Category: October2017

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Do You Smell Thankful?

I guess the better question would be, what does thankful smell like? According to Scripture it should smell like us.

“ I am grateful that God always makes it possible for Christ to lead us to victory. God also helps us spread the knowledge about Christ everywhere, and this knowledge is like the smell of perfume. ” II Corinthians 2:14 CEV

When we center our focus on Christ and follow His lead He will always – ALWAYS – lead us to victory. With those victories comes our testimony of God’s goodness, His power and His provision. Those testimonies bring the knowledge of Christ to the world and that knowledge brings the smell of a sweet perfume.

So, we have the opportunity to be God’s perfume. Thankfulness should smell like us.

In the Old Testament, when a sacrifice or an offering of thanksgiving was made the priest also burned incense to make the sacrifice smell sweet.

The Apostle Paul tells us that we are to give our bodies as a living sacrifice to the Lord.

“Dear friends, God is good. So I beg you to offer your bodies to him as a living sacrifice, pure and pleasing. That’s the most sensible way to serve God. 2 Don’t be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to him.” Romans 12:1-2 CEV

We give our lives to Him to be molded and used for His honor. As we thank Him for all He has done and the purpose He gives our life, we are a living sacrifice that is pure and pleasing.

The Lord has so many good things in store for us. He created us for good things. He’s not looking to withhold blessings from us, He desires to overflow us with blessings.

“ I pray that God will be kind to you and will let you live in perfect peace! May you keep learning more and more about God and our Lord Jesus. 3 We have everything we need to live a life that pleases God. It was all given to us by God’s own power, when we learned that he had invited us to share in his wonderful goodness. 4 God made great and marvelous promises, so that his nature would become part of us. Then we could escape our evil desires and the corrupt influences of this world.” II Peter 1:2-4 CEV

Take time to let those verses sink in. We have everything we need to live a life that pleases God. Not by our own power but by His. He gave us great and marvelous promises. Now that’s a reason to be thankful. It’s knowledge like this, that God wants us sharing with others.

God doesn’t expect us to live a life that pleases Him on our own. No, He gave us His promise that He would empowered us for the life He called us too.

“God planned for us to do good things and to live as he has always wanted us to live. That’s why he sent Christ to make us what we are.” Ephesians 2:10 CEV

When obstacles, trials and difficult times come, and they will, let’s refrain from complaining and worrying. Instead, let’s use the knowledge that God has provided victory for us through His power and His promises.

That way, we will be the ones who are the sweet smelling perfume of thankfulness.

 

 

 
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Calling for Help

Have you ever had that phone call – you know the one that goes like this, “Mom/Dad, I have a question. I need your advice. I need your help.”?

Great isn’t it?

Knowing that our kids need us and know they can call on us to help is a proud moment. When they were little they were always calling out “Mom” “Dad”. You remember what it was like hearing your name called 100’s of times each day.

Now that they’re older we have equipped them to handle some things on their own. They don’t need us to give them guidance on every little aspect of daily life but it is an awesome feeling when they call asking for advice. They call and want help with a recipe or something; or need help with a building project; maybe it’s a relationship issue or even a career decision but whatever it is we drop everything and listen and then give advice.

The one thing we don’t like as parents is seeing our kids struggle with things that we know we can help them with. Just like when they were little and would bring a broken toy asking us to fix it. It might have been a bike with a loose wheel or a stuffed animal with a torn arm but it was their favorite and they were devastated until we stopped what we were doing and made it better.

You know that’s how God is with us. He’s there waiting for us to ask for His help.

“God cares for you, so turn all your worries over to him.” I Peter 5:7 CEV

But I like that verse better in the Amplified Version

“casting all your cares [all your anxieties, all your worries, and all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares about you [with deepest affection, and watches over you very carefully].” AMP

God has given us an open invitation to come to Him with whatever is worrying us. The word cast refers to throwing a stone in the water – once you do that you really can’t retrieve it. We bring what’s broken to the Lord and trust Him to fix it.

He is trustworthy!

