Digging in With God
2008-05-26

Good morning. Happy Memorial Day. I'm enjoying my day off. Or rather, I should say, I've already enjoyed it. The sad thing about working nights is, I always sleep through my days off. Heh.

Psalm for today: Psalm 20

"May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble!
May the name of the God of Jacob protect you!

Some trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name of the LORD our God." Verses 1,7

Interesting idea here that I may not have caught on to before (one thing I love about reading the Bible...50 years old and read the Bible from cover to cover countless times, and it always remains fresh, if you allow it to) is that of the name of God giving us protections. Just the very name of God (and I wonder which name the psalmist refers to here...) is enough to protect us. And then in verse 7, "we trust in the name of the LORD..." This begs to be looked into a bit more.


I found an interesting story this morning in my "Tabletalk" magazine about the origins of our common depiction of Satan. You know the one...horns, pointy tail, pitchfork, cloven hooves. Apparently, this derived from the Middle Ages and was done as an attack on Satan's pride. It was determined that pride was one of Satan's weakest points, so the religious leaders began attacking him at this point. "It was thought that these caricatures would weaken Satan by deflating his pride." (Tabletalk, May 2008, p. 55)
Unfortunately, one result of this caricature is that people tend to not take Satan seriously. 1 Peter 5:8-9 tells us how real Satan is and how seriously we need to take him. "Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith." (ESV)

Day 167

Hosea 10:11-12

This is an interesting passage, and must be read with a measure of understanding. Normally, if you call someone a "heifer," it's not considered a compliment. But here, God refers to Ephraim as a "trained heifer that loves to thresh." So, apparently, a "trained heifer" likes to work in the fields. It takes joy in serving its master.

There's the compliment, when this comparison is made to God's children. We all need to be "trained heifers." We should take great joy in working for our God in the fields.

When has God used you to love someone or do something special for someone? You actually might not even be aware of it! Did you know that? There are times when God uses you to bless someone, and you aren't even aware of it until much later, or perhaps never! And that's ok. In fact, it's beautiful. We should all be ready and eager to be used by God to bless whoever we may, regardless of whether or not we receive any immediate gratification.

Later in this passage, it says, "It's time to till the ready earth, it's time to dig in with God, until he arrives with righteousness ripe for harvest."

We need to stand ready to work, ready to thresh, plow and harrow. "Dig in with God."


Father, I thank you for the many times in my life when you have seen fit to use me. I confess that there have also been many times when I have refused to be used. Forgive me for those times. I pray for future usefulness. Help me to "dig in" with you! Give me the joy that comes from serving you, from tilling the "ready earth."

Friends, if you have not experienced being used by God, try to imagine what it might feel like. Try to imagine "digging in" with God.

"Sow righteousness, reap love!"

Grace and peace, friends.



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