Conscious Consideration

Generosity helps free us from the dangers of money.  The antidote to materialism is generosity.  Generosity leads us to greater dependence on God.

Which of these three statements has the greatest meaning for you and which the least?  Why?

I was asked this this morning.  The first one should have read "helps free us from the dangers of the love of money."  I disregarded it on this point alone.  The love of money is extremely dangerous and can lead to all types of entrapment, but money in and of itself is simply a means of trade.  While this is most likely what they meant, if a new Christian were to read this statement, it might confuse, frighten or even anger them.

The second statement is comparing materialism to a disease, which is quite appropriate in my opinion, as scripture does the same thing.  Since I already knew and agreed with this, I had to choose the third.  I would have anyway....it's the only one I hadn't really consciously considered before. 

One who is gracious to a poor man lends to the Lord, and He will repay him for his good deed.  Proverbs 19:17 (NASB) 

He that follows Lord Jehovah shows mercy upon the poor and he is rewarded according to his works.  Proverbs 19:17 (ABPE - Aramaic Bible in Plain English)

When I am generous, I am stating without words to the one receiving, "I believe God will meet all of my needs in this area, so don't worry about me." 

I remember a time just under two years ago when a neighbor called and asked to borrow some pumpkin.  Now I had PLENTY of pumpkin in my pantry as we like to keep it on hand.  We have a family (minus one) who absolutely love pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin whatever, so  when we heard there was a pumpkin shortage, we looked until we found some and bought twelve cans.  When this precious neighbor called, you would think I would have cheerfully said, "Sure!  I just bought a bunch of it!"  However, I humbly and ashamedly admit that I said the opposite.  I didn't lie, but what I said was, "Well, I have some, but I am reluctant to lend it as there is a pumpkin shortage and Thanksgiving is coming up."  She immediately said she understood and would simply go to the store and look for some.  I felt bad and then told her I guessed I could give her a can, but she assured me all would be well and hung up.  I almost cried.  I felt so horrid inside!!  Talk about selfish!  Here I had twelve cans, she had none and all she asked for was one!  I will hopefully never forget that day as long as I am alive on this earth so that I never make that sinful error again!  What I effectively said to that neighbor is, "I have to keep all this pumpkin because God may not provide me with what I need for Thanksgiving, so I have to do it myself."  How prideful and arrogant!  I sought and received forgiveness and asked God to gag me if I ever talked that way again! 

I love the ABPE version of Proverbs.  This may not be true for everyone, but it opens the verses to my spirit in new ways and helps me better understand what God is wanting to build up in me.  "He that follows Lord Jehovah..."  Have I made Him Lord of my wealth both materially and financially?  If so, am I truly following Him in every area of generosity?  He gives to me moment by moment.  Each breath I take is a gift from Him.  Each hug, each time of laughter, each word of love and encouragement, each hour of sleep and wakefulness and everything else that is of value in my life are all a gift from Him.  If I truly want to be like Him and reveal His love to others, then I will open myself up to the vulnerability of generosity every moment of my life.

Lord God, I know that I will never be able to match up to You, but I can strive to out of my love for You!!  Continue to discipline me in this area, helping me to continue on through the growth pains so I can become as much like You as is possible in this frail human body I exist in.  I thank You that one day this body will be perfected and serve You in ways I cannot fathom now, but will revel in then.  Thank You for loving me now and forever regardless of how I am at this moment!!

Silver and Gold

(John 3:16) For God so loved the world He gave......and He gave, and He gave and He is still giving.  So why then, as His children, do we find it so hard to give generously?

I am not just speaking financially.  Money is the easy route.  Someone's having a birthday?  Give them money and your troubles are over. No need to find out what it is they really want or would enjoy.  Money takes care of it all.  Let them do the work of purchasing their own gift.  Not that giving money is always a lazy way out.  Sometimes it is just the right gift.  Sometimes money is what is not only wanted, but needed.  However, in that case, research must be done to discover the fact that it would be the best gift, so extra giving of self is still involved. 
Self - a person's essential being that distinguishes them from others, especially considered as the object of introspection or reflexive action.  This is another part that makes it hard for us to be generous - introspection.  When we look deep inside ourselves we see something ugly - we don't really want to give. 

Why?  Love is the key; not erotic love or friendly admiration, but that deep abiding love that doesn't look at the outside of a person so it can be critical and judgmental, but that sees the heart and wants to do something for it.  That kind of love sees the wounded look in a person's eyes when something hurtful is said, or the trapped look of the abused, or the hunger in the depths of the lost and unloved.  The kind of love that aches with these who are hurting, cries with those who are grieving and longs to do something about it. 

