How quickly we forget

Posted on Feb 7, 2011 in Uncategorized |

“Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears.”  (v 4b)

Some Thoughts…

   I am always surprised at how tragedy drives some people to their knees and crawling back to God, only to watch as they walk away as soon as the dust settles and life gets back to normal.  That is the picture that Hosea paints in this passage.  God removed Himself, the people’s words appear spiritually reviving, “come let’s return; let’s repent (v 1) and let us know God, let’s press hard to know Him!” (v 3) …But God sees right through our presumptions and our quick-fix prayer mentality. Just look at verse 2 and Israel’s thought that God would quickly restore them in just a few days.  They tragically assumed if they jumped through a few religious hoops and did some pennant things that God would be obligated to fix all their problems….  
   And our loving Father cried, “What can I do with you?”(v4).  I can imagine God saying something like….  You just don’t get it!  I don’t want a more religious people; I want you to love me like I love you, I don’t want you to just work harder or “press on” to know more about me, I desire that you know me at the core of who you are, that we walk together all the time… What will I have to do to make you mine?  Your devotion for me is so dependent on your need.  You grow cold faster than last night’s leftovers…my heart burns for you.  I desire your love and intimate knowledge of me, not your religious performance.
A Prayer…
Father, I love you.  I will love you when things to great or when they fall apart.  Whether you crush me or raise me up to new heights.  I will love you…Lord make that prayer my reality.  Amen.

Am I motivated by the thrill of the fight or the power of LOVE?

Posted on Jan 24, 2011 in Uncategorized |

“A new command I give you:  Love one another.  As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” (v34)
Some Thoughts…
   Judas had left the room, gone to set into motion the most dark and demonic of nights … and Jesus turns to His beloved “children” (see v33) and begins to prepare them for what He had called them to do.  And He begins with the most important thing – LOVE, loving like Christ; self sacrifice and deep commitment to the needs of everyone.  Yet Peter is not listening.  He can’t quit thinking about what Jesus just said, “Where I am going, you cannot come.” (v33c)  Peter already had in his mind what he would “do” for Jesus.  He was ready die for Him (at least he thought he was).  There is no way he would let his Master just walk away.  Peter missed it!  Jesus was about to show them the greatest virtue of all, and through the cross, Jesus gave everyone who would follow Him the perfect definition of love…
 Peter still had a lot to learn.  He wasn’t ready to love that way.  He even denied Jesus three times before daybreak!  Peter was preparing for a fleshly battle to over take the evils of powerful men, but Jesus was calling him to a spiritual battle for the hearts of any person who would lay down their weapons and surrender to the Love of God in Christ.  And it would take three questions before he began to understand; “Peter do you love me?… Peter do you love me?…. Peter….do you love me?” (John 21:15ff)
Am I running into the battle today to rescue the perishing that are loved by Jesus or am I looking for a good fight to convince someone that are wrong and I am right?
A Prayer…
   Father, forgive me when I deny you, when I try to push for my opinions of how You should be doing things.  Help me to surrender to your way today and seek to love everyone that crosses my path.  Just like you do. Amen

OH SO MUCH MORE!

Posted on Jan 21, 2011 in Uncategorized |


“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine…” (v. 20a)

Some Thoughts…

   God has plans so far beyond my limited dreams…If I were to ask God for a list of requests, imagining world peace and championing the cause of the weak, if I could dream up the best scenario for living on this side of eternity and bring that to my Maker in humble prayer, He could handle my request. In fact, He will do much more that I will ever ask of Him.  My dreams and hopes are not “God-sized”, but His plans and dreams are becoming reality every day!  God deserves my glory.  He is the only one worthy of true praise.  He will do so much more than we ask.
   My problem is my failure to ask and dream God-sized dreams.  I’m not sure I truly believe what He has said.  I’m not sure I even have the courage to allow myself to believe in the things He places in my imagination.  But, I must…I must allow Him to increase my faith, to empower me to walk by faith and not by sight; to know beyond my limited knowledge the power of the infinite God to do so much more in my world than I would ever even think He would do…and to that God of power and love I give my life – For His glory…in His body (the church) and it’s head (my Savior, Jesus).

A Prayer…

Father, I still don’t know what to ask You for that would express real faith, but I’m grateful that You are doing more in me than I realize…May You be glorified in me today.  Amen.

