Life Interrupted

I wonder if others are getting as weary of being "stuck at home," waiting for "life" to begin again. When the government first told us to shelter in place, it was to be for two weeks and I thought, "Piece of cake, we can do this." But now it seems like there is no end in sight for my state.  After listening to one of our pastor's sermons this week, I realized that I need to reframe my thinking so I don't become completely discouraged and overly frustrated.

When the shelter-in-place order was given, I had to shut down our support group ministry and have often thought about how much I hate having the important work we do with our ladies interrupted at such a crucial time in the group process. But this pandemic and this sheltering in place orders was not a surprise to our God. I know there are valuable lessons for each of us to learn about our God, about ourselves, and about life in general, if we are willing to learn. I have been thinking about different people in the Bible who went through things that may have been perceived as interruptions to what God was going to bring about in their lives and will share about two of them.

First, we have Joseph. He was highly favored by his father, who gave him a beautiful coat of many colors, designed to signify his favor towards him. Young Joseph then had two dreams, both of which indicated his brothers would bow down to him. He made the mistake of telling his brothers about his dreams and they were jealous and despised him and sold him into slavery. Joseph, the man who believed he would rule over his brothers landed in Egypt, living the life of a slave.

Pharaoh noticed that everything Joseph did was blessed by God and he gave him an important position in his home. Pharaoh's wife started making advances towards Joseph and he refused her advances. She then accused him of rape and he was thrown into person. Joseph's life as a slave--seems to have been interrupted once again.

There Joseph sat, until the chief butler had a dream Joseph was able to interpret. Joseph asked the butler to remember him when he got out of prison, but the butler didn't. It wasn't until Pharaoh had a dream that needed to be interpreted that the butler remembered Joseph. When Joseph interpreted the dream, it became clear there would be a great famine and they had seven years to fill storehouses. Pharaoh was thankful and put Joseph in charge over the land, knowing he would have the wisdom needed to store things for the future.

It was because of Joseph and his work in Egypt that his brothers came to Egypt, seeking food during the drought. There they ended up being under Joseph's leadership and had to rest in his mercy. It was because of the interruption in Joseph's life that the nation of Israel was preserved through the famine. I also believe Joseph learned all sorts of things about God and His grace as he navigated and prepared for the hard, grieved the betrayal of his brothers, and worked through the important issues of forgiveness.

Second, we have King David, who was anointed by the prophet Samuel to be king after Saul. This was awkward as Saul was still alive, but David served Saul with integrity waiting for God to fully elevate him to his kingship. After a great military victory, the Israelites praised David so much Saul was consumed by jealousy. Even though David was a faithful servant, who performed music that soothed Saul's tortured soul, Saul turned on him and tried to murder him. David, the anointed king, ended up hiding in a cave. His brothers and father, who were now at risk joined him there. They were soon followed by everyone who was in distress, who was struggling with debt, and who was discontented and David became captain over all 400 men. I bet David had assumed when he became king, he would be in Jerusalem living the good life, not in a cave training a much of malcontents to be soldiers. Yet, in that cave he remained faithful to what God gave him, showed great restraint when he refused to kill Saul as he trusted God bring about his kingship.

I can relate to these men and the interruptions they faced in what they had thought their lives would be like. I thought this year would be different than it is. I hoped we would work with our ladies in our ministry and give them a celebratory sendoff at the end. I thought we would continue attending church every week. I had realized I needed to socialize more and had committed to have more sweet fellowship over coffee or lunches with friends and here I sit. I thought my husband and I would get travel and may be go camping with grandkids. I thought I would get another book done. Right now, maybe that last one has potential if I can keep my focus during this crazy time.

