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Read: Deuteronomy 26:1-27:26, Luke 10:38-11:13, Psalm 76:1-12, Proverbs 12:15-17

And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. (Luke 11:9)

Relate: Something woke me up. It was a noise. What was that? I listen, wondering if there are intruders in the house. There it is again. Someone is banging on my door. I hit the indiglo on my watch. It’s 2:24 in the morning. Who is banging on my door at 2:24 in the morning. They pound again. Goodness, they are going to wake the neighbors. “BJ, wake up!” Never mind. It is the neighbors. He must have seen movement in my bedroom window because, Joe, my next door neighbor is pounding again. “BJ, I know you’re home. I see the car in the driveway.” I groan.

My window is open a crack. I open it a little more and call out, “Do you know what time it is?”

“I knew you were up. Hey, do you still have that pizza in the freezer? We just got in from the bar and we’re hungry.”

Are you kidding me? He’s banging at my door at 2:30 in the morning for frozen pizza? I roll back into bed and throw the pillow over my head. The door bangs again. “Seriously, dude, we’ve got a bad case of the munchies. Do you have any chips too?”

“Call Dominos.” I yell out my window. I want to be nice to my neighbors, but this is really pushing it.

“We tried. They closed an hour early tonight.”

Some words come to my head that aren’t very Christian. I shut the window and cram that pillow tight against my head. The knocking persists. “BJ, come on, man. I thought you were my friend.”

I thought I was too. And then you started knocking on my door at 2:30 in the morning. I think I’ve changed my opinion about those gun control laws. I’m buying one first thing tomorrow. He knocks again. I yell out, “Go to Price Chopper. They’re open.”

“Yah, but none of us are sober enough to drive.”

No kidding. I never would have guessed. He knocks again. My goodness, this guy just won’t give up, will he? “Come on, BJ. You’re supposed to be a Christian. What would Jesus do?” Immediately the thought pops in my head. He stands at the door and knocks. This is immediately followed by more of those very unchristian words. Holy Spirit, you’re not helping here. As the knocking continues I roll out of bed and head to the kitchen. There’s two frozen pizzas there and I give away the 2 liter on the fridge for good measure. It is a small price to pay to be able to get back to sleep.

React: I don’t really have a neighbor named Joe and this never really happened. It’s just the tone of the parable Jesus relates on prayer. He’s talking about two guys yelling through a closed door about food at midnight, but sometimes in our reverence for and familiarity with Bible stories we lose sight of the earthiness and humor that Jesus is putting to good use. Keep on asking. Keep on seeking. Keep on knocking. They immediately follow this parable. I’m supposed to be that neighbor, knocking on God’s door until He answers. Am I willing to use that level of audacity in my prayers? Do I approach the throne of grace with that type of confidence?

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ url=”http://youtu.be/5_swaxOidGU” id=”0″]

God, there have been some things I’ve been praying for a long time. There are some other things I should be praying for but I’ve stopped. Give me persistence. Give me the tenacity, the audacity to keep knocking on Your door until I have what I’ve asked for. Salvation for family, healing, You know what I need and these things are good gifts You desire to give me. Don’t let me stop knocking until heaven has been moved on their behalf.

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Read: Deuteronomy 21:1-22:30, Luke 9:51-10:12, Psalm 74:1-23, Proverbs 12:11

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Read: Deuteronomy 9:1-10:22, Luke 8:4-21, Psalm 69:19-36, Proverbs 12:2-3

The Lord hears the needy and does not despise his captive people. (Psalm 69:33)

Relate: The character Adanna in the novel Scared is inspired in part by a few different stories of real victims and in part by the plight of literally millions in similar circumstances. One of those true stories is of a girl who, at eleven, is left an orphan who is also responsible for her younger brother and sister. The three survive on the charity of others, but in a community of extreme poverty where tragedy is commonplace that generosity soon dries up. The three are slowly and steadily starving.

The real Adanna had heard of some men who might help her, but she had also been warned against going to them. These men trade sex for food. For a long time she avoids it but help from other sources is becoming harder and harder to come by. Finally, she and her younger siblings have gone for a week without food and there is no other choice. She wanted to remain pure but what good is purity when you are dead? She goes and these men beat her and abuse her for hours before finally sending her home with a couple days worth of food. They also sent her home with AIDS.