He promises if we come we will find Him here to help. If we, in our limited capabilities, are there to help our kids how much more do you think He is there to help us.

“So whenever we are in need, we should come bravely before the throne of our merciful God. There we will be treated with undeserved kindness, and we will find help.” Hebrews 4:16 CEV

I am so grateful to have a loving Father who is willing to help and who knows how to fix everything that I bring to Him.

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A Good Coach is Essential

Dave is in the process of building a shop. He’s been building on it for the last several weeks. I am amazed by his ability to create the plan in his mind and transfer it to an actual building. He had a couple neighbors come help him set the walls after they were framed, Austin, our son-in-law, came and helped him with the rafters last weekend and Lonny came and helped him do the siding and the windows this weekend. He has been working diligently and it’s really taking shape. I’m so proud of him!

He did ask me to help him stain the wood at the foundation line and also the exposed wood at the roof line. Up and down the ladder I went. I could reach only so far and then would have to move the ladder a few feet, stain the boards, come down, move the ladder and go up again. Let me tell you that was a work out! Not nearly as strenuous as what he was doing each day but it let me know that I was out of shape and needed more exercise.

When you first realize that you “need” to exercise it’s never pleasant. Accepting that you are out of shape and not as healthy as you should be is the first step. So you decide to exercise.

The first few days you have a real commitment or at least that’s what you tell yourself. But then comes day 7 or 8 and it becomes harder to stay committed to the goal. Your muscles hurt, you’re not seeing any results yet, you start making excuses and when you do that you are on your way to failure. I know, I’ve failed many times.

Now think back to your childhood days – exercise wasn’t a bad word. In fact it was called fun. To be outside with your buddies playing ball, running through the yard playing tag or football. Going hiking to your favorite fishing spot or walking the mile to the swimming pool in the afternoon heat (my personal favorite). It was fun and we were in shape.

Now of course you know this is going to have a spiritual correlation.

When we face trials and temptations it is an opportunity to exercise our faith. James tells us to count it joy because we will be developed and end up lacking nothing.

“My friends, be glad, even if you have a lot of trouble. 3 You know that you learn to endure by having your faith tested. 4 But you must learn to endure everything, so that you will be completely mature and not lacking in anything.” James 1:2-4 CEV

Facing trials is like building muscle. At first we see little victories but then to continue to develop a muscle we must increase the weigh, the repetition or both. In walking with the Lord, we’re never left to do this on our own.. We have a great coach who is with us every step. Under His direction and inspiration we come out the winner.

“13 You are tempted in the same way that everyone else is tempted. But God can be trusted not to let you be tempted too much, and he will show you how to escape from your temptations.” I Corinthians 10:13 CEV

Jesus knows what this is all about because He went through every temptation we experience while he was here on earth. Who better to coach us than someone whose been there, down that and emerged as the Champion of Champions!

“We have a great high priest who has gone to live with God in heaven. He is Jesus the Son of God. So let us continue to express our faith in him. 15 Jesus, our high priest, is able to understand our weaknesses. When Jesus lived on earth, he was tempted in every way. He was tempted in the same ways we are tempted, but he never sinned. 16 With Jesus as our high priest, we can feel free to come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we receive mercy and kindness to help us when we need it.” Hebrews 4:14-16 ERV

Thank you Lord for coaching me through life and providing all the help I need to develop and finish a winner!

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The Best Things Are Meant to Last

We had friends who lived in Europe for a while and one evening they were showing us pictures of places they had been. In casual conversation they told us that the roof on this one home was called a 400 year roof. Yes, a 400 year roof. Any of you who are homeowners know that the roofs we put on here generally need replacing every 20 years or so. What a novel idea to have a roof that will last that long!

We marvel at things that last a long time; we preserve them for future generations…the pyramids, Stonehenge, Tower of Pisa, Great Wall of China, the Sphinx, the Grand Canyon. The Bible.