Sometimes, I wish I could talk to Joseph and David, whose lives seem to have been interrupted like mine. I can't, but I can read their thoughts during their struggles in the Word. Joseph who wept so loudly that the whole palace heard him was able to extend grace to his brothers, saying, "You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good." God used that interruption to grow him enough to forgive the impossible and to save Israel. And the Psalms...they are so full of David's thoughts, questions, and painful emotions being countered beautifully by his knowledge of His God and His trust in His sovereignty, power, love, and goodness. With out reading the Psalms we might not know how personable and safe God is to run to. Their words are more powerful when I remember they were not omniscient, they were everyday people like me. I know that Greg Laurie announced that 50,000 people have accepted Christ during this pandemic. On line church during this hard has opened the flood gates, removed blinders, and turned people's hearts to God. In light of these stories I can reframe my thinking from being stuck at home waiting for life to begin again to being in the middle of something great God is doing in and through his Church.

I don't know what all God is doing through this pandemic and sheltering order, but I do know that He is good and that He is the embodiment of perfect love. I am also confident that nothing can stop the work He is doing in and through each of us. So, I daily choose to trust Him as my husband and I seek His wisdom in how to live out these days of life seemingly interrupted. I am thankful that I am a follower of Jesus and that I have prayed more faithfully for those who are sick, those who are struggling with addictions, and for those who are grieving unexpected changes and big losses. I have also taken time to notice and celebrate births, marriages, graduations, and other milestones from afar. I have taken advantage of this time to enjoy sermons from all sorts of speakers and have gained some good perspective of God through this. And I am confident that our God--He is perfectly good even when life is interrupted.

Bathsheba's Story

The fourth woman in Christ's family line is Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah and the daughter of Elam, both of whom were among David's mightiest soldiers. She was also the granddaughter of Ahithophel who was David's chief counselor. Many articles about Bathsheba paint her as a seductress, an adulteress, and a manipulator seeking power for her son, which was what I heard growing up. Other articles, that took into account the role of women in Bathsheba's culture, presented a very different point of view. As I read these, my heart ached for Bathsheba, a victim of both her culture and a king, misusing power and position to rape her. She has been widely mischaracterized by commentators putting on her the blame for the actions of a king, struggling with sin. Yet, she was a woman with incredible strength who rose above horrible circumstances to become a woman of great influence.

Bathsheba's story began in the spring when kings go to battle. King David, however, sent his troops into battle without him. One afternoon he went to his rooftop to walk around and saw a beautiful woman washing herself, according to the purification laws of their time. I had always heard she bathed on the roof top, but there is no where in the text that says that. She could have been bathing near a stream, near a well, in her own courtyard, or on her roof top and would have still been visible from the palace roof. We also don't know how much clothing she had on or didn't have on during the ceremonial bathing as people didn't have private places to bathe at that time. Because of this, they often wore some type of  garment or wrap. She was doing what she needed to do to fulfill the law.

We know from the text the king saw her and lustfully chose to watch her. He could have chosen to turn away or summon one of his wives or concubines to meet his needs, but he didn't. He chose to summon his men and asked who the lady was. His men identified her through references with both her father and her husband, indicating she was a woman of integrity. It could also have been his men's subtle attempt to remind him she was unavailable and related to two of his best soldiers. Yet, David chose to send the men to summon her. When she came, he made the decision to take her and lay with her and she conceived a baby.

Some believe she had a choice in the matter, but there is nothing in the text that indicates she knew why she was being summoned to the palace. Even if she did, as a woman and as a subject in a kingdom, she didn't have the right to tell the king "no." It is also imperative we remember that when Nathan the prophet came to confront David on his actions, he used a lamb--the symbol of innocence--to represent Bathsheba in the allegory.

When Bathsheba realized she was pregnant, she messaged the king, placing herself at the mercy of David and Uriah. She knew her husband could legally take her life if he heard she was pregnant. She also knew she couldn't appeal to the law to protect her because it was the king who has violated her. She had to sit and wait as her future was decided by the choices the king and her husband made.

David chose to call her husband from the battlefield and tried to send him home to Bathsheba, hoping the baby would be passed off as his. But, Uriah, being a loyal soldier, chose defy the king and chose not to go home to his wife while his men were still in the thick of battle. So, David chose to send him to the front lines, ordering his commander to remove all support from him so he would be killed. After Bathsheba's time of grief, David chose to bring her into the palace to be in his haram.

