Leap Year Wisdom

February 29

(Psalm 18:29 ESV) “For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.”

(Malachi 4:2 BSB) “But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and leap like calves from the stall.”

(Isaiah 35:6 NIV) “Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.”

(Luke 6:22-23 NIV) “Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil because of the Son of Man. {23} Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For their fathers treated the prophets in the same way.”

On this “Leap Day” when our calendar works to catch up with God’s creation timing, let’s think about leaping in Scripture. Psalm 18 testifies that with God’s help we need not fear our enemy’s strength, for we have the strength of God in us. And with His strength, we can face down an army or leap over a wall if need be. Malachi and Isaiah remind us that as believers, we carry the joy of the God’s Spirit within us -- a joy that leaps like a calf set free from a stall on a summer day, and even over fences like the bounding deer. This kind of Holy Spirit joy can power us through the valleys of life. And our Lord and Savior, Jesus, teaches us that we can even leap for joy in times of persecution, just as the prophets and so many of the righteous have done throughout the ages. For when we are hated, excluded, and insulted because of His name, great is our reward in heaven. So, Happy Leap Day, Christian! – Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

Public Praise

February 28

(Psalm 26:1-12 NIV) “Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have led a blameless life; I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. {2} Test me, O Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind; {3} for your love is ever before me, and I walk continually in your truth. {4} I do not sit with deceitful men, nor do I consort with hypocrites; {5} I abhor the assembly of evildoers and refuse to sit with the wicked. {6} I wash my hands in innocence, and go about your altar, O Lord, {7} proclaiming aloud your praise and telling of all your wonderful deeds. {8} I love the house where you live, O Lord, the place where your glory dwells. {9} Do not take away my soul along with sinners, my life with bloodthirsty men, {10} in whose hands are wicked schemes, whose right hands are full of bribes. {11} But I lead a blameless life; redeem me and be merciful to me. {12} My feet stand on level ground; in the great assembly I will praise the Lord.”

David would have probably been an unpopular singer today. In our current cultural environment, he would have been seen as self-righteous, smug, and condemning - the great trinity of “no-no’s” for modern Christians. But isn’t David’s desire to lead a blameless life and publicly praise God really a fulfillment of today’s WWJD slogan? Didn’t Jesus lead a blameless life and publicly praise God at every opportunity? Didn’t He allow God to test and examine His heart daily? Whether or not we can accomplish this ourselves is immaterial. Should we not at least try? So rather that lampooning David, look again at his claim about living above the common sins of his day. Isn’t that an admirable pursuit for the believer? Look again at his willingness to praise God in public venues. Doesn’t this challenge our timid and tepid witness of today? One can see why David was called a man after God’s heart. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day     

Getting the Right Help

February 27

(Psalms 25:1-14 NIV)  “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul; {2} in you I trust, O my God. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me. {3} No one whose hope is in you will ever be put to shame, but they will be put to shame who are treacherous without excuse. {4} Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; {5} guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. {6} Remember, O Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. {7} Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O Lord. {8} Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. {9} He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. {10} All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant. {11} For the sake of your name, O Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great. {12} Who, then, is the man that fears the Lord? He will instruct him in the way chosen for him. {13} He will spend his days in prosperity, and his descendants will inherit the land. {14} The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them.”

Often our problems aren’t really too big; we just don’t get the right help in solving them. David made a lot of mistakes, but he always came back to God. He always returned in repentance and renewed his covenant with God. We can learn from this. He turned to the right source for help. Ten times in Psalm 25 he appeals to the Lord. He asked God to show him the way, teach him, and guide him. He also confessed his sins and shortcomings. Confession is not for God’s benefit; it’s for ours. Naming our sins takes away some of their power over us. Sins brought into the light grow weaker day by day. David also asked to be forgiven. He asked God to forget his sins. He appealed to God’s nature; His mercy, goodness, faithfulness, and love. He lifted his soul to God. He put his hope for salvation in the Lord. These are wise moves, even today. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day  

Problems, Problems, Problems

February 26

(Psalm 25:15-22 NIV) “My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare. {16} Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. {17} The troubles of my heart have multiplied; free me from my anguish. {18} Look upon my affliction and my distress and take away all my sins. {19} See how my enemies have increased and how fiercely they hate me! {20} Guard my life and rescue me; let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you. {21} May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you. {22} Redeem Israel, O God, from all their troubles!”

(John 16:33 NIV) "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

Even great people in the bible had problems. Jesus promised that in this world we would have trouble. We get caught in the hidden snares of life. Addictions, greed, envy, anger, bitterness, temptations, grief, relationships, depression… all kinds of things can snare us and keep us from being free. Loneliness can kill our soul even as we are surrounded by people. Afflictions, sickness and disease often come in bunches as life piles on us. Our hearts can become deeply troubled. Problems multiply like cancer cells, overwhelming our ability to fight them off. We end up living in anguish and distress; pain that cannot be cured by medication. Enemies can rise up out of nowhere. They increase in number and strength until our defenses give way. If any of this applies to you today, cry out to God for protection and rescue. Only Jesus can save us. Take refuge in Him. Put your hope in the Lord. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day  

Getting a Soul Lift

February 25

(Psalms 25:1-3 NIV) “To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul; {2} in you I trust, O my God. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me. {3} No one whose hope is in you will ever be put to shame, but they will be put to shame who are treacherous without excuse.”

(Ezekiel 43:4-5 NIV) “The glory of the Lord entered the temple through the gate facing east. {5} Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.”

In almost every Christian’s life, there are days and weeks - sometimes even months and years, when it feels like everything you’ve done has been done for nothing. Looking at it from this side if eternity, our lives can many times appear to add up to big fat zero. During these times, we can get really down on ourselves, on life, and on God. And if we’re not careful, we can see so much more negative than positive that we give up and quit. These are the times in life when we need a soul lift. We need to lift our soul to God, and we need God to lift our soul from the pit of despair and discouragement. With all the cosmetic surgery available today to lift this and lift that, maybe we ought to consider going to see the great physician for a soul lift - the sooner, the better. Why not today? Ask God to give you a soul lift. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

The Top of the Hill

February 24

(Psalm 24:6-10 NIV) “Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, O God of Jacob.”{7} Lift up your heads, O you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. {8} Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. {9} Lift up your heads, O you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. {10} Who is he, this King of glory? The Lord Almighty-- he is the King of glory.”

(Revelation 3:20) “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”        

Jesus, the One who laid the foundation of the world, also laid a foundation for the salvation of all mankind. Getting to the top of that holy hill and standing in God’s presence brings blessing beyond compare. But how do we get to the top of the hill? First, we must seek the Lord. In our generation, in our lifetime, we must realize we are lost and inadequate. Unless we swallow our pride and begin to seek God with all our heart, we have no hope of ever ascending that holy hill. We must also look up and trust God to open the gates of heaven for us. We do not have the strength to do this on our own. And finally, we must open up. We must open up and let Jesus come in. Before we can stand up, we must fess up, look up, and open up. In order to ascend the holy hill and stand in the presence of God, we must let the King of glory come in. The King of kings is knocking on your door. Let Him in. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day

A Standard Too High

February 23

(Psalm 24:3-5 NIV) “Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? {4} He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false. {5} He will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God his Savior.”

(Romans 3:22-24) “This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, {23} for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, {24} and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

“Who may stand in the presence of God?” Psalm 24 answers the question in one verse with four conditions. We must “clean hands”; hands that have not sinned. We must have a pure heart; a heart that has never even thought of sinning; a heart that never entertains unclean thoughts, never lusts, never gossips, never acts in anger, never dishonors the Creator. We must have never lifted up our soul to an idol. Anything we give our hearts to instead of Jesus, can be an idol. Careers, sports, sex, power, music, internet, money, and even children, become idolatrous if they take our eyes off the Lord. And we must have never told a lie. Wow! The standard is just too high. None of us can ascend that holy hill to stand in God’s presence. We will need help. And our holy God of grace provides a way. His name is Jesus. Follow Him up the hill. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day 

A Most Important Question

February 22

(Psalm 24:3 NIV) “Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place?”

(Hebrews 9:24-28 NIV) “For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence. {25} Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. {26} Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. {27} Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, {28} so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

Psalm 24:3 asks a most important question: Who may enter into the presence of the Lord? Ascending the hill of the Lord and standing in His holy place are about entering into God’s presence. The question is disturbing, for it implies that there are some who will not or cannot stand in God’s presence. This angers those who do not want anyone, including God, to judge them. How dare God exclude me! How dare He exclude anyone! But God is not affected by our arrogance or our anger. He is the Lord. The Earth and everything in it belong to Him. He makes the rules. God asks this same question in many different ways throughout scripture. He does not want us to be in the dark about the answer. Over and over again He provides us with the answer, if we will open our hearts and minds to it. Jesus is the Answer! -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day 

The Foundation Stone of Faith

February 21

(Psalm 24:1-2 NIV) “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; {2} for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.”

(Genesis 1:1 NIV) “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”

Often we need a reminder that we are not in charge and that thinking we were in charge is when messed up our life. Most of us don’t come to God because we feel adequate; we come when we realize we are totally inadequate. We come in desperation and He takes us in. He loves us as sons and daughters. And we discover that great truth that everything belongs to God because He made it. The Christ of Creation is the foundation stone of faith. God made it all and owns it all. That includes us. This is why the world today works feverishly to discredit the creation story of Genesis. If they can discredit belief in God as Creator, then God has no claim over it or us. He has no claim on our lives. If God is not the Creator, the rest of scripture is suspect. If the earth is not the Lord’s, we are free to behave as we want, live as we want, and do as we want. We bow to no one. -- Friar Tuck’s Word of the Day