All tests and trials are important and should lead us closer to God.   ~~~   1 Samuel 17:32 informs us that the shepherd boy David is standing before King Saul, volunteering himself to go and fight the Goliath. And notice the reasoning that David gives for his willingness and even eagerness to face off with the behemoth. The text says that David, in his days of keeping sheep, has encountered lions and bears, striking them and grabbing them by the beard and killing them, rescuing sheep from their very jaws. And those animals were only acting in line with their nature an according to the food chain. But Goliath is defying the armies of the living God. And at this point in the story, we often times think that this information about the bears and the lions is given to us to let us know that God gives us different tests in order to prepare us for bigger trials in our lives. Sometimes we have to face lions and bears before we are ready for a Goliath. But that is simply not how David views this. David says nothing about his own preparedness. But listen to what he does say: vs. 37 “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” What David is appealing to is not his preparedness but to God’s faithfulness. God delivered me from the bear; he delivered me from the lion; he WILL deliver me from the Philistine. This is not about David’s ability but rather God’s allegiance. God was preparing David’s heart, not his hands, to trust Him time and time again. Do you get that? All tests and trials that we face are important ones, and all tests and trials that we face should lead us to lean in to the faithfulness of God, not our own ability. Trusting in our own ability is what gets us into trouble, or what causes us great fear when we run into something that is greater than our own ability. David is not boasting because he knows how to snap necks with the best of them. David is so ever confident not in the strength of his hands to wrestle Goliath, or in his ability to be a sharp-shooter. He is confident in God. David is simply willing to be the courageous vessel that steps in front of Goliath. Are you willing to trust the faithfulness of God?

There's nothing like the cooler temperatures and leaves falling. It can only mean one thing... well, to Shaun, it means deer season is finally here! And he's amped up because he's found some signs of big bucks on the property.

We should trust God even when we can't see the full picture.   ~~~   Today is my FAVORITE day of every project- REVEAL DAY. Not only does reveal day commemorate the end of a project, today is the day I get to find out if all the blood, sweat, and tears of the project was worth it. And, I usually have my answer the second my client walks through the door. You see, anytime I’m doing a project for a client, I always request for them to leave at least some part of the renovation a surprise. So, depending on how early in the project I convinced them to walk away, reveal day will be the first time they have been back in the renovation space for quite some time. Now, I certainly understand and respect my client’s desire to stay involved throughout the renovation, but if I can convince them to walk away and leave the project in my hands for at least a portion of the renovations, I have found the following advantages: #1 They get to avoid the drama. There is ALWAYS drama and dilemmas that come up at every project. If I can convince my client to stay away from the jobsite, not only does it mean they are relieved from any decision-making, it also means I shelter them from the everyday drama that comes up. I try to only involve them if it is something that will affect their budget. As long as a solution is found and the project stays on track, they don’t need to worry about the twists and turns that take place to get the project from the before to the after. Sometimes ignorance truly is bliss. #2 I can go a little more risky in my design choices. There are so many times I get an idea in my head that I feel 100% confident my client will like, but because it is not something they have seen before or is an out of the box idea, they are a little hesitant to take the plunge. But nearly 100% of the time if they trust me, those design risks will be one of their favorite parts of the project come reveal day. For example, on this project my client knew the overall theme of this short term rental was going to have the feel of a sports locker room and he gave me the go-ahead to make it happen. But if I had told him I wanted to put OSB board- a building material that is usually hidden as wall sheathing or floor underlayment, not prominently featured as wall treatment - he might have thought I was crazy. Luckily we have worked together before so he has learned to trust me. #3 And of course the final advantage keeping the client away from the project is the longer they have been away, the more exciting the reveal! Depending on the stage of the project we were at when they made their exit, they might only have a vague idea of the overall design story and have had to rely on their imagination to picture the details. My goal is to always exceed their imagination and expectations. I find that the earlier they put their faith and trust in me for the project, the more I want to wow them in the end. As I think about these advantages to the surprise reveal it makes me think about the ultimate reveal that awaits those who have put their faith and trust in Christ Jesus. Heaven Since the beginning of creation God has chosen to reveal some things to his children while some things have remained hidden. While I could never begin to grasp the mind of Christ, I do believe that the Lord chooses to keep some things hidden from his children for the same reason I like to keep my clients in the dark during a portion of the renovation. He wants to shelter us from the drama and troubles that come with knowledge. I mean just think about it. Adam and Eve lived in a perfect, protected, and provided-for paradise in the garden of Eden with only 1 rule to follow: Don’t eat from the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Up until that first bite, God had sheltered his children from all that was evil in the world. But when Adam and Eve chose to share in the knowledge of good and evil, they forevermore deprived themselves of the paradise and daily communion God had prepared for them. Instead knowledge brought death. God continues to keep some things from us for our own good and protection. In Deuteronomy 29:29 Moses says: “The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.” In addition to our protection, some things will remain a surprise because we simply cannot understand or comprehend his plan. While I did communicate to my client that I wanted to create a locker room kind of feel in this space, it wasn’t until he saw the end result that he could fully grasp what my plan was. There are many examples of this in the Bible. When God told Noah to build a boat, do you think Noah’s human mind could begin to grasp what his future would hold? It is believed that the flood was the very first time it had ever rained. Therefore, there was no way Noah could picture the calamity the Lord predicted, he simply had to build in faith. Or think about our greatest example- Jesus Christ himself. All throughout the Old Testament the prophets predicted Jesus’ birth and life. And yet his children did not recognize him when he was born. They could not grasp that the predicted Savior of the world would carry a cross instead of a sword. That He came to serve instead of being served. While some things are intentionally hidden and others are just too big for our human minds to comprehend, if we will have faith and trust and obey the Lord’s plan, I guarantee the end reveal of eternity with the Lord our God in Heaven will be greater than anything we could ever hope or imagine. Thanks for allowing me to share another renovation with you and for joining me as we discover God’s love and restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

