Author: Dave Dishman (Page 246 of 458)

Deep in the depths of a mountain, on a cold rock in the middle of an icy lake, a small gnarled creature sat with his precious. If you’re a fan of The Lord of the Rings, you immediately picture Gollum and his golden ring. Gollum cherished the ring above all else in life, and that obsession led him to destroy those he loved and eventually himself.

JRR Tolkien, the author of The Lord of the Rings and a devout follower of Jesus, affirmed the nature of the human heart when he created Gollum. We sometimes cherish the wrong things, to our detriment and even to the harm of those we love.

The psalmist admits if I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.

The best way to stifle my prayers is to cherish sin in my heart. This doesn’t necessarily refer to actions or attitudes I display that displeases the Lord, but to cherish is to nurture or cultivate this particular sin. I may hide my sins from the Lord like an embarrassed Adam in the garden, but cherish refers to a calculated attitude of pleasure.

When I cherish my pet sin I give it attention, I feed it and groom it in the dark. I return because spending time together makes me feel better. Like Gollum with his ring, I nurse my loss or hurt or desire or jealousy or pride.

It’s silly. The Lord knows what I cherish in my heart, and stands ready to forgive when I open my hand and give him the nasty attitudes I clutch. But what the refusal to open myself to the Lord does over time is not silly. Just like Gollum twisted into a deformed, unrecognizable creature, our souls twist and tighten. I know people like this—I don’t want to become them.

It’s worth asking the Lord a question: What am I cherishing in my heart? Am I cherishing sin and if so, what is it? Take time and listen carefully. The Lord answers such brave prayers.

An inward journey takes us to new places. When we open our dark treasures to the Lord, we can join the psalmist in celebrating: but God has surely listened and heard my prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!

Psalm 66 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Giorgia Sormani

Ever feel stuck? Either stuck in a job, or in a relationship, or just living life stuck in the ruts? I have at times. If so, Paul has some advice for us:

Each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them…

Do you work at your dream job? Then live as a believer. Do you work at a lousy job just to get your pay? Even so, live as a believer. Uncertain in your relationship status? Up or down, live as a believer.

Out with friends on Saturday night? Party like a believer. Scrolling social media? Swipe like a believer. Driving in heavy traffic? Operate your motor vehicle like a believer.

Our situations change, for good or for ill. Things happen to us beyond our control. Life twists and turns or lies flat. Through it all, live like a believer.

Paul addressed singles and marrieds, slaves yearning for freedom, men circumcised and others not but wondering if they should go under the knife. He urged each person in their individual circumstance to live like a believer.

Paul reminds us: You were bought with a price, do not become slaves of human beings.

Rather than live as slaves to the whims of the world, live like a believer in the One who freed you and me.

1 Corinthians 7 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Andrew Gook

Ahaz embraced all the freedoms of kingship. He worshipped the Baals, adopted the gods of his enemies as his own, and even sacrificed his children in the fire—burned them alive. Ahaz, in his misguided wisdom, totally rejected the Lord.

Not surprisingly, Ahaz’s infidelity brought consequences. In one day of a conflict between Judah and Israel, 120,000 soldiers from Judah were killed. The men of Israel then took 200,000 captives, the wives, sons and daughters of the men lost in battle.

These captives marched north, prodded and mistreated by their captors. Oded, a prophet of the Lord, along with some of the leaders of the nation, confronted the mob. Realizing their guilt in taking their fellow Israelites captive, the soldiers gave up the prisoners and sent them home:

They clothed all who were naked…provided them with food and drink and healing balm…those who were weak they put on donkeys…they took them back to their fellow Israelites at Jericho.

As I read this account I wonder about all the innocent men, women and children who suffered through this horrific conflict—what had they done to deserve this?

These citizens bled and died thanks to their king’s blatant disregard for the Lord.

Few of us ever possess power over others like an ancient ruler, but our decisions effect more than ourselves. People around us flourish or fade, partially based on how we live.

Our faith, or our rejection of it, moves outward from us through others. Jesus combined do unto others as you would have done unto you with love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. Those around me bloom when I hold to this combination.

The cult of individualism undercuts the ways of God. Understanding the repercussions on others as we wrestle with our life of faith is part of the journey.

2 Chronicles 28 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Joanne Francis

End of summer days here in Colorado tug me away from my computer. As I leave the house and breathe, I start to grasp David’s psalm expressing thankfulness for the Lord’s attention to the world we inhabit:

You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly. The streams of God are filled with water to provide the people with grain, for so you have ordained it.

Everything we have comes from the hand of the Lord.

Whenever I walk through a grocery store, packed with fresh fruits and vegetables and breads and meats, I gaze upon the Lord’s bounty. It’s all there thanks to hard working farmers who tap into the streams of God.

Abundance. The produce aisle displays the goodness of the Lord in variety and glory, one obvious example of his generosity. It calls me to worship, to remain grateful for the streams of God flowing all around.

Psalm 65 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Alexander Schimmeck