Reluctant Retiree

Samuel was a prophet chosen by God to judge and lead Israel. But the people wanted a king, so that they could be like the other nations. In desiring a king they were rejecting God as their king. Saul was chosen to be their king. He was tall, handsome and strong, all the desired qualifications of an earthly leader. But Saul turned out to be a disastrous king as he sought his own glory and reward. God rejected Saul and chose David.

When looking for the next king, the people fell into the same trap by focusing on outward appearance. God reprimanded them in I Samuel 16:7; “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.'”

Good looks, tall stature, charm, abilities, awards and popularity do not earn the Lord’s favor. Instead, He looks for good hearts of love, peace, joy, kindness, gentleness and grace to bless, save and honor. It is easy to seek the acclaim of the crowd, but it is far more wonderful to receive the Lord’s favor. Giving our hearts to Him to mold into good hearts is the means to obtaining His favor.

Abraham’s story is told in the first book of the Bible, Genesis, and retold by the apostle Paul in the New Testament book of Romans. God spoke to Abraham and told him to move to a land that he did not know. Along with these instructions, God gave Abraham a promise. Abraham was told that he would become the father of a great multitude of people, too many to number.

Abraham was about 75 years old at the time and his wife, Sarah, was probably somewhat younger. In addition, they had no children to this point. Abraham believed God and moved his household. God tested his faith occasionally and did not immediately fulfill His promise. In fact, Abraham and Sarah had to wait 25 years for God to give them a son. Abraham’s faith did not waiver.

Paul wrote about Abraham with these words; “For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.'” Abraham was saved by faith, not by any good works that he may have done. God counted him as righteous based upon his faith. The same is true for us today. We can be saved and counted as righteous by God through faith. So why delay? Believe God and be saved!

All of us have experienced our share of rejection. They said “No” when we applied for the job of a lifetime. She said “No” when we casually invited her to coffee. The bank said “No” when we applied for the loan to save our business or buy our dream home. Rejection comes in many forms and from many voices. Rejections do more than take the wind out of our sails, they can send us into a spiral of despair and defeat.

Many people already feel like God has rejected them. They see no evidence of blessings in their lives. They do not hear His voice. They feel alone and fearful. Read these words of Jesus from John 6:37; “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”

But you say that you are too bad for God to accept you. Read the verse again. Jesus said that “whoever” comes He will “never” cast out. But you say that you have rejected Him too many times. Again, Jesus said that “whoever” comes He will never cast out. There is nothing about you that Jesus doesn’t already know. And yet, He invites you to come to Him and He will receive you and never cast you away from Him.

Please accept His invitation to come to Him! He will never reject you.

Do you remember the days before GPS? We used to rely on bulky and awkward maps to get where we wanted to go. Sometimes we were given verbal or written directions from someone who said they knew how to get there. Then there was always the backseat driver who always claimed to know the way. Unfortunately all of these guides were often misleading.

When I am walking on nature trails, I count on the trail being clearly marked so I can stay on the path and not wander into danger. Only one time recently did we misread the trail markers and get lost. Hiking is easier with a guide and good markers.

Jesus promised to be our guide through life. If we allow Him, He will be our shepherd and lead us to green pastures. He wants to be our light in the darkness to show us which paths to take. If we are His children, He promised that we will hear His voice so that we can follow Him. But He does put a condition on these promises when He says in Matthew 16:24; “If anyone comes after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

Just like any other guide, we must follow Jesus in order to receive the promises of guidance, light, green pastures, and hearing His voice. This requires that we subjugate our own choices to His leading and take the sometimes hard path that He leads us on. However, the rewards of following Him are wondrous, full of love, and eternal. Please choose to follow the all-knowing and everlasting love of Almighty God.

Every time I look into a mirror I find something else that I want to make better. These days I see the absence of hair, at least hair where I would like more of it to be. I find sags and wrinkles that I want to firm up. Dark spots appear unannounced and unpredictable. My eyes look tired and weak. Some of these deficiencies can be improved, but I think that sometimes it may not be worth the effort at my age.

When I examine my character I also see areas that I want to improve. I see times when I should have been more kind and loving. My self-examination reveals many instances where patience was called for, but I reacted strongly. At other times I was judgmental rather than gentle and meek. Unlike physical changes, changes to my character are always certainly worth the effort.

But how can I achieve these improvements? When I try to do this on my own terms, I have always failed. I need help to change my character. II Corinthians 3:18 says, “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

Real character transformation comes only through God’s Holy Spirit working within us. He will not force these changes upon us. We must ask Him to transform our hearts, minds and spirits and give Him permission to change what should be changed. These changes are sure to be glorious.