When we look deep inside ourselves we see a vengeful being who wants to get all it can get from a world that has taken from it all it can.  The god of this world takes and takes and takes, hurts and injures and at times succeeds in actually destroying, which makes us angry, hurt and vengeful.  If we see this within ourselves it scares us.  This keeps us from true introspection and the cycle of selfishness, but, as God's children, desiring to be generous continues.

Today I looked up how our financial status compares to the rest of the world.  Here in America we are considered poor, lower middle class, middle class, upper middle class and rich.  The problem in America is not how the government ranks us, but rather how we rank ourselves.  I discovered that the actual current median range of salary in this country is  a tiny bit over $50,000.  The government therefore wants to describe middle class as being approximately $40,000-$60,000 per year.  Yet any family with children can tell you that if they make less than $60,000 a year, they have trouble making ends meet.  This is partially due to taxes and partially due to the fact that the more we have, the more we want. 

I also looked at how my household ranks in the world financially.  I made a rather startling discovery.  My household is in the top 20% in the world.  In the U.S. we are considered middle class, but the world considers us extremely wealthy.  Shouldn't we then take a closer look at why?  This morning I realized this is one of the unjust scales in my life - I have always considered myself financially one way, when in reality I am extremely wealthy.  It is all about attitude.  I am not saying we should all start giving all our money away to whomever requests it.  God's word tells us to "be gentle as doves, but wise as serpents" (Matthew 10:16) because the world is full of wolves who seek to devour all He has so generously given us.  However, I am saying that when asked to give, we should pray and seek God's will regarding our decision.  Tithing is important - not to God, but for our own benefit.  It is the starting point that teaches us not to worry about money. I discovered this myself when I felt led to take an early retirement.  At first I had a really difficult time paying all the bills.  I was used to paying them and having a little left over, but now I was paying them and barely making it.  I became a little scared.  One day I was sitting in church listening to the sermon when bills started going through my head.  Nausea threatened me, so I turned to Father God and angrily, yet confidently said to Him, "You know what God?  I'm tired of worrying.  You told me to quit my job, so YOU take care of the bills!"  Then I listened to the end of the sermon.  I had missed most of it.  Anyway, we continued tithing, I began trusting (Michael had never worried about it evidently) and I became amazed as the months went by!  Gradually, not only were our bills paid, but suddenly there was an extra $100.  Then we started throwing change in a cup to pay for new kitchen cabinets.  I swear the money multiplied in that cup!  We purchased one cabinet at a time, but within a year of the first purchase, we had them all.  Next we started saving coins for new windows (our house is 42 years old and has had very little done to it up to the time I am speaking of). We now have all the upstairs windows in and the big picture window in the basement.  I could go on and on about how God has provided for us and turned our run down house into an almost completely new one, but suffice it to say, I have become more generous and trusting in the process.  We now give a bit above the tithe and God continues to bless. 

This could be construed as a "give to get" message, but PLEASE do not take it that way!  I do not believe that to be scriptural in the least.  We must give out of love and trust or our gift will be fruitless.  We give to make a difference and to bless our heavenly Father.  Any other reason for giving is simply selfishness: either done to raise self esteem and image, or trying to force God's hand to give something to us in return.  The point I desire to make is that we can never out give God!!  He has already given us the ultimate gift in His Son Jesus Christ.  We need nothing more than Him.  However, the more love we demonstrate for God, the more He will demonstrate His for us to us.  In what manner He chooses to demonstrate it should be left up to Him.  Just as we don't want someone telling us how to use our possessions, we should not try to dictate to God how He should use His!!  He may choose to show me His love by NOT giving me what I desire, because it would develop more selfishness in me.  If that be the case, then I don't really want it!! 

Lord, life in this world makes it very difficult to not have unjust balances.  The enemy has a way of manipulating the truth of Your word to turn it into a lie of murderous proportions, but that appears to be an intelligent choice.  In actuality, if we are not very careful to seek Your wisdom regarding it, it can destroy us, spiritually, mentally, emotionally, financially and in ways we don't even realize until it happens.  Pour out Your wisdom on Your children, O God!!  We need it in order to live lives worthy of Your calling!  Grant us understanding and teach us contentment.  Help us learn to be grateful for all You have given and desire to give us if we will simply seek You out and trust You!!   And help us remember that it is not financial blessing that is greatest - but wisdom and understanding!!
How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver. Proverbs 16:16 (ESV)

Unjust Scales

Dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is His delight.  Proverbs 11:1  (NKJV)

Generosity - the quality of being kind, understanding and not selfish: the quality of being generous; willingness to give money and other valuable things to others. (Websters)

This is a good definition, but I like another even better:

gen·er·os·i·ty

[jen-uh-ros-i-tee] Show IPA

noun, plural gen·er·os·i·ties.

