* Still Standing

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.   

Ephesians 6:12-13 KJV

Take a moment to think back... to remember all the times in your life you didn't think it would ever get better, didn't think you would make it through. It was difficult; and at times, it seemed absolutely overwhelming. Do you remember? 

Maybe you don't have to 'think back'. Maybe you're there now. I know of many who are in the battle of their lives, spiritually and/or physically. Now stop and think of this moment. Right here, right now, while you're reading this. You're alive. You're still breathing. Can you say, "Thank You, God" and mean it?

I'm not a Pollyanna. I know life can be hard. However, it's true what they say - Whatever we feed or focus on is what becomes bigger. So do we complain and commiserate about the trials and tribulations or do we count it all joy?  Please don't misunderstand. I'm not even remotely suggesting that you must be happy in all things. I don't think that's possible. What I am suggesting is that, according to Scripture, you Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. (Philippians 4:8 NLT)

What I am offering is the advice from the writer of Hebrews.

Hebrews 3:13-14 NLT You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God. For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.

And don't forget. Your foundation is sure. Christ IS the solid Rock on which we stand... and you're still standing. 

Prayer:

Father,

            Thank You for all You have brought us through.  We know You are a faithful Father. Help us always to see Your loving touch in all things. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

* While We Were Still Sinners

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 

Romans 5:8 NKJV

Have you ever felt like you failed God? Have you ever let Him down by something you did or did not do? Boy, satan comes in like a flood then, to try to bury you in it... you know what I'm talking about, don't you? It gets U-G-L-Y!!

John 3:16 is probably the most famous Scripture known, New King James reads, For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. That is a depth of love I cannot even BEGIN to fathom... And when did He do that?

 It wasn't AFTER we quit smoking or drinking or ______________.

It wasn't AFTER we started trying to live a Christian life.

It wasn't AFTER we stopped being addicted to everything else but Him.

It wasn't AFTER we cleaned up our own act.

It wasn't AFTER we signed a promissory note or vowed to straighten up and fly right.

It was while we were still sinners... Oh, how He loves us!!

Prayer:

Father,

         In our finite minds, we cannot even begin to plumb the depth of Your love. How wide! How deep! O God! That we would grasp the magnitude of what You've done for us and spend the rest of our lives living out our gratitude to You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

*+ Why?

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. 
For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-10 NLT

I don't think I know anyone who hasn't questioned God at one time or another. 'Why?' seems to be the most common question we have for Him, and the one that seems to be most often left unanswered. However, I have noticed the longer one follows the Lord, the more the 'Why?' is to try to understand or make sense of a situation, and less of a confrontational 'How dare you' attitude. 

Today, I attended a 'See You Later' Celebration of Life for a 15-month-old little boy named Elisha. Nobody wants to do that...ever. As difficult as it was, I can't imagine going through something like this without God. Thankfully, Elisha's parents, grandparents and great-grandparents are all Christians and their faith beautifully reflected God's glory and grace today. 

Most amazing to me were the testimonies of how this baby's short 15 months changed the lives of those who interacted with him. How - because of his condition - they had to reach deep for ways to connect and communicate with him. How they found new depths of their own character that they never knew existed. And their words today profoundly affected those gathered to honor and support the family. I look forward to hearing the after stories of how lifestyles and choices were changed forever by what folks heard this day about a 15-month-old little superhero named Elisha. 

There were lots of tears, but there was also laughter. There was tangible pain, but there was also hope and confidence that this truly was a 'See You Later' event. 

We may never know the answer to any of the times we have asked 'Why?'. After all, we have never 'commanded the morning to appear and caused the dawn to rise in the east' or 'made daylight spread to the ends of the earth, to bring an end to the night’s wickedness' or any of those other marvelous things listed in the last few chapters of Job, but we do know the One who did.

Prayer:

Father,
         Jesus told us in His famed Sermon on the Mount, Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Comfort as only You can, Father. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.

* The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions

Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity.

Keep a close watch on how you live and on your teaching. Stay true to what is right for the sake of your own salvation and the salvation of those who hear you.

1st Timothy 4:12b, 16 NLT

I like this story of a wayward traveler...

I'm leaving Houston, and I'm going to Los Angeles. I arrive in Florida. Someone asks, "Where are you going?"  and I tell them, "I'm going to Los Angeles."  

"Well, this is not Los Angeles."  
"I know, but I'm going to Los Angeles." and so I leave. I arrive in New York City.

Someone asks, "Where are you going?"  and I tell them, "I'm going to Los Angeles."  "Well, this is not Los Angeles."  
"I know, but I'm going to Los Angeles." and so I leave. I arrive in Tennessee.
Someone asks, "Where are you going?"  and I tell them, "I'm going to Los Angeles."  "Well, this is not Los Angeles."  "I know, but that's where I'm going." and so I leave... The traveler never gets to Los Angeles even though he kept saying that's where he was going. 

The point is that it doesn't matter that his intention was to go to Los Angeles. He never made preparation or a reservation or even a true determination to ensure his arrival there.

And in our walk on earth, we tell everyone we're going to Heaven... Is that our intention or our determination? Which "tion" is it? And what will we shun to make sure we get there?

Prayer:

Father,

        It is written that Your Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. We cannot lose our way when the Light of Your Son directs our path. Help us to read and understand the map of life that You've given us in Scripture. Let our lives be a living epistle according to Your Word so we can lead others to You. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

* Obey and Follow

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.

Hebrews 12:1-3 NKJV

Anyone can believe - Scripture tells us even the demons believe and tremble - but not everyone will FOLLOW Christ as He follows God's leading. The way is hard, but the Word says He makes our crooked ways straight. 

