In the Word 1-11-01

Now this is what the Lord says. He created you, people of Jacob; he formed you, people of Israel. He says, "Don't be afraid, because I have saved you I have called you by name, and you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. When you cross rivers, you will not drown. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned, for I am with you. Isaiah 43:1-2

So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen. Matthew 20:16

Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding. So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, "Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?" And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, "Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen.” Matthew 22: 10-14

Many are called but few are chosen. Jesus used this to teach about the people who would come to Him. He showed his disciples that sometimes those who are called are not paying attention to the importance of the call. The story he used about the wedding and the guests show us today that we need to be grateful for being invited to join the kingdom of God.

We should not take it for granted, but many of us do. We grow up around other Christians and do not realize that the world is busy working on living in their sins. We live from day to day doing what we think is best, becoming avid readers of the Word and going to church, but what has God chosen us to do? Does he say in His Word to go and study the Word to all nations? No. He said to tell all nations the story, which we read in His Word. But we are not called to just read the Word of God! We are called to spread it!

So why do we get stuck in the Word but not living it? Why do we read it almost religiously and think that is enough? For that matter, why is it so hard for us to get to that point? So many people struggle with just reading the Word daily that they do not take the time to gain the knowledge that they need from it for spreading it to those around the world.

We need to get past the “read through the year” level and step up to the “learn through the Word" level. Then we need to get to the “share with the world" level. When I use the term level I mean it as a step we take in our walk with the Lord. We step closer and closer to what God intended us to be when we are obediently stepping up to the next level!

So once we get past learning to read, study and share His word, then what? We go unto the entire world, just like Jesus told us. Now does that mean that all of us are called to go to Thailand like Doc and Zina Docto? Does that mean everyone needs to go on a mission trip to another nation? No. Some of us are called to work through the internet. Some of us are called to our neighborhoods and gather women together for conferences, or girls’ night outs or men’s Bible study groups. Some of us are chosen to speak at retreats or conferences and others are chosen to speak to the person on the street corner begging for bread.

Many are called, but few are chosen to go. Many people were called to the wedding but they were too busy, or too sick, or too this or that. Few were chosen off the street to come and enjoy the fun of the party. I don’t know about you, but I do not want to miss a thing the Lord has for me. I want to be ready as the women with their lamps lit, but that is another story. I want to be chosen for God’s team.

When I sign my kids up for baseball, the coaches watch them play and they take the time to see their strengths and weaknesses. Then we wait to find out who chose them. They all get the call to come and try out for the teams, but few of them are called to be on the team of choice.

All of us have been called to follow Christ, but only a few of us will actually do the thing He chooses for us to do. We are hearing a lot of teaching and preaching about a comeback year in 2010, so I am going to challenge you to come back to God’s choice this year. Give God the comeback year!

Let’s work harder this year to listen for His still, small voice and follow the direction He tells us to follow. Dig deeper in the Word of God to really know what the Bible says about our lives and what we are here for. By here I am referring to the place you live, work, grow, worship, shop, study and vacation.

Why are we here? What does He want from us? It is all in the Word of God. We can find the answer in prayer. To get that answer we have to choose to listen, as long as it takes.

We have to choose to be obedient to what we read in the Word. That is no easy task! We are human and have our lazy times, our bratty times and our selfish times. We don’t always want to do what God tells us to do because it really will take effort on our part. Being a Christian is not about what we want. It is not about having fun and shouting "Hurray for Jesus" all the time. Sometimes it is the opposite. Sometimes we cry out to Jesus with tears of sorrow, and sometimes we cry out to Jesus with tears of joy. It’s not about us, though. It's not about why we are sad or happy but that we are broken before Him.

I know I changed analogies once but look for a moment at the clay pots that we are. They have to be broken before they can be changed and rebuilt into what they were meant to be. We need to follow His lead but sometimes that means being broken and transformed into that precious creation that God meant for us to be.

