quiet time

This picture was taken at Caleb and Joshua’s birthday party a few weeks ago (Caleb was about to go for his second time on the roller coaster). We were at Adventure Park for a little over three hours and had a blast. As the day went on Caleb told me that he couldn’t stop smiling. He screamed with delight riding the roller coaster, spun in the whirl-a-hurl, and was shot with water canons in the bumper boats. Â It is a wonderful feeling to know that as a parent you have orchestrated something that is truly bringing your kids happiness.

Matthew 7:7-11Â â€œAsk,Â and it will be given to you;Â seek, and you will find;knock, and it will be opened to you.Â 8Â For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.Â 9Â Or which one of you, if his son asks him forÂ bread, will give himÂ a stone?Â 10Â Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?Â 11Â If you then,Â who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more willÂ your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

I love to give my children good things, and to bring them joy. It is unlike any feeling that I have ever experienced. The Bible is true that I am evil, make mistakes, and will fail more times than I succeed. But what a joy to know that God, my (perfect) Father, delights in blessing His children with “good things.” It’s not about getting more stuff, but the relationship. God knows what you need, and He delights in giving it to you — but he desires the relationship so He requires that you ask. He does not give you what you need from afar, He delights in seeing your face, talking with you in the cool of the day, and hearing from your heart. His delight is you and your relationship with Him.

I went on the roller coaster with Caleb, I go to the beach on vacation and build sand castles, and I sit beside him in Cub Scouts. I delight in my relationship with my son (and all of my children). It brings my heart joy to know that God does the same thing (but infinitely more) when He thinks of me as His child. Â Go and spend some time with your Heavenly Father today, He is waiting with a smile on His face.

We live in a culture that seems to shun predictability as being boring, or even pensive. Culture says we should be unpredictable, spontaneous, and carefree. In Daniel chapter six we find the famous story of Daniel and the lion’s den. Daniel’s co-workers couldn’t stand him, and they had gotten some inside information that he was about the be promoted (over them). What was it about Daniel that with each new king, and each new turn in his life, something enabled him to move up, and up, the political ladder?

The newest king (Darius) desired to put him over the entire empire. We see that when his enemies desired to point out his flaws, but they couldnâ€™t find any, â€œthey could find no ground for complaint or any fault, because he was faithful, and no error or fault was found in him.â€

Daniel didnâ€™t come in to work late, he stayed his entire shift, he did his job with excellence, and he always did a great job. When they observe his job performance, there is nothing there they can point to as being inadequate, negligent, or faulty.

In our lives, one of our most powerful “witnessing tools” (church word meaning; “to tell of Jesus”) and way of showing our God to be mighty is how we perform our jobs. Do we work with excellence day after day, year after year, (Daniel was over 80), or do we do just enough to draw a paycheck? Or is our work performance based on how we are treated at work?

Along with his faithfulness to his job, was his surpassing steadfast devotion to his God. Daniel was so habitual in how he worshipped that they were able to craft a plan specifically based upon this faithfulness. If Daniel had not been faithful in his prayer and worship life, then their plan would have fallen apart. Are we so faithful that plans can be made against us? Are we so faithful to our quiet time (church word meaning, “to study God’s Word in a quiet place”) that everyone knows where to find us and what we will be doing.

Man, I love Daniel, but he is a man whose presence is very convicting. Sometimes we just don’t like to be around these kind of guys (or read their books) because they are so faithful that it makes our unfaithfulness really stand out. Let me encourage you today in your walk with God, to pray and ask God to show you where you could be more faithful and predictable in the things of God. Instead of focusing on how others seem to be more faithful than you, focus on Christ and seeking to please Him with your life. It’s ok to be predictable, faithful, and steadfast.

A Father’s Delight

How Predictable Are You?