Crosswalk.com--The Devotional

[Judy Harder]

Burning Your Ships
by Ryan Duncan, Crosswalk.com Entertainment Editor

"In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple." – Luke 14:33

Every now and then, when I've got some time to spare, I'll turn on the History Channel and let myself get lost in the past. Recently, I started watching a documentary on the Age of Exploration, when the kingdoms of Europe were sending out ships to explore the Americas. To the Europeans, the New World was a place of limitless promise but also great danger. Faced with new cultures, strange animals, and deadly plagues, many explorations returned home in failure.

Then in February 1519, an explorer named Hernando Cortezwas commissioned by the Spanish Crown to sail to the Yucatan and conquer it in the name of Spain. Cortez and his army set out at once, and when they reached the shores of the Yucatan, Cortez turned to his men and said,

"Burn the boats."

Cortez refused to let turning back be an option. For the sake of his mission, it would be all or nothing. To many of us this may sound a bit extreme, but as it turns out, Jesus had the same principle when he started his ministry.

"As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head." He said to another man, "Follow me." But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God." Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-bye to my family." Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.'" – Luke 9:57-62

Being a true Christian is something bold and dangerous. We live in a world that loves compromises, and teaches us that we are free to pick and choose what parts of religion we want to follow. Christ is different. When we become his followers, he tells us to take up our crosses and never look back. To follow him is all or nothing. So take some time today and renew your relationship with Christ, because God never claims a victory until he finally gets it all.

Intersecting Faith and Life: Are you holding onto something that is keeping you from God? Take some time to consider.

Further Reading

Matthew 8

[Judy Harder]

Rejoicing in All Seasons
by Debbie Holloway, Crosswalk.com Family Editor

"The hope of the righteous brings joy" (Proverbs 10:28).

I'm currently in the process of moving – but only a few miles away. During the intense first weekend of driving back and forth constantly from the old house to the new apartment, I was always amused when I passed by one curious little house. We began moving in on Valentine's Day weekend, and this little brick house by the roadside was decked in red and white lights and glowing hearts dotting their lawn. During the daylight it was easy to miss the house, but come nightfall it stood out like a beacon of Valentine's Day glory.

A few days after Valentine's Day passed, however, the hue emanating from the house transformed from red to chipper Irish green as the occupants geared up for St. Patrick's day – complete with shamrocks instead of hearts. My initial reaction to this was something like, Wow. These folks really love their holidays.

As I would drive past the house over the following days and weeks, it got me thinking something else, though. Very few of us embrace change so exuberantly and these (I imagine) quaint little homeowners. Very few of us throw ourselves wholeheartedly into the season of right now. It's tempting for many of us to leave the Christmas lights up past New Years, simply because it's hard to let go of the nostalgia of that warm, fuzzy time. Many of us are picky about what we celebrate. Not these folks, though! They seem delighted just to be able to revel in the fact that we have holidays.

That's an attitude I could probably learn from. I think of Jesus turning water to wine, of all the celebrations, holidays and jubilees that God instituted for the Jews, and I think – God loves an excuse to have joy and celebration! If I can smile, rejoice, and bring attention to a thing of beauty and excitement, I think I should. Just like the people who use every holiday as an excuse to dress up their little house and share a little light with the neighbors.

Intersecting Faith and Life: Do you roll your eyes at the exuberance of others? Or do you take every opportunity to rejoice in the beauty of the world around us? Take a moment to celebrate something small.

Further Reading

Leviticus 25:8-22

[Judy Harder]

Kill Me Now
by Shawn McEvoy, Crosswalk.com Managing Editor

If this is how you are going to treat me, put me to death right now -- if I have found favor in your eyes -- and do not let me face my own ruin."
Numbers 11:15

...while he himself went a day's journey into the desert. He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die."I have had enough, Lord," he said. "Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors."
1 Kings 19:4

Now, O Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.
Jonah 4:3

What kind of a person feels like this? A schmo like me, at times, sure. Maybe you, or people you know. Surely not the heroes of the Old Testament.

