock but instead on a mind, you will seek to think God’s thoughts after him.  It is arrogance that says things can only proceed the way they first appear.  It is hope that says with God, all things are possible.

Re: Verse reading–Ruth 1:1-19a (day two)
There are many unique characters in the Bible. Murderers turned into leaders. Prostitutes turned into followers. The portrait of many Bible characters is not very flattering, and you’ll find children’s Bibles selectively retelling their stories. Occasionally, you come across people whom you’d actually like for your children to imitate. Ruth and Boaz are two of them. Ruth is unflinchingly dedicated and ready to trust God. She works hard and respects authority. She is articulate and brave in the presence of foreigners and earns a good reputation. Who wouldn’t want their daughter to be like her? Boaz is a good manager and a generous man. He shows kindness to the needy and respect for his ancestors. He refuses to circumvent the law and is willing to redeem even a foreign woman in need of his care. Most contrary to American norms, he is attracted to Ruth because she is a “woman of noble character” (3:11). Who wouldn’t want their son to be like him?

Re: Verse reading–Ruth 1:1-19a (day one)
When Jesus said “Blessed are the poor in spirit”, (Matthew 5:3)  He pointed to an essential moment in spiritual life.  The moment when we realize how impoverished we are in spiritual insight and power.  “I once was blind” was John Newton’s description.  How else can we come to the grace of God until we realize our desperate need?  It was happening in Ruth’s heart when she verbalized her famous words to Naomi.  Naomi had been the truest friend she had ever had.  Naomi’s God was a huge factor in Ruth’s hunger to hang on.  Imagine if people said the same to us!  “Do not press me to leave you or turn back from following you.  Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people will be my people, and your God my God.” (v 16)  Desperate for God is good.  Leaves us hungry and hanging on, searching for more.

Re: Verse reading–1 Samuel 1:1-20 (day seven)
“This man used to go up year by year . . .to worship. . .the Lord of hosts at Shiloh.”  (v 3)  It is the first time we ever see it in Scripture.  God’s name.  Lord of hosts.  It means “God of ARMIES of angels” and (after this reference) appears in the Bible over 300 times. How did Elkanah and/or Hannah retain such a clear vision of God’s power in a day as spiritually defeated as theirs?  Does life ever get you down?  Do you allow daily disappointments to cloud your confidence that God has enormous power at His disposal?  Even facing barrenness, this couple never lost perspective on God’s character and strength.  “Do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?” said Jesus on the night of His arrest. (Matthew 26: 53)  We will not fear.  We worship the Lord of hosts.

Re: Verse reading–1 Samuel 1:1-20 (day six)
“Then the woman went to her quarters, ate and drank with her husband, and her countenance was sad no longer.”  (v 18)  It is a strange power that prayer has.  “A peace that passes understanding” is the way the Bible describes it.  Nothing has changed for Hannah.  Not materially.  She is still barren.  Still trapped in a dysfunctional family.  But her countenance reveals a deep inner transformation.  Her face is no longer sad because her heart is no longer defeated.  People who pray report this positive result.  The problems remain but somehow we are different!  “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. . .while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things that are not seen; for the things that are seen are temporal, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”  (2 Corinthians 4:16, 18)