Author Archives: Karla Jo Wasion

I love Jesus and His Church. His Word is Truth, His heart is good, and His return is sure.

It’s Not Random

Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. – Luke 1:8-10

Remember, Zechariah’s name means “God remembered” and that means that the time had come for God to fulfill something. In this case, an angel was sent to Zechariah to announce that he and Elizabeth were going to have a child. The one crying out in the wilderness (Isaiah 40:3) was going to be conceived in a barren woman who was too old to have children, by her husband, an old man himself.

Let’s zoom in on five words – “he was chosen by lot… “. In our culture today, that would mean it was a random selection. Luck, really. But in their culture, it was understood that in the casting of lots, God was choosing.

“The lot is cast into the lap,
    but its every decision is from the Lord.” – Proverbs 16:33

I think we can easily get pulled into a culture that believes in luck, coincidences, and chance; a culture that does not acknowledge the sovereignty of God. But we are not of this world and their culture is not ours. Ours is a Kingdom culture and in this culture, we know that He stands sovereign over the affairs of His creation.

We are not chosen by chance, nor do we stumble into “lucky breaks.” What may appear random is, in truth, directed by God’s hand and in accordance with His divine will in the unfolding of His divine plans and purposes. Perhaps this realization can mark the beginning of a holy reverence for Him—the awareness that He rules and reigns over every detail of your life. He has left nothing to chance for you.

Lord, help us see You rightly. May we fully surrender ourselves to You, the Master of all creation.

He Will Remember What He Has Not Forgotten

In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old. – Luke 1:5-7

This is my “short devos based on a couple of verses” phase, in case you wondered. Which I’m sure you didn’t, but one never knows and I think it’s always better to be safe than sorry. I’m pretty throughtful like that.

I like how Luke connects this new covenant beginning with the old covenant, don’t you? He made sure we knew that the priest, Zechariah, was from the division of Abijah. When King David was on the throne, he divided the priesthood into divisions, and Abijah was the eighth divison. He also let us know that both Zechariah and Elizabeth were descendants of Aaron.

Old to new. Seamless. Covenant flowing into covenant.

But do you know the Hebrew meaning of the name Zechariah?

זְכַרְיָה – “Yahweh has remembered”

The Hebrew doesn’t imply that He forgot a thing and then remembered it. It means the time came for His promise, or His prophecy to be fulfilled.

He remembered Zechariah and Elizabeth would bring forth the “voice of one crying out in the wilderness” from Isaiah 40:3.

And now it was time.

There are things I’ve been waiting on, things promised in His Word; things my heart longs to see fulfilled. Somedays, those feel like forgotten things. Like heaven has moved on while my faith filled prayers are in a corner gathering dust.

Today, I am reminded that my Father never forgets and the day will come when He will remember. Because it will be time.

Take heart today, my friend. God has not forgotten, and when it’s time, He will remember. Keep praying.

Where Is My Investment? Where Is Yours?

Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. – Luke 1:1-4

Luke addresses Theophilus as “most excellent”, indicating he could have been a high ranking Roman official. We really don’t know much about him, but Luke wrote not one, but two letters to him – the gospel of Luke, and the book of Acts. Clearly, Theophilus is a man that Luke was invested in on a spiritual level. He wrote to him so that Theophilus could have an assurance of the truth he had been taught. Perhaps doubts or confusion had been expressed, which is understandable, since Luke addresses the fact that many people have given their account of what had taken place. No doubt there were false stories, conflicting stories, and even deceiving stories, humanity being what it is and all.

I am intrigued, because I don’t think Luke wrote these historical accounts to this man in the hopes that they would someday become part of the holy scriptures. Apart from being called by God, perhaps without even realizing it, to write what would become two books of the bible, I believe Luke was genuinely attempting to disciple Theophilus to be able to walk in truth.

Luke was a physician. A man of science, if you will. And it is with that mind that he undertook this task to lay out the events that had taken place starting from the birth of the Christ, through His death and resurrection, and then the formation of His Church. He would have been thorough, methodical, and given to the gathering of as much proof as possible. Funny how God did that. Brought in a man who had not been one of the disciples, a man of science, to authenticate and document things of the Spirit.

Naturally, I have questions.

Who am I investing in? Who is benefitting from my own eyewitness testimony of God’s power?

