City Devotional: Light up Your City

By Joel D. McMillan

For people who care about their cities and want to find biblical grounds for decision-making and considerations, please enjoy this encouraging devotional. Chronologically arranged in a 365 day devotional, youll never look at the Bible or your city the same.

What do you do about a corrupt city? What do you do about immorality in your city? What does God desire for your city? Does God still judge cities? How should mature Christians live in their cities? Do we have a responsibility for bringing about change in our city? How can one man or woman possibly change a metropolis? This devotional will not answer all the questions, in fact I hope it causes you to ask more questions. Start the dialogue, begin the change bend your city.

Be the one person in your city that bends your city back to Gods design for your city.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Jan 26, 2017
• ISBN: 9781512759174

Joel D. McMillan

Joel grew up in Momence, Illinois and has also lived in several other American cities and he lived for a while in both France and Italy. He studied architecture in Chicago and urban planning in Seattle. He serves in the US Navy Civil Engineer Corps and is a registered architect. He has deployed to Japan, Guam, Philippines, Iraq and Afghanistan. He has traveled to dozens of countries and hundreds of cities. He loves the uniqueness of every city and sees the clear analogy of humans and cities. He is convinced that there is no better security for our cities than to trust, obey and love the Lord our God. Joel is married to Sarah and he is very passionate about his children.

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1. God’s Designs – 01 JAN

Read: Genesis 1-3

Then God said, Let the earth produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and fruit trees on the earth bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And it was so. The earth produced vegetation: seed-bearing plants according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:11-12

This passage, Genesis 1-3, is the first of many that require a trusting heart to understand. The Enemy wants to challenge your logic and your faith by attacking your belief in the Genesis account of creation. Rest assured that your faith will bear fruit and all attempts to dishonor God’s creation will eventually be proven false, until the day when we all bow down and faith is no longer necessary. I hope you are able to taste God’s amazing love in His gentle creation and overwhelming creativity. God is a great designer. One of the designs of God I find especially instructive is that of the tree.

A few things on earth grow for thousands of years – deserts, cities, languages and trees. Perhaps you will think of others. God has occasionally directed the design of a city as we’ll see in later studies, but for the most part we have been given the challenge of designing and building cities, cities that are to grow and last for thousands of years. This is a significant task and should not be left to hurried decision makers. Other than age and growth, what is the connection between cities and trees?

The design of a tree is the story of God creating immensely effective reproduction systems and growth patterns and the potential to live a very long time. What if a city were designed to grow like a tree? Most growth in cities is dictated by developers – these wealthy citizens, however, don’t always have the luxury of having the time to study the design of trees or other God-designed creations. Their decisions for development are often driven by factors such as opportunity, cost, greed and public opinion.

Some cities have spread out so much that new developments are so far from the city center that it has become very unwieldy for utilities, roads and other infrastructure to stretch out to support the new development. If God’s design for a tree is considered, one will see that a tree does indeed branch out, but not without first growing an immensely dense trunk and root system to support that growth.

Action: Build a positive relationship with developers in your city and then challenge them to increase the density of the most critical parts of the city.

2. First City – 02 JAN

Read: Genesis 4-7

Cain was intimate with his wife, and she conceived and gave birth to Enoch. Then Cain became the builder of a city, and he named the city Enoch after his son. Genesis 4:17

Whether Enoch was the first city to be built or simply the first city to be mentioned in the Bible, it was no doubt destroyed during the worldwide flood. God had provided Cain with the ability to live alone and apart from other humans. But once Cain married and gave birth to a child, the desire for a settled life seems to have become important. The decision to build a city or to even submit to living in a city means you are becoming part of a larger body. Not necessarily a body of believers as would come to exist in future cities, but a realization that you are better off as a human working with other humans for protection, stability, resource sharing, gift-giving, socialization and development.

As a follower of Christ, you may decide to live in isolation in a rural area, dependent on resources you procure for yourself, or you may choose to be part of a city and participate in resource exchanges. If you are called to isolation and/or the wilderness for a time, be sure that you are not isolated from the Lord – draw close to Him during your time alone and do not grow arrogant in your self-dependency. He created all that is around you and has provided everything for you to live. A life apart from other human beings can be harsh and is not for everyone, though most of us will at some point in our lives long for the wilderness. Most of us enjoy getting away from cities for a time - hiking, camping or anything with fresh air and limited people.

The majority of people in the world are dependent on other humans working together in a village, town or city setting. We enjoy the luxuries of not having to carry water for half a day or loading a cart and travelling for days to exchange goods unavailable in the wilderness. But we should never be afraid to start a new city. Cain saw the value of settling down. After we have wandered in the wilderness for a time, we too will see the value of working with others here on earth. Two ways to enjoy both is to put a city in the wilderness as Cain did, or more likely today, put some wilderness in your city. If you already have a garden spot that you can escape to – go enjoy it and savor spending time with our Lord in His creation.

Many cities have green zones, gardens, parks and other public land available to pray, walk, meet, and just get away. These areas are important for drawing closer to the Lord and after a time, for appreciating the valuable resources your city does provide – green areas included.

Action: Keep some wilderness nearby – encourage your city council to have a shared area in your city or very near to your city that is wild and free.

