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The Other Prodigal

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Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. 1 John 2:9

You’re probably familiar with the parable of the prodigal son.

Jesus told of a son who demanded his inheritance from his father and journeyed to a far country, only to squander it away with wild living. He found himself starving, “longing to be fed with the pods that the pigs ate, but no one gave him anything” (Luke 15:16).

That sounds about right. Any time we try to satisfy our needs and desires apart from our heavenly Father, we’ll come up lacking. Empty. Starving.

Yet we keep trying.

And that’s exactly what this young son did. He wanted to trade on the benefits his position as a son afforded him without maintaining his relationship to his father. He didn’t want to stay close. He just wanted the property his father’s name entitled him to.

Does that resonate, dear one?

It does with me. For years I did the same thing.

For a long time, I wanted the benefits that come with Jesus’ name—forgiveness, salvation, the Father’s blessing—but I didn’t really want Jesus. I wanted my Kingdom inheritance, but I had no real desire to draw near to God through Him. I still wanted to live my life my way.

And just like the young prodigal, I soon discovered the futility of that thinking.

You see, what our souls really long for is union with our heavenly Father. He is life, and we access that life through intimacy with Jesus. Jesus is the blessing we seek, dear one. So anything we try to enjoy apart from Him —even the good things that flow from His hand— leave us wanting. His presence gives life to all things.

In him was life, and the life was the light of men. John 1:4

Thankfully, our young prodigal finally came to his senses, realizing that what he’d been looking for was found in his father all along. But he made the long journey home carrying the weight of some extra baggage.

A singular thought compelled him.

I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.”’ Luke 15:18-19

I am no longer worthy.

I can’t tell you how often those words have haunted me. And every time, Jesus responds the same way He did to the young prodigal.

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate. Luke 15:20-24

I pray you will notice something significant, beloved. The father never judged the young prodigal for his behavior. The only condemnation came from the son himself. His father welcomed him with open arms and simply reminded the repentant son of his true position. He wasn’t a servant and wouldn’t be treated like one. He was a son.

If only his brother shared his father’s mind on the matter. But compassion and joy fell subject to another emotion as he drew near the house filled with music and dancing.

But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him. Luke 15:28

I find it interesting that judgment appears in both brothers but never comes from the father who holds the only right to it. Look at how scripture describes him.

His father came out and entreated him.

Do you see it, dear one? The loving father pursued both sons in the same way, going out to greet them while they still approached. Both received the same invitation to feast with him.

But he answered his father, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!’ Verses 29-30

Jealousy never punishes the object of its rage. It only steals from the one who possesses it.

Jealousy never punishes the object of its rage. It only steals from the one who possesses it. Click To Tweet

In this case, it blinded the older son to his own blessing and made him refuse what his father longed to give.

“Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours.” Verse 31

What God gives to one never takes from another. It’s we who withdraw ourselves from His table by holding onto the sin that separates. We choose judgment over grace. We insist on fighting for our rights instead of letting God grace us with all that is His.

It’s time we come to the table, beloved. Let’s remove every hindrance and run to the Father’s arms.

No one but you holds the power to stop Him from lavishing blessing upon you. He won’t force you to come to the table. But He waits with open arms for you to choose.

Love That Heals

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See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 1 John 3:1 NIV

Our hearts cry out to be known. Sin keeps us hiding from one another. But something deep within us all longs for significance. And in a world that easily overlooks us, God sees.

He knows your name, dear one. He calls it—even when no one else cares to know it—inviting you to turn your gaze to Him. You see, God also longs to be known.

We are not nameless to God. He knows us, and He desires us to hear Him calling our names. He taught me this one day as I walked through the village next to our base in Pemba. I had been visiting the neighbors for hours, and I was late for a discipleship meeting. As I hurried down a hill, I noticed a very old lady in rags sitting in the dirt against a mud hut. She was blind. Her eyes were pure white. I felt the Lord asking me to stop for her.

In the local dialect I asked her what her name was. She told me she had none. I thought perhaps she was from another tribe and didn’t understand my Makua dialect. I asked her again in a different language, but her answer was the same: “I am blind. I have no name.”

There was another woman sitting nearby. I asked her if she knew the blind woman’s name, and she too replied: “She is blind, and she has no name.”

