GodandMe2theMax

Encouraging during the lemons of life...

Proverbs 12:25  "An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up."

Sometimes God allows things to happen and take place in our life that the world would simply call a "lemon" of a deal.  When these things happen, when the lemons are dealt, we are often left feeling disheartened.  No, not necessarily depressed or even worried, just simply heavy hearted.  

Think about Naomi.  If you're not familiar with the story, take some time to go read the book of Ruth.  From the world's perspective, Naomi was dealt some real lemons.  Her husband had died.  She had two sons, and they both passed away.  Naomi was no longer even living in her homeland or near her relatives for support.  All she had left was her two daughter-in-laws: Orpah and Ruth.  These tragedies left Naomi disheartened to the point that she told Ruth to call her Mara, because "the Almighty has made my life very bitter."  Her anxious heart was heavy.  Can you blame Naomi, really? 

Maybe you're in a similar situation.  You feel like the Lord has thrown some lemons at you lately.  Your heart is heavy.  You're lonely.  You're disheartened.  You need someone to encourage you.

Back to the story, let's look at the impact Ruth's words likely had on Naomi, in relation to the verse to memorize for this week.  Ruth 1:16-17    "But Ruth replied, 'Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you.  Where you will go I will go, and where you will stay I will stay.  Your people will be my people and your God my God.  Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried'..." 

Can you imagine how Naomi's spirits were lifted from the loving words Ruth offered?  Naomi was perhaps at an all time low.  She wasn't out there asking for handouts, in fact, she even gave her two daughters-in-law an 'out' to leave her.  Although those lemons were still tough to swallow, I do believe Naomi was better able to swallow them because of the loving support of Ruth.

Let's look at the verse for the week.  "An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up."  Do you know someone like Naomi?  Someone who is heavy hearted, with a lemon-filled life?  Do you know someone falling away from church, maybe because of life's circumstances? 

The question begs, "What are you going to do about it?"  When is the last time you hand-wrote a note to encourage another person?  Technology like email and facebook are amazing tools, but when is the last time you actually picked up the phone to call someone to lift their spirits over the phone?  I know I've been the recipient of many kind words cheering me up lately.  I also know that the Lord has been teaching me lately to be a more consistent encourager.  It's so easy to get busy and just neglect to send a note...neglect to call.  The truth is that I've found when I take the time to encourage someone else, I'm encouraged.  It's funny how that works like that!

So who do you know that needs encouraged this week, and what are you going to do about it?  Will you be like Ruth and encourage a heavy-heartened friend?  Perhaps this comes a bit more naturally for women than men, but that's no excuse.  Men and women alike, will you join me in making a goal to look outside your circle and encourage a new person each week?  Let's each consider it our responsibility to not only memorize this verse but also to carry it out this week.   Let's all cheer up someone with a kind word and help their lemons turn to lemonade.

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

 

 

 

 

 

Hurt on the court?

Psalm 55:22  "Cast your cares on the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall."

A few years ago I was coaching a volleyball game when one of my girls got hurt on the court.  When it was apparent she was not able to continue playing, her dad came on to the court to her rescue.  He is a big firefighter, but a gentle giant.  He assessed his daughter's situation, and then scooped her up into his arms and carried her off the court.  It was an incredibly moving sight to see.

That's the image I get when I read this verse.  It says you should "cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you."  Just like my player cried out to her daddy for help, we should do the same to our Heavenly Daddy.  When we do, He scoops us into His arms and sustains us.  He never let's the righteous fall.

With that said, however, how many times do we cast our cares on Him, but instead we try to bear our own burdens?  Giving it all up and over to Him, and leaving it with Him is not easy.  But the verse for this week promises us that God will sustain us.  It doesn't say to cast our cares on God and we'll be able to handle things a little better.  No, it doesn't even say to tell God all about it and you'll be able manage through the tough times. 

The notes in my NIV Study Bible for a similar passage in I Peter 5:7 say it better than I can:  "Carrying your worries, stresses, and daily struggles by yourself show that you have not trusted God fully with your life.  It takes humility, however, to recognize that God cares, to admit your need, and to let other in God's family help you.  sometimes we think that struggles caused by our on sin and foolishness are not God's concern.  But when we turn to God in repentance, He will bear the weight even of those struggles.  Letting God have your anxieties calls for action, not passivity.  Don't submit to circumstances, but to the Lord who controls circumstances."

So here's the question.  Are you going to let our Heavenly Firefighter scoop you up off the court?  Are you going to cry out to Him, cast your cares on Him, and let Him sustain you?  I hope you'll evaluate life's circumstances, your reaction to them, and see if you're allowing this verse to be true in your life.  Definitely for me, I've got a lot of evaluating to do!

 

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

 

 

 

 

Monday Memory Verse - I Peter 5:10 - Spiritual Wipeout

I Peter 5:10  "And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast."

Have you ever seen the television show Wipeout?  It's where contestants go through a brutal obstacle course, with traps and distractions thrown at them along the way, in hopes that they will stumble, take longer to finish, and possibly even give up.  We've watched it a number of times, and it's not uncommon to see at least one contestant make it all the way to the finals, only to give up because they can't seem to overcome the challenging course.  Now, don't get me wrong, if I were a contestant, I would probably give up in the first round.  It's a brutal way to win money, being punched in the face with obstacles, catapulted through the sky into raging waters, jumping from platform to platform while cement is poured on you.  Yes, those are just a few of the things the contestants have to overcome.  Bottom line, the one with the best time in the final wins $50,000.  It's quite the entertaining show, but as I started to think about the verse to focus on this week, it's also a good parallel to life.

To understand the verse to memorize for this week a little better, I want to back up to verses eight and nine.  Peter says "Be self-controlled and alert.  Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings."  Then verse ten,  "And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast."

Sometimes this life we live is just like Wipeout.  Satan is throwing distractions at our life, trying to mess up our secure footing, trying to get our eyes off the prize, even trying to make us give up.  We may get hit with satan's cement, making it feel like we're stuck and can't keep moving forward.  We may get catapulted into the raging waters and feel like we're alone out there.  But the Bible says we need to have self control and be alert and aware that he's out there trying to attack. He would want nothing more than for a Christian to give up on their calling to follow Christ.  He wants nothing more than to wipeout a Christian.

But verse nine says we should resist him and stand firm in our faith.  It also reminds us that there are other Christians going through this same struggles that we're facing.  Of course God is there to help us get through tough times, but He also gives us Christian friends for support and encouragement!

Then the verse to memorize for this week, verse ten.  After we've suffered a little while, God will restore us and make us strong, firm and steadfast.  How encouraging is that?  Yes, we may go through some sufferings, satan may even throw some pretty difficult obstacles our way and try to wipe us out, but God promises that He will give us the strength to finish the course.  He puts our feet on a rock and gives us a firm foundation!  (PSalm 40:2)

Are you facing spiritual wipeout today?  Are you wanting to give up?  Remember these verses as you memorize this week.  Be alert and ready to stand against the attacks of satan.  Rely on the Godly friends that God has placed in your life.  And  don't forget that God is going to help you get through the course.  You can't do it by yourself, it's only through His power that you will have the strength you need.  No, I'm determined I will not wipeout for God.  How about you?

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

Suffering -> Perseverance -> Character -> Hope

Romans 5:2-5 "...and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.  And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us."

Suffering.  It can be defined in many ways: anger, torment, torture, pain, and even distress.  Depending on your situation or the severity of what you're going through, it can mean something different to everyone.  Sometimes it could mean losing someone close to you.  It could be going through a health crisis yourself.  It could be having to endure a job you do not enjoy or losing a job completely.  It could be financial in nature.  I hope it's not, but it could even be all of the above.  Yes, everyone can relate to varying degrees of suffering in their lives.

Over the last few days, I've really focused on these verses in Romans 5.  Almost immediately, God brought my focus on some things in my own life.  Suffering?  No, I can’t honestly say I’m going through any major suffering in my life right now.  Knowing about what some of my friends are going through, my life circumstances are trivial, at best.  Distress.  Yep, that’s probably a better word to describe what I’m going through.  I am trying to process changes at work, changes that don’t settle well with me in many respects.  And at home, we’re waiting on God to answer prayers and give us direction for the future in some areas of ministry.  So am I really going through suffering?  Not really, but I believe these verses apply just as much to my life as they do to anyone going through difficult situations.

Paul says that I should rejoice in Christ, regardless of my circumstances.  I’m reminded of that first and foremost.  Then the verse says to rejoice in my sufferings.  Hmmm.  It’s easier to write than to actually do, you know?  Rejoicing during trials and rejoicing that we have trials in our life is not second nature to me.  In fact, it’s just plain unnatural.  It’s against human nature and definitely not something we can accomplish in our own strength.  And why should we rejoice in our sufferings?  Because God tells us to, and because of what It produces in us.