All her neighbors know immediately what has happened and even the smallest chance of any future help from them is gone. In three max Adanna will be dead… a statistic marking the tragic stories of millions like her. Until that time she is a sex slave. She’s a victim whose very daily bread is dependent on the whims of animals who mistakenly think themselves men.

React: The Lord hears the cry of the needy and does not despise His captive people? Do we? If every American tithed 1% of their annual discretionary spending (extra money, not actual income) we could meet the global food and sanitation needs of everyone on our planet. Let me put it another way, if we spent one dollar for every thirty we spend at restaurants… problem solved. How much have I spent eating out in March? How much have I given towards the 15 million children who will die of hunger this year? What have I given towards those who, like Adanna, face the choice of slavery or death?

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ shadow=”shadow-xsmall” url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJ0LfmWM4KE” id=”0″]

God, when I get up from my knees, don’t let me go back to a normal life. Don’t let me sit here and read… and write about such a desperate need and then do nothing. My tears, my prayers are an important start. But they are a start. Let me not finish, let me not be content until You return and justice is served. Until then, help me to bring Your coming Kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven.

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Read: Deuteronomy 7:1-8:20, Luke 7:36-8:3, Psalm 69:1-18, Proverbs 12:1

When you have eaten your fill, be sure to praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. (Deuteronomy 8:10)

Relate: The problem with good times is that we think we deserve them, or that we have done something to deserve them. Maybe that is too harsh a statement, let me back up a little bit.

A little boy is looking forward to Christmas. His parents love him very much and he has made his list. Wonder of wonders, they give him everything he’s asked for. Everything! They got him the LeapPad. Not only did he get the Ninjago Dragon battle set, but they got him the Temple of Light to go with it. For those times that he must be outside, he will now be sporting his Yvolution Fliker. He has it made. Life is good.

Except he doesn’t clean his room. He has been warned, but somehow it just can’t come clean. he wants to obey his parents… there’s just too many distractions. There are too many great things to play with. Then one day, dad comes in and takes one of those toys away. Dad is so mean. Still, there are plenty of others, except… the next day another one is gone. And another the day after that. Soon, most have disappeared and the poor boy is sitting on his (unmade) bed crying about how unfair and cruel his dad is. Why does he make all these stupid rules. Doesn’t he know how hard it is to keep things clean?

React: Sometimes we sit on our beds, while everything around us is a mess, and complain about the cruelness of God (or life, or circumstances… whatever) The gifts, the blessings God has given us are ours. They are a gift. But they come with a responsibility. Only when we realize that any gifts we have been given are because we are loved by a Father who wants to give us good things. It is because He is loving, not because we are good (or smart, or talented, or… whatever) that we have been blessed.

The blessings of God, like gifts under the tree serve two purposes. 1) They are for the enjoyment of the one receiving the gift. 2) They serve to forge a deeper bond between those exchanging gifts. Too often we live with a sense of entitlement and rather than show gratitude and express love, the same gifts that have been lavished on us with love serve as a wedge between us and our Father. Let it not be.

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpMddKxNgX4″ id=”0″]

God, if the gifts You have given me are keeping me from You, take them away. Your heart is what I want to pursue, not Your hand. Help me to remember that in my times of petulance. Help me not to forget that You give and take away, and let me always say, “Blessed be Your Name.” Help me to have an attitude of appreciation, a heart of gratitude for the good things I have been given. When I have eaten my fill, help me to praise You.

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Read: Deuteronomy 4:1-49, Luke 6:39-7:10, Psalm 68:1-18, Proverbs 11:28

Do not add to or subtract from these commands I am giving you. Just obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you. (Deuteronomy 4:2)

Relate: I went to a Bible college my freshmen year that had rules upon rules. We weren’t allowed to play cards because of the occultic symbolism they contained. We were, however allowed to play Uno. The four colors equaled the four suits. Skip, reverse, and draw two were the jack, queen, and king. Many a game of hearts, spades, and rummy were played in this way. The men were allowed to have a mustache but not a beard of goatee. This would have been bad enough if multiple professors did not have beards or goatees. They were flaunting their follicles in our faces. We had a uniform that was about as ugly and uncomfortable as you could make it. Grey pants, white shirt, blue coat, red tie… “Welcome to American Airlines, I’d be glad to help you find your seat today.” I scrunched my blue coat up and crammed it between the mattresses of my bed for the duration of winter break. When I came back I pulled it out and it was stiff as a board without a wrinkle on the thing. Disappointment reigned supreme.