Our text for today encourages us to look to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. He did not tell us, Go get started. Run the race. Let Me know how you do. No, He wrote the story and He'll finish it. Our job is to follow and be obedient. Not fix it on our own, not finish on our own, not flounder along the way. 

We are to obey and follow. Not question, not quit, nor quake in fear at what we cannot possibly do without God's help. Obey and follow. Follow in His footsteps. He goes before us and makes the crooked path straight. Our job is to trust, obey and follow.

He finishes. We will finish with Him. We will win because He has already won.

Prayer:

Father,

        Teach us to trust and obey and to follow You instead of trying to lead You all over our wilderness-in-the-making. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

Truth vs. Warm Fuzzies +

John used many such warnings as he announced the Good News to the people.

Luke 3:18 NLT

You and I have talked about Truth so many times. What it is and what it is not. We have talked about having Truth as our standard - that the Word of God is Truth that will stand and be the measure by which we live. It's not a maybe. It's not a perhaps. It's not conjecture - pure or otherwise. It's Truth...absolute Truth.

John the Baptist spoke Truth...not a real popular guy. But in the telling of it, I made a connection that I'd never seen before in the Word and I'd like to share it with you. First, let me back up a little and give you the general gist of the chapter. John is in the wilderness. He's preaching true repentance. Repentance is NOT about asking for forgiveness. Repentance IS us choosing to do a 180-degree turn - away from those things that are sin and not aligned with the covenant God set before us - and then NEVER going back.

In chapter 3 of Luke, those who are in sin ask John, "What should we do?" and John tells them like it is. He does not mince words. He does not say, "Oh, poor baby, I know you're trying." He tells them flat out - Stop doing this! Start doing that! He speaks absolute Truth. 

Just as the Word of God instructs, it is Truth that sets us free (from sin and its wages). Luke said of John in verses 4-6, Isaiah had spoken of John when he said, “He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming! Clear the road for him! The valleys will be filled, and the mountains and hills made level. The curves will be straightened, and the rough places made smooth. And then all people will see the salvation sent from God." (That's from Isaiah, chapter 40).  

It is Truth that digs out the lies underneath the anger. It's Truth that hacks away at the walls we build around us. It's Truth that fills the empty places and potholes in our lives. And I believe it's Truth that makes the road clear - that prepares the way of the Lord and that enables us to see salvation.

If I remove the dunghill between me and thee, I can see you. I can see much farther on a straight road than I can a crooked one. When we get all the junk (sin) out of the way, we are enabled to see much clearer, much further. In Isaiah 45:2, God said to Cyrus, "I will go before you and make the crooked places straight..."   Psalm 25:10a tells us, All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth, but it doesn't end with that. There's a condition to it - part B - To such as keep His covenant and His testimonies.  Did you get that? Were you paying attention? All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth to such as keep His covenant and His testimonies [emphasis mine].

John spoke Truth and did not worry about giving people warm fuzzies. The Word tells us there is an eternal lake of fire for those who don't embrace His Truth and salvation. If you're more interested in warm fuzzies than Truth, you would do well to check to see where the heat is coming from that supplies the warmth for those fuzzies.

Prayer:

Father,

          Psalm 25:11, For Your name’s sake, O LORD, Pardon my iniquity, for it is great. Apply Your absolute Truth to our lives. Speak Your Truth in love so that we might see You and embrace the salvation offered. Reveal Yourself and Your absolute Truth to us, O God. In Jesus' Name we pray. Amen

* Second-hand Knowledge

    This time I’m writing out the plan in them, carving it on the lining of their hearts.

     I’ll be their God, they’ll be my people. They won’t go to school to learn about me, or buy a book called God in Five Easy Lessons.

     They’ll all get to know me firsthand, the little and the big, the small and the great. They’ll get to know me by being kindly forgiven, with the slate of their sins forever wiped clean.

Hebrews 8:10b-12 The Message Bible

To say that my mother was a strong woman of faith would almost be an understatement. I cannot begin to tell you of the adversity and trials of her life and yet, her faith and trust in God remained the ultimate driving force in her life. As it turned out, that was her greatest witness.

As a teenager, I didn't understand it. I remember more than once demanding answers to "Why would you serve a God who allows all those things to happen? How can you stand there and be calm, telling me 'It will all work out'? Do you not see what's going on here? How can you stand there and thank God for any of this?" From an early age, I was a 'big picture' kind of girl, but I didn't recognize or acknowledge it as it truly was - a gift from God - to be used to edify and to build up the body of Christ. I thought my mother suffered from tunnel vision and a one-track mind. I did not know or understand that Mom was the living illustration of Psalm 121.*  

I only had a second-hand knowledge of who God was and is. I didn't know HIM. I thought I did - I'd been in church every time the doors were opened from the time I could remember - but the truth was, I only knew OF Him. 

Through my own adversity and trials and the working of God's grace in them, my mother's God became my God. I came to know Him in His fullness. I learned first-hand of His love in spite of my failures. I experienced His peace in the midst of the storms of life. Over and over, His provision. Making a way through those storms, when there was NO way. 

There isn't time nor space right here to tell of all that God has done to reveal Himself so I could have first-hand knowledge of Him. I have faced the next generation and now a third generation of teenagers demanding answers to "Why would you serve a God who allows all those things to happen? How can you stand there and be calm, telling me 'It will all work out'? Do you not see what's going on here? How can you stand there and thank God for any of this?" I pray to have the same "tunnel vision" and "one-track mind" that my mother had. And I pray that my faith in God during the tough times will be my greatest witness.

Prayer:

Father, 

         Thank You for my mother. For all the years I did not appreciate her, her faith in You, and You Yourself, please forgive me. Let me be a faithful witness to those You have given me. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen

* Psalm 121 NLT

I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. 

The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever.