Jump Start # 3036

Proverbs 21:1 “The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He wishes.”

This is a special Jump Start. I have never written anything like this. My heart compels me to not be silent. As I write these words, the city of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, is being assaulted by powerful Russian forces. Most did not think we would ever see a nation invading another nation in our modern times. It is scenes of Germany in 1939. The citizens of Ukraine are digging in and preparing to fight to their death. Images have appeared of whole families holding weapons, preparing to fight and fathers kissing their children goodbye at train stations, knowing there is a good chance that they will not live to see them again. And, the world watches.  A tyrant and a bully is literally killing innocent people. There are beloved brethren within Ukraine. Indeed, troublesome times are here.

Our verse today is powerful. God dealt with Pharaoh. God took care of the Philistines. God defeated the Assyrians. Babylon. Greeks. Romans. Biblical history has shown that our God cannot be defeated. We do not know His purpose in all of this. But our passage reminds us that God can turn hearts. He can turn the hearts of kings then, and He can turn the hearts of world leaders today.

I ask you this day to take just a moment and do some serious praying for our world.

• Pray for our brethren in Ukraine that they will be safe.
• Pray for the courage of those fighting for their countries freedom.
• Pray that God will change the heart of Russian Putin.
• Pray that God will change the heart of the world’s leaders as they watch all of this.
• Pray for our own hearts that they will be governed by the will of God.

There is a very strong chance that things could become much worse before they get better. Hardships in our economy and the difficulty in assembling together may be a reality. Let’s take care of each other. Let’s be there. This is not a time to trash talk politics but a time to pray.

Let’s remember our dear beloved like Antipas in Revelation 2, Stephen in Acts 7, or Daniel in the lion’s den. More important than money in our accounts, is the salvation of souls. Our children and grandchildren are seeing the evidence of a world that is broken and in need of Jesus.

The Bible ends with these words, “Come, Lord Jesus.”

Will you pray?

Roger

Jump Start # 722

Proverbs 21:1 The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the LORD; He turns it wherever He wishes

This is a great verse to remember. Sometimes we feel as if we are helpless and cannot do anything. We are just a lowly citizen who does not have armies at our disposal nor the power to make laws. The king does. The king, as history has shown, can be harsh, cruel and violent. But we have one thing that is greater than the king, we have God. A God that can do things.

The passage is am image of a person who puts their hands in a creek. As it flows over the hands, the person can move the water. This illustration is showing what God can do to the heart of the king. God can move it. The king may not even realize that God is over him and moving him, but God does.

There is no power greater than God. There is nothing that God cannot do.

This verse reminds us that we need to be praying. Praying that God moves the hearts of those in authority is something that we ought to do on a regular business. The laws that the kings make impact God’s people. They can make life and worship easy or difficult. History has shown different rules that have outlawed the worship of God. They made following God very hard. Persecution of God’s people often were a part of those wicked kings.

God is upon the throne. He always has been. Even when Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den, God was upon the throne. Even when Herod ordered the murder of baby boys, God was upon the throne. Even when God’s apostles were struck down, God was upon the throne. Death doesn’t stop the will nor plans of God. Sometimes hard times and dark days are used to teach lessons and to build character.

God turns the king’s heart. Do you think that God can turn your heart? You and I are not kings. We don’t make laws. We don’t order troops into battle. Our hearts are not as important as the king’s heart. Yet in many, many ways, it is. It is to God. The book of Acts tells us that God opened the heart of Lydia, a simple business woman who heard the gospel.

God can turn hearts, especially those that are good and honest. The gospel can mold us and make us into what God wants.

Is there someone who is difficult in your life? Have you prayed about that person? Have you asked God to work upon that heart? Instead of wishing we could avoid that person or that they would drop off the face of the earth, changing their heart is the best thing that could happen.

Channels of water and a heart in God’s hands…how about your heart? Do you fight God or allow Him to turn it and shape it? It’s easy to want God to change others, but how about our hearts? That’s a great place to start.

Roger