What My Daughter Reminded Me About God

That's right AK taught me this weekend.  Well, she reminded me of some things about God that I may have forgotten.  We get older and busier and the simple things in life just get ordinary, sometimes unimportant and often overlooked.  Here are two excellent examples.

We were walking through Wal-Mart yesterday and I heard a little voice say simply, "hand".  I looked over and she was reaching her little precious hand up wanting to hold her Daddy's hand, not for safety or because she had too, but just because she loved me and wanted to feel close to me.  Of course that made me smile on the outside and even more on the inside. 

It also reminded me that God is doing that with us, as our Heavenly Father.  He is always holding out His hand just waiting for us to take it.  He holds out his hand to everyone.  He is there for the lonely, the beat down, the sick, the one lost in addiction, and yes even the most terrible sinner.  He is there, but sometimes they or we don't see it at the time.  I've been there, I know.  We all could use a little voice to say to us, "HAND".  God is waiting.  He always picks us up and dusts us off if we will just take his hand.  He takes us and forgives us right where we are, but he loves us to much to leave us there.  He knows he has so much more in store for us. 

If you haven't yet please reach up for God's hand, He is waiting and will smile even more than you can imagine.  He will forgive, but we have to take the first step.  If you are already holding God's hand, please show someone who needs Him that He is there waiting.  That is the most important and loving thing you could ever do for anyone, and in doing so you just might lead a soul to salvation.

God Bless!

Everyday Christmas leads to EVERYDAY Christians

Christmas is always a very special time of year.  The people somehow get more friendly, usually more patient.  We all seem to somehow get the "Christmas spirit".  I think it's great that most people around the world pick a special day to celebrate our Savior's birth.  The problem is that most people only know the baby Jesus, and that's our fault.  They know "Silent Night", but have never heard of "Just As I Am". 

What if we used the Jesus of the cradle to show people the Jesus of the cross?  The Christmas spirit can live on into our daily lives.  We can take our Everyday Christmas and turn ourselves into EVERYDAY Christians.  I am not talking about Sunday.  What happens between Sunday and Monday?  Where does Jesus go then?  I propose that this new year we take Jesus with us into our everyday.  The days after Christmas we will prepare to be EVERYDAY Christians.  Are you ready?  Please come with me.  One person at a time is all it takes to start a rejuvination.  I am going to start with me.  Will you join me?

John 1:38-39
Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?”  They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?”  He said to them, “Come and see.”

Let's go and see where Jesus is, shall we?

God Bless!

Everyday Christmas #6 "Mary's Song"

⁴⁶ And Mary said:


      “ My soul magnifies the Lord,
       ⁴⁷ And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
       ⁴⁸ For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
      For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
       ⁴⁹ For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
      And holy is His name.
       ⁵⁰ And His mercy is on those who fear Him
      From generation to generation.
       ⁵¹ He has shown strength with His arm;
      He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
       ⁵² He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
      And exalted the lowly.
       ⁵³ He has filled the hungry with good things,
      And the rich He has sent away empty.
       ⁵⁴ He has helped His servant Israel,
      In remembrance of His mercy,
       ⁵⁵ As He spoke to our fathers,
      To Abraham and to his seed forever.”

Let's just ponder these wonderful thoughts of Mary as we prepare to move to Extraordinary Christmas next time.

God Bless!

Everyday Christmas #5

Now that the shepherds have found Jesus, we will leave them for now.  What a night they must have had!  Now let’s go back to the beginning, well not the very beginning, because God has been working up to this since before Genesis and the Garden.  Jesus was there then too you know (John 1).  Let’s just go back to when the angel appeared to Mary.

