Category: Relationship

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Music To My Ears

I love music! Memorizing the lyrics of a song comes easy to me. Time and again I will be sitting alone and my heart and my head will break into song.

And music takes me places. I hear a song on the radio or on Pandora and it will take me to the first place I heard it or to a special time that’s marked in my memory. (I hope you don’t think I’m crazy)

One time that I remember particularly well  was a Sunday morning in a small country church in Dillon, Montana. We had been singing from the hymn book and the song leader asked if anyone had a favorite song they’d like us to sing. There was an awkward silence and so the song leader asked a man sitting on the front row if he had a favorite song.

Don cleared his throat and said “Well the only church song I know is Our God Is An Awesome God.” The song leader was a bit embarrassed and quietly said, “Don, I don’t think I know that one.” To which Don replied, “That’s ok, God is Awesome anyway.”

I’ll never sing that chorus again without thinking of that time in a little country church that we didn’t sing Our God Is an Awesome God.

“Shout praises to the Lord, everyone on this earth. 2 Be joyful and sing as you come in to worship the Lord! 3 You know the Lord is God! He created us,  and we belong to him; we are his people, the sheep in his pasture. 4 Be thankful and praise the Lord as you enter his temple. 5 The Lord is good! His love and faithfulness will last forever.” Psalm 100 CEV

All through the Bible there are verses about singing and even times where it says the Lord gave them a song. Paul and Silas were singing one night in prison. God enjoyed it so much He sent an earthquake to break them out.

“I will sing forever about the Lord’s love.
    I will sing about his faithfulness forever and ever!
2 I will say, “Your faithful love will last forever.
    Your loyalty is like the sky—there is no end to it!” Psalm 89:1-2 ERV

Not only does God like to hear us sing but He likes to sing too. He sings about us. His is a song of love and joy.

“The Lord your God wins victory after victory and is always with you. He celebrates and sings because of you, and he will refresh your life with his love.”” Zephaniah 3:17 CEV

So, as you sit quietly this morning, listen for Him. Do you hear Him singing? He sings because He loves you!

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Respect & Reputation

The first words off the page of my Bible this morning were respect and reputation.

So, why am I using a picture of a wallet filled with money?

A large part of our society is striving for success. There is nothing wrong with that. In fact, the Lord desires for us to prosper and have good success.

“Always remember what is written in that book of law. Speak about that book and study it day and night. Then you can be sure to obey what is written there. If you do this, you will be wise and successful in everything you do. 9 Remember, I commanded you to be strong and brave. Don’t be afraid, because the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:8-9 ERV

The key is the phrase good success. If success is obtained in one area of life but destroys another it can’t be considered good. There are people all across our country that are gaining success in their careers and businesses but loosing their families. That’s not good.

“A good reputation and respect are worth much more than silver and gold.” Proverbs 22:1 CEV

I went to a job interview once and was asked if I saw something that I thought was unethical being done in the company, what would I do. I gave an honest answer and said I would ask  someone about it. I couldn’t just stand by and ignore something like that.

I didn’t get the job.

The Lord sees us as valuable. He treasures us, He takes delight in us as His children.

“ I tell you not to worry about your life. Don’t worry about having something to eat, drink, or wear. Isn’t life more than food or clothing? 26 Look at the birds in the sky! They don’t plant or harvest. They don’t even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren’t you worth more than birds?” Matthew 6:25-26 CEV

The Lord wants us to be more concerned about having a godly reputation and gaining respect than obtaining wealth. Making the right choices, setting the right priorities will bring everything else in line.

“Don’t worry and say, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 That’s what those people who don’t know God are always thinking about. Don’t worry, because your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things. 33 What you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what he wants you to do. Then he will give you all these other things you need.” Matthew 6:31-33 ERV

When making the big decisions we should ask if this will cost me my good reputation, the respect of my friends and family and if it reflects godly character. If the answer isn’t a strong yes then we should drop that and do something else.

“Respect and serve the Lord! Your reward will be wealth, a long life, and honor.” Proverbs 22:4 CEV

Our Father is watching over for us and He wants our reputation to be protected.

 

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God’s Thoughts About Me

How do you define the word righteous? And along that same line, define the word righteousness.   Think about that for a few moments.

Let me give you a simple definition of righteous. It was one that my college professor gave in class years ago. Righteous: being made right with God. Is that how we see ourselves – right with God?

