Out of the Ashes
Day 11 • February 13
Out of the Ashes –
God’s Story
Mephibosheth
2 Samuel 9:7-8 “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.” Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?”
He was 67 years old and had stored a great deal of his life’s work in a series of warehouses. Although they were thought to be fire-proof due to their masonry construction, the contents nonetheless caught fire on a December night in West Orange, New Jersey, 1914. Looking over the still-smoking carnage the next morning, Thomas Edison remarked to his son, “There is great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burned up. Thank God we can start anew.” And start anew he did. Within three scant weeks of the devastating fire, Edison delivered the first ever phonograph. What an inspiring display of vision and determination! Edison’s example shows the strength of stubborn perseverance, but even that is not always enough. Sometimes, events outside of our control set our very hopes and dreams ablaze. In those cases, we need more than determination. We need grace. Such is the story of Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth was the grandson of King Saul, the first king of Israel. His father Jonathan was a close friend of David; so close the two made a covenant to forever bless and honor one another. That vow proved more difficult than they thought. The two were separated by Saul’s envy-inspired mission to kill David – an obsession that forced David into hiding for ten years. Then one day, urgent news spread throughout Israel. Saul had been killed in battle… and Jonathan, too. David would be the next king. Many people celebrated, but the household of five year old Mephibosheth braced for the worst. They assumed David would slay all of Saul’s descendants, as was custom. Fearing for the boy, Mephibosheth’s nurse grabbed him and ran, but in her hurry, she tripped and dropped the former prince, injuring his legs so badly that he never recovered their use.
In one day, Mephibosheth lost his grandfather, his father, and the use of his feet. His once bright future went up in smoke. He had been marked for the throne, but he now seemed destined to live as an outcast… were it not for grace. Here’s what happened next: As David took the throne, he reflected on his promise to Jonathan and made inquiries about his family. A royal search uncovered Mephibosheth, and David promptly sent for him. Can you imagine his fear as he limped into the throne room? Can you imagine the sense of doom resting on his shoulders? Can you imagine his surprise when David said, “Don’t be afraid,” and then added, “I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan.” Moments later, David returned all of Jonathan’s land to Mephibosheth. He restored his inheritance. He even offered Mephibosheth a place at the royal table. In short, David adopted Mephibosheth. He went from lame and despised to rich and adopted. Mephibosheth discovered grace. The parallel between Mephibosheth’s story and ours is clear. Because of our rebellion against God, we deserve to live as outcasts, crippled by sin. We deserve judgment, but we receive Grace. Through Jesus Christ, God makes a way for us to have fellowship with Him. He adopts us into His family and offers us an inheritance. He even invites us to eat at the table of His Goodness. Do you see God’s Grace at work in your life? When everything turns upside down and you are forced to confront your own weakness and inadequacy, do you recognize the Grace God extends. If so, what is your response? You may be lame and weak, but you serve a powerful and gracious King. Respond to His gift with Worship and Thanksgiving.
Out of the Ashes – Mephibosheth
Day 11
My Story
Jacob Goodin For more of Jacob’s story, go to www.Pinedale.org
The dark part of my story probably began when I was twelve years old. That year, I drank alcohol for the first time. I was with my father at the time. Looking back, it is easy to see how foolish that decision was, on both of our parts, but neither of us could have predicted where it would lead.
in his truck, and took me to talk to a minister at Pinedale. Something happened inside of me that day. I felt like I heard from God. I felt like I could hear God telling me, “I’m tired of you doing what you’re doing, and I’m ready for you to change your ways.” You know what? I was ready, too.
By the time I was 18 years old, I was working fulltime away from home, putting in long hours and chasing dollars. During that time, work defined one part of my life. Alcohol and drugs defined the other. Work filled a need to do something that would make my father proud of me, and I made good money. But most of the money I made went to partying.
Soon after that day, I went to Freedom Farms for rehab. During that time, I faithfully spent time in the Bible. One passage that stood out to me was in Romans 13, where Paul talks about obeying authorities. God seemed to scream at me through that passage. I had an outstanding warrant at that time, and I had been running from it. But no longer. I wanted to follow God’s lead now. When I left rehab, I surrendered myself to authorities. The result was a prison term, and I was ready.
