the power in the few

Genesis 18:32 Finally, Abraham said, "Lord, please don't be angry with me if I speak one more time.  Suppose only ten are found there?"  And the Lord replied, "Then I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten."

The power and voice of the many drowns the smaller force and voice of the few, most of the time.  But that does not mean that the few are in the wrong.  In fact, I suspect that most people are likely to try to stick together, for better or worse, like a herd of mustangs (or perhaps wild pigs).  When we strive more to blend in than to orient with the Lord there is little chance to make a real difference.  As the Lord was about to execute judgment on Sodom for the sin of many in that place, Abraham interceded on behalf of the few who were attempting to live the right way.  It can take great courage to be in the minority, but it is good to remember that God plus one is the only majority any individual needs!

blessings,

Rob Smith

faith and assurance

Genesis 15:⁶ And Abram believed the Lord, and the Lord counted him as righteous because of his faith.

⁷ Then the Lord told him, "I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession."

⁸ But Abram replied, "O Sovereign Lord, how can I be sure that I will actually possess it?"

God made some wonderful promises to Abram for his life and the lives of many descendants to follow him.  Abram believed God and as a result God chalked up righteousness to Abram's account.  But Abram needed some assurance.  This is true today, as well, in our walk with God.  He makes promises to us for life, for forgiveness, for eternal life.  When we believe God's word we are counted righteous...but we may still need assurance of that.  And, just as God provided that assurance to Abram through the story that follows these verses, so He still provides that assurance today.

Romans 4: ²² And because of Abraham's faith, God counted him as righteous. ²³ And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn't just for Abraham's benefit. It was recorded ²⁴ for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. ²⁵ He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.

blessings,

Rob Smith

rainbow

Genesis 9:12 Then God said, "I am giving you a sign of my covenant with you and with all living creatures, for all generations to come.  I have placed my rainbow in the clouds.  It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth.  When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds, and I will remember my covenant with you and with all living creatures. Never again will the floodwaters destroy all life."

We had a beautiful rainbow on display Sunday evening, following a day of rain.  Having just read the above account I was struck with the very present and ongoing reminder we have of God's commitment to us.  There is something stunning and supernatural about a rainbow.  Its appearance is more than beauty.  It is a message and a seal and a promise that God has been keeping for a long time.  Only the maker of light could break light down into its separate colors and display them against the backdrop of a moisture laden sky.  And He far surpasses any pot of gold at a rainbow's end.

blessings,

Rob Smith

the choice

We meet many people in the early chapters of Genesis.  The account generally provides a name of a man, his age when his first son is born and how long he ultimately lived (and before the days of Noah they lived 800-900 years).  But two characters were treated with a little more detail.  Enoch and Noah did a little more than live, give birth and die.  They walked "in close fellowship" with God.   The quality of their lives was different and Enoch lived 365 years and then he was taken by the Lord, without dying.  Noah was the only righteous man of his time and when God was ready to wipe out all mankind due to corruption He decided to start over with Noah and give man one more chance.  So, I was wondering, why did Enoch and Noah walk in close fellowship with God.....and then it hit me.  They walked closely with God because they chose to.  They chose to acknowledge Him properly and yield to Him and love Him and each day they would see the presence of God as essential to their daily experience.  Their lives were wrapped in the reality of the God who is the Father of all that is real.  And we have the same choice, regardless of what the vast majority seem to do and to be.  We can choose to walk in close fellowship with God too!

Genesis 5:²¹ When Enoch was 65 years old, he became the father of Methuselah. ²² After the birth of Methuselah, Enoch lived in close fellowship with God for another 300 years, and he had other sons and daughters. ²³ Enoch lived 365 years, ²⁴ walking in close fellowship with God. Then one day he disappeared, because God took him.