“ Christ had no sin, but God made him become sin so that in Christ we could be right with God.” II Corinthians 5:21 ERV

That’s the way God sees us. The great exchange. Jesus, who had never sinned, took on our sins when He died on the cross and in exchange for our sin, gave us His righteousness. His right-standing with God became ours. That is absolutely amazing!

Isaiah wrote that our self-righteousness is like filthy rags. Our efforts to make ourselves in right-standing with God is, at its best, rubbish.

My dad was a master mechanic. He worked on large equipment, keeping it running and fixing it when it broke down. When he would come home his clothes were filthy and he would often have dirty towels he had used to wipe his hands on. I remember Mom telling him to throw those dirty things in the trash, there was no point in trying to wash them, they wouldn’t come clean.

That’s the image that would come to mind when I heard that phrase, filthy rags. Now contrast that image with this one.

“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11 For as the earth brings forth its bud, As the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth, So the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations.” Isaiah 61:10-11 NKJV

Dirty, greasy, grimy clothes or the elegant apparel of a bride groom, how do we think God sees us?  Because of Christ, He sees us decked out in His finest.

“But Christ died for us while we were still sinners (dirty, greasy), and by this God showed how much he loves us.

9 We have been made right with God by the blood sacrifice of Christ. So through Christ we will surely be saved from God’s anger. 10 I mean that while we were God’s enemies, he made friends with us through his Son’s death. And the fact that we are now God’s friends (righteous) makes it even more certain that he will save us through his Son’s life. 11 And not only will we be saved, but we also rejoice right now in what God has done for us through our Lord Jesus Christ. It is because of Jesus that we are now God’s friends.” Romans 5:8-11 ERV

I titled this morning’s blog God’s Thoughts About Me. Do you see it now? He thinks we’re righteous, in right standing with Him and these verses in Romans say that He calls us his friends. God the Father doesn’t hate us – He isn’t even mad at us.

He loves us!

Now for the final word on what God thinks about us. The first version of this verse uses the word “thoughts” and other versions say “plans”. I wanted you to see them both

“ For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” Jeremiah 29:11 KJV

“I say this because I know the plans that I have for you.” This message is from the Lord. “I have good plans for you. I don’t plan to hurt you. I plan to give you hope and a good future. 12 Then you will call my name. You will come to me and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will search for me, and when you search for me with all your heart, you will find me.” Jeremiah 29:11-13 ERV

God’s thoughts about us are those of a loving Father. He has good plans for us, He doesn’t want to harm us. Instead He gives us hope and a good future. As we go about our day, it’s quite possible that thoughts will come to mind that are counter to the thoughts that God has of us. Don’t let those thoughts linger, replace them with what God thinks of us.

Trust God! His thoughts toward us are good.

 

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Same Only Different

Had the strangest experience last night. Dave and I were sitting in the living room watching a movie and we both started having problems with allergies, or at least that’s what I am claiming.

We both began to get the sniffles and I my eyes started to water. Ok, let’s face it – it wasn’t allergies at all, it was the movie. It had me crying. I would highly recommend you watching the movie or reading the book, Same Kind of Different As Me.

This movie portrayed how we fall in to the trap of judging others just by their outward appearance. My, that has been going on for a very long time. When the Lord sent Samuel out to find a king for Israel he went to David’s father and  he looked for a tall, muscular, mature man. However, God had different criteria.

“When Jesse and his sons arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the man who the Lord has chosen.”

7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Eliab is tall and handsome, but don’t judge by things like that. God doesn’t look at what people see. People judge by what is on the outside, but the Lord looks at the heart. Eliab is not the right man.” I Samuel 16:6-7 ERV

“Jesse showed seven of his sons to Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of these men.”11 Then he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?”

Jesse answered, “No, I have another son—my youngest, but he is out taking care of the sheep.” Samuel said, “Send for him. Bring him here. We won’t sit down to eat until he arrives.”

12 Jesse sent someone to get his youngest son. This son was a good-looking, healthy young man. He was very handsome. The Lord said to Samuel, “Get up and anoint him. He is the one.” I Samuel 16:10-12 ERV

Jesse, David’s father, hadn’t even considered that his youngest son was qualified or good enough to meet with Samuel. David was left out with the sheep when the priest came to dinner. But God knew who He wanted, he was looking for someone with a heart for Him.

