Blog Archives - Jethro TOOLS

Darkness and Hope

11/29/2020

Isaiah 8:1-9:2
Growing up, my mother would store canned garden produce and other food items down the stairs, around the corner and under the stairs. Often she would randomly select one of us to go gather a couple of items and bring them up for the meal she was preparing. Often the one that was selected did not want to make the trip. Mom would get serious and then, they finally made the trip to the basement. The problem was that during the delay the others who were not selected often crept quietly downstairs and waited to ambush the unsuspecting sibling. Not only could they not see they also did not know what awaited them in the dark. The people of Israel had spent much time wandering away from God in their own spiritual darkness. Isaiah 8 highlights that God alone has a message that can be trusted and He wants His people to follow Him. The problem is that the people did not trust God yet Isaiah and his family live as an example of trust in God (Isaiah 8:18). Like Isaiah we live in a world darkened by sin. People will still search for solutions for the darkness in their life but neglect the real hope and light that God offers (Isaiah 9:2). Jesus says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). Today, God offers light through salvation in Jesus in contrast to the darkness and gloom of a life without Him. Regardless of the darkness and gloom that seem to surround you trust in God who promises to be Emmanuel, God with us.

For more see Isaiah

Practice of Thankfulness

11/23/2020

Verse: Psalm 9:1 I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart
Thought: What the heart thinks the mouth says.
Prayer: Lord may my heart be so full of your goodness that my mouth overflows with your praises.

Verse: Psalm 75:1 We give thanks to you O God… for your name (presence) is near
Thought: Though God is not seen His actions make His presence known.
Prayer: Thank you Lord for helping me see you through your wonderful work in my life.

Verse: Psalm 92:1 It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to your name
Thought: Thanks is music to God’s ears.
Prayer: Lord thanks for all you have done. May my praise be music to your ears.

Verse: Psalm 105:1 Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name
Thought: I am most thankful when I have called out and prayed for God’s involvement.
Prayer: Lord, thanks for your faithful listening. May I always declare your greatness to the world.

Verse: Psalm 106:1 Give thanks to the LORD for He is good and his love endures forever
Thought: The love of God cannot be separated from the goodness of God
Prayer: Thank you Lord for the goodness that you pour out through your everlasting love.

Verse: Psalm 119:62 At midnight I rise to give you thanks for your righteous laws
Thought: True righteousness and justice is found in God.
Prayer: Dear Lord, thanks for being the reliable perfect standard of what is right.
For more see Psalms 119

Verse: Psalm 139:14 I will praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made
Thought: God’s design of us is more important than what others think of us.
Prayer: Thank you God for the attention and thought that that you have taken in designing me. May my view of my self accurately reflect how you made me.

For more see Thankfulness

Thankfulness and Faithfulness

11/22/2020

Psalm 107:1-9
As a child I fondly remember receiving birthday presents. As I unwrapped the gifts I became more excited as I realized how useful this gift was or how much fun I could have with this new toy. The problem was that my Mom kept a list of who the presents were from and I was expected to write a short thank you note to each of the people who gave me a gift. I dreaded doing this. I would often put it off as long as possible until my Mom made me sit down and write two or three sentences expressing my thanks. I believe that my parents saw the value of instilling in me, from an early age, the habit of thankfulness. When we are thankful for what we do have we appreciate the blessing of new gifts and the graciousness of the giver. In Psalm 107 the author gives an invitation to give thanks to the Lord. The reason to give thanks is found in God’s faithful display of His love for His people. This Psalm was written about the people of Israel returning to the land after God had punished their continual disobedience. They were wandering (4), in need of food and water (5) and discouraged or faint in their spirit (6). Are you wandering and in need of direction for life? Are you in need of daily provisions? Are you in need of encouragement to replace discouragement? The Lord is good and faithful in showing His unfailing love. Trust Him and praise Him. When we thank God for His past faithfulness we will be able to rest in the present because our faith sees a good, faithful and loving God at work.

