BLOGS
“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” Isaiah 40:8
o The Bible is the story of Jesus. It is God’s plan through time of the redemption of his people through his son’s ultimate sacrifice and victory over death. o There are 66 different books in the Bible, written by over 40 different human authors. These authors were kings, shepherds, doctors, prophets, fisherman, tax collectors, farmers and more. o The Bible was written over a time period of more than 1500 years. o The Bible is divided into two main sections, the Old Testament and the New Testament. o The Old Testament is the “old covenant” or promise of a coming Savior. It is full of history, laws, stories of kings and judges, poetry, songs of praise and books of wisdom. It also contains writings of the prophets of long ago who foretold the coming Messiah (also called the Christ or Savior). o The New Testament is the “new covenant” or promise. This new covenant comes because Jesus enters the world as a fulfillment of all of the old prophecies. The new promise is that if we believe in him and accept his gift of payment for our sins on the cross, we become part of his family and can live with him in Heaven someday. He also promises to return to earth soon to judge all people and establish his new Kingdom. o The first four books of the New Testament are the four gospels (gospel literally means “good news”). They are four stories from four perspectives of the life of Jesus on earth. They are the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. o After these gospels comes the book of Acts (or Acts of the Apostles). This book tells of what happened after Jesus was resurrected from the dead and went back to Heaven. This is the story of the early church, what they did and how the good news of Jesus began to spread across the world. Also about the persecution that began to rage against Christians. You will find much about Peter and Paul in these pages. o What follows the book of Acts are letters and narratives written by Paul, Peter, James, John, and Jude. These writings expound on why Jesus is the Messiah and how we are to live and act in light of this. o The final book is a prophetic future account of what will happen in the end times (coming very soon according to the Bible). This is the book of Revelation written by John. Where do you start? Get to know Jesus. Pick one of the gospels to read first (John may be my favorite, but all are good). Then read Acts and on to Romans. Reading these three books will give you a solid foundation of who Jesus is and what his life, death and resurrection are all about. But after these, do not stop, just keep going! Why do I trust the Bible? Faith. I have full faith in all the Bible says. This is not blind faith, the scriptures are full of evidence that prove the existence of Jesus and of the events described. Most people are either blind to it, don’t care or are too lazy to open the Bible and see it for themselves. Don’t be one of them; don’t settle for anything less than the truth. Don’t rely on someone else to tell you what it says (even me). Belief is between you and God, pray and ask that he opens your eyes and heart to understand the truth. How do I know the Bible is accurate? A consistent story of one main character written by a variety of authors (who mostly did not know each other), over a time span of 1500 years. Explain that apart from a Holy Spirit’s divine direction. Also, because the Bible says so. “All scripture is breathed out by God.” 2 Tim 3:16. Once you understand the authority the Bible has as the full and inerrant word of God, there is no other source that we can compare it to. If this isn’t enough walk outside, did all of this creation happen by accident and random chance? “For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” Romans 1:19-20. What does the Bible mean for you? Life or death, and the choice is yours to make… “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days.” Deuteronomy 30:19-20 Jesus = Life Above all else, my heart’s desire is that you come to love Jesus. Plain and simple. Yet this has immense eternal significance. Please allow me to walk you through why this is so vitally important and keep in mind, if I didn’t care about you, I wouldn’t waste my time and effort to put this together and give you this gift of God’s Word. How hateful it would be for me to possess the cure for eternal death and not share it with you. Not only the cure for death, but also the only way to experience peace beyond understanding, true joy and full security while on this earth knowing my soul is safe in the hands of a Mighty God who has redeemed me to be his own. So here it is… God is our Creator, he is holy, perfect and just. In his presence joy, peace, and love abound. Where he is is where Heaven is. In order to be with God we must also be perfectly holy, God will not tolerate anything less in his presence. No sin is allowed. “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.” – Revelation 4:11 “Since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’” – 1 Peter 1:16 Sin enters the world. The very first man and woman God created (Adam and Eve) chose to sin and rebel against God. Since that moment humankind has continued to sin against God. Have you ever sinned? Have you ever told a lie, lusted, wished evil on someone, envied someone? Then yes, you are a sinner. We all are, me too. When we sin, we are rebelling against God and his rules, we are putting ourselves above him. “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” – Romans 3:23 “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” – Romans 3:10-13 God will not tolerate sin. God is a loving God, but also a just God. Sin must be dealt with and brought to justice. What does sin cost? Remember sin cannot be present with God. Someone with sin must be removed from God, that place is called Hell. Since we sin, we deserve Hell. “For the wages of sin is death” – Romans 6:23 “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” – Hebrews 9:27 So is there any hope? Yes! That is why the story of Jesus is called the “good news”! The bad news is we are sinners and the price for sin must be paid or God would not be keeping his word. The good news is, because of God’s great love for us, he had a plan all along to redeem us. He sends Jesus, his son, to put on flesh and come to earth. Jesus lives a perfect life, free from any sin at all (read the gospels to check this out). He then offers himself up to his Father as the one who will take the punishment of our sins upon himself. Jesus will pay for our ugly sins, every single one of them. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,” – John 1:14 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” – John 3:16-17 “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God,” - 1 Peter 3:18 We can be forgiven and saved from death! God pours his wrath and judgement upon his own perfect son instead of upon us. Though innocent, Jesus dies a horrible death and is crucified on a cross in our place. God’s wrath is satisfied, the debt is now paid in full forevermore… but only for those who accept this sacrificial gift and believe in Jesus. Those who continue to rebel and live life their own way will be separated forever from God. “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities;” - Isaiah 53:5 “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” – John 3:36 “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” – John 3:18 When God calls you to be his own and you chose to believe in him, there is no going back. He replaces your heart of stone with a heart of flesh that beats for him. This becomes evident in your new love for Jesus and in how you live your life for him. There will be noticeable changes in your life. You are a new creation and not the same. You have moved from death to life. “And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.” – Ezekiel 36:26-27 “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” – Colossians 1:13 If this event ever takes place in your life, I want to know it. I want to rejoice with you and praise God with you. Jesus is alive today. Jesus did not stay dead, after three days in the grave he arose, victorious over death. He ascended into Heaven and sat down at the right hand of his Father God, his work was complete. “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,’” – John 11:25 “But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God,” – Hebrews 10:12 I will be praying that God will open your heart and call you soon. I want you to choose Jesus so badly I will give up anything in my life to see it happen. Call me with questions or to meet to talk. Read about Jesus and make your decision soon. There you have it, my plea and proclamation for this article right in the title. Teach your kids not only to read well, but also to love to read. There are very few skills as vital as this one for their life, and yes, I mean vital. Make it a priority, I'll tell you why.
If you have school aged children or grandchildren you have heard the constant push. While in school, children are required to read every day, there are special “reading events”, and there is state and national testing done to evaluate how they are doing. Despite these efforts children (and adults) still struggle terribly with reading proficiently and many certainly don't enjoy it. You know all of this already; you hear it all school year long. So what is my point? Here is the issue. When someone can’t (or won’t) read, the Devil does a happy dance. He loves the fact that fewer and fewer people are able to read and that most would prefer to pick up a remote control than a book. The last thing they will want to do is pick up a Bible! Why grab a huge book with confusing chapter titles and odd words that could potentially make you feel stupid? The Bible will be seen as an undesirable object to avoid. What a terrible way to think about the Word of God that discloses the path to eternal life. How are they to learn about the about the promises of God, the history of his people, the story of Jesus and what that means for him or her today? How are they to relate to the 119th Psalm of David as he proclaims his love for the word of God with lines like these: “I have stored up your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (11) “Give me life according to your word!” (25) “Strengthen me according to your word!” (28) “I hope in your word.” (81) “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (105) “The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.” (130) How will your children see Jesus clearly if their eyes are not enlightened by the word of God? Now parents, no pointing fingers at teachers, the education system or even your own child. The responsibility is squarely on your shoulders (yep, mine too). First learn to accept that fact and then figure out what you are going to do about it. Please don’t wait for the “system” to train your child to love to read. That’s like expecting them to teach them values too. Read to your children and read with your children. Let them see you reading and doing so in your free time (not as an obligation). Many children don't like to read because their parents don't like to read. If this is the issue, time to retrain yourself, get help if you need it. It’s okay if you aren’t a great reader or you are a slow reader. Your children will delight in the effort you are putting forward and will be encouraged themselves to keep reading no matter what. Get excited about reading, visit the library or book store and grab a great classic to dig into together. Visit Narnia with C. S. Lewis, the Shire with Tolkien or travel along with a brave missionary in a foreign land with Benges. Allow each of these to spur conversations about the ultimate story of Jesus Christ found in the ultimate book of all time, the Bible. Then open the Bible together too. If we want our children to know Christ and be fully equipped to serve him, we must train them to be readers. I understand some truly do have limitations, and other sources should be sought out (i.e. audio versions), but the vast majority just need a Bible in hand and be taught how to read it. The Word of God in the hands of a Reader is a mighty weapon. I enCOURAGE you to train your children to wield it with passion. “And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” Deuteronomy 6:6-9. Ladies, last week I posted a blog that was stern and straight forward, asking each of you to make a choice of whom you will serve: God or the world. This week I want to truly encourage you on how to go about choosing to live for God. I will still use the same chapters from Deuteronomy so I hope you did read them like I challenged you to. I want to start by sharing how God recently worked in my own heart.