Sometimes I wonder what triggered some of the things that were written in the Bible. Of course, I know that the Holy Spirit inspired the men who wrote it but what prompted the thoughts that led up to the writing. I’m not comparing myself with them but when I sit here each morning I pray that the Lord guides the words I write so that they, the words not me, will be an inspiration or encouragement to someone each day. This morning as I was praying the words of Psalm 136 came to my heart and I wondered, “who is this for Lord?”

Is someone going to have a particularly trying day and they need to know that your love endures forever? Is there someone asking, “After all I’ve done, Lord do you still love me?” Or maybe someone of us will be asked to love someone particularly un-lovable today and God wants to remind us in a gentle way that He has loved us always and He wants us to love this person like that.

Was David writing this for His own encouragement or for someone he was close too? Maybe, just maybe, God knew what you had been through lately or what you have coming your way and He just wants you to know that His love endures forever! He does things like that you know – He wants to be personally involved in each of our lives and He does little things like this to show us.

I won’t include the entire psalm here but I will encourage you to read it for yourself. His love endures FOREVER! Psalm 136

“Praise the Lord! He is good. God’s love never fails.
2 Praise the God of all gods. God’s love never fails.
3 Praise the Lord of lords. God’s love never fails.

4 Only God works great miracles.God’s love never fails.
5 With wisdom he made the sky. God’s love never fails.
6 The Lord stretched the earth over the ocean. God’s love never fails.
7 He made the bright lights in the sky. God’s love never fails.
8 He lets the sun rule each day. God’s love never fails.
9 He lets the moon and the stars rule each night.
God’s love never fails….

23 God saw the trouble we were in. God’s love never fails.
24 He rescued us from our enemies. God’s love never fails.
25 He gives food to all who live. God’s love never fails.

26 Praise God in heaven! God’s love never fails.”

God’s love never fails – it will last forever!

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Ctrl-Alt-Delete

Several years ago I was preparing for a message on the love of God. Cowboy Church was just a couple of weeks before Valentine’s and it only seemed appropriate to make “God’s Love” my center focus. If you have been reading my morning devotional thoughts for any length of time, you know that Colossians is one of my favorite books and Colossians 2 is my favorite chapter. It’s here that the Apostle Paul writes about what Jesus did on the cross for us and how his death set us free from our sin and make us acceptable to God. I focused in on one phrase that has always had particular meaning to me.

“Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;” Colossians 2:14

You have to dig through the Old King James English but “Blotting out the handwriting of the ordinances against us” drew my attention. Writing a document in Jesus day required extreme patience. No erasers or delete buttons – every word had to be carefully written because if there was a mistake, the document had to be wadded up and thrown away. Some corrections would be acceptable but the paper would have to be so saturated with ink that the word or the mistake was completely blotted out so that it was no longer visible.

That is the picture that Paul is painting for us here. There was a document with a long list of sins we have committed, God’s laws we have broken and Jesus “Blotted” out the list and then He took and nailed it to His cross. His blood, His shed blood was more than enough to cancel out the evidence of our sin. Amen!!

I have to tell you the first thing that I thought of was those little writing tablets we had as kids, where you would write on the slate and then lift the vinyl and the words would disappear. In fact, I made some for that Cowboy Church and gave them to all who came in.

And it didn’t stop there, then Jesus completely defeated His enemy and ours, and led him away captive and powerless for all the spiritual world to see! We are free to live for Christ, through God’s amazing love.

“You were spiritually dead because of your sins and because you were not free from the power of your sinful self. But God gave you new life together with Christ. He forgave all our sins. 14 Because we broke God’s laws, we owed a debt—a debt that listed all the rules we failed to follow. But God forgave us of that debt. He took it away and nailed it to the cross. 15 He defeated the rulers and powers of the spiritual world. With the cross he won the victory over them and led them away, as defeated and powerless prisoners for the whole world to see.” Colossians 2:13-15 ERV

And then God promises that He will not remember our sins and the wrong that we have done. “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” Hebrews 10: 16-17

How can He do that? Simple – God the Father chose to hit the delete button; hard drive crash; He blots them out. Why? Because He is our LOVING heavenly father.

