Whispers from the Mountain: Lessons from God and the Pillars of Christianity: A Devotional

By Tom Reed

Tom Reed follows up on his earlier devotionals to highlight the Word of God in Whispers from the Mountain.

The devotionals are short and saturated with references from Scripture and extensive commentary to help you walk with the Lord.

The book begins by asking you to imagine that there is a knock on your door, and instead of an unwanted salesman or neighbor, it’s God. He writes, “God often sent angels as messengers to convey an important message. The angel, Gabriel, was sent from God to visit a virgin named Mary, and coming in, he said to her, ‘Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.’” (Luke 1:26–28)

“Sometimes God talks directly to Man. God and Moses had their first conversation through a burning bush. God and the soon to be great prophet, Isiah, had a conversation without an angel or bush. Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here I am. Send me!” (IS 6:8).

The emphasis of the book are the pillars of Christianity, with ten devotionals under each pillar. A tenth section titled “Stones” serves as a catch-all to recognize other potential pillars.

By using this book in tandem with your personal Bible, you’ll be encouraged to dig deeper into God’s Word, paving the way to develop a stronger bond and closer relationship with Him.

• Language: English
• Publisher: LifeRich Publishing
• Release date: Sep 3, 2021
• ISBN: 9781489737465

Tom Reed

Tom Reed lives and writes on a small farm with his wife, Judy, in rural West Tennessee, shared with an abundance of critters. Prior to writing, he retired from a career in health care management and was active in community organizations. This is his tenth book. [Use photo from previous two books published by you.]

Book preview

Copyright © 2021 Tom Reed.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by

any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying,

recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system

without the written permission of the author except in the case

of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

LifeRich Publishing is a registered trademark of

The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc.

LifeRich Publishing

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.liferichpublishing.com

844-686-9607

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or

links contained in this book may have changed since publication and

may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those

of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher,

and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are

models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-4897-3745-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4897-3746-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021915836

LifeRich Publishing rev. date: 08/21/2021

Your voice will also be like that

of a spirit from the ground,

And your speech will whisper

from the dust.

(IS 29:4)

Presented To:

From:

DEDICATION

Jil Burks Cooper, my wonderful and beautiful stepdaughter, has read the rough draft of every book, fiction and religious, I have written. It is a painful burden, but she has always persevered with advice and encouragement. As time evolves, so do we. She has moved from dependent child to competent mother, and now care giver to an entire extended family. Her skills as an excellent nurse placed her in such a position, but it is her caring heart that propels her to each new crisis. Dedicating a book to her seems so trivial in comparison to what she gives to the family, but we all appreciate her–every day.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Most books are a group effort. Mine are for sure. Tom Mapes planted the devotional seed a few years ago during one of our periodic lunches over a long friendship. We solve the world’s problems over food, and create a few while desert is being served. I thought a devotional or two might be a good experiment, but… His seed sprouted like that famed mustard seed and one or two devotionals grew to more than 500. That encompasses a 365- day devotional, a sequel to it, and now this book. My advice is to beware if you plan to have lunch with Tom Mapes.

Jil Burks Cooper has not only read the rough daft of this book, but the previous devotional books and five books of fiction. She has been a steady, sweet reader of every rough drafts all eight books. It is a valued jewel to find such a person.

My wife, Judy, is really at the top of this list. She sees the worst of my writing before anyone else and catches most of the errors in spelling, grammar, and thought. This book and the others would not see the light of day without her.

CONTENTS

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Note to Reader

I   God Visits

II   Prayer

III   Forgiveness

IV   Thankfulness/ Gratitude

V   Obedience

VI   Trust/Faith

VII   Repentance

VIII   Hope

IX   Humility

X   Stones

Scripture References

Other books by Tom Reed

About the Author

NOTE TO READER

This devotional, like the two before them, is saturated in Scripture, and guided by it. The commentary is to highlight and set up the Word of God, but not manipulate it. I urge you to use your personal Bible for further study and understanding. The devotionals are rather short, but not always uniform in length depending on the number of Scripture references and/or amount of commentary.

The Biblical source throughout is the New American Standard version. Other versions such as the KJ would be perfectly fine, but the NAS happened to be on my desk at the time; and I started with that and did not want to confuse the reader by interchanging versions.

My intent is to encourage you to use this devotional as a companion to your personal Bible. I pray that some devotionals will prompt you to further Bible study. Each daily devotional could simply be a door for your deeper study and the path to a closer relationship with the Triune God.

The theme running throughout is highlighting the pillars of Christianity. Those key principles that support the faith. Many readers might suggest different pillars or reject the ones I selected. It is a matter of discussion. There are ten devotionals under each pillar. Section ten (X) is titled, Stones. This was a ‘catchall’ section to recognize other potential pillars that a reader might choose as a support for Christianity.

