365 Days with God - Day 69: What good is The Law?

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 69, February 27, 2014

Readings: Psalm 69, Exodus 15:1-21, Ezra 5, Romans 6

Have you ever found yourself reading the Old Testament and wondered, "What's the purpose of the Law of Moses?" I know one of the most common questions/jeers I hear from non-Christians is often, "What's the deal with the Old Testament law, anyway? If I become a Christian, do I have to stone adulterers or 'insert obscure Old Testament law here'?" What's your response to that?

But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and it's end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:17-23)

Are laws necessary when  no-one breaks the law? If you lived in a perfect society, with perfect citizens, would be there a need for laws? Or would everyone already do the right thing?

The Law of Moses has been abolished because Jesus came and sacrificed himself so that we could be that perfect society. We no longer need the Law to drive us to obedience. We are no longer slaves to a set of rules that condemn us. We are free from sin and the law. But along with that new heart, along with the abolishing of the law, we become obedient to Christ.

I think the language here is where a lot of people get tripped up - the term "slave" sounds harsh in light of humanity's evil. And in all instances, when humanity has instituted slavery, it has been evil. God is calling us to something different. He is perfect, loving and has given us everything he has, his most precious possession.  What earthly slave master gave everything to the slaves? What earthly master earned their obedience?

We are not slaves because God has forced us to be. We choose to be his servants. We choose to be set free from the slavery of sin. We are all servants of something or someone. But if we are slaves of anyone but God, we are slaves to sin. That is the distinction. That is why the term slavery is used. Because we are slaves. God has freed us from a cruel master, one who drowns the slaves to sin in all manner of evil and brokenness. God has brought us to his home, to rejoice in freedom.

The Law was put in place to identify our need for God, to help us recognize the slavery we were mired in. But all along the way, God pointed to His ultimate plan. His plan to set the captives free. To redeem our brokenness. The Law was a lighthouse...and Jesus is the safe harbor. Come home.

365 Days with God - Day 68: Who Is God?

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 68, February 26, 2014

Readings: Psalm 68, Exodus 14, Ezra 4, Romans 5:12-21

Who is God? Many things have been written on that subject, but everything is speculation except what God says about himself. So what is that?

Father of the fatherless and protector of widows
is God in his holy habitation.
God settles the solitary in a home;
he leads out the prisoners to prosperity,
but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.

O God, when you went out before your people,
when you marched through the wilderness,
the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain,
before God, the One of Sinai,
before God, the God of Israel.
Rain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad;
you restored your inheritance as it languished;
your flock found a dwelling in it;
in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy. (Psalm 68:5-10)

I love the description of who God is - so powerful, yet he intervenes for the powerless. He cares for the downtrodden and the oppressed. Nowhere does it mention that he does this for his own gain. How could he? What does he need from us? Nothing - and so he chooses to give everything.

And nowhere does it say he only cares for those who are religious or righteous. In fact, the poetry in this one sentence is something I find beautiful:

"Rain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad; you restored your inheritance as it languished; your flock found a dwelling in it; in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy."

I'm the needy one! God has poured out abundance on me, and everyone else who is in need of his loving grace. His mercy has been spread - and he has restored the whole of his inheritance. Not just the Jewish nation any longer, but all people. Jesus has redeemed everyone, Jew and Gentile - because we are all needy. God came for us, he serves us, he loves us. We are loved by the God of the universe, and he has given abundantly to us. He is amazing!

365 Days with God - Day 67: What have we been given?

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 67, February 25, 2014

Readings: Psalm 67 Exodus 12:31-51, Exodus 13:1-22, Ezra 3, Romans 5:1-11

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Romans 5:1-5)

What is this gift that God has given us?

- Justification (a clean slate!)
- Peace with God, the creator of the universe
- Hope for the future
- The ability to rejoice despite difficulties
- A life free of shame
- God's love, poured into our hearts.

I can't think of anything better.

365 Days with God - Day 66: Earned or Given?

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 66, February 24, 2014

Readings: Psalm 66 Exodus 11:1-10, Exodus 12:1-30, Ezra 2, Romans 4

 What's the difference between something given and something earned? What does it matter if someone gives you $50 for doing a task, vs someone giving you $50 for your birthday?

One is a gift. One is payment.

One is expected, owed, a debt to be paid.

One is unexpected, freely given, an outpouring of love.

