How Is It Possible?

"Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without number." - Jeremiah 2:32



Over the last several days, I have begun to read through the book of Jeremiah.  I have read through it before, but this time Jeremiah has come alive to me in a way like never before.  As I was reading yesterday, I came across this verse in chapter 2 that really stood out to me and spoke to my heart.

Could you imagine a bride forgetting her dress on the day of her wedding?  She shows up at the church ready to marry her soon to be husband, but there is one small detail that was overlooked, she forgot her dress.  Even though it has probably happened to someone somewhere (I don't put anything past people today), we would say that it would insane for a woman to forget her dress on the day of her wedding.  With that in mind, think about God is saying to His people here in this verse.  The idea that we would forget God should be as preposterous to us as a woman forgetting her dress on the day of her wedding, but God says His people had forgotten Him so long that the days could not be numbered.  To be quite honest, it is hard to wrap your mind around the reality of what the Lord is saying.

Let us bring this verse into our world where you and I live.  Considering all that Christ has done for us when He suffered the agony of the Cross, shedding His blood for our sins, how is it possible that we should forget Him?  Considering how Christ has been with us every step of the way, how He has wrought such mighty works in our lives, how is it possible that we should forget Him?

The sad reality of this is that, even though it sounds ludicrous that we would forget Christ, we do forget Him.  I am so guilty of this in my own spiritual life.  We are so busy with our lives and living for us that we totally leave Christ out of it and forget about Him.  I know that as a pastor, there are many days when I get so bogged down with administrative things in the ministry, that I forget to spend time with Christ in prayer and His Word.  It is so easy to start your day with all the hustle and bustle, thinking that you will find or make time for Christ later, but later never comes.

Maybe you do not struggle with this, but I know that I do.  According to God's Word, forgetting Him is as preposterous and ludicrous as a bride forgetting her dress on the day of her wedding, but yet we do forget the Lord.  Just like the verse says, I have lost count of the number of times that I have forgotten Christ in some way or another.  What about you?

How is it possible that we can forget about Jesus Christ, considering who He is and what He did?

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, forgive me for all the times that I have forgotten You.  Lord, forgive me for times when I put other things ahead of You, thus forgetting You.  Father, help me by Your power to always remember who You are and what You have done for me.  In Jesus name, Amen!

Serving God Leftovers

"And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts." - Malachi 1:8



Over the last few weeks I have been reading Crazy Love by Francis Chan.  The book has been amazing, unbelievable, and very convicting!  I have been challenged like never before when it comes to my relationship with Jesus Christ.  The chapter that I am currently reading is titled "Serving Leftovers To A Holy God."  If were to honestly and sincerely examine our hearts, we would find that we all are guilty of doing this very thing when it comes to our worship of Christ and our service to Him.

As you read through Malachi chapter 1, you find that is exactly what the nation of Israel was doing when it came to the sacrifices they offered to the Lord.  Instead of offering a sacrifice without spot or blemish, they were offering sacrifices that were lacking; they were blind. crippled, or sick.  The prophet Malachi, speaking for God, asks Israel if they offered a sacrifice like that to their governor if he would accept it or be pleased.  The truth of the matter is that they were offering better to those around them than they were offering to God Almighty, the Creator of all things.

Let's bring this to where we live today.  The majority of professing Christians are no different than the nation of Israel when it comes to this.  We go all out when it comes to something for ourselves, family, or friends; so why can we not do the same for Christ?  I don't want to come off sounding to harsh, but let's be honest with ourselves.  We offer up our best to our employers, to our family, to our friends, and most importantly to ourselves, but we seem to be content to give Christ was is leftover.  As I examined my own life and heart, I came to the realization that I am absolutely and completely guilty of this very thing.  Here are some questions that we should ask ourselves: "How long would I keep my job if I gave my employer the same as I give to Christ?" or "How would my marriage look if I put into it what I put into my relationship with Christ?"

Examine your life, examine your worship, and examine your service to Him.  Are you giving Christ your leftovers?

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, help me to examine my life and my heart to see if I am just simply giving You my leftovers.  Forgive me for the times I have simply given You my leftovers.  Help me, by Your power, to give You my all.  In Jesus name, Amen!