3. Post Flood – 03 JAN

Read: Genesis 8-11

Cush fathered Nimrod, who was the first powerful man on earth. He was a powerful hunter in the sight of the Lord. That is why it is said, Like Nimrod, a powerful hunter in the sight of the Lord. His kingdom started with Babylon, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. From that land he went to Assyria and built Nineveh, Rehoboth-ir, Calah, and Resen, between Nineveh and the great city Calah. Genesis 10:8-12

Genesis 8-11 are arguably the most important four chapters on cities we’ll see for some time. The events recounted will have a huge impact on the subsequent history of civilization. In these four chapters, God finishes wiping out the earth, including the first cities, saves Noah’s family and enough animals to reproduce, and then starts over. As God says to Noah and his sons, Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth… We also see the foundation of today’s oldest cities. Yet another major event is the building of the Tower of Babel. So let’s unpack these events.

God chose to wipe out life on earth with a flood; Noah is honored as the man who is chosen to salvage the human race with his family along with every other species of living thing. The flood served God’s purpose and the promise made, never to flood the entire earth again, symbolized by a rainbow, stands to this day and will continue through eternity. Noah planted a vineyard – a sign of settling down and committing to live in one area extensively. Probably the best thing Noah did after the flood is to build an altar - God blesses Noah after he builds an altar to the LORD.

In Chapter 10 we hear about Noah’s great-grandson Nimrod being not only a warrior, but also an incredible hunter and city founder. Still, the judgment of commentators is negative regarding Nimrod’s character and attitude toward God and his influence thousands of years before Jesus was born, can still be felt today. The cities mentioned in Genesis 10 are some of the oldest, most storied and mysterious cities the world has ever known.

In the world today, numerous languages exist, thousands of languages. Why don’t we all speak the same language? Did we ever speak the same language? How old is the oldest language? Other than the flood and the founding of significant cities, today’s reading also highlights the greatest change to language in human history. The building of the city of Babylon and its infamous tower of Babel were not built to honor God – but, as its builders said, to make a name for ourselves. Instead of flooding and killing them all again, God decides to confuse their language and send them to various places around the world.

Action: Examine your motives and those of others in your city when you construct a monument, skyscraper, tower or other symbol. Are you building it to make a name for yourself or to honor God?

4. Ruined Cities – 04 JAN

Read: Job 1-5

Now I would certainly be lying down in peace;
I would be asleep. 
Then I would be at rest with the kings and counselors of the earth, 
who rebuilt ruined cities for themselves, or with princes who had gold, 
who filled their houses with silver. Job 3:13-15

For those of us who have experienced illogical tragedy, we feel with Job and we read Job with comfort knowing the Lord allows tragedy, ultimately for His glory. We see Job’s livestock, servants and even his children destroyed for no apparent reason – attacks and high winds are all Job has to explain these powerful tragedies. Eventually God even allows Satan to infect Job with incurable boils.

Job at first continues to bless God in the midst of tragedy. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away; blessed be the name of the Lord. But as he searches for an answer in his grief, Job cries out and expresses his pain. We humans need an answer to our pain to help our grieving process – sometimes we never receive an answer, and when we don’t, we may momentarily accuse God of injustice. So long as we reach out to Him in our misery, He is patient with us.

In his initial lament (chapter 3), Job sees never being born as less painful than what he is currently enduring. He wishes he had never been born. Job would rather be dead resting with the kings and counselors who rebuilt ruined cities for themselves. Ironically, we know the end of the story of Job, that the Lord will carefully rebuild Job, as these kings of old rebuilt cities, to glorious splendor.

As painful as personal loss is, greater loss is found when a tragedy strikes an entire city – earthquake, fires, floods, storms, etc. Though the greatest loss is when a human dies without ever turning to Jesus for salvation. We may never know the reasons, but know that God allows tragedies to strike cities and also allows cities to be rebuilt in splendor. Many of today’s largest and most splendid cities experienced immense pain and tragedy in the past.

Look at your own personal pain and suffering and cry out to God for an answer, and do not be afraid to be honest with God, but know that a loving God allows pain in order for us to experience the following truth: suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope (Romans 5:4).

Action: Rejoice when your city suffers, counting on God who builds splendor on the ruins of tragedy. You, your children and even your grandchildren may one day enjoy the splendor of a city that bonds through a tragedy and grows ever brighter. Honor the One who loves you through your trials.

5. Oasis Created – 05 JAN

Read: Job 6-9

Caravans turn away from their routes,
go up into the desert, and perish. The caravans of Tema look for these streams. 
The traveling merchants of Sheba hope for them. They are ashamed because they had been confident of finding water. 
When they arrive there, they are frustrated. Job 6:18-20

I couldn’t find any sources that identify Biblical Tema as anything other than modern day Tayma, Saudi Arabia, a large oasis. An oasis brings an abundant amount of water in a weary land. One can imagine the anticipation of weary traders and other travelers as they approached the oasis, longing for a refreshing sip of water.

Job is sitting in his squalor, thirsty if we apply the metaphor, eagerly anticipating the arrival of his longtime friends and their nourishing advice. Both water and encouraging friends are essential to the survival of human settlements. In Job’s conversation with his colleagues, the absence of water is mentioned as an example of their misguided advice and dry words. He is hurting enough through the loss of his children, health and wealth. He needs encouraging, loyal friends with scoops of nourishing water, not friends looking for an easy answer to a complex problem.