Jesus is a gift. God sent the very best that He has for us. No dollar tree, made in china junk for us. No, God sent His own son. We didn't earn it. We can't earn it. We can't demand payment from God for our good deeds, our prayers prayed or hours spent reading the Bible. Because even if we did, it would never be enough. Nothing we could ever do could be worth the life of Jesus, God's perfect gift. And so we must accept that Christ is something we can never earn. Something we must be grateful for.

For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness." Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness (Romans 4:2-5b)

365 Days with God - Day 65: In Spite of Us

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 65, February 23, 2014

Readings: Psalm 65 Exodus 9:13-35, Exodus 10:1-29, Ezra 1, Romans 3:21-31

Despite our wickedness, despite our depravity, Jesus came. Jesus loved. Jesus gave everything.

And for what?

You. Me. Everyone who would believe in him. Not for good people, who did the right thing. Not for the preachers and his "servants." No, Jesus came to love ordinary, messed up failures who would never get it right. Who couldn't get it right. Who knew they were hopeless. Who gave up on being perfect because they knew they couldn't do it. And he came and gave up everything for sinful, broken people like me. And it is the most glorious thing that has ever happened.

But now, the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it - the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. (Romans 3:21-26)

We are saved by God, and God alone. And it is a gift. A glorious, wonderful gift. We can't earn it. Rejoice in the beauty of the most wonderful gift that has ever been given - or ever will be. Can you share that gift with someone else?

365 Days with God - Day 64: A grim reality

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 64, February 22, 2014

Readings: Psalm 64 Exodus 8:20-32, Exodus 9:1-12, 2 Chronicles 36, Romans 3:9-20

If yesterday didn't contain enough humility for you, consider these words in light of who you are - and who God wants you to be:

"None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one."
"Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive."
"The venom of asps is under their lips."
"Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness."
"Their feet are swift to shed blood;
in their paths are ruin and misery,
and the way of peace they have not known."
"There is no fear of God before their eyes." (Romans 3:10-18)

What does God want to change in your heart?

 

365 Days with God - Day 63: Guiding the Blind

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 63, February 21, 2014

Readings: Psalm 63, Exodus 7:14-25, Exodus 8:1-19, 2 Chronicles 35:20-27, Romans 2:17-19, Romans 3:1-8

But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast in God and know his will and approve what is excellent, because you are instructed from the law; and if you are sure that you yourself are a guide to the blind, a light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth- you then who teach others, do you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that one must not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law. For, as it is written, "The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you." (Romans 2:17-24)

It's awfully difficult to be perfect. In fact, it's so difficult that only one person in the history of the world has ever done it.

This makes it awfully difficult to take a "moral high ground." There isn't any, unless you're perfect. In other areas, it's easier to defer to one who has more expertise - like my doctor. I'm pretty sure they know more about medicine than I do. But when it comes to who has moral authority...well, we're all screwed up. We all make mistakes (many of them.) So is there anything that gives us a right to judge?

I think Paul makes it pretty clear that there isn't. In fact, when I choose to judge others for their behavior (essentially, being a hypocrite), the name of God is blasphemed because of me! I have seen this countless times - God is seen as judgmental, focused on the rules, loves silly rituals, and doesn't care about human suffering. Why? Because his "followers" are those things. Those who claim to know Him cause more damage to His name than anything He's ever done that people don't like.

So what's left? First, accepting the fact that we are sinners - and the only thing we have to boast in is Jesus. We'd be dirty rags without Him. We'd have nothing to stand on, nothing to be proud of. The rest follows suit - if we can't be proud, then we can be humble. We can be loving. We can be accepting, understanding, open and honest. And then we will have an opportunity to share the truth. The truth of what God has done in our lives, and what he wants to do for others. We have to remove ourselves from the solution - because we're the problem!

365 Days with God - Day 62: No Excuse

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 62, February 20, 2014

Readings: Psalm 62, Exodus 6:10-30, Exodus 7:1-13, 2 Chronicles 35:1-19, Romans 2:1-16

Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgement on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgement of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man - you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself - that you will escape the judgement of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? (Romans 2:1-4)

That certainly didn't need any flashy, wordy intro. Hard hitting from the get go, Paul quickly tears apart those who would judge others. Yet here I sit, having judged people left and right. I compare myself to others as if I have some leg to stand on, as if somehow I'm not just as big of a screwup that's in need of God's grace.

It's so easy, isn't it? Easy for me to feel better about myself because I can think that I'm better than someone else. And it's easy to convince myself that I'm not doing it either, because I'm just wishing that they would live a more fulfilling life...like I am. Wait. Suddenly my life of comparison and judgement doesn't seem very fulfilling. It merely seems like I'm trying to convince myself that it is, because of how it stacks up in comparison to others.

But God. As so many redemption and restoration stories start in the bible, so can mine. Our God is rich with kindness, forbearance and patience. Not so that I can keep on judging, and sinning, but so I can learn, grow and change. So that I can stop judging and start loving. So that I can recognize my own predisposition to sin, and instead of trying to make myself feel better by comparing/judging, I can ask God to drive it out of me, and help me because I need help desperately. I don't have the answers. I'm not better than anyone else. But I know the God who is, and He loves me. And he promises to be the ultimate judge, the righteous one.

He will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. (Romans 2:6-8)

365 Days with God - Day 61: Beauty and the Beast

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 61, February 19, 2014

Readings: Psalm 61, Exodus 5:1-23, Exodus 6:1-9, 2 Chronicles 34, Romans 1:18-32

Our world is filled with incredible beauty, and incredible pain. The majesty of the mountains, the crashing waves of the sea, the majesty of the Serengeti. Children laughing, people serving one another, a mother's love for her children. But in stark contrast stands so much ugliness. War, drugs, slavery and more.

Despite our desire to think otherwise, humanity is the cause of all the hurt and pain. God made the mountains, the sea, and us in His image so that we could have the capability to love, to serve, to create. But we are not good by default. We are the beast.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has show it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. (Romans 1:18-25)

I won't carry on - the rest of the passage is a disturbing treatise on humanity's (you and I included) shortcomings. f you've ever seen or heard the Beauty and the Beast tale (I have 2 daughters, so it is firmly implanted in my skull) you know that there is a beast. A horrible, horrible Beast. Cursed to be incapable of love, selfish and cruel in every way, he is sequestered in his castle until the most unlikely thing happens. A beautiful young girl comes along, and shows him how to love. How to care. How to be gentle.

We are the beast. We are incapable of love, trapped in our world, unable to see the freedom that comes from giving up our love for self. God is the beauty. He enters our story, enters our dungeon of loneliness, strife and malice to bring light into the darkness. Jesus shows us how to love. How to be whole. How to be free.

I rejoice in the day that God came into my life and saved me from myself. Gave me hope. Gave me freedom. Showed me how to be different. In the story there is only one Beast, one Beauty. But God is big enough for all of us. His love extends to me, and you, and everyone else who is willing to listen. Will you listen to His whispers to your heart? His call to leave the selfishness and broken life behind?

365 Days with God - Day 60: Who are you trusting?

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 60, February 18, 2014

Readings: Psalm 60, Exodus 4, 2 Chronicles 33, Romans 1:1-17

Do you remember that scene from The Matrix where Neo learns kung-fu from a computer program that embeds in his mind? How he went from being completely incompetent to being awesome without breaking a sweat? What if you had that ability? What would you do?

Now think about your current situation. What do you do now when faced with a difficult situation that you feel ill-equipped to handle? Obviously, we don't have a computer program that downloads knowledge right to our brain (unfortunately.) So we are left with only a few options: Avoid the situation, try to learn how to work through it, or fly by the seat of our pants.

What if the situation is something God is asking you to do? Do you think you'll have any other options? Do you think it would make a difference? Do you think He is capable of enabling you to do whatever it is that He's asking?

Sometimes I don't. Sometimes I doubt. Often I think that God can't really be asking me to do that, because I don't know how to do that! In my humanity, in my desire to rely only on myself, I cut God out of the picture. I don't trust Him. I'm not willing to speak that truth, comfort that person, to be used by God. Moses knew this reality too.

But Moses said to the LORD, "Oh my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue." Then the LORD said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak." But he said, "Oh my Lord, please send someone else." (Exodus 4:10-13)

God is speaking directly to Moses, through the burning bush, and Moses still can't trust Him. Moses isn't willing to believe that God (who, by the way) made Moses, and everything in the world, can help him speak truth to the Hebrews and Pharaoh. God has promised him success - and Moses doesn't buy it.

How often do I do the same thing? How often does God ask me to serve Him in some way, and instead of obeying, instead of trusting Him, I keep saying "God, I can't do this, I don't know how, send someone else!" If He asks me to do something, will He not provide the answer? Will He not make me capable? Will he leave me to fail?