God has set before me a task that I don’t feel equipped for or even adequate for right now (I’m sure you will hear more about this in the near future). I was feeling particularly burdened one evening after talking to some family about this new calling. They were not as supportive as I had hoped and a couple tried to discourage me from taking this path. Since I had been struggling with this decision for several weeks and was finally feeling more secure in my decision, hearing these words of disagreement hit me hard. I found myself in tears that night, struggling between what the world (and nearly everyone in it) wanted me to do and what I felt God was calling me to. I prayed for God to give me insight and grabbed my Bible with a bit of ferocity, determined to seek his will alone. I thought about where to read and decided to keep on my same track in the Old Testament that I have been on in my usual nighttime routine, currently that was Deuteronomy (yep, explains my recent posts). Chapter 31 was next in line so I started in. What I read caused the tears to flow and internal shouts of thankfulness to God to explode within me. Moses was passing on his leadership of the Israelites to Joshua and was encouraging him for this very large and important task. I’m sure Joshua did not feel fully equipped or even adequate for this role (sound familiar), but God had decided it was his and assigned it to him. Here are the words Moses spoke to Joshua: “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” Deut. 31:6. “It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Deut. 31:8 These words were like healing salve to my heart. How I needed confirmation of God’s care for me and the knowledge that he goes before me in everything he calls me to. I never walk alone, I never have to dread or be in fear since he is there. I also needed to hear the direct commands to be strong and be courageous. These are commands, not suggestions or far hopes that Moses had for Joshua. No, he told him, “Just do it!” BE strong, BE courageous. Don’t shy away from this assignment, it is yours and I am with you in it. These words are for you today too. When we choose to follow God and be obedient to him, we have not stepped into an easy task. Do not get visions of praying away your worries while guardian angels clamor to keep you safe and God pours blessing after blessing on your head. Sorry…it doesn’t work that way. When the Holy Spirit grabs your heart and you accept Christ and choose to live for God, it is an awesome decision! It is the best and most important decision you will ever make in all of eternity. However, it is the very first in a long line of decisions to follow. Although the event of salvation (justification) is a one-time occurrence, the task of following Jesus is a continual and active process needing daily effort. To put it another way, we make continual choices of whether to follow God or the world every day. We need to be ready and equipped to choose wisely. A final word of warning, when you read the book of Deuteronomy, two words will stick out to you. Those words are “be careful”. They are used over and over by Moses in this book. They are used to keep the people aware of the need to follow God’s commands always. One example, 12:28 “Be careful to obey all these words that I command you, that it may go well with you and with your children after you forever, when you do what is good and right in the sight of the Lord your God.” Ladies, I continue to plead with you to choose God every day, choose to serve him wholeheartedly and with confidence. Not in yourself but in him. When God calls you to a task, and you know it is his will, get moving on it. Walk in strength and courage, being careful to know and follow his commands that we find in his Word. My enCOURAGEment to you today… BE strong and BE courageous! Women, I want you to take this blog seriously today. My heart’s desire is for women of faith to be courageous and walk in the truth even when the world around them seems to be sprinting in the opposite direction. I want you to choose God over the world.
