Category: I Corinthians

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Part of the Family

Today we are celebrating Sam, our grandson. He turned 3 yesterday. Where has the time gone!

I was needing to hear from the Lord this morning regarding a particular issue I have been dealing with. And wouldn’t you know it, I was immediately reminded of this picture and the overwhelming love I felt for Sam the first time I held him.

We have two other grandchildren who are older than Sam. Lex and AJ are grown, they were really out on their own when Sam was born. Having a new grandchild to love didn’t diminish the love we have for those two in the slightest. In fact, it just reminded me of how special they all are. And now Sam has a little sister, Kristine. With her entrance to the family the capacity to love has expanded.

Isn’t that the way it is with our heavenly Father? More family members equals more love.

We come as new born babes into God’s family and He loves us. He holds us, He carries and protects us. He sees that we are properly nourished. He loves us unconditionally and  there is always room in His heart to love one more!

He’s a whosoever-will-may-come, open-hearted Father.

“I told you the most important part of the message exactly as it was told to me. That part is: Christ died for our sins, as the Scriptures say. He was buried, and three days later he was raised to life, as the Scriptures say… I am the least important of all the apostles. In fact, I caused so much trouble for God’s church that I don’t even deserve to be called an apostle. 10 But God was kind! He made me what I am, and his wonderful kindness wasn’t wasted”                        I Corinthians 15:3-10 CEV

These verses were written by the Apostle Paul. He was a man who had persecuted Christians right after Jesus’ resurrection. He had arrest warrants issued and he brought them in to be tried and killed. Paul was overwhelmed by God’s wonderful kindness, His love and grace, His forgiveness and acceptance.

The way we opened our hearts to love and add Sam to our family can’t even be compared to the way the Father loves and accepts us but it’s the only example I can think to give.

Another verse came to mind when I was reflecting on the graciousness of the Father.

“Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circum- stances, and it endures everything [without weakening].” I Corinthians 13:7 AMP

God willingly believes the best about us and not just us, He believes the best about everyone. He never assumes the worst. He is long suffering, willing and ready to go the extra mile to keep His relationship with us.

What an amazing example to follow!

Each one of us, that includes the people we don’t like, are loved by the Father. Hope never fades away.

“Father, let me see others as you see me, a loved member of your family. Let me not lose hope when circumstances would cause me to throw up my hands and quit. I confess my frustration and receive Your patience. Thank you for making me a part of your family.”

It’s is great to be a loved by the Father!

 

God’s love and His grace are amazing!

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When Does the Hurting Stop

Have you ever stubbed your toe or hit your funny bone? Hurts, doesn’t it?

Or maybe you’ve had the flu and your stomach has been upset or a chest cold and it’s been hard to breathe? Even more serious, maybe you have battled cancer or some other disease.

If so, you have learned how amazing the body is in working to heal itself. Blood cells start rushing to provide the infected part what it needs to heal. Swelling occurs to protect the injured part and keep it safe. Everything works together for the good of the whole body.

I remember when I broke my right wrist I had to compensate for the loss of my primary hand. I had to learn to do the simple things with my left hand; things like brushing my teeth, combing my hair, tying my shoes, keyboarding and writing.  Oh my goodness, I was so thankful to have a second hand and wrist that would move correctly, even if they were untrained.

This is the picture Paul is painting in I Corinthians 12. We are all members of one body, joined together, we each have our part to play in keeping the body of Christ healthy and whole.

When we allow prejudice and doctrine to separate us we are bringing cancer into the body. When we are jealous of what some other Christian has or is doing and wonder why we weren’t able to be in the lime light and do this or that we cause damage to the body.

And you know, that is exactly what our enemy wants to happen. Just as he works to destroy our physical bodies, he works to cause dis-ease in the body of Christ. He knows better than we do that if he can cause division of the members, get us out of joint, the pain will keep us from being effective for Christ.