He is the God of the universe, who knows and made all things. He is more than capable of equipping me to do anything and everything He asks me to do. Jesus says much the same thing to his disciples - "If you have the faith of a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Throw yourself into the sea' and it will obey." How many of you doubt this? How many of you doubt because it seems ridiculous? If God was willing to give His own son for us, would He not, could He not cause the mountains to fling themselves into the sea to save us? God is asking for our trust, and in return, He will give us what we need to serve His purpose. What is He asking you to do?

365 Days with God - Day 59: A relentless God, a deaf people

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 59, February 17, 2014

Readings: Psalm 59, Exodus 2:23-25, Exodus 3:1-22, 2 Chronicles 32, Acts 28:16-31

Often, I wonder about the future of our nation and it's people. We are so proud, so independent, so unwilling to listen to the truth, instead, making our own. God is calling us to listen. God desires that we should follow Him, that we should hear His voice. He is not waiting with thunderbolts, but with open arms. Do we have what it takes to listen?

When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made on statement: "The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet:

"Go to this people, and say,
"You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive."
For this people's heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed;
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.'
(Acts 28:23-27)

365 Days with God - Day 58: String Theory

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 58, February 16, 2014

Readings: Psalm 58, Exodus 1:22, Exodus 2:1-22, 2 Chronicles 31, Acts 27:1-44, Acts 28:1-15

Occasionally, I ponder what is most amazing about God. What most demonstrates his limitless power. Is it the amazing universe he has made, where everything natural works together in harmony? Is it the creativity and limitless efforts of his creation, us, created in his image? Or something else?

For me, lately, it's been the amazing strategy he creates in connections and relationships. My view is limited to my own life - I know who I know, and I see only the outcomes that I have direct contact with. But God sees them all. You know that saying about time travel? That if a single butterfly was harmed, it could change the course of all history? God knows, sees, and has planned through every possibility.

Not only does he know what will happen, but he orchestrates outcomes for the growth of his heavenly kingdom. Despite our free will and mistakes, he is constantly working for our good. That doesn't mean he forces us into situations, but it does mean that he can take the worst things and create a new thread that leads to something amazing. He is not a puppet master, controlling our actions - but he is a great conductor, making beautiful music out of our disorganized chaos.

Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, "Every son that is born to the Hebrews you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live." (Exodus 1:22)

Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her young woman walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her servant woman, and she took it. When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby was crying. She took pity on him and said, "This is one of the Hebrews' children." Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and call you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?" And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Go." So the girl went and called the child's mother. And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages." So the woman took the child and nursed him. When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, "Because," she said, "I drew him out of the water." (Exodus 2:5-10)

Nobody could have seen the good that would come out of this situation. Pharaoh, in his evilness, demands a mass genocide of all Hebrew male children. If I was a Hebrew in Egypt, I would think God was lost, absent...and out of control. How could this make sense? But out of the chaos, out of the evil, an amazing rescue plan is hatched. Into the house of the very enemy that declared war on Israel goes a Hebrew child. Raised in Pharaoh's house, he will be the one who leads Israel to freedom.

So many times in my life I am willing to believe that God is out of control, and I haven't even faced anything so horrible as genocide. But instead of trusting, instead of believing that something good could come out of it, I falsely believe that I need to intervene. That God isn't orchestrating freedom for me. But I don't have the power or knowledge that God does. His ability to affect the situation, to change it for the best, is so beyond mine that it is outside of comprehension.

So am I willing to trust in myself, or can I give up my illusion of control in exchange for the ultimate control and care of the God of the universe?

365 Days with God - Day 57: Evidence to the Contrary

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 57, February 15, 2014

Readings: Psalm 57, Exodus 1:1-21, 2 Chronicles 30, Acts 25, Acts 26

Rules have power. If you can get people to follow your rules, and you can lord it over them, you have control of those people. This is the way people often use rules. Behavior modification. Speed limits are a great example of this - it doesn't address why we should go the speed limit, just if you go faster, you can get a ticket.

This is how many people view God's "rules." As God's great behavior modifiers. The problem with behavior modification, no matter who makes the rules, is that humanity thinks for itself (not always with the greatest results.) And rules that don't address the heart behind them, always become questioned, and discarded. We go faster than the speed limit because we think we can be safe. We lie because we think no one will be hurt. We don't obey God because we think it's just a bunch of rules to make life less fun.

And on the flip side, those that do follow behavioral modification rules are merely following them in hopes of attaining a reward for good behavior, or to avoid punishment. Are these great motivators? What if a reward never comes? Then the good behavior goes out the window. Is anyone really happy when they live in fear of punishment?

But God doesn't work through behavior modification, despite what we think. 2nd Chronicles has a perfect example of God's desires for us - not that we should be different for reward or to avoid punishment, but because He desires our heart to be changed. That we should long for Him.

And they slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. And the Levites were ashamed, so that they consecrated themselves and brought burnt offerings into the house of the LORD. They took their accustomed posts according to the Law of Moses the man of God. The priests threw the blood that they received from the hand of the Levites. For there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves. Therefore the Levites had to slaughter the Passover lamb for everyone who was not clean, to consecrate it to the LORD. For the majority of the people, many of them from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover otherwise than as prescribed. For Hezekiah had prayed for them, saying, "May the good LORD pardon everyone who sets his heart to seek God, the LORD, the God of his fathers, even though not according to the sanctuary's rules of cleanness." And the LORD heard Hezekiah and healed the people. (2 Chronicles 30:15-20)

I think this is one of the coolest examples of God's desire for our hearts, not our behavior. Despite the people being unclean, having not followed God for generations, God desires an ongoing, increasing relationship with them. And so, God sets aside all the rules and welcomes the lost children home. And not only does He bring them in, He heals them and throws a huge party. (Sound like a well-known parable Jesus told?)

Faith in God is not slavish adherence to a list of rules. It's a relationship. It's God's ongoing pursuit of our hearts, constantly desiring that we should return to Him. The rules are there for our benefit, to be sure (just like those pesky speed limits.) But He's not an overbearing judge. He's a loving father, who wants to welcome us home, into His arms.

365 Days with God - Day 56: Righteous Repentance

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 56, February 14, 2014

Readings: Psalm 56, Genesis 50:15-26, 2 Chronicles 29, Acts 23:12-35 Acts 24:1-27

Have you ever felt like a disappointment to God? Wondered what He thought of you? Looked at your life and thought, "There's no way he could love a messed up wreck like me. What if I'm doing all the wrong things? What if I should be doing x, but I'm doing y? Am I good enough? Does He really love me?"

Friends, there is wonderful and beautiful news for you.

No matter what, this is still truth: God sent His only son, Jesus, to die for you. Knowing exactly who you are, more than you know yourself. Knowing exactly what you've done and will do. There's no hiding of the truth from God, nothing He does not know about you. He knows everything - and He still chose to sacrifice Himself for us. For you. There is nothing you can do that would change that. And there's nothing you could do to make Him love you more.

The question still remains though - what do you do when you're feeling disconnected? Or you've never connected with God before? He has made the first move - He sent Jesus for us. He opened the door, made the sacrifice, and has invited us to join Him. In the Old Testament, the Jewish people would make a covenant with God, a commitment to love and serve Him. God had already made His commitment to the people, as He has done with us. He has committed everything to this covenant, His most precious Son. How will we respond?

In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of the LORD and repaired them. He brought in the priests and the Levites and assembled them in the square o the east and said to them, "Hear me, Levites! Now consecrate yourselves, and consecrate the house of the LORD, the God of your fathers, and carry out the filth from the Holy Place. For our fathers have been unfaithful and have done what was evil in the sight of the LORD our God. They have forsaken him and turned away their faces from the habitation of the LORD and turned their backs. (2 Chronicles 29:3-6)

When we find ourselves estranged from God, or even feeling that way - it's not because God has abandoned us. It's not because He is disappointed and is acting passive-aggressive, hoping we'll take note. No, God is there. God is pursuing us. We are the ones who have broken the connection. We have been unfaithful. He is waiting. He is waiting for us to open the doors of our hearts, and to remove the filth that we brought in.

So when you feel distanced from God, when you want to know Him, all you have to do is open the doors. Get on your knees. Pray that He would show you where the disconnect is. Pray that He would cleanse your heart, and bring you into a righteous relationship with Him. Friends, this is repentance. God loves and cares for us, and has done everything He can to bring us close to Him. It's time to open the doors.

365 Days with God - Day 55: Fruitless Endeavors

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 55, February 13, 2014

Readings: Psalm 55, Genesis 50:1-14, 2 Chronicles 28, Acts 21:17-40, Acts 22, Acts 23:1-11

Have you ever heard the saying, "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results?"