Jesus never looked at a man or woman’s appearance or their occupation when He was here on earth. He followed his Father’s example and associated with those who had opened their hearts to God. It didn’t matter that they were fishermen, tax collectors, prostitutes and others of low esteem.

James, the brother of Jesus, gave this instruction in the book of the Bible he wrote.

“My dear brothers and sisters, you are believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. So don’t treat some people better than others. 2 Suppose someone comes into your meeting wearing very nice clothes and a gold ring. At the same time a poor person comes in wearing old, dirty clothes. 3 You show special attention to the person wearing nice clothes…

5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters. God chose the poor people in the world to be rich in faith. He chose them to receive the kingdom God promised to those who love him…

8 One law rules over all other laws. This royal law is found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor[a] the same as you love yourself.”[b] If you obey this law, you are doing right. 9 But if you are treating one person as more important than another, you are sinning. You are guilty of breaking God’s law.” James 2:1-9 ERV

I will tell you that I was convicted by that movie last night. I felt great compassion for the people who were playing the roles. This is a true story but I had to honestly ask myself if I would have reacted with the same loving heart that they did. I pray I would have.

I find myself asking the Lord to show me areas in my life where I need to grow and change. Then I sit down to relax for an evening and watch a movie and God shows up and teaches me a life lesson.

The same loving God has blessed each person on this earth with air to breathe and the sun that shines. He sees a divine purpose in each of us.

We may be different but He loves us all the same!

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What Do You Mean By That

Dave and I were having a conversation the other day about phrases that are commonly used; figures of speech or colloquialisms. Neither one of us really fell into that habit.

“To die for” has been a pretty popular phrase. It has been joined to clothing, food, movies, entertainment, cars and sports.

Colloquialism. col·lo·qui·al·ism. NOUN  1. a word or phrase that is not formal or literary, typically one used in ordinary or familiar conversation.

So let me ask, what’s to die for in  life?  Family…our faith…our neighbor…our country?

Christ looked at us and said “You’re to die for”. And He did.

“Christ died for us at a time when we were helpless and sinful. 7 No one is really willing to die for an honest person, though someone might be willing to die for a truly good person. 8 But God showed how much he loved us by having Christ die for us, even though we were sinful.

9 But there is more! Now that God has accepted us because Christ sacrificed his life’s blood, we will also be kept safe from God’s anger. 10 Even when we were God’s enemies, he made peace with us, because his Son died for us. Yet something even greater than friendship is ours. Now that we are at peace with God, we will be saved by his Son’s life.” Romans 5:6-10 CEV

I think this morning is the first time I have really stopped and looked at verse 9.  Verses 6-8 focus on the amazing depth of Christ’s love for us; love beyond measure. Love that gave up all, His very life, for us. That would be enough for anyone, right? However, verse 9 goes on to say “But there’s more”!

Really? More than that kind of self-sacrificing love? Yes. More.  We have been given more than friendship with God, we have peace and salvation through Christ.

Now let me ask another question. What do you find worth living for?

” I honestly expect and hope that I will never do anything to be ashamed of. Whether I live or die, I always want to be as brave as I am now and bring honor to Christ.

21 If I live, it will be for Christ, and if I die, I will gain even more. 22 I don’t know what to choose. I could keep on living and doing something useful. 23 It is a hard choice to make. I want to die and be with Christ, because that would be much better. 24-25 But I know that all of you still need me. That’s why I am sure I will stay on to help you grow and be happy in your faith.” Philippians 1:20-24 CEV

Paul said he preferred to die and be with Christ but chose to continue living for the benefit of the Christians that he was ministering too. He had his life’s mission and he was determined to reach that goal.

God has blessed us with individual talents and abilities. He has strategically placed us in different parts of the country, in groups and organizations, among a diverse group of people. I can’t and won’t reach the same people  you do. The Apostle Paul often referred to Christians as “the body of Christ” because each part in the body has a specific purpose in providing strength and health to the whole. We should  do the best we can with the giftings God has given us.

Jesus chose to die for us. Shouldn’t we be willing to live for Him?

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Angie’s List

This morning I would like to tell you about a lady named Angie.

She had a wonderful smile and a heart for God. She would get up each day and ask, “Lord, what do you want me to do today and whose life do you want me to touch?”

Then she’d get her husband off to work, her kids out the door to school and she would go about her day listening to the Lord and being obedient to what she felt he was leading her to do.