 

blessings,

Rob Smith

three centers

I have decided to read through the Bible, a couple chapters a day, in the New Living Translation.  Having read the first several chapters, a few thoughts have bubbled up.  The discussion of Creation made me think about "centers".  It seems like there are centers for people, solar systems and universes.  I thought of three centers that are still part of our reality.  The sun is the center of our solar system, where earth is only one of several planets.  Earth seems to be the center of God's Creation, from the perspective of the Bible and the greenhouse for His experiment in life.  But the third center is the one we wrestle with most as people...it is our personal center.  From the earliest days of man it seems we have wrestled with the question of what rules our inner person.  God wanted to be at the center from the beginning and He made that clear by providing all that was needed for life, but Adam and Eve wanted to push God out of center and eat from the tree that would give them all knowledge, so that they wouldn't need Him.  I think this "battle for the center" is still our greatest conflict...but when properly resolved leads to our greatest peace...when a spiritual x-ray of our center shows our trust in the Creator.

Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. ² The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.

Genesis 3:3 The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the Lord God had made. One day he asked the woman, "Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?"

² "Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden," the woman replied. ³ "It's only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, 'You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.'"

⁴ "You won't die!" the serpent replied to the woman. ⁵ "God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil."

⁶ The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. 

blessings,

Rob Smith

afterglow

There is a time just past sunset

...conditions may arise

That cause your head to turn up West

and gaze at painted skies

The light of day has traveled on

To others in midday

But left behind is afterglow...

Reminding of His grace

That even when He seems to leave

His beauty is still there...

The glory of the sun so great

We cannot watch the light

He paints the clouds with loving care

That afterwards we might.

Psalm 65:8 

Those who live at the ends of the earth
    stand in awe of your wonders.
From where the sun rises to where it sets,
    you inspire shouts of joy.

blessings,

Rob Smith

bark

We enjoyed the beautiful, white-barked aspen trees of Colorado's mountains last week.  My nephew Michael explained that carving messages and initials in the bark is very common and popular because the bark preserves these personal messages in the mountains.  This morning, back home at the pond in Virginia, my eyes were drawn to the scaly bark of the large pine trees we have.  I thought about the purpose of bark.  Like our skin, it protects the inner life-carrying vessels from harm.   It helps the tree retain water and insulates against extreme temperature change.  It is porous and allows the tree to breathe and, like a scab on a wound, it protects against disease from invading.  It is also the outermost part of the tree and helps us to identify each kind of tree.  I think of the protection provided by our Lord.  We are delicate and the workings of life are as sensitive as they are essential.  He covers us with protection to allow life to grow...to be healed...to be insulated from radical harm.  Yet, His protection allows us to breathe individually and to mature in height and flower and fruit...and in Him our identity is truly marked.  And in our bark...He has etched His name...and He will return down this mountain path and find us.

Genesis 28:^{15 "}What's more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you."

blessings and love,

Rob Smith

the final garden

I know a young lady who lost her grandfather a few months ago.  Before passing away he planted a final vegetable garden in his yard, as was his annual habit.  The garden was left untended after he died and weeds seemed to take over the plot.  His wife had often scolded him for not properly weeding the garden in the past.  Recently the granddaughter and other family decided to see if their were any vegetables that might have survived the weeds.  To their surprise they found the most bountiful production of tomatoes, ocra and other crops than the garden ever produced.  It was a touching re-connection to the deceased grandfather.   It seemed amazing that his garden was bearing a fresh crop after the gardener had died.  He left a legacy of life.  I was reminded that this is the opportunity that we all have in Christ.  Death is not the finality.  When we have been planted with Christ, the fruit of our lives will show in others and the harvest of life will go on.

Exodus 23:¹⁶ "Second, celebrate the Festival of Harvest, when you bring me the first crops of your harvest.

"Finally, celebrate the Festival of the Final Harvest at the end of the harvest season, when you have harvested all the crops from your fields."

blessings,

Rob Smith

feeling small

When we were in the Rocky Mountain National Park on Monday, we took the Ridge Road which rises to about 12,000 feet above sea level and crosses the Continental Divide (the point where water decides if it will flow east to the Atlantic or west to the Pacific).  We were above tree level...that is, no trees grow above about 11,000 feet.  The world seemed to all be below us and massive peaks surrounded us.  Great valleys opened up, either in gentle folds where we saw elk grazing, or fell sharply below our sight into beds of pine topped trees.  The air was rarefied and clean and there was a peace that caused you to just stop, for a moment.  It was a very large experience and I felt very small.  It was a good thing to feel small and be reminded that there is One who formed that setting...who also formed me.  I was in the presence of some of the finest sculpture from the Master's hand and the scale of His gallery humbled me (and now I have come back to my sea level home, content to know that I am also one of His pieces of art...but, even more, His child).

