06272026 Waiting

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of the God with impeccable timing. God is never too fast or too slow, never too early or too late, never rushed or frantic, never lethargically laid-back. He does everything at just the right time.

I recently read a verse that I know has impacted me before, but I hadn’t thought about it in quite a while, so when I read it again, it captured my attention.

The passage is talking about God’s protection and leading of the nation of Israel in the wilderness. As a manifestation of His presence with them, there was a pillar of fire (or perhaps a glowing cloud that looked similar to fire) that remained over the tabernacle at night. During the day a cloud remained over the tabernacle. (Numbers 9:15-16)

This cloud was more than just a reminder of God’s presence. It was a primary method that He guided them. When the cloud moved, the nation packed up and followed it. When the cloud stopped, they stopped. When it remained for a length of time, they rested. (Numbers 9:17-19,23)

The people never knew what the timing was going to be. Sometimes the cloud rested for a few days, so they rested for a few days. Sometimes the cloud lifted in the morning. Sometimes it lifted in the middle of the day, and sometimes in the middle of the night. They always had to be ready to move quickly whenever God indicated that. (Numbers 9:20-21)

The people also always had to be willing to rest – to wait – as long as God designed. “Or whether it were two days, or a month, or a year, that the cloud tarried upon the tabernacle, remaining thereon, the children of Israel abode in their tents, and journeyed not: but when it was taken up, they journeyed” (Numbers 9:22)

Wow. That is so powerful as it applies to our practical life as believers! There are times that God asks us to wait for two days. There are times when He asks us to wait for a month. There are times that He asks us to wait for an entire year! (or even longer). We are poised and ready to move at a moment’s notice, maybe even anxiously straining at the bit. But He asks us to wait.

That waiting might be something personal, like health or finances or a relationship. It might have to do with family – children, grandchildren, parents. It might have to do with ministry – closed doors, lack of fruit, delayed opportunities. Whatever the situation, and whatever the amount of time, we can be confident that God will “move the cloud” at the precise time that He intends.

Until then, we can rest. Interesting word choice – “rest.” That is precisely the word God used in verse 18. As I understand it, “they rested in their tents” (v. 18,23) is the same Hebrew word as “pitched their tents” (v. 17) and “abode in their tents” (v. 20,22). It isn’t quite the idea of vacation or leisure that we might be hoping for; it is more the idea of a deliberate commitment. They took specific actions that helped them to settle in, but that settling in was always into temporary homes.

What a challenge – to be peacefully and deliberately “at home” as much as is possible, while knowing that the “home” is designed to be picked up and moved at God’s command – and in His timing. May God give you the grace and patience to do just that.

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA

06202026 Enemies

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of our unconquerable Defender. No one can defeat God. We humans are less competent. There are enemies in this world, and we do face them, and they can be daunting.

In the past months, I have been looking at verses corresponding to the current date. This week as I looked at 6:16 verses, I realized how many of them have to do with enemies. Will you humor me in this totally unconventional Bible study?

One truth is that we can be our own enemies when we resist God and His plan. The Israelites did this more than once, and Moses reminds them of one example. “Ye shall not tempt the LORD your God, as ye tempted him in Massah” (Deuteronomy). Paul repeatedly warned his readers of the danger or embracing the enemy – of choosing and clinging to the very things that they should be avoiding and opposing. “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” (Romans). “What? Know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? For two, saith he, shall be one flesh” (I Corinthians). “And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people” (II Corinthians). This type of association is a deliberate choice of what God has warned us against, sometimes an obstinate rebellion against what is best for us. “Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein" (Jeremiah).

A sad reality about enemies is that they can rise up from the people that we least expect. This happened to David with one of his wives. “And as the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, Michal Saul’s daughter looked through a window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart” (II Samuel). It also happened to our Savior. “And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor” (Luke).

The Bible records many stories of God’s deliverance from enemies. God gave victory to Israel at Jericho. “And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said unto the people, Shout; for the LORD hath given you the city” (Joshua). God gave victory to Gideon. “And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man” (Judges). In the rebuilding of the temple, God gave victory over those who opposed. “And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy” (Ezra). He did the same in the rebuilding of the wall. “And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the heathen that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes: for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God” (Nehemiah). God gave victory to the disciples when they faced a life-threatening storm at sea. “And when even was now come, his disciples went down unto the sea” (John). These stories remind us that the victory comes from God.

God is not to be trifled with, and many enemies of God have been bowed before Him and have even stood in absolute dread of Him. “And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day” (I Samuel). “But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead” (Mark). “And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of God” (Revelation).

Some people’s eyes have been opened to see in a special way the remarkable ability of God to defeat His enemies. One of the outstanding examples is when Elisha and his servant were surrounded by a Syrian army. The enemy was fierce, but Elisha knew they were no match for God and His army. “And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them” (2 Kings). Even the pagan king Darius realized that God could not be defeated. “Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now the king spake and said unto Daniel, Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee” (Daniel).

God gives us all that we need to face our enemies. Among His provision is our faith in the Word of God. Faith in the truth can send the enemies fleeing and can slash them to pieces. “Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked” (Ephesians). Whether your current battle is against Satan and spiritual forces, against people who oppose God’s work, or even against yourself, may God give you the victory through His power and through His Word. There are no enemies too strong for God.