The praise service or the pity party…

Posted on Jan 14, 2011 in Uncategorized |

“Not only so, but we also rejoice in our suffering…” v3a)

Some Thoughts…

   How could Paul say that?  My natural reaction to the pressures of life and antagonism of people is retreat into depression; my preference in hard times is a pity party not a praise service.  But Paul says that not only does he rejoice in hope, but even more so in the face of opposition.  How and why?  The answer is found in the verses to follow:  First, Paul sees God’s systematic plan for our spiritual growth that takes us many times through hard time. And what is God’s goal?  It is that those who trust Him would be formed into the image of His Son; that we would be like Jesus!
   Paul had learned, through experience, I’m sure, that suffering produces perseverance (endurance to live life today) and perseverance brings to life character (the temperance of a veteran versus the unstable emotion of a rookie) and character brings hope (an immovable confidence in God’s promised outcome).  That was the confidence that Paul rejoiced in – He knew God was faithful and His love would never let him go.
  That brings us to the second reason Paul (and me and you) can be glad in sad times.  God has proven His love in two ways:  1) The gift of His Spirit living in us the moment we believed – God is forever WITH US!  2) And by the cross of Christ, God proved how much he loves us by rescuing us from our sinful (go-my-way people v8), powerless (weak and defenseless v6), ungodly (rebel without a clue v6), lives – He loves us a lot!  He broke down the walls we built and covered us with love, and He will sustain us until the day He brings and end to time, as we know it.  Then real life begins forever!  And because of that LOVE we can rejoice in our suffering knowing something much better waits on the other side of our pain.
A Prayer…
   Father, give me the ability to see the pressures on my life as your agents of growth, allow me the grace to embrace hard times with perseverance and character with my eyes fixed on Your Spirit and Your Son.  Amen.

What did we gain the moment we believed?

Posted on Jan 7, 2011 in Uncategorized |

“Therefore since we have been justified through faith we have …”

Some Thoughts…

   When God saved me; at the very moment I believed in His Son, he placed on my life seeds of salvation that He intends to blossom into the fruits of justification.
1)       We have Peace with God!  The moment I entered into this faith relationship God removed the hostility that was between us; he refused to see my sin and he enabled me the ability to stop my rebellion and rest in Him.  The “Shalom” of God, a real completeness, no longer did I lack what I needed to live.  My past was truly behind me and my future looks great!
2)       We have gained access!  And now, since I’m no longer an enemy of God, I am escorted right into His throne room.  Not just made a part-time visitor, but presented to Him as a new member of His court with confidence to stand before Him all the time.
3)       We have hope!  My future is set. I have unwavering confidence that God will carry out His promises, so I rejoice all the time with confidence that God will sustain me no matter what may come my way!  Even if my lot in this life seems less than desirable, I know I have a home in the heavens that can never be taken from me.
A Prayer…
   Father, help me to never forget your past forgiveness that gave me peace, and keep my focus on my present access to be directly connected to you at all times.  Then Lord, when my knees begin to tremble, give me more confidence to trust your promises that will be fulfilled one day in the future.  Thank you God for salvation!  Amen.

God began a NEW THING in an old manger….

Posted on Dec 11, 2010 in Uncategorized |

“The Lord will create a new thing on earth…” (22b)
“The days are coming,” declares the LORD,
 “When I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel…”( v31)
Some Thoughts…
   Unlike ever before, God makes a promise, hundreds of years (half a century or more) before the fact, something new was in the mix of history. The world as we knew it would be forever different somehow.  God Himself would one day walk in our weariness, struggle with our weakness, and carry our burdens in ways we never could.  He would develop from a tiny divine embryo into the God-man.  Something new, unlike ever before was coming!
 God was going to do more than just tell us how to live (the old covenant). He was going to do even more than show us how to live. He would come in order that His Spirit could enter into the souls of those He calls His own to empower us to live!  He would give us a new set of rules to live by… Grace-filled rules that that have the aroma of something familiar and true.   Life lived from the inside out; age-old laws written on our hearts.  This is a new life lived in harmony with our Creator.  A relationship He described by saying, “I will be their God, they will be my people.”
This is life lived in freedom – our sin forgiven; forgotten forever!  The new way is personal and every individual would bear the responsibility of choosing it or rejecting it (see v29-30) … Yes, God has done a new thing … and it will remain a new thing day-in and day-out as we walk with Him, learn of Him, experience Him!  And that new-born in the manger reminds me again that God is doing a new thing in someone today… I pray I can experience that too.
A Prayer…

Father as I celebrate another Christmas help me realize that the old, old story of the baby in the manger is fresh and alive and that You are making me new every day


Another true meaning of Christmas….