Listen to the words of Moses in Deuteronomy 31: 11-13. To the priests he says “you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. Assemble the people, men, women, and little ones, and the sojourner within your towns, that they may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, and be careful to do all the words of this law, and that their children, who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, as long as you live in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.” Moses was soon to die and was preparing his people to move forward without him into the Promised Land. What were some of his final words? To paraphrase the above verses: “Make sure the people hear and know the words of God, make sure they obey the Lord, they must fear the Lord or they will come to ruin!” We need to be proclaiming these same words today. We must know God’s words to us; we need to know his instructions and we need to obey him completely. Otherwise we will come to ruin like those who ignored the words of God long ago. God told Moses what his people would do after they entered the bountiful land they would soon possess. Read these words and see if it reminds you of America today. Deuteronomy 31:20, “For when I have brought them into the land flowing with milk and honey, which I swore to give to their fathers, and they have eaten and are full and grown fat, they will turn to other gods and serve them, and despise me and break my covenant.” The Israelites long ago lived in a blessed land filled with abundance and freedom. When they became comfortable, they forgot the words of their God, no longer obeying his commands. Maybe even the priests, who were charged with the task of reading these words out loud to the people, forgot (or outright neglected) their job and did not remind the people of God’s instructions. They did not correct their bad behaviors for fear of offending them; they did not proclaim God to the people as they were instructed. Oh, how these same words so accurately describe today’s world. We as a country, a blessed people, have neglected God’s words and instructions to us and have turned to serve other gods. Worthless gods of success, fleshy pleasures and greed. We have grown fat on God’s blessings and have turned our backs on him, now despising him and his word. Not even those behind a pulpit often preach the truth any longer. Under the guise of acceptance and love, truth is shoved out the door; no longer desired or found worthy. What happens to those who choose to disobey God? The answers are painfully spelled out in detail just a page back. Deuteronomy 28 contains the lengthy lists from God given through Moses; blessings for obedience and curses for disobedience. The blessings cover 14 verses and are grand; the curses cover 54 long verses and are excruciating even to read. Moses, responsible for this group of God’s people, wanted everything completely spelled out and crystal clear so that the Israelites would make a well informed decision. After describing the blessings and curses in detail, he then calls the people to choose. Deuteronomy 30:19-20 “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him.” Moses offers two options and proceeds to tell them exactly what to choose, the obvious choice – life! I challenge all of you ladies to read these chapters in Deuteronomy today and think on what is happening in the world around us. Just as very few chose to follow God back then, very few choose to follow God today. Do not be swayed by the world and the opinions so prevalent all around you. Don’t form your beliefs to how you feel and then try to make God’s word fit your desires. It doesn’t work that way. There is only one perfect God and you are not him, you don’t get to rewrite scripture. There is absolute truth and you must seek it earnestly. You must know God’s word (the Bible) by hearing it, reading it and studying it. The Word of God is the standard upon what all else must be measured, weighed and judged. If you do not agree with what it says or do not desire to obey God, then this faith is not for you and you must stop claiming to be a Christian, you are not a follower of God. Ladies, the decision remains the same, choose this day whom you will serve. There are only two choices and will never be more; it’s the world or God. Decide. The rules are clear and do not bend. Do not think that Almighty God should bend for you or change his commands so you can live as you desire. He does not have to tolerate anything, he is God. He is just and he is good. I choose to follow him. I enCOURAGE you to choose the same. Last night I sat down at the computer in our office with the lights off and was immediately attacked by a big, ugly moth. Moths will often keep to themselves, but not this one, he wanted to get close and personal. He was in my hair, on my neck, and on my hands and face. Aaagh!! I did the “there’s a bug on me” crazy dance and finally swatted him down. Two thoughts crossed my mind after this. One, I need to get outside in the sun more if I am the brightest thing in a dark room.
