Category: John

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The Candy Cane

Have a cup of coffee with me this morning as I share “The Legend of the Candy Cane”. Every year I share the story in one fashion or another. Since so many of you are new readers this year I thought I should share it again.

Over thirty years ago I was given a little lapel pin at Christmas. It looked like a cute little candy cane. However, when I held it upside down it was in the shape of a “J”. It was attached to a little card which told the story of how it came to be.

“I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and they know me. 15 Just as the Father knows me, I know the Father, and I give up my life for my sheep. ” John 10:14-15 CEV

A few years later I was in a bookstore and found a wonderfully illustrated children’s book, “The Legend of the Candy Cane”. I bought it and it sits on our coffee table each year and I have read the story to our children and grandchildren. It’s a cute story of a confectioner who moves to a small town and sets up his shop. The winter is harsh and the town folks are feeling isolated and alone. The candy maker, with the help of a little girl from town, set out to do something to lift the spirits of their neighbors. They make candy canes. The confectioner tells the little girl the story behind his new candy as they work.

The story gave me an idea of how to share the message of Jesus with all I meet throughout the Christmas season. I have printed little cards, like the one picture above and attach each card to a candy cane with a red ribbon. I always have a supply of them in my purse or coat pocket and when I’m out and about I hand out candy canes to store clerks, waitresses, postal workers, anyone I have dealings with.

Handing out Candy Canes with this little message is a great way to share Jesus at Christmas. I even have a basket of them on the counter in our home to share with neighbors and friends who drop in.

Who doesn’t like candy at Christmas? The candy cane has been associated with Christmas for as long as I can remember. The story of the candy cane is one of Jesus and His saving grace. Find a way to have fun and share the love of Jesus with folks.

“His teachings are worth more than pure gold. They are sweeter than the best honey dripping from the honeycomb.May my words and thoughts please you. Lord, you are my Rock—the one who rescues me.” Psalm 19: 10 & 14 ERV

The story of Christmas is not only the greatest story ever told but it’s the sweetest!

(You can find a link to the book on my website page “I Like These”.)

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Love, Love, Love

Love, love, love – all you need is love!

If you are as old as I am you will probably hear the Beatles singing those words in your head. All you need is love…

That’s what Christmas is all about. It’s a time of showing love, a special time of year to recognize the most wonderful gift of love that mankind has ever known. The birth of a child, the birth of our Savior. God’s unconditional love in human form.

Jesus shows us the Father’s unconditional love in action.

God doesn’t quit loving us when we fail. These are the people Jesus loved; the woman who committed adultery, the tax collector who cheated hundreds, Peter who denied Him three times, the demon possessed, the outcasts and the half-breeds, even the criminals on the cross and the soldiers who crucified him. He loved them all!

The night before Jesus was crucified we find Him in the Garden of Gethsamane praying. He was praying for Himself, for His followers and for us. Yes, we were on His heart before we were even born.

“I am not praying just for these followers. I am also praying for everyone else who will have faith because of what my followers will say about me…23 I am one with them, and you are one with me, so that they may become completely one. Then this world’s people will know that you sent me. They will know that you love my followers as much as you love me. 24 Father, I want everyone you have given me to be with me, wherever I am. Then they will see the glory that you have given me, because you loved me before the world was created. 25 Good Father, the people of this world don’t know you. But I know you, and my followers know that you sent me. 26 I told them what you are like, and I will tell them even more. Then the love that you have for me will become part of them, and I will be one with them.” John 17:20-26 CEV

Jesus prayed that the world would know that the Father loves us as much as He loves Jesus. Think about that.

If the Father only loves us as much as He loved Peter, who denied knowing him, that would be something. He was forgiving, compassionate, non-condemning. But He loves us as much as He loves Jesus! Grab hold of that and don’t ever let it go. God, the Father, loves us as much as He loves Jesus and He thinks the best of us!

