Finding Nineveh is a commentary about the prophet Jonah intertwined with the journey of Jennifer Williams: Me! Along the way, everyone who reads will learn primarily what it means to Surrender it all to Jesus and that God really is Good all the time!! Hopefully all those who read will learn as I am still learning that God is completely trustworthy and worth every minute of our struggle in letting go of all control into His hands. The end is always beautiful for we serve a perfect King!!
Jesus was talking to Saul in this passage, later we know him as Paul, and reveals to us that Jesus is at work after the cross, wanting all darkness eradicated...!!! A lot of us believe that Jesus came to take our sins away, but after that we tend to have nothing else to define the Christ by in our hearts and minds! In fact, we act like after His time on earth we
Feel like that was His part of the story... end of book!! We forget that He too has no beginning and He too is actively saving us still, and He too is light as being God’s word!! He breaks into our darkness and is the truth, the light and there is still no way to the father but through Him! The light of your world today is Jesus and He still saves, still reveals and still brings our lives into the light!!! Go bask in Jesus today!! He’s full of light that shatters your darkest hours of confusion! Jesus saves us from sin, but the Bible teaches that He also saves us from darkness! Walk in His light!!
Thursday, October 25, 2018
God lives in unapproachable light....
God shares with us in His perfect word, a little about Himself,
1 Timothy 6:16New International Version (NIV)
16" who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen."
Strangely, we are told to come boldly before God's throne and to live as children of light, but does light blind?? If God is light and in Him there is no darkness at all, we should be very attracted to that reality...!!! However, are you ready? Am I? Today...are you living in sin? ARe you able to approach his glory..?? Oddly enough, we find that most christians claim not to want to go to heaven because of the world that they will leave behind!!! Maybe the light of God is blinding??? Maybe ???? Ha!! For sure, the light of God is toooo much to take!! Go to heaven? Yes, okay and go blind!! Or is there another reality that we fail to consider as often as we should?? Perhaps the blood of Jesus and the beautiful refining of the Holy Spirit are not optional choices for us? Your thoughts? Can we live without the other two members of the Holy trinity and just take God and all that terrific light? Or, do we need to get comfortable with the work of Jesus on the cross...LOL more than just on Easter Sunday and do we need to get comfortable with the refining work of the Holy Spirit that searches the deep things of God...?? Have a blessed day and if you're willing...ask the Holy Spirit to come search your heart.... God
So we like just enough light to stop needing it!! That’s the problem!! We need God as an all consuming fire
but we only want just enough to get by with our human plans and pathways! Is that you today? Don’t settle for a human made God that gives just enough light!! Rather go for the maker of light!! 1 John 1:5 “God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all!!!!” No darkness? Is that your life? No darkness? Better go get the only one, wise, true God, maker of heaven and earth! FYI....If you think this picture gives light, even with all the clouds in the way...you might want to adjust your eyes..stop playing with shadows and dare to dream about the real picture!!
Life is funny, but I'm not laughing right now!! When I'm surrounded by darkness, it's so not funny that it's my fault!! I'm fumbling around in the darkness, stubbing my toes and hurting my elbow and getting very bruised and confused, when I don't have to stay in the dark!! God? Might I have a match to shatter this darkness that is wrecking my day? Oh!! all of you readers thought that I meant God is a matchmaker like where he set up two people for marital bliss? Ha!! Well, He's that too I suppose!! LOL! God holds all the matches we need to shatter the darkness in our lives. Just ask him for a match and he will light up your life. Don't wait!! God is your light and your torch to light the way...I don't want to start my day without his guiding fire, do you? More on this light tomorrow...
Revelation 21:23New International Version (NIV)
23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of Godgives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.
Has anyone ever accused you of anything that was let's say, "not an accurate representation of, you?" Did anyone you know ever just get it all wrong about you? Well, if you are breathing, and I hope you are because only alive readers are welcome on this blog, then you have had someone get "you" all wrong!! Well, not only do I think that we get, Jonah...all wrong....!! But, I know that the whole world got "Christ" all wrong when they sent Him to His death on a cross! Okay...so..there is a Scripture that says,
Matthew 5:10-12New International Version (NIV)
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Well, the problem with the text is that most of the time...I'll be accused of something that is not true and it's not because I'm a Christian...LOL! I'll definitely face persecutions from time to time for being like Christ, but what about when someone just doesn't get "me"..misunderstands me...and then accuses me of something? Well, maybe these situations are opportunities to expose the darkness in others? Maybe our false accusations are amazing gateways of hope for those who don't live by His power. After all, if God knows the truth about me, then who cares if another misunderstands me? So, by the comfort God brings me by knowing me, I can rise above the accusation so that it's true when the bible says,
Psalm 56:10-12New International Version (NIV)
10 In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise— 11 in God I trust and am not afraid. What can man do to me?