Gideon from last week’s reading was meant to be a "Mighty Man of Valor," but if he had not chosen to follow what God saw as opposed to what he saw himself as, his people would not have risen up and beaten the Midianites and gained the freedom that God planned for them to live in.

Let’s do it, let’s choose to be chosen. It is time to step up to the call of God on your life!

Dear Heavenly Father, help us to listen and obey your call. Let us live up to being chosen to be your people today and everyday. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Suggested reading; Matthew 20:1-34; Isaiah 43:1-28; Amos 9:1-15; Matthew 5:1-38; Matthew 18:35.

Follow on Hinds' Feet

Follow on Hinds' Feet is my newly published study guide to Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard. I wrote this study at the request of a friend. The response was so good that we decided to make it available in print. Here are a couple of sample chapters from the study guide. If you like it and want to complete all twenty chapters, you can purchase the book through the link on this web page.

Introduction to the Study Guide

Hinds' Feet on High Places is an allegory dramatizing the yearning of God's children to grow closer to Him. An intimate relationship with God requires that we seek Him daily and focus our lives around His direction and will. Hannah Hurnard wrote in her preface, “The High Places and the hinds' feet do not refer to heavenly places after death, but are meant to be the glorious experience of God's children here and now−if they will follow the path he chooses for them.”

We will journey with Much-Afraid to the most amazing places as she struggles each day to walk with the Chief Shepherd of our hearts. This study guide will help you understand Much-Afraid’s journey, but it’s not just academic. The questions and activities are designed to help you on your own path toward the High Places.

Read each chapter in Hinds' Feet on High Places and then do the exercises in the study guide. To get the most from your study, put some thought into each question and try to apply it to your own life.

This guide can be used by individuals or in a study group. Some activities ask you to share your insights with others. If you are doing the study alone, you will benefit most by finding another person with whom you can discuss what you have learned.

The voice of my beloved!

Behold, he cometh,

Leaping upon the mountains,

Skipping upon the hills.

Song of Solomon 2:8

Preface to the Allegory

I often skip the preface of a book. It often gives too many clues to the story and I like to be surprised. However, I recommend reading this preface. It will help you to understand why Hannah Hurnard wrote her allegory. It will also provide a framework for understanding Much-Afraid’s story.

1. Look up the word allegory in a dictionary. Why do you think the author chose to use allegory to present her message?

2. Read Song of Solomon 2:8. What does this scripture mean to you?

3. What did it mean to Hannah Hurnard’s nurse?

4. Why did the author feel led to write this book?

5. Read Habakkuk 3:19 and Psalm 18:33. Compare and contrast these scriptures. You can use more than one version of the Bible to get a clearer understanding.

Chapter 1

Invitation to the High Places

The Bible tells us in Ephesians 4 that we are to put on the new man and put off our old ways of thinking. That means we put off old fears and let Jesus take care of us. Much-Afraid has to learn that her old, fearful self has to be changed so that the Chief Shepherd can change her name.

1. Describe Much-Afraid’s personality.

2. On a separate paper, draw a picture or write a poem about what you imagine her to look like.

3. What was her biggest worry or hindrance?

4. Would you consider this a hindrance in your life? Why or why not?

5. What was the great offense that Much-Afraid committed against her family?

6. What did they want her to do that she was completely against doing?

7. Why do you think they wanted her to stay away from the Chief Shepherd?

8. When Much-Afraid asked the Chief Shepherd for help to get out of the Valley of Humiliation, what question did he ask her?

9. An acrostic poem uses the letters of a word as the first letter for each line of the poem. Write an acrostic poem using the word heart, sharing what the Chief Shepherd would see in your heart.

10. After meeting the Chief Shepherd, Much-Afraid was full of joy and excitement. Though she had been in his presence, she was still easily attacked by Craven Fear. Why did she so easily forget that the Chief Shepherd would come if she called?

11. Can you think of a time when you were so afraid to try something new that you almost didn’t do it? How did you overcome the fear and just do it?