Thanks to those who prayed and expressed concern regarding my recent surgery. I am gradually improving. In the past few days in particular, I am starting to feel more back to normal and am optimistic about the week ahead.

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA

06132026 Great Physician

Dear Missionary Lady, 

Greetings in the name of the Great Physician.

“Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases” (Psalm 103:3). God does not choose to heal all illnesses in this lifetime, as sometimes disease is what fits His purposes for us, but He does heal us over and over again. Ultimately, He will heal all disease for us when we reach our beloved Home where there will be no more pain, no more sickness, and no more death.

I can’t help but wonder if the above verse is focused more on the subject (God) than on the result (healing). The psalm is sharing all the things our great God does that no one else can do. He is the One who gives great benefits, which include healing, as well as forgiving, redeeming, blessing, renewing, showing grace and mercy, and so much more. These actions are God-things, and when we are healed, it is God who does it.

This healing is often physical, but more important is God’s spiritual healing. “And Jesus answering said unto them, They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32). Thank God for healing each of us from our sin-sick souls and also for healing those whom God has brought through your various ministries. As with physical healing, when it comes to spiritual healing, it is God who does it.

I am home healing today after surgery yesterday. I’m thankful for God’s guidance and peace through the process and for the anticipation of improved health going forward. I’m still taking it pretty easy, and I get a two-week “vacation” from work, but I am very thankful for how much better I am feeling today over yesterday. God is good, and He takes care of us.

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA

06072026 Divine Stability

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of the God who stabilizes us. He is our Rock and our Strength.

“Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work” (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17).

I think this verse speaks of God’s stabilization on two levels. The first is in our inner man. God has loved us. He has provided eternal comfort. He can continue to comfort our hearts. Internally, we can be stabilized as we remember what God has already done and as we rest in that continuing love and comfort.

The second is in the practical. That same God who loves us and stabilizes us internally also establishes us in the works that we are doing for Him. He strengthens and upholds us in our words and deeds. If we are trying to do and say what God wants us to do and say, we can be comforted in knowing that He is the one who helps us to do and say it.

Thank God that He upholds us in these ways so that we can have any hope of being who He wants us to be and doing what He has asked us to do. May you walk forward this week with His help.

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA

05302026 New and Clean

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of God who makes us new and clean.

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

We have seen it happen, both in our own lives and in the lives of others. We long to see true conversions, where there is irrefutable evidence that God has completely changed someone, and we rejoice when we see it happen.

At times we also wonder. Why do we sometimes struggle so much to act like and think like the new person that we are? Why do some of those we work with seem to walk a fine line, at times acting like new creatures, and at times seeming no different than they were before? Why do some continually seem to be on the brink of disaster and ruin?

Only God knows who are the true believers, but for those who are, He is definitely working in their lives. That is His mission with them. “That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:26-27).

He wants us to be clean and holy. With the old nature that battles within us, we sometimes struggle. We want to see total victory and complete transformation NOW, but God has a longer-range plan. His work is gradual, and He progressively does His cleansing and renewing work. I like to think of the completion date as the coming of Christ, as the below verses indicate. Until we are with Him, He still has time to do His work.

“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:23). “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:7).

Until that day comes, God is determined and committed. He will keep working. “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).

Thank God that He does not give up on us. Thank God that He does not give up on others. You may have people that you have worked with for years – that you have heavily invested in – and those people may have broken your heart with their continued struggles and inconsistency and failures. Today may your heart be encouraged and lifted up with the truth that God does not give up on His children. As long as they keep living and God keeps delaying His return, there is hope.

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA

05232026 God Is in the Details

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of the God with big shoulders. Unlike frail humans, God can handle everything that is placed upon Him.

I don’t know how normal this is, but I often find myself able to trust God more in the big picture than in the small details. For example, I might have great peace regarding the outcome of a health situation, but I can be filled with chaos as I consider making arrangements at work, getting to appointments on time, what questions to ask the doctor, or what daily adjustments I have to remember. Or I can trust God with the big picture of my parents’ declining health, but I can be conflicted as I think about getting through a phone call with them, how my plans and schedule might be affected, or how well their daily needs are being met.

So, I ask – Does God deal only with the big picture? Or is He also involved in the details? Case study – the birth of Jesus. Was God in the big picture? This seems like one of the most obvious truths of the Bible. From the very beginning, God had a plan to send His Son into the world as the Redeemer, and the whole Old Testament is a record of how He moved toward that plan. God’s interactions with the patriarchs and the events of Israel’s history were all precursors to God’s big plan. “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons” (Galatians 4:4-5).

Okay, that’s the big picture. At the precise time in human history, God sent His Son. But what about the details? Poor Mary asking, “Joseph, is there any way we can delay this trip? Or can I stay here? I think my time is getting close.” God was in that detail, arranging that the Bread of Life would be born in the House of Bread (Bethlehem) as the Scriptures predicted. After they arrived, “Joseph, can’t you find a hotel? Where is the nearest midwife?” God provided a stable, oversaw the birth, and brought shepherds to see the Good Shepherd. “Joseph, what is all the chaos? Are they really threatening to kill our baby?” An angel provided guidance so the family could escape safely to Egypt.

