journey onWord with us

Who is the godliest, wisest, behind-the-scenes person that you know?  I am speaking of a man or woman who doesn’t live for recognition, but who certainly deserves it.  When you need encouragement, a kind or gentle word, prayer for a need, or a special favor, you know that this behind-the-scenes friend will be there for you. It was a couple of years ago when I was given a magnificent book called Lead for God’s Sake, by Todd Gongwer.  The book exemplified the person just described in the words above. Joe was his name, and the value he added in this fictional story has never left me.  In Scripture, we tend to focus on those individuals that were well-known like Adam and Eve, Noah, Abraham and Sarah. But there are also great lessons to be learned from the not so famous characters of Scripture. His name wasn’t Joe, but he certainly was a great man.

Abraham was now old and very blessed.  His wife Sarah had gone to be with the Father, and Isaac, the son of promise, was approximately forty years old.  Abraham determines that his chief servant should go to the land of his birth and get a wife for Isaac. So he made a covenant with his servant to go to the land of Mesopotamia and bring back a wife.  In that day, matrimonial arrangements were made by parents, and the chosen partners were to come from one’s own tribe.  Without this context you may be wondering why Abraham was leading the charge for Isaac’s wife (at Isaac’s age). This whole scenario is rich with meaning and could fill hours of discussion, but for purposes of this article, what about the behind-the-scenes servant?

Genesis twenty-four doesn’t mention the servant’s name, but some writers feel this was none other than Eliezer, who had risen to the position of chief servant.  He is mentioned in Genesis 15:2 as the one who would have received Abraham’s estate if he had no son.  Isaac was born and obviously the inheritance was his. So if the servant was Eliezer, he earns my admiration for being a loyal, yet displaced servant.  Even if the servant wasn’t Eliezer, his actions in this chapter are wise, godly and an example to all Christ-followers.

Abraham’s servant headed out with ten camels and lots of gifts from his master.  His dependence on God is quite evident in his prayer after arriving at the well in the town of Nahor.  Note his prayer in Genesis 24:12-14.

“O Lord, God of my master, Abraham,” he prayed. “Please give me success today, and show unfailing love to my master, Abraham. See, I am standing here beside this spring, and the young women of the town are coming out to draw water. This is my request. I will ask one of them, ‘Please give me a drink from your jug.’ If she says, ‘Yes, have a drink, and I will water your camels, too!’—let her be the one you have selected as Isaac’s wife. This is how I will know that you have shown unfailing love to my master.”

Rebekah appears on the scene, and the servant asks for a little water from her jar.  Verse nineteen states, When she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels, too, until they have had enough to drink.”  What an answer to prayer!  By the way, a single camel could hold up to twenty-five gallons of water … but she watered all the camels.

So what’s the big deal?  God chose to use a behind-the-scenes “Joe” to seek out the wife of Isaac and mother of Jacob and Esau. We don’t know much about him, but his legacy for me will always be that he prayed specifically and God answered miraculously.  Most of us will never be in the lime light or have an easily recognizable name; we are literally behind the scenes in the master plan of God. But if our legacy is that we prayed specifically and God answered miraculously … wow!

Are you praying specifically ……… Joe?!

Have you ever done anything in your distant past which you still regret to this day?  Yes, me too. Maybe it’s just a cringe-worthy memory by now, or maybe it changed the course of your life.  Whatever the case, you are in good company. Sarah made a choice that she regretted for the rest of her life – and that choice did indeed change the course of history and still affects us today.  God made a covenant with Sarah’s husband, Abraham, that his offspring would become a great nation. Sarah was still barren at the age of 75. She believed, but time was of the essence.  So she hatched a plan involving her hand maiden, Hagar.  Hagar became Sarah’s “surrogate” and Abraham fathered a son with her.  The mistake was evident immediately.

When she (Hagar) knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.  Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.”
Genesis 16:4-5

It seems that Hagar flaunted her motherhood to Sarah and became quite disrespectful to her mistress; that was only the beginning of the trouble between the two women.  Sarah must have known what a terrible situation this was – what a terrible mistake she had made.

Move forward 13 years.  The family is still living in Canaan.  Hagar has given birth to Abraham’s son and called him Ishmael.  Sarah is now 89 years old and still barren.  Abraham is ready to turn 100!  God once again comes to Abraham with the same promise – He will be the father of many nations.  But this time God specifies it will NOT be through the son Ishmael.  God’s plan was always the same; Abraham and Sarah would have a son through which the Jewish nation would become great.  God’s plan had never changed; His plan was always the same, and — here’s the key — His timing is always perfect.