Humanity seems to be insane. Not the clinically diagnosed, mental disability kind of insane. But if we believe the words above, yes, humanity is prone to insanity. I think of how many people rely on idols, personal gods if you will, that can never fulfill their needs. The relentless chasing of wealth, of security, of our children's happiness, of our own happiness...it has never resulted in true peace. True joy. In fact, it often results in more pain and suffering.

In the time of his distress he became yet more faithless to the LORD - this same King Ahaz. For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus that had defeated him and said, "Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me." But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel. And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and he shut up the doors of the house of the LORD, and he made himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem. In every city of Judah he made high places to make offerings to other gods, provoking to anger the LORD, the God of his fathers. (2 Chronicles 28:22-25)

Ahaz experienced the same problem. He saw what others had - victory over other nations, and wanted that same power. But rather than recognizing that he was the problem, he just kept on trying to live the same way that he always had lived, kept trying to appease this god or that god, like a leaf on the wind.

What would this look like in your life? For me, it's when I just think about "if I only had this thing or that thing, if I had more money, if I was more satisfied..." Yet for all my chasing after money or things, I end up worse off. Having more money or things isn't going to make me happy, isn't going to improve my relationship with my wife or kids. It might sound like a good idea for a while, but it never lasts.

In fact, when I'm focused on things, instead of God, I often find myself scattered, just like Ahaz. He created so many idols, hoping to appease the right "god," that he missed the one God that actually matters. And if I'm always looking for the right answer to a problem, instead of looking to the answer to everything, I'm going to miss it all.

365 Days with God - Day 54: Precious

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 54, February 12, 2014

Readings: Psalm 54, Genesis 49, 2 Chronicles 27, Acts 20:17-38, Acts 21:1-16

What is precious to you? What do you hold dearly? What care do you take to protect that which is valuable in your life? Do you have it locked in a safe? Do you see it daily? Do you nurture and protect it? What did you pay for it?

There's a saying that I often find true - "Nothing worthwhile is ever easy." And I believe that it has a counterpart that is equally true - "Nothing precious comes cheap."

Did you know that you are precious to God? And that you were not purchased cheaply?

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish everyone with tears.
(Acts 20:28-31)

We were purchased for an incredible price - the price of Jesus' blood on the cross, a price we can never repay. Friends, God paid the ultimate price for our lives. We are precious. And He has called us to something greater than just a Sunday morning experience.

God knows, as Paul talked about, that anything valuable is coveted by those who would do evil. Earthly possessions are ripe for theft if we are not careful, and God's children are even more valuable to Him, and to Satan as a result. What kind of protections would you place around something that someone you love had died to protect?

Paul knew and saw the danger, and admonishes us to recognize it as well. He didn't recommend a lax security policy. He worked day and night to protect that which God deemed precious enough to die for.  Consider what kind of daily life changes you would experience if you considered your friends, your family, your acquaintances, as valuable as God sees them. How would you protect them?

365 Days with God - Day 53: The Blessing of Multiplication

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 53, February 11, 2014

Readings: Psalm 53, Genesis 47:27-31, Genesis 48:1-22, 2 Chronicles 26, Acts 19:23-41, Acts 20:1-16

Do you have kids, or do you want kids? If so, have you thought about how you will raise them? What you will encourage them to do with their life? What will you do when they're about to leave the house? Will you be excited? Afraid? Nervous?

The Israelites had an awesome tradition that I don't think we give much thought to anymore - the concept of a blessing. Both physical and spiritual, this blessing carried not only the right of property ownership (like a will), but also a calling on God to bestow His promises on the children of the father. Often, the father would encourage their children through the blessing, giving them a mission to carry out with what they had received. Let's look at Israel's blessing on Joseph and his sons, Manasseh and Ephraim:

And he blessed Joseph and said, "The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life long to this day, the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys; and in them let my name be carried on, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth." (Genesis 48:15-16)

Israel keeps this blessing short and sweet, but he hits on three key points:
- Reminds his family that God has been their protector and provider
- Asks that God would continue to provide and that they would honor Him
- Sends them on a mission to multiply

Jesus does the same thing for us in the great commission, as he is preparing to leave the earth. He calls us to know God and what He's done for us. He calls us to trust God to provide and protect us. And he calls us to grow the family of God - to the ends of the earth. Friends, our goal is send our children, and to be sent children. We have been given this blessing of God.