Job makes a comparison to traders searching for water because traders followed routine routes, set paths in set weather conditions and they were confident that known water sources would be available. Job’s friends, too, travelled to see him and Job was probably hopeful that they would know just the right words to say. He expected that their wisdom and advice would be just what he needed to hear and ease his grief (i.e., thirst) (Coffman, 1999).

But as the example of Job’s friends proves, we must be careful what assumptions we make. We must do research and reconnaissance before making decisions and coming to conclusions. If we are the friend, we should continue in silence before jumping to condemning conclusions. If we are the oasis or the nourishing city – we need to keep providing needed resources to the citizens and visitors of our settlement.

If your city is not known to be an oasis or welcoming to travelers, here you have an opportunity for improvement. Seek out areas and ways you can be welcoming; be a blessing to those traveling through. Eventually the fame of your kindness and resourcefulness will spread and your reputation will be even greater than that of Tema.

Action: If your city is already an oasis for travelers, continue to keep the light on and the water running so weary travelers can find refuge in your city.

6. Humble Holdings – 06 JAN

Read: Job 10-13

He makes nations great, then destroys them; He enlarges nations, then leads them away; He deprives the world’s leaders of reason, and makes them wander in a trackless wasteland. They grope around in darkness without light; He makes them stagger like drunken men. Job 12:23-25

Job continues on his rant. His wisdom shines through nonetheless and is recorded for us. His insights are sharp and lucid because of the tragedies he experienced. Had his life continued on as normal, his love for God may have mellowed, his hard questions would never have been asked, and his wealth most likely would have become his sense of protection. We don’t know, we can only speculate, but we do know that because of his great tragedies, his words of wisdom were recorded and his story has blessed many who have suffered greatly.

If you have not suffered greatly, count your blessings, but if you and/or your city have found your way into great tragic situations, be patient and be sure to write down your words. Your words in a time of utter grief will be like no other words. Most of the music, hymns and poetry that stir the heart are not about times of splendor and prosperity. They come out of great tragedy, suffering and near death pain. No one wishes these experiences on others, yet God allows these times so our lives will shine brighter out of the receding darkness and so our words will have a much greater impact. Like Job we live with uncertainty.

Think again of Job’s humble state and holdings, listen again to his words as you think about a wealthy man you know today and imagine your wealthy man has just lost his children, his health and his wealth. Job is holding these tragedies loosely, trusting in God’s wisdom to take them away and for God to restore him to his former state in His timing, not Job’s. God shields us from great tragedy until we are ready to go through it, then He pours it on us to stretch us and during this time we examine and discover what or Who we are hanging on to.

Job’s loss of his children, health and wealth seems to have made him acutely aware of the rise and fall of many things around him as he reflects on the worldly great things we hang on to: leaders and nations and we can add cities. No matter how great your city, your leaders, and even your nation – they are all still subject to God’s judgment and timing. Always be very careful to hold your city in prayer and supplication with an outstretched hand, knowing the Lord can destroy it or exalt it in a moment.

Action: Be careful never to say this is the mighty [name of city], it can handle anything or this is [name of country], she can conquer all comers. Instead humbly hold your city as a temporary blessing.

7. Maintenance Issues – 07 JAN

Read: Job 14-16

Though his face is covered with fat and his waistline bulges with it, he will dwell in ruined cities, in abandoned houses destined to become piles of rubble. He will no longer be rich; his wealth will not endure. His possessions will not spread over the land. Job 15:27-29

In these chapters we see Job going back and forth with his colleagues (Job longs to call them friends, see 16:4-5). They try to find some logic to Job’s great tragedy. Eliphaz the Temanite implies that Job is a wicked man by citing examples of a wicked man’s downfall that sound very similar to Job’s current condition.

We saw the phrase ruined cities in Job 3:14. Here Eliphaz makes a list of things that wicked men face. He was wrong about Job, but observant about wicked men – nearly all of them are undone through lack of maintenance. One doesn’t typically grow fat overnight; no, it takes weeks of overeating, indulging and not exercising to build up a fat face and bulging waistline. A lack of city maintenance will also lead to ruined cities, abandoned houses and future rubble piles. A lack of maintenance of one’s wealth will also lead to poverty.

Maintenance has a cost, but a lack of maintenance has a much higher cost. Anything worth keeping is worth maintaining. Maintenance is not only physical. We both know that our thoughts need to be cleansed when we wander into hatred, lust, jealousy, coveting and acrimony. The discipline of pro-active maintenance allows you to be ready for tragedies, temptations, corruption and every other emergency. Daily devotions, regular prayer, wholesome fellowship, seeking counsel, these activities are all part of your spiritual maintenance package and are very important. Sadly you don’t see the results of a lack of maintenance immediately, but over the course of time. It may take significant repairs, counseling, forgiveness and healing to restore and overcome a previous lack of maintenance.

Maintenance contributes to the wellbeing of a city – not just repairing the roads and maintaining utilities, bridges and markets and safeguarding fiscal integrity – it is also necessary to maintain the moral integrity of a city and tend to unseen and forgotten issues that can slowly destroy a city. Except for catastrophic events like bombs, attacks, floods, etc., cities take a long time to become ruined cities. Many cities look splendid to tourists, strangers and other visitors, but the underlying fabric of the village, town or city could very well be strained due to a lack of maintenance in one or more areas. Your city is worth keeping. Your city is worth maintaining. As a citizen of your city, see if you can play some part in its upkeep or in holding accountable those whose responsibility it is to maintain your city.