Suffering produces perseverance.  The King James Version says it produces patience.  I personally like the term perseverance better.  Maybe it resonates with me because I don’t consider patience to be one of my best qualities.  But perseverance?  Yes, that’s something I strive for.  There’s one thing I don’t like being called, and that’s a quitter.  I like to finish what I’ve started and endure til the end.  I like the satisfaction I get from knowing I didn’t just finish, but I completed it with excellence.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’ve quit at many things in my life, and when I do, it usually leaves me feeling empty inside.  Of course, there’s always exceptions to the rule, and for me, that exception came in eighth grade when I decided to go run at a track meet with my little Christian school.  I had no preparation, no experience, and I signed up to run a mile against other schools that actually had a team and people prepared to do such things.  I showed up ready to run, with no idea what I was in for.  Now, I was an athlete and in good shape back then, but I was still no runner.  The gun went off, and so did I.  I knew nothing about pacing myself.  I sprinted as hard as I could the first few yards, but I quickly realized I was in over my head.  I made it one time around the track, and I promptly jogged right off the track.  I can't even remember how I got home, but I know quitting that event was the best decision for me.  It was quit or die, so quitting was the favorable option, wouldn’t you say?

As I go through suffering and times of distress, I hope I have learned to pace myself in Christ.  I have to be training in this Christian life, growing and becoming more like Christ daily.  Then when trouble comes, I won’t have that feeling of just wanting to give up.  From what I understand from running (not that I speak from experience for sure) but the more you train, the easier it is to run.  As Christians, Coach Christ is right there with us.  He’s there in the good times and the bad.  He’s cheering us on, encouraging us to be our best.  But just like every student with a trainer, we have a choice to follow the instructions given.  God so wants us to persevere through the trials, and when we do, ultimately that builds our character.

Character.  It’s one of my life goals, to be known as a person of character.  Not for me or my own reputation, but because of Who I represent.  You see, I am a princess, a daughter of the King.  My every action and reaction to a situation is a representation of my God. 

I can't help but think of the movie The Princess Diaries.  In it, Anne Hathaway's character of Mia found out she was the daughter of royalty.  She then had to re-train her brain to how she acted and reacted to situations so that she could be a model representation of her family and her country.  Isn't that the same with our Christian lives?  Once I make a commitment to Christ and commit my life to God, I become royalty, heir to the throne.  And just like Mia needed to represent the country of Genovia well, I also need to be a representation of my King in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. (I Timothy 4:12)

Back to the passage, though, the Bible says that it's through persevering through the trials and suffering in our lives that character is built.  Difficulties help me grow, and I should rejoice in the pain that I'm experiencing because I know that through it, God is growing me to become more like Him...to build my character.  Of course, it's up to me to have the right reaction to things.  How quickly I can hurt my character and the One whom I represent by choosing the wrong attitude toward my situation!

Then finally, the passage says that character produces hope...and HOPE does not disappoint us.  Why?  Because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.  HOPE.  I have hope.  I know where my Hope lies.  It's in God alone.  But what kind of hope do people have that are going through suffering who don't have a relationship with Jesus Christ?  Hope in the doctors?  Hope in the medicine?  Hope that things will work out ok?  Yes, they may have 'hope' but it's not in the One who can offer eternal peace.  And that's the only hope that the Bible is talking about here.

No, I'm not going through any major suffering right now...just a little distress.  Regardless of the severity, I want these Scriptures to be true in my life.  I want to rejoice in suffering so that I persevere.  And as I persevere, I want my character to be built so that I become more like my King.  And I will place my hope not in earthly things but in the eternal; my hope is in God! 

Thank you, Lord, for reminding me to rejoice, endure, and keep a check on where my hope is placed!

 

--Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

Against All Hope...Not with God!

Against all hope.  Have you ever faced this kind of situation in your life?  You can't possibly see an "out" to what you're going through?  Things look so impossible that you don't know how you'll make it?