“His love for his followers is as high above us as heaven is above the earth. 12 And he has taken our sins as far away from us as the east is from the west. 13 The Lord is as kind to his followers as a father is to his children.”

Psalm 103:11-13

What is it that has been holding you back from God’s love? Bring it to Him today and you will see that He has blotted it out, wiped it away and He has a clean, fresh slate waiting for you!

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Straight from the Heart

For the past several days I have been thinking about the day’s devotional and how to share it with you without rambling or becoming too sentimental. I hope you read yesterday’s devotional on God’s unfailing love because that sets the tone for what I’m going to share today.

I have people ask me frequently what I enjoy doing the most and why I get up each morning to share with all of you. I can answer honestly that the thing I love most is teaching/sharing truths from the Bible and God’s amazing love.

You see I was raised in a Christian home. My parents took me to church from a very young age. I loved singing the songs, hearing Bible stories and memorizing Bible verses. My friends were at church – it was a good place to be. I don’t remember how old I was when I started hearing the list of do’s and don’ts. When the messages became more about how I’d better behave and do right or God wasn’t going to love me – I wouldn’t be acceptable but it was there. All the things you had to do right and if you messed up God was going to punish you and I wasn’t going to be good enough for Him.

I hope you didn’t grow up that way but if you did I want to tell you that there is no amount of good that you can do to make God love you more than He does right now and there’s no amount of bad that will make Him love you less.

“Christ died for us when we were unable to help ourselves. We were living against God, but at just the right time Christ died for us. 7 Very few people will die to save the life of someone else, even if it is for a good person. Someone might be willing to die for an especially good person. 8 But Christ died for us while we were still sinners, and by this God showed how much he loves us.” Romans 5:6-8 ERV

God loves us so much that He had Jesus die to pay the price for our sin when we were at our worst! His love for us isn’t based on our merit but on who He is; God is love!

Anyway, as I got into high school and college I tried to “do enough” for God and for people to feel that I was “serving God”. As much as I tried to feel better about myself, I didn’t and eventually came to a place where I attempted suicide. And that’s when I heard a wonderful message on the unconditional love of God that changed my life.

Did you realize that the people God used in the Bible were real misfits? Moses was a murderer, King David committed adultery, Solomon was a bigamist, Peter betrayed the Lord, the Apostle Paul was on a crusade to kill all the Christians, Zacchaeus was a dishonest embezzler, Rahab was a prostitute and the list goes on. God used people with all their flaws and faults not because they were so great but because of His great love.

Now I want you to read the verses below and substitute the word Love with either God or He. That’s an appropriate way to read it because the Bible tells us that God is love. He doesn’t have love, He is love!

“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 13:4-8 ERV

I have certainly had my failures; my times when I haven’t measured up to the standards that people would set for me. Heck, many times I don’t measure up to the expectations that I have for me and I know I don’t always measure up to the plan and hopes that God has for me but He loves me still. He loves me in spite of my failures.

“When the time comes, I will make an agreement
with them. I will write my laws on their minds and hearts.
17 Then I will forget about their sin and no longer remember
their evil deeds.”

18 When sins are forgiven, there is no more need to offer sacrifices.” Hebrews 10:16-18 CEV

That time has come – Jesus died to pay the price for our sins and brought us to a place of reconciliation with God!

Why do I get up early to spend time with God? Because He loves me! He will never leave me or abandon me and when I realized just how much there’s nothing I want more than spending time with Him.

So maybe you are like I was and think that if you don’t do things just right that there’s no way God could love you. Maybe you’ve quit trying and given up. Good! Because we can’t do it, we just need to accept what He has done for us.

“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 8:37-39 CEV

And I love reading God’s word and trusting what He has to say. God doesn’t lie and so if He has made a promise He will keep it. He’s more trustworthy than anyone. He’s a loving Father who wants the best for His kids.

So again, what do enjoy doing most…telling people about my wonderful heavenly Father and talking about His amazing, great, unconditional and unfailing love and the promises of His Word!

