April - Devotion/Study
Memory Verse - Jeremiah 24:7


Becoming Whole in A Broken World
Knowing God

I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord.  They will be my people, and I will be
their God…” Jeremiah 24:7

Last month, I encouraged you to do some research about who God is…I wanted you to
learn more about His character because the more we learn about Him the more we trust
Him, and the more we know of Him the more we love Him.  But time for a little
honesty…how many of you thought, “I don’t need to do any home work on knowing
God…I already know Him”?  Well, that very well may be but I think all too often we
forget (in all our knowledge) just how wonderful He is…studying about His character only
strengthens what we already know.  The more I remind myself of His nature and His love,
the deeper and more passionately, I fall in love with Him.  

For example, I’ve known my husband many years.  I know him very well.  I know that I
love him very much.  Sometimes, though, life gets busy.  We end up passing each other on
the way out the door taking our children to different events, or we end up not being able to
have deep conversations because it is hard to get a word in edge wise with the kids
around.   It would be very easy to say, “Oh, I know him, I know why I fell in love with
him, we don’t need special time together”.  See, it would be east to take him for granite,
but not healthy for our relationship.  We have learned to make time for each other during
the day while the kids are at school.  We will often have lunch so he can tell me what is
going on in his world and I can update him on what is going on in my world.  We hold
hands, we sit next to each other, and we enjoy each other.  I love our time together; it’s
like dating all over again.  I leave our lunch’s together feeling refreshed, knowing what is
going on with Him, knowing His thoughts on what I’m doing, and knowing just what a
lucky gal I am.  I leave knowing that I love him even more today than when we first
married.  The more I know him the more I love him.  

The same principle works in our relationship with the Lord.  Let’s face it, some times life
gets busy and yes, we know the Lord, but in the hustle and bustle of life, we forget the
importance of nurturing that relationship.  We forget to enjoy His love; we don’t take the
time to share our life with Him.  We neglect to gaze into His eyes by reading His word.  
When we do that, several things happen.  First, we begin to take Him for granite.  Second,
we assume…we forget He is God and that He is nothing like any one else in this universe.  
Third, we forget how much He loves us.

The most important thing you need to know is “…God is love.” (1John 4:8)
Love is His foundational quality.  Everything He is and everything He does is loving.  
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a describes this special kind of love which is called agape love as…

“Love is patient, love is kind.  It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not
rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love
does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts,
always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails.”

In other words, God is patient and kind.  He does not envy, He does not boast, and He is
not proud.  He would not ever be rude to you.  He always looks out for your best interest
not His own and He is not easily angered…He keeps no record of the mistakes we make.  
He does not delight in evil or in seeing bad things happen to us, but instead rejoices in
teaching us the truth, because it sets us free.  He always protects us, always trusts, always
hopes, always sticks by us because His love never fails.   That friend describes someone
unlike any one I have ever known.  It describes someone I want to know better.

One of my favorite passages of scripture describes the Lord this way…

“And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace.”
Isaiah 9:6

He is our Counselor…have you ever been hurting, confused or lacking in hope?  Has a
situation in life become too difficult to handle on your own?  

Let me ask you a question…where do you turn for advice and help?  Do you call a trusted
friend, a mentor, a parent?  What makes their advice trustworthy?   

When faced with a decision or a circumstance that you need some advice on, wouldn’t it be
great to sit and talk with someone who knew you better than you know yourself?   Psalm
73:24 says, “You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory”.  
Proverbs 4:12 says, “I guide you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths.  
When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; when you run, you will not stumble.”  
That is what I want, counsel that will lift me up not trip me up.  We can trust Him to guide
us in the big issues of life, and in the little details that we don’t even realize He cares
about.  The Bible is His guidebook for life…Gaze into His word and ask for counsel.  He
will help you because He is our Wonderful Counselor.  Do you know that?

He is our Mighty God…Every girl needs a hero.  Inside of each of us is the desire to be
fought for, protected, and fiercely loved.  He is our knight in shinning armor.  I
recommend that right now you read Psalm 18: 1-19.  These verses describe the Lord as our
rescuing hero.  That is what He is…His shoulders are big enough to handle anything and
everything.  The God, who created the universe, can shoulder any problem or concern life
throws your way.  2nd Chronicles 20:15 asks, “If God is for us, then who can be against
us”?  Who indeed?  Is there anything more powerful than the God who created it…no!  
You may be thinking, “That’s great, but how has God fought for me or protected me?”  
Beloved, the biggest battle ever fought for you was the one on a hill called Calvary.  If you
saw the Passion of the Christ then you know exactly what Christ did for you.  He paid the
punishment for your sin, conquering deaths hold on you once and for all.  That is mighty!  
Do you trust Him with your challenges?  Do you ask Him to fight your battles for you?  
You can you know because He is our Mighty God.  Did you know that?

He is our Everlasting Father…What was your daddy like?  When you think of the word
Father, what feelings wash over you…comfort, longing, sadness, bitterness, regret?  You
see when we think of having a father; our thoughts often race back to our experience with
our earthly fathers.  As wonderful or as horrible as our dad’s are, they can never be like
our Heavenly Father.  We cannot compare God to our Heavenly Father…God is perfect.  
His love is perfect.     His love for us is unconditional.  No human being is capable of that
type of love…no human being has a flawless character.  When we try to fashion an image
of God as our father based on our human experience with our natural father, we end up
with an image that is distorted and does not begin to compare with who God really is.  
What type of Father is God?  He is dependable because He does not change (Hebrews 13:8
and Malachi 3:6).  He is loyal  (Joshua 1:5).  He is stable (Psalm 103:8).  He is forgiving.
(Psalm 103:10-13).  He is willing to make sacrifices for the good of His child (John 3:16).  
We are the apple of His eye and the delight of His heart.  Do you know He is the perfect
Father?

He is the Prince of Peace…what is peace?  Peace is the state of being content.  Peace is a
condition of the heart and of the mind.  To me peace is knowing in the midst of the storm
that the Lord is with me.  No matter how difficult the situation, I know that I can trust
Him to be my shelter in the storm.  One of the most beautiful definitions of peace in
scripture is the 23rd Psalm.  I recommend that you read it now. This is a description of
peace; wanting for nothing, resting in green pastures, beside quiet waters, being restored
and guided, having no fear…even when I am walking through the darkest most
frightening valley.  What a beautiful picture.  This is a picture of what the presence of the
Prince of Peace brings into our lives.  Do you need to be refreshed?  Do you need to be
guided in the path of righteousness?  Do you need to be comforted?  Do you know that
Jesus is the Prince of Peace?

Beloved, we are just barely scratching the surface.  God is so wonderful, and He is so
beautiful.  As we read His word our knowledge of Him grows, and so does our relationship.  
Gaze into His word.  Let is speak to you.  Focus on who He is and His love for you and I
promise your life will never be the same.  Until next time…

Heavenly Father,

Lord I pray that every day we would learn a little more about you.  I pray that you would
manifest yourself in our lives in tangible ways.  I pray that you would make yourself
known to us.  As we read your word, help us to see you with fresh eyes.  Help us to look
upon you with wonder and amazement.  I am in awe of you!  Your love is amazing.  The
way you care for and protect us is amazing.  You are our Wonderful Counselor, our
Mighty God, our Everlasting Father, and our Prince of Peace.  How wonderful you are.  
Now Lord I ask that you would bless this teaching.  Father may each person who reads this
lesson come away with a renewed passion for you and a stronger love.  Not because of
anything I say, but because you are speaking to their heart through your word.  Give us a
heart to know you.  In Jesus most precious name – Amen!

Love you guys…CJ