You see, that first sip of alcohol sent me down a path of substance abuse. I searched constantly for a new and better high. Alcohol gave way to marijuana, which eventually led to harder drugs. My “roommate” during one job introduced me to cocaine, and from the first time I tried it, I was hooked. Crack and ecstasy both followed. My habit became so pronounced that eventually I was spending over $100,000 per year on that lifestyle. Proverbs 22:3 says, “A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.” I should have seen where my lifestyle was taking me, but I didn’t. As a result, I suffered tremendously. I lost my wife and daughter. I lost my business. I even lost my home. For a 2-3 week stretch, I literally lived on the street and later moved into an abandoned trailer. Plus, I spent more than one stint in prison. As I think back on my story, it seems amazing that God would still have anything to do with me after all of that… but He never gave up me. In fact, He found me in the most unlikely place – in a hotel room smoking crack. Here’s how it happened: I had worked a job and owed money to some of the men who had worked with me. One of those men came and found me. An angry confrontation followed, and he literally smacked me to get my attention. But then, he did something I did not expect – he offered to help me get straightened out. The next morning he showed up at my door, put me
During my time in prison, I submitted my life to God. I started attending Church there, which is where I met the folks from the Pinedale Prison Ministry. For the first time, I could hear God speaking to me, and I was listening! When I got out, I knew that I had a future far different from my past. As I type these words, I stand amazed at the Grace God has poured into my life. He has given me new friends – a support group that loves me (and I love them). He blessed me with a wife that I adore. He has given me a new opportunity to teach my children what I have learned about the love of Christ. He has made me a man I am proud to be – and He continues to shape me. I still work hard every day. In fact, my roofing business is booming. But I understand now that I don’t have to work to earn my Heavenly Father’s approval. He loves me more than I ever understood, and I love to tell the story of His Grace. Grace is a gift given freely by God. Why do you think this is so hard for many people to accept? ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________
Daily Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 9
Out of the Ashes –
God’s Story
Mephibosheth
2 Samuel 9:7-8 “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.” Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?”
He was 67 years old and had stored a great deal of his life’s work in a series of warehouses. Although they were thought to be fire-proof due to their masonry construction, the contents nonetheless caught fire on a December night in West Orange, New Jersey, 1914. Looking over the still-smoking carnage the next morning, Thomas Edison remarked to his son, “There is great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burned up. Thank God we can start anew.” And start anew he did. Within three scant weeks of the devastating fire, Edison delivered the first ever phonograph. What an inspiring display of vision and determination! Edison’s example shows the strength of stubborn perseverance, but even that is not always enough. Sometimes, events outside of our control set our very hopes and dreams ablaze. In those cases, we need more than determination. We need grace. Such is the story of Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth was the grandson of King Saul, the first king of Israel. His father Jonathan was a close friend of David; so close the two made a covenant to forever bless and honor one another. That vow proved more difficult than they thought. The two were separated by Saul’s envy-inspired mission to kill David – an obsession that forced David into hiding for ten years. Then one day, urgent news spread throughout Israel. Saul had been killed in battle… and Jonathan, too. David would be the next king. Many people celebrated, but the household of five year old Mephibosheth braced for the worst. They assumed David would slay all of Saul’s descendants, as was custom. Fearing for the boy, Mephibosheth’s nurse grabbed him and ran, but in her hurry, she tripped and dropped the former prince, injuring his legs so badly that he never recovered their use.