I was stunned. I hugged the old blind woman and immediately decided that I would call her Utaliya. It means “you exist” or “you are.” When I spoke it for the first time, her wrinkled face came alive. She gave me a huge, nearly toothless grin. I asked the other woman nearby to try calling her by the new name. Utaliya turned her white, blind eyes toward that unfamiliar sound and giggled. After that I prayed for her eyes. I watched them turn brown in front of me.

Utaliya could see!

I told her about the man Jesus who had just opened her eyes. I told her about Papa Daddy God who will always call her by name. She met God that day. I was hours late for my meeting, but it seemed to me I was right on time.

~Heidi Baker, Birthing the Miraculous, p.29-30

Stories of God’s great exploits in third world countries always amaze me. He often shows up mightily amidst the broken and down trodden. Where need is greatest, glory shines brightest.

Perhaps that’s why He sends us to them.

I have a hard time contemplating a woman who lived without a name. How empty she must have felt, defining herself only by her weakness. Her blindness. Apparently the rest of the world did too.

Until a woman filled with the Spirit of God happened to walk by her and take notice. She didn’t have to stop—shouldn’t stop, in fact, according to her schedule. But she sensed God asking her to. Her obedience opened an outpouring from the river of life.

I want to release that river, dear one. I want to see the life that flows from pure, unhindered union with God poured out in our land.

I want to see the life that flows from pure, unhindered union with God poured out in our land. Click To Tweet

My heart aches over what I know holds it back.

I do.

Every time I quench the gentle nudges of His Spirit and choose my agenda instead of His. Every time I pass by a need without notice. Every time my comfort trumps His calling.

Forgive me, Father.

Lord, give me the heart of a Heidi Baker for the broken in this nation. Give me eyes that see and discern their pain. Give me feet that walk toward them. Give me hands that touch them, arms that embrace them with your love.

Birth your righteousness in me, Lord. Bring forth your salvation as a burning torch. Possess me. Heal me. Use me, Lord, to heal this land.

For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be quiet,

until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a burning torch.

The nations shall see your righteousness, and all the kings your glory,

and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will give.

You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate,

but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her, and your land Married;

for the Lord delights in you.

Isaiah 62:1-4

Creation Knows Its King

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The Lord reigns; he is robed in majesty; the Lord is robed; he has put on strength as his belt. Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. Psalm 93:1

 In the beginning God said, “Let there be…” and there was.

Wonder still grips my soul at the thought of it. God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—enjoying perfect fellowship with Himself, decided to create. The Word came forth as He expressed His thoughts. And all things came into being in obedience to the sounds God made.

Amazing. Inconceivable. True.

By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. Hebrews 11:3

Oh, the power of God’s words!

And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. Genesis 1:3

And God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” And it was so. Verse 9

And God said, “Let the earth sprout vegetation, plants yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind, on the earth.” And it was so. Verse 11

In the beginning, all of creation moved in agreement with God’s words. No created thing denied Him obedience. Not even man.

Until the day that man entertained a sound that disagreed with God. Adam and Eve trusted that sound, and for the first time, man denied God’s Word.

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” Genesis 2:16-17

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Genesis 3:6

Death came to man that day, severing our union with our Maker. Sin bound man’s heart to the deceiver, and God’s Word became veiled to us. Now all the rest of creation still responds to the sound of its Creator.

Man alone does not.

When Jesus—the Word of God Made Flesh—walked the earth, creation knew Him.

One day he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they set out, and as they sailed he fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water and were in danger. And they went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and the raging waves, and they ceased, and there was a calm. He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and they marveled, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?” Luke 8:22-25

Who but their Creator could command the wind and water, dear one? The winds and the waves know His voice. They move in agreement with His Word. They recognize the One who called them into being and commanded them in the beginning.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. John 1:1-4

Beloved, creation recognizes the Word that created it.

When Jesus walked among us, water became wine at His command. Bread multiplied in His hands. Every created thing responded to His word, even the bodies of the unwell.

Withered hands grew back. Blind eyes saw. Even the dead discovered life at His word.

Take this in, dear one. The only created thing on earth that hesitates to respond to the Word of God is the deceived human heart.