Maybe the reason God won’t give you what your asking for is because God knows something you don’t know.

Rather than be motivated by earthly gain, we should remember who we are to God.   ~~~   1 Samuel 17:24-27 How will the men react to Goliath’s request for a man to fight with him? Well, they react like they have the previous 40 days. They run and hide, just like their chosen one, Saul. They are broken to pieces once again, emotionally, mentally, spiritually… 40 days of being shattered and fearful! I don’t want to read too much into this, but the fact that Goliath has done this for 40 days, I think may be significant. 40 is a number of testing and trial, and at this point, Israel’s army, King Saul, has failed the test. And this is just another reason why Saul has been rejected by God as a suitable King. And the Israelite soldiers are talking among themselves about the incentive that is offered to the man, to the champion who would dare set foot against Goliath. It’s as if David is so consumed with Goliath’s blasphemy that he doesn’t hear what the men are saying, and he asked them what they have just been talking about, but he adds a caveat. He says, “What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the army of the living God? Finally, a God-centered, theological hope is expressed, a God-centered worldview is finally articulated, and this is what sets David apart. David sees reality and life and the battle before him in terms of who God is, and not in terms of who Goliath is. These are the first words that are put on David’s lips by the narrator. So far to this point, he has not spoken in the narrative, but his first words are big ones, they are the first God-words brought into the text. God’s honor and strength and purposes and covenant have not been a factor up until this point. They haven’t concerned Saul or anyone else as far as we know, so no one else has spoken of God, until now. David is the one who sets the scene of the battle correctly. “Men, this Goliath is not coming against just us. He is not just defying us as men. This man who stands outside the covenant is mocking and ridiculing and belittling the Living God and the chosen people of God. How can you just sit there? Isn’t the honor of God incentive enough to go and fight?” You see, David is not really interested in the earthly incentives at this point. He is simply confused how no one from the LORD of Hosts’ army has not gone out to fight yet. But they hadn’t because they had forgotten who they were, until now. And church, don’t forget who you are! We are the bride of Christ!