Two, how did this big moth get in our house? That was an easy one, I knew the answer. You see, I have two young boys who enjoy running between the indoors and the outdoors and don’t pay the electrical bill. They seem to have something against shutting the front door of our house. Actually come to think of it, we’ve had a few other occurrences too. We’ve had birds fly in on two different occasions … then there was the cat a few years ago… and the neighbor kid, Al (that’s a frequent one)…and one little girl who just appeared in my kitchen one day. Yes, definitely an ongoing problem of not getting our door shut. You never know what (or who) will pop in. As mothers, we desire our homes to be places of safety and comfort. We want to ensure our kids are protected and that we monitor what they have access to, and who has access to them. If our homes are not safe, we are failing at parenting well and we are endangering our children. Many parents will tell you they are vigilant about protecting their children, yet many homes still have huge spiritual safety hazards in them. Many dangers we welcome inside ourselves or even pay large sums of money to have them in our homes. These could be televisions, radios, computers, video games, magazines, books, DVDs, CDs, photographs, the list goes on. None of these are bad in and of themselves, but each has the strong potential to be. A radio is not evil, but if is playing songs with vulgar lyrics it is a pathway for evil to enter into your home and into the hearts of your children. Video games are not evil, some are even educational, but if they promote violent acts and encourage anger they are affecting your child’s character in a sinful direction. Many of these items also have the potential to consume your child’s time and attention away from the priorities we are trying to instill in them of serving God and studying his Word. The Bible tells us in Ephesians 4:17 “give no opportunity to the devil.” Notice the small but important word “no” there. It doesn’t say that a few R-rated movies now and then won’t hurt them, 60 minutes a day playing that war game on Xbox won’t affect them, or country music isn’t as bad as pop or rap, so go ahead. It says give NO opportunity to the devil! If there are leaks in your home that allow the devil access, deal with them! Don’t shrug your shoulders and hope for the best. Truly love your children by keeping the Enemy who hates them away. He wants nothing more than to lead your child gently by the hand (or eyes, or ears) away from the truth you are teaching from the Bible. James 4:7 says “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” It doesn’t say keep the devil on a manageable leash or just let him take a peek inside your home once in a while for fun and because the neighbors allow it; it says “resist” him! Fight him off and make him run from your home with his tail between his legs. Be a vigilant protector of your children’s hearts by submitting to God. I fully recognize that we need to train our children to live in this dark world and that they will be exposed to these dangers and more in their lives. However, I will not be the one that serves them this evil and acts as if is acceptable when it is not. We don’t train our children to fight evil by exposing them to evil. We fight evil with the truth which is the word of God. That is what they need more exposure to in order to be strong warriors on their own. “I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.” – Words of Jesus from John 17:14-17 Are there dangers in your home? Are you leaving a door wide open for the Enemy to walk right inside? I enCOURAGE you to take a hard look around your home today and take a serious look at where the weak spots are. Make your home a place of refuge where God is honored above all else. Sin. Sin is at your door right now. As the Lord said to Cain when his offering did not please him and Cain was becoming angry, “And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.” Genesis 4:7
Our Pastor recently reminded us of this verse in our Sunday school class. He encouraged us to be more intentional in our prayers for others and to ask them what sin is crouching at their door so we can help pray against it. This thought has stuck with me. Right now Satan desires my marriage. As I prepare to leave for another country this coming Saturday, Satan would like nothing more than to drive a wedge between my husband and me. To have us say bitter goodbyes as we harbor resentment in our hearts toward each other. These ill feelings could continue to stew while we are apart and affect how we minister to others and care for our children. Boom, the enemy wins. I type this as I sit poolside at a hotel watching my husband and boys swim. I have felt the attacks coming one by one all day. From not receiving a compliment after working extra hard to look nice (petty I know), to no help with packing and hauling luggage for our overnight stay and now to the immodest women opposite him in the hot tub. Our enemy can sure hit where it hurts. I find myself at a moment of decision, more accurately a pivotal moment in a battle. I have been here many times before and I'm guessing you ladies have as well. These little digs add up until we feel we have every right to be hurt and angry. A confrontation feels imminent. My inconsiderate and insensitive husband needs to be held accountable for his actions... right? That could be my battle plan and I have chosen that route many times. The Sin at my door I welcomed in and allowed him to have his way in my heart and to direct my hurtful words and actions. I thought I knew better than God and wanted fleshly retribution for my hurt feelings. Praise God that he has lordship over my heart and has patiently been training me over the years that I have been his. Training me for real battle and how to identify the true and only Enemy that I have. This is the Enemy I need to battle against, the Sin at my door, Satan himself. I am beginning to better understand verses like Hebrews 5:14, “But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” So