We can all shout about what’s going on in the world around us today. We can tell anyone who will listen how horrible/great we think our government is or how we think the Church is failing by either taking too much or too little a stand in the political arena.

Anyone can do that.

But how many of us are quietly investing in someone else’s walk with Christ? Are we speaking more about what God has done and is doing in our own lives and in the world around us than we are about what the government is or isn’t doing wrong, or right?

We are called to endure. To keep going. To keep speaking the truth of salvation, the good news that we can be saved from our sin and from the wrath that will come. I can only speak for me, but I don’t think getting worked up over the latest political issue is enduring. It’s getting distracted by what we think is at stake, from what is actually at stake. Nothing this government, or this world, does is eternal. Souls are eternal. People are eternal, and they will be eternal in one of two places. With God, or without Him. God’s desire is that they be with Him.

Is that my desire? Is it yours? Where is the bulk of our investment of this life God has given to us?

From One Seed, Many

Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. (John 12:24)

This verse continually comes to mind in the days since Charlie Kirk’s murder, especially as I watch the aftermath happening around the world. Whatever your opinion of the man, you cannot deny that he had an incredible, positive impact in his short life.

I had followed him for a number of years, amazed at his ability to bring truth into every conversation, and to remain unmoved by the hatred he encountered. I have watched innumerable videos of his debates, his speeches, etc., and I found him to be a loving, compassionate man who cared for this nation and the young people who will inherit it. I saw no evidence of the racism and other derogatory terms he has been tagged with by some.

His faith, and his courage to live it in the face of so much opposition is inspiring so many in this nation, and beyond. He inspired people to return to God and to the Church, to be bold with their faith and the gospel, to marry and have children, to work hard, to love their wives and husbands, and to stand up for the conservative values that first formed this country.

For me personally, he has inspired me out of silence. I am not a debater. I believe Charlie Kirk was anointed and called to do what he did and that’s why he did it so well. But I have a voice and I carry the Spirit of Truth within me. I can be bold in the places God has assigned me to go. I can stop staying silent just to keep the peace or not ruffle feathers. I can stop having a passive faith.

Charlie Kirk was a man whose life, work, and faith should be celebrated, respected, and remembered – but not worshipped. We may be on the brink of elevating him to a place that even he would not take himself. So I do offer the warning that many great men have lived and died and should be remembered for their faithful service, but not a single one of them deserves our worship, and they would agree.

What God does with the seed that was Charlie Kirk is yet to be fully seen, but we do know that His Spirit is moving right now in ways we never imagined, both here and around the world. The testimonies are out there. Unfortunately, they are often being drowned out by the finger pointing and raging from those who did not agree with Charlie. But they are there. I’ve heard them. And I think it’s only beginning.

From the death of one seed, may many, many more come to life.

Rejoicing With Envy

Elizabeth gave birth to a long prayed for son who would become known as John the Baptizer. And Luke tells us in his gospel that “her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her his great mercy, and they rejoiced with her.” – Luke 1:58

And I wondered.

Among the rejoicers were there also women feeling the emptiness of their womb and prayers that went unanswered? Husbands, happy for Zechariah, while wondering why he was the lucky one, as they felt helpless for their own wifes’ maternal longings?

Weddings. Births. Healings. Financial or material gain. The list is long and it creates a space where “good for them” and “why not me” battle it out for front row seats, while we ignore it or shove it down with a piece of cake and a smile that hides the truth.

What if we chose sanctification instead? Put ourselves on the altar and let Him bring our envious heart into the light so that we can see the damage it’s done.

A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot. – Proverbs 14:30

“But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic… – James 3:14-16.

“Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” – Galatians 5:19-21

We just can’t continue to ignore our own envy—that stuff is dangerous on every level. Instead, I pray we will become so quick to repent when we see it, and ask God to heal our heart of what has wounded it.

Because we know He’s a good Father, and everything we need. We know He does not overlook us. We are loved, cared for, and safe in His hands.

Lord, teach us to rejoice without envy.

Marriage Matters—What Have You Learned?

“Lord, what have I learned about marriage over all these years?”

Loaded question potential right there.

His answer could be either “not nearly enough” or “quite a lot.” But what I heard back wasn’t either of those answers.

The question isn’t “how much have you learned”, but “how much do you obey what you’ve learned?”

*head goes back* Ugh.