The only created thing on earth that hesitates to respond to the Word of God is the deceived human heart. Click To Tweet

No wonder Romans 8:19 declares,

For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God.

Creation groans, beloved, waiting for earth’s true sons to emerge. The sons of God are those who respond in obedience to the Word made flesh, who recognize their Creator and—like the rest of creation—choose to live in agreement with His Word.

Until then, creation will always declare its King.

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, the people worshiped with shouts of praise.

“Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.” Luke 19:38-40

Jesus declared that the rocks of the earth would cry out in honor of their King if the people didn’t. His words proved true a week later as He hung from a wooden cross.

The people no longer blessed His Name. Instead they cheered His suffering. The sun refused to shine (Matthew 27:45). And a great earthquake shook the ground (Matthew 27:51).

Creation knows its King, dear one. Man alone rejects Him.

Will you join creation’s song?

Exposed…And Set Free!

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Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence? Psalm 139:7

We spend a lot of time hiding.

Who we truly are.

What we really think.

How we really feel.

Our hiding began the moment seeds of sin embedded in man’s heart. Those seeds bore immediate, unwelcome fruit.

Shame. Guilt. Regret. Fear. Blame.

And that fruit still does what the enemy intended. It makes us hide.

Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. Genesis 3:7-8

Adam and Eve found themselves naked. Exposed. So they did what they could to cover themselves and hide their true condition. But their hiding only distanced them from God.

Distance remains the enemy’s goal, dear one. He wants to separate us from our Creator so that he can render us powerless.

But while we might feel better with a little distance, the God who created us does not.

But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” Verse 9

God’s intense love for man pours out from the pages of Scripture. He pursues us. Always. Disobedience doesn’t withdraw His affection. Rejection doesn’t stop His pursuit. We may run from Him, but we can never really hide.

Yet we still try. And He still calls us out from hiding.

Like Jesus did to a woman hiding in the crowd in Galilee.

He was on His way to Jairus’ house to heal his dying daughter. The crowds pressed in on Him, enjoying the spectacle this extraordinary Healer brought to their ordinary lives.

But one in the crowd had no interest in the spectacle. She needed the Healer.

For 12 long years she had suffered with a discharge of blood. She had spent all she had on physicians, yet no one had helped her. Her misery continued.

And shame engulfed her. This condition wasn’t just an inconvenience. According to Jewish law, her constant bleeding made her unclean. Defiled. Unworthy.

Twelve years she had born this burden. Alone. Hiding. Hating her existence.

And then word reached her of a Healer from Nazareth. One who made the blind see. Who healed withered hands. Who raised the dead. And something took hold of her that had eluded her for a long time.

Hope.

I can picture her slowly making her way through the crowd toward Jesus, heart pounding wildly with every step. And then she was there. Close enough to touch Him, staring at the back of her Savior.

She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. Luke 8:44

Imagine her wonder as knowledge set in. The bleeding had stopped. She knew it. It was finally over. Or at least she thought it was. A voice interrupted her private celebration.

And Jesus said, “Who was it that touched me?” Verse 45

Familiar emotions surfaced immediately. Fear. Guilt. Shame.

She said nothing. The crowd clamored denial, and Peter responded with earthly logic.

“Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!” But Jesus said, “Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me.” Verses 45-46

The wild pounding in her chest ceased momentarily as realization dawned. He knew.

And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed. Verse 47, emphasis mine

She confessed everything. The woman hiding in the shadows unveiled herself before everyone present, baring her shame.

And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.” Verse 48

I have to ask, dear one. Why did Jesus do it? Why call her out in front of all of those people?

He already knew the answer to His questions. He knew exactly what had happened and who had touched Him. He had the ability to discern thoughts. So why expose her? Why not let her have her private, personal moment with Him that no one else was privy to?

Why, indeed.

Beloved, Jesus had more to offer that precious woman than physical healing. He could’ve let her slink back into the darkness, but then she would’ve missed the greater healing she so desperately needed.

She still would’ve carried her shame.

The only way to penetrate darkness is to let light in. And this dear daughter had spent 12 long years hiding. Feeling less than. Unworthy. Unclean. Separated.

When she willingly chose to expose herself to Jesus in front of the crowd she feared, He set her free. From all of it. Public opinion no longer mattered. Fear no longer controlled her.