Action: Make a list of several maintenance aspects of your city; evaluate the level of corruption and the prevalence of sexual sins, pride, and greed and find ways to fix problems while they are small.

8. Pressure Release – 08 JAN

Read: Job

His troops advance together; they construct a ramp against me and camp around my tent. He has removed my brothers from me; my acquaintances have abandoned me. My relatives stop coming by, and my close friends have forgotten me. Job 19:12-14

Even if God were to have restored all of Job’s losses in a single day, Job’s broken heart would still have needed to heal. His crying out, his massive crushing feeling, is part of the healing process and something we can relate to. It is bad being pressed on every side. It is even harder when family and friends abandon you.

The tragedy crushing Job is the loss of his children, health and wealth, coupled with his friends accusing him of being wicked instead of supporting him. He is not only crushed by tragedy, but the very people he needs to support him have turned on him. I’ve been one of those friends. What grief and shame you feel when you realize what you have done!

When one of your friends is being pressured into doing something illegal or immoral and they trust you enough to communicate that anxious struggle to you, be careful to encourage them to do what is right in the Lord’s eye. If you accuse or embarrass them, they may commit suicide, have the affair, steal the money, lie about the crime, etc.

It is a terrible burden to be a good friend, but of this you can be sure, your friend will appreciate you giving the benefit of the doubt and siding with them. If your friend, however, has been found guilty of some crime, at that point you can exercise caution and pull yourself away, but even then, if there is remorse, build up enough goodwill to forgive your friend.

I’m not sure if you have ever felt crushed by the pressures around you, but when you have to face it alone and all your relatives and friends abandon you it is a painful and embarrassing experience that can turn your heart hard to prevent further pain. Make an extra effort to be a friend to your friends who are in dire need, to those who are surrounded and need support to overcome outside pressures.

Cities, too, succumb to immense pressure from within and without. It may be a lack of security, overspending or a moral issue. Job must have seen or heard about a city being attacked with siege ramps. He also talks about his tent being surrounded. A city that is surrounded will need help from friends.

Action: From time to time your city will experience immense pressure from within and without. Stand up and fight for what is right in the Lord’s eye. Give your leaders the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise. Even then, if they repent, forgive them and help them and your city heal.

9. Honest Witness – 09 JAN

Read: Job

Look, I know your thoughts, the schemes you would wrong me with. For you say, Where now is the nobleman’s house? and Where are the tents the wicked lived in? Have you never consulted those who travel the roads? Don’t you accept their reports? Job 21:27-29

Job continues to insist on the hopelessness of his situation. The wicked find favor with God when they repent, but what can a just man do when in God’s apparent disfavor? Instead of appealing to God’s awesome transcendence as a reason to praise Him, Job turns it into a complaint that God is too high above us to see us and act justly. A lowly peasant, no matter how much he is in the right, cannot take the Lord of All to court. Yet he ends with admission that at least he hasn’t been utterly destroyed.

Job is still coming to grips with his overwhelming losses and the crushing accusations of his friends. Job says in response to his accusers that he knows their thoughts. He understands that their explanation for his having so much trouble is some hidden, grievous sin that Job is still hiding and refusing to share. If only Job would admit he is wicked then they could all move forward with comforting him and helping him out of this mess. We already know you are wicked, Job, and by lying and pretending you are not wicked your wickedness increases. Look, your house has been destroyed just like the wicked. We have travelled to other places and seen the results of wickedness – we’re just being honest witnesses.

Ancient cities relied on those who travelled the roads for information. Witnesses to the world beyond one’s city were a helpful source of information. Job’s three wise friends have travelled afar, seen many things and have no reason to lie. They witnessed the destruction of other wicked men. Job’s case can be no different. We are convinced you are wicked. Take our word for it.

Job’s advisors were in the wrong, but there is much value in listening to those whose reporting depends on telling the truth. If a traveler or a media source is found to be falsifying information, people will soon ignore information provided by those sources. Think of a gossip who always gets their story wrong. Think of the self-righteous who are quick to judge. These witnesses are soon ignored.

Action: Hold accountable those who provide your city with trusted information. Deem them valuable only if they are honest. Pay no heed to false generalizations.

10. Security Check – 10 JAN

Read: Job

Without clothing, they wander about naked. They carry sheaves but go hungry. They crush olives in their presses; they tread the winepresses, but go thirsty. From the city, men groan; the mortally wounded cry for help, yet God pays no attention to this crime. The wicked are those who rebel against the light. They do not recognize its ways or stay on its paths. Job 24:10-13

Job describes the desperately poor as having a near-animal existence that lacks security. Even when they gain some benefit or experience a blessing, like having a piece of clothing or food or having a son or daughter – these can all be taken away as payment for debt. How awful. The work the destitute manage to do between one crisis and the next is not enough to get them ahead. They have no security. Moreover, they often become wicked and afraid of the light and they no longer understand the value of telling the truth and of virtuous behavior.

It is no different with cities. Your city needs to choose to either submit to the Lord’s teaching (for example, the teaching to keep a Sabbath from commerce and abstain from mistreatment of laborers; the keeping of such commandments brings true security) or reject His teaching (which brings the illusion of self-security). Once the decision is made to reject the Lord’s guidance, to live in wickedness and solve your own problems, something strange happens. Those who carry the sheaves still go hungry. Those who press the grapes don’t drink the fruit of their labors.