12. What happened that caused Much-Afraid to be ashamed?

13. Much-Afraid is experiencing what we all go through when we first make Jesus the Lord of our lives. We hear about how Christ will change our old self into a new self but we wonder how we can be recreated. Read 2nd Corinthians 5:17-21 and explain how this scripture could help Much-Afraid.

In His Word 1-4-10

And God said “Let bright lights appear in the sky to separate the day from the night. They will be signs to mark off the seasons, the days, and the years.” Genesis 1:14

It is a new day every day, but for some reason we choose January to start new beginning attitude. Beginnings are good, so we can go with that! God started it all on the fourth day of creation, as He created the day and night, beginnings, changes and new starts. At the beginning of any day, week or year, we should pray this prayer:

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me again the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. Then I will teach your ways to sinners and they will return to you. Psalm 51:10-13

That is my plan for the year ahead. I plan to do a better job at listening and obeying what God tells me to do. No matter what I think I am capable of doing, He has gone before me. He is giving me direction. I need to step out in boldness and no longer kowtow to other people's ideas of how I should be or what I should do. I will follow what He tells me to do.

I am so guilty of trying to please people that it is not funny. I need to remember that I only need to please God. I think He was trying to tell me that for about a year. He reminded me of how King Saul lost his kingdom for trying to please men instead of obeying God. Ouch!

The funny thing is, that story of Saul has always gotten to me. I looked at how he blew it by trying to do what he thought was OK instead of what was right with God. I also like the story of Paul’s conversion and the little bit we know about his pre-conversion life. He sought to do what God would have him do, but did not listen to God Himself for the directions. Instead, he did what he thought was right and killed or helped to kill numerous Christians. How many people have we failed because we did what we thought they wanted instead of what God wanted us to do? I have to admit, it is hard to do what God says sometimes. It is not always the popular thing!

Take our choice as a family to home school. We did it because it is what God led us to do for our children. Knowing that He is the center of our home, we followed His directions. It has not always been easy though, because a lot of people have thought us either snobbish, odd or extreme. Through the years, God was the leader of our schooling and still is today. We pray first and trust Him to show us when it’s time to send one of our kids to school outside our home.

Following God with our children is one thing, but what about when God tells you to go to a co-worker and tell them that they need to quit complaining? What if He wants us to help someone quit smoking, or overeating and start exercising? Why is that more difficult than a life-changing thing like teaching your children? As my daughter said, “You’ve got to, like, talk to some people.”

Talking to God and relying on Him to direct us in our own little world is easier than helping someone else fix a problem, or encouraging someone to do better. This is an interesting thing. It is where Saul went wrong and Paul as well. When we have to deal with someone other than ourselves, we need to just do it.

We need to do the right thing by doing what God tells us to do, as He tells us to, and when He tells us to do it. After all, if God is for us then who can stand against us? We need to think about the things He is giving us to do and know that if He told us to do something, we can do it. Of course, if we are not sure the direction we received is from God, we would need to pray first and ask Him to assure us that it was indeed Him.

This reminds me of Gideon. In Judges 6:11-16, Gideon is called by God to do what was impossible in his eyes. God called him a mighty man of valor when Gideon felt like he was just a coward and a wimp. So, of course, he did not trust this word was coming from God. There was no sign of a mighty man in him! Instead of just laughing it off and sending the Angel of the Lord away, Gideon prayed. He set out a fleece on the ground. If it was damp when the ground was dry, and dry when the ground was wet, that was his proof that this was indeed of God. Well, God came through for Gideon. He had indeed had called him to greatness.

This week, think on things that God has called you to do that you have been putting off. Think about Gideon and what he went through, and see how God will come through for you. That is your homework.

Dear Heavenly Father, help us to listen to Your voice and follow Your directions. Give us the faith to trust You to do the work through us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Suggested Reading: Judges 6:1-40; Judges 7:1-25; Judges 8:1-35; Psalm 51:1-19; Genesis 1:1-31.