Genesis 49:26 

May the blessings of your father
    surpass the blessings of the ancient mountains,
    reaching to the heights of the eternal hills.

with love,

Rob Smith

foot placement

We climbed a trail in the Rocky Mountain National Park on Monday for a few hours up and a few hours back down...saw some great views of a mountain stream (The Alluvial Fan) breaking down and over rocks and we wound our way up through white bark aspen trees.  The path was well defined but full of loose stone, pits, gravel and small streams.  You had to keep your eyes fixed down as you walked to place each step with care.  Periodically we would break out in spots with broad vistas of high mountain peaks and we even spotted a waterfall in the distance.  But most of the time, up and down, we had to keep our eyes fixed on the next step we would take.....seemed like some kind of metaphor for living...fixing carefully on the next step to be taken in order to eventually appreciate the beautiful bigger picture.  It was especially meaningful to make this hike with some of the closest people in the world to me...again some kind of metaphor for living...not for ourselves alone, but with others to enjoy and share the view!  (with special thanks to Michael) 

open country

We just arrived in Colorado for a brief family time with all of our daughters and others to celebrate the wedding of a nephew.  Waking up in Colorado you can't wait to rush out and catch a view of mountains...which are visible from my daughter's neighborhood.  The mountains are my first association with Colorado and we look forward to seeing much more while we are here.  But this morning, on a short walk, the overwhelming sensation I had was of being in "open country", where the air is clear and the sky is bigger.  It seems to help you think in a fresher, more expansive way when you are enveloped in such an open setting.  I was reminded that this is what it is like to walk in Christ...He is Open Country for my whole being!

Psalm 78:

²³ But he commanded the skies to open;
    he opened the doors of heaven.

blessings,

Rob Smith

the back door

Evil doesn't enter by the front door.  That would be too obvious.  It doesn't announce to our conscious, alert, guarded mind that it intends to direct us to go its way.  We are ready for anyone who comes to the front door with a knock or ring of the door bell and we certainly won't allow evil to get past us that way.  So evil sneaks around back and finds a window left unlocked or a back door he can jimmy open.  He doesn't come in with a welcome.  He simply enters and lurks and looks for vulnerable prey after sizing up the valuables in the home.  He isn't interested in taking wealth to spend it elsewhere...he simply wants to take what isn't his and cause damage and destruction.  Evil is real.  Just as Good is real.  Evil is the expression of God's enemy, the devil, who is the antithesis of God.  Rather than giving life and creation, granting purpose and peace, the devil wants to destroy what God has fashioned and take away hope and peace.  We have seen evidence of evil in recent tragedies in Colorado and Wisconsin and Arizona last year.  This has been evidence of evil coming in the back door of individual minds, finding vulnerable territory to exploit and gaining horrific influence.   By its nature, evil is irrational.  We are at a loss to explain its action apart from a rebellion that has been playing out in the spiritual dimension across time.  We all have "back doors" and we need to be vigilant for unwanted intruders.  We also need to find spiritual wholeness in the Lord and maintain spiritual health.  The manifestation of evil should not surprise us, but neither must it consume us.

