Hope

Worried About Lost Donkeys, and Stumbling on a Kingdom!


“Don’t worry about the donkeys you lost three days ago.
They’ve already been found. But who are all of the people
of Israel longing for? You and your father’s whole family!”
(I Samuel 9:20, NIV)

donkey on grass lawn

 

We all have misplaced and even lost things that we treasure. Everybody should be able to identify with the cycle and anxiety of mentally backtracking, trying to recall where we lasted placed something.

There are people in the Bible we can identify with, who have lost things, too. There was a character in the Old Testament whose name was Saul.  He was from Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin. He seemed to be an average citizen who one day was sent on an assignment by his father to locate some of their donkeys who had ran away (I Sam. 9:1-27). The father was troubled by this lost (9:5). The family did a diligent search and Saul and his servant travelled to many areas, no doubt, spending days in the process. They came upon a prophet by the name of Samuel who had knowledge that the donkeys had been found. This must have taken a load off these two exhausted travelers! It’s is such a blessing when we find what we have lost!

While finding their donkeys seemed like a time for rejoicing, there is a greater blessing to this whole account in the book of I Samuel. The prophet further shared with Saul that God had called him to be king over all Israel! We see a perplexed man who was at a loss about a lowly animal, yet he was about to step into the greatest blessing he could not even have imagined!

It’s amazing how God can have some greater plan for a man or woman who, at present, is perplexed, and so unsure about loss. God has a way of showing us our future even when our present seems bleak. Saul’s mind was toward one of the lowest animals God had created and yet God’s mind was to give this man authority to oversee the kingdom of Israel! The scripture has declared that the people we read about in the Old Testament, such as Moses and David, in some unique way, are not complete without us (Heb. 11:39-40). It also states in verse 40: “God having provided some better thing for us”. Whatever the loss we may feel today, it is safe to say that God has some better thing for us tomorrow!

Here is a song about uncertain times and anxiety
when we are at a loss. Please click the link below:

Didn’t I Walk on Water

 

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Worried About Lost Donkeys and Stumbling on a Kingdom!


“Don’t worry about the donkeys you lost three days ago.
They’ve already been found. But who are all of the people
of Israel longing for? You and your father’s whole family!”
(I Samuel 9:20, NIV)

donkey on grass lawn

We all have misplaced and even lost things that we treasure. Everybody should be able to identify with the cycle and anxiety of mentally backtracking, trying to recall where we lasted placed something.

There are people in the Bible we can identify with, who have lost things, too. There was a character in the Old Testament whose name was Saul.  He was from Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin. He seemed to be an average citizen who one day was sent on an assignment by his father to locate some of their donkeys who had ran away (I Sam. 9:1-27). The father was troubled by this lost (9:5). The family did a diligent search and Saul and his servant travelled to many areas, no doubt, spending days in the process. They came upon a prophet by the name of Samuel who had knowledge that the donkeys had been found. This must have taken a load off these two exhausted travelers! It’s is such a blessing when we find what we have lost!

While finding their donkeys seemed like a time for rejoicing, there is a greater blessing to this whole account in the book of I Samuel. The prophet further shared with Saul that God had called him to be king over all Israel! We see a perplexed man who was at a loss about a lowly animal, yet he was about to step into the greatest blessing he could not even have imagined!

It’s amazing how God can have some greater plan for a man or woman who, at present, is perplexed, and so unsure about loss. God has a way of showing us our future even when our present seems bleak. Saul’s mind was toward one of the lowest animals God had created and yet God’s mind was to give this man authority to oversee the kingdom of Israel! The scripture has declared that the people we read about in the Old Testament, such as Moses and David, in some unique way, are not complete without us (Heb. 11:39-40). It also states in verse 40: “God having provided some better thing for us”. Whatever the loss we may feel today, it is safe to say that God has some better thing for us tomorrow!

Here is a song about uncertain times and anxiety
when we are at a loss. Please click the link below:

Didn’t I Walk on Water

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Facing Somewhere Between Here and There


 

“Even though I walk through the darkest valley…”
(Psalm 23:4)

 

We are familiar with the signs that read, “You are Here”. All of us from time to time have found ourselves standing in uncertain places, wondering how to get from where we were to another place.