Now truly this is the gift of Christmas – God so loved the world that He gave! My prayer is that we come to understand how much He loves us and then we show that love to the world. This is the Apostle Paul’s prayer for us:

“I pray that Christ will live in your hearts because of your faith. I pray that your life will be strong in love and be built on love. 18 And I pray that you and all God’s holy people will have the power to understand the greatness of Christ’s love—how wide, how long, how high, and how deep that love is. 19 Christ’s love is greater than anyone can ever know, but I pray that you will be able to know that love. Then you can be filled with everything God has for you.20 With God’s power working in us, he can do much, much more than anything we can ask or think of.” Ephesians 3:17-20 ERV

Thank you Lord for flooding my life with Your love!

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Not About Me

Every morning for the last nine plus years I have traded emails with a friend who lives in the Northwest. We share our morning “coffee”. She tells me all about her previous day and I tell her about mine.

There are days when one or the other of us start our email by saying “I need this to be all about me”. That’s what friends do!

We listen, without condemning. We don’t have to make things better or give advice sometimes we just need to listen. Many times at the end of one of those pour-your-heart-out exchanges we will say “thank you, I knew you would know what I should do” because once we’ve talked through things, although it’s in an email, and unburdened ourselves we know what to do.

Self-centeredness is never good for a relationship. True friendship, true love is selfless.

“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

God loved so much He sent His Son. When Jesus came to earth it wasn’t about Him it was about rescuing us.

“A thief comes only to rob, kill, and destroy. I came so that everyone would have life, and have it in its fullest.” John 10:10 CEV

When the angels filled the heavens two thousand years ago proclaiming the birth of Jesus, they gave “Glory to God in the Highest”. The message wasn’t about them – they were only the messengers.

We also have the opportunity to be messengers of God’s goodness and love. It’s not about me, it’s about what Jesus has done in our lives.

“You see, we don’t go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. 7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.” II Corinthians 4:5-7 NLT

We have a great treasure bottled up within us. It’s the light of Jesus, our Lord and Saviour. It’s not about me, it’s about His light shinging through me. I just want to be the vessel that brings His light to the world.

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Creation – Salvation – Inspiration

Three words came to mind first thing this morning – creation, salvation and inspiration.

Even though we don’t live in an area with a brilliant autumn pallet I’m so glad that I can enjoy the beauty that is captured by a photographer’s lens.

It’s breath-taking!

Hopefully, when we see nature’s beauty we stop and thank God for creating it for our enjoyment. There are so many things that attempt to distract and divert our attention to the mundane and unattractive. It’s refreshing to be able to “enjoy the view”.

I’ve told you before that some of the first thoughts that come to mind when I wake up are to tell my heavenly Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit that I love them. To me, there’s just no better way to start the day.

This morning those thoughts were followed by these words: “Thank you Holy Spirit for inspiration, thank you Jesus for my salvation and thank you Father for your creation”. A heart filled with gratitude just starts the day out right.

God’s creation teach us: “The heavens keep telling the wonders of God, and the skies declare what he has done. 2 Each day informs the following day; each night announces to the next. 3 They don’t speak a word, and there is never the sound of a voice. 4 Yet their message reaches all the earth, and it travels around the world.” Psalm 19:1-4 CEV

The Holy Spirit inspires us: “But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you. 27 “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.” John 14:26-27 NLT

Jesus is our salvation: “Only Jesus has the power to save! His name is the only one in all the world that can save anyone.” Acts 4:12 CEV

I don’t know what my day has in store, neither do you, but I do know that when we start our day with praise and thanksgiving we start from a position of power and strength.

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Thankful for Freedom

I hope you had a wonderful yesterday – I did. After sharing with you about forgive and forget Dave and I sat in our living room and joined the service from one of our favorite churches.

The songs they were singing really touched my heart.

“Good, Good Father” was one of them and I agreed whole-heartedly that yes, He is a good, good Father and I am loved by Him. Every once in a while I am impacted again by that amazing truth – He, God the Father, is MY FATHER and He loves me unconditionally!

WOW!

The next song we sang was “No Longer Slaves”. What a perfect tie-in with the words I had just written a few hours earlier. Forgive and Forget. When our actions, our sins, are forgiven and forgotten we are set free and no longer enslaved to them. Guilt is gone, freedom has come.

“So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.” John 8:36 NLT

Our new life in Christ sets us free – free from guilt, worry, condemnation, fear, sin, separation and gives us a new life.

