“Vindicate the weak and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and destitute. Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.” (Psalm 82:3-4)

Lord, You are righteous; and there are those in this world whose hearts are filled with wickedness. Lead Your faithful to protect the weak and fatherless that they may have the opportunity for goodness and mercy. Grant those placed in authority hearts that protect the innocent and hold fast to what is good and right. Keep the people in safety and lead Your faithful to be bold to protect the weak.

Lord, in this world there is much injustice. Amidst those crying for justice are those who are led by wicked people, manipulated to promote injustice in the name of justice. Grant us eyes to see through the devilishness of this age that Your faithful people would simply do what is right and fitting as they are able. Grant wisdom to those who will listen that Your justice prevail amongst the people.

Lord Jesus, You are the answer to the injustice of this world. Guide me in Your wisdom to do what You give me to do. Grant me a heart that trusts You first that I may not act upon my own heart, but always come to You knowing that You will lead me with Your righteousness. May I now and always trust that You alone are able to judge the hearts of others. You are Lord of lords. Lead me now and always, Jesus. Amen.

“God takes His stand in His own congregation; He judges in the midst of the rulers. How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked?” (Psalm 82:1-2)

Who knows all things but God? Who can rightly judge the reality of the heart but the Lord alone. Leaders are raised up to govern, but not to judge by anything other than what the law clearly stipulates. You and I do not know who is truly wicked or whom it is that, in desperation, act the way they do. The Lord will correctly judge all according to their heart. Come to the Lord and receive His righteousness.

Lord, I see things and make determinations based upon what I see. Help me take a step back and recognize that only You know what is in our hearts. Guide me to trust You in all things, knowing that You are in our midst. Lead me to discern right from wrong, but to be slow to act when dealing with others amidst things I do not know. You alone are the One who is able to determine the righteous from the wicked.

Lord Jesus, even amongst Your disciples there was Judas who betrayed You. By Your example, teach me to be wary of judging when I cannot know what is in the other’s heart. Let me not look at the outward things, but see to it that the judgement of the Holy Spirit upon my own heart is effective to move me ever more closely to You. Lead me this day according to the Father’s will to do what is good and right. Amen.

“I would soon subdue their enemies, and turn my hand against their adversaries. The haters of Yahweh would cringe before him, and their punishment would last forever. But he would have also fed them with the finest of the wheat. I will satisfy you with honey out of the rock.” (Psalm 81:14-16)

The life the Lord offers is a good life, both now and forever. Stand fast in the truth of the Lord and seek first His kingdom. Do not be satisfied with the pablum from the wicked, but the truth of the Lord which is forever. Stand fast in His mercy and know His goodness. He alone is able to satisfy the longing of every heart. He alone is forever and grants eternal life. Come to Him and see.

Lord, in this crazy world, I am often overcome by circumstances and dwell only in the moment forgetting Your promises. Help me to come out of my shell and live knowing that You are God. Guide me in Your goodness that I would walk with You in all of my ways. Lead me now and forever to come ever closer to being like the Savior, Jesus, that I would be one of Your children.

Lord Jesus, You have come bringing the power to become a child of the Heavenly Father. By Your grace alone can we overcome the sin of this world. Lead me in Your grace that I would be satisfied in the goodness of the Father. Create in me a new and clean heart that I would walk upright and humble in Your presence. Satisfy my heart with the good things You know I need. Amen.

“So I let them go after the stubbornness of their hearts, that they might walk in their own counsels. Oh that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways!” (Psalm 81:12-13)

The people walk in the counsel of their hearts. What do they know? When they listen only to themselves, from their own limited view of things, what can they understand? Do not listen just to your heart, but to the Lord who knows all things. Come to the One who created you and know the freedom that comes from knowing that you are in His hands. Walk in His ways and live.

Lord, I do trust myself even though I know that I am untrustworthy. I listen all too often to my own counsel even though I know that it is not good. Help me not live by the wickedness that is in my heart, but by the truth that You have spoken for all ages. Guide me in the truth of Your Word and help me to live by Your Word, first and foremost. Lead me, O Lord, in the way I should go.

Lord Jesus, You have the words of eternal life. To whom else should we go? Lead me out of my fickle heart which does not understand and is prideful and into the truth which You have revealed for all people. Help me now and always to live according to Your never-changing word that I may abide in You as You abide in me, doing what is pleasing in the Father’s sight. Lead me today, Lord Jesus. Amen.

“For we know that if the tent, which is our earthly home, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” (2 Corinthians 5:1)

Here is the Christian’s courage.

A thousand things can attack us in the flesh, from accidents to illnesses, from crime to war.  As we go into a day, we don’t know what will happen; every morning starts a venture of which we cannot see the ending.  The unknown is so great, not only for each of us individually, but also for our families, neighborhoods, and churches.

Yet God has breathed His Holy Spirit into the believer, the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead.  By His own word of promise, God declares that we belong to the world to come, the same world that broke into this earth through the death and resurrection of Jesus.  The destruction of our “earthly tent” (our flesh, our homes, our lives as we now know them) cannot destroy our “heavenly tent,” the body of Christ.