Uncertain places can be intimidating places, looming large as we enter. David, the psalmist, had great experiences with entering dark caves and weathering valleys. For years he was chased by king Saul. Those were uncertain years for David. He wrote in I Sam. 20:30 – “There is a step between me and death.” His visibility had diminished to what he could only see close around him. It was like a deep fog that surrounded him and there seemed to be no clearing to any brighter path. It was in that moment that he learned God from the shadows. In this deep darkness he sensed there was no need to be afraid — God was with him! David had great experiences with God, with a lion and a bear, and men similar to Saul.
Somewhere between here and there, the way to our destination is lined with uncertainties, doubts, and things that challenge us to fear. God is with us! He has never taken His eyes off of us — not for one moment. It takes being in a dark place to bring this truth to light. On the other hand, many of us are facing somewhere between here and where the enemy tries to tell us we will wind up being.  He often tries to project our future from where we currently stand. He mockingly tells us, “You are here, and this is where you are headed!” Job, no doubt, faced similar voices after having lost so much. His response was, “He [God] knows the way I take; when He has tried me, I will come forth as gold (Job 23:10). So — there is an intervening period — something that happens in the meantime! It takes place before the outcome of what has been negatively predicted. God is continually in that interim — watching and moving as we travel through the darkness.
We are somewhere between the place we have started and a destination. The forecast can be bleak, but God is familiar with each valley. While we travel, our destination is to see Jesus and to enter into a place of finality. He is the one who has gone on before us and now ever lives to make intercessions for us. Fear not little flock, it is our Father’s pleasure to give us the kingdom!

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Where is the Promise of His Coming?


“Where is the promise of his coming? For since
the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as
they were from the beginning of the creation.”
(II Peter 3:4)

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OFFICIAL SOUNDING VOICES
Have you been listening lately to all the “official” sounding voices in our world — everyone from neighbors and their opinions, to news, to talking heads, to agencies around the world. We are constantly being bombarded with voices about impending dangers and signs of what a new normal may look like.

THE VOICE OF THE SPIRIT AND OTHER VOICES
If you take a moment to turn off all the chatter and sit in silence, there is another voice that is in the earth, and this voice also has the ability to speak expressively. It is the voice of the Spirit! The Spirit of God can reveal to us signs of things to come, as well! These signs were first spoken of by the Old Testament prophets, and then by the Lord, and followed by New Testament teachers. These all spoke of the coming of the Lord! Those who are caught up in the affairs of this world will pay unnecessary attention to what the world says (I John 4:5). The world speaks in terms of politics and sports, and stocks, bonds, and investments, entertainment and pleasures. The world has little concern for a God and His Savior!

DOING BUSINESS AS USUAL AND THEN THE GREATEST CRISIS
The voices that are in the world just want to get a crisis over and let us return to normal to do business as usual. But…it is written: “The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (I Thessalonians 4:16-18.) This worldwide event will change the course of the world and after that no one will be able to escape the things that will come on the entire world (I Thessalonians 5:3; Luke 21:34-35.) Many, including the majority of the church world, have not stopped to consider this. This great event could be tonight! The world does not fully understand this event and many have even mocked at it, nevertheless, the great resurrection will take place suddenly; faster than any sweeping virus (I Thessalonians 15:52)! Thank God, there is a part of destruction, disease, famine, and death that the church will not experience because those events belong to another day (time or season) (I Thessalonians 5:2-5).

There certainly is a difference between the resurrection of God’s people and Christ’s second coming. (The purpose of this article is not to discuss the two in detail.) Just note that both these events will happen suddenly and without warning (I Corinthians 15:51-52; Revelation 22:12)!

It seems that many think we have time to recover and things might get back to normal; but that is unlikely. What if the events that are currently taking place in our world are just a brief precursor to the great resurrection — which is Christ’s return for His church! Will you be ready?

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There Is a Manual for Life!


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