Posted on Dec 6, 2010 in Uncategorized |

“Today, in the town of David a Savior has been born to you…” (v 11)

Some Thoughts…

   It strikes me as strange that Luke’s focus in portion of telling the birth-story of Jesus seems to be centered more on the shepherds than on Mary and Joseph (it is almost as if the three main characters of Mary, Joseph and Jesus could have been played by extras pulled from the streets of Bethlehem).  But as I think about the reason Jesus came and the meaning of the “good news” it makes complete sense…Shepherds were nobodies; even outcasts in their communities.  They were dirty, crude, and socially unacceptable, and God chose them to be his first missionaries (see v17). Their message sank into the heart of Mary like a beautiful treasure and it brought awe-inspired reaction to those who heard the shepherds’ joyful retelling of that incredible night.
   But, what strikes me the most, what blinds my vision this morning is the brilliant light of God’s mercy that stoops to the lowest of lows, that chooses the least of the least.  God surveyed the countryside that night; His eyes moved to and fro throughout that village and the hearts that caught His attention were the lives that everyone else avoided.  And he said to His army of best singing angels, “go tell them…tell them that the Savior – the Messiah – the King of Kings – the emperor of emperors is born…born to them, they will not be left out of my Kingdom…let them in on my divine secret…I see their hearts…I know they will believe”…and they DID believe with great joy (v 15)
A Prayer…
Father, let me see people the way you do, give me a message of joyful hope to speak into the lives of those that society has written off as less than worthy. And the next time I encounter one of the “least of these” help me to listen as closely as Mary did, for they just may be carrying your good news to me.  Amen!

Faith at Christmas Time

Posted on Dec 16, 2008 in Uncategorized |

Read Luke 2:21-40“Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts…” (v27)

Some Thoughts…
I am intrigued by the life and faith of Simeon. An old man who the Bible tells me was full of the Holy Spirit. Jesus has yet to die and ascend to allow the fullness of the Spirit’s presence, yet the man of deep faith and diligent watchfulness was “moved by the Spirit” to enter the temple that day. I’m sure, not for the first time; one can only imagine the hours and days this aging gentleman had spent in prayer and worship in the temple pleading for comfort and the consolation of his people and his own soul…but something was different that day as he felt a push to enter the house of God. He must have lingered in the court of women and not moved to where only the man could go; and then he saw it…he saw HIM! Messiah wrapped in a baby blanket…yet he knows this is Him – salvation for us all Gentiles, Jews, slave or free. The light has broken into darkness!..: The prophesy of Jesus’ life-giving life flowed from his lips to the astounded ears of Jesus’ parents even a jolting prediction of the power many would feel and the rejections, and reaction that many would have for Jesus. Even though He would offer himself for all, not all will have him…then a joyfully funny thing happens, as is so often the case with Kingdom people. God moved in the listening ear of the 84 year old widow, prophetess, Anna, who can do nothing less than her title says, she begins to point Jesus out to every worshiper that stood around that day in the temple. I’m sure this was quite a fiasco…one of which Joseph and Mary must have wished to avoid (v39-40). But God’s Glory cannot be avoided among His seeking people…and all this commotion began because of one man’s willingness to be moved by God’ s Spirit; not to do some great act of charity, just to simply enter the temple courts and see what God was doing… And the message of salvation is passed on from shepherds on the streets to prophets in the temple…Salvation for all people!

A Prayer…Father, as the mundane overtakes my habits, may I always be listening to you speak, feeling you move me, and looking around to see your salvation at work in the lives of those you dwell in. Give me “Old Faith” that will not quit, like Simeon. A faith that will take the most mundane and routine steps and see everything differently Amen.


I’m a exchange student…

Posted on Sep 2, 2008 in Uncategorized |

I’ve noticed every year when we receive new exchange students in our high school how excited our students are to talk with them. then have fun with the cultural interchange and overcoming the language barriers. The locals really enjoy the stranger form another land…

it got me thinking….

I’m reading through 1 Peter and in chapter 2 we find these word from the apostle:

11 Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. 1 Peter 2:11-12 (NIV)
and I thought about those exchange students… they are living in a land that is not their own, one day they will be going home… so they learn, they listen, and they contribute to the foreign land they are living in… and for the most part the locals get a kick out of them…. I wonder if the citizens of this planet enjoy the citizens of Heaven? Are we living such good lives that even though they don’t understand us, they can’t help but smile… maybe shaking their head in disbelief that we don’t understand how things work around here or how oddly interesting our habits, conversations, and attempts to understand the locals is somehow charming and winsome in some strange way….
I don’t know… I’m afraid I’m too quick to give up on being foreign and I just try to blend in…


Newer Entries »