1.readiness or liberality in giving.

2.freedom from meanness or smallness of mind or character.

3.a generous act: We thanked him for his many generosities.

4.largeness or fullness; amplitude.

(Thesaurus.com)

I never really considered the word much before.  Recently our pastor had the church send a book to every member called Generosity: Moving Toward the Life that is Truly Life by Gordon MacDonald.  When we first received it I was in the middle of another study, so I set it aside until I finished.  A week ago I finished the other study, felt drawn to this one and so picked it up and began.  I did not realize I needed such an awakening in my spirit. 

Before I write more, I recommend that, even if you cannot find the book in order to do the study yourself,  watch the videos that go along with the book.  They are free and you can find them at generositybook.com.  It just may surprise you the way it did me.

I have always considered myself a fairly generous person.  That's great, but once this study began to get hold of me, I realized I don't want to be "fair" at anything, especially in the area of generosity.  This particular book doesn't have you really dig into scripture, so to speak, so I asked God what portion of the Bible I should be delving into to go along with this.  Proverbs immediately came to mind.  My thought was, "Oh good!! I get to study wisdom again!"  Little did I know there was a much more in-depth look into Proverbs that God wanted me to journey through.

At the end of week one I was given some questions to ponder.  (Quotations are my personal responses at the time.)  The book asked what I thought of three statements: 1.  God is the first and most generous giver: "Duh! Of course He is!  He sent His Son to die in my place.  There is nothing more generous than that.  Not only that, but He just keeps giving and giving and giving, meeting not only me needs, but fulfilling heart desires that I sometimes don't realize I have until they are met!!"  2.  When we give, the world takes notice: "I would like to think so, but in today's world it almost seems that, unless it is some really huge gift, it is ignored as insufficient and almost patronized.  However, those we minister to personally notice and are grateful."  3.  We are most like God when we give: (This is the one that God really got me on.) "I disagree.  We are most like God when we love."  God's immediate response (and I mean immediate, I almost didn't get to finish the thought.  He knew what I was gonna think before I did, so He was more than ready with the answer) Ah, true, but true love automatically produces generosity.  If generosity isn't present, then neither is true love complete.  Ouch!!  First wake up call.

This morning I read week two day three and then watched the video "I like adoption."  Tears came to my eyes as I watched the smiles on the faces of the nine children that had been rescued from certain death by one family.  When it was over, I opened my Bible to Proverbs 11, because that is the chapter I was on, and the very first verse jumped out at me. I have printed it above.  Unjust scales: God laid it on my heart that I have some unjust scales laid up in my heart.  I don't even really know what they are yet, only that they are there.  It grieves me to realize this, but at the same time excites me.  Why?  Because as I mulled over the fact and felt the grief begin to form, I received comfort from my ever-loving Father who had me look up those definitions of generosity.  When I read the words "freedom from meanness or smallness of mind or character" I was ready to step away from the grief and begin anticipating the victory that is surely to come.  Even though I am not completely free in this area yet, I know my God is so generous Himself, that He will never leave me or forsake me in this area anymore than He would in any other.  I look forward to beginning to gain more freedom in the area of generosity as I learn just what unjust scales I have been weighing throughout my life.

Father, only in You is true freedom found.  I thank You for Your discipline in my life and that You never stop there, but continue on with me in love, reminding me, revealing new things to me and showing me the freedom I can have if I will simply trust and obey You in everything!!  Remove the unjust scales from my heart and set me free to be generous in all I say, think or do.  In Jesus' most precious, all powerful and holy name I ask it!!

On Being Responsible

Responsibility-The state or fact of having a duty to deal with something or of having control over someone. 
The state or fact of being accountable or to blame for something. 
The opportunity or ability to act independently and make decisions without authorization.

