And Then You Laugh
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Posted:Apr 3, 2015 3:03 am
Last Updated:Apr 3, 2015 3:05 am 9026 Views
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Read: 2 Corinthians 5:1-8
Bible in a Year: Judges 19-21; Luke 7.31-50
[God] made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5.21
Noise. Vibration. Pressure. Fireball. Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield used these words to describe being launched into space. As the rocket raced toward the International Space Station, the weight of gravity increased and breathing became difficult. Just when he thought he would pass out, the rocket made a fiery breakthrough into weightlessness. Instead of lapsing into unconsciousness, he broke into laughter.
His description made me think of the days leading to my mother's death. The heaviness of life kept increasing until she no longer had the strength to breathe. She was then released from her pain and broke free into the weightlessness of heaven. I like to think of her laughing when she took her first breath in Jesus presence.
On the Friday we call good, something similar happened to Jesus. God placed on Him the weight of the entire world's sin past, present, and future until He could no longer breathe. Then He said, Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit Luke 23.46. After being suffocated by our sin, Jesus received back from God the life entrusted to Him and now lives where sin and death have no power. All who trust Christ will one day join Him, and I wonder if we'll look back at this life and laugh.
Father in heaven, words cannot describe our gratitude for Your Jesus, who bore the weight of our sins. Thank You that to be absent from this body with its heavy burdens is to be present with You forever.
The sacrifice of Jesus points us to the joy of heaven.
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Enjoying His Meal
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Posted:Apr 2, 2015 1:53 am
Last Updated:Apr 2, 2015 1:56 am 8915 Views
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Read: 1 Corinthians 11.23-34
Bible in a Year: Judges 16-18; Luke 7.1-30
Do this in remembrance of Me. 1 Corinthians 11:24
It's not about the table, whether it's square or round. It's not about the chairs plastic or wooden. It's not about the food, although it helps if it has been cooked with love. A good meal is enjoyed when we turn off the TV and our cell phones and concentrate on those we're with.
I love gathering around the table, enjoying a good chat with friends and family and talking about a multitude of topics. However, instant technology has made it difficult. Sometimes we are more concerned about what others sometimes miles away have to say than what the person just across the table is saying.
We have been invited to another meal at the table when we come together in one place to celebrate the Lord's Supper. It's not about the church, if it's big or small. It's not about the type of bread. It's about turning off our thoughts from our worries and concerns and focusing on Jesus.
When was the last time we enjoyed being at the Lord's Table? Do we enjoy His presence, or are we more concerned with what's going on somewhere else? This is important, for as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes
1 Cor. 1.:26
I want to learn, dear Lord, when I sit at Your Table, to concentrate only on Your great love and sacrifice for us. Help me to enjoy the fellowship of others as we remember together what Jesus did for us at Calvary.
Remembering Christ's death gives us courage for today and hope for tomorrow.
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Pain With A Purpose
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Posted:Apr 1, 2015 4:11 am
Last Updated:Apr 1, 2015 4:13 am 9612 Views
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Read: John 16:17-24
Bible in a Year: Judges 13-15; Luke 6:27-49
[Jesus said,] I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.John 16.22
I asked several friends what their most difficult, painful experience in life had been. Their answers included war, divorce, surgery, and the loss of a loved one. My wife's reply was, The birth of our first .It was a long and difficult labor in a lonely army hospital. But looking back, she said she considers it joyful because the pain had a big purpose.
Just before Jesus went to the cross, He told His followers they were about to go through a time of great pain and sorrow. The Lord compared their coming experience to that of a woman during childbirth when her anguish turns to joy after her is born John 16:20-21. Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you (v.22).
Sorrow comes to us all along the road of life. But Jesus, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame
(Heb. 12:2), purchased forgiveness and freedom for all who open their hearts to Him. His painful sacrifice accomplished God's eternal purpose of opening the way to friendship and fellowship with Him.
The joy of our Savior outweighed His suffering, just as the joy He gives us overshadows all our pain.
Dear Father, Your precious Jesus chose suffering for me. Thank You for His sacrifice on my behalf. Thank You that even my pain can be a tool in Your hands to make me more like Your .
Suffering can be like a magnet that draws the Christian close to Christ.
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Why Me?
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Posted:Mar 31, 2015 1:01 am
Last Updated:Apr 1, 2015 4:13 am 11850 Views
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Read: Mark 14.10-21
Bible in a Year: Judges 11-12; Luke 6.1-26
God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5.8
British pastor Joseph Parker was asked, Why did Jesus choose Judas to be one of His disciples? He thought deeply about the question for a while but could not come up with an answer. He said that he kept running into an even more baffling question: Why did He choose me?