“A person has only one body, but it has many parts. Yes, there are many parts, but all those parts are still just one body. Christ is like that too…

14 And a person’s body has more than one part. It has many parts. 15 The foot might say, “I am not a hand, so I don’t belong to the body.” But saying this would not stop the foot from being a part of the body. 16 The ear might say, “I am not an eye, so I don’t belong to the body.” But saying this would not make the ear stop being a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, it would not be able to hear. If the whole body were an ear, it would not be able to smell anything. 18-19 If each part of the body were the same part, there would be no body. But as it is, God put the parts in the body as he wanted them. He made a place for each one. 20 So there are many parts, but only one body.

21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the foot, “I don’t need you!” 22 No, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are actually very important. 23 And the parts that we think are not worth very much are the parts we give the most care to. And we give special care to the parts of the body that we don’t want to show. 24 The more beautiful parts don’t need this special care. But God put the body together and gave more honor to the parts that need it. 25 God did this so that our body would not be divided. God wanted the different parts to care the same for each other. 26 If one part of the body suffers, then all the other parts suffer with it. Or if one part is honored, then all the other parts share its honor.

27 All of you together are the body of Christ. Each one of you is a part of that body.” I Corinthians 12:12-27 ERV

Each morning I pray and thank God for health and/or I pray for healing in my body and that of my family. But as I was writing this this morning I was convicted that I need to pray daily for health and healing in the body of Christ.

Will you join me? We have some hurting parts and they need our love and compassion to help them as they heal!

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Bread or Crackers

I really enjoy bread…sour dough is my favorite. Then of course there are fresh biscuits, thick cut multigrain bread and don’t tell anyone but occasionally I sneak in a donut or two.

I’m a little more picky about crackers. Not too many really wake up my palate but if I had to choose I would grab a box of Cheese-Its or Town House crackers.

The major difference between bread and crackers is the yeast. In the Bible we will find it called leaven. Jesus taught numerous times about removing leaven. The traditional Jewish feast of Passover is celebrated with unleavened bread.

There’s a true correlation in life between the two.

The Apostle Paul talks about our lives as dough. Dough without yeast was a sign of purity. This went back to the time of the Passover in Egypt. The Israelites were told to boil the lamb and eat unleavened bread.

They were waiting on God to move and deliver them from Egypt. They had to be ready at a moments notice. There wasn’t time to let the bread rise or the meat to roast. Boiling the meat and baking the bread without leaven was the fastest way to make their meal.

“Your proud talk is not good. You know the saying, “Just a little yeast makes the whole batch of dough rise.” 7 Take out all the old yeast, so that you will be a new batch of dough. You really are bread without yeast—Passover bread. Yes, Christ our Passover Lamb has already been killed. 8 So let us eat our Passover meal, but not with the bread that has the old yeast, the yeast of sin and wrongdoing. But let us eat the bread that has no yeast. This is the bread of goodness and truth.” I Corinthians 5:6-8 ERV

Paul is referring to our daily life – it should be leaven free! Pretty appropriate for this day and age when everyone is wanting to be “gluten free”.

Jesus, our Passover Lamb, was sacrificed to bring forgiveness and restoration to our lives. We need to  be an example of His goodness and truth.

Take out the yeast! Periodically I have to take inventory and have the Holy Spirit reveal to me areas in my life that have leaven. He’s faithful to do that when I ask.

Leavened bread is full of air that is caused by a chemical reaction in the yeast. That’s what makes it rise. Our lives can be full of air! We get so caught up in ourselves that we puff up. You know the sayings, “he’s full of hot air” or “they are puffed up like a peacock”. These are referring to someone who is selfish, conceited or prideful.

Look at these two translations of the same verse from I Corinthians 13.

“Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,” verse 4 KJV

“Love is kind and patient, never jealous, boastful, proud,” verse 4 CEV

Jesus warned people to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. He wasn’t talking about the bread they were serving but of their teachings. The Pharisees were inflicting all types of rules and regulations on the people. Their teaching was based on what “they” could and needed to do to be in right relationship with God. They taught the people that if they weren’t good enough, didn’t celebrate enough festivals, bring enough sacrifices, give enough tithe that God wouldn’t be pleased with them and they couldn’t have relationship with Him.

Jesus’ teaching and God’s desire were completely opposite. Jesus told us to come as we are. God’s love is unconditional, not based on our good works. It is His free gift to us, presented by Jesus who died for our sins.