“When I was hungry, you gave me something to eat, and when I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger, you welcomed me, 36 and when I was naked, you gave me clothes to wear. When I was sick, you took care of me, and when I was in jail, you visited me.”

37 Then the ones who pleased the Lord will ask, “When did we give you something to eat or drink? 38 When did we welcome you as a stranger or give you clothes to wear 39 or visit you while you were sick or in jail?”

40 The king will answer, “Whenever you did it for any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you did it for me.” Matthew 25:35-40 CEV

I remember one story in particular that she told me. She had gone to run an errand and on her way home she “just felt” like she needed to turn down a particular street, so she did. Down that street a ways  she felt she should stop, so she did. As she looked at all the houses that were on both sides of the street one of the houses drew her attention. She walked up to the front door, knocked and told the young mother who answered that she was there to help. And she did.

She helped with dishes, cleaning and told the young mother before she left that the Lord had brought her there because He loved her and wanted her to know she wasn’t alone.

Now that’s following the Lord’s leading and meeting the needs of others.

I must say that I have never been that “led”. Maybe I don’t listen as well but I have been able to help pay for someone’s groceries and taken a neighbor cinnamon rolls just after they found out a relative died. I have held a crying woman in my arms and prayed for her in the pharmacy.

I’m not bragging on Angie and I’m certainly not bragging on myself but what I am saying is there are times that God is giving us opportunity to follow His lead and reach out to help.

“ God can bless you with everything you need, and you will always have more than enough to do all kinds of good things for others. ” II Corinthians 9:8 CEV

Don’t think that “I can’t do something like that because I don’t have what it takes”. God is always faithful to supply what we need for every situation – the right words, the right talents, the right love.

God has used others to help when I was in need. Some of that help was financial, some was bags full of groceries. Others helped with the laundry and house cleaning, some provided meals. And still others provided a shoulder to lean  on and a prayer for comfort and direction. Each and everyone was used by the Lord to meet a need. I am so grateful.

Let these words burn into our hearts, Lord. “Whenever you did it for any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you did it for me.”

 

 

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Don’t Get Stuck

Yesterday our friends told me that there was snow in Glacier. A few days before that I heard that there was already snow in Dillon, MT where we used to live.

I’m glad to live where we aren’t subject to cold and snowy winters but it did remind me of an “adventure” that Dave and I had a few years back.

We were spinning our wheels and going nowhere fast.

We went  to cut our Christmas tree on a hillside above our home. The snow was deep but the road we were on was packed down by the hunters who had gone in over the past several weeks. Besides, we were in our 4X4.

We traveled down that road looking for the perfect tree. Stopped several times thinking we had found it, only to discover it was flat on one side or missing branches on the other. As we continued down the road the snow had gotten deeper so we decided to turn around.

We backed off on a side road to turn around and slid 70 yards down the mountainside. Two hours later, we were finally back on the main road and heading home. Inch by inch we gained ground but we had to make sure we had good traction and that meant cutting pine boughs to put under the wheels. We needed a firm foundation.

I’ve had those times of being stuck emotionally, as well. A failure or hurt can be daunting. Friends leave, loved ones don’t understand and so we can get stuck in our failure and live in self-pity or even become suicidal. Or maybe it’s been a tremendous sin in our life that has held us back from serving God. We’re left with the thought that God couldn’t possibly love or forgive us after what we have done but He can, He does and He already has.

“So we, too, should run the race that is before us and never quit. We should remove from our lives anything that would slow us down and the sin that so often makes us fall. 2 We must never stop looking to Jesus. He is the leader of our faith, and he is the one who makes our faith complete. He suffered death on a cross. But he accepted the shame of the cross as if it were nothing because of the joy he could see waiting for him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God’s throne. 3 Think about Jesus. He patiently endured the angry insults that sinful people were shouting at him. Think about him so that you won’t get discouraged and stop trying.” Hebrews 12:1-3

Notice that it says we are to remove from our lives the things that slow us down. Moses said the same thing to the nation of Israel.

“Today I am giving you a choice of two ways. And I ask heaven and earth to be witnesses of your choice. You can choose life or death. The first choice will bring a blessing. The other choice will bring a curse. So choose life! Then you and your children will live. 20 You must love the LORD your God and obey him. Never leave him, because he is your life. And he will give you a long life in the land that he, the LORD, promised to give to your ancestors—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” Deuteronomy 30:19-20

To go on with God we need a couple things; one,  look in the right direction – look forward and look up. Two, we need good traction – something solid beneath our feet.