Jesus made her well.

What are you still hiding, dear one? What grips your heart in oppressive darkness?

Expose it, beloved. Death lurks in darkness. Life is found in the light.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. Psalm 103:2-5

Does Anxiety Compel Your Work?

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Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:23-24 ESV

There’s no getting around it. Scripture calls us to work.

Heartily.

Giving it all we’ve got.

So sometimes we get a little confused when we read the story of Mary and Martha. We see Martha busily serving all who had gathered in her home, and we expect Jesus to commend her. After all, He blesses diligent servants.

“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.” Matthew 24:45-46

Martha was sure her service would bring her Master’s blessing. So sure, in fact, that when she saw her sister idly sitting at His feet, judgment surfaced. And she brought her frustration to Jesus.

“Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” Luke 10:40

Look at the emotion revealed in Martha’s words. Lord, do you not care? Her thoughts are obvious. He should care, because she cared greatly. She cared so much that she commanded Jesus to intervene.

“Tell her then to help me.”

His answer surprised her. And—if we’re going to be honest—often frustrates many of us.

But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41-42, emphasis mine

Mary has chosen the good portion. Mary who sat while Martha worked.

As a former Martha, I feel her pain. I get it completely. After all, someone had to feed those people. Someone had to take care of things.

But Jesus saw something you and I can’t see without looking on the scene through a spiritual lens. He saw straight into Martha’s heart.

Consider this excerpt from Jon Bloom’s Things Not Seen.

To just about everyone else present, Martha’s serving probably appeared to flow from the heart of a gracious servant. But Jesus discerned differently. He saw that Martha’s serving flowed from anxiety, not grace. [see verse 41]

What was making Martha anxious? We know she was anxious about “many things.” But we need only examine our own similar anxieties to guess the likely root. I think Martha was anxious about how she impressed Jesus and her other guests. She was troubled at the thought that her home and serving might reflect poorly over her and her family. And this anxiety blinded her to the “one thing necessary”—listening to Jesus—and made many unnecessary tasks feel compulsively urgent.

This kind of anxiety is subtle. It has a selfish root but its fruit looks deceptively like unselfishness. This anxiety is the desire for approval dressed up to look like the desire to serve. This anxiety is my caring what you think of me dressed up to look like my caring for you. It can be so subtle that we don’t see it clearly. It can look so much like the right thing that we believe it’s the right thing. That’s why Martha was confident that Jesus would agree with her about Mary. (p.58-59, emphasis mine)

But Jesus didn’t agree with Martha. He’s far less interested in the work itself than the motivation behind it.

“For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7b

And Jesus saw that while Martha appeared to be serving others, she actually served an inner need rooted in her flesh. That need caused her to serve from anxiety instead of grace.

I have been there, dear one. I have put in hours of anxious work, fully convinced that I was doing it for Jesus. Like Martha, I have even found myself frustrated when others didn’t share my dedication.

Then my precious Savior showed me the hidden attachments of my heart. And I discovered that He wasn’t the One burdening me with tiresome labor. I was.

Jesus comes to give us rest, beloved.

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

Although Martha did good work, her soul was not at rest. Mary chose the good portion: rest in His presence.

At His feet we learn who He is and see who we truly are.

In His presence He sets us free from the fleshly attachments that darken our souls.

Love compels us. His Spirit empowers us.

And He lavishes our work with grace.

Do Your Words Carry God’s Power?

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And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. 1 Samuel 3:19

Most of us are careless with our words.

We let accusations fly without thought. We put others down and call it humor. We’re often quick to say things we don’t mean.

I wonder what would have happened if Samuel had been careless with his words. After all, scripture makes an astounding statement about Samuel. God was with him, and He made sure none of his words landed without effect.

Beloved, everything Samuel spoke proved true.

Can you even imagine it? Honestly, with my track record the thought scares me a bit. Where would I be if God had worked that promise in my life? Carelessly spoken words would’ve undoubtedly wreaked havoc in the lives of people I love.

But that’s the difference between most of us and Samuel, dear one. His words weren’t careless. Samuel’s words echoed those flowing from the mouth of God Himself, and that brought about some amazing results.

… and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.

