“You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings love songs with a beautiful voice or plays fine music on an instrument. They hear what you say, but they don’t act on it!”
Ezekiel 33:32 Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Jeremiah, the “prophet of doom” in the Old Testament, had a personal secretary named Baruch. I don’t know if Baruch was an actual student of Jeremiah’s, or if he had just unwittingly fallen into the position for lack of anything better to do, considering the circumstances and all.
Or maybe he was looking for adventure. If that’s the case, he got a bit more than he bargained for.
To begin with, his boss was not a popular fellow. Regardless, writing down everything Continue reading “Don’t shoot the messenger!”
I would seriously stand in line at the Pearly Gates to meet Barnabas. Great name that one; I’ve read that it means “son of encouragement”. I don’t know if his parents named him that when he was born, or if it was a moniker he picked up later in life, but such a name is one of the best anyone could have, especially Continue reading “The offspring of Encouragement”
I like lentils. They’re probably not a fast moving item at the grocery, but they make a good soup. To me, lentils come in a plastic bag, ready to be washed and cooked. Never gave it much 
thought beyond that, until I read this story….
Once upon a time, David’s Israelite army was (yet again) fighting the Philistine army. That’s hand to hand combat, close encounters of the really scary and dangerous kind, but this time the face off was not among the caves or in the valley, it was in the middle of a field of growing lentils. (Pity the poor farmer.) The battle was so fierce that the Israelites all retreated…except one guy named Shammah.
Here’s the quote: “ Now after him was Shammah the son of Agee a Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered into a troop where there was a plot of ground full of lentils, and the people fled from the Philistines. But he took his stand in the midst of the plot, defended it… ” (1)
I wondered why it was significant enough to include the part about lentils?? So I looked up what a “field of lentils” might look like. Ouch. Don’t every try to fight Philistines in a field of flowering lentils. The plants grow to between 18 to 24 inches high and have branching vines, and I can only imagine what the footing would be like!
So here’s Shammah in the middle of tall, vining flora twisting around his feet with taller, fierce Philistines going for his throat. By himself. Abandoned.
Most of us can relate. We’re doing what God wants us to do, to the best we can, when suddenly all those who were fighting with us in this thing called life up and retreat. Not only do we still have to face the attackers, but the vines of depression, disillusionment and despair keep threating to make us fall right onto the enemy’s sword. We are by ourselves. Abandoned.
Well, not exactly. Like good ole’ Paul Harvey would say, here’s the “rest of the story”:
“…and struck the Philistines; and the Lord brought about a great victory.”
Interesting how one person that stands his ground plus God equals more than a whole army. In fact, just in the chapter before this story, David writes how God makes our hands ready for battle, how by our Lord we can run over a troop. (2)
Just a little encouragement. Stand your ground with God. (And try some lentils next time you’re at the store.)
To be continued….
INSPIRATION with an ATTITUDE 