I’ve never been locked in physical chains but I have certainly been in emotional bondage. When I found out that God’s love and forgiveness set me free and I no longer had to carry the guilt I was overwhelmed. It took a while to fully realize what that meant. I had to keep going over and over the verses to let it sink in.

“ So now anyone who is in Christ Jesus is not judged guilty. 2 That is because in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit that brings life made you free. It made you free from the law that brings sin and death.” Romans 8:1-2 ERV

The chains have been broken, the prison door has been opened and we have been freed to a new life with a loving Father.

Let me end with a few lines from the song I mentioned above.

From my mother’s womb
You have chosen me
Love has called my name
I’ve been born again
Into Your family
Your blood flows through my veins

I’m no longer a slave to fear
I am a child of God
I’m no longer a slave to fear
I am a child of God*

Here we are at the beginning of a new week. What a great time to realize our freedom. Drop guilt like a dirty coat; kick low self-esteem to the curb like a pair of worn out shoes; the chains are broken and we are free!

Thank you Lord for our freedom!

*No Longer Slaves by Bethel Music

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Horn of Plenty

When I was little I was impressed with the pictures of a “cornucopia” . The first time I really remember hearing about them was in my second grade class as we learned about the first Thanksgiving. More fascinating than the pictures of these big baskets with fruit and vegetables spilling out of them was the word itself.

Cornucopia.

With practice I learn to say it well. It was such a grown-up sounding word. Cornucopia, the word, originated in the early 16th Century: ‘from Latin cornu copiae ‘horn of plenty’ (a mythical horn able to provide whatever is desired)’.

Early in our marriage I purchased a horn-of-plenty and each year it either sits on our table or on the breakfast bar. I filled it with small ears of Indian corn, a couple of gourds, a miniature squash and a few acorns. They spill out ever so gently.

Plenty. To provide whatever is desired…sounds just like Jesus to me.

“The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” John 10:10 NLT

We aren’t blessed so that we can be selfish and keep all we have just for us and our little few. No. God’s blessings are meant to be shared. We are to be an example of our heavenly Father who has given us all our blessings.

If Jesus had been selfish he would have instructed the servants at the wedding to fill a couple bottles of the good wine and bring it to Him and his disciples. Forget about everyone else. If He had been selfish He would have multiplied the loaves and fishes, had a picnic with his closest followers and let everyone else fend for themselves. If He had been selfish He would have never come to earth in the first place. He would have stayed in heaven.

But…”God so loved the world He gave”.

I’m going to encourage you to do something tangible over the next few days. Give.

Give to a food bank (most grocery stores have boxes where you can donate food stuffs), give to a charity that cares for the homeless. Give to Samaritan’s Purse, you can go on-line and build a Christmas Shoe Box for a child in need. Give to the Angel Tree organization, they provide for children whose parents are incarcerated. Give to the Salvation Army. Give to your local church. Just give, no gift is ever too small.

“‘For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’

37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’” Matthew 25:35-40 NLV

When we take from what we have and give to someone who has less we are acting like our Father.

I’m so thankful that others have given to us during a time of need. But I am more grateful that we are able to give.

May your horn always be filled with plenty!

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A Rose Is A Rose

Several years ago I planted a rose bush in our front courtyard. The blooms aren’t very big but they are plentiful. They have a beautiful yellow base, tipped in red.

Once a week I go out and prune the blooms that have dropped their petals. There are always new buds getting ready to open. I love to see the new growth.

Our lives are much like that rose bush. With the right amount of sunlight, water and care we blossom. We grow and fill our little world with beauty.

“Stay joined to me and I will stay joined to you. No branch can produce fruit alone. It must stay connected to the vine. It is the same with you. You cannot produce fruit alone. You must stay joined to me. 5 “I am the vine, and you are the branches. If you stay joined to me, and I to you, you will produce plenty of fruit. But separated from me you won’t be able to do anything. 6 If you don’t stay joined to me, you will be like a branch that has been thrown out and has dried up. All the dead branches like that are gathered up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 Stay joined together with me, and follow my teachings. If you do this, you can ask for anything you want, and it will be given to you. 8 Show that you are my followers by producing much fruit. This will bring honor to my Father. 9 “I have loved you as the Father has loved me. Now continue in my love. 10 I have obeyed my Father’s commands, and he continues to love me. In the same way, if you obey my commands, I will continue to love you. 11 I have told you these things so that you can have the true happiness that I have. I want you to be completely happy. 12 This is what I command you: Love each other as I have loved you. ” John 15: 4-12 ERV

See how many times in these few verses Jesus repeats “stay joined to me”? Go back and read it again and let it sink in.