12 I am under vows to you, my God; I will present my thank offerings to you.
And also, when the Scripture says,
Romans 8:30-32New International Version (NIV)
30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
More Than Conquerors
31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
The Accusations hurt...but the Comfort from our Saviour Heals....Helps and then brings Hope that never disappoints...
Principle...If you are Hurting today because someone hurt you whose hope has slack, Trusting in God, let His faithfulness give hope right back!!!
Please enjoy this song as we celebrate Black Friday...We had it all wrong...and Those Nails were ours...not His...that shame was mine, not my Lord's, but He did it anyway to bring the hope back to me.
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.4 God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness.5 God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
Interestingly, God created the earth with darkness present...and the Spirit of God was always there....hovering..hovering over the waters...the creation, the light and the darkness....always, always there...!!! Sometimes, we seem to struggle with this thing called, "darkness"! Oh!....Woe is me!...How could a God of Love allow there to be darkness???? Oh...all this questioning reminds me of Jonah! "God", Jonah cried into the night, "how could you allow the Assyrians to live?...How could you allow that infestation of blackest night and ever present dark, disdainful, dismally, dreary death survive long enough to even contemplate your ever present light?" "Oh Jonah!!!" God answers back with love and understanding, "Jonah, Jonah, Jonah, oh son of Ammitai...why can you not be a son of God who understands the roll darkness must play in all of our pursuits of the light of salvation?"
Jonah 1New International Version (NIV)
Jonah Flees From the Lord
1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai:2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”
3 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish.
In many ways..we head away from the "so-called" darkness and miss the light altogether....
Principle...when the darkest hour pans out to be no fun...we find ourselves on the run..
When the light of God is the goal we seek...we spend our darkest hours on our knees...
To behold the light of God, there are some dark corridors upon which we must trod...
and as we fade and as we become more contrite
that's when we see that the light wins every time.
In fact...the truth is that when the light of God beckons you to go through the storm...to approach the dark times of your life...memories...people..ect...remember...that to obey God in these things is to move towards the light...and the darkness will be bound..Yes..the darkness that frightens you can never win...not in the presence of God's light...Check out this song from Anthem Lights...!!
14 “Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.”
15 The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”
16 This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.
God says, Jonah....there are some people that I want to hear the good news...and he says, "surely not, Lord!!" God says, Peter, take and eat...and he says, "Surely not, Lord!!" God says...Sarah, you will have a baby and sarah says within her heart, "surely not, Lord!"
We have a hard time believing God don't we...?? Notice that most of us believe in God...that there is in fact a God...but we do not believe God or take Him at His word. Jonah believed that God would in fact save Nineveh...but he did not believe God that "such a thing" was good!! When God calls something good.....do you call it good? Seriously??? Honestly, I don't think that we can put on the robes of righteousness and claim to walk in the light as Christ is in the light until we take the Lord at his Word!! Are you ready to be redefined by God so that even when His ways don't make sense that you can say, "Amen" ???
Principle:When God's ways seem to be a bit unsure, it's the softened heart that's willing to be made pure! When we doubt God's truth and plan, we are surely trusting in our own feet to stand!! Today...think for a minute that your life is over in a flash and that if you do not do things God's way..you are going to crash...Oh Jesus...please take the wheel and drive me home!!
1 Corinthians 2:1-3New International Version (NIV)
2 And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.[a]2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling.
Sadly...all of us think we know something that we really don't know!! Can you even imagine if when we spoke to one another that the only thing about which we were certain was that there was a God and that we were not Him? Also, what if our attitude did not go beyond Jesus Christ and him crucified, along with great fear and trembling? So much of our conversations are really glorifying us and our thoughts about life. "I know what's best" we say to one another, when in fact, only God knows best!! There are so many misconceptions that we have on a daily basis about life, about each other, and about God that we really ought to let our words be few! What are your thoughts about God tonight? I cannot help but wonder what were the thoughts or misgivings of Jonah as the word, "Nineveh" when in and out through the corridors of his mind! "Nineveh"! Bloodshed! Betrayal! Mayhem! Madness! Never! Never! Never! Ha! Mark my words, Jonah wasn't thinking about Neverland! Rather, he was thinking, "Never, never, never will I go to that "Land"! So, what's your red zone? What's your misgiving? What word is spoken that makes you say the word, "Never"! Too many times..there is dross...the junk of our souls making the way cloudy...only when we allow the dross to be raised to the surface of truth and then removed can we see Christ, and follow the light home.
