Saturday Night Devotions

I Peter 2:9

     But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

     We now have before us one of the greatest descriptions anywhere of the blessed status bestowed on believers in Christ.  First, we are “a chosen generation.”  Jesus said, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you (John 15:16).”  Since God has chosen us for this time, let us be like David who “served the purpose of God in his own generation (Acts 13:36 ESV).” 

     Secondly, we are “a royal priesthood.”  A priest is a mediator, a go-between between God and man.  It is difficult to imagine a more important job – helping people become reconciled to God and to know Him better.  It is a position of service – priests serve both God and man.  Our priesthood, however, is “a royal priesthood.”  Although we are servants, we are now simultaneously kings as well.  We do not serve out of importunity or helplessness.  We serve with gallantry and with noble power.  Only Melchizedek in the Old Testament and Jesus in the New Testament were both priests and kings.  Now we join this matchless duo in carrying on this great role of serving God and serving man -- and our great Task is wonderfully empowered, for royal blood now courses through our veins.   

     Thirdly, we are “a holy nation.”  All the world’s believers comprise a single nation.  We are all bound by the same laws, motivated by the same hope, and ruled by the same sovereign Lord.   We are a “holy” nation – we are set apart from others by our heart to be holy and our heart made holy by the indwelling Spirit of God. 

     Fourthly, we are “His own special people.”  Certainly all men, in a way, are God’s people, because He has made us all, and “in His hands we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28).”  But God considers believers, those devoted to Him, as “His own special people.”  What a thought to cherish, that we as worms are special to God on high.  It is amazing to contemplate and spurs us to praise Him.  Psalm 135:3-4 says, “Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good; sing praises to his name, for it is pleasant.  For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself, Israel for His special treasure.”  We find the Lord precious – and for so many good reasons.  But the Lord finds us precious to Him as well, and with this in mind we make all effort to make ourselves as presentable and as lovely to Him as we can.  As a bride seeks to make herself beautiful for the one who treasures her, let us strive to make ourselves pleasing to our Lord who, for reasons of His own, has made us His specially treasured people.

     Following this grand four-faceted description of the people of God, this wonderful verse then tells us why God has called us to be a “chosen generation,” a “royal priesthood,” “a holy nation,” and “His special people.”  God has granted us these great titles, not for us to be impressed with ourselves, but to be pressed to “proclaim the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light.”  God has chosen us though there was nothing notable about us.  God made us royal though we were born as common men.  God made us holy, though we had sinned.  And God has called us His special people, though we know for a fact there is nothing exceptional about us.  How can we rightly respond?  The verse tells us:  proclaim His praises.  Our only proper response to God’s calling on our lives is to praise Him in return.  Praise God in your private devotions alone each morning.  Praise God in great numbers on the Lord’s Day.  Praise God with singing and with testimonies of His goodness.  Praise Him with loud music and in silent prayer.  We must be people filled with exuberant praise to the Lord who has called us with such a great calling.  People who know God well will cry out to Him with their needs.  But those who know Him best of all will cry out to Him with songs of praise.  Too often our private devotions have too little study, too little prayer, and too little time spent with our Master.  But perhaps most of all, for all too many of us, our daily devotional time with God is void of concerted praise.  The very thing which He calls on us to do in response to His giftings, we are most prone to leave undone.  Let us resolve to fix this today.  There are 150 psalms in the book of Psalms, and in those 150 psalms David calls us to praise God 158 times.  Let his repetitive urging have its proper effect on us.  “Praise the Lord!  Praise, O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord! (Psalm 113:1)” Let the “poor and needy” praise the Lord as in Psalm 74:21.  In fact, let all the peoples praise Him as in Psalm 67:3.  In fact, let even “a people yet to be created” praise the Lord as in Psalm 102:18!  This is what He has created us to do!  Praise Him!  He has gifted us with great titles; let us praise Him with great songs of praise in return!  Psalm 135:1 echoes this eternal urging: “Praise the Lord!  Praise the name of the Lord; praise Him, O you servants of the Lord!”    

 

153 Fish

Last week a wonderful group of believers from Lake Havasu, Arizona went with me to do a series of medical clinics in north-central Thailand.  We had been planning the trip for months, and then we were hit with a run of last minute changes just as we were getting ready to leave.  The church folks from Havasu handled the changes beautifully, but they were just as hard to take for our local Thai church planters as they were for our team.  Despite the changes, however, we  were able to do just as we had desired to do – we held mobile clinics and did English programs in 5 different villages and shared the Gospel with over 900 people.  After one great day of sharing the Gospel at the medical clinic and through the English activities, we worshipped the Lord together – the American team from Havasu, my Thai team from Bangkla, and local believers from the areas near the clinic site.  After several shared their testimonies of seeing God move in the hearts of the people that day, the local Thai church planter (we’ll call him Pastor Q) encouraged us with his testimony of how the Lord had chosen to bless him that day.  He said that the whole week prior to the clinic had been a strain.  Virtually every detail of our time with him had to be changed.  But the Lord encouraged him with the story of Jesus commanding the disciples to throw their nets on the other side of the boat.  Pastor Q said that he was encouraged to read that when the disciples fished on the other side of the boat – when they changed the plans that they had made, God blessed them with 153 large fish.  This story encouraged him all week long.  He said that as he busily made the necessary changes he kept being encouraged by the thought of the disciple’s 153 large fish that came as a result of their willingness to live with change.  Our day with him in an effort to reach his community for Christ was a blessing.  His neighbors came and many were moved to seek to know more about the God who made the world.  Finally, as the day ended, he  went to our registration table to see how many people had come to see the doctor and hear the Gospel that day.  We had seen 153.  Exactly 153 people.  God wanted to encourage Pastor Q – and us – that the changes did not thwart His purposes, but rather accomplished His purposes, and that the fruit of our efforts came as a result of His blessings on our faithfulness to His great Task.      

