LEARNING TO “DO WITHOUT” IS GOOD

The year was 1954. There were six children in our family between 15 and 3 years of age when Dad was laid off at Firestone. Thankfully, he didn’t see it as the end; he saw it as a new beginning. Being tired of the daily grind in the “rubber shop”, Dad took a leap of faith and started his own business, “Pavkov Sand and Gravel”, doing grading and excavating. Times were tough as he built his reputation and clientele. Not only did he have to provide for himself and mom, plus six growing kids; he also had to pay his employee/s and was buying machinery for the business, very often covering the expenses of costly repairs on the machines. Dad worked hard, putting in long hours to pay the bills and meet all of our needs. Under these circumstances, we grew up learning that there were things that we could “do without”; that was good!

Looking back on those years, I can see that God used them to train me for the future. As Jorge and I raised our family of three children in Argentina, we saw lean times and often had to “do without”. Just like in my childhood, our life was simple and God always met our basic needs. By the generosity of many family members and friends (to whom we are forever grateful!), God showed us His faithfulness over and over. Our children also learned to “do without”; and that was good!

And now?… We can appreciate that He used all those years of training to get us where we are now. There were a lot of things that we “did without”, but God never failed us; we never had to beg. Because we’ve learned to “do without”, out of necessity, we are choosing to continuously apply that wise principle of frugality and simplicity to our living. We realize more and more that everything we have is a gift of God’s grace, and we can totally agree with the Psalmist who wrote: “I have been young, and now am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his descendants begging bread. He is ever merciful, and lends; and his descendants are blessed” (Psalm 37:25,26)…and THAT IS GOOD!

THOUGHTS FOR THE NIGHT

Nights are dark. Sometimes they can be long; very long. Looking at some verses in the Bible that refer to night, I found how much God is involved in our lives, even in the night.  Here’s what I found:

GOD’S PEACE: Psalm 4:8: “I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” Praise God that HE gives us peaceful sleep!
GOD’S PRESENCE: Exodus 13:21,22: “And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light,…He did not take away the pillar of cloud by day or the pillar of fire by night from before the people.” Praise God for His presence with us  – 24/7.
GOD’S PROVISION: Job 35:10: “…God my Maker, who gives songs in the night.” Praise God that HE gives songs in the night!
GOD’S PROMISE: Psalm 30:5: “For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.” Praise God that HE promised that the morning will bring joy to replace our tears!
GOD’S PROTECTION: Psalm 91:4,5: “He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day.” Praise God that HE protects us day and night!
GOD’S PLAN: Psalm 119:148: “My eyes are awake through the night watches, that I may meditate on Your word.” Praise God that we can meditate on HIS word when we can’t sleep!

Next time our night seems too long, let’s rest in His peace; thank Him for His presence, protection and provision, and rejoice in His promise that joy WILL come in the morning!

FLOODS OF UNGODLINESS

Because the accumulation of the heavy snowfalls in the past few weeks is finally melting, the Midwest is being ravaged by floods. Add a few days of rain to that scenario, and the conditions become perfect for disaster. Headlines in our area today read: “Cuyahoga River Flooded…” Evacuations, closed roads, sand bags and flood damage are reported in many places. It’s not a pretty picture.

While all that is happening, there are other floods that are even more destructive, and are threatening the stability of marriages, families, institutions, our country and even our entire world: the Psalmist referred to “floods of ungodliness”, and that is what we’re seeing today. Not a pretty picture. We don’t have to look far to see the violence and immorality that characterize our times. Uprisings in different parts of the world, legislation that is being passed (or not being passed); the media and entertainment industry all add to the floods of ungodliness, and cause me to agree with the Psalmist: “and the floods of ungodliness made me afraid.” (Psalm 18:4) But in his fear, the Psalmist’s solution was to cry out to the Lord, being certain that his prayers were heard. He knew that only the Lord could save him from the treacherous floods of ungodliness.

Looking around, we see our children and grandchildren. The “floods of ungodlinesss” are worsening at an alarming rate, and if we aren’t standing on our Solid Rock of Refuge, JESUS, we are in danger of being swallowed up by those floods! Let’s get more serious about our daily walk with Him; be more intense in our prayers for ourselves and our loved ones as those destructive “floods of ungodliness” rise around us. Let’s fervently cry out to Him for help in these perilous times and trust in HIM for help!