The Israelites didn’t do very well about adding rules to God’s law’s either. Nowhere in  scripture does it mention the avoidance of creative activities because they are work, but the Mishnah has a whole list of those. For orthodox Jews today that means you cannot tie your shoes (you created a knot). On the Sabbath Jesus told a paralytic man to rise and carry his mat. That was work, but was it really? Would it not have been a joy for that man to show the world, I was lame but now I am healed?

React: The rules in the Mishnah as well as the rules at that Bible College were born out of good motives. They wanted to avoid the very appearance of evil. They wanted to make sure they were being obedient to God. But as the rules are added to the rules, with more rules thrown on top, one quickly loses focus. We forget about being obedient to God in our effort to keep our rules. For an Orthodox Jew today, as in Jesus’ time, keeping the Sabbath is a lot of work. I mean, seriously, keeping tissues in the bathroom so that you don’t “work” by tearing the toilet paper? I can’t play Scrabble?

Before I get too hard on the rules of others, though, I need to check myself. What are some rules I’ve built up in my own life that have lost their basis in holiness unto God? Do I have my own list of do’s and don’ts that might be turning off those around me to the great God I serve? Have I become so focused on “living like a Christian” that I’ve taken my eyes off of Christ?

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADuWzd7x25c” id=”0″]

God, help me to keep You as the reason for everything I do. Let my actions, and my words, and my lifestyle be an expression of my love for You. Help me to always remember that You are not impressed by my obedience to any rigid set of rules or discipline. What impresses You is a heart of surrender. I surrender my heart to You again. Reign in my life.

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Read: Numbers 33:40-35:34, Luke 5:12-28, Psalm 65:1-13, Proverbs 11:23

Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a sleeping mat. They tried to take him inside to Jesus, but they couldn’t reach him because of the crowd. So they went up to the roof and took off some tiles. Then they lowered the sick man on his mat down into the crowd, right in front of Jesus. (Luke 5:18-19)

Relate: Jahqueil Reagan had a job interview as a cashier at a a thrift store in Indianapolis. The problem is, when the day for the interview came around, he didn’t have the money for bus fare. So he started walking. Ten miles. On the way he was walking past a restaurant while the owner was laying out some ice melt and asked for directions. The owner gave him directions and was about to offer to give him bus fare when Jahqueil just kept on walking. About fifteen minutes later that restaurant owner was heading that way in his car when he saw Jahqueil still walking, through the cold and snow, toward his destination. He offered a ride then he got this young man’s number. Later he called the young man to ask how the interview went. Jahqueil said it went well but the manager already had another person in mind before the interview even started. On the spot the restaurant owner hired him for twice what he would have made as a casheer.

How bad do I want it? I live in an entitlement culture and my generation, the Xers, are the worst of the lot. I find all too often that if something doesn’t come easy, if it doesn’t come quick, I will give up and move on to something else. Either that or I will whine to God about how hard my life is. How hard? My dad grew up on a small family farm. He used to tell me about hard. But he was the baby in the family, his older siblings would laugh and tell me by the time he came around, he had it easy. Running water… electricity… refrigeration… forget the laptop, nook and cell phone. Even my more basic amenities would have been luxuries only for the rich a hundred some odd years ago.

Jesus was preaching to a crowd inside a packed house. If there were fire marshals back in the day they would have kicked 2/3 of those present right out. Four friends wanted to bring their sick comrade in but they couldn’t force their way. So they work their way around to the roof, pull off a bit of it out (Farrell Jenkins does a great job explaining this) and lower their friend down. They had an appointment with Jesus and like Jahqueil they were willing to go as far as it took, doing whatever it took to keep it. They took their persistence through the roof.