Even if it's years away, I want to start a new tradition in my family. I want to bless my kids when they leave our home. I'm going to write it, maybe frame it and present it to them as the leave to lead their own lives. It will probably be longer than Israel's, and I'll probably cry while writing it, extolling the love I have for my kids and who they've become. But above all it will contain these things:

- Who God Is
- What God has done and is doing for them
- Who they are
- What they can do with their lives for God

What legacy will you leave with your kids?

365 Days with God - Day 52: Known by the Enemy

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 52, February 10, 2014

Readings: Psalm 52, Genesis 47:13-26, 2 Chronicles 25, Acts 18:23-28, Acts 19:1-22

If you've been reading the last week, think back to the topics that came up - having a heart for God, motivation for doing good, and the power of God to save. God didn't adopt the Israelites, and Jesus didn't save sinners just so we could go on being the same people. He called the Israelites to be different. He calls Christians to be in the world, but not of the world. The Bible also describes the Christian life as a battle and a marathon.

When I was a kid, I loved reading histories of battles and historical fiction. One character who stuck out to me was the Red Baron in World War One. Feared and respected by both armies, the Red Baron was well known - he was a calculating strategist, an excellent flyer, and disciplined. He wasn't just another soldier amongst the thousands. He stood out.

Can you say that you stand out as a Christian?

And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them. Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "I adjure you by the Jesus whom Paul proclaims." Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit answered them, "Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?" And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. (Acts 19:11-16)

Paul is recognized by the enemy. His work for Jesus has earned him a place that even the demons know his name. These sons of Sceva are just posers! Instead of being willing to know Jesus and to walk with the Holy Spirit, they try to shortcut the process. They want the power without the battle, or the race. They want to use Jesus for their own gain.

Jesus' power, saving grace and life-changing work are not something that can be turned on and off at will. Jesus calls us to battle, calls us to run the race. You're either in it or you're not. You can't be a soldier one day and not the next. You can't claim a medal at the end of your life for a race you never entered. Jesus calls us to be all-in. Holding nothing back.

In light of these things, what does your life look like? Have you started running the race? Or are you just hoping for a medal? Are you fighting for Jesus, daily serving Him by loving others and following His commands? Or are you far from the battlefield?

This is a call to action, not a call to measurements of our good deeds. The race and the battle look different for everyone. But the question is - are you in? Is your life committed?

365 Days with God - Day 51: A Heart for God

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 51, February 9, 2014

Readings: Psalm 51, Genesis 46:1-34, Genesis 47:1-12, 2 Chronicles 24, Acts 18:1-22

Do you serve God, or do you follow man? Humanity is made to worship God - but in lieu of that, in our own wickedness, we can, and will, worship other things. We will make idols for ourselves, both physical and mental. We can even do good things, but for the wrong reasons. Can you think of any examples?

God desires for our hearts to follow and worship Him. As we discussed yesterday, He doesn't just want sacrifices, or our good deeds, for the sake of doing good, or adding weight to our "good" side. God wants our hearts to come to Him in humble thanksgiving, praising Him with word and deed for the good things He has done. It's not just the deed, it's the heart behind it. And if we're just doing it to check a box, it won't last.

And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest.

But Jehoiada grew old and full of days, and died. He was 130 years old at his death. And they buried him in the city of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, and toward God and his house. Now after the death of Jehoiada the princes of Judah came and paid homage to the king. Then the king listened to them. And they abandoned the house of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs. Yet he sent prophets among them to bring them back to the LORD. These testified against them, but they would not pay attention.

Then the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, and he stood above the people, and said to them, "Thus says God, 'Why do you break the commandments of the LORD, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken you.'" But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the LORD. Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness that Jehoiada, Zechariah's father, had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said, "May the LORD see and avenge!" (2 Chronicles 24:2, 15-22)

In his younger years, it seemed like Joash was doing all the right things. He rebuilt the house of God, and he led the people back to God. But it only lasted until Jehoiada died. How quickly Joash turned from the ways of God to the ways of man. Was God just a means to an end? Did he hope for the "health and wealth" that was promised if a king followed the Lord? Or did he just want to please Jehoiada?

We can never succeed if we do things for the sake of pleasing other people. Humanity, on a whole, is flawed. We are all sinful, and have our own agenda. When we live our lives to please others, we are worshiping someone who is not worthy of our worship, nor capable of being worshiped. God is the only good and perfect one. He is the only one who does what is right and good, 100% of the time.