Well, truth is, even God's greatest leaders and prophets got to the point in their respective stories where, even after witnessing indescribable miracles and blessings, their circumstances were so overwhelming, impossible and undesirable their attitude was, "Just kill me now, Lord!" Exhausted in body, soul, and spirit, they cried out that they had had enough. They could go no longer in their own power.

The first quote above is from Moses, who had a People Problem. The wandering Israelites were hungry, and as usual, it fell to Moses to solve the problem. He cried out to the Lord, "Was it I who conceived these people? Was it I who brought them forth?" He looked around and couldn't figure out how to satisfy everyone.

The second quote is from Elijah, who had a Pity Problem. This was a prophet who had just called down fire from heaven, destroyed the prophets of Baal, and witnessed the end of a long drought. But just a few verses later, one vow from one wicked queen has him in such despair that he fears he can't go on like this.

The third quote is from Jonah, who had a Pouting Problem. He'd finally obeyed to the point of going to Nineveh and preaching repentance, but when the Lord relented and stayed his hand rather than destroying the city, Jonah wasn't happy. He folded his hands and "became angry" that the destruction he forecast never arrived.

Consider who these men were and what they had seen, what the Lord had done through them. Moses parted the Red Sea and led a people out of slavery. Elijah stood strong for Israel during a time of tremendous pagan influence, prayed down fire and rain, and actually never died (so chalk up at least one unanswered prayer!). Jonah is one of the first stories we tell our children, about how God provided a great fish to swallow him for such a period as he could learn about obedience and repentance.

Not only that, but these guys all show up in the Gospels, in one way or another. Moses and Elijah are present at Jesus' transfiguration (Mark 9). In Matthew 12:38-41 (NIV), Jesus tells the Pharisees they won't get any sign from him other than the sign of Jonah, foreshadowing the three days He Himself would spend in the belly of the Earth.

But interestingly enough, Christ apparently never felt this way. He knew His destiny was to die, but even so prayed that such a cup might pass from Him. And let's not forget that He is our example, not Moses, not Elijah, and not Jonah, great as they were.

When we feel the way that these guys did, we need to realize that anyone wanting to die is under attack. And our enemy can bring that attack through people, pity, and pouting. It comes when our body is not healthy, our soul is not happy, and our spirit is not holy.

But conveniently enough, Paul shows us a prayer that covers all these bases. He writes in 1 Thessalonians 5, "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass." (23-24).

You aren't alone when you feel like you can't go on, or like you would be better off dead than standing strong in the face of the overwhelming task God has given you, especially when you are weak in body, soul, and spirit, and the enemy is on the attack. And truly, it is comforting to know that some of the Bible's greatest faith warriors and miracle workers shared these feelings. But it doesn't mean they were right. Let us not indulge hopelessness, for it may always be found. Instead, let us remember that we serve a God of hope and of miracles and we follow the One who never copped to people, pity, or pouting, but willingly laid His life down.

Intersecting Faith & Life: Develop a plan that gives you exercise and rest in proper amounts for your body, soul, and spirit, so that you will be less prone to attack.

[Judy Harder]

A Journey Through the Desert
by Sarah Phillips

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was hungry. Matthew 4:1-2

Sometimes it's not what's in our lives troubling us most. It's what we must do without. It's the gaping hole that won't be filled.

Feeling a sense of lack, of deprivation, is often referred to as a "desert experience." Desert experiences can take on many forms – spiritual, relational, and physical. When we hit a period of dryness in a particular area of our lives, we instinctively think something must be wrong with us. "Perhaps if I pray more and become holier, I'll feel God's presence again." Or "If I acquire more financial skills, I'll finally be able to afford what I want." Or "If I become more loveable, I'll finally find someone to marry." So we strive, trying to fill in the gaps in hopes we can earn the blessing.

In our striving, we may be missing out on an opportunity to grow in our faith. Sometimes, a desert experience is necessary in order to bear greater fruit later on. Some of the greatest Saints embraced desert experiences as spiritually profitable.

Elisabeth Leseur, a French upper-class housewife in the early 20th century, spent much time in relational and spiritual deserts throughout her marriage to her husband, a professed atheist. In her diary, later published as The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur, she recorded times of "complete resignation, but without joy or any inner consolation." Later, when reflecting on her faith, she writes, "And yet through all these trials and in spite of the lack of interior joy, there is in my soul some central place, which all these waves of sorrow cannot reach." Elisabeth's perseverance in seeking Christ in the desert later inspired the conversion of her husband.

