–J.V. James  (Old)

       “Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come.”

                    –Psalm 71:18 (NKJV)
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I don’t know, perhaps I was just raised differently.  I was taught a simple faith; a faith that said to trust in the Lord no matter the problem that comes.  When the storms of life hit, trust in the Lord.  When the battle rages, trust in the Lord.  When life seems more than you can handle, trust in the Lord.  In saying this I want to respond to an article that I read.  It was a good article, and the person (unknown) is probably very well-meaning, however I want to look at it from my perspective and raising.  The gist of the article was how to have joy in old age, or as the writer put it, “golden years.”
     First of all, there is the loss of friends.  I remember Granny and Pappy reading the obituaries to see who had died.  Not that they were morbid, but just interested in who was still around.  This article says that “old folk” spend much of their time grieving.  Perhaps the problem is that I don’t know what “grieving” is.  When my Dad died it hit me hard, mainly because of the circumstances.  I grieved.  I was at the side of my Mom when she died.  It was hard, but it was good that she passed on.  The person wrote, “My therapist explained that the loss of friends is deep because we know we don’t have enough time to make another lifetime friend.”  Hmmm, my therapist–the Holy Spirit–has a different view, that there will be a reunion in heaven.  The article relates, that there’s no one to shop with, go to the movies with, or eat out.  Well, I never did that much anyway, and not with a friend, except the eating out part.  Perhaps their comfort resides with their friends rather than with their Friend.
     The second loss of joy is the loss of work.  People look forward to retirement.  Well, I’ll quote my wife’s Uncle John, a Christian does not retire, they just retread.  The article says that fear grips the older person as prices go up.  I always figured, and still do, that the Lord will take care of me.  Unrealistic?  I don’t think so.  He is my heavenly Father and He will provide all I need.  We live on a “fixed income,” but the Lord has and will always provide.  The author says that “our brains–once so active–now feel like mush.”  Maybe for some, but I’m constantly writing and there is so much in the Bible to study.  The loss of peers and friends are missing because we are no longer working.  New places, new church, new community, new friends.
     Number three:  the loss of purpose.  “We feel like slugs as we sit on the couch and play with the TV remote,” so says the author.  Duh!!  If a person doesn’t have the proper purpose in life before retirement I can see where this might be a problem.  Purpose–“glorify God and enjoy Him forever” is our purpose.  That doesn’t change.  If we realize that all we do should be for the glory of God then what is the problem that a person might have in retiring (retreading)?  He says to find another way to “define our significance.”  Significance is doing the will of the Lord whether you are and in whatever capacity you might find yourself.  The steps of a righteous man are ordered by the Lord, (Ps 37:23) or is that too hard to understand?
     The fourth item–loss of health.  This hits all of us.  It may tend to put us on the sidelines, as the author states, but what is our job on the sidelines?  To learn, to cheer, to give advice, to exhort, to comfort–there is plenty to do.  Medical bills–trust in the Lord.  Pain and doctor visits…oh my.  Yes, they can get to a person.  I started yesterday with a month of visiting with doctors–all kinds.  Age does bring pain and aches and groans and moans, but through it all we are to trust in the Lord.  I remember my Grandma, who was in tremendous pain in her legs, would sit in her rocker, praising the Lord.  “Oh, the pain is terrible, but I know the Lord won’t give me more than I can handle, so I know I can handle this.”  Foolishness or faith?  Annie’s Dad, with both legs amputated, would visit others in the home because they didn’t have people to come visit them.
     Now here is one I don’t get–the loss of hope.  I won’t go into the things that were mentioned in the article, but how can a person of faith lose real hope?  I know that the devil will attack trying to discourage, trying to bring accusations, trying to get you to doubt, but then go to the Word.  Our hope is in Him.  Sing the great hymns, if not out loud, then within your soul.  “For I know Whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able…”, which is also a great verse to meditate upon. (2 Tim 1:12).  Maybe if you find yourself in this situation read the hymns, read the hope that is in the Scriptures.
     Life happens, and with that the certainty of death will come.  However, it does not have to be doom and gloom.  I will not continue, but will just mention the other facets that rob our joy:  loss of memory, loss of faith, loss of dreams, loss of passion, then the final one, piles of losses.  Are these real?  They can be, but instead of a therapist or being overly medicated–go to the Holy Spirit.  Isn’t He there for us, or was that only in our vibrant, passionate days?  Paul, when death was approaching, said that it was better for him to go be with the Lord.  Perhaps we need a fresh vision of our heavenly homeland.  As we need help to take a step off a curb, why not lean on the arms of the Holy Spirit.  As I’ve said many times in the “Echo” — He is the God who is there.
     Yes, old age can be rough and I’m getting there (ha–that’s a joke).  But to lose faith, I dare not.  To not have hope is unthinkable.  Oh, I thank God, for the teaching of my childhood and youth that has carried me all through my life.  This is not to bring discouragement or despair to anyone.  The article has some good advice, but remember, I am writing this from my perspective; it may be from an old fence post, but it serves me well.  I trust in the Lord!  “Even to your old age, I am He, and even to gray hairs I will carry you!  I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you.”  (Isaiah 46:4, NKJV)

                    –D.C. Adkisson  (The True and Unbiased Life of Elias Butler)

       “So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.”

                    –Luke 14:33 (NKJV)
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          “But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”    –Matthew 13:23 (NKJV)

     We come now to the person who not only hears the word, but understands it.  It has been said that understanding is a fundamental element of discipleship.  If one does not understand how can they grow, how can they learn, how can they develop?  Let’s look at Luke’s version, from the NIV:  “But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.” (8:15) The RSV puts the last phrase this way, “bring forth fruit with patience.”
     One thing in common is the seed.  It is the same for all types of soil–for all those who hear.  So the seed is not the problem.  We see only one genuine heart–the fourth one.  My Grandma could grow things, but she always prepared the soil.  She would mark out an area where she wanted her little garden and would have me spade it up.  Then she would, painstakingly, work the soil.  Over and over she would chop at it with a hoe and rake, moving the soil back and forth, breaking down the clods.  She would take the rake and chop at it some more, removing any grass or roots that might still be there.  Then, when she was satisfied with the soil, she would plant her seeds.  If a person has a hard heart, it must be worked over by the Spirit before the Word can take root.
     Therefore, one key element is the soil, its preparation.  The heart must be right and ready.  Stedman writes, “The flesh allows us to relate only to the passing moment, to the changing scene, the surface of life, which touches our emotions and centers our attention upon them so that what concerns us is only how we are feeling at the moment.”  That is why Billy Graham would always admonish those who came forward at the altar call to find a good Bible-believing church.  The heart must not be allowed to harden; it must be more than just an emotional rush.
     Notice again the soil.  There is a deeper thought here.  It does not say that there were no rocks in the soil, or that there were not roots of thorny plants.  Matthew Henry states, “That which distinguished this good ground from the rest, was, in one word, fruitfulness.  He does not say that this good ground had no stones in it, or no thorns; but there were none that prevailed to hinder its fruitfulness.  This is the second key element–fruitfulness.  The seed planted in the prepared soil will produce fruit.  To produce good fruit the soil must be ready.  Barclay states it like this:  “First, he listens attentively.  Second, he keeps what he hears in his mind and heart and thinks over it until he discovers its meaning for himself.  Third, he acts upon it.  He translates what he has heard into action.”  
     Go back to the verse in Luke, “by persevering produce a crop.”  It doesn’t happen overnight.  True, if the “sinner’s prayer” is said from the heart, the person is saved, but then there must be nurturing.  However, many times it is but an emotional outburst, a flippant phrase.  The soil hasn’t been prepared properly.  The farmer knows it takes time for the seed to germinate, the crop to grow, and the fruit to develop.  He watches, he cultivates, then the harvest comes.  But Jesus gives a word of warning that we read in John.  Our root system must be in the true vine.  We cannot grow apart from Him.  John writes, “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.” (15:6, NKJV)  This is a fruitless vine.  John writes further, “By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.” (15:8, NKJV)  
     You will be My disciples if you bear fruit.  To do so, there must be endurance, perseverance and a willingness to bear the cross that has been given to us.  It does not happen overnight; the work is painstaking, but the soil is prepared, the seed is sown, and now…growth can occur.  Discipleship will happen as there is deeper and more understanding.

 

       “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever His wishes.”

                       –Proverbs 21:1 (NKJV)
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               “In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will.”
                         –Ephesians 1:11(NKJT)

Probably some of the most misunderstood and complex attributes of God is that of His decrees and His sovereignty.  Part of our problem is our finiteness; we think only with the natural mind and cannot know completely the workings of God.  Another reason is that we do not like to think of these things.  They go against our nature, because we have our own opinions, therefore we either push aside these doctrines or ignore them, or interpret them disregarding Scripture.
     In this little study I do not want to get into the argument of Calvinism versus Arminianism.  I want to simply state some facts and look at what the Bible says.  People have often asked me which of these viewpoints I take.  I almost always reply, “when I’m with an Arminian I am a Calvinist, and when I’m with a Calvinist, I am an Arminian.”  And I will leave it at that…for now.  This devotion is not for argument, however, one of its main purposes is to get you to think.  
     Right off the bat I will say–our thoughts of God are too human!  Since He is God, infinite and eternal, we cannot comprehend Him fully, therefore we bring our thoughts about Him down to the human level.  As I said earlier, if we had a truer picture of God we would have less problems and issues.  In one aspect, the God of the Scriptures is unknown.  I say that for two reasons:  first, we cannot fully know Him or imagine Him; second, we do not look rightly into His Word to come to the knowledge that He has revealed of Himself.
     Men imagine that God is moved by sentiment.  That is false, no matter the pity party we throw or the tantrums, or the threats we level, it does not move Him.  He works on His principles and through His character.  Do we really mean it when we pray, “Thy will be done?”  Hmmm, don’t worry, it will be.  Man also declares that whatever power God possesses must be restricted.  Man does not want God’s will to invade man’s “free will” (whatever that is).  Therefore, God is often “manufactured” out of the carnal mind.  In reality, it should give us confidence and build our faith in that all He has designed He does.  All that He has decreed He performs.  The Psalmist declares, “But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases.” (115:3, NKJV)
     “God’s dominion is total:  he wills as he chooses and carries out all that he wills, and none can stay his hand or thwart his plans.” (J.I. Packer)  God acts according to His decrees, which is defined as “determinate counsel,” “foreknowledge, foreordination, and election.”  He is sovereign over all His works.  The decrees of God is His purpose in determination with respect to future things.  They are called His “will” to show He was under no control, but acted according to His own pleasure.  Whatever is done in time was foreordained before time.
     God’s decrees are first of all–eternal, circumstances cannot alter His decrees.  No matter the effort put forth by man, or the effort put forth by Satan and his demons, God’s decrees will be carried out.  Neither time nor culture can change the decrees of God.  His decrees are always infinitely wise.  His decrees are free–meaning that there was no external cause to influence God when He made His decrees.  They came from His “the counsel of His will.”  Here are a couple of verses to contemplate:  

          “Just as He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.”  — Ephesians 1:4 (NKJV)
          “But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.  He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.” –1 Peter 1:19-20 (NKJV)

Just think of those words, “before the foundation of the world.”  Before creation, before time, God had decreed.  Also we know that His decrees are absolute and unconditional.  The execution of them is not suspended upon any condition which may or may not be performed.  Know this!  God honors His principles!
     Now that I have fully boggled your mind with another aspect of the greatness and majesty of God I leave you with a verse from Isaiah, “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.'” (46:19, NKJV)  This gives us hope and confidence that we truly serve the God of gods, the Almighty–the I AM!

                    –Psalm 18:32 (NKJV)
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I have one Bible in which Psalm 118 is referred to as a “Praise to God for His Everlasting Mercy,” another “Thanksgiving for Victory,” and yet a third one, “A Call to Triumph.”  Interesting, but they all fit.  They all refer to a praise of some sort.  God is to be praised–praised for His mercy, praised for the victory we have in our lives, praised when we triumph over a foe or habit.