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Thankful that His Love Has No End

I woke up this morning and lay in bed for a while thinking – my mind filled with beautiful thoughts; a Montana sunrise, an Arizona sunset, snow sparkling on the branches of a fir tree, a baby’s smile, my husband’s blue eyes, a cup of steaming hot coffee, a plate full of rolled tacos with guacamole. Seeing our daughter as she tried on her wedding gown, our oldest daughter and I as we sat in the middle of a mountain stream in our lawn chairs, our son at the helm of his boat, friends gathered on the patio of our home for good bar-b-q; yes, it was quite a way to wake up and start the day!

But then I asked, “Father, all of these images that I see can be described but how do I describe your love?” For the most part, I’m pretty good with words but when I try to describe God’s love I am seriously at a disadvantage. However, this morning I heard the answer to my question and it was “You just did!”

You see, every good and perfect gift comes down from the Father and with Him there is no variable or shadow of turning. Which basically means – every good thing that we enjoy comes as an outward expression of God’s love; that’s the way He’s always been and that’s the way He’ll always be! So when I’m thinking on these things that I can describe, I’m describing the Father’s love. Because in every circumstances and situation that I live, I can sense the love of God and know that He is there because God is LOVE!

“In the past God spoke to our people through the prophets. He spoke to them many times and in many different ways. 2 And now in these last days, God has spoken to us again through his Son. He made the whole world through his Son. And he has chosen his Son to have all things. 3 The Son shows the glory of God. He is a perfect copy of God’s nature, and he holds everything together by his powerful command. The Son made people clean from their sins. Then he sat down at the right side of God, the Great One in heaven.” Hebrews 1:1-3

Jesus’ purpose in coming to earth was to bring God’s love to each and every one of us. He brought the message that God isn’t mad at us and that God desires to have relationship with us – not some experience that is staunch and unfeeling or condemning and angry – but a real, where-the-rubber-meets-the-road, every day, I’m always here type of relationship.

“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 13:6-8 ERV

I’m not saying that everything will be perfect in our lives because our lives aren’t perfect! But I do know that in the imperfect, trying, challenging, frustrating, ugly times of our lives that God is always there and He doesn’t abandon us! He’s always there to offer comfort, help, wisdom, peace and joy even in the midst of our storms. God is love! Jesus brought comfort to those who had lost family and friends to death, He brought compassion to the prostitute, food to the hungry, wine to the wedding, sanity to the demonic and love and forgiveness to all.

“You know about Jesus from Nazareth. God made him the Messiah by giving him the Holy Spirit and power. Jesus went everywhere doing good for people. He healed those who were ruled by the devil, showing that God was with him.” Acts 10:38

So what words can I use to describe God’s love?! This love can’t really be described but it can be experienced. I will leave you with the words of the Apostle Paul:

“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

Yes, I am thankful that God’s love has no end!

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Grateful for Light

Have you been out at night where there are no street lights and all you have is the moon and the stars to light your way? You know there are things in the bushes you can’t see…it would be great to have a flashlight!

Have you ever gotten up in the middle of the night, been disoriented, stubbed your toe, stepped on something sharp or wet, and/or hit your shin or hip on a piece of furniture you forgot was there? Or maybe you’re staying in a hotel or the home of a friend? Where am I?

Well, I have!

The night light in our bedroom burned out a while back and it took me a while to get to the store for a replacement bulb yet.

We have night lights in every bedroom and the hall in our house. We don’t want our family and friends experiencing what I just described.

Do you know Jesus doesn’t want us walking around in the dark either?

“In a loud voice Jesus said: Everyone who has faith in me also has faith in the one who sent me. 45 And everyone who has seen me has seen the one who sent me. 46 I am the light that has come into the world. No one who has faith in me will stay in the dark. 47 I am not the one who will judge those who refuse to obey my teachings. I came to save the people of this world, not to be their judge. 48 But everyone who rejects me and my teachings will be judged on the last day by what I have said. 49 I don’t speak on my own. I say only what the Father who sent me has told me to say. 50 I know that his commands will bring eternal life. That is why I tell you exactly what the Father has told me.” John 12:44-50 CEV

Jesus said that He was the light of the world. He shines in the dark places and lights the way so we don’t lose our way. He brings light to our souls and salvation to our lives.