You would think that major events like starvation, nakedness, flooding, dehydration and the loss of a child would bring someone back to humble submission. It has happened and will keep happening, but sometimes the devastated man’s heart is so hardened that God with great sadness destroys the very people he created. God in that case ignores the groans of those who are mortally wounded – for they saw the light but retreated into darkness just the same.

The mountains and the wilderness are not the only homes to the utterly destitute whose destitution pulls them into moral compromises with terrible consequences. In the city, in settlements with markets, medical care, governance and justice, the groans of the completely destitute often go unheard. Dying men are ignored.

Is your security and your city’s security from the Lord? If your city is wicked, expect the day to come soon when your city’s security will be destroyed, No matter how loud you cry out and groan, the Judge will carry out His sentence. Change your heart today; it is not too late.

Action: Identify three areas where your city is in rebellion toward God. Ask God for guidance on how to change your city’s rebellion to the Light into obedience to his Truth so that the city may become a beacon of the Light.

11. Respected Leader – 11 JAN

Read: Job

When I went out to the city gate and took my seat in the town square, the young men saw me and withdrew, while older men stood to their feet. City officials stopped talking and covered their mouths with [their] hands. Job 29:7-9

This is a very rich passage full of wisdom of value to cities and individuals alike. Job is defending himself by describing his noble actions, like overcoming temptation, taking care of the poor and many other wonderful attributes. We ourselves and our cities need to have these attributes and we long to see them in our children and grandchildren.

Job continues his claims of innocence by harking back to the good old days when he behaved rightly and things were peachy. Everybody treated him with respect. Recently, though he still behaved rightly, things went south. People then started disrespecting him, and to make it worse, God seems to be working against him, too.

Job is not wicked - and from his description of his life before his tragic losses, he should not have been suffering the same fate as the wicked. He describes himself as a respected leader. He was a key member of the city. He was wealthy, wise, generous, pure, a man of integrity, someone to be trusted and someone to lean on. Job was the perfect candidate for God to nominate to Satan to be able to handle such tragic circumstances. What an honor - though it is painful right now.

You might take some cues from the virtues of this respected citizen – offer a room to strangers, food to the poor, purify your own moral standing from lust and adultery, build respect in your community by speaking sparingly and wisely. Your city, too, would benefit from taking the high moral ground, providing for the needy, sheltering the homeless – God will honor those who take care of those who need help.

Think of someone in your city that you hold in high regard. Think of someone that you would stand up for when they enter the room. Name the person in your city who is wiser than you – the person whose opinion you hold as high as or higher than your own. If you cannot think of someone, find that person out – make a list of key people in your city and cross off those who don’t meet Job’s standard. Here’s a greater challenge – become as worthy of respect as Job was. Be like Job.

Action: A city is to offer a room to strangers, feed the poor, and be morally pure. A city is to be a hospitable place for humans to live. The people of a city need to offer the gift of hospitality. Volunteer. Be like Job in your city. Take positions of leadership, fight the good fight and build your city’s reputation.

12. Young Minds – 12 JAN

Read: Job

So Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite replied: I am young in years, while you are old; therefore I was timid and afraid to tell you what I know. I thought that age should speak and maturity should teach wisdom. But it is a spirit in man and the breath of the Almighty that give him understanding. It is not [only] the old who are wise or the elderly who understand how to judge. Job 32:6-9

This reading introduces a young, confident and knowledgeable man named Elihu. Elihu seems to have waited patiently; he did not interrupt the conversation of the elderly men until now. Like Job’s friends he finds it impossible to give Job the benefit of the doubt, but his fresh set of eyes provide some insight that the four men have overlooked.

There is no question that a ship, a city, a business, a family, or any other team effort is better lead by a person of great knowledge, wisdom, experience and discipline. Sometimes, however, leaders are wrong and are heading to failure or a wrong conclusion and need to be made aware of their mistakes before the entire organization suffers.

Everyone needs someone who cares enough to be accountable. Men look for an honest wife who has the courage to advise her husband and women look for a husband who has the wisdom to lead and the humility to listen to advice. Cities, too, should look for leaders who are wise, confident, honest and yet humble enough to not only receive negative feedback, but even audacious enough to seek it out. For a city, helpful feedback can often come from a younger citizen of your city. Seeking counsel from peers and those who think like we do is not always sufficient.

In your life and city, sometimes the best advice we can receive is from a child or an up-and-coming youth who sees things differently than we do. Maybe they see things naively or don’t have the wisdom to share and lead in all areas, but sometimes great insight and ideas can be gleaned from the innocent. If you are young, speak up when you see your leaders making a decision that could destroy your city.

If you are an elder or leader in your city, seek out opportunities to proactively seek out advice from the youth in your city – listen to their ideas and suggestions - and if possible, implement them. That will instill in them the confidence to speak up when they see a problem in the future.

Action: Seek out the advice of youth in your city.

13. Iniquity and Repentance – 13 JAN

Read: Job

He does not remove His gaze from the righteous, but He seats them forever with enthroned kings, and they are exalted. If people are bound with chains and trapped by the cords of affliction, God tells them what they have done and how arrogantly they have transgressed. He opens their ears to correction and insists they repent from iniquity. If they serve Him obediently, they will end their days in prosperity and their years in happiness. Job 36:7-11

Elihu continues to build up a grand case in order to glorify God and justify His ways. Elihu’s point is that God is awesome and we cannot understand His reasons and timing for what He allows.