Stay Joined to Me!

When we are joined to Him we produce fruit. Beautiful blossoms just like my rose bush. Our fruit, love for one another, brings beauty into the world and brings joy into our lives.

Stay Joined to Me!

Jesus isn’t separating from us. In fact, we have His promise in Hebrews that He will NEVER, no NEVER leave us or abandon us.

“Let your character [your moral essence, your inner nature] be free from the love of money [shun greed—be financially ethical], being content with what you have; for He has said, “I will never [under any circumstances] desert you [nor give you up nor leave you without support, nor will I in any degree leave you helpless], nor will I forsake or let you down or relax My hold on you [assuredly not]!” 6 So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently say,“The Lord is my Helper [in time of need], I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5-6 AMP

We don’t have to be greedy and selfish when we are joined to Him. The vine supplies all we need for a good, healthy and prosperous life. What a wonderful promise. Never, under any circumstances, will He desert, abandon, forsake or let us down! Never!

Stay Joined to Jesus.

His commandment to love is what produces good fruit in our lives. It causes us to blossom. He promises us true happiness and His constant companionship, in this way we bring the beauty of Christ to our world.

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Present or Absent

Do they still have Attendance Charts in school? It’s been so long since we had small children in a classroom, I don’t really know how attendance is taken in the computer driven classroom. Teachers were so creative in building their bulletin boards around a specific teaching or seasonal theme and somewhere on that board was the attendance chart.

I’d like to talk with you this morning about two opposing ideas; presence and absence. The two walk hand in hand. King David wrote the following in the Psalms.

“You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16:11 NKJV

He found that being in the presence of the Lord brought fullness of joy to his life. And in turn, there was absence; the absence of discontentment, sorrow, defeat, anger, selfishness. If a life is full of joy then there is obviously no room for any of these other characteristics.

A prophecy was given about Christ nearly four hundred years before He was born and it said He would heal the broken hearted, cleanse the leper, heal the sick, set those who were imprisoned free. This was His purpose and those who were touched by His presence experienced the joy of having their circumstances change.

God doesn’t want us to be living in fear. That’s why the Bible is filled with so many verses on not being afraid. The presence of God is the absence of fear.

“Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need. 32 “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom.” Luke 12:31-32 NLV

I use this verse as a barometer in my life. When I find myself becoming anxious, stressed or worried I realize that I have moved from the Father’s presence and that’s why there is an absence of joy in my heart.

Let’s take a look at heaven. What makes heaven, heaven? It’s the presence of God, the Father. When we enter there we will be overwhelmed by His presence. We are told there is constant singing and praising God. Constant joy in His presence!

We are also told that there is an absence in heaven.

“I heard a loud voice coming from heaven. It said, ‘See! God’s home is with men. He will live with them. They will be His people. God Himself will be with them. He will be their God. 4 God will take away all their tears. There will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All the old things have passed away.’ 5 Then the One sitting on the throne said, ‘See! I am making all things new. Write, for these words are true and faithful.'” Revelation 21:3-5 NLV

While we live on earth where these things are present – tears, death, sorrow, crying and pain – we have a promise from the Lord.

“I leave you peace. It is my own peace I give you. I give you peace in a different way than the world does. So don’t be troubled. Don’t be afraid.” John 14:27 ERV

Joy and peace are our inheritance. When we are feeling troubled and distressed we need to draw close to Jesus. Tell Him about those things that are upsetting us, let Him handle them.

Be present. In His presence is fullness of joy!

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Things That Go Munch in the Night

There are some mornings, as I sit here writing, I wish you could be with me. That was the case yesterday. I sat in my rocker with words of comfort running through my head when my thoughts were disturbed by the barking dog across the street.