React: Am I willing to do whatever it takes to meet with Jesus. How far am I willing to go? How long am I willing to stay… to pray? What am I willing to do? Is it time for me to take my devotion through the roof? There are friends I have who desperately need to meet Jesus. There are others I know who need a touch from his healing hand. Am I ready to get serious in my intercession and sacrifice for them or will I content myself to a quick prayer most days? Do I even do that?

Prayer is the first and greatest step, but it isn’t the only one. Am I willing to take my money and invest it in the lives of others? Am I willing to use my time and my talents as a sacrifice for them? Would I be willing to pass on a promotion in favor of someone in greater need of that income? These men committed vandalism to bring their friend to Jesus. I wonder if Paul Harvey’s “rest of the story” would have included them coming back to the owner to do some repair work. Would I be willing to go that far? Am I willing to take my compassion through the roof?

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbNQcV_Ja34″ id=”0″]

God, help me to fight for You. Help me to fight for my friends. My life is not my own, it is meant to be lived as a living sacrifice for You. Give me a servant’s mindset, an intercessor’s heart, and a warrior’s tenacity. Show me ways I can serve others that will help draw them to You. Show me the roofs I need to tear down so that they can be found with You.

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Read: Numbers 30:1-31:54, Luke 4:1-30, Psalm 63:1-11, Proverbs 11:20-21

He was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where he was tempted by the devil for forty days. (Luke 4:1-2)

Relate: I’ve related how Satan tempted Jesus by throwing doubt when I wrote Who Am I, and Softly Spoke the River has a great series worth checking out on how Jesus responds to temptation. Three times over those forty days Satan comes at Jesus and each time he comes at him in a slightly different way. First he attacks him through the needs of the body. Jesus is hungry. Satan tells him to turn some dirt into donuts or something like that. Jesus answers, “It is written…” Then Satan takes him to a high mountain to show him the greatest and most exhaustive (and fastest historical documentary of all time). “All this is yours,” he says. “if only you bow to me.” Jesus answers, “It is written…” Then Satan attacks his pride. He takes him to the highest part of the Temple and entices Jesus to show off a little. Jesus answers, “It is written…”

React: John the beloved wrote of these three types of temptation. He calls them the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. (1 J 2:16). Just a few verses before this he tells us how we can stand against this temptation.

I write to you, dear children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one. (1 J 2:14)

He calls his readers children, fathers, and young men. As Christians all of us fit into each category. We are children because we have a heavenly father. We are parents because it is our responsibility to reproduce our faith in the lives of those who come after us. We are young ones because we have a spiritual birth more recent than our natural birth. It is as children we know the Father. It is as spiritual parents we know the Son, the One who was from the beginning. (J 1:1-2,14) It is as those born again that we can know the Spirit who now dwells in us. (Romans 8:11) It is through knowing God that we can overcome the evil one. In fact, the more we know of Him, the less pull temptation will have in our life. So the question is, how well do I know God?

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaMhrmTJnG8″ id=”0″]

God, I want to know You more. I want to learn of Your ways. I want to understand Your works. But most of all I want You. More than that, I want to want You more. Give me a greater, stronger, deeper passion for Your presence. You are the only thing that lasts. Everything else will fade away like the morning mist, but You… You are what’s real.

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Read: Numbers 22:21-23:30, Luke 1:57-80, Psalm 58:1-11, Proverbs 11:12-13

Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, (Luke 1:78)

Relate: I’ve got a collection of quotes from things that jump out at me as I read. Some are theologically profound. Some are just funny. (Like, “Olver touched his nose tentatively, wondering if it really could be tied in a knot”) Some make little sense unless you can understand the context. So here is the context for one of those quotes I’m about to share… In one of Orson Scott Card’s novels there is a husband, Ender, and his wife, Novinha. Novindha has had a hard knock life. She has met one disappointment after another and finally she leaves her very kind and generous husband to join a monastery. Ender comes to speak with her there:

Ender – You aren’t very good at determining what other people want and need from you, Novinha. No one is. We’re all as likely to hurt as to help.