Elihu cannot accept that Job who is suffering through no fault of his own rails against God. God on the other hand will commend Job for speaking rightly and honestly about Him (Job 42:7). God, it seems, is not dismayed when we cry out to Him, My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?

Elihu is certain that God takes care of the righteous. They are exalted by God and seated and enthroned with kings. Those who find themselves in bonds of affliction, by definition, according to Elihu’s train of thought, are in need of correction.

What Elihu does not make clear is that a righteous person and a wicked person can both be given chains and cords of affliction. What Elihu does know is that our response to tragedies is very important. During a time of calamity, you will do much soul searching. May your heart be very open to the Word of the Lord. What you do with your experience of calamity, deserved or undeserved, determines whether you ultimately turn out to be a man of righteousness or wickedness.

Know that your leaders, including yourself, have faults and we will all face trials, chains, affliction and/or calamity at various times. We each have the opportunity to shrink down into a depression and fill up with resentment and bitterness or on the contrary find a renewed sense of humility and joy. That is the real divider.

If you had to pick between a leader who never experienced a tragedy and one who has faced numerous difficult situations and overcome, who would you choose? Keep in mind that your city will undoubtedly face difficult situations.

Action: Build a relationship of trust with your city officials. When they are faced with a difficult situation, such as the temptation for corruption, go seek them out in their painful humbled state and encourage them to repent if necessary from their iniquity. Even if they are unjustly accused, God may be refining them.

14. Freeing Humans – 14 JAN

Read: Job

Who set the wild donkey free? Who released the swift donkey from its harness? I made the wilderness its home, and the salty wasteland its dwelling. It scoffs at the noise of the village and never hears the shouts of a driver. It roams the mountains for its pastureland, searching for anything green. Job 39:5-8

I love reaching chapter 38 in Job! I smile as I think about God speaking to Job. I can imagine how humbled Job was in His presence – all the righteousness he had spoken of quickly vanished in the face of the Pure Creator. In God’s questioning Job, He describes several animals which please God and are of no use to man, the point of which, it seems, is that man is not the be-all and end-all of everything.

God says the wild donkey scoffs at the noise of the village. Why would a free donkey give up the quiet wilderness and salty wasteland to come to a noisy village? Why would a free donkey come and gladly put on a harness?

Usually the only wild animals that come to our villages today are looking for food – none are interested in helping the human race in doing productive work for others. Donkeys have to be forced into labor for us. We don’t pay them with freedom. We pay them with water, food and shelter.

Will there be ramifications if all the donkeys are set free? Yes, a village that is dependent on donkeys will have to find an alternate source to pull carts, carry cargo, people, possessions and whatever else a donkey might transport.

The sad truth is that this applies to humans, not just to donkeys. In your city, there is at least one person who is trapped in their place of work. Larger cities often have a network of people forcibly taken from their home (i.e., their pastureland) and put under a strict set of rules (i.e., harness) – forcing them to do work for which they are given water, food and shelter – but not freedom.

This is the ugly side of cities, but your city can be different. A grassroots effort in your city to stop human trafficking is one way to set your city on a righteous path. Will there be ramifications to giving freedom to people in your city? Yes, but you may be pleasantly surprised to see them roam back into your city, looking for their pastureland. If God can free a donkey, I know He can free humans from bondage!

Action: Free your city of trafficked people. You can fight human trafficking by raising awareness, researching hiring practices, asking random employees, increasing training for officials, involving the media and finding creative legal ways to destroy human trafficking in your city.

15. Known Plan – 15 JAN

Read: Job

Then Job replied to the Lord: I know that You can do anything and no plan of Yours can be thwarted. [You asked,] Who is this who conceals [My] counsel with ignorance? Surely I spoke about things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. Job 42:1-3

Job humbly responds to God with as much respect as he can garner. He is absolutely humiliated and in absolute awe of our God. What an incredible experience he had and we should be thankful that it has been recorded and passed on to our generation.

God’s Word is absolute. God does not fail. For us the opposite is true. We grow tired and weary when our plans fail. Plans full of greed and selfishness sometimes succeed. We are not surprised to hear of a selfish man’s failures. We struggle, however, with a good man’s plan failing. A plan full of great intentions and generosity – is no guarantee of success. We have all made plans and are in the middle of plans – short term, long term, unexpected, expected, etc. We also all have gone through a change of plans.

Your city – whether formally or informally - has a plan. Think of the originators of your city – were they poor looking for land or rich looking for land? Were they after a resource in your area or is your city along a major trade route? Something at some time brought enough people together to establish a village, town or city that you live in or nearby. The very first people made some very serious planning that has effected the plan of the city ever since. Think of your roads, your buildings, your intersections, your exporting, your houses, your logistics, your utilities, your markets, etc. These very important and fundamental parts of your city were planned – now whether they were planned over months of discussion or in a matter of days, is irrelevant. The point is that someone made a plan for your city.

A wise planner will consider many things through their experiences and be able to tailor these plans to a specific city. A plan for growth, a plan for transportation, a plan for economic viability, a plan for encouraging development, a plan for new technologies, a plan for utilities, etc. But as we all know, plans change. A city plan is no different.

Action: Get to know your city’s plan. Look up your city’s plan. If you live in a rural area, look up your regional plan. If a plan does not exist, ask your officials to consider making a plan.