Principle: When in God and in His Son alone we trust,
Our eyes can see clearly as He removes the dross!!
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
You know something, this really is a commentary on Jonah and sometimes I forget to bring Jonah's story out a little bit more, so I thought I'd take a moment to talk about my brother in Christ, Jonah!
Let's first have some fun with Jonah's home town, Gath-hepher! Did you know that this name means wine press, digger...!! Ever had too much wine and then just couldn't think straight, see straight or even walk straight? Well, maybe I've never been drunk, but I do know life has blinded me and made me act drunk. As well, I also know that my own sin has blinded me to the point of complete dizziness and delusion. So many times, I've been lost, digging myself deeper and deeper in a hole in desperate need of a rope to pull me out of the miry clay! Principle: When God's not allowed to patrol, you are going to dig a really big hole When God throws you a rope, don't expect it to be all for which you'd hoped.
Have you ever wondered if "comfort" can be a bad thing? I recently read a story of a little child who owned a scorpion and upon becoming too familiar with the scorpion ended up getting stung, yikes! A wise pastor and speaker pointed out an interesting point on the radio the other day, "Do we treat our sins the same way and become too familiar with them?" Yes, and Amen to you pastor! We are all about to get stung and yet we still head straight for comfort in all things surrounding our lives, even things that might sting us! So, Jonah was from Israel, from Gath-hepher..which by the way was only about 2 miles from Nazareth! How interesting! Jesus must have heard many remarks as he was growing up about "Jonah", the whale and all the stories that happened only 2 miles up the road. Yes, Jonah was born there in Gath- Hepher and raised there and lived there, ate there, had many memories there and I'm sure was very comfortable there delivering the Word of God to all those he was comfortable enough to understand and to consider family! But...Yes, there's a "But"!! Ever heard of giving too much grace to your family? What? Too much grace too my family? Well, yes, that's what I said and that's what I meant!! You might be thinking that I'm crazy, but sometimes when it comes to our "own" we are a little bit, well, shall I say it? "Jaded"! You know we seem to have all the grace in the world for ourselves, our family and friends and all those we trust, but then when asked to give Love, Grace and peace to others...those other stinky, nasty, unworthy people God dares to love, we just cannot manage to give it, can we? Sadly, my heart goes out at this time to all of you who are step-parents! You know what? There is a harsh reality in the Christian world today and that is the fact that because divorce is on the rise, so is the percentage of blended families. Never in the history of the world is it more relevant for Christians to understand the need for grace and mercy and love!!! Not "your" kind of human love, but God's Love and Grace are desperately needed if we are to give these jewels to those God calls us to serve. Jonah's people wouldn't listen to him very well, but Jonah had no problem spending all his time and love on them, did he? Content to stay in Gath-hepher, Jonah would rather work that "Wine press" and "Dig that hole" than to consider another group of people, a group not "his own" that needed and wanted God's love!! So, when you find yourself full of grace for your loved ones, ask yourself a tough question today! You who were far away and had to be brought near by His blood, adopted, washed and then loved...Are you in a place where you could go and do likewise for others, others who are not your own? Feeling a need for a rope? I am...Lord knows I want Him to pull me out of the Muck and send me where He wants me to go deliver His love today...I hear they are having a sale on ropes in Nineveh!!
7 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Okay...Don't Judge me...!! I put my decorations away and I did it in record time!
We finally put away our Christmas decorations and even so, we did it before epiphany! Yeah! Actually, by January 4th, 2016, we put the last Christmas pleasantry in it's pleasant little pouch and sealed it shut until December of 2016!!! Phew! Truly, I could not believe how much sparkle, pine needles, real and fake, and how much dust overall I swept up as I swept out Christmas this year. At one moment I recall sneezing 6 times as a bit of dust mixture of Christmas past filled the air and found its way to my eyes....!!! Ah Chew!!! Yet, finally, half way blinded, I managed to get all of the Christmas packed away! What a great feeling to say goodbye to yesterday's headaches and grief and to move on into the New Year and say, Hello! New Hopes, New Dreams, New Delusions all waiting to beckon me at the doors of a new beginning are all finally here and full of promise. What? Delusions? Yeah...the New Year can be full of riches in Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen! However, we all know that we think we see gold and then with gold dust in our eyes...we go for the gold, not realizing that it's not the treasure of Gold that we thought...! That's right! This false gold is not part of the glorious riches in Christ Jesus....! In fact, it's not the gold from the manger....!!!