God pitched that heavenly tent among you through the birth of His Son, and He opened the flap of it in His Son’s wounds, handing Him over for sinners.  Now, He has zippered you securely in its shelter through the ministry of His Spirit, making for you a home in His mercy.

Of what shall you be afraid?

LET US PRAY: Fill me with courage, good Lord, and let no fear of loss or suffering prevent me from abiding with You, both here on earth and in the world to come; through Jesus, Your Son.  Amen

Pastor Steven K. Gjerde

Zion, Wausau

“I am Yahweh, your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it. But my people didn’t listen to my voice. Israel desired none of me.” (Psalm 81:10-11)

The One through whom all things have their being gave goodness to the people, but they turned their backs and went their own way. He who rescued them and kept them from becoming nothing, showed them miracles, but many mixed in the crowd would not listen. Listen now and hear the word of the Lord. He speaks that all who listen would not be absorbed into the crowd of unbelievers and become as nothing. Come to Him and learn truth.

Lord, You lift up those who turn to You, but many reject You and go their own way. Help me see that I can make the difference for my life by faithfully listening to You and humbly following in the way You have established. Guide me in the salvation You have prepared in the sight of all people that I may come into Your presence and dwell with You my God. Guide me in wisdom and truth.

Lord Jesus, You have come as the final rescue for all who believe. As many as believe will not perish, but come into everlasting life. Guide me, O Lord, in the way You have prepared that I may learn from You how to live the life You have given. Lift me up out of the mess of this world to see in You the only hope for us all. Help me share with others what You have shared with me that I may abide in You always. Amen.

A MODEL FATHER

Devotional for Fathers’ Day 2018 based upon Genesis 21: 8-21

I am writing the devotional for this week for a particular group of people, though everyone else is welcome to read it. I am writing to those whose fathers were not ideal fathers. They were not everything they should have been as fathers. Some of these fathers are still alive, so there still might be a chance for their children to work on that all important relationship. Some fathers are gone, so their children can no longer make that relationship better, but they can still work on making their own lives better if they can find peace in their pain and a healing of their memories.

The hard, cold fact is that many fathers are not ideal, model fathers. For example, Abraham was not an ideal, model father.

Now that may kind of surprise you because we think of Abraham as a great man of faith. As the great father of both the Hebrew nation and the Arab people. But Abraham, in his relationship with his older son Ishmael, was far from being a model father.

What great joy Abraham must have felt when he finally was able to have a son by his wife, Sarah. It was a miracle – a gift from God. Both Abraham and Sarah were in their nineties. They named their son Isaac, which means “laughter,” because, by giving them a son, God had given them their laughter back.

When Isaac was three years old, Abraham threw a big party. But in the midst of all the celebrating, Abraham’s wife, Sarah, saw something that made her very upset. She saw Isaac playing with his half-brother, Ishmael.

Now Ishmael also was Abraham’s son. But Ishmael’s mother was a slave woman by the name of Hagar. When God seemed slow to act – at least slow according to Abraham’s timetable – in fulfilling His promise to make Abraham the father of a great nation, Abraham decided that he needed to help God out, so he took matters into his own hands and had a son by the slave woman, Hagar. After the birth of Ishmael, Sarah and Hagar did not get along at all. There was deep resentment and bitterness on Sarah’s part, so at the family celebration, when she saw Ishmael playing with Isaac, she flew into a rage. She told her husband, Abraham, to get rid of that woman and her son. She did not even call them by name. She was so eaten up with jealousy that she wanted Hagar and Ishmael out of her life forever.

Abraham must have lacked either the guts or the know-how to intervene and solve the problem between the mothers of his two children. I’ve seen it happen many times. Some of the worst of tensions erupt at what should be the happiest of family gatherings. In the midst of what should have been a joyous occasion, Sarah became so upset just because she saw Ishmael playing with her young son, Isaac. There is no indication that Ishmael was in any way being mean or abusive towards his younger half-brother. It just says that they were playing together at a family celebration.

Sarah wanted action, and she wanted it now. How sad. How sad for Sarah – for allowing herself to become so consumed with jealousy and anger. How sad for Hagar – to be cast out and now not have someone to provide for her. How sad for Isaac – to no longer be able to have a relationship with his half-brother. But especially how sad for Ishmael. To have a father who rejected him, cast him out, cut him off, sent him away.

I am sure that Abraham loved Ishmael deeply. I am certain that he was greatly distressed over the thought of having to send him away. It was during this time of great confusion and pain that God spoke once again to Abraham. (Thank you, Lord, for speaking to us in our times of greatest confusion and pain.) God said to Abraham, “Do not be distressed because of the boy and because of the slave woman. I will make a nation of him also, because he is your son.” And so, in what is one of the saddest scenes in the entire Bible, Abraham gives in to Sarah and sends Hagar and Ishmael away. He casts them out into the desert with only a skin filled with water and a little bit of bread. How long did Abraham think that they would be able to survive with so little food and water?

I live in the Phoenix area. Day time temperatures are now consistently over 100 degrees. Every summer we hear and read stories of people who go hiking in the desert with not enough water. They do not survive. How long did Abraham think Hagar and Ishmael were going to be able to survive?

