Press the arrow to listen to Gateway Worship sing “God of My Days” as you read today’s devotion about children.
Scripture And they placed the king upon the royal throne. 2 Chron 23:20
Observation
The king’s name was Joash and his feet did not touch the floor. He was just eight years old and already he was king. The great chair swallowed him up as his little legs dangled.
King Joash shows us the value of one little child. God had promised his grandfather David a line to last forever. But all of the heirs to the throne had been murdered. Just one tiny baby was left. The hefty rope was now reduced to just one thread. But because of that single fibre named Joash we have Jesus, salvation and the church today. That’s how valuable one child is.
Dwight Moody came home one night from preaching. His wife asked how many had come to the Lord. Moody replied, “Two and a half people.”
Mrs. Moody smiled and said, “You mean two adults and a child, don’t you.”
“No,” replied Moody. “Two children and one adult. The man has already used up half of his life to serve God, but the children have all of their life yet to live.”
Application
When I am blase about children I need to look and see the man inside of their eyes and the woman inside of their smile. I must anticipate their potential.
Prayer Father, help me to get it as you make it. Help me to see that the kingdom is about being a child. Help me to look under the feet of the power play and see the children at play. That’s where the power lies. Help me to see it like you see it. Amen.
Press the arrow to listen to Aaron Shust sing “Give Me Words to Speak” while you read today’s devotion.
Scripture Jesse’s first son was Eliab, his second was Abinadab, his third was Shimea, his fourth was Nethanel, his fifth was Raddai, his sixth was Ozem, and his seventh was David. 2 Chronicles 2:13-15
Observation
Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Solomon and John all had one thing in common: they were the youngest in their families. Even the Apostle Paul was something of the last born among the disciples. It wasn’t kosher for God to do much with the youngest, that was legally left to the eldest brother. But occasionally, when God wants to do something unique, he starts at the bottom.
So many expectations lay at the feet of the oldest child–from getting teeth, to losing them, from first steps to first days of school–everything must be done first and best. The other children all take their place and fit well into the family norm.
Just when life becomes predictable in comes the youngest child. He frustrates the oldest with his carefree jaunt through life. He colors outside the lines and marches to a different drummer. Occasionally this tag-a-long child catches the fancy of God and miracles happen.
Why does it surprise us when God behaves like God? Sovereignty means that God is full of surprises. Had it been up to the nitpickers it would have been King Eliab. Doesn’t that sound safe and boring! King David was a shocker at the time, but God liked it so much he had it written as the last human name mentioned in the Bible. God is unpredictable.
Application
If a man of God could be made of the baby of the family, then there is hope that God can use any of our lives for things unexpected. We should never let the yawning predictability of life keep us from the extraordinary. The Lord who led nations with little brothers has surprises in store for our days as well.
Prayer Father, take my life and do something interesting. Amen.
Press the arrow to listen to Nichole Nordeman sing “Legacy”
Observation
What is the first piece of advice that a father would give to his son going off to college? Leisurely days of childhood suddenly accordion into the last moments before a young man’s departure from home. As he stands at the airport gate, there is so much to say and so little time to say it in. Often in the last sentence before hugging his boy goodbye a father will whisper one last word of advice. He tries to cram so much wisdom into that moment. As his son disappears into the jetway he wishes that he had said more, sooner.
David spoke final words to his son, but they were not rushed sentences before take off. Before he departed the father/king took time with the crown prince to prepare him to lead. Those intimate conversations are recorded for us in Proverbs 1, as Solomon remembered the talks his dad had with him. In Proverbs 1 is the lesson David felt was most important, because it is first. The lesson is simple: choose your friends wisely. But the application David had in mind was not as simple.
David said to avoid two kinds of friends.
First, avoid the sinner as a friend. Here is how David described the sinner:
They may say, “Come and join us.
Let’s hide and kill someone!
Just for fun, let’s ambush the innocent!
My child, don’t go along with them!
Stay far away from their paths.
…These people set an ambush for themselves;
they are trying to get themselves killed.
Such is the fate of all who are greedy for money;
it robs them of life. Proverbs 1:11, 15, 18, 19
What is the sin that is so appealing to a young man? It is the desire to get money for nothing, to be clever, and to pull a fast on those who are older. Sinners will appeal to those basic urges, scamming and being scammed. In David’s day it seemed to be something akin to mugging. In our own, I think it could be any dishonesty that rips others off. The securest money is earned little by little, through hard work, that meets the needs of others, and offers quality at a fair price. Ethics like this endure because they are what make enduring people.
Second, the simpleton is not a good friend. Here is how David described him:
How long, you simpletons,
will you insist on being simpleminded?
How long will you mockers relish your mocking?
How long will you fools hate knowledge?
For simpletons turn away from me—to death.