I fight. With the Word of God in my hand, I look at Jesus. I remind myself of who he is and what he has done for me. I look at verses like Romans 5:8, “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” And Colossians 3:13, Mark 11:25, and Ephesians 4:32. Finally, Ephesians 6:12, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” As I read these verses and fix my eyes on Jesus, his powerful words fight for me. They heal my heart and at the same time kick the Devil in the teeth and order him away from my doorstep. Thanksgiving floods me and my eternal perspective is set right again. Praise my mighty God! Understand this trained (wise) response comes from walking with God and being in his Word for years. I have failed so many times before that it is embarrassing. This demonstrates why it is so important to remain in Christ and to work hard to have his Word implanted within you. How can you fight a powerful Enemy if you are not trained in using the right weapon? Ladies, what sin is crouching at your door desiring to pounce on you? Be obedient to God’s command and “rule over it” in the name of Jesus. Don’t battle flesh; battle the real Enemy that is spiritual evil. It is attacking you in order to steal your attention from God’s good plans for your life. Be courageous and don’t allow this to happen. Allow God to train you for battle with his Word. It is the only way to be victorious. I enCOURAGE you to remain vigilant! Now, Ladies, please excuse me. I have a swimsuit to put on and a husband to enjoy some time with. “There are never enough hours in the day!” Ladies, do you find yourself saying that often? I sure do. As if God has given us more work than we are able to complete in the 24 hours he has given us to do it in. Something in our day usually has to give, we simply can’t (or won’t) get everything done. Too often what gets pushed off our schedule is time in the Bible or prayer. By the end of the day we are spent and exhausted and tell ourselves that it just can’t happen today, but maybe with a little luck tomorrow will be better. There is always tomorrow… or next week… or next year…
There is no way around it, you only have 24 hours in a day, that will never change (okay, daylight savings time messes things up twice a year, but it evens out). God is perfect, so how he set up our measure of time and the hours set in a day is also perfect. You don’t need more time. That is not our problem. I fully believe that if we were given 30 hours in a day we would still find ourselves in the same position and asking for more. Do not accuse God of being stingy in his blessing of giving you any time at all. I believe God desires us to have this sense of limited time, a sense that time is flying by. Why? Well for one, I can feel it every day of my life. I am amazed at how quickly the weeks go by, how fast my children grow, and how the years slip by faster and faster. More importantly, I see it in Scripture. God gives us many reminders of how limited our time here on Earth is. Here are just a couple: “Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” – James 4:14 “O LORD, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am!” – Psalms 39:4 Having the knowledge that our earthly time truly is short and purposefully designed that way by God should lead us to some important conclusions. First, we need to use our time wisely. Ephesians 5:15-17 says, “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” Understand the will of God so that you can walk through life in wisdom. We get this wisdom from God’s Word, so Bible reading needs to be at the top of your list instead of at the bottom. We need to prioritize our days carefully. Some items on our agenda will have to be removed to make room for what is truly important. This could mean forgoing the baseball or softball tournament teams so your family can be in church on Sundays. This may mean getting rid of television so that it is no longer a distraction for you or your family. How you spend your days is how you spend your life, therefore “look carefully then how you walk” as instructed. Secondly, we need to live for our eternal life not our earthly life. “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” – Colossians 3:2. This breath of a life is not worth living for, not worth spending our riches and resources on, not worth giving our soul for. We need to invest all of our treasures in Heaven (Matt. 6:20). We need to spend ourselves on what will last forever. For Christians, this earth is just a temporary stop before we go to our forever home in Heaven; send your goods on ahead of you instead of hoarding dust here. For non-Christians, this place is as good as you get, dust is as good as you can ever hope for. Finally, we need to understand that the minutes of our lives are like sand pouring through an hourglass; and we don’t know how much sand we have left. We need to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to our loved ones and to the nations. This is the work we need to be about (Matt. 28:19). We shouldn’t wait for a better time; there may not be more time. Let the urgency of this affect the way you live each day. Proclaim Christ always. Let Psalms 90:12 be your prayer, “So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” Limited time on earth is truly a great blessing from God. If we belong to him we should long to be with him in glory, not toiling away here on earth. We should yearn to be home. Today I enCOURAGE you to praise God that your days are flying by, praise God that we are but a mist and so very fleeting, praise God that we will be soon be with him in glory! Revelation 22:20 - “’Surely I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” A few weeks ago I cleared off my treadmill that I keep in our basement storage room. I took off the boxes of Easter eggs, the camping gear and the gigantic stuffed rabbit (a story for another day). I blew off the dust as best I could and started it up to make sure it still worked. Yep, it was ready for action! I would be fit and trim in no time, I was sure of it.