In the Bible, periods of physical deprivation often preceded key moments in salvation history. Moses wrote the Ten Commandments during a 40-day fast (Exodus 34:28). And it was after a lengthy fast that Elijah heard God's still, small voice (1 Kings 19:. We see in the passage above that Christ literally ventured into the desert for his own 40-day fast in preparation for what was to come – our salvation through His sacrificial death.

Now, I'm not advocating starving yourself or allowing clinical depression to go untreated. Yet, in the short time we're here on earth, periods of darkness or barrenness – whether voluntary or involuntary -- can be used by God for great purposes.

Right now we're in the middle of Lent, which is traditionally a 40-day period when believers purposely descend into the "desert" in order to contemplate Christ's suffering and to hear God's still, small voice more effectively. Although I don't love to suffer – in even small ways – God has used Lent to teach me that the desert has a beauty all its own. That's because God values the sacrifices of His children. Not that he takes pleasure in our pain, but He uses lack to refine us and draw us closer to Him so that later we may know joy on a deeper level, beyond what our five senses can currently discern.

Of course, we're not meant to live forever in a season of Lent. We know, with confidence, that after Christ's suffering and sacrifice, Easter morning came. Yet, Lent is a season set aside to remind believers today that we are still inhabitants of the "Shadowlands," as C.S. Lewis liked to call them. We are not in heaven, and we have work to do. Though we may experience beauty and joy in this life, nothing can fully satisfy us except God's plan awaiting us in the fullness of time.

Intersecting Faith & Life: Decide on one luxury you regularly enjoy and give it up until Easter. It can be a type of food, a behavior (like watching TV or using critical words in your relationships), or money (donated to a cause instead of spent on yourself). In its place, increase time spent in quiet prayer. If you're currently having a "desert experience" in your life, be encouraged by knowing God is near.

Further Reading

Matthew 6: 1 - 6, 16 – 18
Joel 2: 12 – 18
10 Lenten Traditions to Enrich Your Family's Easter Celebration
Secrets to Fasting and Prayer

[Judy Harder]

It's Good for Your Character
by Laura MacCorkle

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. Romans 5:3-5, NIV

I grew up in a very special church back in the '70s and '80s. It was nondenominational, had tremendous traditional worship and congregational singing and was attended and led by many seminary professors and students.

Seeds that were sown in my life in those early years of my spiritual growth are now sprouting, and I'm drawing upon what I have learned as I make my way through adulthood.

From time to time, I flip through a bound collection of meditations on sayings that my pastor put together. He would regularly refer to these life principles from the pulpit, and today, whenever I hear them being said (or similar concepts) by others, I remember what he preached on them many years ago.

"It's good for your character," he would often say. And here's how he explained that further:

"God uses the routine, the difficult, even the painful to develop in us qualities of Christlike character that can be learned in no other way."

When we begin to see our lives from this perspective, that's when we've turned a corner. But in order to keep thinking in this way, we have to make daily readjustments, as we don't always want to see the routine, the difficult and even the painful in this way.

But it is the right way to look at any uncomfortable situation in our lives. The classic passage regarding trials in James 1:2-4 is wonderfully helpful and instructive to us pilgrims travelling life's road on our spiritual journeys:

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Now, let's break down this outlook:

Consider it pure joy. How do you do this when you're going through a divorce? Or in the aftermath of a departed loved one or the loss of a job? What will it take to see the joy despite the circumstances? Only God can give us this joy and change our perspective (Psa. 16:8-11).
 
Testing develops perseverance. In order to learn how to persevere, we have to go through some trying times. Think back on the trials in your life. What were the results? Did you make changes in your life? Did God help you get through them? Remember that as you continue to serve him (Psa. 25:4-10).
 
Perseverance must finish its work. We can't go from diapers to dungarees in the snap of our fingers. Living takes time. And there are "pains" that go with it. Sure, it hurts sometimes, but know that the uncomfortable seasons mean that you're growing (1 Peter 4:12-19).
 