That's a question that has been asked throughout the centuries. When people become painfully aware of their sin and are overcome with guilt, they cry out to Jesus for mercy. In joyous wonder they experience the truth that God loves them, that Jesus died for them, and that they are forgiven of all their sins. It's incomprehensible!
I too have asked, Why me? I know that the dark and sinful deeds of my life were motivated by a heart even darker, and yet God loved me!
Rom. 5.8. I was undeserving, wretched, and helpless, yet He opened His arms and His heart to me. I could almost hear Him whisper, I love you even more than you loved your sin.
It's true! I cherished my sin. I protected it. I denied its wrongdoing. Yet God loved me enough to forgive me and set me free.
Why me? It's beyond my understanding. Yet I know He loves me and He loves you too!
How wonderful is Your grace, Jesus! It's greater than all my sin. You've taken away my burdens and set my spirit free. Thank You.
God loves us not because of who we are, but because of who He is.
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Itâs Beautiful!
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Posted:Mar 30, 2015 4:01 am
Last Updated:Mar 31, 2015 1:01 am 13268 Views
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Read: Mark 14:3-9
Bible in a Year: Judges 9-10; Luke 5:17-39
Jesus said, Let her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a good work for Me.Mark 14:6
After being away on business, Terry wanted to pick up some small gifts for his . The clerk at the airport gift shop recommended a number of costly items. I don't have that much money with me, he said. I need something less expensive. The clerk tried to make him feel that he was being cheap. But Terry knew his would be happy with whatever he gave them, because it came from a heart of love. And he was right they loved the gifts he brought them.
During Jesus last visit to the town of Bethany, Mary wanted to show her love for Him (Mark 14:3-9. So she brought an alabaster flask of very costly oil of spikenard and anointed Him (v.3). The disciples asked angrily, Why this waste? (Matt. 26.8. Jesus told them to stop troubling her, for she has done a good work for Me (Mark 14.6). Another translation reads, She has done a beautiful thing to Me Jesus delighted in her gift, for it came from a heart of love. Even anointing Him for burial was beautiful!
What would you like to give to Jesus to show your love? Your time, talent, treasure? It doesn't matter if it's costly or inexpensive, whether others understand or criticize. Whatever is given from a heart of love is beautiful to Him.
Nothing I could give You, Father, could repay You for Your sacrifice. But I want to give You what You would think is beautiful. I give You my heart today in thankfulness for Your love.
A healthy heart beats with love for Jesus.
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Foley Artists
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Posted:Mar 27, 2015 1:51 am
Last Updated:Mar 28, 2015 4:42 am 14066 Views
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Read: John 16.7-15
Bible in a Year: Judges 1-3; Luke 4:1-30
Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light.
2 Corinthians 11.14
Crunch. Crunch. Whoosh! In the early days of film, Foley artists created sounds to support the story's action. Squeezing a leather pouch filled with cornstarch made the sound of snow crunching, shaking a pair of gloves sounded like bird wings flapping, and waving a thin stick made a whoosh sound. To make movies as realistic as possible, these artists used creative techniques to replicate sounds.
Like sounds, messages can be replicated. One of Satan's most frequently used techniques is that of replicating messages in spiritually dangerous ways. Paul warns in 2 Corinthians 11.13-14, For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Paul is warning us about false teachers who turn our attention away from Jesus Christ and the message of His grace.
Jesus said that one purpose of the Holy Spirit living in us is that when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth
John 16.13. With the help and guidance of the Spirit, we can find the safety of truth in a world of counterfeit messages.
We need You, Holy Spirit, to help us discern truth from error. We can be easily deceived by others or even by our own hearts. May we be open to learn from You and not be led astray.
The Holy Spirit is our ever-present Teacher.
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The Definite Choice
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Posted:Mar 26, 2015 2:01 am
Last Updated:Mar 26, 2015 2:03 am 16645 Views
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Read: Joshua 24:15-24
Bible in a Year: Joshua 22-24; Luke 3
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We will serve the Lord! Joshua 24.21
Coming from someone who used to value ancestral gods, my 90-year-old father's statement near the end of his life was remarkable: When I die, he spoke laboriously, nobody should do anything other than what the church will do. No soothsaying, no ancestral sacrifices, no rituals. As my life is in the hands of Jesus Christ, so shall my death be!
My father chose the path of Christ in his old age when he invited Jesus into his life as Savior. His contemporaries mocked him: An old man like you shouldn't be going to church! But my father's choice to follow and worship the true God was definite, like the people Joshua addressed.
Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, Joshua challenged them. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord 24.15. Their response was resolute they chose to worship the Lord. Even after Joshua warned them to count the cost vv.19-20, they still resolved to follow the Lord, recalling His deliverance, provision, and protection
vv.16-17,21.