While Bathsheba did not lose her life, she did experience many losses. She was raped by a king, literally losing ownership of bother her body and her life. She lost her husband because the king wanted to cover up his actions. She lost her home when she was placed in David's haram. She even lost the baby they conceived during the rape after he was born. And, all of this loss was because of the king's lust and the king's abuse of power. 

Later Bathsheba conceived several other children, one of whom was Solomon who was promised the throne of David. However, the fulfillment of that promise was endangered by strife that occurred as  David's sons jostled for power. On advice of Nathan, the prophet, Bathsheba approached the elderly, ailing king and informed him that his son Adonijah was plotting to take the kingdom. She reminded him that she and Solomon would be in danger if he didn't act quickly and David crowned Solomon that very day.

The story didn't end there like I originally thought. God took the painful things Bathsheba experienced and brought good out of them by raising Solomon to kingship. This elevated Bathsheba from being one woman out of many in a king's Haram to being the only mom of the king. God also used those circumstances to place her into the family line of Christ. Maybe Bathsheba was placed there to remind us that God has a heart beating passionately for those who have been victimized by powerful people.

I had always thought Bathsheba faded into the background after the encounter with David, but she didn't She remained close to Solomon and had the privilege of crowning him with his wedding crown. She was also given a place of honor as Solomon's advisor and sat on a throne that was placed at his right hand, something unheard of at the time. It would not be surprising that some of the wisdom Solomon penned was passed down to him through Bathsheba. Maybe it was even because of her experiences that he wrote these words in Proverbs 31:8, "speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute." Maybe she was placed in the family line so victims understand victimization doesn't have to define one's future. For, in Christ, each of us has been given great power and a new heritage.

Maybe she was put in the line of Christ to remind us our God is not limited by the boundaries a society or a church places on women. God alone chooses whom He will use to bring about His perfect will. No man, no government, no church leader will ever be able to thwart that. Maybe Bathsheba was put in the family line so her story would remind women that while their stories may go untold, unnoticed, or be mischaracterized, God can still use them powerfully to usher in His kingdom. He did this in the past. He is doing it now. And, He will do it in the future.

In closing, we all must wrestle long and hard with the fact that King David. whom we have grown up loving as a young shepherd boy who alone was brave enough to slay a Giant, as a loyal friend to Jonathon whose dad was a king with evil intentions, as a mighty warrior who won untold battles, and the "man who chased after God's own heart" was also a man who misused power, who raped a woman, and who orchestrated a murder. Isn't that a good reminder to each one of us that we are all one glance away, one step away from walking into ugly, devastating sin? Isn't It a good reminder that we are a people who are in desperate need of grace? Oh, that we who are in Him would choose to rise above our sinful tendencies and our victimization to live powerful lives that full of integrity--lives that honor the Savior who sacrificed His own life on our behalf.

(For more information: A Sympathetic Look at Bathsheba, by Marg Mowczko and "The Junia Project: What You Need to Know About Bathsheba, by Dalaina May.

Am I Being Wise or Foolish?

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them,

may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 

Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them,

will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand."

Matthew 7:24-26 (NAS)

What would have happened to mankind if Noah had not chosen to obey God by building the ark? What affect would it have had on history if Abraham had chosen not to leave his home and go to the land to which God called him? What would have happened to the Jewish nation in Egypt if no one had believed God and chose not to brush blood from a lamb on the posts of their doors when the Lord passed judgment on Egypt? What would have happened to Rahab when the walls of Jericho came tumbling down had she not chosen to hang the scarlet thread from her window? Probably a more important question is how would it impact my world if I hear God's Word and then choose not to act upon it? How will it impact my family, my church, and my friends? How would that impact future generations?