In one day, Mephibosheth lost his grandfather, his father, and the use of his feet. His once bright future went up in smoke. He had been marked for the throne, but he now seemed destined to live as an outcast… were it not for grace. Here’s what happened next: As David took the throne, he reflected on his promise to Jonathan and made inquiries about his family. A royal search uncovered Mephibosheth, and David promptly sent for him. Can you imagine his fear as he limped into the throne room? Can you imagine the sense of doom resting on his shoulders? Can you imagine his surprise when David said, “Don’t be afraid,” and then added, “I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan.” Moments later, David returned all of Jonathan’s land to Mephibosheth. He restored his inheritance. He even offered Mephibosheth a place at the royal table. In short, David adopted Mephibosheth. He went from lame and despised to rich and adopted. Mephibosheth discovered grace. The parallel between Mephibosheth’s story and ours is clear. Because of our rebellion against God, we deserve to live as outcasts, crippled by sin. We deserve judgment, but we receive Grace. Through Jesus Christ, God makes a way for us to have fellowship with Him. He adopts us into His family and offers us an inheritance. He even invites us to eat at the table of His Goodness. Do you see God’s Grace at work in your life? When everything turns upside down and you are forced to confront your own weakness and inadequacy, do you recognize the Grace God extends. If so, what is your response? You may be lame and weak, but you serve a powerful and gracious King. Respond to His gift with Worship and Thanksgiving.
Out of the Ashes – Mephibosheth
Day 11
My Story
Jacob Goodin For more of Jacob’s story, go to www.Pinedale.org
The dark part of my story probably began when I was twelve years old. That year, I drank alcohol for the first time. I was with my father at the time. Looking back, it is easy to see how foolish that decision was, on both of our parts, but neither of us could have predicted where it would lead.
in his truck, and took me to talk to a minister at Pinedale. Something happened inside of me that day. I felt like I heard from God. I felt like I could hear God telling me, “I’m tired of you doing what you’re doing, and I’m ready for you to change your ways.” You know what? I was ready, too.
By the time I was 18 years old, I was working fulltime away from home, putting in long hours and chasing dollars. During that time, work defined one part of my life. Alcohol and drugs defined the other. Work filled a need to do something that would make my father proud of me, and I made good money. But most of the money I made went to partying.
Soon after that day, I went to Freedom Farms for rehab. During that time, I faithfully spent time in the Bible. One passage that stood out to me was in Romans 13, where Paul talks about obeying authorities. God seemed to scream at me through that passage. I had an outstanding warrant at that time, and I had been running from it. But no longer. I wanted to follow God’s lead now. When I left rehab, I surrendered myself to authorities. The result was a prison term, and I was ready.
You see, that first sip of alcohol sent me down a path of substance abuse. I searched constantly for a new and better high. Alcohol gave way to marijuana, which eventually led to harder drugs. My “roommate” during one job introduced me to cocaine, and from the first time I tried it, I was hooked. Crack and ecstasy both followed. My habit became so pronounced that eventually I was spending over $100,000 per year on that lifestyle. Proverbs 22:3 says, “A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.” I should have seen where my lifestyle was taking me, but I didn’t. As a result, I suffered tremendously. I lost my wife and daughter. I lost my business. I even lost my home. For a 2-3 week stretch, I literally lived on the street and later moved into an abandoned trailer. Plus, I spent more than one stint in prison. As I think back on my story, it seems amazing that God would still have anything to do with me after all of that… but He never gave up me. In fact, He found me in the most unlikely place – in a hotel room smoking crack. Here’s how it happened: I had worked a job and owed money to some of the men who had worked with me. One of those men came and found me. An angry confrontation followed, and he literally smacked me to get my attention. But then, he did something I did not expect – he offered to help me get straightened out. The next morning he showed up at my door, put me
During my time in prison, I submitted my life to God. I started attending Church there, which is where I met the folks from the Pinedale Prison Ministry. For the first time, I could hear God speaking to me, and I was listening! When I got out, I knew that I had a future far different from my past. As I type these words, I stand amazed at the Grace God has poured into my life. He has given me new friends – a support group that loves me (and I love them). He blessed me with a wife that I adore. He has given me a new opportunity to teach my children what I have learned about the love of Christ. He has made me a man I am proud to be – and He continues to shape me. I still work hard every day. In fact, my roofing business is booming. But I understand now that I don’t have to work to earn my Heavenly Father’s approval. He loves me more than I ever understood, and I love to tell the story of His Grace. Grace is a gift given freely by God. Why do you think this is so hard for many people to accept? ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________
Daily Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 9
