Truly vast as the ocean

My Prayer Perch overlooking the Atlantic Ocean

Unfortunately, I am back from a grand vacation at one of my favorite places on this earth, Topsail Island, NC. In spite of the clear and present danger of Hurricane Isaac, we drove down a week ago this past Sunday, and we were rewarded for our faith with a beautiful week of sunshine, warm air, and warm, calm water. Wednesday morning I awoke with a song in my head, really out of nowhere. I hadn't heard it in quite a long time, but it seemed to start my day perfectly as I sat out on the deck off of our bedroom. The picture is the view from my "Prayer Perch" and as I watched the tide rolling and the dolphins following the shrimp troller, some thoughts came to me, birthed out of the hymn I awoke with.

From my "perch" I thought of the shear vastness of the Atlantic Ocean. I realize the Pacific is larger, but I was sitting in front of this ocean that was rolling up on the shores of the United States of America and, at the same time, rolling up on the shores of Wales, where this song originated nearly 4000 miles away, and I thought about how the relentless love of God rolls up on the shores of humanity, no matter where they are. It is a well-known fact that water covers about 3/4 of the globe. How overwhelming is that? And on the edge of every land mass in every part of the world, the ocean is rolling up on the shore. Then, while the sight of the ocean reminded me of the relentless, ever-present love of God, I thought about the waves. Through the week at Topsail I saw times of high tide and I saw times of low tide. Interestingly, some high tides were higher than others and some low tides were lower than others. Yet, in every tide, high or low, the waves seemed to keep pushing toward the shore. I could not help but admit that even in the lowest times of my life, though I would try to deny His presence, I still knew the love of God. That love still rolled, as the waves, toward the deep and troubled shores of my heart. You know, in a week at the beach, not one time did the waves ever stop. What an incredible comfort to know that in every season of my life, the waves of God's love will never stop.

On Tuesday, we did have some rainy, stormy weather and if you have ever been to the shore and seen a storm come in, you know what happens to the ocean waves. They swell. I got excited as I thought about how at the most difficult times of life, the times of great storms, the waves of God's love grow greater, seeming to push harder to make their way to the shore of our soul to assure us of His presence, to comfort us and even bring peace. Even as the wind would blow against the tide, the waves still roll shoreward.

The Bible says in I John 3:1, " Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God". God has bestowed upon us a love that is measureless and relentless, not to mention deep, but it has a purpose. See the imperative in that verse. We should be called the sons of God. All of us aren't, but we should be. That's not just my Perspective. It's God's too.

Here is love, vast as the ocean,                            
Loving kindness as the flood,
When the Prince of Life, our Ransom,
Shed for us His precious blood.
Who His love will not remember?
Who can cease to sing His praise?
He can never be forgotten,
Throughout Heav’n’s eternal days.

On the mount of crucifixion,
Fountains opened deep and wide;
Through the floodgates of God’s mercy
Flowed a vast and gracious tide.
Grace and love, like mighty rivers,
Poured incessant from above,
And Heav’n’s peace and perfect justice
Kissed a guilty world in love.

William Rees

Your presence is requested before the King

I am having my oil changed right now so I figured I would practice my multi-tasking. I share a thought from my devotion by way of my phone. I read the book of Esther yesterday. You know, the book in the Old Testament that never mentions God, but it did not take long for me to stumble upon God in the book. In the first chapter, you read about a king who "enjoys a good time." He is hosting a grand feast with all the who's who of his kingdom and ultimately wants to show off his pretty wife. Quick lesson right there. Sir, your wife doesn't need the admiration of everyone else nearly as much as she needs yours, and parading her in public, showing all of her "attributes" is not complimenting her. It is making her an object for show and tell. Treat her the way she ought to be treated in private and she won't need to receive that attention from the public...and she probably doesn't want to, especially if it has to be in exchange for your attention. Anyway, the queen did not appreciate the opportunity to be made a public spectacle and so she refused. In so doing, she caused the king disappointment, as well as a bit of embarrassment in front of his buddies.  For her disobedience, Queen Vashti was given a punishment, "a royal commandment...that Vashti come no more before king Ahasueras." Now this is a powerful king, no doubt, ruling a kingdom from India to Ethiopia, and he has certainly flexed his muscle here. But I could not help looking at this from a different Perspective.