I know I’ve mentioned to you before about the unrest that comes to our neighborhood when javelina, deer and coyote walk the roads in the early morning hours. I tried to ignore the barking and kept writing but it wasn’t long before I put down my laptop, picked up a flashlight and headed out the front door.

Before I got to the courtyard wall I could hear the munching. My cacti had become a middle of the night snack. I turned on the flashlight and peered over the fence. There they were, the javelina. I saw the first one rooting around the base of my newly planted yucca and heard others feasting on the fat, water-rich pads of my prickly pear.

Mind you, it’s three a.m. and I don’t want to yell at them and wake Dave or the neighbors so I kept the light in their eyes and annoyed them enough that they headed on their way. I was really surprised they weren’t more skittish. They were hungry and not easily deterred. Once they meandered off, I came back in and finished writing.

As I went through the day I thought about them again and this Scripture came to mind:

“Those who are hungry and thirsty to be right with God are happy, because they will be filled.” Matthew 5:6 NLV

Those who hunger and thirst will be filled…

Do I hunger and thirst for the things of God? Am I easily distracted or frightened away from His word? Or do I boldly search the Scriptures for His truth and ignore the distractions that are driving me from feasting on the truth?

“I feel like a stranger visiting here on earth. I need to know your commands. Don’t keep them hidden from me. 20 I constantly feel a hunger to understand your laws.” Psalm 119:19-20 ERV

It’s important that we take time to feed on God’s word. I know that you feel that way too or you wouldn’t be taking the time to read my blog each day. Our physical bodies get hungry and we feed them – sometimes too much but we can never over indulge when we are feeding on God’s word.

“Jesus said to them, “I am the Bread of Life. He who comes to Me will never be hungry. He who puts his trust in Me will never be thirsty. ” John 6:35 NLV

Take time each day to feed on God’s word. Fix a big sandwich from the Book of John. Enjoy a buffet in the Book of Psalms or feast on a steak-size portion from the Book of Ephesians. It will soon become addictive and you won’t spend a day without feasting on His Word.

Are you hungry? Come and be filled!

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Comfort & Joy

No, this isn’t going to be a blog with a Christmas theme. We’re still about five weeks from that. This has been a very rough year for many, I think we all thought we would be on the road to normal by now. Yet, we’re still being distanced from family and friends.

There is a real sense of loss. Some losses are small – gatherings, celebrations, luncheons, one-on-one times and others have faced life-changing, life-ending circumstances on their own. Those who so deparately need to be comforted have been without support.

Who can they turn to? How do we help?

I hesitate when answering these questions because some will find my answer trite or cliche`. However, it is the most profound and impacting action I know. We pray!

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Father who is full of mercy, the God of all comfort. 4 He comforts us every time we have trouble so that when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us.” II Corinthians 1:3-4 ERV

Reaching out in prayer to the Father, who is the God of all comfort, on behalf of those who are hurting is powerful. Before Jesus died, leaving his disciples in a desparate emotional state, he told them that when He went away the Comforter, who is the Holy Spirit, would come.

“But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate[a] won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you.” John 16:7 NLT Footnote a for verse 16:7 Or Comforter, or Encourager, or Counselor. Greek reads Paraclete.

The Holy Spirit is able to comfort me in Arizona at the same time He is bringing comfort to you in Nebraska. His presence can be felt the world over. He isn’t limited. When I can’t be with someone that I love and I know they are going through a very difficult time, my prayer goes something like this: “Father God, you said that you are the God of comfort and I believe that. Right now my friend is going through a very, very difficult time and they need Your comfort. I ask for the Holy Spirit to bring comfort to their heart. Wrap Your loving arms around them and let them sense Your peace. Please send someone to extend Your comfort in a personal way. I thank you. In Jesus name.”

And if we can be there in person, we don’t need to know the right words to say because there really are no words. A genuine hug, a hand to hold and tears shed will speak to their heart.

God will never abandon us in our time of need but He won’t force us to accept His comfort either. He’s right there the moment we cry out to Him. He knows our heartache and He is able and willing to bring healing and comfort in our grief.

“God blesses those people who grieve. They will find comfort!” Matthew 5:4 CEV

My prayer is for all who need to be comforted. “Lord Jesus, shower them with Your love and wrap them in Your comfort this very hour.”

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