“Jesus Christ did the things God wanted him to do. And because of that, we are made holy through the sacrifice of Christ’s body. Christ made that sacrifice one time—enough for all time. Jesus Christ did the things God wanted him to do. And because of that, we are made holy through the sacrifice of Christ’s body. Christ made that sacrifice one time—enough for all time.” Hebrews 10:10-14

The solid foundation we have from Christ is His sacrifice; it has provided us forgiveness and a right relationship with God (that’s our traction). It gets us out of the ditch of self-pity and unworthiness and the blood of Christ can and has cleansed us from a guilty conscience and put us on the right road with God.

When we’re wrapped up in guilt, and we all go there from time to time, we’re looking the wrong direction. (not choosing the right things) The victory comes in looking at Jesus – looking forward, not back. Looking back, we magnify our failures and sin; looking forward we magnify Jesus and what He did for us on the cross.

If you’ve been stuck in the past and are spinning your tires get some traction, make God’s word your solid foundation and go forward with Him.

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Need Help?

Have you ever called Customer Service for help? Perhaps you have used an on-line chat or even clicked on the “Help” tab at the top right of your computer screen. Did you get the help you were looking for?

Yesterday morning I was reading in Ecclesiastes again.

“Two people are better than one because together they have a good reward for their hard work. 10 If one falls, the other can help his friend get up. But how tragic it is for the one who is all alone when he falls. There is no one to help him get up.” Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 GW

Now that’s what I call a help line!

The image above is a poster that hangs in our oldest daughter’s bathroom. I asked her to send me a picture of it after I read these verses so I could use it in this morning’s blog.

When Kim and Koy were little they were given a real tool kit for Christmas. It had a small hammer, hand saw, level, tape measure and a screw driver. They used that saw and hammer to build this frame for their poster.

We told them that as they worked and played together they could accomplish more than if they were alone. Having a friend to help lightens the burden and adds joy to the journey.

And so it does in all our lives.

Asking for help can be hard to do because it means we need to admit that we are weak in someway and that makes us vulnerable. However, a true friend will never point out our inability to accomplish the task, instead they are glad to be part of the process.

Jesus was talking with his disciples a short time before He was crucified. He called them friends. He knew what was ahead and I believe He was stating how much he needed them and also He knew how much they would need each other.

“You are my friends if you obey my commandments. 15 I don’t call you servants anymore, because a servant doesn’t know what his master is doing. But I’ve called you friends because I’ve made known to you everything that I’ve heard from my Father. 16 You didn’t choose me, but I chose you. I have appointed you to go, to produce fruit that will last, and to ask the Father in my name to give you whatever you ask for. 17 Love each other. This is what I’m commanding you to do.” John 15:14-17 GW

Shortly after Jesus said this He led his disciples, his friends, to the garden to pray. He asked them to pray with Him. Jesus was stressed over what was ahead. He had never sinned and now He was going to take on the sins of the whole world. He would be the sacrifice. He became sin so that we could be forgiven and have a new life, new relationship, with God the Father.

Jesus needs our help now to show the world what God is like. Our commandment from Him is to love each other. This is the greatest commandment.

When we do this for His honor and glory, Jesus tells us that we can ask the Father for whatever we need and He will be there for us.

WOW! We won’t get help like that from any other friend. He is there to help in each and every circumstance. Jesus is the friend that never leaves us or abandons us.

“Don’t love money. Be happy with what you have because God has said, “I will never abandon you or leave you.” Hebrews 13:5 GW

Since we have Jesus promise to never leave us we don’t need to put  trust in our wealth or make money our god. We can trust Him to provide all that we need and more. We are His friends and He provides.

“Christ is the one who gives me the strength I need to do whatever I must do.

“ My God will use his glorious riches to give you everything you need. He will do this through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:13 & 19 ERV

It’s great to have friends who walk with us through life; faithful, loyal, honest friends. I thank God for each and every one. They are examples of Jesus to me.

And then there’s that one friend, the One others can’t see but He is always there. He is the One who walks with me each step of the way and carries me when I fall.

What a friend we have in Jesus!

 

 

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The Greatest

Didn’t Mohammed Ali claimed to be “the greatest”? He would pose for the photographers and do his little rope-a-dope dance all the while chanting “I am the greatest”.  But that’s who or what I want to talk about this morning.