It's just gold dust, blinding us from the only gift that does not decay and does not rust, Christ! We actually wait for things to fill our lives, things that we cannot clearly see or judge as good or bad due to the sin that blinds us. Yes, there are big planks of sin in our eyes, making it impossible to see!!
In fact, listen to this quote on waiting upon God and ponder its profound meaning, "we wait on the gifts, the riches promised to us by God and we wait looking for the gifts....Yes, even after the gift wrap and the tinsel has passed, we walk into the New Year still waiting for the stuff that we think will make us happy! Sadly, we wait for the gifts and neglect to realize that we still don't have the one gift that matters, the gift Giver....!! We are sooo blind!! We sooo need Him to see clearly! We are still not waiting on Him, we still only wait for what He can bring! The Wise men brought gifts to the gift Giver and beheld Him as the gift...In contrast, we ask Him for gifts for us and then forget that He is the greatest gift of all!! So, did you get blinded this year at Christmas?? Did you get the fact that any gold you have should be given to the Christ? Did you have gold dust in your eyes and miss the gift is the baby in the manger? Well, from my house to yours...it's not too late to have a visit from the Magi..the Wise Men!! Let's let them teach us that we only need one gift, and it's Him, the Christ! Present your time and offerings to Him in the New Year and Wait only on Him, the giver of the gifts...let Him be your gift! Truly, you will finally see, through Him that there are planks in your eyes and in your life that He needs to remove. Truly, you will finally see that you cannot see without Him...that unless your focus is completely on him, you will miss the mark; you will be deceived!
Please enjoy this version of Amazing grace....It's dedicated to my Dad...who's birthday was yesterday...May you cease to be blind and walk in His light in the new year.....God bless you all!!
Principle: If He is not the gift you seek, you may wait forever for silly things,
but if you seek Him first in your life, you will no longer have to walk around blind.
12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
Exhausted from Christmas, I began to plan for my mom coming to visit. Living away from Mom and Dad is quite alright considering I'm in my 30s and happily married. Yet, somehow at Christmas time, I miss Mom, Dad, the past and even somehow the family dachshund...So, this year for my Christmas gift Mom agreed to come out for a day and take me shopping for Christmas gifts, just like old times. Oh how wonderful it was to reminisce and enjoy the season with Mom. But then, as I was driving home from dropping my Mom off at the airport, it dawned on me that the time was over..gone and finished! As a familiar Christmas song began to play, "It's the most wonderful time of the year" I began to cry...! Feeling totally sleepy, happy, goofy and crazy I wept while, singing about Christmas time being so wonderful!! Suddenly, I stopped crying to realize that even though that time had ended...there was still Hope...My time with Christ, my true joy isn't going to end...it never has to end..."Christmas time is here" means that Christ came and He's still here....The Light that came into the world was and is Everlasting!!!
You know what I think about Christmas? Well, first of all, Christmas time is not the same thing as time with Christ, is it? Yes, I know...I know..."it's the most wonderful time of the year...right?" Sadly, most Christmas mornings are full of overly tired, overly stuffed, overly offended, overly shopped, sleepy, happy goofy people who have been running on empty for about 2 weeks at the least and 5 weeks at the most. Decorate those cookies, and pick up the ham...Clean the house for the Christmas guests and then clean it again for the relatives...or pests...!! Just kidding, well for some of us that might be a totally serious phrase!! I'll let you connect the dots, okay? Pick up more lights and run to Costco for more double A batteries because a few snow globes stopped running and most of the toys under the tree require batteries and are sold completely void of batteries, rending the toys useless and lifeless!! Christmas in fact is a consumable holiday for complacent consumers!! Put that in your cocoa and sip it 3 times fast!! However, the Christ of Christmas is not in need of a battery, because he is the power that gives energy to all. Moreover, the Christ of Christmas is not in need of lights because He is the light of the World. Even still, the Christ of Christmas is not in need of rest or sleep because He Himself is our peace in every storm. Finally, the Christ of Christmas is not lonely or empty, but full of joy and Love..ready and waiting to fill us in every way to overflowing at any moment..He is the fulfillment of every hope, dream and goal..So, when the Holiday we call Christmas gets you a little bit sleepy, happy goofy crazy, remember that the Christ of Christmas is the great "I AM" and He did come and He is still here and He still saves us all...Now that's a good reason to be celebrating!!
Principle: Whenever you are tired, sad, lonely or full of strife, you simply need a dose of true life, the light and joy of Jesus Christ!!
31 but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Ever just wanted to think of the "Way" of Faith in Christ as a warm fuzzy and invigorating cup of hot cocoa? Yes, I've found my peace in Christ and now I will sit down in my chair and enjoy a mocha latte with extra whip...