I can remember back when we first moved to Texas.  We were faith-based missionaries, which means we raised all of our financial income from family and friends.  When we moved here, we had about 80% of the support we needed, but within a few months, that dropped substantially.  There was one Saturday evening that my husband came to me and said, "Well, do you want the good news or the bad news?"  Now, if you know me, I hate that kind of thing.  Just tell me like it is--and in a hurry!  I noticed he had both hands filled with papers.  He stretched out one hand and said, "Well, we have enough money to pay our tithe at church tomorrow and enough for our mortgage that's due on Monday."  I kind of knew what was coming next, but I had to ask, "And the bad news?"  Frank then outstretched the other hand and said we had about $1000 of bills that were due by Wednesday."  Of course, we stopped and prayed for the situation, but not about what to do.  I remember commenting that God didn't bring us all the way to Texas to ruin our perfect credit we had worked to maintain all our married life.  No, we didn't pray for wisdom on what to do, that was a no-brainer, we would pay our mortgage and tithe. 

What happened in the next 48 hours was something only God could do.  You see, we told no one of our situation.  Not a soul.  But God knew, and He's the only One who counts.  On Sunday morning, someone walked up to us with an envelope.  He said that when he was praying the night before, the Lord told him to give that money to us.  His family had never given to our ministry in the past, nor have they since.  When we opened the envelope, we found $500 enclosed.  Later at church, someone else gave us a check, and Monday morning in the mail, we had yet another check, received unexpectantly.  On Wednesday, when our bills were due, we had exactly to the penny enough money to pay them.  God is a pretty amazing mathematician, isn't He?  I heard someone say this last weekend that He has Divine Math.  That is the only way to explain how He worked in our situation that looked hopeless.

This morning I was reading in Romans chapter four, and my eyes were drawn to verses eighteen to twenty-one.  "Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, 'So shall your offspring be.'  Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead -- since he was about a hundred years old -- and that Sarah's womb was also dead.  Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what He had promised."

If anyone was facing a hopeless situation, it was Abraham.  But the Bible says that against all hope, he believed.  He had almost everything going against him, he was old, his wife was not only old but also barren...key words: almost everything going against him.  Because if God was for him, who could be against him?  (Romans 8)

I don't know about you, but sometimes it's easy to lose focus on God's promises in my life.  Sometimes I need just a little reminder of how providential God is.  Patience in seeing God's plan is not my best virtue.  I said it earlier, I hate surprises...just tell me like it is, so I can process things and deal with them.  But God doesn't work like that, and even though it's against my nature, for that, I'm thankful.  I'm glad He alone knows the future for me, and right now, I jut need to rest in His promises.  There's hundreds of them throughout Scripture, but here's just a few I can think of:

Hebrews 13:5  "I will never leave you or forsake you."
Proverbs 1:33 "Whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease without fear of harm."
Matthew 11:28  "Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."
Isaiah 40:29  "He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak."
Psalm 32:8  "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go, I will counsel you and watch over you."
Jeremiah 29:13  "You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with your whole heart."
Philippians 4:7  "And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
Lamentations 3:22-24  "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning, great is Your faithfulness.  I say to myself, 'The Lord is my portion; therefore, I will wait for Him.'"
Jeremiah 33:3  "Call unto Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not know."
I John 5:14  "This is the confidence we have in approaching God, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us."
I John 1:9  "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
James 1:5  "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him."
Zephaniah 3:17  "The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save.  He will take great delight in you.  He will quiet you with His love.  he will rejoice over you with singing."
Psalm 147:3  "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds."
Ephesians 3:20  "Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us."

Against all hope?  No light at the end of the tunnel?  Never, with God.  I'm so thankful for God's Word, the Bible, and for the promises it contains.  I definitely needed the reminder from Abraham this morning!  My God is faithful!

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

 

Stock in God...My Refuge and Strength. My Help in Times of Trouble

Psalm 46:1, 10  "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  Be still, and know that I am God.  I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

"You should own stock in the ER," my brother Bruce joked as he called me yesterday.  I laughed at his comment.  But, yesterday is one of those days I don't care to repeat.  It's also one of those days I have to reflect and ask God, "What do you want me to learn from this?" 

It started with my husband Frank taking our fourteen year old daughter Amber to the ER with hives, itching, severe abdominal pain, and extreme difficulty breathing.  So extreme, I might add, that he didn't think he could make it to the hospital.  He took her to the brand new ER that just opened down the street, not associated with any hospital.  We've seen the signs before, and we were pretty sure she was having an allergic reaction.  He injected her with the epi-pen, and off they went.  Our electricity then went out at home.  The doctors mis-diagnosed her at the ER.  And although she was feeling drained but back to normal by the afternoon, her allergist wanted to see her in his office in shorter time then it takes me to drive there. 

