ODJ: the love song of God
The Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty Savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With His love, He will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs (v.17).
READ: Zephaniah 3:14-17
I t’s Saturday afternoon at Birkenhead Point, a small park on the Parramatta River in Sydney, Australia. Parents play with their toddlers, seagulls fight over fish-and-chip wrappers, and my wife and I sit listening—our ears attuned to the couple.
They are maybe late-40s. She sits quietly, enraptured, gazing into his eyes. He leans casually on his left arm . . . and sings to her.
In his own tongue, without caution or shame, he offers his beloved a sweet love song. In the beauty of that moment I glimpse something divine.
The book of Zephaniah depicts a great and terrible day of the Lord (1:7, 3:8). God may be kind to the “unthankful and wicked” (Luke 6:35-36), but there will come a time when God’s patience will come to an end.
In Zephaniah’s day, God’s people were bowing to the pagan gods Baal and Molech (Zephaniah 1:4-5), whose worship often required prostitution and child sacrifice. Israel had become corrupt and rebellious, her prophets and priests arrogant and profane (3:4). God’s wrathful judgment, declared Zephaniah, was coming—and not just on her but on all the nations of the earth (1:2,18, 3:8).
And yet Zephaniah foresees God bringing something beautiful out of that dark day’s rubble—a people drawn from all nations who wholeheartedly love Him (3:9-13). To this people He will be like a bridegroom who sweeps up His bride, takes her home, delights in her, and sings to her. “He will rejoice over you with joyful songs” (v.17).
To His creatures, God is Creator and Warrior. But how many of us who love Him see God as beloved Singer—a God of affection with a love song on His lips? —Sheridan Voysey
How do you normally picture God—as Creator, Father, Warrior, or ____________? How might your life change if you were to think of God as Lover, and yourself as His beloved?
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Loading ...ODB: where history comes alive
November 6, 2009
READ: Exodus 13:14-16
When your children say to you, “What do you mean by this service?” . . . you shall say, “It is the Passover.” —Exodus 12:26-27
The movie Night at the Museum portrays the humorous experiences of a security guard at a natural history museum. The excitement begins for him when the displays come to life at night.
Inspired by this movie, directors of a real museum created a similar experience. The staff portrayed historic figures such as knights in armor, Victorian ladies, and Egyptian royalty. When children arrived at the museum, they were told that the people in the exhibits had come alive and needed to be led back to their proper place. As the children responded, history came alive for them.
Children need not be bored by history. This is especially true of Bible stories. Take Moses, for example. He escaped death as a child, was educated as a prince, worked miracles, and received the Ten Commandments on tablets. What exciting story elements that teach children about God!
Biblical stories have been shared with children for generations—all the way back to the times of Exodus (ch.12-13) and Deuteronomy (ch.6). Moses described times when children were retold vital stories from Jewish history.
Why not set a time to read Bible stories to the children in your life? Then watch their excitement as biblical history comes alive! — Dennis Fisher
The Bible’s treasures are found by those who dig for them.
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