“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1, NLT)
When we’ve lost our way, it helps to return to the beginning; the starting point; the original idea.
In explaining the origin of all that we are and all that we see, the writer of Genesis puts God at the starting point.
We may regret days of our past — and the decisions made there — but today is a new day!
As you begin it, remember: With God, all things are possible; and God makes all things new. – Luther
Today’s note is a bit longer than usual; and it is from the works of Oswald Chambers (1874-1917). However, I hope that you will find its encouragement to press-on after missed or ignored opportunities of great help. – Luther
“Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!” (Matthew 26:46, NIV)
In the Garden of Gethsemane, the disciples went to sleep when they should have stayed awake, and once they realized what they had done it produced despair.
The sense of having done something irreversible tends to make us despair. We say, “Well, it’s all over and ruined now; what’s the point in trying anymore.” If we think this kind of despair is an exception, we are mistaken.
It is a very ordinary human experience. Whenever we realize we have not taken advantage of a magnificent opportunity, we are apt to sink into despair. But Jesus comes and lovingly says to us, in essence, “Sleep on now. That opportunity is lost forever and you can’t change that. But get up, and let’s go on to the next thing.” In other words, let the past sleep, but let it sleep in the sweet embrace of Christ, and let us go on into the invincible future with Him.
There will be experiences like this in each of our lives. We will have times of despair caused by real events in our lives, and we will be unable to lift ourselves out of them.
The disciples, in this instance, had done a downright unthinkable thing — they had gone to sleep instead of watching with Jesus. But our Lord came to them taking the spiritual initiative against their despair and said, in effect, “Get up, and do the next thing.”
If we are inspired by God, what is the next thing? It is to trust Him absolutely and to pray on the basis of His redemption.
Never let the sense of past failure defeat your next step.
– Oswald Chambers, “My Utmost for His Highest”
“After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.” (Job 42:10, NIV)
Praying for our friends (particularly when they have rubbed us the wrong way — as friends are in an excellent position to since they are close to us and know our “crimes” and our inconsistencies) can be a difficult choice.
In Job’s case, his friends did well at the beginning of his afflictions: They came to Job and sat with him for a whole week, saying nothing, but being present just the same. Then, they began to give advice. It was sincere advice, but it wasn’t intelligent advice. Their advice grieved Job.
At the end of Job’s ordeal, it was time for reconciliation. Job could have borne a grudge but, in obedience to God, Job prayed for his friends.
We can do our friends no greater service than to take what all we know of their crises, burdens, fears, and joys to the Lord in prayer. (We impede the work of God when we choose instead to gossip, pontificate, speculate and prognosticate about the situations of our friends.)
Pray for your friends, as only true friends can. – Luther
Daily Encouragement 