A heart for God is not just a heart that does right, it's a heart that longs to worship and give thankfully to the only one capable of being worshiped. The only one who will guide us to grow in love and forgiveness. He wants us to live in the joy and peace of knowing that He is in control, and He will sustain and supply our every need. He will never fail us.

365 Days with God - Day 50: Working for Salvation

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 50, February 8, 2014

Readings: Psalm 50, Genesis 45, 2 Chronicles 23, Acts 17:16-34

Do you ever feel like Christianity is a big list of things to do? A giant, cosmic scale in which your good deeds are weighed against your bad, and your final tally is what determines your eternal destiny? Have you felt like the rich young ruler, who asked Jesus, "What must I do to gain eternal life?"

The problem with that world view, even down to the question (What must I do) is fundamentally flawed. If there was something we could do, if there was some way to earn salvation, then we would be able to wave that flag in God's face. We'd be able to say, "God, I did x+y+z=eternal salvation. You have to let me in." And if that was possible, then God would owe us something. He would be in our debt.

Let's take another tack. If God needed us to do something for him, he wouldn't really be all-powerful, would he? Man didn't invent spaceships to get to the moon for fun. We invented spaceships because we couldn't get to the moon without them. God doesn't need us to do anything for him. If he can create the universe, the world and everything in it, what need does he have for us to do things for him?

The only logical answer: He doesn't. He doesn't need my good deeds, my bible reading, my prayers, or anything. Just like parents don't need their children to be kind, loving, respectful, honest or helpful. But we love it when they are. And we love it even more when they grow up to be kind, loving, respectful, honest and helpful people (without parents around to encourage it.) Frankly, as a parent, I don't really feel any joy when my child says "thank you" if I have to prompt her. But if she says it without any prompting, I am so happy. I believe that God works the same way - what do you think?

"Hear, O my people, and I will speak;
O Israel, I will testify against you.
I am God, your God.
Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you;
your burnt offerings are continually before me.
I will not accept a bull from your house
or goats from your folds.
For every beast of the forest is mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.
I know all the birds of the hills,
and all that moves in the field is mine.

If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
for the world and it's fullness are mine.
Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and perform your vows to the Most High,
and call upon me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me." (Psalm 50:7-15)

365 Days with God - Day 49: Earthly Riches

I'm giving myself a challenge. Read the Bible each day for a whole year, following the ESV Study Guide 1-year plan. Each day, I will post whatever God has revealed to me in His Word, and how it is changing me. A friend of mine once said that nothing has changed her life as much as reading the bible each day - and I'm excited for how this will change me. Join me on an adventure into the heart of God - and day by day, we can learn more about who He is and what that means to us!

- Andy Catts

Day 49, February 7, 2014

Readings: Psalm 49, Genesis 44, 2 Chronicles 22, Acts 15:36-41, Acts 16, Acts 17:1-15

Have you ever wanted to be rich? To have all the things you want? Cars, houses, vacations, clothes...

Why do you want them?

What will they do for you?

What will you do with them?

Chances are, if you're like me, you want riches. Sounds nice. Sounds pleasant. But what would I do with them? Well, if I'm honest, most of the things on my list of "what I'd do with lots of stuff" is to use it for myself. I would drive the cars, I would live in the houses, I would take the vacations, I would wear the clothes...and when I look at it that way, me being wealthy, well, it just sounds pretty selfish.

Be not afraid when a man becomes rich,
when the glory of his house increases.
For when he dies he will carry nothing away;
his glory will not go down after him.
For though, while he lives, he counts himself blessed
- and though you get praise when you do well for yourself-
his soul will go to the generation of his fathers, 
who will never again see light.
Man in his pomp yet without understanding is like the beasts that perish. (Psalm 49:16-20)

It's definitely been said before, but it bears repeating: Wealth doesn't last. Doesn't fulfill, no matter how much the media and pinterest and everything else tells you that you're great if you're rich. In light of eternity, our 80ish years on earth are...nothing. And so is our wealth.

With that knowledge, what then shall we do? Our whole world is obsessed with money, possessions and power. Does your view of these things change when faced with God's word? Do your desires change? Your actions? Your passions? Your fears?

The last sentence is particularly telling - "Man in his pomp yet without understanding is like the beasts that perish." If we have wealth and power, but do not understand the principles of God, we are no better than animals! I believe history has shown that to be true. So - are you going to rise above? Are you going to seek wisdom and Godly passions? Or seek wealth and worldly wisdom?