This was Amber's fourth trip to the ER in the last few months, due to something called "Peanut Desensitization."  You see, she's been deathly allergic to peanuts her entire life, but since January, we have made weekly visits to the allergist, working to overcome this allergy.  Sure, there have been a few bumps along the way, but on Monday she "graduated" from the program.  We thought those days of reactions were behind us.  Little did we know, three days after graduation, she would have the most severe allergic reaction of her life since the day we found out she had this allergy.

I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about everything that had transpired.  And all I can say, is I have a great God.  And God has given me some amazing friends to pray for our family during crisis.

Maybe I don't own stock in the ER, but let me say, I do own stock in God.  I don't deserve it.  I didn't buy it by good works or any great investment I had done.  But God gave it to me freely when His son Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for my sin.  He invested His Son for me.  All I had to do was accept it, ask Him to come into my life, forgive me of my sins, and commit myself to Him.  I did that as a small child, and I am so thankful that no one can ever take it away from me. 

I can't imagine what my life would be without God in it.  He cares about every detail, even leading us to the right doctors, including the "Best Allergist in Dallas" when we first moved here eleven plus years ago.  No, seriously, he IS the best, as named by D Magazine!  Props to Dr. Robert Sugarman!  He spent an hour with Amber yesterday afternoon, in the room, looking at the ER reports, and discussing her situation.  I was so touched by his care and sensitivity with us, late in the day.  He did what was right for Amber, instead of what was right for him and his staff.  They even stayed at the office until 6 PM with us, just to be sure she didn't have another reaction after her next "dose" of peanuts.  Yep, he's a keeper, and it's not by our doing that we found him.  We prayed for God to give us the right doctors when we moved here, and isn't it just like God to answer prayers?

I would be lost, literally, without God.  My heart beats for people to understand what it really means to have a relationship with Him!  I have friends that know about God.  They ask people to pray when things go south, but that's where it stops.  They have never had a time in their life when they've given control of their life to Him and started to have a personal, intimate friendship with Him.  How I wish for everyone to understand what being a Christian is really about.  Religion?  No.  Believing in God?  No.  Relationship with God and giving up control?  Most definitely.  If you do not have a relationship with God like the one I've talked about, please contact me.  It would be my privilege to show you what the Bible says about becoming a Christian.  :)

He knows what tragedies I might face.  And nothing happens to me without it passing by God first.  Why does He let these things happen?  I have no idea, only that in all things, He should be glorified.  And that's what I want to do this morning.  I give Him the glory for giving us an amazing doctor in Dr. Sugarman.  I give Him the glory for the "Peanut Desensitization," even with the bumps in the road that we've had.  I give Him the glory for the new ER being built just minutes from our home.  I give Him the glory for the wonderful epi-pen.  I give Him the glory for all things.

He is my refuge and strength.  He is an ever-present help in times of trouble.  And I will not question why...I will be still, and know that He is God so He can be exalted. 

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

Pride meets God...Daniel Chapter Four

In Daniel chapter four, we see Neb's mind at work again.  Well, it was quite active when he was asleep at least, because when he was awake, he definitely wasn't thinking on his feet.  You see, he had another dream; one that terrified him.  He wanted to know what it meant, so what did he do?  He commanded all the wise men of Babylon to come before him to interpret the dream.  (At least this time he didn't make them tell HIM the dream...he just wanted to know what it meant.)  What's that about history repeating itself?  Yep, you guessed it, none of the magicians, enchanters, and astrologers could fulfill this task.  However, into the presence of the king walks Daniel...aka Belteshazzar...and things started to change.

Time to stop, think, and apply.  At this point, I just scratch my head at Neb.  Why would he not just call in Daniel from the get-go?  Daniel's God had proven Himself when no other god or magician could, yet that's not where Neb turned.  Instead, he turned to what was comfortable.  He turned to his old stand-by.  How many times am I just like Neb?  I turn to my friends for advice instead of God.  Yet even worse, I turn to the comfort of sin.  Not because I want to outright sin, but because it's easier than doing what is right.  Sure, it's easy to point fingers at Neb and his lack of faith, but I'm just like him sometimes.

