The Gathering Place Where Family Matters

“Therefore if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him” (James 1:5).

What a grand verse is James 1:5. Another way of understanding this verse would be that if any of God’s children lack wisdom, don’t be afraid of coming to our extremely generous God and asking Him. You can be sure that He will give it to you and will never be upset for your asking! Let’s think about what James tells us. James speaks first of all of the people (If any of you), the problem (lack wisdom), the provision (let him ask of God), and the promise (He gives to all men liberally and upbraideth not). We truly need the Lord’s wisdom and His direction. We cannot lean on our own understanding. We must not rely upon our own human wishes and desires. We need God’s wisdom. Wonderfully, it is available, and the Lord will never tire of us asking, nor will He become perturbed because of our asking.

For today: Isn’t it amazing that the Lord desires you to come to Him? Isn’t it reassuring that you can ask Him for wisdom? Isn’t it wonderful to belong to the Lord?

“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

The counseling appointment started out with a disappointing tone. The young couple sat in the counseling center of Dr. Kenward and both looked defiant. The tension was so thick that you could nearly slice it with a knife. This was his third appointment of the day and, “If truth be told,” Dr. Kenward whispered silently to the Lord, “I hope the rest of the day does not go like this, dear Lord!” Suddenly, it seemed like the Holy Spirit really nudged the counselor to turn and read this verse to the young couple. He emphasized the miraculous work of their Savior in coming, the majestic nature of their Savior in His display of glory, and the marvelous demonstration of being full of grace and truth. Dr. Kenward spoke softly but firmly, “Listen to yourselves, both of you. I am not sure that I have heard the full truth from either of you, and I surely have not witnessed any grace. You both claim to belong to the Lord Jesus. Then listen. He demonstrated the fullness of grace and truth and greatly desires to accomplish this in you as well.” The entire tone of the counseling appointment changed in a moment. That’s just what grace and truth can accomplish.

For today: How will grace and truth play out in your life today? You need grace and truth, and those around you need it as well.

“God understandeth the way thereof, and He knoweth the place thereof. When He made a decree for the rain, and a way for the lightning of the thunder: Then did He see it, and declare it; He prepared it, yea, and searched it out. And unto man He said, Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding” (Job 28:23, 26-28).

Marshall and Carol love the Lord, and they work in the same department in a very large firm. Not only do they share their love for the Lord and His Word, they both enjoy trivia and being challenged by each other several times a week after business hours. This time was Carol’s turn. She emailed Marshall, saying, “We know that the Book of Job contains several references to the amazing power of the Lord as demonstrated by His sending out lightning. So, my friend, here is my trivia question for tonight. According to traveltrivia.com, about how many times each year does lightning strike the Empire State Building? A. Is it two times per year? B. Is it ten times per year? C. Is it twenty-three times per year? D. Is it seventy-four times per year?” Marshall guessed B, but he was wrong! The Empire State Building is struck, on average, twenty-three times per year! It was fun playing, but once again he was reminded of the Lord’s awesome power as seen in the thunder and lightning.

For today: We don’t need a thunderstorm to remind us of the awesome power of our great God; however, the next time you see the flash of lightning, stop and think, “My Father made that!” and be blessed.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Colossians 3:16).

Isn’t it wonderful the way our awesome Creator has designed us to respond to music? According to selecthealth.org, a recent blog reported that “Most people have different music preferences, but interestingly enough, taste in music isn’t the most important factor – an emotional connection is. When a song that a person seems to enjoy is playing, the limbic system (the part of the brain that controls emotions) shows much more activity. As a result, music that evokes emotion can have a direct effect on one’s mood.” Old Aunt Ruth didn’t realize all this medical information, she just knew that she needed to be listening to spiritual songs during the lonely afternoons she was experiencing. How thankful she was for the wonderful music that surrounded her as she was once again directed back to the Lord. She even sang along with them and how her spirit was lifted. How are you doing these days? It seems like everyone has been touched one way or another by this pandemic. Take a lesson from old Aunt Ruth. She was very wise and blessed by the songs that glorified the Lord. You will be, too.

For today: Singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord is not only possible, it is really precious. I hope that your day will involve wonderful singing to the Lord.

“God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about Him. O LORD God of hosts, Who is a strong LORD like unto Thee? or to Thy faithfulness round about Thee?” (Psalm 89:7-8).

The more you get to know the Lord, the greater will be your appreciation of Who He is and how awesome He truly is. I think something else will take place that goes right along with this. I am convinced that the more we know about our awesome God, the greater will be our respect, reverence, and fear of Him. Show me a person who uses the Lord or His Word as a joke, show me someone who is flippant in the way he or she refers to the Lord, or show me someone who uses the Lord’s name in vain, and I will show you someone who really doesn’t fear the Lord in the correct way. To know Him is to both love and fear or respect Him. He truly is amazing and awesome in all His ways. How will these profound truths impact your life today?

For today: I think that the word “awesome” is an expression that ought to be reserved exclusively for the Lord Himself. What do you think?