We all have a desire or ambition to succeed, to achieve or to excel. God has given us that desire; like any good Father he is there to cheer us on. However, our motives need to be right. They can’t be based on greed, selfishness or vanity.

Jesus was asked a question by the Pharisees about what was the greatest or most important of God’s laws. Their motive was to undermine Jesus and his ministry. They wanted to discredit Him.

“34 The Pharisees learned that Jesus had made the Sadducees look so foolish that they stopped trying to argue with him. So the Pharisees had a meeting. 35 Then one of them, an expert in the Law of Moses, asked Jesus a question to test him. 36 He said, “Teacher, which command in the law is the most important?”
37 Jesus answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and most important command. 39 And the second command is like the first: ‘Love your neighbor the same as you love yourself.’ 40 All of the law and the writings of the prophets take their meaning from these two commands… None of the Pharisees could answer Jesus’ question. And after that day, no one was brave enough to ask him any more questions.” Matthew 22:34-46 CEV

The Pharisees were trying to test and even trick Jesus into a wrong answer; something that would discredit him to his followers and better yet, something that would give them place to prosecute him and silence him in public.

What Jesus did with his answer was discredit the Pharisees. By giving the answer that He did, Jesus proved that their heart’s motive was anything but love. And if they weren’t walking in love toward Him and their neighbor, they weren’t keeping what they called the greatest commandments. He went on to correct them in their thinking about the Messiah as well. No wonder they decided not to ask Him anymore questions.

The Pharisees had all the outward trappings of religion and righteousness but their hearts were wrong. It was a self-righteousness and it was religion instead of relationship. Jesus was talking about a living relationship with the Father.

As we spent time loving the Father we will reflect His love to others. The moon has no light source in itself but it reflects the light of the sun. In the same way, as we spend time absorbing the Father’s love we will reflect that love to others. We can’t give what we don’t have – so as we receive more and more love from the Father we are able to love others more.

“ So these three things continue: faith, hope, and love. And the greatest of these is love.” I Corinthians 13:13 ERV

Father, I desire to love You with all that I am and then to reflect Your love to those around me today.

 

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Eat Drink Be Merry

Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die! Ever heard that before? Did you think it was Shakespeare or some other poetic author? Do you know it’s Bible?

It comes from the book of Isaiah and was then quoted by the Apostle Paul. People have been living with this idea of self gratification for a long time. I remember  Frank Sinatra’s hit, I Did It My Way, and Peggy Lee’s hit in the late 60’s, Is That All There Is. Each song echoed the sentiment above.

Paul the Apostle was writing to the Christians in Corinth about resurrection from the dead and the promise we have in Christ. He was writing to encourage them and us that there is so much more to life than living for a few days of gratification here.

Friends, so called friends, will try to influence us away from what we know is right and good. It’s called peer pressure and I have quoted this verse to my kids on numerous occasions as they were growing up. It is just as applicable to us as adults. We face peer pressure too. Without the certainty of Christ’s love and His forgiveness we can be swayed by futile thinking.

“If we are not raised from death, “Let us eat and drink, because tomorrow we die.” Don’t be fooled: “Bad friends will ruin good habits.” 34 Come back to your right way of thinking and stop sinning. Some of you don’t know God. I say this to shame you.” I Corinthians 15:32-34 ERV

We will be raised from the dead to live with Christ for eternity. The life we will live after death will be much more exciting than this one we are living now. Our hope is in Christ and the power of His resurrection. Having relationship with Christ as our Savior gives us purpose for life now and hope for life after death. For when we die physically, we will live on spiritually.

“That’s how it will be when our bodies are raised to life. These bodies will die, but the bodies that are raised will live forever. 43 These ugly and weak bodies will become beautiful and strong. 44 As surely as there are physical bodies, there are spiritual bodies. And our physical bodies will be changed into spiritual bodies.” I Corinthians 15:42-44 CEV

Each day can and should be filled with purpose and direction. Following the master plan that God has designed for us brings us to victory and joy. Waking each morning and talking with the Father gives us assurance that nothing in our day has caught Him unaware. We can trust Him to give us a life that is full and so much greater than just eat, drink and be merry. The longer we walk in relationship with the Lord we will see that His way and our way begin to merge into one.

“But thank God for letting our Lord Jesus Christ give us the victory! 58 My dear friends, stand firm and don’t be shaken. Always keep busy working for the Lord. You know that everything you do for him is worthwhile.” I Corinthians 15:57-58 CEV

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