Then I noticed one more tidbit of information in verse eight that I don't remember learning before.  Neb had given Daniel the name of Belteshazzar.  OK, yea, I knew that, but what I didn't know was the insult Daniel had to bear with his new name.  Belteshazzar was the name of Neb's god.  So Daniel, who devoted himself to living for the one true God, had to go around bearing the name of a false god.  When Neb named Daniel, maybe he did it as a compliment because he was so impressed with Daniel.  From what I can tell, the Scriptures don't say.  Regardless, it makes me think about times in my life that I've been called names because of my stand for Christ.  I can remember getting picked on as a kid because my family went to church and didn't go out partying.  I can remember times even as an adult in the workplace when people talked behind my back and called me some choice names, all because I didn't compromise.  Unlike me, Daniel was in captivity.  He couldn't walk away from the situation like I could.  Yet, he maintained his testimony.

Back to the dream.  OK, in reality, it was a nightmare, and I think there was a reason Neb was fearful.  Daniel was even afraid to tell Neb the interpretation until Neb set his mind at ease in verse nineteen.  Basically, the dream was a curse.  Verse twenty-five says "You" (Neb) "will be driven away from the people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven.  Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men."  Daniel then made a bold move.  He begged Neb to take his advice, to turn from his sin, and to start doing what was right.

Everyone needs a Daniel in their life.  Someone who will have the nerve to say what's right before God, even if it means it won't be received.  Daniel boldly told Neb, the king mind you, what he needed to do.  Of course, at that point, Neb didn't take the advice.  But a seed was planted for future actions.  Am I being a Daniel in the lives of my friends?  When I see them falling away or living in sin or not seeking the Lord in their life, do I care enough about them to speak up?  Am I planting seeds?  More to apply.

Chapter four ends with the dream being fulfilled and Neb finally learning.  You see, at the root of all his problems was pride.  He was too proud to say his gods were no match for Daniel's God.  He was too proud to say he didn't have control of things.  Twelve months after the dream, Neb's pride was peaking and he looked over his kingdom and said, "Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?"  Verse thirty-one says the words were still on his lips when a voice from heaven declared that dream was about to come true.  It was immediately fulfilled. 

King Neb now was driven away from people, ate grass like cattle, his body was drenched with dew, his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle, and his nails like the claw of a bird.  He went from riches to rags, literally.  How often am I just like Neb?  I take glory in MY accomplishments.  Look what I've done...  When the reality is that I am nothing without God and what He has allowed me to do.  Thankfully, my God is a God of second chances, and that's what He gave Neb, too.  Neb was humiliated in every way.  He was living with the animals and had lost his mind and control of the kingdom.  But verse thirty-four says Neb raised his eyes toward heaven, his sanity was restored, and he praised the Most High God.  His honor and glory were also restored, his advisers and nobles sought him out, and he regained the throne.  He humbled himself in the site of the Lord, and the Lord lifted him up.

The chapter ends with Neb's personal testimony.  "Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything He does is right and all his ways are just.  And those who walk in pride He is able to humble."

I find so many practical spiritual lessons throughout this chapter.  In my last blog about Daniel, I said, "Will Neb ever learn?"  Well, I think he learned.  I hope I learn, too.  God, let me have the boldness of Daniel to stand for spiritual things, let me always acknowledge You as King, the author of all things, and help me, God, to never take credit for my accomplishments.  I am nothing, I have nothing, apart from You.

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

In the fire...

Daniel chapter three brings me to the old Sunday School classic of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego being thrown into the fiery furnace for not bowing down to the king's idol on command.  I'm reminded this morning that even though it's a common story, it's easy to forget the details.  I love how God's Word comes alive if we just spend some time looking and meditating!

As I read verse one this morning, I just shook my head.  Neb just witnessed the power of God revealed through Daniel in chapter two and what does he do?  He builds a huge image of gold for him and the people to worship.  At this point, he just didn't get it.  Really, Neb?  Really?  Daniel gives credit to God Almighty for revealing the dream to you and your next step is to command all the people to worship an idol or be killed?  Neb seemed to me to be a hot tempered, thick headed man with apparent short term memory loss! 

How often are we just like Neb?  God does an amazing thing in our life, and we turn around and deny him.  We forget his power, and we do as we want.  It always seems to me that it's harder to have a deep walk with the Lord when things are going good in your life vs when trials or tragedy is present.  Some people may think the opposite.  But the bottom line is that our walk with the Lord should be consistent.  We shouldn't have short term memory loss of how He's worked!

I love the resolve of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego when they hear of the king's decree and the pending doom of the blazing furnace.  "...the God we serve is able to save us from it, and He will rescue us from your hand, O king.  But even if He does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up." (verses 17-18)

You see, they had faith.  They knew God could rescue them, but even if that was not God's plan, they had resolve to not bend their convictions.  That's faith in action.  Christians all over Asia and other parts of the world put this same faith in action.  They know that can be executed for their belief in God, but the fear of death doesn't stop them.  I want resolve like these three.  I want to be able to firmly say with conviction that my God can rescue me, but if he doesn't, I'm not bending my convictions.  I will stand firm for Christ, even if it means my life is in danger. 