          10 — All nations surrounded me, but in the name of the LORD I will destroy them.
          11 — They surrounded me, yes, they surrounded me; but in the name of the LORD I will destroy them.
          12 — They surrounded me like bees; they were quenched like a fire of thorns; for in the name of the LORD I will destroy them.
          13 — You pushed me violently, that I might fall, but the LORD helped me.
          14 — The LORD is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation.
          15 — The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tests of the righteous; the right hand of the LORD does valiantly.
          16 — The right hand of the LORD is exalted; the right hand of the LORD does valiantly.
          17 — I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD.
          18 — The LORD has chastened me severely, but He has not given me over to death.   (NJKV)

     This is the sound of war or at least harassment.  It is by enemies and there is also the scene that it may be struggles from within.  Three times the psalmist says that he was surrounded.  Perhaps you have seen actual combat, most reading this probably not.  The foes come at you relentlessly; bullets firing at you seemingly from all sides.  Or maybe the bees is a better analogy for your battle.  Have you ever been chased by a swarm of bees or hornets?  I remember my wife telling me a story of the time she visited, I think it was the Pittsburgh Zoo, and had a ball of cotton candy.  It seemed like the bees decided that they might like to have at least a taste of that sugar and began to chase her.  I’ve knocked down wasps nest and was chased, but they do not swarm like bees or hornets.  It can be quite frightful.  In this psalm it is shown that in the time of adversity there is a point where we must act.  We work in this life, we fight through the battles that face in this life–in the name of the Lord.  Why even Michael when he confronted Satan over the body of Moses, said, the Lord rebuke you.  
     “When you move forward into crises, a season of deep vulnerability or trial, the enemy wants you to think, ‘I’ll never survive this.'” (George Wood)  When this happens it would do us good to remember, I was surrounded…the Lord helped me…the Lord is my strength and song…He is my salvation…the right hand of the Lord is lifted.  Steven Lawson says, “God was his song, empowering him to overcome his own inner anxieties.  God was his salvation, delivering him from his adversity.”  Trust in the Lord–He will never let you down.
     Perhaps you have heard the story of the man who fell overboard in the sea that was full of sharks.  He yelled for help, but no one on the ship would venture to help the man.  His cries grew desperate as the sharks swam closer, diving by him, brushing him as they swam by.  Then, from the ship, there was a splash out towards the man.  Someone had jumped in to rescue the man.  Ignoring the sharks, the newcomer to the deep grabbed man by the collar then swam furiously towards the ship where there was now a ladder lowered to aid the man.  That night they held a party to the hero.  Toasts were made, smiles were all around, the captain came up to the hero and while shaking his hand asked if he had anything to say.  The hero, looked sternly at the crowd, “I would just like to know who pushed me in?”  Like this psalmist, the man was pushed “violently”.  The man in the psalm was pushed that he might not live.  We have those instances in life where we seemed pushed, but notice–the Lord helped him.
     Triumph is easily seen in these verses.  Not personal triumph, but victory because of the Lord.  The Lord, He is omnipotent, and He will use His power to save His own.  There are two things that could be taken from the 17th verse.  One, the psalmist was not expected to live, but the Lord spared his death in order that he might proclaim God’s greatness.  He was given extended life.  Or, there could be something more.  Some of the last words spoken by John Wycliffe while on his deathbed were, “I will not die, but I will live, and will again declare the evil deeds of the friars.” (Petersen)  Wycliffe died, but his message and work lived on.  Listen–we are all going to die, but what will you leave behind?  The end of life is not halted by death.  The trail we left behind is there for others to follow.  Perhaps we should be carefully noting what kind of trail we are leaving.  Will others be able to clearly see the trail to glory because of what we left behind?

               “Shrink not, Christian, will you yield?
               Will you quit the painful field?
               Will you flee in danger’s hour?
               Don’t you know your Captain’s power?
               Oft in danger, oft in woe,
               Onward, Christian, onward go.”
                        –H.K. White