Now, here is why Sarah is held up in Scripture as a godly wife, and why she is named in the Hebrews Hall of Faith even after such an erroneous move.  Three special visitors show up one evening to visit Abraham…

“Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him. “There, in the tent,” he said. Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.” Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing.  So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
Genesis 18:9-11 

Yes, Sarah laughed, but do not mistake that for derision.  Bible scholar John McArthur writes that Sarah laughed with amazement; she was incredulous. You see, this was the first time that Sarah heard the promise with her own ears.  Every other time God gave the promise to Abraham, and he was the one who then told his wife.  But this time, Sarah heard it for herself from God’s own messengers.  Only God could allow a 90-year-old woman to give birth.  I do not believe that either Abraham or Sarah wavered in their faith (Paul speaks to this in the New Testament), but Sarah took matters into her own hands … just like I have … and just like you have.  God’s timing, however, was always the same; it was perfect, miraculous timing! Isaac, whose name means “laughter,” founded the Jewish nation and Ishmael founded the Arab nation.  (Their story is indeed our story as the conflict between the two still rages!!)  There is a saying that I find myself muttering quite often – I can’t even remember who said it or where I read it, but it says, “Let go, and let God.”  On our daily journey, we need to stop trying to fix, change, rush, rearrange or otherwise mess up God’s timing.  Do we really think we can do better?!  If God can give a 90-year-old woman and a 100-year-old man a baby, I think He can get us through this week!

Let go, and Let God.

Looking up to heroes is a normal part of life. We all wish we could have the athletic skill of our favorite stars, sing like those with incredible talent or lead like those we tend to follow. Where life really makes a difference — in the spiritual realm — we also look up to certain people. For you, it may be a spiritual mentor, or someone with great public gifts, but we have all imagined what it would be like to have the talent, insight or the perceived perfect life of one of our heroes.

Most followers of Christ also have heroes from Scripture. You look at their life and faith and wish you could honor the Father in the same ways they did, but just like contemporary athletes, singers and leaders, our heroes from Scripture had their share of failures. Even a casual reading through Genesis gives clear insight into the great failures of one of the original heroes of faith … Abraham.  God chose him for a special purpose, to lead His chosen people.  His life was a picture of great faith … and monumental failures.

When God initially called Abram to leave his home, he obeyed by faith. As we view his continuing journey, however, God, through Scripture, reveals meaningful lapses in this full-on faith. I believe it’s fair to say that Abraham’s life is a mirror of our story; days of faith and moments of “What was I thinking?!” and “What did I just do?!” Many 21^st century Christians lean on our weaknesses as an excuse for not accomplishing all the Father has planned for us.  All Christ-followers will one day stand before God and give an account of our lives. Like Abraham, there will be moments of regret, but our lives can be a testimony of faith. The choice is ours!

After leaving his country and following God, Abram went to Egypt and made a great blunder (he sinned … big time!). As I wrote last week, he had Sarai portray herself as his sister. His terrible plan caused God to bring disease on the Pharaoh and his household. Following that miserable failure, Scripture gives a picture of Abram’s spiritual character and selflessness. We are told that he called on the name of the Lord, and when there was conflict with his men and the men of his nephew Lot, Abram was selfless. He let Lot have his choice of land. In looking at my life (as I am sure you look at yours), our story is also battle between faith, fear and choices.

Imperfection bleeds over the pages of Genesis 16 in the tragic story of Abram having a child with Sarai’s servant, Hagar. Abram failed and history has recorded the results, but in the very next chapter (thirteen years later) God says, “walk before me and be blameless.” We see God in the sealing of His covenant with Abram, and also giving Abram and Sarai new names … Abraham and Sarah.  Even after such a dramatic failure, God knew the heart of Abraham and Sarah.  The Father knew that He could trust them with His plan.   He regards us no less than Abraham.  He knows that we are not faultless, and still He chooses to use us when we turn from our sin and seek Him.  He pursues us, when we deserve no less than His divine wrath.  He desires a relationship with us, and his Spirit works in us to produce a tested and perfected faith.

Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac (Genesis 22) was perhaps the pinnacle of Abraham’s great faith in his journey with God. As Scripture recounts the story, Abraham never flinched in taking his beloved son all the way to the point of a knife. He was willing to follow God’s instructions to sacrifice his son, reasoning that God could even raise him from the dead (Heb. 11:17-19). God provided a ram, but Abraham passed an amazing test of faith, and has given us an undeniable lesson that God can be trusted. I see all of us all in Abraham’s failures, and am convinced we can model Abraham’s faith.  I am not sure how God will choose to reward your faith and mine, but I truly believe He will.

In spite of our failures, will our lives be a legacy of faith?

Study her life and you will see impatience, jealousy, whining, pouting, meanness and even a tantrum or two (It’s a good thing that none of those can ever describe us!). Continue to study the life of Sarah and you see that Scripture commends her; Peter called her name as an example of a Biblical wife and Hebrews names her in the Hall of Faith chapter.  Sarah only gave birth to one child, but that singular birth made her the matriarch of Hebrew history.

We first meet Sarah at the age of 65; her husband, Abraham, was 75. One of the first things Scripture mentions about her is that she was barren.

Now Sarai was childless because she was not able to conceive.
Genesis 11:30

Sarah was tortured by this fact. Every account of her “throwing a fit” was connected to her frustration over not being able to have a child.  There was great societal pressure over this; the belief was widely held that a woman who could not conceive was cursed by God because of sin in her life.  It was a great shame to a woman.  More about that later, but first, here is some background on Sarah and her husband.

Her birth name was Sarai which means “my princess.” God did not change her name to Sarah until she was 90 years old.  Scripture repeatedly refers to her beauty, and let me remind you that she is 65 years old the first time it is mentioned of her.  Wherever she went, her beauty was noticed.  (Refer to Mike’s post from last week for the account of the troubles that caused!)  The couple lived in the urban center of Ur which was in present-day Iraq.  It was a pagan culture and idolatry was widespread, but they worshipped the true God.  When Abraham decided to move to Canaan, Sarah never complained about the journey, and that is saying something because by the time they reached their destination, they had traveled over 1,000 miles!  The first thing they did was build an altar and praise God. God appeared to Abraham there and again told him he would be the father of a great nation … with a barren wife.

God repeated this promise to Abraham several times and undoubtedly Abraham shared it with Sarah each and every time.  I believe this had to add to her burden each day she remained childless.  Did Sarah believe God’s promise?  I would say yes, due to what we learn of Sarah through Scripture; one does not earn a place in the Hall of Faith by a pattern of unbelief.  However, I think she could not embrace the unconditional nature of the promise, and that it was so much more than a promise … it was a covenant.  Age and biological clocks were inconsequential to the fulfillment of the covenant.  If only Sarah could have put all her trust in that fact, her burden of barrenness would have been relieved.

Belief and faith can be completely different from unconditional belief and faith.  We as mere humans can always come up with the giant, “but…” that robs us of relief from our burdens.  God is omnipotent.  His promises are true.  And His love is unconditional. That was a fact for Sarah, and it is still a fact in 2015 … Their stories are our stories.

It has happened to all of us (and I mean all).  It may have been someone in our family, at our place of employment, at our church (or all of the above) who took the self-serving opportunity to lie right to our face.  And even worse, you and I have been guilty of the same ugly sin of lying!  It can be couched in different language, such as shading the truth, not telling all the facts or telling a little white lie, but in the end, a lie is a lie. When someone we have a meaningful relationship with chooses to lie to us, something happens … trust is diminished.  Sadly, all of us have also been the one who told the little white lie (or the bold faced one) and harmed a relationship. But not Abraham!

Abraham is one of my heroes. Reading about his life has always been meaningful and faith building. He is in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews eleven.  When God told him to leave his country and his family and go to a place that the Father would show him, he went!  God gave he and Sarah a miracle baby, and everyone knows the story of how this great man was willing to sacrifice Isaac, that sacred, promised son.  God said of Abraham,  And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God.  (James 2:23 NLT)  Does is get any better than that?

In God’s great plan, He has allowed us to see Abraham in great moments and in not-so-great moments.  Pulling back the curtain on any of our lives gives a similar picture; days we are proud of and days of regret.  In the story of Abraham’s life portrayed in the book of Genesis, there are some definite highs and lows.  Two of the lowest times were when he was self-serving and lied (chapters 12 and 20). To be honest, it’s hard for me to read the depth of the lies and the potential peril to his wife Sarah.