Pharisees teaching: “ Why is it that you do not see that I was not talking to you about bread? I was talking to you about keeping away from the yeast of the proud religious law-keepers and the religious group of people who believe no one will be raised from the dead.” 12 Then they understood that it was not the yeast of bread that He was talking about. But He was talking about the teaching of the proud religious law-keepers and of the other religious group of people.” Matthew 16:11-12 NLV

Jesus’ teaching: “ For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son. Whoever puts his trust in God’s Son will not be lost but will have life that lasts forever. ” John 3:16 NLV

Am I big and fluffy or flat and salty? Am I puffed up with self or am I deflated of selfish ambition and trusting God to use me how He sees fit?

I am so glad that we have a loving heavenly Father who desires that we have a life of goodness and truth free from selfishness and pride.

 

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On A Clear Day

I think the words go, on a clear day you can see forever but our view yesterday was far from clear.

This is what we saw from the windows of the truck as we drove from Idaho to Nevada. Smoke from the fires is everywhere. We planned our trip home through areas we haven’t been to before and wanted to see the ranch country of Jordan Valley and around Winnemucca. Guess we’ll save that for another trip.

But all that smoke got me to thinking about what it’s like to have a foggy mind and not be clear headed. There’s a lot of that going around these days. People doing and saying things that are irrational and selfish.

If we’d all just take time to think a bit more before we open our mouths. Jesus was giving some instruction to His followers about this very thing.

Everyone was so eager to correct their neighbors, family members and co-workers that Jesus had to explain to them the importance of removing offensive actions from their own lives before they started “Helping” others see their faults.

I think there’s a lesson here for all of us.  We seem to make allowances for our own actions that we aren’t willing to concede to others.

“Why do you say to your friend, ‘Let me take that piece of dust out of your eye’? Look at yourself first! You still have that big piece of wood in your own eye. 5 You are a hypocrite! First, take the wood out of your own eye. Then you will see clearly to get the dust out of your friend’s eye.” Matthew 7:4-5 ERV

The Apostle Paul wrote all about love in the 13th chapter of I Corinthians. I’ve shared it with you on numerous occasions. He tells us that love is gentle, kind, not jealous, overlooks wrong actions, doesn’t keep score. And then he ends is definition of love by saying that it never fails.

I will admit we will never be able to live this life of love perfectly but that doesn’t mean we quit trying. Paul goes on to say a few verses later that as we mature we will put away foolish thinking or as I like to call it selfishness. There is nothing more foolish than a “me” centered life. Paul tells us that kind of living is like looking into a dark or smoky mirror. Our vision of what is true and real is obscured.

But…he goes on to say, that when we look into Jesus face we will see clearly. Now I do believe that this verse is making reference to how things will be in heaven but they also apply to how things should be here on earth. When we look closely at Jesus we see how everything he said and did was motivated by love. As we grow and mature we will see that our lives are also reflecting more of His love.

“When we were children, we thought and reasoned as children do. But when we grew up, we quit our childish ways. 12 Now all we can see of God is like a cloudy picture  in a mirror. Later we will see him face to face. We don’t know everything, but then we will, just as God completely understands us.” I Corinthians 13:11-12 CEV

One more Biblical example on being able to see clearly. It comes from the Old Testament. Moses had just led the Jews out of Egypt and across the Red Sea. They were wandering in the Sinai Desert. The Lord sent a pillar, a cloud to cover them in the day to protect them from the overwhelming heat and He sent a pillar or cloud of fire to protect them at night from the bitter cold.

“The Lord went before them, in a pillar of cloud during the day to lead them on the way, and in a pillar of fire during the night to give them light. So they could travel day and night. 22 The pillar of cloud during the day and the pillar of fire during the night did not leave the people.” Exodus 13:21-22 NLV

God’s love was displayed in the fire. It made it possible for the Israelites to see clearly at night. God is still displaying His love to us. He wants us to see clearly. He doesn’t want us to stumble or fall in the dark.

Thank you Lord for letting me see Your love clearly. For lighting my way and keeping me out of the smoke and the fog.