We can’t let circumstances get us down because we must focus on living life today.   ~~~   Do you know what today is? It’s my big brother Steven’s birthday! He is 3 years and 8 months older than me and I like to tell people that the day I was born was the best day of his life. We grew up preacher’s kids and laughter is our love language. We at times can be a lot to take. When we face time, it’s always an adventure and our goal in life has always been to make each other laugh. We love to laugh. Life’s too short to be so serious. My entire life I have looked up to my big brother, literally and figuratively. We’ve walked a lot of roads together and we’ve weathered many storms, but through it all, we had Jesus and each other. Since it’s his birthday today, and since all this month I’ve been sharing things I’m thankful for, I couldn’t let this day go by without giving thanks for the GIFT of each new day. Now you may already know that every single day is a gift and that if there is breath in your lungs and a beat in your heart, there is purpose for your life, that’s great! I actually count every single day a gift, but here’s the thing, you really SAVOR the gift of each new day and every moment of it when you face a life altering diagnosis. You see, my brother Steven was diagnosed in July 2022 with Multiple Myeloma. This is an incurable blood cancer. I got the call and from that moment forward, each new day with my brother is a gift. Many of those days have been hard for Steven and in turn hard for us all, but still, he has never wavered from the path set before him. While none of us are promised tomorrow and this life is but a vapor for us all, it stares you in the face BIG TIME when you have cancer. All of a sudden each new day looks quite a bit different. Here’s another bit of info about my brother, he is a Jesus Freak. From the first day he walked into his doctor’s office he wore his freak shirt, from DC Talk touring days, and his path has been lit with the love, strength and the deep grace of Jesus. He shines it everywhere he goes. Today, after countless tests, shots, IV meds, chemo, stem cell transplant and ongoing treatments, my brother is in a good place. We are grateful. But what’s been so inspiring to watch is how my brother is now more focused than ever on moving forward with each new day. I recently came across something he posted on facebook one month before his diagnosis. He was struggling. He was battling fear, doubt, uncertainty and insecurity and all of it was holding him back. He began listing self doubts and lies he was believing. He had been lacking confidence for months, but wrote that even as he was writing it all out he was beginning to feel more confident. Sometimes speaking or in this case posting the lies we believe or the excuses we are hiding behind take the power they have over us away. The bottom line was this, as he got to the end of his post, he put it out there. He shined a light on his struggle. He felt better and even declared that this was in fact a new beginning and maybe even another step toward the next chapter of his life. One month later - he received his diagnosis. Now let me tell you, my brother has never looked back since that day. His mission became clearer with each day of the journey. It’s still unfolding, but guess what, all those fears, doubts, insecurities he WAS struggling with? GONE. Now, are there new struggles, doubts and fears that creep in? Yes, but guess what, he’s moving forward with more passion, more focus and more vision for what God has set before him to do. He’s shining a light in a very dark place and he is helping others fight like a freak as well. Philippians 3:14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. My brother runs his race daily. We all do! Don’t allow lies, insecurities or fear to hold you back. Don’t allow circumstances of life or a diagnosis to hold you back. Both are deadly! Keep running and press on friends. There is a prize for those in Christ Jesus at the finish line! That’s the truth. Happy birthday brother. You’re my hero. You and Jimmy Carter. That’s an inside joke. For the precious gift of YOU and each new day we are given, I am thankful. I’m Lori Cline.

Why did Paul get bitten by that snake? No, seriously... Have you ever asked that question?