The names of Abraham and Sarah were still Abram and Sarai when they got to Canaan, the place of God’s leading.  Life for them was a mirror of what Christ-followers experience today … a trial in the place of God’s leading.  There was a famine in the land and rather than trust God for provision, Abram led his family to Egypt.  To be honest, I’ve made similar decisions without input from the Father.  Leaning on my own understanding has often been more convenient that trusting the Father.  Abram went from famine to a precarious position.  Genesis 12:10-13(MSG) give us a sad picture of a great man.

Then a famine came to the land. Abram went down to Egypt to live; it was a hard famine. As he drew near to Egypt, he said to his wife, Sarai, “Look. We both know that you’re a beautiful woman. When the Egyptians see you they’re going to say, ‘Aha! That’s his wife!’ and kill me. But they’ll let you live. Do me a favor: tell them you’re my sister. Because of you, they’ll welcome me and let me live.”

The results could have been disastrous. But God protected Sarai, and showed grace on Abram.  But how could he have stooped so low? Lying was horrible, but putting his wife at risk was also unbelievably self-serving.  And in chapter twenty, we see Abraham putting Sarah at potential risk again, with the sister story. We could call the lie a half-truth since she was his half-sister (read chapter 20), but a half- truth is still a lie. What a sad picture of great man! Make no mistake, sin always has results.

Abraham is still my hero. He blew it, and so have you and I. There was no excuse for putting Sarah at risk, and there are no excuses when you and I give half-truths or tell little white lies which hinder relationships and harm our testimony before others.  But God showed great grace on Abraham, and his life was such that he was called the friend of God.  There is so much to be learned from Abraham’s story….from his failures to his faith!  We know our failures, but we also can be known for our faith!

WILL YOU?!

It seems every generation of Christians has at some point (or at numerous points) declared their world to be as godless and evil as history has ever known.  To the extent that we are on our knees crying out for God’s grace and mercy and being obedient to the part He has chosen for us to play in His redemptive plan to reach that broken and lost world, this is a right and proper heart cry.  However, I wonder how many of us are simply interested in making the point we have it so much harder than anyone else in an effort to judge the gap between ourselves and those who are lost.  Whether it be the behaviors at the base of the mountain of consumer debt, the pervasiveness of the “me” first attitude, widespread exploitation and human trafficking, or brutal acts of terrorism, there is every reason to be on our knees over the evil that exists in our world today.

In the first few verses of our reading on Noah this week, we saw a picture of a world completely consumed by evil.

The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.
Genesis 6:5 (NLT)

I would guess that many who read this week nodded in identification with the world they see around them.  I wonder how many felt the incredible gravity of what was being said and were moved to just stop and get quiet with God when they read:

So the LORD was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth.  It broke his heart.
Genesis 6:6 (NLT)

And the LORD said, “I will wipe this human race I have created from the face of the earth.  Yes, and I will destroy every living thing…”
Genesis 6:7 (NLT)

So God said to Noah, “I have decided to destroy all living creatures, for they have filled the earth with violence.  Yes, I will wipe them all out along with the earth!”
Genesis 6:13 (NLT)

In the midst of all this darkness and immediately following a section heading in the New Living Translation that reads “The Story of Noah,” we read:

This is the account of Noah and his family.  Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God.
Genesis 6:9 (NLT)

This was the defining moment in Noah’s life; this was his story.  As God scanned the breadth and depth of His creation in that sliver of human history, Noah was seen by God as the only blameless person living on earth.  I have read and been taught the story of Noah and the Great Flood countless times, but as I prepared for the first week of home church (which I mentioned in the previous post), I was confronted with a question and challenge that had never been framed so clearly.  If God scanned the breadth and depth of His creation in this sliver of time, would He see me as He did Noah?

My circumstances will never be like Noah’s, but can his story also be my story?  Can yours?  I believe the answer is absolutely “yes!” and I believe the first or continuing step can be found in the final phrase of the bold statement of Noah’s life — and he walked in close fellowship with God.

I’ll never be asked to build a boat like the Ark or captain it for forty days and nights, but I am asked to stand against the evil of my time and lead my family as we navigate the “forty days and nights” He allows in our lives.  Similar things are asked of you.  Worry not about where our world is on the sliding scale of depravity.  Walk in close fellowship with God and be obedient to what He invites you to do and be. Write your story with Him.