Fools are destroyed by their own complacency. Proverbs 1:22, 32
The simpleton, to himself sounds clever and wise. But to those who are wise with God’s wisdom, a simpleton has the sound of a sarcastic cynic impressed with the sound of his own voice. It is odd that simpletons are oblivious to their simple mind. A simpleton feels smugly superior, but because he listens to himself and not the Lord he is really a fool. These are to be avoided as friends, because their advice will mislead.
Who then should be the friend of a young man? David’s answer is surprising. He did not recommend any human being to be young Solomon’s friend. Instead, David said, “Make the Holy Spirit your best friend.”
Wisdom shouts in the streets.
She cries out in the public square.
Come and listen to my counsel.
I’ll share my heart with you
and make you wise. Proverbs 1:20, 23
Lady wisdom who cries in the streets is none other than the Holy Spirit of wisdom. A young man must learn to hear her voice, not in the quiet solitude of his room, but in the noisy place of business in the streets. If a man can learn to hear God’s voice while others are talking then that man has become a true friend of the Holy Spirit.
Application
The best advice a father can give his son is to make the Holy Spirit his best friend. It is not a father’s job to advise his son for the rest of his life. Instead, he is to introduce his son to the voice of God. Once trained to hear the voice of God for himself and to respond to it, a son is set for life. I pray today that my son will know the Holy Spirit as his best friend.
Prayer Father, I have only a few months left with Levi. Help us during that time to learn together how to hear your voice and respond. Amen.
Worship as you read this devotion by pressing the arrow. Song: Desperation Band Here In Your Presence
Scripture Jesus asked his disciples, “What were you discussing out on the road?” But they didn’t answer, because they had been arguing about which of them was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve disciples over to him, and said, “Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.” Then he put a little child among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, “Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me….Mark 9:34-37
Observation
Imagine a man who came to the end of his working life, who counted on the nest egg of thousands he had squirreled away, and with the withdrawal of his money he discovered that it was all saved in Monopoly Money. That currency may work for a few hours to play a board game, but it is worthless in the marketplace. A worker could have millions saved in Monopoly currency but he would be a pauper because it is the wrong kind of cash.
With one little child, Jesus showed the disciples that their spiritual bank accounts were stuffed with worthless bucks. They had been saving Kudos Money, which gets its worth from being in on the inner circle and close to the leader. The closer they rode to Jesus in the bus the more valuable they thought they were. Since Peter, James and John were allowed to peek into heaven at the Mount of Transfiguration, there had been lots of jostling for rank on the road. The disciples thought they had it figured out.
With one little child, Jesus showed the disciples that the dough was at the end of the line and not at the front. It is clear that in the ministry of Jesus, children were never peripheral. Jesus center staged children. He pushed past adults to bless them. He applauded their playful songs through the holy Temple. He even took time to look in the pockets of a little boy and perform a miracle with his lunch. In all of the Old Testament there is no other leader who noticed children. Jesus stands alone as treasuring children; it is with the little ones that he has placed the value.
Application
I wonder if most children’s ministries in churches are in the basement or back rooms because Jesus wants to test us to see if we value what he values? I don’t think this means that everyone must be a Sunday School teacher, though it wouldn’t hurt! It does mean that we need to constantly readjust our sense of significance. Working with children recalibrates our scale of values. The disciples squeezed in close to Jesus because of their insecurity. They were not confident in the Father’s love for them, so they were unable to risk the lonely places at the back of the crowd. We will value what Jesus values when we become stable in the great love of God for us. We need to be sure that the money we are saving is real money, that what we are living for is really worth having forever.
Prayer Jesus, I know that you really love the children and in loving them I will become more of what you need me to be. So Lord, help me to see where the goods really are. The treasures of the kingdom are not always on the platform or the boardroom but in the basement Sunday School rooms where you wander and wonder with children. Amen.
Another song from the Watoto Children’s Choir is featured at the end of this devotion.
Scripture The next day we went on to Caesarea and stayed at the home of Philip the Evangelist, one of the seven men who had been chosen to distribute food. He had four unmarried daughters who had the gift of prophecy. Acts 21:8-9
Observation
Philip was a headline evangelist. His scrapbook was filled with yellowed clippings from his heady revival days. But none of the faded images of the revival in Samaria or the framed picture of Philip with the Treasurer of Ethiopia compared with his family album. In the end his the Bible, Philip was not remembered for a great church or events but for his four kids who honored the Lord.
It is so like Dr. Luke to include this snippet story about Philip in his history. Luke had a particular interest in how women fared in the early church, and while the inveterate researcher stayed at Philip’s house he would have quizzed him long into the night about the early days.
In a world focused on the achievements of men, Philip is a rare exception of a man who developed the hidden potential of his daughters. They were more than domestic backfill, these were women who could speak up and speak out for God. Their greatest achievement was their ability to hear God’s voice and to communicate his voice. What a legacy for a man to leave behind him!