We should pay attention when we hear someone speaking against God and His people.   ~~~   This is, perhaps, my favorite section of the story of David and Goliath because of four little words we come across. So let’s get the picture. David has risen early and hurried to the army camp. He quickly throws down on the ground what he brought on near the man who is watching over the baggage, and he sprints to the ranks where his brothers were. He wanted to get an update, perhaps a story or two of some epic battle or valiant sword-fighting. And in mid conversation with them, the echo of Goliath’s vile voice is heard booming up the mountain, “I DEFY ISRAEL AND ISRAEL’S GOD! IF YOUR GOD IS REAL AND POWERFUL, LET HIM PROVE IT BY SENDING OUT ONE OF YOU!” And this is my favorite part…this is where the needle scratches off the record… where the director calls for a zoomed in shot on David’s face, because the text says, “AND DAVID HEARD HIM.” This is the turning point in the whole story! Goliath has stomped out and bellowed across the valley, up the mountain, blaspheming Israel and Israel’s God, mocking God, taunting the men. “Is there not a man in all of Israel? Is there not a champion in all of Israel? What kind of God do you serve if there is no champion?” And this went on and on and on, but this time his message landed on new ears— David heard him. Without looking ahead, what do you think happens next? Tune in tomorrow and find out!

Instead of being noisy gongs, let's strive to be beautiful melodies in the lives of others, resonating with the love and grace of God.

God provides hope and deliverance from unlikely places.   ~~~   In 1 Samuel 17:12-18 we are taken to a new scene, a dramatically different one, and we are introduced to David, an Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah. And you have to wonder, why this re-introduction of David’s family lineage? The last time we read of an Ephrathite from Bethlehem was back in Ruth 1, when we read of Elimelech, who led his family away from Bethlehem, away from God’s presence, away from faith in God. Are we going to see the same thing happen? Is this another person who is going to run away when the times are hard and the situation is bleak? The story doesn’t it appear to be very promising. Jesse is an old man, three of his sons already in Saul’s army, and David is youngest and he is just a shepherd and errand boy. In other words, he doesn’t inspire much hope at this point. All he can do is watch sheep, carry cheese, and bring back some keepsake from his brothers to assure their father that they were still alive. But we can be very quick to forget can’t we? You see, we have been let in on a little secret that no one else really knows about except Jesse and his other sons, and that is that David has been anointed King by the prophet Samuel. And we actually know even a little more than Jesse and his sons, because we know that God has said, “The LORD sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” And so far, what we have been presented in Goliath is all physical; all outward appearance. And all we know of David is that he is the youngest, the smallest, the insignificant keeper of the sheep, while his brothers are off at war. Isn’t funny and sad all at the same time how quickly we forget God’s word? His ways? Or how little we trust them? But we are about to discover why David is a man after God’s own will, choosing.

Through faith in Jesus, we are brought back into fellowship with God and can go boldly before Him.   ~~~   Moms, do you track your children? Some of you are immediately tracking with me right now with this question, while others might need a bit more explaining. You see, I like to know where my girls are at ALL times. Actually I like to know where all of my family is at all times. I do this with the ‘find your friends’ app or by sharing locations so at any given time I can look at my phone and see where my people are. If my daughters are on a field trip with their school or at an away volleyball game, I can see they made it. I can then get directions to their exact location if I need to. If my husband is traveling, I can see where he is having a nice dinner out while I am home allowing my girls to eat cereal for dinner. My sister travels a good bit and I love to check on her whereabouts often and ask her about her trip, especially that one time it looked like she was in the middle of the Arkansas river. The location was a little off. She was fine. I like to be with those I love. I don’t like times we are apart or separated. Until we are all back together, knowing where they are is the next best thing. The Father loves us even more. At creation, in the garden, man and woman were made for fellowship with the Father. Adam and Eve walked with the Lord in the cool of the day. There was perfect peace. They knew God and had no reason to doubt His love. They were FULLY alive not knowing death. They were in perfect communion and nothing separated them. After the Fall, when sin entered into the world through their disobedience, fellowship was broken. They hid. They believed a lie and doubt set in. For the first time ever, because of sin, they were separated from the Father. We are born into that same sin. Because of God’s great love for us, He made a way. Redemption and restoring fellowship was always the plan. Ephesians 2:4-5 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. God never wanted sin to separate us. He saw us and our location right in the middle of our sin and made a way to bring us back. I’m thankful for His gift of grace through Jesus Christ. It’s the only way. I love how throughout the Old Testament God says, “I will be your God and you shall be my people”. My sin no longer separates me. I’m no longer lost and far away, I am brought back home. I am His and He is mine. Ephesians 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. Through faith in Jesus, we are brought back into fellowship with God. I can now come boldly to His throne of grace. He walks with me and talks with me each day and nothing can ever separate me from His love. I can dwell in His presence and trust and know He is good. And one day he will return for his bride and we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever! He is MY GOD and I AM HIS. I am thankful today that my sin no longer separates me from God. Because of Jesus, I am not far away. I have been brought near. That’s the truth. Maybe check your spiritual location. Know where you are today. God wants you to be near His heart and made new. I’m Lori Cline.