 

 

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Welcome to the Winners Circle

This is one of my favorite subject’s to teaching on. Winning!

That’s right. God made us to be winners. We are created in His image and there is no better example of living in victory than Him.

“Can anything separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble, suffering, and hard times, or hunger and nakedness, or danger and death? 36 It is exactly as the Scriptures say,

“For you we face death  all day long. We are like sheep on their way to be butchered.”

37 In everything we have won more than a victory because of Christ who loves us. 38 I am sure that nothing can separate us from God’s love—not life or death, not angels or spirits, not the present or the future, 39 and not powers above or powers below. Nothing in all creation can separate us from God’s love for us in Christ Jesus our Lord!” Romans 8:35-39 ERV

Have you ever stopped to ask yourself what it means to have “won more than a victory” or as the King James version of the Bible says, more than conquerors? I have and the answer is thrilling.

I asked the Lord to show me a few examples of people who were more than conquerors in the Bible. So let me share them with you, in no particular order.

King Jehoshaphat led his people into battle, singing and God miraculously ambushed his enemy. The battle was won without firing an arrow.

“Early the next morning, Jehoshaphat’s army went out into the desert of Tekoa. As they marched out, Jehoshaphat stood there saying, “Listen to me, men of Judah and Jerusalem. Have faith in the Lord your God, and you will stand strong! Have faith in his prophets, and you will succeed!”

21 Jehoshaphat encouraged the men and gave them instructions. Then he had the Temple singers stand up in their special clothes to praise the Lord. They marched in front of the army and sang,

“Give thanks to the Lord!
    His faithful love will last forever.”

22 As they began to sing and to praise God, the Lord set an ambush for the army from Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir who had come to attack Judah. The enemy was defeated!”  II Chronicles 20:20-22 ERV

Then there were the 4 lepers who won a great victory against the Aramean king.

“There were four men sick with leprosy near the city gate. They said to each other, “Why are we sitting here waiting to die? 4 There is no food in Samaria. If we go into the city, we will die there. If we stay here, we will also die. So let’s go to the Aramean camp. If they let us live, we will live. If they kill us, we will just die.”

5 So that evening the four lepers went to the Aramean camp. When they came to the edge of the camp, no one was there! 6 The Lord had caused the Aramean army to hear the sound of chariots, horses, and a large army. So the soldiers said to each other, “The king of Israel has hired the kings of the Hittites and Egyptians to come against us.”

7 The Arameans ran away early that evening. They left everything behind. They left their tents, horses, and donkeys and ran for their lives.” II Kings 7:3-7 ERV

We’ve already talked about Daniel who was victorious in the lions den and the three Jewish men who walked around in the fiery furnace.

Being more than a conqueror is like being an heir to a fortune you didn’t work to build.

“The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ” Romans 8:16-17 NIV

The Apostle Paul learned how to be victorious. He is the one who said we are more than conquerors. When he faced hardship, he recognized that he was unable to secure the victory on his own and he said this:

“He answered me, “I am all you need. I give you My loving-favor. My power works best in weak people.” I am happy to be weak and have troubles so I can have Christ’s power in me. 10 I receive joy when I am weak. I receive joy when people talk against me and make it hard for me and try to hurt me and make trouble for me. I receive joy when all these things come to me because of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” II Corinthians 12:9-10 NLV

Jesus won the victory for us. He defeated death, the greatest enemy, when He rose from the grave. He defeated Satan and his powers of darkness.

“O death, where is your victory?  Where is your power to hurt?”  56 Death’s power to hurt is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But we thank God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

58 So, my dear brothers and sisters, stand strong. Don’t let anything change you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord. You know that your work in the Lord is never wasted.” I Corinthians 15:55-58 ERV

Our victory doesn’t come from our great abilities, power or intelligence. We are winning because of the inheritance we have in Christ.

“ But thanks be to God, who always leads us in victory through Christ. God uses us to spread his knowledge everywhere like a sweet-smelling perfume.” II Corinthians 2:14 ERV

Welcome to the Winners Circle!

 

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I Now Pronounce You

Today is a special day for our family. Our oldest grandson is getting married!

Very shortly, Dave and I will be driving to the Seattle area to be a part of this wonderful celebration.