I think our character can be judged in part by who we hang out with.  Although Daniel wasn't one of the three that were thrown into the furnace, it's apparent his three friends had just as much faith and character as he did.  They knew Who the believed in and didn't care who found out about it.  Oh that my faith would be as strong as these guys!  

What do you think happened when Neb finally released them from the furnace?  Can you imagine how much their faith increased through that experience?  Sometimes we have to go through the fire to increase our faith, too.  Maybe it's financial problems, a lost job, health issues...  But whatever the fire is, God brings it for a purpose.  I had a friend in high school who sang this song once.  I think I've listed the words before in this blog, but it's worth noting again.  It's actually one of my favorite songs to hum when I am going through tough times.  The melody is simple and beautiful, but the words ring true in my heart.

The FIre

I've been through the fire that has deepened my desire
To know the living God more and more.
It hasn't been much fun, but the work that it has done
Has really made it worth the hurt.
You see, sometimes we need the hard times
To bring us to our knees
Otherwise, we do as we please
And never heed Him
But He always knows what's best
And it's when we are distressed
That we really come to know God as He is.

Now, good old Neb didn't really put his faith in trust in the Lord after seeing this awesome display of God's power.  But he did actually at least acknowledge God!  Neb says in verse 28, "Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants!  They trusted in him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than server or worship any god except their own God."  He went on to decree that anyone who speaks against their God will...yep, you guessed it...be cut into pieces and their houses turned into piles of rubble.  (The exact same threat he made to the magicians and sorcerers for not being able to tell them and interpret his dream!) 

Will Neb ever learn?  Will we ever learn?  Will I ever learn?  Lord, don't let me have short-term memory loss like King Neb.  If it means I have to go through the fire to increase my faith, that's what I want, Lord.  Deepen my desire to know You as You are.

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

Monday Memory Verse - Psalm 147:3 "God: The Ultimate Cardiologist"

Psalm 147:3  "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds."

Earlier this week, a friend from high school posted this verse.  You see, after an incredibly long journey, she and her husband have just adopted little Bella.  She's a beautiful two year old from China.  Bella was born with a heart defect, and last week she was finally on the way to her long awaited cardiologist appointment here in the states so her situation could be evaluated.  I prayed for little Bella then.  And I prayed throughout the day, being awestruck by her story and by the verse her new mom posted.  It's a simple one, but the imagery is incredible.

Have you ever had a broken heart?  Perhaps not literally, like Bella, but broken in spirit?  Maybe it's a lost love, or maybe it's a friend who has turned their back on you.  Sometimes it's just life's circumstances that break your heart.  Things don't go the way you think they should, and you feel like someone has ripped your heart out of your chest.  I have had those times, and recently, I might add.  Times where I've felt so empty inside because things didn't go the way I thought they should.  My master plan was not the Master's Plan.

Maybe that's why I can't get this verse out of my mind.  When you were a little kid, can you remember getting hurt and running to your mommy or daddy?  What would happen?  They would sit there, hug you, love on you, all while dressing your wounds.  For me, mommy always could make it better.  She would fix it on the inside and out.  When I was hurt, she was the first person I ran to.

Is it no wonder that God does the exact same thing, but an infinity better than any mom on the earth?  He's the ultimate cardiologist.  The verse says He heals the brokenhearted.  Mommy just put a band-aid on my problems, but God heals them.  And it says God binds up my wounds.  When my heart hurts, when emotions are weighing heavy, all I have to do is turn to my God.  He will make it all better.  He doesn't have to give me a Popsicle or put a temporary fix on it like a band-aid.  He heals.  He's the Great Physician. 

Matthew 5:4 says, "Blessed are those that mourn, for they shall be comforted."  Just like I had to go to my mommy to receive comfort, I have to go to my Father to receive His comfort.  We can't be healed if we don't allow ourselves to mourn.  And isn't it just like God to always be there for us?  He's there, waiting on me when my heart is broken.  He's there, waiting for me to cry on His shoulder.  He's there, waiting on me to come to Him to bind my wounds.  I have this visual picture of Jesus, holding me while I cry, looking at my heart, and doing surgery.  I'm so thankful He heals my broken heart, over and over again.