When their scanty provisions were gone, Hagar did the best thing she could. She found some shade and left her son there. Then she sat down quite a ways away, looking in the opposite direction. She cried out to anyone who might hear her, “Do not let me look on the death of my child.” Then she sat down and wept.

God heard the cry of the child, so an angel of God called to Hagar and said, “Do not be afraid. Lift up your son and hold him fast, for I will make a great nation of him.” Then God showed her a well where she and her son could draw water. They were not going to die in the desert. God would be with them. Ishmael would grow to become “an expert with the bow.” His mother would find a wife for him. God gave great promises to a homeless woman, and God always keeps His promises. They would not be alone. Even though they had been cast out by a very non-ideal earthly father, they still had a perfect, loving, model Heavenly Father who would look out for them.

And that is good news for all of us. That no matter how well or how badly our own earthly fathers may have fulfilled the role of father, and whether or not we still have a chance to make that all important relationship better, still each one of us – like Ishmael – has a perfect, ideal, loving, model Heavenly Father.

And so, you see, the model, ideal father in our Bible story is not Abraham. In some ways Abraham was a very bad father. No, in this story, the model, ideal Father is God. And God wants to be your model, ideal Father. Earthly fathers may let us down, as Abraham let Ishmael down. But our Heavenly Father will never let us down.

And so, on this upcoming Fathers’ Day, let us give thanks for our earthly fathers, who did for us the very best they could in loving us and nurturing us, but who also had their own very real life issues, hurts, and needs to deal with.

But even more, let us give thanks that we, like Ishmael, have a loving, ideal, model Heavenly Father, who will always love us. Who will always take care of us. Even when we are in the desert times of our lives, He will never forsake us, but will always be there for us.

Dennis D. Nelson
President of the Board and Director of Lutheran CORE

“Hear, my people, and I will testify to you, Israel, if you would listen to me! There shall be no strange god in you, neither shall you worship any foreign god.” (Psalm 81:8-9)

The Lord calls to us to come to the One who is true that we may be in Him and He in us. The world goes where it will and believes as it will. The truth speaks and we have the opportunity to listen. Come, worship the One who created you and know His goodness. Come and listen to the Lord, for He will grant you wisdom and understanding. Come and know the Lord, for He is good.

Lord, I do wander off into the realm of the world where they hate You and pretend You are not there. Let not the gods of this world infect my heart. Instead, grow deep within me wisdom and knowledge of the truth that I may abide in You and You in me all the days of my life. Help me to see clearly in this messy world the truth You have revealed for the ages and to abide there.

Lord Jesus, truth in the flesh, guide me now and always to walk humbly in Your example. You have come that all who believe would be set free from the curse of this world and the false gods that occupy it. Lift me up into the light of truth which You have reveled that I may walk in truth. Guide my footsteps to see what is before me and take those steps which are pleasing in the Father’s sight. Amen.

“I removed his shoulder from the burden. His hands were freed from the basket. You called in trouble, and I delivered you. I answered you in the secret place of thunder. I tested you at the waters of Meribah.” (Psalm 81:6-7)

We may not know it at the time, but the Lord is always there preparing the way for those who love Him. It may seem difficult and even impossible, but with the Lord all things are possible. He will weave together for His purpose all things and bring those who love Him to be with Him forever. Walk in the way of the Lord and know that He will bring about all things for His purpose.

In the twists and turns of life, O Lord, I often do not understand. Help me see that I do not need to fully understand, for You are the Sovereign One and all things are in Your hands. Guide me in the goodness of Your presence that I may walk humbly wherever You lead. Help me to trust You above all things knowing that all things are in Your hands. Guide me to live by the faith You have given me.

Lord Jesus, You came with purpose and fulfilled that purpose that all who believe might be forever united with You. Lead me this day in the truth You have revealed that I would humbly walk in the provision of the Father giving thanks for everything. Lead me by Your example to go where You lead and do what You would have me do. In You I have all the grace I need to walk by faith. Amen.

“For it is a statute for Israel, an ordinance of the God of Jacob. He appointed it in Joseph for a testimony, when he went out over the land of Egypt, I heard a language that I didn’t know.” (Psalm 81:4-5)

In this world, we will experience things that are foreign. Our lives will takes twists and turns that are unanticipated, but the Lord knows all of our days. You have been appointed to give a testimony of the faith you have received amidst those who do not understand what you are talking about. The Lord sends you as His witness to speak the truth and reality of His salvation.

Lord, I often see myself as a foreigner in this world, for many do not receive the word I speak. Yet, it is You who has called me to live humbly in this faith You have given me. Lead me no matter the circumstances to sit at Your feet knowing that You alone hold all things in Your hands. Guide me according to Your mercy to walk with You wherever this life may lead, knowing that all things are in Your hands.

Lord Jesus, You spoke several times about the hostility of this world. It was a hostility that eventually put You to death. Help me know that I should expect no less. Guide me in the goodness You came into this world to bring that I may now and always live according to that goodness and simply be a witness in this world of the truth that You came to reveal. Amen.