To truly love others as you love yourself, it's essential to grasp your inherent worth and value in Jesus.

We can find time to fit Bible study in even during busy seasons like the holidays.

Treating others with respect, even when they are not respectful towards you, is a challenging but important aspect of living according to the teachings of Jesus.

Are you thankful today? We have so many reasons to be thankful, from the material things that God has provided down to the breath in our lungs.

Those who seem strongest are not always the best choice.   ~~~   King Saul stood head and shoulders above every man in Israel. He was the standout! But now another has stepped on the scene, and all the Israelites were “dismayed.” That word, “dismayed” means, broken, shattered. And the Israelites were “terrified,” which means “exceedingly afraid.” Why? Why were they shattered and abundantly terrified? Because everyone in the Israelite army, including Saul, knew deep down that their champion was no champion at all, and now they were all in a serious predicament. In the words of Doc Holliday, Saul was no daisy. At this point in the story, the air is thick with tension. Our eyes are to be wide with hushed anticipation as we await Saul’s next move. But that is not what we get. The story is interrupted to tell us about this son of Jesse who beebops on to the scene. So the story of Saul versus Goliath will have to wait until we can get through this distraction with David. And so will you!

Even a broken heart can draw us closer to the hope we have in the Lord.   ~~~   On this day of thanksgiving, it may sound crazy, but I am thankful today for my broken heart. How is that possible? I’ll give you a few reasons why. Psalm 34:18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. This is our first Thanksgiving without my Dad. For those of you who have lost parents you know the depth of emotion that brings. We’re still in the ‘firsts’ phase, you know all the firsts you walk through without your loved one being there. While we gather, our hearts are still very much broken and tender with grief, yet our hearts are also FULL of thankfulness. The Lord has been so sweetly close to our broken hearts since the day my dad took his last breath. We’ve seen and tasted the goodness of God in SO many ways. The blessings that have come through it are honestly too much to count. God’s love and grace has not only sustained us and carried us, it has saved us. I am thankful for my broken heart because I feel the closeness of the Lord. Ecclesiastes 7:2 It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart. The very last thing any of my family wanted to walk through this summer was what we walked through with my Dad. My summer plans did not originally include planning a funeral, but God was with us. Through every single step and every single detail of planning his celebration of life, our focus was on the RACE He ran for Jesus! The more we gathered pictures and stories and heard from countless lives he impacted, our grief was met over and over with gladness for what God did through my Dad’s life. On the day of the service, while yes it was a house of mourning, there was WAY more worship and celebration happening in that place! We shared Jesus. My Dad lived his life for Jesus and for anyone who was there on that day that didn’t know Jesus, it was good for them to be there to consider the condition of their heart. I am thankful for the house of mourning because it reminded me beyond a shadow of a doubt that my Dad is with Jesus and one day I will see him again. Titus 2:13 …while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, This little verse is one that has become near and dear to me. It’s toward the end of Titus chapter 2 where Paul is giving specific instruction for living a godly life so others see the gospel lived out through us. We aren’t saved by good works, but we are saved FOR good works that shine bright the love of Jesus. As we live obediently and faithfully, we are watching and waiting for the blessed hope we hold dear every single day, the triumphant return of Jesus Christ. This verse keeps my eyes to the skies. And with my Dad now in heaven with Jesus, it encourages me to keep running my race and not to grow weary while doing good each and every day, because one day, Jesus, my blessed hope, is coming again and for that I am thankful! If your heart is broken this Thanksgiving, give it to Jesus. He will be near, you will be blessed in your mourning and you will live each day forward with HOPE as you wait for Jesus’ return. That’s the truth. And because I know it’s true from experience, I am thankful. Have a blessed Thanksgiving. I’m Lori Cline.