For more see Thankfulness

The Stinking Dog

11/15/2020

The morning was slightly overcast and cool so I decided that it was a good day to walk the dog. I wanted to have a quiet walk and listen to God but the dog was not in a listening mood. We ran to the park to burn some of his energy. It sort of worked. The walk in the park was quiet. It always is when most everyone else is in bed. I decided to take a longer way home to give the dog some extra time out of the yard and me a chance to see the dried out lake and the birds. The walk proceeded with the dog wandering by the lake and me on the path. It was time to go and the dog did not listen to my calls. I walked closer to the lake calling for him. Still no answer. Where was he?

Finally he sauntered out of the tall grass and weeds with his head down and tongue hanging out of his mouth. He was not acting normal with one eye half closed and foam dripping off his tongue. On top of his odd behaviour he smelled even worse. The smell of skunk! My old dog tried to roll in the grass to wash his face but it only aggravated the problem. The pace of our walk going home was considerably slower than when we left. As we arrived home the neighbor across the street made a loud comment "Oh yuck, skunk!" I am glad she did not know the source was a hundred feet away.

Once home I decided it was time for the dog to get a tomato juice bath, so off I went to Walmart to buy 3 large cans. The dog was not pleased to have tomato juice dumped on him and then scrubbed into his fur. By the time we were done with that part of the treatment I think he hit his head and mumbled "I could have had a V8." The juice neutralized the smell but did not remove it. Step two was to take the blood red dog and empty a box of baking soda on him while scrubbing it in. The stinking dog has now learned to like tomato juice and baking soda more than skunks. However, the process was not complete because now he needed to be cleaned with soap and water. The final step of purification included soap on his face and I am sure in his eyes. A final rinse and scrub several hours after the process started and the stinking dog was close to normal.

My goal this morning was a time to listen to God. My stinking dog assisted in the process. God reminded me through a wayward dog what I am like. As people we are wanderers at heart and the results are not pleasant. We need a cleansing from the red blood and white purity of a Savior who stepped out of heaven. He could have left us in the stench of sin and walked away but He did not. Like the stinking dog, my sin carries a stench that fills the sky and our world. God sent His Son, to step into our world and dirty Himself with our sin so we could be made clean and acceptable to Him. The result is that we live as a testimony of His work in us. So much for a quiet morning but what a lesson. I just needed to listen.

The Chase, The Crash, Time to Carry On

11/15/2020

The other day I was talking on the phone and I saw a hawk chasing a dove in flight. In a distracted error the dove flew into a screened window and bounced off and onto the ground. At the last second the hawk swerved and took a perch in a nearby tree in order to locate the dove. I thought the dove was dead, but stunned as it was it hobbled over and hid in some bushes next to the house.

I watched the dove as I talked and also kept a look out for the hawk. At one point after about 15 minutes I crept closer to the bushes and gently separated them so I could see if the dove had died from some injuries sustained in the crash. Much to my surprise the bird was very much alive and instantly took flight with a furry of pounding wings.

The problem was that the hawk was still watching. Instantly the predator took up the chase again. Again the dove escaped by flying into some thick brush for protection.

As I reflected on this I saw a spiritual parallel. Often in life we may feel like we are chased and pursued by Satan and his temptations. We may get distracted from the path that God has for us and crash with the sin. We can find the rest, protection and renewal close to God just as the dove found in my presence. Renewed, restored and rested we are able to take flight and live the way God designed us to live for His glory and honor.

Regardless of your current condition remember the importance of being close to God and remember that the hawk did not win.