The passage above tells me that the only difference between a wise person and a foolish person is that the wise person believes God's word and then chooses to act upon what He believes and a foolish one either choose not to hear or chooses not to act upon it. What that seems to be saying to me is that knowledge itself does not make us wise. However, it is the choosing to act upon it that does. If I am really going to be honest I have to admit that there are teachings that I definitely am obeying pretty consistent. But there are also times that I might be tempted to be content to hear and not act up on what I hear. There are times I hear people even say that there are portions of scripture that they dismiss as irrelevant or outdated or that they just think they can get away with it because of grace. However, God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow and His eternal truth and principles don’t become outdated. A lie is still a lie today. Hate is still hate.  Murder is still murder. Adultery is still adultery. Fornication is still fornication. The Great Commission, the command to love each other sacrificially, and the instructions to serve each other with our spiritual gifts are still valid. They did not go away simply because time has passed. 

When God called me into relationship with Him, He did so in love. It was such a deep and compassionate love that it demanded a response from me. Amazingly according to His word, to love Him is to obey Him, to not just read His word but to live it out.  I have come to realize that obeying God's word sometimes takes great courage. Moses had it when he confronted Pharaoh and asked him to let his people go. Joshua had it when he went into the Promised Land in the face of the giants that lived there. The Israelites had it when they defeated Jericho by marching around the city and blowing horns. That still amazes me that men who were trained to fight battles obeyed God and simply marched! Young David had it when he killed the giant, Goliath. Daniel had it when he obeyed God and was delivered from the lion's den. His friends had it when they obeyed and were delivered from the furnace. Peter and Paul had it when they preached sermons that caused thousands of people to be saved in the face of persecution. Christ had it when He chose to go to the cross for you and for me. Why then am I so tempted to disobey when God’s will clashes with mine or when it is uncomfortable or scary to obey?     

I know that sometimes I think obedience to God doesn't require as much courage for me as it did for the saints mentioned in the Bible, especially in Hebrews Chapter 11. But it really does. If I commit to loving God with all of my heart, mind, soul, and strength I will be so different in the way I think, the way I speak, the way I act and react, and the way that I relate, because I will be governed solely by love. Because I live in a God-rejecting, often unbelieving and hate-filled world, when I live a life fully devoted to God I will stand out and be a blessing pointing many to Christ, but I will also be persecuted by those who hate God and the holy standard that He represents to them. Many don’t want to be reminded by my words and my lifestyle that they are disobedient to the one who created them and loves them with such a passionate love that demands a response from them too. A life devoted to God will condemn them even when I am acting in love and treat others with kindness.    

It takes lots of courage to live out one’s faith. It takes an inner strength to reject the pleasures that we often confuse with love and the appealing temptations this world offers for the eternal things God gives. It takes greater strength to stand up to gossip than it does to join in it, to offer forgiveness rather than retribution, to say no to sexual temptations than to give in to the desires of my body and its chemistry, to push down the sinful urges I was born with rather than to give in to them. It takes greater strength to treat others with love and respect than it does to push my own agenda, greater strength to push down my self-centeredness to put another's needs first, to honestly and respectfully work through conflict to become unified in Christ than to win an argument at the other person's expense, and to edify others when I am filled with human feelings of insecurities and jealousy. Lastly, it takes great strength and courage to confront in love and invite other’s to live in His light rather than silently suffer for fear of abandonment.  

Hmmm….I am wondering if you are a wise person or a foolish person? What will you do with God's word this week? Will you be courageous enough to live it out? It is ok if you are afraid, because without fear courage can't exist. It is okay if you feel ambivalent about it, just be honest with God, and then choose to do the next right thing. Most importantly, will you demonstrate that love Him through your obedience, He who made you and who died for you through His own obedience? May we grow wiser day by day as we renew our minds and choose to act on what He teaches us. May we have the same impact on our world as the Saints of old did!

Prayer: Father, we thank you for Your word and Your instructions. Help us realize that the world has a distorted view of wisdom and strength. Help us to choose to live in such a way that we are wise in Your eyes and strong in your might. Help us to apply your word daily to our lives. Help us to be transformed in our minds and help us to conform our will to Yours. Amen.