Oh, and easy on the cinnamon, please! Well, whether we would like to admit to it or not, we are all addicted to the concept of comfort and complacency wrapped up in a package of chocolate, coffee or whatever addictive substance that our subconscious can get its hands on, right? So, maybe that is the reason why the stresses of the season get us a little crazy...maybe we are so crazy for comfort that the first signs of chaos break us like a cheap piece of glass on the Christmas tree..!! KNow what happened to me? I was decorating one of my three Christmas trees last night..yes, I have 3 trees...always 3 to symbolize the trinity of our Lord, Amen. Well, I began to do well and was about half way finished with my decorating when I started to climb up onto things to reach, shall we say the upper registers of my tree. Suddenly, a dizzy spell attacked my senses and I almost came tumbling down, taking a few ornaments with me as I thank fully stepped down quickly enough to regain balance on the ground. Interestingly enough, I realized that not only is being hydrated during the holidays a good thing, but so is learning to stand on the center of a chair when reaching to regions higher than our heads!!! Had I not taken a mini spill, I would not have learned that valuable lesson, right?
Principle, If you don't learn how to fall, you'll never fly at all!!
So, those of us addicted to comfort rarely venture out on purpose to fall, right? Afraid of pain and therefore experiencing little gain, we wain in the face of danger, don't we? Yet, where is the gold of our Christian faith, where is the part where we get to fly?? It's not at the base of the Tree, is it? It's not in the recliner with the cocoa, is it? No, Jonah...it's not in Israel at all, is it? Jonah...that gold is in Assyria...right in the heart of Nineveh...and that's where, Oh prophet of God, you will get your wings....
Yes, Clarence, you have to risk it all, if you ever want to fly....
Wow...Consider the Eagle from our passage at the beginning of the blog...Did you know how an Eagle learns to fly? Well, not too surprisingly...it's a real cliffhanger...!!! These little baby birds are not pushed from a tree's twig...but a massive precipice..a cliff of huge magnitude..!! "Incoming!"
These little egrets have to blindly learn to fly off a cliff or die trying...!!! It's no wonder that our awesome God decided to use the Eagle to show us that we can fly, but first we must learn to use the wings He's given us....."Incoming"....!!! dizzy this Christmas...Are stars off that tree falling down a bit? Relying solely on Him, on Christ, take a leap of faith in His strength and jump off a cliff this Christmas, knowing that you will learn to soar like an Eagle straight through to the gold He's promised us!! Remember how little information Mary had before she knelt before an Angel, said, "yes" and then jumped off a cliff that led to some serious Gold...!!!
8 Yet I am writing you a new command; its truth is seen in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light is already shining.
Well, we are right in the middle of the holiday season aren't we? There are different ways this season is celebrated around the world, right? Some of us are hanging stockings and others are placing dutch shoes by the fire place...Some of us are making wreaths to wear on our head full of candles...Others still are not celebrating Christmas at all, but 8 beautiful days and nights of Hanukah! No matter what is by your fireplace this year, or how many candles are lit in your house, there is one thing threatening the light...! Satan tempts us all across cultural lines and all around the world with one nasty trick, and yes, he's slick. What's his trick you ask me? What's this temptation that threatens the light in my house, you ask? The temptation that snuffs out the light is the urge to take over our own lives and resist God's sovereignty with a fight!! Just like Jonah...we serve God well, we follow His command until He asks us to go beyond our comfort and do something crazy like, "Love your enemy...your in-laws, your crazy, selfish kids, or your greedy, shameless, incarnate friends who do not know what friendship is all about and they are sucking the life right out of you!!! Sound familiar??? Well, if you are having homicidal holiday heaviness...then maybe you are reading the right blog at just the right time. Repeat after me...."God is in control, and I am not! Again, God, who made the heavens and the earth, who hears my prayers and holds my life in His hands, also holds your enemies in His Sovereign plans...!!!!" Don't fight the wrong fight, friends!! Rather, let His light give you everything you need to shine like mad all over those crazy holiday moments...the greatest fight you can wage against the madness is in prayer...prayer to a sovereign God, who has your back!! Principle, when you fight your own fight, It's God you slight, rather embrace His plan..it's all in His hand...!!! Don't fight the Light...let the Light Fight the good fight!!
So, when your kids, your husband, your wife, your ministry, your friends make you crazy this season....Don't fight them....Give them to God and let His light do the fighting for you....Resist the urge that Satan is placing in your path to deck the halls your way...Instead, kick the devil out for the Holidays...He hates Christmas anyways...Invite Christ in instead to shine brighter than ever over your home. Be Glad that He is Here...Emmanuel came and I'm so glad he did!!!