Be mature and complete. When you were a child, you didn't have a bulging file folder of life experiences to draw from. Now that you're older, hopefully you can see how you have grown closer to the Lord and how he has changed you. Draw from past lessons as you choose to live and think differently today (1 Cor. 13:10-12).
Intersecting Faith & Life: Can you look back on "the routine, the difficult, even the painful" times of your life and see how God has developed your character? List some specific trials and the resulting changes that have been made in your character and then praise your merciful Savior.

Further Reading:

2 Cor. 4:7-12, MSG

Phil. 1:21, NIV

Heb. 10:32-39, MSG

"When We All Get to Heaven"

Words: Eliza E. Hewitt (1898)

Music: Emily D. Wilson

While we walk the pilgrim pathway,

Clouds will overspread the sky;

But when traveling days are over,

Not a shadow, not a sigh


When we all get to Heaven,

What a day of rejoicing that will be!

When we all see Jesus,

We'll sing and shout the victory!

[Judy Harder]

My Two Voices
by John UpChurch, Senior Editor of BibleStudyTools.com

"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" Jeremiah 17:9

I never read the Bible alone. Instead, there's a squeaky voice tucked away in my head that likes to tag along. For the most part, it hums along in time with the steady cadence of Scripture, just waiting. But when something challenging pops up, something that pushes against the way I'm living, the tiny warble begins.

Brace yourselves because I'm taking you inside here.

Me: You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires

The Warbler: You don't need to worry about that. It says "old self." You're all brand-spanking new in here. Just ignore that.

Me: to be made new in the attitude of your minds

The Warbler: See. That's totally you—new times two. Nothing left in here but soapy clean suds.

Me: and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

The Warbler: Being like God? Yeah, right! That's impossible. Not what that verse means. You can only do what you can do. Don't worry about it. Next!

Me: Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.

The Warbler: Oh, man! You're a truthfulness beast of awesome.

Me: Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.

The Warbler: That doesn't mean you have to be nice all the time. Do you really want people stomping all over you? You've gotta push back and give them some smack when they need it.

Me: Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.

The Warbler: All? Pshaw! After the way you acted yesterday, that's obviously a ridiculous goal.

Me: Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

The Warbler: Eh, just focus on the Christ forgiving you part. It's all about you, right?

Okay, okay, that's probably a bit of an exaggeration. But from the conversations I've had, I don't think I'm the only one who has such a voice that "helps" interpret Scripture. We all come to the Bible with certain ingrained expectations about ourselves, the world, and God. But God's Word tends to sandpaper over them... a lot.

Not surprisingly, we push back. We justify trouble spots in our own lives and shift the tough passages to "worry about later" or "not about me" lists. I know I'm good at that.

Intersecting Faith & Life: You'll never turn off the voice of justification that warbles along as you read the Bible. We're sin-kissed creatures with hearts that like to dance the shuffle. But you can drown out that subtle whisper with prayers of confession. If nothing else, that little voice is good for telling you exactly where you need the help.

Here's a prayer that works for me: Father, your compassion makes my resistance seem so ridiculous. Give me the guts to accept the chastisement of your Word. Knock through my love-of-self and give me love-of-You instead. Weaken me so that I can be stronger in Christ. Amen.

For Further Reading:

Ephesians 4

James 1

[Judy Harder]

Born Blind
by Ryan Duncan, Crosswalk.com Entertainment Editor

"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life." – John 9:3

One of my favorite Bible stories appears in John 9, where Jesus heals a man born blind. Take a moment to read the following:

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world." Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. "Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam"(this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing. – John 9:1-8

Every time I read this, I can't help but wonder what went through the mind of the blind man when he heard Jesus. All his life people have been telling him he's cursed, that his blindness is punishment for some sin his family committed. Then, in a single moment, Christ turns his world around. Not only does he absolve him of guilt in front of the disciples, he announces that God is going to display his glory through a blind man's life. Many people read this story and think it's all about how Jesus healed his sight, but I believe it's more about how Christ restored his soul.

Too often we Christians are like the Pharisees of old. We look at people, find something in their life that isn't quite perfect, and make a note of how much they "need God." What we're really saying is, "Look at how messed up this person is, you know it's because they've turned away from God." Just like the disciples did. If you ever find yourself tempted to think that, beware. While the story of John 9 ends with one man receiving sight, it also ends with some who are still blind.           

"Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" "Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him." Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you." Then the man said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him. Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind." – John 9: 35-39

Intersecting Faith and Life: "The gospel declares that no matter how dutiful or prayerful we are, we can't save ourselves. What Jesus did was sufficient." ~Brennan Manning

Further Reading

John 13:34 - 35

[Judy Harder]

Men & Christian Friendship: It Won't Just Happen on its Own
by Shawn McEvoy, Crosswalk.com Managing Editor

A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.
Proverbs 17:17, NLT

I own many books, but the ones I reference often I keep above my desk at work. One of these is a 1983 edition of David W. Smith's The Friendless American Male. It's a title that, sadly, has only grown more accurate in the last three decades, its content more applicable. Men, especially us hard-working, married-with-children types, are lacking in close biblical friendships. The reasons are varied and several, and it's not my intent in the space of a daily devotional to present or solve them all. Suffice to say that most men I talk with vouch for the lack of quality friendships in their life, even if they speak of different reasons for the condition.

It's something I worry about, something I marvel at when I consider some of the differences between myself and my own father. For example, back when my father was climbing the ladder in the Tucson Real Estate industry and had children the ages mine are now, his weekends were all his own. Tennis in the morning on both Saturday and Sunday. Soaking up sun at the pool or doing yardwork in the afternoons. Watching sports or even working in the evenings. A quarterly fishing trip. Several of these activities involved his friends and acquaintances. It must be pointed out that he didn't know or serve the Lord at this time in his life, but it's also important to note that, to the best of my recollection, we kids weren't starved for his attention or affection. It still seemed like we were close, and had plenty of time together. So, I merely use my father as the model I was shown for what men were expected (allowed?) to do and be socially in the 1970s.

At some point things changed, and yes, in most ways, for the better. Men began leaving their work at work. Being conscious about setting aside time for family activities. Reserving weekends for playing with their kids and going to soccer games rather than hitting the tennis court or the golf links or the lake. But technology, instead of saving us time, only seemed to create more ways in which we could spend it working. Where my father routinely met his buddies for a beverage after work, it's all I can do to rush home, swallow some food, and not leave my wife and kids feeling neglected before I log on for another couple hours of work and then an exhausted collapse into bed. Meeting another dude for a beer or coffee? Seriously, I don't want to laugh, but when? Even if I had a hole in my schedule, what makes me think the person I might invite (even if I knew someone well enough to want to spend time with him) would have time and desire, too? I was heavily involved in our Adult Bible Fellowship at our former church for years, and I can count on one hand the times I did something outside of church with any of the men in that group.

So, something is definitely missing. Somewhere, we went too far. I remember being single and having the privilege to work with two very close friends in our college admissions office, both of whom were newly married. Yet getting them to do anything social outside work was just about impossible. One of them wouldn't even go see a movie with me - one that I was offering to pay for - on the night his wife was busy studying for her nursing final exams. The other wouldn't even ask his wife whether he could put off lawn mowing for one more day to attend a minor league baseball game with a mutual friend who was in town for just one night. What was going on?

Sure, I was tempted to blame their wives for not letting their husbands out to play, but even if there was truth to that notion, it wasn't the issue. The issue was, and is, that men simply are not bonding much these days... that the Bible speaks about friendship and male leadership and iron sharpening iron... and we are either purposefully choosing or unwittingly failing to make bonding and sharpening a priority.

So what do we do?

The only answer I have is: something. For me, that something arrives every March. That's when I and 13 of my friends from college and camp get together for a long weekend of fishing, good food, fantasy baseball drafting, NCAA tournament watching, and most importantly, fellowship. We call it "Draftmas" because it's very much like a holiday for us, and it centers around our fantasy baseball draft and league as a device to draw us all together, give us common footing. But to a man, most would tell you that the baseball is not the point. So what is?