Recently I have been dealing with a 4 1/2 year old that is trying out the effects of lying to make self look better in other peoples' eyes.  At least that is what the enemy tells us it will do.  It is amazing that a child will say something right in your face and then say they didn't say it.  The other is when you say something to them and they try to deny you said it. Yesterday I asked this little one how many times I had lied to him.  He thought and thought, then looked at me and made a zero with his little hands.  I said, "Yes, zero.  So why would I start lying to you now?"  That took care of the problem of saying I hadn't said what I had said; at least for the day.  Later on I explained that lying and saying he had not said something he had did not make him look smarter or better in any way, but rather made him look ridiculous, as he had said it to my face.  That put an end to that as well...at least for the day. 

Taking responsibility for our own actions and admitting mistakes is not easy.  However, God promises us freedom if we do so.  He is always correct and always keeps His promises, so why do we still struggle with this so?

Psalm 8:4-6 tells us: "What is man that You take thought of him,
And the son of man that You care for him?
Yet You have made him a little lower than God,
And You crown him with glory and majesty!
You make him to rule over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet, (NASB)

All creation has been placed under our authority.  As part of His creation, that places us under our own authority, yet we try to push blame for our mistakes: war, abortion, hatred, jealousies, theft, rape, murder, incest, homosexuality, divorce, and so much more onto Him by saying that a loving God would not allow this.  Such a conundrum does not phase God.  He gave us the answer to it before time began: Give ourselves over to His authority and He will gladly take the responsibility for our actions.  Not only that, but He will repair damages done, heal our broken hearts and change us from lost and wandering sheep into shepherds. 

Many times in a department store you can hear a young child cry out, "but I want it!" or something similar.  Sometimes they simply throw themselves in the floor and pitch a fit.  However, they handle it, they are screaming to be in control and for their parent(s) to take control at the same time.  If the parent gives in to their whims, it makes it necessary to try it again and again just to see how far their parent(s) will allow them to go; how many "things" they can get away with.  If the parent chooses to say "NO!" and refuses to give in to the whim of their child for no other reason than to teach them that is not how to get what they want, the child learns quickly to change tactics.  It may take a few trials, because some are stronger willed than others (trust me, I know!!) but it is well worth the effort on the parent's part.  One day they will be amazed that their child sweetly asks for something rather than demanding it, and then understands when you say you can't afford it at this time; that is IF they do not give up and give in.  It takes much love and perseverance.

This is essentially what we have done with God.  First we tore ourselves away from Him and "divorced" Him as our parent because we wanted what we wanted - to do things our own way.  Then we started doing whatever we wanted, yet began screaming out for Him to take control.  We don't want Him as a parent, yet we are angry that He isn't?  Makes no sense to me.  All we have to do is ask Him to forgive us and take us back and He will do so with open arms.  The catch is, He will expect more of us than we do ourselves.  He will expect us to emulate Him rather than self, which is exactly what a parent tries to teach the whining child - emulate me.  The difference?  Parents can only do their best and make many mistakes. God, on the other hand, sets a perfect example of humility in strength, mercy in judgment, discipline in diversity, and love amongst hatred.  Whose example do we choose to follow?  The imperfect example of our earthly parents, our own fleshly desires or a perfect heavenly Father who will never lead us astray?  Does this mean we must be perfect?  Yes and no.  We cannot be perfect in our own strength, but Jesus in us IS perfect.  We just have to step aside and give Him full reign.

Just last Sunday I had the joy of sharing with our class that it doesn't matter what anyone in this world thinks about us, including ourselves, our friends and even our parents.  It only really matters what God thinks about us and He says we are His special creation, but we have to accept that designation and allow ourselves to truly be His.  Then He will make us into the person He originally designed us to be. 

Father, thank You for being the perfect parent that always sets the perfect example.  We, as parents, have made many mistakes, giving verbal direction without succumbing to the discipline ourselves.  You, however, loved us so much that You became human in the person of Jesus in order to reveal to us how to live by Your own personal example.  Thank You for loving us even though we turned our backs on You and walked away.  Thank You for coming and drawing us back to You through Jesus. 

In Fear I Run To God

I rise each morning as Job must have done with the question of how my family has been behaving hounding my heart.  This morning I felt drawn to read Psalm 56, where the first verse I ever deliberately memorized  is located.