Novinha – That’s why I’m here, Ender. I’m through deciding things. I put my trust in my own judgment. Then I put trust in you. I put trust in Libo, in Pipo, in Father and Mother, in Quim, and everyone disappointed me or went away or… no I know you didn’t go away, and I know it wasn’t you that – hear me out, Ender, hear me. – The problem wasn’t in the people I trusted, the problem was that I trusted in them when no human being could possibly deliver what I needed. I needed deliverance, you see. I needed… I need redemption. And it isn’t in your hands to give me. Your open hands, which give me more than even you have to give, Ender, but you still haven’t got the thing I need. Only my Deliverer, only the Anointed One, only He has it to give. Do you see? The only way I can make my life worth living is to give it to Him. So here I am.

React: In Numbers Balak trusted Balaam and was disappointed. Balaam himself sought riches rather than obedience to God and had to rebuked by a donkey. In Luke, Zechariah is prophesying about his son but most of the prophesy is actually about Jesus, not John. In Psalms we read: “Justice—do you rulers know the meaning of the word? Do you judge the people fairly? No!”

Balak was wrong put his hope in a powerful man. Balaam was wrong to put his hope in a rich man. Zechariah was right to put his hope in Jesus rather than a godly man. David warned against putting our hope in political men. I will let you down. You will let me down. Riches, power, influence, government, knowledge… they will all let us down. None of them are bad in and of themselves. Many are worthy attainments when kept in perspective. But there is only one thing worth investing my hope… my life in. There is only one place I can bank my trust with absolute confidence that He will never, ever let me down.

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vIH67lYRGo” id=”0″]

Here I am, God, giving my life to You. All too often I forget that I have already surrendered it to You and I find myself investing it in worthless things. Maybe they seem worthy, maybe they seem noble, but compared to Your promise of life more abundantly, compared to Your promise of life eternal, compared to the promise of You… their rate of return is terrible. So here I am again, God. Here’s my life. Take it. It’s Yours.

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Read: Numbers 15:17-16:40, Mark 15:1-47, Psalm 54:1-7, Proverbs 11:5-6

Then at three o’clock Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (Mark 15:34)

Relate: “I met my father for the first time when I was 28 years old. I made up my mind that when I had children, my children were going to know who their father was.” That’s Will Smith, I mean Christopher Gardner, in the Pursuit of Happyness. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a movie that better shows the love and relationship of a father and son. Christopher is living the life of a modern day Job. He loses his house, his wife, his car. He is a failure at his job. All he has left is his son, and a competitive unpaid internship with Dean Witter. To show the bond between the father and son while he tries to balance starting a new life, homelessness, and fatherhood is absolutely heart wrenching. This clip shows the moment when he has hit rock bottom:

[videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkjFDx2Tv_g” id=”0″]

Imagine if, at that point, Chris got up and just left his son there in the bathroom floor. Imagine him walking out and leaving him all alone. Every good relationship we have is a poor reflection of the relationship we can have with our heavenly Father. Even more, because He was sinless, Jesus had that perfect relationship with His Father like we will only experience one day in heaven. Imagine the perfect communion, the complete unity they had. And then, one day… no, not just one day. At worst possible moment of the worst day anyone could possibly have, that relationship is severed.

React: My dad died suddenly when I was nineteen. There were a few different friends who approached me at that time who had also lost their father. Far, far more were those who never met their dad or whose father had walked out of their life at some point in the past. I have met those who have been abused or have been unspeakably scarred by the actions of the very man who should have been loving and protecting them the most. There have been times when the felt loss of my dad made me feel like I had been abandoned. I can only imagine how much greater that pain must be for those who literally have. Jesus doesn’t have to imagine. He was there. My sin severed His relationship to His dad.

Respond: [videoembed type=”youtube” width=”660″ height=”440″ url=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rLHjXd4kc4″ id=”0″]

Father, time and again You have proven to me that You will never abandon me. Others will fail me. Sometimes through their sin, sometimes through the unpredictably and fragility of this thing called life, but You never will. You cannot. You will not. Even when I am faithless, You will remain faithful. In those dark moments deep inside the shell of me, hold me close and whisper Your love. Help me remember that nothing… nothing can pull me from Your love.

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