Thinking about what this day will mean to him and his bride I can’t help but reflect on my own wedding and also on the marriage of his parents.

Dave and I are blessed with a rich heritage of marriage. Our parents and grandparents all celebrated at least 50 years of marriage and those marriages ended only because of the death of a spouse. They showed us what it meant to love one another completely, at times sacrificing their own desires and ambitions to put their mate first.

Dave and I had the opportunity to counsel a young couple prior to their marriage. Unbeknown to me, they asked Dave what was his secret to a long and happy marriage. He said it was for both people to willingly give 150%. Then when I came in they asked me the same thing. I said that’s simple, you each have to be willing to give 150%.

They laughed but it’s true. For marriage to be successful it can’t be selfish.

My reflection on marriage this morning not only  has me focusing on the examples of my parents and grandparents but also on the example of Christ.

The Apostle Paul gives a wonderful teaching on marriage in Ephesians 5. He tells us that wives should submit to their husbands as they would to the Lord. Submission is not distasteful. It means to place ourselves under the authority of our husbands and in turn it gives us a covering of protection and well being.

He also tells husbands to love their wives as they love themselves. There’s nothing selfish about that. It is a complete act of giving on the husband’s part. They are to provide for and cherish (treat as valuable) their wives.

And then he wraps it all up with this:

“The Scriptures say, “That is why a man will leave his father and mother and join his wife, and the two people will become one.” 32 That secret truth is very important—I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 But each one of you must love his wife as he loves himself. And a wife must respect her husband.” Ephesians 5:31-33 ERV

A loving marriage serves as an example of how Christ loves us. He is the husband who loves us and willing gave all He had for our protection and provision. His love made the ultimate sacrifice and He gave His life for our salvation.  He held back nothing when it came to proving His love for us.

“Love does not give up. Love is kind. Love is not jealous. Love does not put itself up as being important. Love has no pride. 5 Love does not do the wrong thing. Love never thinks of itself. Love does not get angry. Love does not remember the suffering that comes from being hurt by someone. 6 Love is not happy with sin. Love is happy with the truth. 7 Love takes everything that comes without giving up. Love believes all things. Love hopes for all things. Love keeps on in all things. 8 Love never comes to an end.” I Corinthians 13:4-8 ERV

These verses written by the Apostle Paul have great meaning to me. I have learned to personalize them in two different ways. First, I replace the word love with the word God because God is love. And then I read them again and substitute my name for the word love.

Each day I am becoming increasingly more aware of how much God truly loves me. That’s life changing!

I want to be more like Him today and when I read this passage with my name inserted it reminds me of how I should be acting towards others. I want to be an imitator of God’s love.

I hope that these words, “I now pronounce you husband and wife” have greater meaning for you today. Whether we are male or female Christ considers us His wife. He has taken responsibility for us; to love us, to nurture and to cherish us.

I will be eternally grateful that He has chosen me to be His bride!

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Be All You Can Be

As I sit here this morning, I realize again that God’s design for me is that of a human “being”.

You remember this used to be the slogan that the U.S. Army used on it’s recruiting posters.

New recruits were given opportunities that they didn’t find in our places. The Army would help mold and shape them; preparing them for a future with a purpose.

There are so many verses in the Bible that instruct me on how to be what God desires for me to be.

Be Still – Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. Psalm 46:10

Be Quiet – But whoso hearkens unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.” Proverbs 1:33

Be Ready – But keep the Lord Christ holy in your hearts. Always be ready to answer everyone who asks you to explain about the hope you have. I Peter 3:15

Be Obedient – If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: Isaiah 1:19

Be Rich – Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; 18 That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate;  I Timothy 1:17-18

Be Lieve – Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. Mark 9:23

Be Have –  And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him. 15 Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him. I Samuel 18:14-15

Be Loved, Stedfast, Immovable –  But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. I Corinthians 15:57-58

God’s purpose for our lives, for our very “being” is so much greater than an Army recruiter could ever imagine. God’s desire is that we be like Him and be dependent on His strength.