What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee.  Psalm 56:3
 

Such a simple and short verse, but one that has had a powerful impact on my being.  I learned this verse as a very young child.  I used to fear simply walking down the street to my best friend's house.  At the time it seemed so far away and as if anything could happen to me along the way.  My childhood best friend (who has gone home to be with the Lord) and I met when I was two and she was three.  She had an older sister who was the same age as one of my sisters and the two of them became best friends as well.  Needless to say, we were all at each others' houses frequently, almost daily.  The times it was our turn to go to their house were great, as long as my sister was able to go with me.  However, there were times when I was allowed to go and she wasn't (and other times visa versa) when I had to walk that seeming mile and a half by myself.  During that time I would say this verse over and over again until someone answered the door and said Susie could play.  If that didn't happen, ie: they weren't home or Susie had chores to do, I had to walk back, muttering this same verse all the way home.  A few years back I made a trip to see the "old homestead" and discovered that the trip was actually a few hundred feet rather than miles.  Funny how perspective changes as we grow, not only physically, but spiritually.

When I was fifteen, we moved away from that home to Herculaneum.  It was here that I received Jesus as Savior and Lord, was baptized, and married.  When I accepted Christ as Savior, I decided to make Him Lord as well.  Simply Savior was not enough.  I had too many fears - fear of walking down the street alone, fear of lack of accomplishment, fear of meeting people, fear of going anywhere new, fear, fear, fear....So, I decided that if I wanted to really be all I could for Jesus, He had to be Lord of my life, so I gave Him me.  I told Him I wasn't worth much, but that He could have me and use me as He saw best.  I began to crave to know Him better and so asked Him to help me study.  Over the years He has taken me to places in His word I never knew existed and has brought more excitement and confidence to my life than I ever dreamed possible.  However, I discover daily that I still have fears. 

As I mentioned above, the fear that my family may be displeasing or disappointing to Father God grieves my heart excessively.  There are times when I witness a hurtful event with one of them that I feel my heart will burst with grief.  There is both spiritual and physical pain in this, which may seem odd, but is true.  A few days ago I witnessed some angry and hurtful words being spoken between one of my children and a grandchild.  They both said hurtful things that I know they did not mean literally, but I immediately felt pressure in my chest as tears tried to push their way to the forefront.  Our child made the comment, "Don't speak hatefully to me!"  The child made a curt reply of similar nature and I could not help but say, "You are BOTH saying hateful things!"  It quieted them at least momentarily. 

When I think about how grieved I become, how literally pain and grief-filled it makes me to see and hear such things, I am reminded that God feels all of this on a much deeper scale than I, as He sent His Son to pay the price for those sins.  At the very moment we are committing them, we are turning our backs on His sacrifice and saying we want to do things our own way, because we know what is best for us.  He knows where such sin leads us.  Can You imagine the grief He must feel, knowing that He placed His only Son on the cross for us and we still have moments we reject Him?  Even so, He loves us so much that He waits patiently for us to come to Him in repentance, holds us in His arms, wipes away our tears and says, "Forgiven and forgotten my little one." 

When I sit in fear of my children being disobedient to God, or fear of my husband not eating properly and so asking for health issues, or fear of going distant places alone (and by distant I mean anything over ten miles away), I am saying, "God, You can't handle this.  If I don't try to change my children, my husband's eating habits or find a way to do all I need to do as close to home as possible, everything will go wonky."  So in effect I am saying, "God, I am more powerful, more wise, more loving, more capable than You."  It is this that I speak to the world rather than the faith I want to speak to them.  So this morning I make the following my heart cry before God:

My enemies (Satan and his dominions) hound me all day, for there are many who fight against me, O Most High.  Whenever I am afraid I will trust in You.  In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear.  .....  You number my wanderings; put my tears in Your bottle; are they not in Your book?  When I cry out to You, then my enemies will turn back; this I know, because God is for me.  In God (I will praise His word), In the Lord (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid.  Psalm 56:2-3 and 6-11

Gaining Strength

Muscles are amazing.  When they are used for their created purpose, they grow and become even more useful to us.  Work becomes easier and more effective as our muscles enlarge and take on more of the force for us.  They may scream at us that they are sore, but if we give in to them they become weaker once again and we must start over with building them up.  They are like a little child that doesn't want to have to walk anymore.  They cry out to Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, Grandpa...anyone who will listen, "Pick me up!!  I don't want to walk anymore!!"  Parents know that their child needs to walk a while to build leg muscles so they can eventually not have to be carried.  So sometimes they listen, if they know their child has had it and really is exhausted, but other times they will tell their child they must keep walking.  When our muscles cry out that they are weary and sore we have to decide if they really need rest or should keep going.