16. Moral Climate – 16 JAN

Read: Genesis

Lot looked out and saw that the entire Jordan Valley as far as Zoar was well-watered everywhere like the Lord’s garden and the land of Egypt. This was before God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. So Lot chose the entire Jordan Valley for himself. Then Lot journeyed eastward, and they separated from each other. Abram lived in the land of Canaan, but Lot lived in the cities of the valley and set up his tent near Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were evil, sinning greatly against the Lord. Genesis 13:10-13

Lot settled down near Sodom. Perhaps Lot would have reconsidered if he had known how evil the men of Sodom were. It is very difficult to judge a city’s moral climate by its physical appearance. Sodom-like cities may appear beautiful and blessed from a distance, but as you get closer, the cities of the valley image disappears into the stunning reality of a morally corrupt town.

A city’s moral climate must be judged against God’s standards. According to Ezekiel 18:49-50, Sodom and her sister cities fell short of God’s standards in the following areas: they were arrogant, overfed, and prosperously at ease, but they did not help the poor and needy. They did detestable things, like attempting to mistreat and sexually assault visitors to their cities, as recounted here. God’s standard of sexual morality is clear: sex is only between a husband and his wife. If the culture of a city does not hold people accountable who are having sex outside of this standard, its moral climate is perverted, and the city is sinning greatly against the Lord.

No city is perfect. The city you live in probably struggles with sexual immorality of some kind. How many men and women look for and find sexual satisfaction in a hook up without commitment? Maybe your city considers homosexuality as acceptable. Maybe you have an active abortion clinic. Prostitution and strip clubs may be available; pornography is available everywhere. If we are honest, we can look at our own life, family, friends and city and see our own sexual failings. We all fall short of the glory of God, but we can work together to build sexual safeguards. Have the humility to get your life in order and have the confidence to confront those, the young and not so young, who drug and rape whom they will. There is nothing that stirs up God’s anger more than the violent imposition of sex. God designed sex to be a beautiful thing, a matter of consent between husband and wife.

Think of what moral standards are held up in your city. Do you allow people to steal from the market? Do you allow your women to be raped? What do you do when you discover someone has been murdered? Sexual immorality may not seem like it hurts anyone – but it is one of the surest ways to destroy your city. God has always detested sexual immorality and always will.

Action: Humbly confront people and places in your city that are operating against God’s standard of consensual sex between a husband and his wife.

17. Home First – 17 JAN

Read: Genesis

…For I have chosen him so that he will command his children and his house after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just. This is how the Lord will fulfill to Abraham what He promised him. Then the Lord said, The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is immense, and their sin is extremely serious. I will go down to see if what they have done justifies the cry that has come up to Me. If not, I will find out. The men turned from there and went toward Sodom while Abraham remained standing before the Lord. Abraham stepped forward and said, "Will You really sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are 50 righteous people in the city? Will You really sweep it away instead of sparing the place for the sake of the 50 righteous people who are in it? Genesis 18:19-24

God doesn’t need to consult us on any of His decisions, but He chooses to do so because He loves us. He seems to look for someone to stand in the breech, to intercede on behalf of compromised people and compromised situations.

Abraham begins by asking if the Lord would destroy the city if 50 righteous people were found in it. He eventually goes down to 10. Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed nonetheless. We must conclude that there were not even 10 innocent people to be found in the cities.

What about your city? How many righteous people do you have? Do you have a growing number of righteous men and women that are also raising their children in the ways of righteousness? Is your city worth saving? Can you name 20 righteous people in your town? Is it possible to bring in more people into your city that are righteous?

The real source of protection of a city is not Christian businesses or a Christian university. The real source is righteous families that teach righteousness in the home. The path that Abraham is to take according to Genesis 18:19 is the one we should also take.

…he will command his children and his house after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just.

Action: Instead of bringing in a flood of new righteous people to sanitize your city’s wickedness, encourage the parents, especially the fathers, to command their children to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

18. Known For – 18 JAN

Read: Genesis

Then the Lord rained burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah from the Lord out of the sky. He overthrew these cities, the entire plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and whatever grew on the ground…So it was, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, He remembered Abraham and brought Lot out of the middle of the upheaval when He overthrew the cities where Lot had lived. Genesis 19:24-25, 29

Today’s reading is rich with significant stories – the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the exemplification of Lot’s character, the survival of the city of Zoar, the birth of Isaac, Abraham’s covenant with Abimelech and the founding of Beersheba. Three city related events happen within this reading:

1. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah – because of their wickedness and the lack of righteous people in their cities.

2. The naming of the small place that Lot runs to – the city of Zoar.

3. Abraham and Abimelech’s covenant and the founding of the city of Beersheba.

Let’s compare these three cities (combining Sodom and Gomorrah as twin cities). Compare them also to your city:

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Has God stopped destroying cities today? Why aren’t more wicked cities destroyed today? Those of us who carry a heavy heart and burden for the wickedness around us – may long to see justice carried out like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. It might be pleasing to see justice carried out on the wicked. But be careful that this attitude does not lead to self-righteousness. You, too, are wicked, but saved by grace (I trust you are, and if not, do not delay this decision) so that our Lord’s righteousness can be borne out in our lives.

Action: Answer three questions about your city: What is the reason your city was founded? What is your city known for? Finally, is its existence viable over the long term?