Let's refer back to The Friendless American Male: on page 52 Smith writes, "Close friendships don't just happen. They result from the application of principles recorded throughout the Word of God." He contrasts the kindness and affection that David and Jonathan shared with the "lack of sympathy" and "overt emotional harrassment and condemnation" Job experienced with his pals Zophar, Eliphaz, and Bildad. The difference, Smith says, can be found throughout the Bible in these six principles of male friendship:

1.     God-Centered
2.     Formation of a covenant
3.     Faithfulness
4.     Social involvement
5.     Candor
6.     Respect

Just as Amos 3:3 says, "Do two men walk together unless they have made an appointment?", so do we display an intentional commitment to this activity as central to who we are as men, to who we want to be the rest of the year for our families and each other. While having close friends who don't live near me (but whom I'm always in contact with) does, admittedly, sometimes hinder me making new friends locally, it also serves to remind me how making new friends is possible and necessary. And I can see Smith's principles at work in this treasured group: God is indeed at the center of each of our lives; we've formed an agreement to meet together and communicate together around something we all enjoy, and are faithful to that agreement, to God, and to each other. We all fill roles, and are active socially and economically with each other, lending a hand in often amazing ways when needs arise; we speak freely and candidly, and we respect the various issues everyone brings to the table.

Sometimes those issues are big ones: Joblessness. Crises of faith. Being overwhelmed. Economic hardship. Remarriage. Career decisions. Waiting on God. Loneliness. Recently-deceased parents. Autism. Health. I'm already wondering how different this gathering is going to be from past ones. But even when trials are shared, this is never a downer of a man-cation. In fact, I can't wait to get out of town to really bounce ideas and prayers off my friends, really seek out ways we can help each other, while at the same time catching more fish and outbidding them for Albert Pujols.

About five years ago, one of our group told me, "You know this is only going to get harder to keep up the older we get." I disagreed. Several of us are only finding it easier. For one thing, our wives have come to see the difference in their men when they spend this time with each other. Mine practically pushes me out the door even though the event is often close to her birthday weekend. It's not a perfect answer to what I'm missing and seeing so many other men miss in their lives, but it's a start, and even, I realize now, a model.

Intersecting Faith & Life: What common interest can you center a group of Christian men around? It should be an excuse, a starting point, a conversational diving board. While things like sports, fishing, golfing, and other stereotypical male things are good, bear in mind that no one man enjoys all of these activities or subjects, and often, it's a sore spot with him, one that might be the very thing that, deep down, has him feeling like not as much of a "man."

Wives, you can help "wake up" your listless man by hooking him up with his friends (not your friends' husbands on a grown-up play-date, mind you), letting him reconnect with those who share his memories and the activities he used to enjoy. Several healthy couples I know set aside one weekend every year for each person to spend a same-sex getaway with close friends, while also not feeling threatened by the idea of an evening here, an afternoon there causing any damage to the relationship. If anything, it'll make your marriage healthier, and bring your back together with things to talk about and pray for.

Further Reading

1 Samuel 18:1-4; 19:1-10
The Making of a Friendship
Why Men Need Friends

[Judy Harder]

Renewal in the Desert
By Katherine Britton



"Therefore I am now going to allure her [Israel]; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her." - Hosea 2:14

The prophet Hosea certainly had one of the least enviable jobs ever. God commanded him to take a wife who both God and Hosea knew would be unfaithful, so Hosea married Gomer, a prostitute. They had several children together, but at length she went back to her old ways. She left Hosea, went back to her lovers, and ended up betrayed into the slave market.

Hosea then did the unthinkable. He bought her back.

"The LORD said to me, 'Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another and is an adulteress...' So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley. Then I told her, "You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will live with you." (Hosea 3:1-3)

In a very real sense, Hosea redeemed his wayward bride. Instead of leaving her to the natural consequences, he brought her back into the covenant of marriage.

From the very beginning, the Lord makes it clear to Hosea that the pain of betrayal, ingratitude, and inconstant nature of Gomer was nothing less than God himself experienced at the hands of his bride, the people of Israel. Idolatry far exceeded faithfulness to the covenant, and the nation became increasingly entangled with foreign kingdoms, against God's direct commandment. They were the wayward bride, and their fate would be no less than Gomer's. Hosea assured every Israelite that the natural consequences of their action - slavery and destitution - were coming.

And yet the Lord did not abandon them. Instead, when everything they had trusted was stripped away, he pursued them. God said,

"Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her ... I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion." (Hosea 2:14,19)

Once emptied of its treasures, its gods, and its affluence, Israel found that they were not an object of ultimate wrath, but of ultimate mercy. All this despite the broken covenants, promises, and ingratitude toward the God who had already saved them from slavery. The commentator Matthew Henry notes the incredible grace displayed here in the Old Testament:

"When it was said, She forgot me, one would think it should have followed, 'Therefore I will abandon her, I will forget her, I will never look after her more.' No, Therefore I will allure her. God's thoughts and ways of mercy are infinitely above ours; his reasons are all fetched from within himself, and not from any thing in us; nay, his goodness takes occasion from man's badness to appear so much the more illustrious... the design is plainly to magnify free grace to those on whom God will have mercy purely for mercy's sake."

Let's never forget that in God's hands, even the desert is a place of restoration.

Intersecting Faith & Life: Are you in the desert right now? Financially? Relationally? Spiritually? Take comfort in knowing that God strips away our luxuries to return our focus where it belongs.

She shall be as a traveller that not only knows not which way to go, of many that are before him, but that finds no way at all to go forward. ... The disappointments we meet with in our pursuits of satisfaction in the creature should, if nothing else will do it, drive us at length to the Creator, in whom alone it is to be had. - Hosea 2: 6-12

God will have us to know, not only that we have all our creature-comforts and enjoyments from him, but that he has still an incontestable right and title to them, that they are more his than ours, and therefore are to be used for him, and accounted for to him. He will therefore take their plenty away from them, because they have forfeited it by disowning his right, as a tenant by copy of court-roll, who holds at the will of his lord, forfeits his estate if he makes a feoffment of it as though he were a freeholder. He will recover it, will free or deliver it, that it may be no longer abused, as the creature is said to be delivered from the bondage of corruption under which it groans, Rom. 8:21.

[Judy Harder]

Cold Showers
by John UpChurch, Senior Editor, BibleStudyTools.com

But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" (Luke 10:40)

Every morning for as long as he could, my grandfather slid out of bed before the sun rose and took a cold shower. Now, granted, he lived in the warm climes of southern Alabama, and the waves of heat there appear more like tsunamis of heat. But let me tell you, cold showers in the early morning of southern Alabama feel pretty much the same as cold showers anywhere else. They're cold.

Every evening, my grandfather came back to a house without air conditioning. He did prop a fan in the window, but that seemed more like a concession to his wimpy family than anything he needed. In a house he'd built himself that had little insulation and a tin roof, the fan pretty much blew hot air around.

But he just made it work. These inconveniences weren't a challenge; they were opportunities. No water heater? Take cold showers. Three channels on TV? Talk when nothing's on. No clothes dryer? Hang them up on a line. No phone? Go to your daughter's house and use hers (though I can't remember him ever doing so). Something breaks? Don't buy a new one; fix it.

When I pull myself away from my iPhone, I'm sometimes struck with how different my life is. There's never a drop of cold water anywhere near my shower. My first instinct is to buy what I need, never to make it. In the evenings, I have to force my mind to stay present on my family instead of drifting away to what "important" social media updates I'm missing.

But it's not really the technology differences that hit the hardest. You see, there was a depth to my grandfather that I've found much harder to emulate. I'm often too distracted to get there. He just moved and breathed faith; it naturally flowed from his character. Yet I struggle to stay afloat in an ocean of distractions.

Perhaps those cold showers really would do me some good.

Intersecting Faith and Life: My grandfather, much to the chagrin of his grandsons, loved to play twangy gospel music every weekend. Our peaceful morning slumber would melt away with steel guitars and nasally notes. But this wasn't something he did to annoy us. He just knew what was most important.

This isn't a call to jettison technology (honestly, I can be just as distracted by books and worries as I can by Netflix). Instead, what I think most about my grandfather is his resolve to remember what mattered most. He never cared about what he lacked because he knew what he had. He loved God and learned from His Word. And that satisfied him.

Too often, the busyness of my life keeps me from remembering what he taught.

For Further Reading:

Luke 10:38-42

Psalm 27