Luke 1:26-30

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.  And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”  But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.  Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 

This was an important event.  God didn’t just send just any angel, but Gabriel to bear the news. God sent Gabriel to Nazareth.  If you had lived in that day, you would have said, “Nazareth, where is Nazareth?”  Of 204 towns and villages in Galilee, Josephus fails to mention Nazareth.  We all know what Nathaniel thought of Nazareth.  “Can anything good come out of Nazareth”, was his question.  (John 1:46)

Gabriel went to Nazareth to tell Mary that she would be the mother of the Messiah.  Who is Mary?  Why did God choose Mary?  Her name means “bitter” and she seemed to be poor and from an unknown family.  Even when they presented Jesus at the Temple in Luke 2:24 they offered the sacrifice that was allowed for the poor.   I think the answer lies in how Gabriel greets her.  He says, “Rejoice, highly favored one”.  The Greek word for “favored” is also from the word for “grace”.

So Mary was chosen out of God’s grace.  Not because she was important at the time, or Rich or of the royal class, although she and Joseph were of the lineage of David. She was chosen out of the ordinary so that God could do the extraordinary, thus again our everyday Christmas.

Next Time: “Mary’s Song”

God Bless!

Everyday Christmas #4

What happened next might surprise some.  It seems logical now, but let’s think about it from the shepherds point of view for just a minute.

Luke 2:15-16

So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger.

Now how many years have they been waiting for this Messiah, a loooooooong time?  I bet they had discussions about whether it was really ever going to happen.  Don’t you?  Not only that, but don’t you think they wondered “why us”?  Why did the angels come here, to us?  Once again, I think so.  You see the shepherds were not members of the country club, or on the Christmas card list of most of their day.  I mean, come on, they lived with sheep. They smelled like sheep.  I bet they, just like you and I, have had their days when they wondered if it was all worth it.  Wondered if they mattered, or what they really meant to God? 

I think they were the perfect ones to be the first to hear the news.  Not because of who they were, but because of what they were, Faithful.  Look at what they said, “Let us now go.”  They didn’t ask any more questions of themselves or the angels.  They Went!  Not only did they go, but they went “with haste.”

I wish I could be more like the shepherds in my everyday Christmas.  I wish I would always be ready to now go with haste.  Don’t you?

God Bless!

Everyday Christmas #3

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Luke 2:8-14

Savior, Messiah, Lord, Baby?  Did you catch that last part, a BABY wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger?  Our Lord and Savior came into this world the same way we all (Well most) do, just a regular, although lowly birth.  God was wrapped in rags and put in a feed trough.  Is this what we are supposed to be excited about, a baby being born in the middle of the night, in a barn in the middle of nowhere? 

Jesus was born into the everyday.  Not in Mt Sinai Medical to a Mother of prestige and power, but in a stable to lowly Mary.  Jesus was born into the everyday and announced to the ordinary. 

The angels did say it is good news that will cause great joy for all the people.  Why?  Is it possible to separate the cradle from the cross?  Can we ever separate the nativity from the nail scarred hands?  The sign of the Savior was the baby.  The baby was born for you and me.

Next, What Next?

God Bless.

Everyday Christmas #2

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Luke 2:8-14

We will stay here with the shepherds and angels just a little bit longer.  There is more to be learned about celebrating Christmas every day from Luke.  Have you ever thought about what Christmas REALLY means to you?

I wonder what Christmas means to a little man in Haiti, 80 years old, living in a tent city, who knows nothing of malls or the “hustle and bustle” of the Christmas season?

I wonder what Christmas means to the street orphans, with smudges on their cheeks, in dirty clothes, looking up with those sparkling eyes?   They know nothing of Christmas trees and have little hope of Santa.

To merchants it means the busiest time of the year, and to a lot of employees Christmas bonuses and overtime.

What does Christmas REALLY mean to you?

Think on that for today.  Those who feel comfortable please comment.

Tomorrow I will Share some thoughts on The Cradle and the Cross.

God Bless.

Everyday Christmas #1

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.  Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Luke 2:8-14

Ever notice who God chose to be the first people to know that His only Son had been born?  I gave it away I think.  The words in red this time are not Jesus’ words, but who His birth was announced to first.  The first Christmas wasn’t celebrated first by kings, priests or royalty.  The royal birth of the world’s Savior was celebrated by shepherds, people living in fields, not people living in palaces.  Jesus’ birth was meant to be celebrated by the common man.