We should not tell God what we need before asking what He thinks.   ~~~   1 Samuel 17 opens up in such a way as to send shockwaves of awe and terror upon us. The belabored physical description of this man and his armor and his weapons is meant to accomplish one goal, and that is to put us into fearful awe of this man named Goliath. He is called in the text, the champion of Gath. The term “champion” literally means “the man between.” The champion would be the man who would go and stand between the armies, the representative, and this representative of the Philistines was more than impressive, as we learn from his description. He stood over 9’ tall, which is simply difficult for us to even imagine. He wore an armored suit that weighed around 120 pounds. Add to that weighted shin guards, a javelin on your back, and a spear in your hand. The size of the spear is described for us. The shaft of it being bigger than a tire axel; no normal sized man would be able to get his hand around it, and the tip of the spear weighing in at around 15 pounds. And this man thundered out from the army of the Philistine, fearlessly making himself a bullseye for anyone, and he would shout to the Israelite army. And all of his words are meant to incite humiliation and shame upon the Israelite King, and army. “Did you not come out for a fight? Well here I am! Let’s get with it! Are we not enemies and rivals? Am I not a pagan Philistine? Are you not servants of the great and mighty Saul and the God of Israel? What are we waiting on then? Choose a man for yourselves! Let’s get it on!” Goliath is saying, “We have chosen our champion, our man to stand in between. Where is your man that you have chosen?” And all of these words should send us back somewhere in our minds and in the text. Hasn’t the nation of Israel already chosen a man? 1 Samuel 8:19 “There shall be a king over us, that we may also be like the other nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles!” Isn’t this exactly what they have asked for? A Champion? A man to stand between? And in 1 Samuel 12, Samuel reminds them in verse 13, “And now, behold the king whom you have chosen, for whom you asked; behold the LORD has set a king over you…” We are being reminded on the front end of this episode of the foolishness of the people in selecting for God a king for themselves. May we not be so quick to tell God what it is we need, before we ask Him what He thinks.

The really cool thing about placing our faith in Jesus is that we can have this excitement and joy year-round. How?

Putting our faith in Jesus is the greatest decision we can make.

Christ had to pay our debt because we could never pay it ourselves.   ~~~   As we finish up 1 Samuel 16, we are beginning to learn that, once again, God provides what we need and what we need is a king on whom the Spirit rests, a king that is radically and faithfully and completely obedient to the Holy Spirit. And that King is Jesus! He is our Great Leader! We are not waiting for another. He is the fulfillment of the promise of an eternal King. And we are those who follow. But there is a way to follow Him. The game changer for first century church was the coming of the Holy Spirit to indwell believers and live through them this life of discipleship. The same Spirit that came and resided in them resides in every believer today. Romans 8:11 “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” The sports commentator said that the right quarterback is worth whatever price you have to pay to get him. The price is too high for us. We cannot purchase our way to having Christ as our king. We do not have enough moral or spiritual currency. You can’t pay with debt. But what makes Jesus a great King is that He was willing to pay the price on your behalf.