1 Peter 5:⁸ Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. ⁹ Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. ¹⁰ But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

blessings,

Rob Smith

searching for life

NASA has successfully landed a vehicle on the surface of Mars over the past few days.  In an amazing display of engineering and design this payload was lowered through the atmosphere of the planet and delivered better than any Fedex or UPS service.  The mission of the craft will be to look for evidence of carbon and other elements that support life on what appears to be a desolate terrain.  As we go out into our day we won't have to look hard to find evidence of life.  Here, in lush Virginia, we have more life than we know what to do with, with fungus, insects and weeds as well as dense forests and animals, both wild and domestic, of many kinds.  But we have a mission, too, just like the Curiosity (the Mars vehicle).  Our mission is to carry the message and the reality of the living God throughout our day.  The Mars vehicle receives signals from Earth that direct its search and analysis of soil, air and surroundings and then the vehicle transmits findings back to Earth.  We send and receive signals from Heaven that guide us, keep us on track and receive our transmissions of joy, fear and need.   As we roam through our day we also look for signs of life...eternal life...in others.  Have others discovered the reality of the God who formed nature...the God behind the life that surrounds us and the planets that ride above us?   Will we find evidence of eternal life today?  One day, when Christ returns...will He find evidence of life here?

Luke 18:⁷ And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? ⁸ I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"

blessings,

Rob Smith

going for the gold

The Olympics comes only every four years for an athlete.  It represents the opportunity to become the world's best in a particular aspect of sport, on a global stage.  There is personal glory and national glory...and this is sealed with a gold medal.  A few athletes have claimed gold medals across more than one Olympics.  This year Michael Phelps has earned gold in his third summer game.   By definition only a few athletes become gold medal winners, although that is the quest of each one.  As children of the eternal King we each have the opportunity of "going for the gold" and winning the gold, as well.  And this event plays out each day.  The race begins as we arise and select a focus for our hearts and minds for the day we are in.  When we purpose to center our attention, our concerns, our hungers, and our expressions of thanks and all other human needs and emotion on God, we will capture the Gold.  There is no podium here and no media coverage will be associated with the victory.  But there was One who allowed Himself to be raised on a podium unlike any other about 2,000 years ago, that we might claim this Gold, in His name.

1 Peter 1:⁶ In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, ⁷ that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, ⁸ whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, ⁹ receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.

blessings,

Rob Smith

standing

Sometimes we just need to stand and gaze out over the water or landscape.  We remember that, despite the ups and downs of markets, economies, politics and personal circumstance....there is a constancy about our God that allows us to flourish in our inmost being.  There is, at the core of living, a quiet place that no storm can touch.  In that quiet place we rest in the lap of our Maker...and all is well.

John 16:^{33 "}These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

new paths

It is easy to keep to the main roads and well worn paths that carry us through most days.  We are familiar with their destinations and comfortable with the landmarks and sights along the way.  But we have seen exits never taken and we have spied side-paths never walked and we have wondered what new sights might be seen and what new destinations might be found.  We should not stray or follow harmful temptation, but the Lord may want to call us to a new path at times.  It is then that our walk of faith will confirm that the One who has made every right path will always be found in the sights and in the destination.  We are not wise to follow every path, but there are times when the One who makes a path will also call us to meet Him in the road less traveled.

Psalm 16:11 

You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

blessings,

Rob Smith

from earth to eternity

Man is the one creature designed to begin existence on earth but to continue living in eternity.  All of life around mankind provides for his needs and glorifies the Creator...but man was made to make the transition from the natural form of living to the supernatural.  We will retain our identity even as we change form and experience.  Our earth bound side is preparatory for the eternal dimension.  It is the determining time of our destiny.  We all share somewhat similar natural lives but some properly make the connection to recognize their maker and embrace their redeemer at the intersection of the Cross.  Others ignore or reject Him and avoid the Cross and the work of the Savior.  But, it is clear that God has built us to have a relationship with Him that begins in this dimension and continues in the next.   Earth is our launchpad and Heaven our destination.

1 Corinthians 15:⁴² So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. ⁴³ It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. ⁴⁴ It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.

blessings,

Rob Smith

Promises across generations

Only God can keep a promise over multiple generations.  A man might make a promise and keep it during his lifetime.  A nation might draft a constitution and try to protect it over time.  But only God can absolutely promise and fulfill for generation after generation.  That's because He is the God of eternity and He rules over the passage of time just as He rules over the course of events.  We would do well to get to know and to honor this promise keeper.   His promises impact every person, whether they acknowledge Him or not!

Genesis 12:⁷ Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, "To your descendants I will give this land." And there he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 

blessings,

Rob Smith