I watched every moment of the funeral of the late Ruth Bell Graham. Billy was seated in the front row. His jet black hair and angular features were now whitened and rounded with age. What was most memorable to me from the funeral was the very last event. Dr. Graham was ushered out and his five children were strategically positioned at the exits of the church to speak to the guests who had come to honor their mother. Billy Graham has spoken in person to more people on the planet than any other Christian and quite likely than any other human being. Yet in the end what is remembered is family.
Application
What matters most in my life is not what can be recorded on a resume but only in a photo album. If I lead my life well what will matter most are not churches, sermons, or even changed lives but my children.
Prayer Father, help me to actively and passively make a difference in the lives of my children today. Amen.
Scripture But Joseph was upset when he saw that his father placed his right hand on Ephraim’s head. So Joseph lifted it to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head. “No, my father,” he said. “This one is the firstborn. Put your right hand on his head.” But his father refused. “I know, my son; I know,” he replied. “Manasseh will also become a great people, but his younger brother will become even greater. And his descendants will become a multitude of nations.” Genesis 48:17-19
Observation
Joseph was like any father, he wanted the best for his sons. He hoped for the right schools and college, boy scouts, little league, and varsity sports…well at least Egyptian style. In Egyptian culture the first born son was nothing short of a demigod. Manasseh would have slept in a special raised bed, unlike his little brother Ephraim who had a mat on the floor. Manasseh was the designated favorite. Bursting with pride in his first born son Joseph hurried his boys to grandpa’s house for a final blessing before he died.
Joseph wanted the best for his sons, but God wanted what was right for them. What Egyptian culture said about the destiny of Mannessah was not God’s plan for the boy. Ephraim would be given more responsibility, not because he was loved any more, but because it was what fitted his potential. The boys were different and God used their differences to please him.
Application
Jacob was relaxed about the unpredictable ways that God uses people, so the old man went with God’s flow. I want to be relaxed about the uneven blessings of God as well, for my children and even for myself. God uses people differently but loves each of us totally. If we can become secure in his love for us then we will be comfortable with the differences in life outcome.
Jacob in a sense said that all people are great. “Manasseh will also become a great people,” he said. This implies that it was not as if one boy were superior and the other inferior, instead they were just different. If I can accept God’s uneven ways I can come to bless those like me who are used in more remarkable ways. I can come to accept the uniqueness of the way that God uses me.
Prayer Father, I chose today to base my security not in my life outcome but in the fact that I loved by you. You bless me because you love me. That blessing is different for me than for others because I am unique. And because I am unique you love me differently than all the rest. I thank you that each of us is so greatly loved we would be excused to think we were the only ones on earth loved by you. Thank you for the unevenness of life, for it shows me that you know me personally and give me what fits me best. Amen.
Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s house, then the LORD will be my God. Genesis 28:20-21Observation
Three times in his prayer Jacob used the word “if”. “If” he said, “if…if…then.” It was an iffy prayer. Jacob would not call the Lord his God until God had proved himself.
His attitude was very different from his grandpa Abraham. Abraham followed promises not explanations. Jacob wanted evidence first. I’ve heard it said that by the third generation after a great religious revival that the grandchildren of those who were saved in the revival build successful lives but have little interest in a heartfelt relationship with the Lord. The first generation know the Lord face to face. The second know the Lord through obligations and rituals. The third generation glean all the benefits of godly living in education and business but they leave the Lord behind.
Unless first a child, or grandchild, loses his parent’s faith and finds his own. Jacob was on a journey that would do just that. He would be swindled, wrestled, and hassled, but years later he would return to Bethel and acknowledge the Lord as his own God.
But he could have taken a better road back to Bethel if he had inverted his prayer. He could have prayed:
Since the Lord is my God, I trust him to watch over me, to give me what I need to live and to bring me safely back home. Abraham lived life that way and could know God as his friend. Jacob prayed iffy prayers and didn’t even know God’s name.
Application
I want to scrub the word “if” from my prayers. It annoyed Jesus. He said, “‘If you can!’ All things are possible for those who believe.”
Prayer Father, because you are my God, bring your kingdom today. Especially be with my children that they may know you face to face and not second hand. Let them find you as their God. Amen.
I'm Phil McCallum, a husband, father and most of all one of the people Jesus loves. I'm privileged to serve Evergreen Community Church in Bothell, Washington as Senior Pastor where people love enough to believe "it's all about relationships." In 1982 I made a vow to read God's word daily and apply it to life. Each day I write out my reflections. Some days I post those on my blog. It's a little personal but it's my hope it will stir you to go deeper still. Learn how I do my devotions. These are my thoughts and not necessarily those of the ministry I serve. By the way check out the computer study Bible Glo. I highly recommend it.
Babies being born all over Evergreen Community Church. Congrats to Pastor Josh & Jamie for Jayden. Also Eric and Deanne for Ian. Lots more. 5 hours ago
My 2009 Favs
These devotions have been most important to my 2009.