At the same time that God ministered to Mary’s detailed needs, He also ministered to Simeon, who had been praying, “I’m waiting for Your consolation. You have said I will see the Messiah before I die. I’m not getting any younger. When, Lord?” Simeon held Jesus and was ready to die in peace. Meanwhile, God was fulfilling prophecy. “Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying” (Matthew 1:22). Yes, big picture – fulfill prophecy. But those fulfilled prophecies played out in details – the virgin birth, descended from Abraham, of the tribe of Judah, descended from David, born in Bethlehem, worshipped and given gifts, the slaughter of innocents, the flight to and return from Egypt. God was in the details of a misunderstood pregnancy, a timely taxation, travel requirements, a special star, curious scholars, the stops those scholars took along the way, and a jealous king.

A similar story could be told about the death of Jesus. Big picture – did it happen at the right time? Yes, Daniel’s weeks were precisely fulfilled, and Jesus’ death came at the right time in human history. It happened appropriately (and prophetically) at Passover, just when the Jewish leaders were most concerned that it NOT happen.

The big picture was right, but what about the details? Consider all the details that occurred just in the 24 hours before Jesus’ death. He was betrayed by a friend. That betrayal was for a very specific amount of money. The betrayer suffered remorse, killed himself, and the blood money was used to purchase a public burial field. Jesus’ disciples fled in the garden. Peter betrayed Jesus – three times – and then a rooster crowed. False witnesses provided the “evidence” that truth never could have furnished. Jesus suffered silently. Jesus was beaten, spit on, had His beard plucked, was pierced in His hands, feet, and side, but none of His bones were broken. The physical abuse made Him appear less than human. Jesus was mocked publicly, His garments were distributed, and lots were cast for His coat. He was given vinegar to drink. He was forsaken by God. He died with criminals but was buried with the wealthy. He was taken down and entombed before nightfall. Even if some prophecies are combined, there are still over thirty prophecies, and these are very specific details that God oversaw, controlled, and brought about during that one dark day.

Okay, but apart from Jesus, does God do this for ordinary believers (besides those included in the considerations above)? Case study – Elijah. Elijah trusts God for the big picture, as he delivers the profound prediction that there would be no rain for three years. Now what? Both the proclamation and the ramifications of that prediction created a lot of questions in the world of details. “How will I evade the king’s wrath? How will I survive the drought?” God sent Elijah to hide by the brook Cherith. The brook provided water, and ravens brought food. But then the brook dried up. “Um, God, I’m hungry and thirsty. Now what?” God sent Elijah to Zarephath. Watch these details! He was sent to a specific woman, who was a widow. He met that woman as soon as he got to the gate of the city. He met the woman on exactly the right day; this was the last day she was gathering sticks for her last fire to cook her last meal. We could continue looking at Elijah’s story and the great battle on Mount Carmel, but it is clear that God did not use Elijah in His big picture without also giving very careful attention to the concerning details that resulted in Elijah’s life.

We have a saying, “The devil’s in the details,” meaning that it is often the little things that trip us up, even though the big plan appears to be fine. From a human perspective, I agree that I have a tendency to trip up more over the details. However, I must learn to confidently declare: “God is in the details,” because HE IS! “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you” (I Peter 5:7). God cares about the concerning details just as He cares about the big picture, and I must trust Him for the details as well as for the big picture. His shoulders are big enough, and His mind is wise enough.

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA

05162026 It Works Every Time

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of our great Helper. How many times has He helped?!

I’m sure no one else can relate to this (just kidding!), but I’ve been thinking lately about how often I need help. About how often I have an angry bear inside me as I try to deal with life – and then the times when there are two angry bears, and they are fighting with each other! I get overwhelmed. Life seems impossible. Or at least my current day seems impossible. Very quickly and easily I can fall into the trap of my own dark or frustrated thoughts, and they want to spiral downward.

When this happens, I try to remind myself to talk to God about it. To tell Him just like it is. “This isn’t what I want, but it is how I am right now, so please help me.” I don’t always remember to do this right away, but the sooner I do it, the better things go, and the faster things resolve.

I have found this verse (among many others) to be true. “In the day when I cried thou answeredst me, and strengthenedst me with strength in my soul” (Psalm 138:3). So frequently after the “help-my-angry-bear” prayers, I find myself realizing that God has done exactly what I have asked. It may be 30 minutes later or a few hours later, but I come to realize that the angry bears have gone to sleep. I am functioning. My spirit is calm. I am at peace.

How does that happen? It certainly is not because I have great self-control or power over my spirit. It is no mind game. It is no humanly-devised strategy. No, no. It is the help of my loving and caring and compassionate God who listens to my prayers for help and who does in my spirit what I cannot do for myself. God wants to help. He wants me to have victory. All I need to do is humbly ask.

My circumstances might not change. The craziness of my day might not change. But my spirit can change with God’s help. Oh, that I would remember to ask Him more quickly and more often!

Love in Christ,

Peggy Holt

member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA