A Famine to Fear - Amos 8:5,11

In a day when regular Church attendance by God's own people is going down, these words of Amos remain hugely relevant. When we spend the day God has given us to worship Him thinking more of the other things we could be doing for our own 'profit' we have forgotten that our greatest, our only eternal, profit is Jesus

We do not gather to tick a box, but to enjoy the presence, hear the voice and be reminded of the mission of the one whose love for us is perfect. When we think little of such a privilege, or even despise it (if not in words but certainly by our actions), we need to consider the alternative ... a famine of hearing God's word, His loving voice, His gentle leading, His compassionate words of peace.

If we are those who truly 'love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength', then our hearts will long to spend time with God and with His people, and will shudder at the thought of being cut off from hearing his voice.

This passage in Amos was a call of love to a loved but foolish people, ... and it still is.

A Heart seeking Jesus - 2 Chronicles 12:14

Uninspiring verse? Actually, no. For every believing Christian it should both warn and inspire.

You see, being a Christian is about an intimate relationship. It is living and walking with the Lord that is the privilege of the true Christian.

A relationship is always an act of the will as well as of the heart. And therefore as we come to Christ we are not only led to trust in Him but to walk with Him, following him where He leads, joyfully doing what He desires.

Any vital relationship chooses to keep the heart steadfast on the one who is loved, and to turn from other calls. So, to not have a heart set upon the Lord is to have a 'roving eye', looking for other loves. We cannot say that we love Jesus if we're also looking elsewhere. And an intimate relationship with Him requires that He is our only love.

So, there is a warning here ... Is my heart set on Jesus, am I looking only to Him? And there is huge inspiration ... A heart set on Jesus (which is not difficult because this is the work of His Spirit in us), as His heart is set on us, leads to that close walk that every Christian should hunger for.

Go and tell - Acts 5:20-21

The Apostles had just been arrested and would be tried the next day. Opposition was arising all the more. These were dangerous times. But the Lord's command through the Angel was simple: "Go ... and tell the people about this new life".

It wasn't to be done inside their churches or in backstreets, but where everyone gathered, and where the opposition seemed to be the strongest. Why? Because we have a God who longs to save. He is enthroned, and He laughs at the schemes of men against Him (Ps 2). He is mighty to save! And so we are not to hide in the shadows and cower in fear, but to go and proclaim the gospel - His New Life - wherever and whenever we can. It is only in obedience that we will see His salvation power at work through us.

We are in a day when people will not easily come into church buildings to hear about this new life we have in Jesus. His command to go does not diminish in times of opposition, but rings all the louder in our days.

Absolute trust enables good hearing - Matthew 16:6-8

Strange verses. But important. This little incident is included at the end of some major miracles and teaching and so stands out as a bit weird. But the Bible isn't merely recording that the disciples are slow to catch on!

What Jesus tells them is that their lack of ability to understand Jesus' words is directly linked to them not putting all their trust in Him.

Faith is repentance from the rebellion that turns from God's way to absolute and total trust in God and His way. A young child who absolutely trusts every word of their parent doesn't put their preconceived ideas before the word of their parent, and so when their parent holds out their arms and says 'jump' takes him/her at their word and jumps into their arms. Lack of trust in their parent would cause them to think of the impossibility of the task, the potential pitfalls, the other things they might do instead, or their preferred action - they would lose the pleasure of ultimate trust that throws oneself on the care and love of the parent.

And so, when we read God's word, we too can be like the disciples and not actually hear what God is saying because we're not living in the joy of absolute abandoned trust in Jesus.

So, do I need to hear Jesus' reprimand too? Is my trust in him so absolute that I hear His words clearly? Immediately after this Jesus says 'Who do you say that I am?'. This is the vital question ... Is He really the Son of the Living God, the one in who I can and do put all my trust?

God is at work, even in our darkest hours! ... 1 Samuel 28-30.

Saul was about to die.  David was in a really difficult position because he was required to go to battle against his own people.  He was there because he didn't trust in God's protection and stay in the Land God had promised.  And, we are meant to see that David could not have known that Saul was about to die ... it was revealed to Saul, far away at night.

Despite David's foolishness in being in this position, God arranged it that the other Philistine commanders should cause David to be sent away so he didn't have to fight against God's people.  Wow! ... God was at work protecting David and keeping him from the disastrous consequences of a foolish decision.  With what praise must David have been travelling back to Ziklag, where he was living amongst the Philistines!

But, just as they arrived back at Ziklag he found disaster ... the Amalekites had taken Ziklag and burnt it, taking all David and his men's possessions, their wives and children - everything.  It looked like total disaster!  They wept until they were exhausted with weeping.

David did the right thing - he enquired of the Lord.  And God told him to pursue after the Amalekites.

Well a lot of things happened, including finding a slave who the Amalekites just happened (!!) to leave behind who could tell them where they had gone.  So, David and his men came upon the Amalekites and not only took back their wives and children and all the things that had been taken from them, but also destroyed the Amalekites and took all the other plunder that the Amalekites had taken from many places.

Now, disaster turned into triumph.  But it was a triumph far, far greater than they even then could understand.

You see, David didn't know, but in 1 Sam 28 Saul had been told that he had failed by not destroying the Amalekites ... but David unwittingly did all that Saul hadn't done during this attack - the Amalekites were destroyed!

David didn't know that Saul had fallen in battle, but in defeating the Amalekites David was able to take the plunder the Amalekites had taken from Judah back to the people of Judah.  Now, as it happened, they were just about to start looking for the next King!  David didn't know it, but God was paving the way for David to find even greater favour in their eyes and be made King.

And David didn't know it, but God wanted him and his men to move from Ziklag back to God's promised land so he could become King ... and in the Philistine attack their homes in Ziklag had been destroyed, but God had now given them riches enough to re-establish back in Israel!

So, in the apparent disaster upon disaster that came from decisions that David shouldn't have made, God did far, far more than David could imagine or even see in the circumstances he was in.

David still had many tough years before he became King of Israel and defeated all the enemies.  But, in all the disaster of Ziklag, God was mightily at work and was preparing for the fulfilment of His promises to David and His Kingdom purposes for Israel and for our Salvation!

We need to know this in our disasters - God has far, far greater plans for us than we can possibly imagine!  Our present disasters are only a part of His greater triumphs, and He is still working things out, even in the disasters, in much greater ways than we could ever work out for ourselves.

How we need to see His greatness, trust in His sovereignty, rest in His purposes - even [particularly!] in the darkest times of our life.