Author: Dave Dishman (Page 268 of 458)

The last several months I’ve been part of a team of people from my church helping resettle two families of Afghan refugees. In fear for their lives due to their work as security guards at a U.S. airbase, these young parents fled with children in tow to start over in Colorado.

None of the group speaks or reads English. As I observe them settle in, I see their need to understand the language. We track down translators to help them as much as possible, like at the bank or with job interviews, but help is not available most of the time. Working to learn English remains priority one—it’s the beginning of a successful life in this country.

In the same way, if I want to seek knowledge, if I hope to understand instruction and gain wisdom, then I should know where to start. It’s not the internet, and it’s not the great universities of this land. Rather, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

These words of Solomon, the wisest of all kings, reverberate through the ages. To fear the Lord, to acknowledge his rule in my life, to respect his hand and to live his ways start me on the path towards a truly successful life. Maybe not as a social media influencer, but as a person of depth and character.

To live in a place where the language is inaccessible creates severe challenges. To hope for wisdom in life without the fear of the Lord means I’ve chosen a severe path. Don’t join the foolish crowd. Turn toward the Lord and his way of knowledge.

Proverbs 1:7 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Ivan Shilov

Steel is an alloy made up of iron with typically a few tenths of a percent of carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron (thank you, Wikipedia). Steel is high strength and relatively low cost, so builders use it for skyscrapers, ships, tools, rockets and my refrigerator.

You can’t grab a girder made of steel and tease out the iron from the other ingredients. Heat melted them together. Much like the Lord’s love for those who surrender our lives to him.

For I am sure the neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

As strong a steel may be, I’ve seen steel girders twisted from intense heat. The love of God, on the other hand, stands the test of fire, as well as any test thrown at it. Nothing in all creation pulls that love away. His love melted into and through our souls.

An astounding promise for those who follow Jesus. I’m not worthy, but I believe that’s the point. Nothing can possibly cleave us apart from the God’s love because it doesn’t depend on us—it depends on the Lord of all Creation on whom we depend.

If you need a reminder of this profound love and care for you, spend a few days reading and re-reading Romans chapter eight. Let the truth settle. No matter what, nothing separates those who are in Christ Jesus from the love of the Lord.

Romans 8 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Luca Upper

Good people are hard to find. Every business I walk by seems to have a sign out, offering better wages and stronger employment packages. Issues created by a lack of quality employees pops up regularly. Interestingly, King David and his administration faced a similar issue.

In a long list of officials serving the king and kingdom, and we discover a comment about their desire for capable workers: In the fortieth year of David’s reign search was made and men of great ability among them were found at Jazer in Gilead.

I wonder how they went about their search? What list of criteria were used? Did they survey the surrounding countryside? Interview prospective candidates? Then, what happened in that region to facilitate the growth and development of so many talented people? What was in the water in Jazer of Gilead?

As a result of his search, King David found 2,700 men of great ability, and appointed them to leadership of their region, overseeing everything pertaining to God and for the affairs of the king.

David didn’t know what he had out there far from the capital. But people of great ability exist in places we overlook. A glaring need led to the search in the first place, and the Lord’s goodness provided the leaders necessary to serve the kingdom for years to come.

This brief parenthesis in a book filled with lists reminds me to notice the talented people around me that perhaps I’ve overlooked.

1 Chronicles 26 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Shivendu Shukla

My wife and I walked into a fancy kitchen store yesterday just to look around. She’s an excellent baker, and commented as we entered, “this is like a candy store for me.” Well, we didn’t buy any candy, but she left with lots of ideas. I’ll soon be the recipient of good things coming from the oven.

Bakers only gain expertise by kneading the dough and baking the bread. Sometimes things don’t turn out as planned. The bread fails to rise or distractions lead to a scorched loaf. It’s challenging and messy and frustrating, and at times you throw dough across the room. But only dirtying up the kitchen leads to skill and expertise and hope.

Paul wrote words of encouragement to a church in the midst of the messy and frustrating: We boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.

I return to this passage over and over. To know that suffering moves me toward fresh perseverance which then builds deeper character opens my eyes to the long view of life. Then to understand hope eventually emerges helps me grasp a bit more of God’s immense love toward me.

I think of the Holy Spirit like the aroma wafting from freshly baked bread (which is probably terrible theology). But as promise and joy and goodness infuse a room when bread comes from the oven, the Holy Spirit now infuses my life, strengthening and promising joy and goodness from the Lord.

Paul reminds me that my suffering—my time in the oven—pays off through perseverance, character and hope, always underscored by the Holy Spirit’s work.

Romans 5 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

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