Special Guest: Heith Mitchell

When God guides us to where He wants us to be, it’s up to us to follow.   ~~~   Have you ever asked yourself, “what is God’s will for me”? I think it’s safe to say we all have in some form or fashion. What’s my purpose? What’s God’s plan? THAT’s where I want to be! We pray. We wait. We seek. We want to experience God in our life, but to do that we must first understand that the story isn’t about us at all, it’s God’s story and He lovingly created us for it and invites us to be a part of it in HIS timing and HIS way. In our first year of marriage, my husband and I worked through the study, Experiencing God, written by Henry Blackaby. We were both fully committed to the Lord and we had already seen God at work in our lives individually and as a couple, so moving forward we didn’t want to miss a thing He had for us. If you’ve never worked through the study, Blackaby walks through seven realities of Experiencing God. They are: God is always at work around you. God pursues a continuing love relationship with you that is real and personal. God invites you to become involved with Him in His work. God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes, and His ways. God’s invitation for you to work with Him always leads you to a crisis of belief that requires faith and action. You at times must make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing. You come to know God by experience as you obey Him and He accomplishes His work through you. My husband and I have been married almost 30 years. I can look back over the years and tell you, we have experienced God in so many ways that I don’t ever want to NOT experience God. Now hear me say, this study, like any other, is simply a tool. But, God did use it to deepen our awareness of seeing where God was at work as well as our desire to say YES to His invitation to join Him, wherever that leads. Throughout the seasons of our lives together, God, through His word, His grace and His spirit, have led us and walked with us in and out of each one. Some seasons were exciting and full of mountaintop moments while others were painful and full of questions. Still, we walked on and He walked with us through it all. All throughout scripture we see the same. Men and women, in places and times throughout history, used by God to fulfill His plan. Mountain moments, valleys and everything in between, but God at work all throughout. Exodus 3:1-4 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush,“Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” This burning bush moment for Moses was just the beginning. Go read chapters 3 and 4 of Exodus and you’ll get the full story, but what we see is Moses wasn’t too eager to say yes, but God had a plan. In the end, Moses was faithful, so much so, that in the Hebrews 11 ‘hall of faith’ chapter, Moses’ experiencing God moments take up more attention that any other. You see, the beauty of being where God wants you to be is that most the time, you divinely end up there, then it’s up to YOU to walk by faith and obey in the steps that follow. That’s the truth. I’m thankful for opportunities to say yes. I want nothing more than to be where God wants me to be, doing what He would have me do in each moment of every day. Watch for where God is at work. It could be a simple act of obedience right in front of you. Don’t miss it. I’m Lori Cline.

A good leader recognizes that they still need God to guide them.   ~~~   Last week ended with Saul having a tormenting spirit upon him. Unfortunately, this will not be the last time we read of Saul and a harmful spirit. It will be a recurring theme throughout the remainder of his kingship. But instead of humility and repentance, Saul grows more paranoid and spiteful. But here is the wild thing. David himself will face his fair share of hardships. He will face plenty of nights of depression and torment himself. But he does something Saul never did. He examines his heart. God is the one, the only one who can provide what we need. The world cannot. And what we need is a King obedient to, captured by, the Spirit of God. And that is what the LORD provided to Israel in David. And we will see in the coming weeks that David really is a man of war, a man of valor, and that the LORD really was with Him in a mighty way. But David himself knew that he was not Israel’s ultimate answer. He knew a greater king was to come. This is why he said in Psalm 110:1 “The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.” David recognized that he himself needed a king, a Lord to reign over him, one mightier, more powerful, a greater warrior, of greater valor. And oh how that original audience must have longed for another King like David, a leader, a champion of whom it could be said, “The Lord is with him!”

You don’t have to have a perfect setting and environment to study the Bible.

Our time on earth is temporary, so we should use it to make disciples.   ~~~   Welcome to another episode of Storybook Homes. Today, I’m standing in a vacant commercial rental space that in a few short months will be home to a local media marketing firm. Right now, it is just an empty shell, but I have been tasked with the job to design a space that will accommodate more than 50 workstations with room to add additional desks as the company grows. This empty space represents a couple of things to me. First, it represents potential. It’s essentially a blank slate just waiting to be transformed into the ideal space for my client. If there had been a bunch of walls already erected in this space, my client might have had a hard time figuring out how their company could work within the given parameters. But since it’s wide open, there are no barriers to work around, they can utilize the space however best suits their needs. It’s also a reminder that this space is temporary. The conditions of the lease state that any walls erected have to be temporary, so that if the next tenant does not want the walls they can be easily removed and returned to the empty shell. This works well for my client because they have plans to build their dream office in a few short years and they view this space as just a stepping stone to their permanent home. Knowing they don’t plan to be in this space long, they have requested the majority of the budget and design to be focused on things they can take with them to their permanent space. This not only includes furniture and decor, but they have also opted for moveable room dividers to separate office spaces instead of walls. I’ve not done anything quite like this before so, I’m looking forward to the creative challenge. This empty space reminds me of another empty space that we read about in the bible. The empty tomb. The place where Jesus was laid to rest after his death on the cross is not special because it was an empty burial spot. It’s special because of what that empty tomb represents. It represents the ability we now have for our sins to be removed and to live with Christ in heaven, forever. If Jesus still occupied that tomb, we would still be relying on the law to temporarily atone for past sins with no real hope of ever living up to the standard God requires. But, because Jesus is no longer in that tomb, it proves that he once and for all conquered death and sin. If we believe in him and trust him to remove our sins, we too can live blameless with the Father in heaven. That empty tomb is also a reminder that our time on earth is temporary. Jesus came to earth, died, and left the tomb empty so that we could live permanently with him in Heaven, not on earth. In Hebrews 13:14 we read: “For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come.” Jesus encouraged his followers to look beyond the temporary toward the permanent. During the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus preached: “Don’t store up treasures on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy and thieves do not break in and steal.” While this marketing firm knows they will only occupy this space for a short time, that doesn’t mean they put their work on hold until they can move to their permanent space. Rather they will make the most of their time in this space to grow and expand their company to ready themselves for their bigger, better permanent location. The same should be said of our time on earth. After Jesus abandoned the tomb he gave his disciples the following instructions for living out their temporary time on earth as they awaited their permanent home: “Go, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the ends of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20. If you’ve never put your trust in Jesus and asked Him to forgive your sins, let me encourage you to do that today. And if you have been saved by His grace, let’s live out our time here on earth as he commanded. Thanks for allowing me to share another renovation with you and for joining me as we discover God’s love and restoration for our lives here on Storybook Homes.

We shouldn’t go to God to feel better while still doing whatever we want.   ~~~   The world uses God as a means to an end, instead of God being the end. We see next that Saul listens to this advice and says, “Provide for me a man who can play well and bring him to me.” One of the servants speaks up and makes a suggestion: “King Saul, I know a guy. Really good musician, man of war, man of valor, well-spoken. And the Lord is with him.” Saul knows exactly who the servant is speaking of and sends a messenger to Jesse and says, “I would like to have David for a bit in my service.” So David comes. And when Saul is being tormented, David plays, and Saul is refreshed, the harmful spirit leaves. All is well, right? What could be so wrong with this? Music therapy really does seem to be the answer. Wrong. What is happening here is Saul is using the anointed one of God as a means to an end. Once again, mercy is brought into his palace, and he rejects it. How so, Clif? Think about this for just a minute. David, the writer of many of the psalms, the sweet psalmist of Israel. David is playing these songs, these praises to Yahweh, but Saul is simply using David to get to a better mental state. Saul is having some of the greatest theology being sung over him, and he uses it to soothe his soul for a minute, but not surrender the totality of his life to the LORD. If you want to be religious, the world allows that, so long as God is used as a means to a different end other than God himself. What does this look like in our day? It looks like your faithfulness to prayer, the Bible, the church when there is a crisis in your life, but when everything simmers down, you go back to your normal routine of ignoring the LORD. You have in front of you and all around you the songs of God, the word of God, the people of God, yet you use God like a vitamin shot to make you feel better, and you will come again when you start to feel bad. You use the means of God to fulfill your great end, and that is to get you to a place where you can function again according to your will and ways. Saul’s life will play out in disaster. He will still function like a king, but it spirals and spirals out of control. And you can function in this life because you will look just like the world. You won’t think anything is wrong, but it will end in everlasting disaster. So don’t play here. Recognize that this is a dangerous game you are playing. No Saul, you are not supposed to use God as a means to feeling better so you can run His kingdom how you want to.

There’s a profound lesson to learn from Elijah.