In the Psalms we also find that the Word of God is a lamp for our feet and a light on our pathway. Since Jesus is described as the Word the correlation between Jesus and the Word of God is the same.

But then Jesus told us that we are to bring light into the world. When Christ lives in us and we are following God’s Word we will bring light to those around us.

“You are like light for the whole world. A city built on top of a hill cannot be hidden, 15 and no one would light a lamp and put it under a clay pot. A lamp is placed on a lampstand, where it can give light to everyone in the house. 16 Make your light shine, so that others will see the good that you do and will praise your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16 CEV

Be someone’s light today. Help them see past the darkness. Bring them hope.

This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine. Let it shine till Jesus comes. I’m gonna let it shine.

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Be the Answer to Someone’s Call

“Lord, what can I do to please you today? I know I don’t have to work to earn Your love. But I like to do things that make you happy – things that bring a smile to Your face, something that will let You know that I love you?”

“My brothers and sisters, God chose you to be free. But don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do what pleases your sinful selves. Instead, serve each other with love. 14 The whole law is made complete in this one command: “Love your neighborthe same as you love yourself.” Galatians 5:13-14 ERV

The verse above was Paul’s instructions to the Christians at Galatia. He was reminding them of what Jesus taught and Jesus words were a repeat of a lesson God gave to Moses when the Israelites first came out of Egypt. God’s command from the very beginning was that we walk in a loving way towards those around us.

“Forget about the wrong things people do to you. Don’t try to get even. Love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” Leviticus 19:18 ERV

I’ve heard it said, you really know who your friends are when the chips are down. But I’ve never liked that saying…it seems when there is a serious problem everyone will come to help, even folks you don’t know but in the day to day routine, a true friend is there. They are there to notice the small victories that no one else sees and they also notice the small things that indicate you might just be having a bad day.

The thing I love about country folk is they are “good neighbors”. We’ve always appreciated good neighbors. Today, don’t look for something you can be thankful for – be the reason that someone else is thankful! It will make your Father smile.

I heard tell of a man who lived in AZ. He was out driving on the I-10 down Tucson way and he ran out of gas. He came to a stop on the shoulder of the road and right in front of him was this big billboard

NEED HELP? CALL JESUS

800-005-3159

So in sheer desperation the man got out his cell phone and called the number. In 10 minutes, a 1950’s Chevy pickup showed up and out stepped a Mexican man with two 5 gallon gas cans, his name was Jesus!

Now that man was a neighbor. A good neighbor! He came to help in time of need.

“Then the king will say to the godly people on his right, ‘Come, my Father has great blessings for you. The kingdom he promised is now yours. It has been prepared for you since the world was made. 35 It is yours because when I was hungry, you gave me food to eat. When I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I had no place to stay, you welcomed me into your home. 36 When I was without clothes, you gave me something to wear. When I was sick, you cared for me. When I was in prison, you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the godly people will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and give you food? When did we see you thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you with no place to stay and welcome you into our home? When did we see you without clothes and give you something to wear? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and care for you?’

40 “Then the king will answer, ‘The truth is, anything you did for any of my people here, you also did for me.’ Matthew 25:34-40 ERV

If the greatest two commandments according to Jesus are to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and strength and then to love your neighbor as yourself, we need to be ready to answer when we hear a call for help.

We don’t go in our own strength and but in the love and the strength that God has placed within us. And we do it with a thankful heart. Thanking God that He has placed confidence in us that we will do the right thing and that we will respond in a timely manner – that we will be good ambassadors of Christ.

Let me ask you this, if Jesus made a billboard and it said “NEED HELP” could He put your cell number at the bottom? Let Jesus use you today to be the answer to someone’s call!