Fine. But for the purpose of this blog post, I’m going to stick to what I’ve learned and we can all just assume I don’t always have stellar follow through. Fair?

And He said to all, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. (Luke 9:23)

Self-denial is the life of a Christian, but it is practiced most vigorously in the context of marriage. In the beginning it doesn’t really feel like dying, you know? When all you want is the happiness of this wonderful creature who now shares your bathroom. And then.

One day you realize they are insanely messy with no rhyme or reason to the way they live their life on the daily, and have an “I’ll get to it when I get to it” code for life. They never turn off lights, have the sleep schedule of a toddler, prefer to talk in partial sentences and let you figure out the rest, and would live on “something snacky” if you let them. And if you tell them they can’t do something it’s a sure thing they’ll do that thing, even if they don’t really want to do that thing. Because, don’t tell them what to do. Besides all that, what makes them laugh one day makes them cry the next day, and you don’t know what day it is, ever (all of that is me, by the way. all me.).

Those are the more lighthearted things my husband has learned about me. There are more, less lighthearted, that we’ve both learned about one another. Things that broke us. Hurt us. Almost ended us.

And this is where the dying begins in earnest. Where the forgiveness, grace, humility, and bearing with one another that the bible talks about becomes the fork in the road. Follow Jesus, or do it our own way. One brings life, the other brings death.

Marriage has taught me how to be kind when I don’t want to be kind. How to swallow my pride and apologize for my snarky tone of voice that they clearly deserved. How to forgive even the egregious, because I was forgiven by Jesus and have no other leg to stand on.

The statement “marriage is hard” is such an understatement. But so is “marriage is good.” Both are true at the very same time, because while we make it hard, God made it good.

Every lesson I’ve learned about following Jesus, I’ve learned in the context of marriage. And one of the most shameful things I discovered is that I was a way better Christian to other people than I was to my husband. Oof. That was hard to admit, but I know I am not the only one who can say it and hopefully by going first, someone else will find the courage to admit it so that it can change.

God has taught me more through marriage than I could ever convey on this page. Surprisingly, or maybe not, is that He has used marriage to teach me more about Himself than about me, or my husband. I’ve learned that He is everything I need. That He is so very good. Faithful. Patient. Full of grace and generous with compassion, and powerful enough to change hearts and minds that we could never have changed on our own.

Think about it…

? What is the hardest thing you’ve learned through marriage?

? What is the best thing you’ve learned through marriage?

? How are you doing at obeying what you’ve learned?

Exodus 20—The Hardest One of All

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. You shall have no other gods before Me.

I don’t know if the ten commandments are in order of importance or not, but I do think it says something that the very first onetold them (and us) to put nothing—and no one— before Him. No other “god” was to command their allegiance, worship, or obedience.

And then He told them why.

Because He is the one who defeated their enemy and saved them from slavery. No other god did that.

And He knew them. He knew they would need something to show them right from wrong, something that would prove their rebellious nature, so He gave them the Law. Commands He knew they would not be able to obey. And because He knew they would fall, He gave them a way to come back to Him, a way to atone and be right with Him again. And again, and again, through the sacrifice of an innocent animal.

The Old Testament is the story of a people loved and rescued by God who then continually strayed from Him. We don’t read of their habitual lying about their neighbor or wishing they could have someone else’s stuff. The story isn’t replete with people dishonoring their parents on the regular or stealing someone’s donkey.

Instead, we discover that remaining faithful to God was their number one hard thing.

There are a thousand more words I could write, but I think we can all come to our own conclusions about the similarities between us and the first ones called God’s people. So rather than a bunch of statements, I’m going to ask all of us a few questions.

? Is there anything that has slipped into the position of “first” in my life? Anything that is challenging my faithfulness to God and to His Word?

? Are there other “gods” that have become acceptable to me? The pursuit of money or fame (likes, follows, a stage). The obsession with anything, including self, that isn’t God. The desire to keep up with the crowd. The push or urge to do things my way, to control the outcome, to make it work apart from complete dependence, or waiting, on God.

? Do I look at or to myself more than God?

Questions not to be asked lightly or rushed through. And maybe the better thing is to simply sit with the Holy Spirit and ask Him to reveal the answers, to lead us to repentance, and back to full and humble submission to the Lord our God, who loved us and freed us from slavery.