So, have I lost weight? Taken inches off my waist? Am I down a couple jean sizes? Well, um, let me see, ah… no, no and no. Hard to believe yes, the simple act of preparing my treadmill was not enough to scare the fat cells right off of me (even when I ran it really fast to blow the dust away). What gives? Can’t I just have the appearance of fitness? Can’t I just make my treadmill look well used and walk around in sporty clothes? I could add some free weights and resistance bands to the scene. I could talk as if I actually exercise. Oh the lengths we will go to attempt to keep up appearances. Yet the evidence of how we truly live is as plain as day. I could do any or all of the above, but if I never put the effort into getting fit or make regular use of that treadmill I will remain the same. No true change can be faked. If I am out of shape now, I will remain out of shape until I do something about it. Ouch, man the truth hurts sometimes! Just as I won’t be mistaken for a fitness buff, someone faking the Christian walk will not be mistaken for a true follower of Christ. You can call yourself a Christian, carry a Bible, attend services, celebrate holidays, and decorate yourself with religious knickknacks but you are fooling no one. If your daily actions and what comes out of your mouth does not line up with the Word of God you are an obvious imposter. The Bible tells us that a tree is recognized by its fruit. “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit.” – Luke 6:43-44. You know what type of tree it is by what it produces. A peach tree does not produce coconuts. What fruit does a Christian tree produce? “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” – Galatians 5:22-23. Good works are also produced, springing forth from the faith in Christ that resides in us (see James 2:14-26). Jesus goes on to say in Luke 6:45, “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” Whatever is inside is destined to come out and it is evidence of what your heart is full of. Remember this works from the inside out; you do not work to be joyful in order to change your heart. True joy can only flow out of a changed heart. What do you hear and see coming out of the hearts of those around you? Is it proper for us to evaluate others like this? If we love them it is (2 Timothy 3:16). If I see one of my children producing thorns in their life or hear evil coming out of their mouth, I need to correct them and deal with this heart issue. If I see a friend who says she is a Christian but acts in a way completely opposite of the Word of God; I need to confront her with grace because I care about her. What is coming out of your own heart? Does it show that you have been filling up on God or the trash of the World? It is very easy to get filled up with garbage; it is what most people do all day long. A heart full of godliness does not happen by osmosis. You have to intentionally consume and study God’s Word. Do the hard work it takes, Ladies! Don’t just blow the dust off your Bibles like I did my treadmill. Make use of it to change your heart and your eternal physical condition. I enCOURAGE you to check what fruit you are producing today and remember to continually fill up on the only true source of good for your heart, the Word of God. Easter weekend has passed and I find myself breathing a sigh of relief. The remnants of a busy weekend remain visible all over my house. Thousands of plastic eggs from the city egg hunt are stacked in boxes in the corner, Easter baskets and the treasures that they originally held are scattered on the dining room table. I am still catching up on laundry and the housework that was ignored for other activities. Candy wrappers seem to be everywhere, why did I buy all that candy again?