The images and illustrations of this epic story grace the walls of countless church and home nurseries.  The details of the story are equally disastrous and heroic.  The animals, the Ark, the rain, the dove … this is the story of Noah and the Great Flood.

I’d wager you’ve read or heard the story taught innumerable times.  I wonder if you’d ever include it on a top 10 list of Bible stories that you identify with.  I wonder if Noah, his wife, or his children would ever show up on even a top 100 list of Bible characters whose story sounds a lot like yours.  Yeah, me too … that is, until a couple of years ago.

On August 26^th, 2012 my family walked out the doors of what had been our church home for 14 years.  It was the only church my two sons, then 15 and 9, had ever known.  It was a gut-wrenching decision, but one that we were absolutely convinced was right.  Following months of praying, crying, wrestling and questioning, both Kristyn and I felt a clear and true answer from God that it was time to leave.  The circumstances were unlike any I had experienced in a lifetime of worshiping in community.  We were filled with grave sadness in leaving, and as clear as the answer was to go, there was complete uncertainty as to the question of “where.”

I distinctly remember praying, as I had never prayed before, for wisdom in leading my family through that incredibly dark valley.  I had Moses-like confidence in my track record of being their spiritual leader to that point, but I honestly felt like a moment had arrived and God was once again, graciously gifting me an opportunity to step boldly into it.  In my prayers I asked for immediate direction.  Human wisdom told me that it was not wise to begin “looking” for a new church home right away, but I was also feeling a distinct prompt to move in the direction of something. Through a great deal of prayer, it became clear to me that the prompt was of the Spirit, and worshiping at home was the “something” in our near-term.  It both excited and terrified me, and I began praying immediately for the Spirit’s leading.  As I recall, our first week of wilderness walking involved an out-of-town, holiday weekend trip to visit family, and midway through that first week the Spirit introduced a single character into my mind as I considered the first week of home church.  That single character was Noah.

I was as shocked as I could be on first suggestion.  Noah?!  What in the world was the resonant thread?  My only context for Noah was as a central figure in the story of God’s regrets for having made man, destroying creation with a great flood and starting all over again with a boat full of animals and a single family.  And there it was; almost as soon as the thought of the absurdity of Noah’s name entered my mind, the resonant thread became clear … “starting all over again.”  In what seemed like a breath of time, a completely new and foundational thought had been established in my mind.  Noah, his wife, their children and their spouses were literally “just another family in transition.”

In an instant I began seeing Noah’s reality as a husband and father chosen by God to lead his family through a dark valley and into a completely new start where they would literally be alone in the world (a bit like we were feeling at the time).  I began to see the story from a whole new perspective.  I began to consider what they must have been going through, not as people passed by and tormented Noah as he was building the Ark, but in the very first few hours and days after they exited the Ark and started all over again.  I began to identify with Noah as I never had before, and to see how much my own story resonated with his in that brief breath of expanse in mine and my family’s life.  He was not just a righteous man, singled out by God.  He was not just the sole builder of a really big boat, or the mighty captain of it – things I never saw myself as being or doing.  He was a father.  He was a husband.  He was a spiritual leader of his family, trying to make sense out of an epic story of pain and new beginnings.  How did Noah speak of God to his wife and children?  How did they worship when there were no more places set aside for such things?

I wonder in reading up this point, if some seeds of resonance have begun to take root in your own heart and mind.  I am certainly not alone in having a “starting over” story.  What’s yours?  In reading the story of the Great Flood this week, will you begin to see the story anew?  Where will this story and its characters be on your top 10 and 100 lists by the end of this week?

The Bible is a story … a love story; a love story with countless characters, both lead and supporting.  These men and women were not chosen by God because they were especially gifted or supernaturally righteous.  They are fallen, broken men and women no different from you or me.  Some of their stories may sound or seem epic or uncommon, but as you see and experience them more deeply they begin to sound and seem increasingly everyday and familiar.  God’s promise to never judge creation in that manner again shouts loudly with every rainbow we see, but that’s not the only way in which Noah and his family and the story of the Great Flood are meaningful to our lives today.  Could it be that Noah’s story is your story, too?

Her name is only mentioned twice in the Old Testament and twice in the New.  We really have no details of her life; we don’t know how many children she ultimately gave birth to or how long she lived or where or how she died.  She is a major character in the story of the fall of man, and Scripture gives a detailed account of her creation, temptation and ultimate fall.