Be Like – You are God’s dear children, so try to be like him. 2 Live a life of love. Love others just as Christ loved us. Ephesians 5:1-2

Who is God asking me to “Be” today?

More than anything He wants me to be available!

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Good Deeds Can Change A Life

The truth in the title of this morning’s blog is overwhelming! Good deeds can change a life, will change a life, and more than likely the life that will be changed is ours!

I am going to pose a question  that I have asked myself.

When you are doing something nice for someone, do you ever hear “they probably won’t appreciate this anyway” going off in your head? If so, you’re not alone. I have dealt with that for years and have had to come face to face with my answer.

Definitely a motive check-up. I Corinthians 13, “the love chapter” tells us that if we martyr ourselves and it isn’t motivated by love then it profits us nothing. “I’m giving all my time to do this or that and no one will really appreciate it anyway – no one is going to know how hard I worked, how I gave up sleep, how much it cost me to do this nice thing”. All these are wrong motives!

I spend nearly every day reading these verses from Colossians 3. I find they keep me focused for everyday life. I don’t try to live a “good” life because I have too; I truly want my life to reflect God’s goodness and love.

“You were raised from death with Christ. So live for what is in heaven, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Think only about what is up there, not what is here on earth. 3 Your old self has died, and your new life is kept with Christ in God. 4 Yes, Christ is now your life, and when he comes again, you will share in his glory…

8 But now put these things out of your life: anger, losing your temper, doing or saying things to hurt others, and saying shameful things. 9 Don’t lie to each other. You have taken off those old clothes—the person you once were and the bad things you did then. 10 Now you are wearing a new life, a life that is new every day. You are growing in your understanding of the one who made you. You are becoming more and more like him. 11 In this new life it doesn’t matter if you are a Greek or a Jew, circumcised or not. It doesn’t matter if you speak a different language or even if you are a Scythian. It doesn’t matter if you are a slave or free. Christ is all that matters, and he is in all of you.” Colossians 3:1-11 CEV

Years ago I would do things for people  to get them to like or accept me. What a destructive force that can be! I was so insecure in who I was that I needed constant confirmation from others that I was lovable. Then I heard a wonderful godly woman, Dale Evans Rogers, speak in our college chapel service about God’s love, His unconditional love, and it got through.

Knowing that God loves me, really loves me, is the only acceptance that I need.  I went from doing things for people to get them to like and accept me to doing the same things because I really loved those people and I wanted them to know they were loved and appreciated. A complete 180 degree change in motivation.

So when this thought sprang up “they probably won’t even appreciate this”, and my response back was  “I appreciate them and I want them to know that they are special” the question of motive was answered.

Seems when we are tired and under stress that our motives come into question. Satan knows when we are weak and he tries to kick us when we’re down. He’s such a creep – he did the same to Jesus. After a 40 day fast he tempted Jesus with food,  “IF you are the son of God, turn these stones to bread”. His tactics with us will be the same, recognize them and  walk in the same strength and victory that Jesus did.

Today, face the challenges and make your motivation one of love without expecting anything in return. I take it very seriously when I hear others begin to speak badly about people. I know what it’s like to be talked about and I also know what it’s like to have the Lord correct me for that. I want to give the same kind of love to others that Jesus has given to me.

“I may give away everything I have to help others, and I may even give my body as an offering to be burned. But I gain nothing by doing all this if I don’t have love.
4 Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. 5 Love is not rude, it is not selfish, and it cannot be made angry easily. Love does not remember wrongs done against it. 6 Love is never happy when others do wrong, but it is always happy with the truth. 7 Love never gives up on people. It never stops trusting, never loses hope, and never quits.
8 Love will never end.” I Corinthians 13:3-8 CEV

Doing one good deed for others may change their life. It will change our life too!

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Enough

Faith – have you ever really thought about it? Do you have enough of it? How much is enough?


Romans 12:3 says “God has given me His loving-favor. This helps me write these things to you. I ask each one of you not to think more of himself than he should think. Instead, think in the right way toward yourself by the faith God has given you.”

We are instructed not to think of ourselves too highly or to pride ourselves in our accomplishments. Every good thing we have is a gift that God has given us so we shouldn’t take credit for it or consider ourselves better than others.

