Good Morning All!!
1 Kings 18:30; “Then Elijah said to all the
people, “Come near to me.” And all the people came near to him. And he repaired
the altar of the Lord
that had been thrown down.”
We had a pretty good crowd of people at our house last Sunday. It was the Baptism of the newest grandson,
Cole. It was a fun time for everyone
until our oldest grandson; Blake had his first experience with a folding chair.
He wanted his dad to slide him closer to
the table, as he did he pinched his finger in the chair. Blake screamed, his uncles yelled that his
finger was pinched, dad went white. Then
dad recovered, lifted him up from the chair and sat down in a different
chair. Mom came over with an icepack and
they comforted him until he quit crying.
Soon the trauma passed and everything went back to normal. He was comforted and all was good.
Our verse is all about comfort.
The people of Israel had been led astray by their king and were
worshipping false idols. The prophet
Elijah had just destroyed the false idols and the false priests. The people were lost, frightened and not sure
which way to go. So Elijah spoke words
of comfort. “Come near to me.” The people were in fear but God used Elijah
to calm them and to comfort them. Then Elijah
did something that is of great importance; he rebuilt the altar of the Lord.
If you are experiencing events in your life that are painful, God is
telling you to “come near to me.” God
never left you rather you may have wandered from God. You may even know that you are a long ways
from where you need to be. Yet God continues
to call you to “come near.” He wants you
to come near to him so that you can rest in his arms. He invites you to come near to him so that
you will be protected from the assaults of the devil. He wants you to come near and live in his
gracious kingdom.
Many of us find ourselves wavering or waffling in and out; close to God
and then far from God. When God calls
you to come near to him, rebuilding your altar to Him is an important part of
coming near. You need to restore a time
to spend in God’s Word. Read Scriptures,
read a devotion, spend time in prayer, spend time in worship, and join together
with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
God’s comfort is always being extended to us; his love never fails. Yet we get greater comfort and experience his
mercy when we stay connected to His Word, when we rebuild the Lord’s
altar. Spend time with the Lord; it will
give your spirit hope, peace and rest.
Father,
your mercies are new each day and roll over us like a river. Keep me in your grace. Keep me secure in your love. Move me to desire to remain close to you. Keep my eyes focused on your Words of
love. Give me the wisdom to always trust
you. Send me your Spirit that I may
serve you in your holy kingdom. In the
precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret
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