I wonder, dear one. What would’ve happened if Samuel had chosen not to listen when God spoke? What if Samuel had ignored God’s words, letting them fall to the ground unheeded? Surely Samuel would’ve had a very different legacy.

But Samuel didn’t make that choice. In a time when “the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision” (1 Samuel 3:1), Samuel heard and lived by the word of the Lord. It wasn’t the common thing to do. No one else heard God speak. But when God spoke to him, Samuel took hold of those words, believed them and shared them.

And God moved as Samuel spoke the word of the Lord.

And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord. 1 Samuel 3:20-21

Don’t miss it, dear one. Samuel’s willingness to hear and share God’s words allowed God to reveal Himself in a place where His presence had been absent.

And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord.

Perhaps you’re wondering what an Old Testament prophet has to do with you. Some things don’t change, dear one.

Let’s join Jesus and His disciples in the upper room shortly before His arrest. Jesus had just declared Himself the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Then Philip made an unusual request. He asked Him to show them the Father.

Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.” John 14:9-11

After so much time, the disciples still asked Jesus to prove Himself. Just give us this one more thing—show us the Father—and it will be enough for us (verse 8).

Only when we make Jesus prove Himself—when we insist on sight to believe—it will never be enough. Consider what they had already seen! The lame walked and the blind could see. They saw Lazarus raised and every sickness healed. But it still wasn’t enough.

Jesus taught about faith in the unseen that leads to seeing. That’s what Samuel had. He believed God’s words, and His faith in them allowed him to witness what he had believed.

And that’s what Jesus wants to see in our day, beloved. He wants followers who hear His words (John 10:27), believe what He says, and then witness God revealing Himself as we refuse to let His words fall unheeded.

Let’s see what else Jesus told them in John 14.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father. Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.” John 14:12-14

Jesus stands by His word, beloved. He means what He says, and His word proves true.

And Jesus said in John 14:12 that whoever believes in Him will do the works that He did. That’s a pretty profound statement, don’t you think? Then He follows it up with grand promises of answered prayer.

“If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.”

Apparently God doesn’t want to see our words fall to the ground either. But—just like Samuel—God Himself must be the source.

Perhaps it’s time we learned to live by His words.

Happy New Year!

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Wishing you a year filled with Christ’s presence, redeeming love, and resurrection life! May the power of the cross be evident in you and reveal God’s love to a broken world. Happy New Year from our family to yours!

The Word of God became Flesh

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The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14

What’s your favorite part of the Christmas story, dear one?

Is it Mary’s response to a visiting angel? Or perhaps the terrified shepherds tending their flock who found themselves engulfed in glory? I love the image of Magi from the east bowing to present costly gifts to a toddler King. If you let them, the details surrounding Jesus’ birth inspire awe and wonder.

Today I’d like to spend some time treasuring one of those details tucked in our opening Scripture, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” Have you considered the significance of that phrase, beloved?

Perhaps you were not aware that the birth of God’s Son—the Word—came on the heels of four hundred years of silence from God.

That may seem of little consequence to you. Maybe you’ve lived your whole life expecting God’s silence because that’s all you’ve known. But scripture overwhelmingly declares that God speaks to His created. He talked with Adam and Eve in the garden after He gave them life, and our first glimpse of Him after they sinned reveals a striking picture of God’s heart.

Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” Genesis 3:8-9

Do you see it, dear one? Even after they sinned, God came seeking them. He desires fellowship with us and wants us close. He calls to us, inviting a reply. When we hear and respond, His words provide life and quiet the soul. They become ‘”a lamp to my feet and a light for my path” Psalm 119:105.

So why would a God of fellowship who distinguishes Himself by speaking to His people remain silent for four hundred years?

It shouldn’t have surprised them. He told them it was coming.

“The days are coming,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “when I will send a famine through the land—not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord. Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it. Amos 8:11-12

God declared in advance that He would send a famine like no other—a famine of hearing His words. Why would He withhold that treasured gift from His people?

Well, usually our loving Father gives His children what they need. But sometimes, when they insist upon it, He gives them what they want.

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it. But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me. So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices.” Psalm 81:10-12

The people of God took for granted the gift they had been given. God spoke, but they refused to listen. He desired to fill their mouths, but they decided they didn’t need Him.

