Author: Dave Dishman (Page 345 of 459)

Our day of waterskiing started under a brilliant sun and blue sky. After a few turns that worked us further down the lake, we noticed a change. Dark clouds bunched to the west and we felt an ominous wind. We immediately turned for the dock.

Me, my wife and my brother-in-law watched the storm stalk us as the boat pounded through choppy water, racing for shelter. Just as we sighted the dock, the storm engulfed us. A hot July afternoon disappeared into a pounding curtain of heavy rain and thunder. Visibility dropped to a few feet, so we slowed the boat to a crawl. Covered with our only protection—beach towels—we hunched down and endured.

Several frightening minutes passed before the squall left us alone. Finally the sun shone again and the water steamed off our backs. Solid ground welcomed us like an old friend.

Paul and his companions also suffered in the midst of a horrific storm. For fourteen days the winds tossed them around the Mediterranean, a cruise gone terribly wrong. Miraculously, even after the ship wrecked, everyone on board survived.

Storms arrive as unwelcome guests. Some blow through quickly, others last longer, and a few settle in and get comfortable. None are welcome. Storms come and we must deal with them as best we can.

Paul endured the storm by seeking the Lord and encouraging his friends. Always a good recipe for dealing with storms—friends and the Lord.

Acts 27 in week twenty of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by JOHN TOWNER

Every time I read my way through the life of David, I dread this chapter. I hate the stain on David and his leadership, how he collects Bathsheba, and especially his murder of Uriah.

Consider Uriah, one of David’s mighty men (2 Samuel 23:39). Uriah served David wholeheartedly, never wavered, and even refused to spend the night with his wife when home from battle. David handed him a letter to carry back to the fighting, holding the orders for his death. Uriah, too disciplined to breach military protocol, never considered opening the packet for a look.

This is the man David killed.

Which speaks to the heinous nature of the crime. Uriah did everything right, and yet still lost his life at the hand of a friend. The Bible refuses to sugarcoat life. Sometimes the good die young. Life is inherently unfair, though we are good and right to fight for fairness.

Similar to Uriah, you and I suffer undeserved indignities and pains, sometimes all the way to death.

My hope, our only hope, remains in the Lord. Jesus has overcome the world. The Lord promises wholeness (rather than fairness) in our future.

It helps me to remember that beyond the vain decisions of leaders and kings waits the final judgement of the King of kings.

I Samuel 11 in week twenty of reading the Bible cover to cover

David handing over a letter to Uriah, 1619 by Pieter Lastman

At the knock on the door all the old fears rushed to the surface. Struggling to hold down his breakfast, Mephibosheth left home to appear before David, the new king. As Saul’s grandson, Mephisosheth lingered as a possible rival to the throne, and rivals to kings rarely fare well.

David flipped the tables at their meeting. Don’t be afraid, David said to Mephibosheth, I will show kindness to you because of my promise to your father, Jonathan.

David restored Mephibosheth’s fortunes, and invited him to eat at the king’s table for the rest of his life. David knew how to keep a promise.

This story reminds me of a promise given in Jeremiah 29:11:

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

The Lord knows how to keep a promise as well.

Photo by Marcos Mayer

2 Samuel 9 in week twenty of reading the Bible cover to cover

Paul weighed his options, neither of which looked good. Return to Jerusalem, where the religious officials hoped to kill him, or ask for a trial before the leading court in the empire. Paul invoked his privilege as a Roman citizen and appealed to Caesar.

This set Paul on the road to Rome, where he hoped to go anyway. Ironically, Paul died at the hands of the caesar Nero, but only after preaching the gospel in that great city.

If I appealed to the highest authority today, where might I go? In the United States, the Supreme Court stands at the top of our judicial system. The International Criminal Court at the The Hague, Netherlands, hears cases involving genocide and crimes against humanity. Every nation offers some sort of supreme authority, be it a set of courts, or an enlightened individual, or a powerful despot.

As I think of Paul and his decision, I sit amazed and humbled, knowing that the supreme authority in the universe pauses, available to hear my appeal.

Thanks to Jesus, our great High Priest, we may approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we my receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need (Hebrews 4:14-16).

Way better than Caesar.

Acts 25 in week twenty of reading the Bible cover to cover

Photo by iam_os