Future with Hope

11/15/2020

Ruth 4
With natural disasters seemingly on the rise and conflicts brewing around the world many people are looking for ways to survive. One of those ways involves survival food or freeze dried food in packages that can be stored for up to 25 years. The survival food industry is booming with an estimated value of over 5 million nationally and into the billions internationally. The idea is that if disaster strikes a person can survive without any other source of help. As we examine Ruth 4 we see that God faithfully provides hope and blesses Naomi with a faithful daughter-in-law and Ruth with a faithful husband in Boaz. God is not only concerned with the present but also the future as He gives Ruth and Boaz a son who will carry on the family name. The emphasis of this chapter is on the future and hope. If God did not work in Boaz and the meeting at the city gate there is no future hope for Naomi and Ruth. Who holds your future? Is your future hope found in the things that help you survive or is your future found in God who holds the future? We desperately try to save ourselves and our future but have a real hard time trusting God with our future. Remember that throughout this book we have seen that God is a faithful redeemer who saves. Do you know Him as savior? We must admit that we need a savior, fully believe that God alone can save and that God provides redemption through Jesus the savior and redeemer. When we admit that we need a savior and trust in God to save, then God provides a future with hope.

For more see Ruth

Fear or Faith

11/12/2020

What is your response to the greatest problem that you face? As people we all have different emotional responses to the various situations that come our way in life. Some of us may respond in anger, some in tears and sometimes we may even runaway or withdraw completely. How can we find the stable calm peace throughout all of life’s situations? Let’s start by examining a core root of our emotions.

We are created by God as people with emotions. Some of us my try to suppress them while others may always seem to be filled with emotional extremes. As we look into the Bible we see Jesus, in Matthew 22:37, state that we are to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” The word heart refers to thoughts or feelings. So, loving God with all our heart soul and mind means that we are to love God with our total being.

However, the aspect of our heart thoughts or feelings is the most easily distracted and turned away from loving God. Something difficult happens in life and our response is, “God must not love me.” That is an emotional response. All too often the underlying foundation to our emotional response is fear. We fear the future because of some major change in our life so we become angry, we cry or we try to escape. We all respond those ways, but how often do we examine the source of the emotional response? Fear has a way of moving us into action or causing us to freeze in place. If God has designed our emotions, then how can we love Him with our emotions? How does Jesus address this emotional response of the disciples?

Jesus response to His followers is simply, do not fear. He repeats that phrase often to His disciples. His desire is for them to love Him by trusting Him alone above their fear.

Immobilizing Fear
Matthew 8:26 records that Jesus was sleeping in the boat and was awakened by the disciples because they feared for their lives. Jesus rebukes them for being timid or faithless. This type of fear immobilized the disciples from acting out of faith.

Terrifying Fear
Next we see fear as being frightened or extremely alarmed. In Matthew 10:26-31 Jesus is giving instructions and encouragement to the 12 disciples before they go out on a short ministry assignment. Jesus tells the disciples not to be afraid and comments on their value. In Matthew 14:27-30 Jesus and Peter walk on the water. Peter cries out in fear asking to be saved immediately after Jesus had told everyone not to be afraid (27). Then when Jesus was transfigured the disciples fell face down on the ground terrified, but Jesus told them to get up and not be terrified (Matthew 17:6-7). Finally, after His death the women went to the tomb where Jesus was buried (Matthew 28:1-10). They experienced an earthquake, saw an angel and fearful guards. Things were not normal, but the angel and then Jesus told the women not to be afraid.

Calming Fear
Jesus consistent response to the fears of the disciples was, “Do not be afraid.” He calmed their fears by reminding them that they did not need to be afraid. In each instance Jesus reminded the disciples of their value, His presence, His power, and His desire to be with them. That is comforting and empowering when facing new or unknown circumstances.

Are you facing terrifying or immobilizing fears in your life? God reminds us, just as He did the disciples, that we do not need to be afraid. Why? Because He desires to be with us and display His power to us as He strengthens our faith to face our fears. God’s desire is that our faith in Him be greater than that which makes us emotionally respond in fear. May God give us the faith to see His greatness and not the problems in life that cause us to fear.

Overcoming Grief

11/12/2020

Grief is difficult, but unexpected grief is often more difficult. How do we respond when we are filled with grief over unexpected events, loss of loved ones or tragedies in life?