. . . they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and stopped up their ears. They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen . . . Zechariah 7:11-12

So God stopped speaking. For four hundred long, silent years. And the people eventually realized what they had given up by chasing after their own desires. They longed to hear from God again, staggering from sea to sea, wandering in search of the word of the Lord, but they could not find it (Amos 8:12). They became desperate for it, to no avail. Until . . . once again, God proved His faithfulness.

But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman . . . Galatians 4:4

The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us (John 1:14). The Word of the Lord returned, this time clothed in human flesh, an expression of God they could see and hear and touch. God’s voice entered the realm of earth again, carried on the cries of His infant Son.

Jesus grew, and God continued to speak through Him. He revealed God’s character and heart, teaching truth to all who would listen. The Word called us back into fellowship with His Father, extending the invitation, “Follow me.”

Then He poured out His life on a cross so we could maintain that fellowship with God forever. And He left us the gift of His Spirit so we can continue to hear and discern God’s truth.

The Word still speaks, dear one. Will you hear and believe?

Daring to Hope

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And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:5 NIV 1984

I love Christmas. It’s always been my very favorite time of year.

Don’t get me wrong. If we’re talking about weather, summer wins. No question. Warm breezes, cookouts, and sunshine beat the gray winter doldrums any day.

But Christmas to me was never about the weather. It was about the feeling.

Do you know the one I’m talking about? My mother called it sugarplums. Every year the onset of Christmas carols, decorated trees, holiday smells, and overflowing trays of Christmas cookies brought inevitable excitement.

Anticipation built with each opened door on the advent calendar. Finally on the night of December 24th, I would lose the ability to sleep altogether.

Fun times.

I wish I could tell you that my childhood excitement over Christmas was rooted in something spiritual. It wasn’t. Although I marveled at the wonders surrounding Jesus’ Bethlehem story, it would be years before I understood its profound significance and opened the gift God gave me in His Son.

No, my childhood Christmas sugarplums came from the presents.

You see, for the 12 long months from one December 25th to the next, my brothers and I would hear one thing from my parents in response to asking for things we wanted. “Maybe. Put it on your Christmas list.”

So we did.

Then we’d wait. And we’d hope. And as the big day drew near, we’d wonder what treasures might actually appear beneath the Christmas tree.

Do you remember what it feels like to hope, beloved?

At some point, even if only for a few brief moments of childhood abandon, all of us have allowed the glimmer of possibility to stir our hearts.

And that stirring kindled anticipation. Perhaps that hope even inspired a step of faith.

You bought that lottery ticket.

You went after that promotion.

You opened your heart to love.

Then you waited and watched. And hoped. And you didn’t get the outcome you desired.

Unfortunately, in a world with very few guarantees, we often end up disappointed. And many of us have discovered first-hand that Proverbs 13:12 proves true.

Hope deferred makes the heart sick.

And so stories of a child Savior born in a stable with the power to redeem your life seem a bit farfetched. You can appreciate the sentimental wonder of the story, but you dare not open your heart to really believe Him for His promises.

Or maybe Jesus Himself seems to have disappointed you.

Yet Romans 5:5 makes a bold claim.

And hope does not disappoint us because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Beloved, biblical hope does not disappoint. But we must pay careful attention to what scripture links that hope to: love poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.

You see, we can seek Jesus for His power. We can associate ourselves with His name to try to garner His blessing. But if we pass love by, hope in His name holds no guarantee.

The baby born in Bethlehem wasn’t the means to access God’s gifts. He is the gift.

But we can’t just stand next to Him in church on Sunday. We don’t step into His power by singing songs about Him. We’ll never find healing by owning a Bible we never open.

Love alone releases the blessings of heaven into this broken, troubled world. Love remains the only catalyst to release them in you.

And so the manger offers an incredible hope. Transforming love. Love that must first be encountered, trusted, and received. Love that can then pour out. And change the circumstances of earth.

That’s better than any shiny present under the tree.

Whatever your association with Jesus has been, beloved, will you take a chance on love? Will you open the door to your heart and invite Jesus to reveal Himself? His Spirit wants to write His Word upon your heart and transform you from the inside.

Make sure you open the gift, dear one. It costs you nothing but time and gains everything.

And it’s guaranteed not to disappoint.