 I believe that was a magnificent plan by the Almighty God to show us what’s important about our everyday Christmas.  Who’s important to God?  You are.  I am.  We all are.  Just as God chose to tell the lowly shepherds, He comes every day to lowly you and me.  We should go to the least of them, the lowly, just like God.  We should tell everyone about Jesus every day.  That way we can make every day Christmas.

God Bless!

Prayer

We will finish up our study of the armour of God with prayer.  Prayer is what holds all the other pieces together, it is the energy that gives us the power to hold the shield and wield the sword.  Our power is not enough.  We need, not only each other in this battle, but the power that can only come from God.  He is our portion and our strength.  Do we pray only when times are tough?  Do we say thank you?  Do we pray with anticipation of an answer or just to go through the motions?
Luke tells us in Luke 21:36: "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man."  Are we ready for the battle?  Ready to escape all these things that shall come to pass?  I hope we are all suited up and ready to fight the good fight of faith.

Beginning with the next blog we will begin a series "Christmas for all seasons".  Hope you will join me then.

God Bless

Mind Games

Now we must put on the Helmet of Salvation.  The mind is where Satan often gets control of our hearts and eventually our souls.  God will fill our mind with His word if we will only let Him.  We are to "grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" ( 2 Pet 3:18).  Satan will try to get into our heads just like he got into Eve's head in the Garden.  We need to have enough knowledge to withstand the temptations Satan will throw at us.  Jesus resisted Satan each time with "it is written," or God's word through the prophets. Don't let Satan play mind games with you.  Put on the helmet of God's Word, and that will lead you to salvation.  If you are not a christian and are interested in more study please email me at:
rtalley10@students.hcu.edu  PLEASE.

God Bless

Get In The Herd

I hope some of you have blisters from wearing those new Gospel sandals so much.  Today we will talk a little about “the shield of faith”.  We probably all would say we have faith, but what kind of faith?  Is it a faith that would withstand the “fiery darts” of Satan?  Or is it more like a shield made of tissue paper?  I must admit there have been times when I didn’t even know where my shield was, just lost among the worries and cares of today or tomorrow. 

The Roman soldiers shield was made of tough leather.  It was able to fend off swords, spears, and yes even fiery darts.  In Paul’s day, like I am sure we all have seen in some movie, darts were dipped in a flammable substance and shot down at the enemy.  The soldiers shield could withstand those darts.  The shield also had another unique feature.  It was made so that it could be connected to another soldier’s shield, and another, to make one solid shield or wall to protect the group.  Let’s take two quick lessons for our faith from these shields.

First, can our faith stand the fiery darts?  Is it strong enough, or will Satan’s darts get into our minds and souls and start a wildfire that goes out of control?  I have allowed that to happen in my life in the past.  Maybe you have too?  How can we strengthen our faith to be strong enough?  I turn to Paul, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”(Romans 10:17)  We must study to gain that faith that will protect us when life and Satan come after us.

Secondly, we must stick together as Christians.  We are much stronger as a group than as individuals.  The Roman soldiers linked their shields.  We must link our lives, our faith.  “Your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”(1 Peter 5:8)  Ever seen how a lion hunts on National Geographic or the Discovery Channel?  They don’t go after the herd.  It’s always the weak and hurting that they target.  Satan is waiting for us to step away, turn our backs, even for a moment, to “devour” us. 

Study; get back in the herd, for we know we have the Great Shepherd to protect us.

God Bless.

Gospel Sandals

“The shoes of the Gospel”, may be my favorite analogy of all.  There are so many things that this brings to mind.  Let’s first talk about the roman soldiers shoes would look like.  First of all they would be sandals.  They would be sandals with hobnails?  What’s a hobnail you ask?  I picture it as sandals with cleats on the bottom, of better yet nails.  Now why would the soldier need this?  They would help them to stand firm while being attacked or during an attack give solid footing.  Do you think these sandals might help us?  Are they especially helpful since they are of the Gospel?  I know they are.  We need to be able to stand firm against the attacks Satan throws at us each and every day.  “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong” (1 Corinthians 16:13).  That sounds like a pep talk before a battle to me.

I also love the second analogy with the shoes of the Gospel.  The Gospel is meant to go somewhere.  Shoes are made for walking and the Gospel is made for spreading.  Jesus tells us very plainly, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19).

So let’s put on our Gospel sandals and stand fast against Satan, but don’t stand still, get those gospel feet moving. 

“How beautiful upon the mountains
      Are the feet of him who brings good news,
      Who proclaims peace,
      Who brings glad tidings of good things,
      Who proclaims salvation,
      Who says to Zion,

      ‘Your God reigns!’”

            (Isaiah 52:7)

God Bless!

Heart Transplant

We must next put on the “breastplate of righteousness”.  This piece of armor was made of chain or metal that covered from neck to waist and not only the front but also the back of the warrior. 

Our spiritual breastplate is one of righteousness, which of course is our righteousness in Christ and our righteously lived life in and through Christ.  Paul explains this in 2 Corinthians 5:21.  “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Our breastplate is right over our hearts.  We must use the righteousness of God, through our daily walk with Christ to protect our hearts from the evil Satan tries to put there.  If we ever hive Satan the smallest foothold, then he will wait for the perfect time to attack.  Listen to Jesus here, “What comes out of a man that defiles a man.  For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts.  All these evil things come from within and defile a man.” (Mark 7:20,21,23)

So what do we do to get our breastplate?  We need a heart transplant.  We need to have a heart and mind like Jesus.  Study, fill our hearts with the righteousness of God.

God bless!

Truth or Dare?

The Girdle of truth?  “Girded your loins with truth” (Ephesians 6:14).  Truth is hard to come by these days.  Many people would rather take the easy way out and just say whatever is convenient or popular.  That’s just not the way God would have us, as Christians act.  Paul tells us that if we are going to be able “to stand firm” then we are going to have to find that truth.  Where might we look you might ask.  I think we look no farther that God’s word and the words of Jesus in John. “But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”  (3:21) “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (8:31-32) Guys don’t worry this is also translated as “belt” in some translations.  The belt or girdle of truth is what will hold the sword of the Spirit, but we are getting ahead of ourselves now.  So we must have truth to fight this battle.  God chose through Paul to put this first.  Maybe we need to have truth before we can go any further in our Christian battle. Will we gird ourselves with truth and God's Word or dare to go into the world without part of the armor God is offering us all? Let’s all pray for truth and seek to walk in truth and God’s light today. 

God Bless!

The Enemy

As Soldiers, in a battle, we must have an enemy right?  RIGHT.  "Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8)  Sounds pretty scary to me.  Like a lion.  Have you ever seen one of those shows where lions are hunting that poor gazelle?  Ever notice who the lion picks on?  It's always the weak or the sick or the one isolated.  Have you ever felt that way?  Spiritually weak?  Spiritually sick?  Isolated?  I have.  Jesus calls Satan a theif who comes "to steal and to kill and to destroy" (John 10:10).  We fight against the "wiles of the devil" and cannot afford to be ignorant of his devices". (2 Corinthians 2:11)  I am ready to rise up and fight.  I am ready to get strong, well and together.    Are you?  Wanna come with me?  Let's get rid of the "gazelle syndrome".  Hold on though.  Let's suit up!  God has a few things that can help us in the battle.

Next Time we will get our girdle.  :)  Yes guys a girdle.

Soldiers of Christ Arise

Sooner or later every believer discovers that the Christian life is more like a battleground than a playground.  We face enemies that will utterly destroy us, our lives and all those around us, except for the fact we have the one that has ALREADY won the victory, Jesus.  We are going to spemd the next few blogs talking about what Paul had to say about this battle we wage against the world, the flesh and the devil (Ephesians 2:1-3).  Paul uses the analogy of a soldier and the armor of God.  Paul knew about this since he was probably chained to one and was in prison when he wrote these words. (Ephesians 6:20)

When we meet again we will look more closely at the enemy.  All good soldiers must first size up the enemy they face!

God Bless!

"Me-ville"

"Me-ville" is a comfortable place.  It's all about me in me-ville.  I am the only car on the road and I am always the most important person in me-ville. It seems like paradise for a while, but me-ville can become a miserable and lonely place. 

Listen to James in James 4:1-3, "What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures." That kinda sounds like me-ville gone wrong to me.  How can we exit off the highway to me-ville? 

This time lets listen to Paul as he writes to the Galatians, "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." (Galatians 2:20)  Jesus is the exit.  He is the Way.

Let's all get off the Me-ville highway and get on THE WAY, Jesus.

God Bless

God's Glorious Word

Sometimes I think we should just let God speak for Himself through his Word.  From time to time I will have this for you to ponder, God's glorious Word.

1 Peter 2:9-10

 But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.
  “Once you had no identity as a people; 
      now you are God’s people.
   Once you received no mercy;
      now you have received God’s mercy.”

JESUS

When you feel lost remember Jesus is the Way.

When you question your faith remember Jesus is the Truth.

When you feel down hearted remember Jesus is the Life.

“Jesus saith unto him, I am the Way , the Truth, and the Life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me” (John 14:6)

Remember in all of life’s questions, the answer can be found in JESUS.

God Bless!

God's Psychology

Many people pay a lot of money for what we can find right here in Philippians 4, God's psychology.  We don’t get this psychology or these benefits for free, but no amount of money in the world can buy them for us either. 

In 2 Timothy 3:1, God tells us stresses and “difficult times” will come.  In Philippians 4 he gives us the answer.  The answer is being “in the Lord” (verses 1,4,10).  But what are so amazing are all the things we get to have because of this simple act of being “in the Lord”.   

God tells us that our “names are in the book of life” (v.3), “the God of peace will be with you” (v. 9), and that we can “do all things through Him who strengthens me” (v. 13). 

There is a cost though.  We must be “in the Lord.”  Paul also goes on to tell this beloved church, maybe one of his favorites, to dwell on things of excellence and things “worthy of praise” (v.8).

At the very end of his letter listen to the words Paul leaves them with in verse 19.  “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

Can I get just one Amen? J

Glory be to God in all things!

Jeremiah 29:13-14

"You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.  I will be found by you, decares the Lord."

God Bless!

God's Glorious World

I may have been a bit deep and even depressing a bit in my posts lately, but today is a new beginning.  Not that I won't delve off into any subject, but lets make it more inspirational, do you agree? Here is todays edition of God's glorious world. Each spore can go in any way it chooses.  Where will we go?



Maybe It's Not Too Late

“Here I am.  Feels like the walls are closing in.  Once again it’s time to face it and be strong.  I wanna do the right thing now, I know it’s up to me somehow, I’ve lost my way.”

I know those words so well, as many of us probably do.  It is number 14 on the Camp Rock 2 CD.  Anna Kate belts out every line.  She might not understand exactly what she is singing.  It is one of her stars, one of her favorite songs.  It’s cool to me that Demi Lavato and a song from a major kid’s movie would hit the mark so well for so many of us.  Haven’t we all lost our way at some point?  I have.  We need to continue on a bit further in the song to get the point for today though.

“If I could take it all back I would now.  I never meant to let you all down, and now I’ve got to try to turn it all around and figure out how to fix this…. I’m gonna clean up this mess I made.  Maybe it’s not too late.”

God says we can fix the messes we make, or he says through Him we can.  God allows “do overs”, he allows us to start where we are and begin again. “Ask and it will be given to you; Seek and you will find.”  That’s what Jesus told us all in Matthew 7:7.  He said it’s not too late.

God Bless!

God's Glorious World

What's become a recent tradition here is to share a view of God's world as an ispiration to all before we pillow our heads at night.  Here is another in that same tradition.  Tomorrow, I have found ispiration from an interesting source, Camp Rock 2.  Thanks Anna Kate!

When peace like a river attendeth my way.  When sorrows like sea billows roll.  Whatever my lot Thou hast taught me to say it is well, it is well with my soul.