And Bella, well, God healed her heart, too.  Last summer she had emergency surgery while in China.  They said she wouldn't have lived without it.  Well, the report from the cardiologist was better than anyone anticipated.  She will live with the heart defect the rest of her life, but the doctor who did surgery on her in China was aggressive.  She'll have to have some valves replaced down the road, but for now, she's a happy two year old with no physical limitations.  Yes, God heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds!  He is the ultimate Cardiologist!

For more on Bella's story, check out my friend Jody McNatt's blog: http://eventhesparrow843.blogspot.com

 

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com

Low Iodine Diet...Biblical Food for Thought!

July 26th.  I dreaded the day coming.  I came back from Colombia on the 24th, and two days later I had to start what is called a "low iodine diet" in preparation for my annual body scan.  This year, I've put it off for two months, but the time has come now, and it's unavoidable. 

A "low iodine diet" is when you drink only water and can eat basically fresh fruits, vegetables, and a very small amount of chicken each day.  Nothing in a can.  No steak or beef.  No dairy.  No breads.  No Diet Coke.  No Coffee.  No chocolate.  No ice cream.  You get the idea.  You can probably tell where my allegiances might lie and why I've been dreading this diet!

It started July 26th, and it ends August 13th...a few days shy of three weeks.  An eternity to me.  This all may sound foreign to you, so let me explain.  The thyroid cells are the only cells in the body that naturally soak up iodine.  Since I had thyroid cancer three years ago, I go through this annual routine.  I deprive my body of iodine, then two days before the scan, I swallow a radio-active iodine pill.  Any cells that are present in my body will soak up the iodine I've swallowed and actually glow on the body scan.  Technology is pretty cool; the diet is not.

It's now August 6th.  I'm more than half way through this thing, and I'm happy to report that aside from accidentally eating a few bites of cooked turkey from the refrigerator instead of chicken, I've stuck to this thing 100%.  Not an easy task for someone like me with no willpower.  "What does this have to do with "GodandMe2theMax" you might ask?  Well, through this thing, God is changing my perspective.

You see, I've been pretty miserable through this.  I've been dreaming of the 13th and what foods I will eat first.  The problem is, I couldn't even decide what I wanted to eat first because my palate is so vast.  But this morning I started reading in Daniel.  I didn't have to go any further than Daniel chapter one for God to start working on me.  Verse eight says, "But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine..."  Then in verse twelve Daniel says, "...Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink."  (The King James uses the word "pulse" instead of vegetables, which means anything that grows from a seed...that would include fruit!)  You gotta love God.  Here I am complaining about this diet thing, and there Daniel is requesting it!

Now, we don't know exactly why Daniel didn't want to eat the King's food.  Maybe it contained foods forbidden by Jewish law, like pork.  Maybe it had not been prepared according to Jewish law, or perhaps it was meat that had been sacrificed and offered to a pagan god.  But whatever it was, Daniel felt that eating it would defile himself.  What about me?  I don't live under the law, I live under grace.  I don't believe eating pork is a sin, even though my maternal grandmother had 100% Jewish heritage.  So can I really use the same term "defile myself" and actually apply it to my life?  Yeah, I think so.  No, I know so.  I've made years of food choices that have defiled me.  My problem is that I like just about everything, and pushing back from the table is not a discipline I've chosen to take up in my life.

Daniel resolved.  The King James says Daniel purposed in his heart.  Resolve means to form a purpose; to make a decision; especially, to determine after reflection.  This morning, I know God is dealing with me.  He wants me to resolve these food issues in my heart, too. 

Now, not for a second do I think God is telling me to stay on the "Daniel diet" for the rest of my life.  That wouldn't be practical or even a realistic goal for me.  However, what God is showing me is that over the last few weeks, I've learned to make healthier choices.  I've learned that I'm not going to die if I don't have that full feeling in my stomach.  And I've learned that Target does sell fresh vegetables, and not just the kind in a can.  God is teaching me things I already knew in my head but didn't always rely on in my heart.  Things like when I am weak, He is strong.  He's reminded me that food doesn't offer the comfort I thought it did, only He can do that.  He's giving me peace.  He's teaching me self control.  He's teaching me contentment...in Him.  Hmmm....those are some of the fruits of the Spirit, aren't they?  Food for thought.  Yes, definitely, He's giving me biblical food for thought this morning.

---Beth Banfill
www.GodandMe2theMax.com