In another version this verse says
God has given every believer “THE” measure of faith. Not a measure; if it were “a” measure then maybe you would get a cupful of faith and I would only get 1/2 a cup.  We have all received “THE” measure of faith. So regardless of the size of the measure, we all receive the same.

We receive enough faith for each and every circumstance.

Jesus taught his disciples if they had faith like a mustard seed they would be able to move mountains Paul continues on with that thought in I Corinthians 13 where he says if we have the faith to move mountains and have not love it profits us nothing.

He also says later in Galatians 5:6 that faith works by love; so if our faith isn’t working, we should check our love walk.

Faith is one of the fruit of the spirit that we have been given.  We need to use what God has given us and use it motivated by love, never selfishness. Jesus was moved with compassion and miracles happened. It will work the same in our life.

If we take “THE” measure of faith today we can believe God to use us to move mountains – mountains in our life and in the lives of others. This word the denotes an absolute or a precise measure.

(Just a side note here. Over the next few days we will be looking at some absolutes in Scripture, things that never change. Things that are preceded by the words “the, always, never, all”.)

We are His ambassadors here on earth and we’ve been given the responsibility to effect a change. He’s given us “the” tools.

We need to use what we’ve been given. We have enough!

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A Good Cleaning

I like a clean and tidy house. It’s hard for me to sit and relax when I know that the bathrooms need to be cleaned or I can see dirty floors and dusty furniture.

I’ve always been that way. It’s a part of who I am. My mom kept a tidy house and from what I’ve read, it’s a part of my heritage.

Yesterday I was having a particularly hard time sitting and relaxing because I could see the dust on the floors and the furniture. Dave said it looked ok and wasn’t that bad but it was certainly annoying to me.

I once read a book on a Norwegian family and the woman, who was a bit older than I, told stories about her Mom and her compulsion for cleanliness. At one point in the book she said they moved into a home, it was clean or so she thought but her mother had them scrub the floors just in case the family that had lived there before wasn’t Norwegian and didn’t understand the importance of cleanliness the way they did.

Now I’m not that bad but my husband and children may take umbrage with that last statement. However, cleaning for me isn’t a chore, it’s enjoyable. I am thankful for my home and the things I have in it and want to keep them looking nice and not let them deteriorate or come to disrepair.

And with that confession I’m sure you are wondering how all of this applies to this morning’s devotional. Let me draw the correlation.

I know that the dust seeps in and requires my attention. Then there’s the dog hair and dusty feet or food spills in the kitchen, dirty sinks and smudged windows. It all requires my attention.

I would have a real problem if someone wanted to march through the house with muddy feet or walked through the rooms spilling garbage. More importantly, I would stand up to anyone that wanted to vandalize my home or bring in a bag of snakes and scorpions.

So how do you think the Holy Spirit feels when we let our actions, our words and our activities “dirty up” His home.

“You should know that your body is a temple for the Holy Spirit that you received from God and that lives in you. You don’t own yourselves. 20 God paid a very high price to make you his. So honor God with your body.” I Corinthians 6:19-20 ERV

We are a valuable dwelling place – a temple, as it were, for the Holy Spirit to live in. We must not be careless and  allow His home to fall into disarray.

“Now follow the example of the correct teaching I gave you, and let the faith and love of Christ Jesus be your model. 14 You have been trusted with a wonderful treasure. Guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit, who lives within you.” II Timothy 1:13-14 CEV

As I grow older I realize more each year how important it is that I keep my house clean. There’s no room for dishonesty, no room for bitterness or petty jealousy. I don’t want the garbage of lying, gossip, and criticism spread about and I certainly don’t want my dwelling to be vandalized by immoral living.

So it’s time for a good cleaning! Make the earthly home a place of welcome and comfort for the Holy Spirit.

” And don’t make the Holy Spirit sad. God gave you his Spirit as proof that you belong to him and that he will keep you safe until the day he makes you free. 31 Never be bitter, angry, or mad. Never shout angrily or say things to hurt others. Never do anything evil. 32 Be kind and loving to each other. Forgive each other the same as God forgave you through Christ.” Ephesians 4:30-32 ERV

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