Such a confident choice, however, calls for equally confident actions, as Joshua strongly reminded them: Put away the foreign gods . . . and incline your heart to the Lord v.23. Have you made a choice to live for God?
Teach me all it means, Lord, to choose You. I want my words, actions, and attitudes to show the love for You that I have in my heart. You are worthy of far more than I could ever do.
A definite choice demands definite actions.
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God's Clocks
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Posted:Mar 25, 2015 5:20 am
Last Updated:Mar 25, 2015 5:20 am 18873 Views
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Read: Luke 2:36-40
Bible in a Year: Joshua 19-21; Luke 2:25-52
She . . . spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem. Luke 2.38
I visit two elderly women from time to time. One has no financial worries, is fit for her age, and lives in her own home. But she can always find something negative to say. The other is crippled with arthritis and rather forgetful. She lives in simple accommodations, and keeps a reminder pad so she won't forget her appointments. But to every visitor to her tiny apartment, her first comment is always the same: God is so good to me. Handing her the reminder pad on my last visit, I noticed that she had written the day before Out to lunch tomorrow! Wonderful! Another happy day.
Anna was a prophetess at the time of Jesus birth, and her circumstances were hard
Luke 2.36-37. Widowed early and possibly childless, she may have felt purposeless and destitute. But her focus was on God and serving Him. She was yearning for the Messiah, but in the meantime she was busy about God's business praying, fasting, and teaching others all that she had learned from Him.
Finally the day arrived when she now in her eighties saw the infant Messiah in his young mother's arms. All her patient waiting was worthwhile. Her heart sang with joy as she praised God and then passed the glad news on to others.
Lord, I don't want to be a complainer anymore. I want to be a person who overflows with thankfulness for others and for You. May I accept whatever You give me in Your time. Show me how to start today.
It's hard to see both God's plan and our part. But their intersection is the best place to be.
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Simply Trusting
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Posted:Mar 24, 2015 5:31 am
Last Updated:Mar 24, 2015 5:33 am 19474 Views
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Read: Psalm 56
Bible in a Year: Joshua 16-18; Luke 2:1-24
Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. Psalm 56.3
When our were young, taking them to the doctor's office was an interesting experience. The waiting room was filled with toys they could play with and 's magazines I would read to them. So getting that far with them was no problem. But as soon as I picked them up to carry them into the appointment, everything changed. Suddenly the fun turned into fear as the nurse approached with the needle for the needed shot. The closer she got, the tighter they hugged my neck. They would cling to me for comfort, probably hoping for rescue, not knowing that it was for their own good.
Sometimes in this fallen world we move from times of peace and tranquility into the painful realm of trouble. At that point, the question is, How will I respond? We can be fearful and wonder why God allowed this to happen to us, or we can trust that in the midst of this trouble He is doing something that in the end is for our best, even if it hurts. We would do well to remember the words of the psalmist who wrote, Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You Ps. 56.3.
Like my , the tougher it gets, the tighter we should hug His neck. Trust Him. His love never fails!
Come quickly, Lord, to help me. Teach me to trust You in times of trouble. Remind me of Your presence and of the fact that You hold me in Your loving arms.
Cling to your heavenly Father; He is your only hope.
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REFLECTOR
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Posted:Mar 23, 2015 5:23 am
Last Updated:Mar 24, 2015 9:59 am 19312 Views
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Read: John 1:1-9
Bible in a Year: Joshua 13-15; Luke 1:57-80
This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light. John 1.7
The cozy little village of Rjukan, Norway, is a delightful place to live except during the dark days of winter. Located in a valley at the foot of the towering Gaustatoppen Mountain, the town receives no direct sunlight for nearly half of the year. Residents had long considered the idea of placing mirrors at the top of the mountain to reflect the sun. But the concept was not feasible until recently. In 2005, a local artist began The Mirror Project to bring together people who could turn the idea into reality. Eight years later, in October 2013, the mirrors went into action. Residents crowded into the town square to soak up the reflected sunlight.
In a spiritual sense, much of the world is like the village of Rjukan mountains of troubles keep the light of Jesus from getting through. But God strategically places His to act as reflectors. One such person was John the Baptist, who came to bear witness of the Light Jesus who gives light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death (John 1.7; Luke 1.79).
Just as sunlight is essential for emotional and physical health, so exposure to the light of Jesus is essential for spiritual health. Thankfully, every believer is in a position to reflect His light into the worldâs dark places.
Dear Father, help me to reflect Your light into the world around me today. May all that I say and do bear witness of Your light and truth. May others see how wonderful You are.
A world in darkness needs the light of Jesus.
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