In times like these we may often look to the past and ask, “Why?” That is partly a fair question because we are seeking to find answers from God to questions about the hurt and loss that we feel. That is good because God is big enough to handle our questions, but He may or may not fully answer them. The other part of a question involving “Why” is unfair because often we place ourselves into the situation.When we look back on the situation we unfairly believe that we could have done more. Please be careful in taking this position. When we take this position we add guilt upon ourselves and burden ourselves with believing that we can control all of life. God is in control of all things, and it is important to let Him be God. That does not mean that God is the author of evil. When we are faced with the pain of bad situations this just means that God has allowed the condition of our fallen world and sin to draw us closer to Him as the only one who can fix this mess.

In times of pain and grief perhaps a better question to ask is “How?” With this question we can look at where we are and perhaps how we arrived at this position, but also how we move forward. This is a place where we can admit freely to God our inadequacies and our need for Him to manage the situations in life and give us His perspective. God is the one who has solutions not just answers. My hope and prayer is that this point in your life is one where you draw closer to Him and find in Him the peace for your situation and salvation for your soul. God has given ultimate peace and purpose for your life through knowing and believing that Jesus has accomplished salvation for you. My prayer is that you will find in Him alone the solutions for any burdens and grief hat you may be carrying right now.

So how are you really doing? I hope that you are finding healing, rest and you are able to start moving on from the grief but not the positive memories that you carry. I also pray that your sorrow will not result in you pushing God away but instead draw you closer to Him and His grace. I pray that you will come to know God as the healer of your broken heart and restorer of your soul.

Patience of Hope

11/8/2020

Ruth 3
The summer of 1992 I was with a group of men on a ministry project. One of them was adamant that he wanted to swim across the river before he left. So one afternoon we decided to attempt the feat. After safety preparations, assigned jobs and required communication protocols I loaded up the boat and crossed the river. On the other side the swimmer wadded into the water and began the swim. Now you need to know that water in Alaska is above freezing in the summer, but it is not anywhere near warm. I piloted the boat while some shouted encouragement to the swimmer and others took pictures to document the event. We eventually made it safely across and across and the swimmer was all smiles. However, as we looked at what we just accomplished we realized that we went much farther downstream because of the river’s current, as compared to the half mile or so straight across the river. In Ruth chapter 3 Naomi and Ruth had to wait before the redeeming work of Boaz became complete. Today, as with Naomi and Ruth, God may strengthen us to go a little farther and wait a little longer before we see His result. Will we wait for His results or will we give in to impatience? Like with Ruth, Naomi and the swimmer, if we lose hope and give up to soon we will miss the joy that God has for us on the other side. Trust in God who redeems you and His plans for your life even if you have to wait for them to be worked out.

For more see Ruth

Provision of Hope

11/1/2020

Ruth 2
As I grew up my parents started giving me a weekly allowance. I do not recall exactly how much it was, but it was small and less than a dollar. There were the days when the snow piled high and I was bored so I just picked up a shovel and went to work clearing the driveway. That evening or the next day my father would give me a couple extra coins for the work I completed. It was very easy for me to slip into the mindset that what I gain in this life is all a result of my hard work. If this is our thinking we miss the point that God provides what we need, withholds what we do not need and at times blesses us with more than we need. Through this we hopefully learn to depend on God to provide as we submit to His plan for our life. In Ruth chapter 2 we see Ruth head out to work as a poor person seeking to gather food to eat. Ruth submissively sought permission for the freedom to work. In His sovereignty, God provided an abundant blessing in the present that brought hope to Ruth and Naomi. Today we must be cautious that we do not confuse our present reality for the plan that God is working out through our life. In big or in small ways God wants our submission to Him and His purposes worked out in our life. Submission to God and His plans may not be easy, but it is beneficial as God provides for today and provides through us a blessing for others tomorrow.

For more see Ruth