I serve a powerful King who reigns from Heaven to Hell. Of course, He does not require such things of me as this worldly king did. In fact, those things He desires from/for me are not just for His good pleasure, but for my benefit as well. Even so, I am sure I disobey my King. I fail Him in His desires for me. I fall incredibly short in my opportunities to bring attention and glory to Him in my life. But this is the good part. My King does not refuse entrance before Him. In fact, I have been invited to come into His presence to settle my failures. We read in Isaiah 1:18, "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." How's that for flexing your muscle? Be encouraged today that the God of the universe is the God of salvation. He wants you to turn to Him, not in order to present Him with your assets, but to bring your liabilities. No matter where you are or what you find yourself in, God is for you. We have been encouraged by the word of God, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." That does not sound like a royal decree barring me from His presence unless I am fit or prepared. Actually, it is clear that I am to feel at ease, welcomed to go to God with my faults and imperfections to receive mercy and grace, and even forgiveness, I John 1:9. I have a royal invitation to appear before the King and in my place before His throne, I have a great Perspective.

Here's a question you may have asked before...

In my devotion time this morning I finished the book of I Kings and got into the next book, II Kings. I read the answer to the question first, and then I got to the question. In II Kings 2:14, Elisha asks the question, "Where is the Lord God of Elijah?" Now you may have referenced that to another person, but the spirit of the question remains the same, "Where is God?" I will answer that shortly, but first I need to identify with Elisha. Maybe you can too. Elisha asks this question upon standing at the brink of the Jordan River, a river he just crossed with his mentor, Elijah, a man of God that Elisha had seen used of God to perform several incredible miracles. Elisha heard Elijah speak words of prophecy that came to pass as accurately as they were spoken. Elisha saw Elijah call fire from heaven to destroy a couple captains and their troops, from King Ahaziah. And at the last, Elisha watched as Elijah made the grandest of exits from this world as a chariot of fire with horses of fire took Elijah up in a whirlwind. Elisha had truly seen the power and ability of God...in someone else's life. Now his mentor is gone. Now he stands on the edge of the Jordan River, no small meandering creek, and has a decision to make. We have all stood in this place with this same decision to make. It comes during times of great loss or loneliness, Elijah was gone, or it comes in the face of an insurmountable circumstance, the Jordan River. We have all asked this question, "Where is God!? I have seen Him work in the life of others. Where is He in my life?" I do not know that the question in and of itself is a bad thing. In another portion of scripture, God invited us to prove Him. Ask your questions, but don't stop there. Elisha didn't ask the question and then sit on the bank and wait. He had in his possession a mantle that once belonged to Elijah. Now the answer wasn't in a piece of fabric, but the fabric was simply the evidence of all that had been handed down, exemplified, and taught by Elijah. Now it was his. What would he do with it. Well, the Bible tells us that after he asked the question, he "applied" what he received from Elijah. He smote the water and the river parted.

So where is God; only with a prophet, in a prophet's mantle, or on the bank of a river? Don't be so quick to put God in a box. That is what the king of Syria did in I Kings 20:23, "Their gods are gods of the hills..." In verse 28 God replies with, "Because the Syrians have said, The Lord is God of the hills, but He is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver..." Bottom line is God is God everywhere, hills and valleys. David said, in Psalm 139, in my words, "Where can I go from your spirit and where can I hide from your presence?" The answer is nowhere.

Shortly after reading this morning, I encountered a raging river of questions and emotions. Causing the river to swirl and foam were great rocks of disappointment. I have seen God work in the past. Where is He now? Why does He not answer or move on my behalf? Thankfully, these verses were not too distant to come back and help me. You have asked too. But don't just ask and then sit. Take what you have received, the word of God, the example from the lives of others, the testimony of His work in you and apply it. He is there. Where? Where you are. I love these words, "He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." And from this side of the river, that must be my Perspective.