It Is Well, A Worship, Album by Kutless



Psalm 34

When I woke up today I didn’t really have a thought for today’s blog.  Most days I do, but today nothing had come to mind.  God has today’s blog through David in Psalms 34.  I sat down to read this morning and opened directly to this psalm.  Let’s all take heart in God’s promises.  Look especially at verses 17 and 18.

1I will bless the LORD at all times;

         His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

    2My soul will make its boast in the LORD;

         The humble will hear it and rejoice.

    3O magnify the LORD with me,

         And let us exalt His name together.

    4I sought the LORD, and He answered me,

         And delivered me from all my fears.

    5They looked to Him and were radiant,

         And their faces will never be ashamed.

    6This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him

         And saved him out of all his troubles.

    7The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him,

         And rescues them.

    8O taste and see that the LORD is good;

         How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

    9O fear the LORD, you His saints;

         For to those who fear Him there is no want.

    10The young lions do lack and suffer hunger;

         But they who seek the LORD shall not be in want of any good thing.

    11Come, you children, listen to me;

         I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

    12Who is the man who desires life

         And loves length of days that he may see good?

    13Keep your tongue from evil

         And your lips from speaking deceit.

    14Depart from evil and do good;

         Seek peace and pursue it.

    15The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous

         And His ears are open to their cry.

    16The face of the LORD is against evildoers,

         To cut off the memory of them from the earth.

    17The righteous cry, and the LORD hears

         And delivers them out of all their troubles.

    18The LORD is near to the brokenhearted

         And saves those who are crushed in spirit.

    19Many are the afflictions of the righteous,

         But the LORD delivers him out of them all.

    20He keeps all his bones,

         Not one of them is broken.

    21Evil shall slay the wicked,

         And those who hate the righteous will be condemned.

    22The LORD redeems the soul of His servants,

         And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.

Weary

Ever been weary?  I am not talking about tired or worn out.  I am talking about weary.  I am weary right now.  My soul is a bit weary.  Sometimes I think we can get so busy doing the right things that it tires our soul.  Do you agree?

I am not here to say that I only do good or that I am super good.  This is not a yay me party.  I sin.  I try to do good, but my sinful nature gets in the way.  That’s not the point anyway.  Back to weary SOULS.

My soul is a bit weary today.  Is yours?  I have the answer, or Jesus does anyway.

Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28, NLT) 

Jesus knew we were going to have times we were weary.  He knew our souls are sometimes asked to carry heavy burdens.  He also knew that only He could give rest to weary souls.  So if you are like I am and sometimes feel heavy laden or soul weary then come to the only one who can give a weary soul rest, Jesus.  He is always waiting, ready to give you rest.

God Bless.

Have a blessed day

God's Glorious World

Hope everyone had a blessed Lord's day!  We had an awesome service and several stepped out and made decisions for Jesus!  :)  Heres God's Glorious World.

"The water I give them takes away thirst altogether. It becomes a perpetual spring within them, giving them eternal life."  (Jesus in John 4:14)

Good Night and God Bless!

Sacrifice

Sacrifice?  Do we really understand sacrifice?  I often think I sacrifice, or am asked to sacrifice a lot.  What do I give up, or do for God?  In comparison to what God has done for me, I do nothing.  What is enough?  Should we keep score when we do something we think is “good”? 

God didn’t keep score.  He gave it all!  His Son was a sacrifice for all.  I take that for granted so many times and think that I am asked to sacrifice a lot. 

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16, NLT)

We are asked to do so little in comparison.  I fail so many times.  God keeps picking me back up and making me stronger in my failures.  He makes me strong when I am weak.  This brings me to yet another song.  Not everyone will like this style music, but please just listen to this one time if it’s not your “cup of tea”.

It is the group Abandon with their song Hero.  We would all do so well to remember our hero a little bit more, and forget our so small sacrifices. 

Hero by Abandon

God's Glorious World

Second installment of God's Glorious World.  And, by the way, all images posted here will be my own unless credit is given for others work.

This is the day the lord has made.

We will rejoice and be glad in it.