Blasting This Present Darkness With Eternal LIght

 

 

  A few weeks ago, a team from Valley Rim Association in Arizona partnered with us to do 4 days of mobile clinics in the far reaches of Isaan.  They brought a team of  doctors, nurses and children’s workers - 9 wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ with wonderful hearts of service and unity for the task ahead of us.  Our first day was my most memorable, so that is the story I will share. 

                                          Debra Wolfrey Valley Rim team leader and I

 

  Several months ago, a woman from Loie showed up at our little house church plant in Plang Yao.  She shared with us that she was a relatively new Christian and had moved into the area for the purpose of bringing her family to Christ.  Her name is Aunt Wi.  She had heard about our gathering from someone in the market and she found her way to us.  She told Doug that a missionary couple in Loie had led her to Christ.  We were pretty amazed by her bold faith having only been a Christian for a short time.  We looked into it and we did not have any IMB missionaries in Loie.  Over the course of a couple of months, this woman, indeed, led several members of her family to Christ so we decided we should find out more about this missionary couple.  She gave us their name and phone number and Doug gave them a call.  After a long conversation with the M couple, Aunt Wi’s story suddenly became more amazing.

  Aunt Wi was a house helper for the M family who had moved to Loie from where they had been church planting in the south. They have 5 children under the age of 12.  Aunt Wi was not a helpful house helper, she often came to work drunk and would sleep through her work day.  Since moving to this area the M family had little other contacts to share Christ with so they decided to pour their lives into this seemingly worthless soul.  Although Aunt Wi’s help in the home was minimal, they did have plenty of chances to shower her with the love of Christ.  After several months of very challenging encounters, Aunt Wi finally gave her life to Christ and was radically saved. After being discipled for a very short time, she felt the need to go to her family in Plang Yao and share Christ with them so she moved away.  The only convert of 2 years of work for the M couple, moved away!  As Doug and the M couple talked more about their struggles to find people willing to talk to them about Christ,  a decision was made to add their city to our September mobile clinic schedule.  Tuesday, September 16 was the day chosen. 

  As we arrived in their city the night before, we saw immediately Satan’s claim on this city.  There were statues and paintings of 7 demons everywhere as we drove in.  When we arrived at our hotel, the key chain was a replica of the mask on these demons.  It was evident we were in for a battle the next day when we were to share the Gospel with the children in the English camp and the patients at the mobile clinic.  We began to have an understanding of what difficult odds our M family was up against as they tried to make a difference in a place so dark, all by themselves.  Many prayers were raised that night as we went to bed and in the morning we awoke with a sense of God’s Presence with us for the task at hand. 

                                          These were the public toilets at the school

 

  When we arrived at the school where the clinic and English camp would be held, we saw the heads of the seven demons painted everywhere, even on the playground.   The bathrooms were even shaped and painted the same.  When I walked into the room where we were to teach the children, I was overwhelmed by what I saw.  On one side of the room was a giant Buddha figure with pedestals for offerings all around and the other side of the room was an entire wall painted with a mural of the seven demons.  I felt my chest tightening at the oppression of it all.  But, I knew what God wanted me to do.  With Buddha at my back, demon toilets on the side and the a huge Buddha mural  in front, I began to teach 120 children about the God who made the world.  We sang songs about how God made the world with His hands and how all who believe in Jesus could be called the children of God. We all but shouted the name of Jesus as we sang.   We taught them how they could know God.  We taught them how to pray.  Over half of those dear Children prayed with our evangelist.  We don’t know what the future will bring for those children, but we pray this, their first encounter with Christ, will bring them to true faith when they are adults. 

                                                        

 

  At the clinic we saw 220 patients.  Each of them hearing one on one, the Gospel story.  15 people responded and now our wonderful  M couple with few contacts now has 15 people to follow up on that have expressed an interest in knowing God.   Of those 15 people, 7 of them actually prayed with our evangelist.  This was a truly amazing day.  Only a move of God could bring about such a thing in a place like this. 

 

  As we drove away that day we rejoiced in our vans for the privilege of seeing the power of God in such a dark, dark place.  We were moved to pray for our M family and their work ahead.  We were also so very glad to bring God’s light in that very present darkness.