Pandemic

“And David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.”

I Samuel 30:6 KJV

I think it’s important to pause and remind ourselves how much we rely on other voices and events to keep us encouraged. I think that if most people were to be honest (I am trying to be), we rely on surrounding stimuli (voices and activities) to keep us built up, positive, and excited. Nothing wrong with that. We all need it to some degree. But what do you do when all your “other” voices and events are no longer accessible? What do you do when the vast majority of the culture is speaking negatively, predicting doom and gloom, or the events you count on to give you your weekly dose of encouragement are cancelled? I believe the answer to those questions provide another metric in evaluating your maturity.

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“And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.”

Jeremiah 29:13 NKJV

There was a popular bumper sticker that Christians used for years which had a simple 3-word statement, “I Found God”, or “I found IT”. The intention I suppose was well-meaning, but the precision was atrocious. God is not an “It”, He is a person; nor did we “find” Him. He was never lost, we were. But I am sure to untold millions their conversion experience was understood through the filter of, “Look what I found”. The truth is, each one of us before we were “saved” were dead in our trespass and sins and blind to our need of Christ. We were incapable of finding much of anything spiritual from the Lord. It was the Lord who initiated this search through grace and graciously awakened us to our need of Him and in response, we said “Yes”. He sought us. He pursued us. His amazing, relentless mission staggers the imagination.

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So she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in a jar; and see, I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.”

I Kings 17:12 NKJV

The greatest of miracles always take place in the most desperate of circumstances. Like most people, I love an amazing supernatural intervention of God in my life. I just hate the environment in which that mostly occurs. I love the inspiration of the ensuing testimony that I might post on social media or the new illustration I might use for a new message, but I am paralyzed by the thoughts of enduring the circumstances which need His assistance.

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“…And the government will be upon His shoulder…”

Isaiah 9:6

Government is God’s idea. In the simplest of terms, government at its root is the manner of ordering, administrating, organizing, or regulating a people, organization, or nation. God is a God of order. Government is not “evil”, as the anarchists and radical libertarians might want you to believe. Government as a form or structure can be compared to a gun which alone is morally neutral. What makes a gun (or government) good or evil is the one whose finger is on the trigger and what it is used for. You can have a biblical form of government, but if tyrants are calling the shots, it can still be used for great evil. You may have a secular form of government, but if the righteous are in charge, then blessing and wisdom can be established. Governments can be (and are) a frustrating thing, no doubt, but I think it’s important to be reminded again that government is God’s idea.

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“But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he hardened his heart and did not heed them, as the Lord had said.”

Exodus 8:15

“But Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also; neither would he let the people go.”

Exodus 8:32

“And when Pharaoh saw that the rain, the hail, and the thunder had ceased, he sinned yet more; and he hardened his heart, he and his servants.”

Exodus 9:34

Excruciating plagues can do one of two things to a person. It can either cause the person to repent and turn to God -or- it can exponentially harden one’s heart. The 10 plagues recorded in the Exodus account acknowledges just this truth. As the plagues were systematically released in Egypt, some in Pharaoh’s kingdom actually soften. However, the one and only one who can make the decision to release the Israelites from slavery is growing more hard-hearted by the minute. I am drawn to this reality today because I am asking myself the question (as well as considering the question on a national level), will this pandemic soften people towards the Lord -or- will they grow all the more hard-hearted?

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