He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.  The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this. (Isaiah 9:7)

Not through political activism.

Not through military strength.

Not through personal charisma.

Not through any power of man.

The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.

Chew on that today.

Happy Monday, Beloved

Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. (Isaiah 9:7)  

I’m not really a fan of big government.  More of a low taxes, leavemealoneandlletmelivemylifewithoutyouconstantlytellingmewhattodoandtryingtoprotectmefrommyself kind of guy.

But His government?  I’m all in.

You know, the best form of government would be a truly benevolent dictatorship.  We get someone in power who knows what’s best, wants what’s best, and is willing and able to do what’s best without regard for lining their own pockets.  

The problem, of course, is that people are people, and since even the best of men and women tend to be sin-encrusted narcissists, that kind of rule is just not possible.

Outside of Christ.

One day Jesus will rule here on Earth, in the flesh.  We will get someone in power who knows what’s best, wants what’s best, and is willing and able to do what’s best without regard for lining his own pockets. His reign will go on and on and just get better and better.

Until then, we can know his government in our hearts and lives.

If you belong to Jesus, his peace, his power, his rule in your life is growing each day.  Oh, you may not feel it all the time, but it’s happening.

Thought for the day: are you allowing Christ to govern your life, or are you getting in his way?

Happy Friday, Beloved

Prince of Peace.  (Isaiah 9:6)

We know him by many names.

Jesus Christ

Alpha

Omega

Emmanuel

I Am

Lamb of God

Prince of Peace

Mighty God

Light of the World

The Bright Morning Star

Wonderful Counselor

The Amen

Man of Sorrows

Lion of the Tribe of Judah

The Word

The Author and Finisher of Our Faith

Bread of Life

Living Water

God calls him by another name, the name which is above all names.

Son.

And here’s something really crazy.  Because of Christ’s sacrifice, do you know what God now calls us?

Yes, you do.

How can that be?  What can that mean?

Chew on that today.

Merry Christmas, Beloved

Everlasting Father,  (Isaiah 9:6).

I hope you have a great dad.  I hope he is loving and strong and gentle and a daily blessing to your life.  I hope this, not only to make those family Christmas dinners a little less awkward, but because it will give you a better picture of God.  You see, God presents himself to us in many ways through Scripture, but I think the one that hangs most people up is the image of a father.  It can be difficult to see God as loving and caring if your earthly father was cold, distant, or absent altogether.

Look, I’m not gonna get all psychological on you, but I need to point something out.  Whatever your earthly dad did well, your heavenly father does even better.  Whatever your earthly dad messed up, your heavenly father gets right.  He is the perfection we all fall short of.  He is the goal we can never quite attain.  He will always be there to cheer you when you win, and comfort you when you lose.  His advice will always be perfect, and his discipline will always be just.  He will come to all your ball games, all your dance recitals, all your spelling bees.  He will be there at the hospital bed and at the wedding altar.

He will always love you.

Always, as in Everlasting.

Walk in his love today, Beloved.

Happy Tuesday

…Mighty God,  (Isaiah 9:6)

We’re almost there. Only three days out from the “Sleep in Heavenly Peace” part.

So where’s the peace?

As we get closer to Christmas, all kinds of emotions are getting stirred up.  Although we would like to say it’s all about the birth of our Savior, the fact is this can be a really crazy time.  Perhaps you are rushing to wrap—or get—or think of—those last gifts.  Maybe you are frantically trying to get ready to travel—tickets, luggage, ohnowhatdowedowiththedogwhilewe’regone.  Could be you’re preparing to receive guests into your nightmare of a house—good luck with that.

Or you’re moving.

Or someone you love is sick.

Or you’re broke.

Or things are just falling apart.

I mean, I’d love to say I’m focused on what’s ahead, but there’s so much that was supposed to get done this year that still hasn’t been done. Goals I haven’t reached, projects I haven’t completed, promises I haven’t fulfilled, garages I haven’t cleaned.

Oy, you should see my garage.

Does that resonate with you? Even a little?

If it does, well, I am humbled that you’ve taken the time to read this.  Since you have, make the most of the moment.  Let the words soak in:

Mighty God.

Read it again.  Go on.

Now, say it out loud.

This King we serve, this Lord we love, this Savior we celebrate is fully capable of meeting the challenges of our day, be they mundane or monstrous.

And he will love us, no matter what our garages look like.

Because we are his beloved.

Because we are his, Beloved.

Happy Monday

And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, (Isaiah 9:6)

There can be a lot in a name.  My name is Michael, which means, “Who is like God?”  I like that—it’s a constant reminder of the answer…Nobody. When I begin to get a little too big for my proverbial britches, my very name brings me back to earth.

Jesus is called Wonderful Counselor.  Think about it—what does a counselor do?  A good counselor does three things—listen deeply, see to the heart of the issue, and offer wisdom.   So, we serve a God who actually listens to us—listens deeply.  He doesn’t just pretend to listen while he mentally plans out his day, the way I might.  He actually considers every word you speak—and those you don’t.

Jesus also sees to the heart of your issue—after all, he knows you better than you do—remember Psalm 139?  You couldn’t hide the truth from him if you tried, so knock it off already.

Wisdom?  Hmm…do I need to point out that his words are the very words of God?  Literally?  Well worth listening to.

You, Beloved, have a Wonderful Counselor.  Walk in his wisdom today.

Happy Friday.

…and the government will be on his shoulders. (Isaiah 9:6)

Here’s the thing with governments—they’re generally made up of people. And, well, I hate to tell you this, but people tend toward selfishness and greed.

I just heard a bubble burst out there…sorry.

The United States has a system of government known as a Representative Democracy, aka a republic. This is a strong, just, and efficient method of governance that works flawlessly, except when people are ignorant, selfish, cruel, or lazy.

Oh.

Same holds true for Communism, aristocracies, feudal societies, even theocracies.  On paper, they look great.  It’s when you add the people that things go wonky.

Frankly, the best, strongest, most efficient form of government is a benevolent dictatorship.  The problem with this, of course, is that you can guarantee the dictator part, but not the benevolent bit.

Yet.

But guess what, Beloved?  The day will come when we will have an absolute monarch, a king of kings, who will rule with complete authority over all nations.  His reign will be perfect, unhampered by greed, unsullied by sin.  He will know what’s best, want what’s best, do what’s best.

He will be what’s best.

Even so, come Lord Jesus.

Happy Thursday, Beloved

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given…  (Isaiah 9:6)

Babies are amazing.  Tiny noses and toeses and fingernails.  They even smell good.

Mostly

The feeling of joy, of life, that you get from holding a newborn—it’s…wow.  It doesn’t even have to be your baby. It can be a nephew, or a cousin, or the child of a friend.  Hey, it could be a random kid from the grocery store that you grabbed just for the experience.

Not that you would ever do that because it would be very very wrong and earn you psychiatric evaluations and the serious threat of incarceration.

My point is this: Hope arrives with every baby.

How great is it that God chose to bring Christ to us in this way. Think about it—the Messiah could have appeared fully grown, striding out of the desert on a Tuesday morning.  He could have simply walked into the temple and started preaching. Instead, we get to see him as a baby—yes, so that his genealogy could be verified and so that prophecy would be fulfilled—but also so that we could see the Lord of the Universe willing to humble himself by birth, as he would one day humble himself by death.

Your God loves you so much that he sent a baby—the epitome of life—to call you to eternal life.

Heed the call.

Happy Wednesday, Beloved.