The book starts with visits from God. I pray that your encounter with God is something you can share with us.

Blessings,

Tom Reed

24397.png

GOD VISITS

"The grass withers, the flowers

fades, But the word of our God

stands forever." (IS 40:8)

Introduction

Luke 1:26–28

PSA 29:3–9

John 1:1

The doorbell rings or there is a knock on your door. Typically you go to answer the door and see who wants you attention. Too often it is an unwanted salesman, sometimes a neighbor. What if it happens to be God at your door? God often sent angels as messengers to convey an important message.

The angel, Gabriel, was sent from God to visit a virgin named Mary, and coming in, he said to her, Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you. (Luke 1:26–28)

God also used prophets to speak to people. The prophets often had to direct the behavior of the wayward people, and thus did not win popularity contests.

However, God, the Father sometimes engaged man directly in conversations seen in the Old Testament. As we move into the New Testament, God the Son, Jesus, routinely is recorded having many conversations throughout the Gospels. What does God’s voice sound like? God’s voice is often described as loud or powerful. Here is how David describes God’s voice:

The voice of the Lord is upon the waters;

The God of glory thunders,

The Lord is many over the waters.

The voice of the Lord is powerful,

The voice of the Lord is majestic.

The voice of the Lord breaks cedars;

Yes, the voice of the Lord breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.

He makes Lebanon skip like a calf,

And Sirion like a wild ox.

The voice of the Lord hews out flames of fire.

The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness;

The Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.

The voice of the Lord makes the deer to calve

And strips the forests bare;

And His temple everything says, Glory!

(PSA 29:3–9)

Some say, God’s voice is heard as a whisper on the wind.

It is heard only if you are paying attention and have ears to hear.

Words. It leads us to the Gospel of John.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God… (John 1:1)

We are going to look at several direct conversations between God and man as recorded in the Bible. Some start early, like with Adam, but are timeless and remain relevant as if your doorbell rang today.

Light

Gen 1:3,4

Many think Thomas Edison said, Let there be light. Then he flipped the switch and his famous light bulb shown. Too many reinvent history and rearrange the eons. Thomas Edison was at least many centuries yet to come. Before him and before there was a ‘before,’ there was nothing. There was darkness–nothing.

Then God said, Let there be light; and there was light. God saw that light was good; and separated light from darkness. (Gen 1:3,4)

God went on to work and create everything else for six days, and then He rested. We, like night bugs, are drawn to the light. We seem to seek light and are fearful of the dark. Children display this fear as we tuck them into bed, and then must turn on a night-light for them.

From the moment God decided that we needed ‘Light,’ people have been seeking it. David told us in one of his Psalms.

The Lord is my light and salvation;

Whom shall I fear? (PSA 27:1)

Isaiah also guided us.

Come, house of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord. (IS 2:5)

We seek the light, but too often fall into darkness. We were encouraged to become Light. Jesus told us:

"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. (Matt 5:14–16)

God, the Father, created Light, and then created everything else. God, the Son, Jesus, tells us to let our Light shine in order to glorify God. We get another emphasis of what Light means to our world as Jesus talks to us again.

Then Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life. (John 8:12)

Apple

Gen 2:16,17,3:9–13

The first recorded conversation we have is with the first man, Adam. The Lord God commanded the man, saying, From any tree of the garden you may eat freely; but the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you surely will die. (Genesis2:16,17)

This conversation was important then and now. Some interpret it as the moment God granted us Free Will. Adam was given a choice. He was told not eat from this one tree and the consequences if he did. Adam, and us have Free Will. We can choose good over evil. Right vs. wrong, but we must be prepared to accept the consequences of our actions. God created us not to be automatons to blindly follow, but rather to have Free Will to choose our own destiny and mold our lives. Ideally we align our lives within the will of God. Adam had the choice. We do too. Choose wisely as you answer your door.

If you continue reading in Genesis you find that the devil, serpent, confuses and encourages Eve to get Adam to eat the apple from the forbidden tree. This leads to another knock on the door. Then the Lord God called to the man and said to him, Where are you? (Gen 3:9)

The all-knowing God certainly knew where Adam was within the garden. The question was asked more in order to hear Adam’s answer. Adam confesses his fear and that he has, indeed, eaten from the forbidden tree. Adam confessed, but aimed the guilt to Eve. The man said, The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree and I ate. (Gen 3:12) Now God’s conversation shifts to Eve. Then God said to the woman, What is this you have done? And the woman said, The serpent deceived me, and I ate. (Gen 3:13)

God, again, surely knew what happened, but the question was to hear the response from the guilty. God was teaching obedience. A lesson reaching out across the eons to our front door.

Sin

Gen 4:6–10

We all have sinned to various degrees. Some worse than others. Hitler was a bit worse than Billy cheating on his spelling quiz, but none of