“Then the waters would have overwhelmed us, the stream would have gone over our soul…Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 124:4)

LOOK UP! Psalm 121

“I will lift my eyes to the hills – from whence comes my help? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.”
If God created the entire universe with such perfection, can I trust Him to take care of me and my little world? OF COURSE I CAN!

“He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel (insert my name in the place of “Israel”) shall neither slumber nor sleep.”
Is there ever a time that He is off-duty, or resting? When He’s not caring for me? NEVER!!

“The LORD is your keeper; the Lord is a shade at your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.”
Is He looking out for me day and night? ALWAYS!! How close is He? AS CLOSE AS MY SHADOW!

“The LORD shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul.”
What does He protect me from? ALL EVIL! He protects my SOUL!

“The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”
How long will this protection/help/care last? FOREVER! From now on, and FOREVER!

What a privilege! What a blessing that I can look up to God and know that these are not mere words, they are not theories; they are truths that the Psalmist experienced and that I can also experience!
Praise God! I can look up and KNOW that He will always be wide-awake, on His throne, preserving my soul from all evil. He never gets tired of showing me His mercy. He will never retire or go on to bigger, more important projects. While He’s spinning the world on its axis and holding the universe together, He’s concerned about little me, and will be forever. I cling to and believe these truths. And THAT’S why I look up to Him! PRAISE YOU, LORD!

PRAY. NO ANSWER….Then Good News!

Pray. No answer.
Pray harder. Still no answer.
Keep praying harder.  No sign of an answer.
Read Psalm 40:1: “I waited patiently for the Lord, and he inclined to me and heard my cry.”
OK, God hears.
Pray. No answer yet.
Pray harder. Still no answer yet.
Keep praying harder. No sign of an answer yet.
Read Psalm 9:10, 12. “And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; for You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You…He does not forget the cry of the humble.”
Pray. No answer.
Pray harder. Keep praying harder. Heaven is still silent. Nothing has changed. Or has it?…
The good news is that God hears our cry.
More good news: He has never forsaken those who seek Him.
The most very good news transforms us: He does not forget our prayers.
And knowing that is VERY good news!
Pray. No answer. Good news…

ALL – Not Just SOME!

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and ALL that is within me, bless His holy name! 
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not ALL His benefits.” Psalm 103:1,2

“I will bless the Lord at ALL times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” Psalm 34: 1

                David committed himself to praising the Lord at ALL times, with ALL his being. David lived a life of extremes: he experienced abundant blessings and the most horrific situations; he rejoiced with dancing in times of victory and anguished in the lowest pits of despair. Suffering the consequences of sin, David had times of family disasters and times of national catastrophe; he went through periods of discouragement, a season of trying to hide his sin, but later praised God for His forgiveness and wholeness. When he worshiped God, he did it with ALL of his heart. How could David have composed many of the Psalms under the most despairing circumstances? How could he choose to worship God at ALL times, and praise Him with ALL his being?

                The secret lies in the personal relationship that David cultivated with God in the good times. Knowing God with the degree of intimacy that he did gave David the assurance that God always takes care of ALL our troublesome situations. In Psalm 34 we can read that bad times will come in our lives, but God will see us through them ALL – not just some of them!

v. 4 “I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from ALL my fears.” (Not just SOME!)

v. 6 “This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of ALL his troubles” (Not just SOME!)

v. 17 “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears, and delivers them out of ALL their troubles.” (Not just SOME!)

v. 19 “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them ALL.” (Not just SOME!)

                While it’s true that God is able to deliver me from ALL my fears and troubles, it’s also true that Like David, I must choose to strengthen my relationship with Him in the good times. When I choose to bless Him at ALL times, with ALL that is within me, I will also seek Him in times of distress. In the measure that ALL that is within me blesses His holy name when life is good, my natural response in difficulties will be to cry out to Him and keep praising Him with the assurance  that He hears me and will deliver me from ALL my fears, ALL my troubles and ALL my afflictions – not just SOME!