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The Remodel Isn’t Done Yet

So how’s the remodel coming? Did you find that you were in a refining or remodeling project after yesterday’s devotional? I looked for verses with the words “grateful” or “gratitude” in them. I couldn’t find either word in the King James Version of the Bible and only found a couple of references in the New International Version. However, gratitude, thanksgiving, gratefulness, appreciation is the focal point of so many books even though those specific words aren’t there. Just goes to show it’s an attitude of the heart and not words on a page.

I did find a passage in Colossians, which you know it my favorite book, that has gratitude as its theme and stays with our idea of spiritual remodeling.

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:15-17 NIV

Jesus said “be of good cheer” and the apostle Paul says “let peace rule in your hearts”. Those are two basics of gratitude when going through a trial, a remodel. Cheer and peace!

Look at the way the Easy to Read version puts it:

“Let the peace that Christ gives control your thinking. It is for peace that you were chosen to be together in one body. And always be thankful.

16 Let the teaching of Christ live inside you richly. Use all wisdom to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 Everything you say and everything you do should be done for Jesus your Lord. And in all you do, give thanks to God the Father through Jesus.” Colossians 3:15-17 ERV

Let peace control your thinking…WOW! That would certainly be a major remodel – controlled by peace. How many times do you find yourself jumping to conclusions or flying off the handle – judging people and situations wrongly, that’s not a mind controlled by peace and definitely a mind that needs to be renovated.

“But the Helper will teach you everything and cause you to remember all that I told you. This Helper is the Holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name.

27 “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. 28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am leaving, but I will come back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be happy that I am going back to the Father, because the Father is greater than I am.” John 14:26-28 ERV

And it’s not peace we have to manufacture on our own – notice it’s Christ’s peace. It’s the same peace He received from the Father when He left heaven to come to earth and live as a man. It’s a supernatural peace. It’s the peace that will take you through trials victoriously just like it did for Jesus. Oh and the added bonus, Jesus said we have His peace and He’s also given us the Holy Spirit to be our helper until Jesus comes back again!

We have the opportunity to teach, to share with one another, things we’ve experienced during the remodel process. Don’t you think we could learn something from Daniel about peace and something from David about thankfulness and from Joseph about hope. We can learn from the pages of God’s word and we can share with others the way we have seen those promises fulfilled in our lives.

“Each one of you is part of the body of Christ, and you were chosen to live together in peace. So let the peace that comes from Christ control your thoughts. And be grateful. 16 Let the message about Christ completely fill your lives, while you use all your wisdom to teach and instruct each other. With thankful hearts, sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. 17 Whatever you say or do should be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, as you give thanks to God the Father because of him.” Colossians 3:15-17 CEV

Oh boy, the Lord just reminded me of an example in my own life. I don’t claim to be a completely “remodeled” habitation for the Lord but I certainly have been through several major renovation projects. Years ago I was in a place where I was in my bedroom all alone crying to God to fix some broken areas in my life. I had listed each of them and was telling Him that I wanted His will in my life and I wanted to be free of these things that were holding me back. I felt God’s peace! Oh how sweet and then a song came on the radio and it cut like a knife.

“THERE WAS A PLACE IN MY HEART WHERE EVEN I WOULDN’T GOI HAD SOME THINGS HIDDEN THERE I DIDN’T WANT NO ONE TO KNOWBUT HE HANDED ME THE KEY WITH TEARS OF LOVE ON HIS FACEHE MADE ME FREE I LET HIM IN MY SECRET PLACE.” The Secret Place by Calvin Clark

I knew immediately that the Father had something greater on His mind that He wanted to remove and rebuild. It was an area of unforgiveness that I wouldn’t even look at – a place I chose not to go. A place where the hurt was too deep to even talk to the Father about…I blurted out “ok, but I’m not going in there alone”. As we walked in, He looked around bringing light to that part of my life and now it’s a beautiful room with a view!

So now as the remodel continues, I’m reminded of what “my house” is supposed to look like. It’s supposed to be a home that will give glory to God; I am an example of His handiwork. Although I get the privilege of picking the colors and the décor, He is the master builder and He gets the glory for the building.

“And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.” Colossians 3:15-17 KJV

Whatever I do, may it bring glory to you, Lord!

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