19. Honorable Generosity – 19 JAN

Read: Genesis

Ephron was sitting among the Hittites. So in the presence of all the Hittites who came to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham: No, my lord. Listen to me. I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. I give it to you in the presence of my people. Bury your dead. Genesis 23:10-11

It stands to reason that Ephron was a regular part of the city gate sitters. As a landowner, Ephron would have been an influential community member. As is clear from his generosity and fair dealings with Abraham, he was a benefit to the city. Though Ephron eventually received 400 shekels of silver from Abraham for the land with the cave to bury Sarah, he offered it free of charge.

What would Ephron have gained by giving the land free of charge to Abraham? What were his hidden motives? Maybe Ephron was being generous to an outsider. Maybe Ephron felt the pressure of all the elders at the city gate and felt compelled to give it to Abraham to honor the community. We do know that he offered it free of charge. And even when Abraham demanded to pay for the property, Ephron provided what seemed to be a fair price.

We don’t know why Ephron offered the cave and the land, but he did. Would you? Imagine owning a wonderful cave that your children and grandchildren have loved exploring for decades. In walks a stranger. He asks to purchase your cave to bury his dead wife. Would you offer the cave to him for free, knowing your family would no longer have the right to explore the cave or even have a right to walk on the land?

We don’t hear about Ephron after the real estate transaction, but we can learn about generosity from him. If Abraham had accepted the cave and the land for free in front of all the people at the city gate, Ephron would have been compelled to carry out his obligation. It was a risk. Are you willing to take that risk? Do you have land someone else needs? If someone offered to buy your land (that is not for sale) would you first offer it up for free?

Action: Hold your city’s land with an open hand. If someone offers to purchase your land for a noble reason – take the risk and offer the land to him for free.

20. Reconciling Cities – 20 JAN

Read: Genesis

They got up early in the morning and swore an oath to each other. Then Isaac sent them on their way, and they left him in peace. On that same day Isaac’s slaves came to tell him about the well they had dug, saying to him, We have found water! He called it Oath. Therefore the name of the city is Beer-sheba to this day. Genesis 26:31-33

Reconciliation is a priceless blessing. Isaac reconfirms a covenant his father made, reconciling himself to Abimelech and re-establishing the city of Beer-sheba.

Was it coincidence that Isaac’s slaves found water the same day the oath was made? Regardless, sometimes we have to give up our pride and selfishness to be able to reconcile. Reconciliation and healing of wounds can take years, on other occasions healing is instantaneous. But once you have reconciled – be ready for water, literally or metaphorically.

Is your city suffering from internal fighting? Do you have a neighbor that you cannot stand? What about a neighboring city – do you have a city nearby that has wronged your city? Have you wronged another city nearby? Is there an opportunity for reconciliation?

Abimelech humbled himself and went out of his way to reconcile with Isaac. Isaac was furious with Abimelech – one day you want nothing to do with me and the next you want me to take an oath with you? Abimelech diplomatically calmed him down and honored him with kind words. Isaac must have taken this as forgiveness.

Most of us need time to move through catharsis – to move the heavy emotion of betrayal and abuse to healing. The mental and emotional jump from distrust to trust takes time. Trust may take time to build up, and even longer to rebuild. Isaac, however, quickly moves from treating Abimelech as an enemy to treating him as an ally. So Isaac made an oath – a promise, a legally binding code of honor that could not be bent. Be careful not to rush into an oath, especially when dealing with a former enemy. Choose your words carefully and take your time setting up a contract.

Action: When attempting to make allies out of enemies on behalf of your city, the following steps are recommended: 1. Humble yourself, 2. Go to your enemy, 3. Be ready for confrontation, 4. Ask forgiveness, 5. Reconcile with your enemy, 6. Build trust, 7. Express your desire for an oath and if all other conditions are in place – then take the oath.

21. Name Change – 21 JAN

Read: Genesis

Early in the morning Jacob took the stone that was near his head and set it up as a marker. He poured oil on top of it and named the place Bethel, though previously the city was named Luz. Then Jacob made a vow: "If God will be with me and watch over me on this journey, if He provides me with food to eat and clothing to wear, and if I return safely to my father’s house, then the Lord will be my God. Genesis 28:18-21

Jacob is running from a recently betrayed Esau only to be on the receiving end of another betrayal. Jacob had deceived his father Isaac into giving him the blessing reserved for Esau. Esau is furious, so Jacob escapes to his mother’s brother’s land and works for his cousin’s hand in marriage. But he himself is deceived and betrayed by his uncle Laban when he gives him his other daughter.

In between one betrayal and another, the Lord appears to Jacob and he sees a stairway between heaven and earth. God renews the covenant with Jacob that He made with Jacob’s fathers. Jacob was in awe. He had to do something. He pours oil on the stone near his head and thereby sets it apart as a memorial. He renames the town that future generations would inherit. The Lord’s Word - as with all His promises – will come true, despite and even through human acts of betrayal.

The city in question was named Luz. Jacob renames it Bethel. The meaning of Luz is almond tree and the meaning of Bethel is House of God. Many cities in Israel begin with Beth (House of…) – Bethany, Bethesda, Bethlehem, Bethsaida, etc.

Many Beths may have started with a physical house or factory type facility that was unique enough to the area to build a city around it. Bethel, however, was so named because Jacob saw God there and honored Him. As often happens, a place where God is reported to have appeared to man becomes a place in which a physical