The name “Eve” is translated “Mother of all living” and “Mother of all people everywhere.” She was the last thing created in Eden, and she had to be beautiful because the world was perfect at that point in history. Eve had been created by God, (His idea not Adam’s), as a mate and companion; Adam felt an instant attachment to her for when he awoke from the first surgery he exclaimed, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.”

After I was given the assignment by the team to write about Eve, I began to consider her story more deeply. There is so much I could write about, which narrative or thread do I choose? Do I discuss her role as the first wife and talk about the institution of marriage?  Or perhaps I would talk about her two sons and the paths they chose in life.  Or maybe I should put to rest once and for all who is to blame for the fall of man – Adam or Eve?!? (Relax everybody) The more I read over my notes, the more I kept coming back to the fact that Satan can tempt us, trick us and overpower us in unexpected ways.  Let’s talk about the ambush (no pun intended) of Eve.

Genesis chapter 2 ends with the statement, “They were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.” Chapter three begins with (dun, dun, duuunn) the serpent. The serpent isn’t named as Satan until the book of Revelation, but we know who it is, don’t we?  Satan was an angel; the book of Isaiah tells us he was magnificent, the most beautiful angel in Heaven. Most scholars believe Satan was cast out of Heaven sometime between Genesis chapter one and two, but very few speculate on how much time elapsed before he went after Eve.  One thing is for certain – he had to orchestrate The Fall before they had children so that he could ruin all of humanity.  He had to get to the very first couple of the human race!

 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,  but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.” “ You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman.  “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 
Genesis 3:1-5

So Satan was in disguise – as a gorgeous serpent.  Remember too that this is before the curse, so many believe that the serpent may have been upright.  And he spoke!  A talking, walking beautiful animal who executed his sneak attack perfectly; he appealed to her curiosity, her sense of beauty and her human appetite … for good food. He confused her and twisted God’s words. She fell for it, and we know the rest of the story.

Just as with Adam, Eve’s story is our story, too. As a picture of God’s grace, Adam and Eve’s story did not end at The Fall. As for Eve, her third son was Seth, and he provided a new legacy for her.

When Seth grew up, he had a son and named him Enosh. At that time people first began to worship the Lord by name.
Genesis 4:26

Eve has long ago left this Earth, but Satan remains.  He is still disguising himself.  He is still appealing to our human senses and emotions.  He is very good at what he does.

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
James 5:8

 Be alert.  Be aware.  Expect the unexpected.

What would it be like to have just one day where everything was perfect?  A day where there was no sickness, pain or war.  A day where everyone loved each other and there was no selfishness or greed. It would have to be a day where sin was completely absent … and that isn’t going to happen.  In His time the Father will make all things right, but what once was a perfect world is now scarred.  Adam, a man who everyone knows about but very few really know, lived in that perfect world and was a perfect man.  But something happened!

A true confession … I tend to read quickly over the chapters dealing with Adam and Eve (and it has always been that way). Maybe you do too. It’s interesting because these chapters are typically read on the very first few days of most yearly Bible reading plans. Maybe it’s because the story is so familiar and we gloss over it as we look ahead to the mountain that lies ahead in the next 364 days. This year, our challenge at Journey on Word is to tell the stories of a collection of characters in the Story. We believe that their story IS our story. Adam’s life is a great way to start the year.

To understand any story, we must know the characters of that story.  Adam was “born” on the sixth day of creation.  God chose to form him from the dust of the ground.  His residence was a garden (Eden). A defining characteristic of Adam was perfection.  The first man had a job; he was put in the garden to be its caretaker. You could call him the gardener of Eden.  He was also given an incredibly unique responsibility … naming all the animals that the Lord brought before him.  Adam was blessed to reside in a garden that was perfect in every way, filled with all kinds of beautiful trees.  Two of those trees were of particular importance:  the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. They were located at the very center of this glorious garden.  Even though Adam was a perfect man living in a perfect place, there was something missing.  The Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone.” God put Adam into a deep sleep and took one of his ribs. We all know who was formed from that rib, and in that sacred creative work, the institution of marriage was established.

What a life! Without a doubt, not one of us can fathom what it was like. Can you even imagine being the gardener in a place with perfect food, tending to a weed-free garden in a curse-free world?  I think not!  Understanding and defining what Adam’s life was really like is beyond our ability. His world was perfect, and his life was designed by God.  Explaining a man formed from dust, a woman formed from a rib and a man coming up with a name for every animal is too much for our finite minds to truly grasp (careful with your thoughts on that last one, ladies), but that is how God ordained  it to be as the story of creation began. How could we ever say that their story is our story when we look at Adam and Eve?

After a perfect beginning, however, something happened.  As Adam (and then Eve) lived perfect lives, God chose for them to have freedom of choice.  Remember the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?  They were not allowed to eat of it. My study has led me to believe that the fruit of this tree was denied as a test of obedience.  And people everywhere know what happened! Romans 5:12 tells us that, “sin entered the world through one man and death through sin.” A perfect world was forever changed by a single act of disobedience.  Praise God, this not how the story ends!  Jesus Christ was sent to reconcile sinful man back to God.  What grace!

So we can truthfully say Adam’s story IS our story. Adam’s story is a familiar and simple one. There was a choice to be made, and he disobeyed.  But however familiar and simple, it is a story that is fundamental to knowing who we are and Who we need.  We are confronted daily with good and evil and often fail miserably, but all Christ-followers have been redeemed and set free from the power and penalty of sin.  We can’t live in perfect world, but we have a perfect Guide to lead us until the glorious day when Christ returns and God makes all things right again!

It was an amazing story. As it unfolded, I could not get over the incredible toughness and never-say-die attitude of Louis Zamperini portrayed in the new movie, Unbroken. My ninety-one year old mother-in-law was determined to see this movie, so on Christmas night our family viewed the film (Would you tell a ninety-one year old, former Rosie the Riveter, “No?”). Louis’ story is one of courage and endurance which is simply beyond what most of us would ever endure. The best part of the story, however, wasn’t really portrayed in the movie.  In 1949, broken by the effects of the war, a failing marriage and alcohol, Louis found Christ at a Billy Graham Crusade. His life was dramatically changed, and the forgiven war hero became a man of forgiveness, even to those who sought to destroy him. In 2015, we at Journey onWord want to tell stories. We are trusting that the stories we tell will clearly and properly portray the thread of redemption that begins with original sin and runs through the story of God’s chosen people to Christ’s birth and death, all the way to us in the here and now.

Over the next three days, Christ-followers across the world will decide how they’ll consume Scripture during the next calendar year.  Reading God’s Word should be non-negotiable for any true Christ-follower. Note the words of the Word from Hebrews 12:4…

For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

There is no book or devotional material that can ever compare to God’s Word. 

If you are looking for a reading plan in 2015, we would love for you to join us in consuming “the old, old Story” through familiar and unfamiliar characters. We are convinced that their story IS our story. Our reading plan will start at the very beginning — with Adam and Eve. As you read and study the lives of many of the men and women of Scripture daily, you will see vivid pictures of both faith and failure. It is amazing how God could take these men and women, in spite of (and because of) their weaknesses, and use them for His glory.  Our reading and writing will traverse the Old and New Testament with the intent of portraying much of the Story of the Bible … redemption and grace. Consider taking, or continuing the journey with us!

Our plan will be to read short passages of Scripture daily (often a chapter or less a day).  The intent of which is to travel slowly and thoughtfully enough to truly capture the intent of the words being read. With less reading, it is easier to dig deeper. Our articles (twice weekly) will follow the context of the daily reading and will focus on a single character per week.  We’ll sometimes use both articles to tell their story, and other times we’ll mix in ours or others that connect with the specific character. This year we’re also adding a Proverb each day to the reading plan. The wisdom and insight of Proverbs is invaluable in our fast paced world.  I have personally been impacted deeply through a consistent dose of Proverbs. Your reading won’t be long, so it should give you ample time to reflect on and apply the scripture you’re reading.

I don’t think any movie could ever portray the total depth of Louis Zamperini’s life. Unbroken was riveting and powerful, however, the unseen part of Louis’ story is even better. In deciding on our focus for this new year, the Journey onWord staff readily acknowledges we are incapable of giving full depth to the Word of God. Our goal is to challenge you to read it and watch and see what God will do in your life because of it. We also believe, in telling the stories of the characters God chose to be a part of His love letter to the world, you’ll clearly see your own story in theirs and His.  This is the greatest Story ever told – and every bit of it is true!

Our new reading plan starts Thursday, January 1^st, please join us!