Muscles are also amazing in that they are all throughout our bodies.  Our hands alone can have over sixty different muscles in them!  It is believed that every hair follicle on our body has its own muscle.  Our heart is a muscle as well.  If it is used and exercised it gets stronger and more efficient in pumping blood throughout our bodies.  If it is ignored it will atrophy, become weaker and weaker until it can no longer function properly and will give up.  If that happens, we die.
If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn't do it, it is sin for them. James 4:17  (NIV)

Just as we know we should exercise to keep our muscles growing in strength, we also know we should exercise our obedience to Christ in order to grow in faith.  If not, our faith will atrophy and we will wonder if God has forsaken us, when in reality it is we who have forsaken Him.  Our bodies were made to work to keep them strong and our spirits were made to work in obedience to God in order to strengthen our faith. 

How many of us are living in sin through disobedience and don't even recognize that it is sin?  We tend to think that sin is something we DO that is wrong.  While that is true, it is also true that it is sin to NOT do what we know we should be doing.  Just as we make excuses for not exercising our muscles; ie: not enough time, costs too much, too tired, etc., we make excuses for not doing what we know we should and amazingly enough, they are the same reasons we use for not exercising!!  Hmmmmmmm....

Father, first we must wake up to the fact that we are being lazy in not exercising our muscles of obedience.  It is said that walking is one of the best forms of exercise so Lord, grant us the desire in our hearts to truly want You as Lord over all and get up and get going in our walk of obedient faith.

Even I ......

My thoughts dwell on marriage continuously.  Regardless of what I am studying in Scripture, God usually brings it all back to the marriage relationship.  Now that I understand a little of the depth of the importance of the marriage relationship and its being a symbol of our relationship with God, I can grasp why He does this with me, but must wonder why He chose me?  I am glad He did, as it gives me understanding I never had before, but I confess that it also amazes me.  I know my heart.  So I say to those out there who are being bombarded with the lies of the evil one telling them they are useless and God would never reveal anything of real import to them anyway, so why read His word?  I tell you, if He can reveal anything at all to this hard-headed, strong willed and selfish personality, He can and deeply desires to reveal these things and more to you as well.  Get involved with God's word.  It is not simply another book that may or may not teach you something; it is alive.  No, it does not physically eat, breathe or grow, but it feeds us, breathes real life into us and causes us to grow by leaps and bounds in our spirit man. 

John 1:14 says; " And the word became 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." (NKJV)

Then again in Matthew 4:4, "Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" (NIV)

God's word is alive.  God spoke, Jesus became, the Holy Spirit inspired - the word.  Just meditate on that for a moment.  Each time you pick up God's word and start to toss it aside again - you are tossing aside the inspired, God-breathed, living word of God.  At that moment, open it up and ask God for understanding. 

Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. I Corinthains 2:12 (ESV)
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.

 James 1:5 (NIV)

James 1:5 tells us quite plainly that God will give understanding generously to any who really want it.  He doesn't look at us and say, "You're to young, too old, too heavy, too thin, too ugly, too beautiful, too stupid, too smart, too disobedient, too rebellious" or any of the other nonsense the evil one whispers so loudly in our inner man.  His word, His living word - which means it is still relevant today - says He not only will give wisdom, but will give it generously.

My thoughts on marriage this morning went something like this, "Isn't it a good thing that Jesus said not to divorce except for in the case of infidelity?  That means He will never forsake us, but if we reject His love and salvation and seek after the idols of this world, He will let us go; but of our own free will, not because He wants us to go.

God loves us desperately.  Because of this, He desperately wants us to understand Him, so is more than willing to dish out as much wisdom and understanding as we are willing to consume.  The more we understand Him, the less likely we are to reject His love.  Understanding our spouse and where they are coming from helps us forgive and keep on loving them.  God cannot stop loving us, because He is love (I John 4:8), but He will not force His love on us.  We must receive it willingly.  We would not want to marry someone unless we loved them and we cannot and will not love them unless we get to know them.  We cannot get to know them unless we communicate with them.  God has already said all that needs saying for us to know Him as fully as we are humanly able, but we must hear those words He has spoken and respond to them in one way or another.

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.  Romans 10:17 (NASB)

Father, we need wisdom and understanding, but more than that, we need desire; desire for more of You.  Without the desire to know You more fully, we will never open Your word with any real seeking.  That is why You tell us to ask first, so I am asking that You pour out the desire in Your childrens' hearts for more of You.  You then tell us to seek.  We seek Your understanding and wisdom and then we can knock with the great expectation of receiving whatever we ask, because it will be being asked in accordance with Your word and will, because we will understand more fully Your awesome desires for our lives in this world.