With the holiday over we can begin to focus on spring projects, gardening ideas and plans for the summer. A nice break from the extra celebrations, services and gatherings. I’m sure that is what the disciples were thinking when all the commotion Jesus had caused subsided. Jesus did the work he had promised to do: he died, rose again and then ascended into Heaven where he belonged. They finally had time to put in a new vineyard, redecorate the messy upper room and go fishing. What a relief to have that crazy Passover celebration behind them. What did the early Christians do after Jesus left them? How can we know what the apostles were busy with after all this took place? How convenient that a book was written to address these very questions (and many more). It falls right in proper order after the recordings of the life of Jesus found in the gospels and is entitled “Acts” or “The Acts of the Apostles.” The Bible comes through again. Check out Acts 1:8, as Jesus is ascending into Heaven he promises that they (the apostles) “will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in all Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Sounds like Jesus had some serious work for these men to do. After this the disciples head back to Jerusalem and enter into an upper room. The names of all the apostles are listed and then we read in verse 14, “All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.” The first thing they did was to meet together and seek God in prayer. We need to continue to meet together through church services, Bible studies and times of fellowship. We also need to be in prayer and seeking God’s will, strength and wisdom. Not many days later was the day of Pentecost, another Jewish festival. The disciples of Jesus were once again gathered together, “And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house… And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit…” Acts 2:2, 4. The promised Helper had come, the Spirit of God to dwell within the believers. The Holy Spirit that teaches us (John 14:26), helps us in our weakness (Romans 8:26), and empowers us to do God’s will (John 14:15-16) and produce good spiritual fruit (Galatians 5:22-23). Yes, this same Holy Spirit dwells in believers today. If you are a true follower of Jesus, these promises of the Holy Spirit are for you just like they were for the disciples long ago. Believe it and act accordingly. In the days, weeks and years that followed the awesome commotion of Jesus Christ on earth these men became bold and courageously preached the gospel, evangelized the nations and changed history forever. They did not take a season off, they did not let up; they followed hard after Christ giving everything they had in full surrender to his will. What a beautiful example for us today. When Jesus died on the cross and rose again, it was a decisive victory over death and over our Enemy. However, it is not the ending, it is the means to a beautiful beginning. We need to be more intentional than ever before in maturing in our knowledge of Christ and growing the Kingdom of God, we should never let up in this area. I enCOURAGE you to not lay back and relax spiritually after celebrating Easter, but to dig in and seek Christ with renewed passion this season and always. I have unsaved family members. I assume you do as well. If you are like me, you have prayed for their salvation and have asked others to do the same. We think about them once in a while and pray for them as we shake our heads wondering why they just don’t get it.
Not long ago I was driving down the road, once again praying for my lost family, just nonchalantly mentioning their names to God and I felt myself being frustrated with him for not acting, not showing any movement in their lives at all. What is he waiting for? “Do a work in their heart and save them already!” You may have learned this (I am often a slow learner), yelling at God to “Do something!” often has a way of backfiring on you. I remember the question coming back at me like a brick. “How serious are you? You barely bow your head as you ask me to move in the lives of the people you say you love. You spend more time and money on your own pleasures than on ministering to those you claim to love. You drink up the Living Waters greedily when those near you are dying of thirst. You say you love my Word, but have not yet put these Words of Life into the hands of those that are lost. YOU tell me to do something? How bad do you really want this?” I cry even as I type these words. No, God did not speak these words to me, but he was certainly doing heart surgery on me at that moment. He was cutting me deep and it hurt. There is often pain in truth. What work have I done or sacrifices have I made to encourage my lost family toward Christ? Very little. The apostle Paul was willing to give everything up to save those he loved, even his own salvation! He had “great sorrow and unceasing anguish” in his heart for them. “For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsman according to the flesh.” – Romans 9:3. I am so far from this mindset it is sad. Often times the work that needs to be done before God opens the heart of someone to believe is the work that needs completed in us. Sometimes God tarries in others so that he can teach and refine us first. I have started to get serious about interceding for my unsaved family who currently stand condemned to Hell (John 3:18). No more sugar coating it. No more avoiding the uncomfortable. They are on the burn list. My plan involves times of planned prayer, fasting and engaging in more direct conversations. If you want specifics, just ask and I will be glad to share. My husband and I have also committed to getting Bibles into the hands of our family and to provide guidance on how to read it. You can be sure this involves loads of boldness on our part; am I nervous? Oh my yes, but this is part of the work in my heart that needs done. It goes along with the questions, “How serious are you? How badly do you want it?” To be sure, our wanting does not make it happen, it is only by God’s irresistible grace and his perfect calling, but I will do all I can to be usable by God in this area. As Charles Spurgeon said, "If sinners will be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our bodies. And if they will perish, let them perish with our arms around their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, at least let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for.” If you have loved ones who are walking toward Hell and currently stand condemned, I enCOURAGE you to decide that now is the time to get serious and be bold, share Christ with them and pray for them like never before. |
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