INTERVIEWS FROM THE PAST: “One Thing” (Part 1)

Imagine a news reporter conducting a series of interviews for a special program titled “ONE THING”. This reporter has the privilege of travelling back in time to meet with any person in history.  I’m thinking that one of the interviews might look like this:

The reporter interviewed KING DAVID – Known as the “sweet psalmist of Israel”. (2^nd Samuel 23:1) Not only King, David was also a musician, singer, songwriter and composer of poems. He was described by God as “a man after My own heart, who will do all my will.” (Acts 13:22)

REPORTER:  “King David, what is the ONE THING you have desired and pursued in your life?

KING DAVID: “Interesting that you should ask that, because there really is “One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple.” (Psalm 27:4)

REPORTER: “Let’s see if I understand that. You insistently ask God to be in His presence as long as you live, just to gaze on His beauty and meditate on Him?

KING DAVID: “That is correct. There is nothing more important in life than knowing Him and cultivating a close relationship with Him. Nothing! That’s the ONE THING I desire and am pursuing every day!”

REPORTER: “Hummmmmm….”

Tomorrow, in Part 2 of “Interviews From the Past”,  our reporter will look at another aspect of ONE THING. Log on to read the next interview.

HOLD TO GOD’S UNCHANGING HAND

 I can still recall the excitement we shared as a family when we got our new stereo in the late 50s or early 60s. We had only a few LPs then, and one of our favorites was a Tennessee Ernie Ford album. Even now I can almost hear his melodious voice ring out from the old Magnavox singing: “Time is filled with swift transition…Hold to God’s unchanging hand…”

“Hold to God’s unchanging hand”….little did I know or understand then that our ancestors, without ever having heard this song, did just that as they faced changes, challenges and devastating losses in their lifetimes. It never occurred to me that one day I would thank God for His unchanging hand, and this wonderful heritage. Reading about our great-grandpa Janos Pavkov, and Grandpa Lazar, and even thinking about our own parents, I’m convinced that the only way they could handle the changing circumstances in their lives was by clutching tightly to the hand of the One who never changes.

The first major change in Janos’ life may have been when he was the first in his family to convert to Christ in 1876 as a teen in Yugoslavia. We know that his new-found faith was a priority to him, because suddenly another change was thrust upon him: he was imprisoned for 5 years because of his faith. As he sat in his cell for days and nights upon end without his parents, without his friends, and without church services or the support of brothers and sisters in Christ, what kept him strong if not God’s unchanging hand?…the same hand that he held on to as he and his wife later experienced poverty raising their six children, and the same hand that gave them strength to keep on going when they suffered ridicule and persecution from their neighbors because of their beliefs and their faithful church attendance. All of these situations cause us to believe that as a child, Grandpa Lazar saw that his parents were serious about their walk with the Lord, and he may have understood at a young age that they had an incredible grip on His hand.

As a ten year-old, Grandpa was sent to live in the home of a shoemaker to learn the trade. He was still a child! He experienced an extreme change! He couldn’t depend on mom, dad, or any of his five siblings. He was alone in a strange home! This may have been the beginning of major changes in his life; he may have had to look to God and hold on to His hand. God’s hand was, also, undoubtedly what he clung to as his circumstances changed by his own choice in 1905: Lazar left his homeland of Yugoslavia and immigrated to America at the age of 20. As the ship neared Ellis Island he faced change again; he found himself alone amidst the countless immigrants. No doubt he tightened his grip on the “unchanging hand” as he faced the uncertainty of the unknown: new people, new places, new employment, and a new language. As a young man under these circumstances, he walked 8 miles round trip every day to work in the rubber factory in Akron, Ohio, and saved enough money to bring his whole family to the US. We can certainly admire the fact that he had such noble goals and strong determination at such a young age; and we can be sure that he was still holding on to God’s hand when he also sent for his future wife, Katarina, whom he married in 1908. Grandpa Lazar was 23 at the time.

We can imagine the challenges they faced as a young couple raising their small children, and we can discover some of the events that happened then in the Pavkov history book (Thanks to the great job cousin Dottie did!!) but let’s “fast-forward” a few years, to the day before Grandpa and Grandma were to celebrate their 12^th anniversary. I weep with Grandpa, and can almost see the grief etched on his face, thinking how desperately he must have been clinging to God’s unchanging hand as he stood helplessly at the bedside of his dear soul mate and whispered his earthly farewell to her. The comfort of God’s unchanging hand may have carried him through many a lonely night and difficult day as he was faced with the reality of raising four small children without their mother. (My Dad was the youngest; he was 5 years old at the time of his mother’s passing) At that time, the country was in a post-war recession and Grandpa’s farm income decreased considerably. I’m sure he was holding fast to God’s providing hand as he instructed his four little ones to choose only the best potatoes from their crop to pay Mr. Clark, the undertaker, for their mom’s burial. How else could he have done it?

Change…nothing new to Grandpa. Yet every night he could be seen reading his Bible by the table after supper, and every Sunday would find him faithfully taking his youngsters to church by horse and wagon, rain or shine. All of this strengthened his grip on God’s hand, and set the example that each of his four children would later follow as they, too, each chose to hold the same unchanging hand that their parents and grandparents found to be so faithful.

We think about the lives of Janos, Lazar, and even our own parents, (whose lives weren’t free from unexpected changes, losses, or disappointments) and we are amazed at how they held up under the worst of circumstances; yet we know that it wasn’t on their strength alone that they stood firm. If we were to ask any one of our ancestors right now how they were able to do it, no doubt they would each look back over their life and testify to having relied on the strength of our unchanging God; and if they could give us one bit of advice, having experienced everything they did, that valuable advice just might be: “Hold to God’s unchanging hand”!

“Your years are throughout al generations.

Of old You laid the foundation of the earth,

And the heavens are the work of Your hands.

They will perish, but You will endure;

Yes, they will all grow old like a garment;

Like a cloak you will change them, and they will be changed.

BUT YOU ARE THE SAME,

And Your years have no end.

The children of Your servants will continue,

And their descendants will be established before You.”

Psalm 102: 24 – 28

 

 

 

 

TRUSTING IN GOD’S MERCY

How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever?
How long will You hide Your face from me?
How long shall I take counsel in my soul,  Having sorrow in my heart daily?
How long will my enemy be exalted over me?

“How long?…How long?…How long?….How long?….” Verses 1 and 2 of Psalm 13 paint a picture of discouragement and potential defeat as David poured his heart out before the Lord, yet there is a turning point in verse 5 as he declared “But I have trusted in Your mercy.”

At this point in his journey, David learned that in every life situation, even the most difficult times, he could trust in God’s mercy. Even though he was being tracked and persecuted by King Saul and his armies, David trusted in God’s mercy. When his life was in danger, causing him to spend long, dark nights in hiding, he trusted in God’s mercy. Because God forgave his horrendous sin with Bathsheba and Uriah, He trusted in God’s mercy. His own beloved son Absalom rose up against him, plotting to take over the kingdom and still David chose to trust in God’s mercy. If we study every event in David’s life, we will get a clear picture of why, as he poured out his heart to the Lord in despair in Psalm 13, he chose to declare “But I have trusted in Your mercy.” (verse 5) He realized that it was only God’s mercy that pulled him through his circumstances.

So…remembering how bountifully God had dealt with him produced a response in David, even as he was crying out to God. His response? He chose to rejoice in God’s salvation and to sing praises to Him. Wait…maybe I don’t understand this Psalm… David is lamenting that God is silent, is distant, and wonders if he’s been forgotten. He fears the enemy will overtake him. Maybe I don’t get it. In this very situation David chose to rejoice and sing to God?…to keep trusting in His mercy? How could he do that?? Ahh…David looked back and remembered God’s mercy and His goodness towards him in every situation in the past. That gave him peace in the present and hope for the future. He knew he could trust God’s mercy…ALWAYS!

 So I look at my own life: There are times when I don’t like or understand the situation; when I can’t see because of the darkness; when pain, like a belligerent intruder, won’t budge. At times the long-awaited answer doesn’t come, and occasions when the answer isn’t the one I had expected. Like David, there are times when I have more questions than answers, and I wonder if God is even working on my case. There are times when I also ask “How long?…”

How do I respond in those situations? Like David? As I cry out to God, I want to remember how good God has been to me in the past, in spite of my present circumstances. I can clearly see how God has shown me His goodness and mercy, often unexpectedly and undeservedly. It was only His mercy that brought me through. So today I want to respond by choosing to trust in His mercy for my actual, present situation. The turning point comes in my life, too, when I chose to trust in God’s mercy and I declare with David: 

“But I have trusted in Your mercy; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.  

I will sing to the Lord, Because He has dealt bountifully with me.” (Psalm 13:5,6)