Don't answer like Felix

In Acts 24, Paul, charged with various crimes, defends himself to the Roman governor Felix. Paul takes the opportunity to inform Felix about the resurrection of Jesus, to which Felix responds (Acts 24:25, NLT),

Go away for now. When it is more convenient, I’ll call for you again.

And then Felix left Paul in prison.

Felix had a golden opportunity. He was speaking face-to-face with someone who had spoken with the resurrected Jesus, and instead of taking Paul's message to heart, Felix delayed and, ultimately, refused the call.

But don't we do the same? When God attempts to call us, do we always see and hear his message? When God calls us, do we always respond?

It's easy to read Acts 24 and wonder what Felix was thinking. But before casting judgement, let us make sure we aren't answering similarly!

Ask God

In 1 Chronicles 14:10 (NLT), David asks God,

Should I go out to fight the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me?

God answers that, yes, David should fight the Philistines, and God will allow David to prevail. In 1 Chronicles 14:14, David asks God for a specific military strategy, and, again, God provides the answer.

Note that David asks God for guidance and answers.

Now contrast that with a verse in the next chapter, in which David speaks with his priests about how to move the Ark of the Covenant (1 Chronicles 15:13, NLT),

Because you Levites did not carry the Ark the first time, the anger of the Lord our God burst out against us. We failed to ask God how to move it properly.

The point is this: God wants us to ask for his guidance and wisdom in all matters. Indeed, this is part of praying without ceasing!

Today, let us offer a simple prayer asking God to guide our hearts to conform with his will.

If you breathe, praise God

In Psalm 8, David, gazing upon the stars in the sky, marvels at God's infinite power. It probably benefits us spiritual to occasionally gaze upon the night sky, and ponder what power could have created even that infinitesimally small part of the universe that we can actually see!

But pondering that infinite power leads to an obvious question, which David asks God in verse 4 (NLT),

What are mere mortals that you should think about them,
    human beings that you should care for them?

Indeed. If God can create the expanse of the universe, why does he bother with something as insignificant as us? The answer, simply enough, is that God loves us. It's a type of infinite love that our finite minds can't possibly process.

Even though we can't process that infinite love, we can be thankful for it. God took a bunch of molecules, and breathed life into them, creating us and making us part of his plan. So regardless of our personal circumstances, let us turn to the last verse in the Psalms (Psalm 150:6, NLT), and offer this simple prayer of praise:

Let everything that breathes sing praises to the Lord.

The yoke is easy

In Matthew 11:30 (NLT), Jesus says,

For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.

The point is this: He's not asking much of us. He asks only that we believe. Can it really be that simple?

I posted earlier this week about Naaman, but that story, presented in 2 Kings 5, has deeper spiritual implications, including some that portend the "easy yoke" of Jesus. In that chapter, Elisha heals Naaman's skin affliction, not by some elaborate spiritual magic show, but rather by sending a messenger to tell Naaman (2 Kings 5:10, NLT),

Go and wash yourself seven times in the Jordan River.

Well, Naaman clearly wanted the magic show! He responds angrily (2 Kings 5:11, NLT),

I thought he would certainly come out to meet me! I expected him to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me!

Finally, Naaman swallows his pride, washes in the Jordan, and becomes healed.

Naaman was not required to do too much in order to become physically healed. Likewise, Jesus does not require much of us to become spiritually healed. So, like Naaman, let us swallow our pride and accept the easy yoke of Jesus. Just believe!

Expecting rewards for doing right

2 Kings 5 tells of Naaman being healed of a skin affliction by the prophet Elisha. Naaman, ecstatic to be healed, attempts to offer Elisha a gift as a show of gratitude. But Elisha answers (2 Kings 5:16, NLT),

As surely as the LORD lives, whom I serve, I will not accept any gifts.

Had Elisha accepted a gift, that acceptance would have signaled that Elisha did something worthy of praise. But Elisha correctly interprets that any seemingly righteous action, whether supernatural or not, comes from God, the creator of all righteousness. Reading between the lines, Naaman should have offered his gift directly to God. And since God does not want our materialistic possessions, that gift should have been one of humble praise.

On a more general note, in this midst of our sinning, if we happen to do something righteous, we should not suddenly expect some sort of reward. Rather, as Jesus says in Luke 17:10 (NLT),

When you obey me you should say, 'We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.'

Simply put, we must obey God, and realize that harmony with him is reward enough!

A quick morning prayer

Too often, it seems like our days lose spiritual focus almost before they even begin. It takes discipline, but saying a quick prayer first thing in the morning can help place our spiritual concerns upfront in our lives.

Verse 8 of Psalm 143 (a psalm of David) presents a simple, easy-to-memorize morning prayer. I especially like the KJV rendering of that verse,

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.

Note that, in several short phrases, David expresses his desire to hear God, to trust God, and to follow God. This passage highlights that effective prayers need not be long!

What we "see"

In the 6th chapter of 2 Kings, the army of Aram has surrounded Dothan, with the goal of capturing the prophet Elisha. One of Elisha's servants expresses alarm at the sight of Aram's large army, to which Elisha responds (2 Kings 6:16, NLT),

Don’t be afraid! For there are more on our side than on theirs!

How can that be? Does Elisha have his own army? No, but he does have God on his side. Elisha then prays (2 Kings 6:17, NLT),

O Lord, open his eyes and let him see!

The servant then sees the hillside filled with horses and chariots of fire!

What the servant fails to see, prior to Elisha's prayer, is God's infinite power to deliver his people from even the most dire of circumstances. We, likewise, must learn to focus on spiritual powers, rather than earthly strengths. Today, let us focus on the message from Proverbs 17:24 (NLT),

Sensible people keep their eyes glued on wisdom, but a fool's eyes wander to the ends of the earth.