(Psalm 118:24, NLT)

My prayer for both you and me today!

Amen

The Eyes Have It

What do we focus on?  What do we focus our mind and give our attention to?  What we focus our mind on might focus our heart as well.  Is that something to consider?

If we focus our minds on our strengths do you think it might strengthen our hearts?  Might we become weak in spirit if we focus on weaknesses?  Does our focus really even matter?

Jesus said this and I think we should consider it here.

“Wherever your treasure is, there your hearts and thought will also be.  Your eye is a lamp for your body. A pure eye lets sunshine into your soul.  But an evil eye shuts out the light and plunges you into darkness. (Matthew 6:21-22, NLT)

I don’t know about you, but I am just a little bit afraid of that kind of Darkness!  So maybe it does matter.  Consider the only man to ever walk on water, (Jesus was man but also God, so we won’t count him) Peter, He was doing just fine until he took his eyes off Jesus.  Then he was plunged into the darkness of the stormy waters.  The next part is my favorite part of the story. “Instantly Jesus reached out his hand and grabbed him.”  (Matthew 14:31, NLT)  Peter took his eyes off of Jesus and focused on the waves and water.  What happened?  He sank.  What did Jesus do instantly?  He grabbed him and refocused his life.

What are we focused on in our lives today?  Maybe we need to cry out like Peter so that Jesus may reach out his hand and grab us.  “Save me Lord” were the words of Peter.  We might do well to call those words out too.

God Bless!

Half Empty or Half Full

Half empty or half full is a question we often hear when being quizzed about our stance on the optimism issue.  I myself will usually fall on the side of the optimists, but, like most of us I would imagine, slide closer to pessimism in my not so good moments.

This got me to thinking about our motivations in the spiritual, God, realm.  How do we see things when it comes to our spiritual lives?  Do will do things out of a love for God or a fear of god?  Do we do things to get to Heaven or simply to avoid Hell?  Does it really matter?  Do our motivations for doing good things matter, or is it the ends that justify the means?  I know that we are told many times to fear God and keep His commandments but I also know we are told many times to love God. So that brings us back to the question, do our motivations really matter?

In the end I think that we can do the right thing for the wrong reason and it still not be acceptable to God, but can we do the do the right thing with the wrong motivation and it be acceptable to God?  I am not so sure about this one.  Maybe we could start a discussion on this.  Is it ok to go through life just doing things because we are afraid of God and Hell, or must we develop the love and “right motivations” for doing the good we do?  Do our motivations or reasons for doing good matter?

Please leave your comments on this in the comment section.  I will draw one name from those who comment for a free copy of Kat Davis’ new book that she is most graciously donating. And please check out her blog at http://www.thedailyverse.com/

Have a blessed day.

Quick Bedtime Tidbit

I have found a new friend who shares a passion for God and has a great daily blog.  Her name Is Kat Davis and the blog is

The Daily Verse

 .  She also has a collection of her devotionals in book form.  Check back in the morning for "Half Empty or Half Full" here on Prodigal Posts. I will leave you to ponder that thought and with this image.



God's Glorious World

I thought from time to time a reminder of how God blesses us with the beauty of His world would be nice.
Here is the first installment of God's Glorious World.

Dancy's Bottom Nature Trail

The Challenge

"I don't understand myself at all, for I really want to do what is right, but I don't do it.  Instead I do the very thing I hate.  I know perfectly well that what I am doing is wrong, and my bad conscience shows that I agree that the law is good.  But I can't help myself, because it is sin inside me that makes me do these evil things."

Have you ever been here?  I know I have, and still find myself there many times.  I confuse myself.  Can anybody relate?  Paul could relate.  Thats Romans 7:15-18 in italics above.  He understood that we are sinful by nature and it takes great effort to do what is right.

I am learning more and more, as I live and try to grow in Christ, that doing the right thing is not always easy.  I fail many times.  We must all just remember, myself first and foremost, that God is always there. We just need ask for His help and His forgiveness and He will be "faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong" ( 1 John 1:9). 

"Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more kindness and forgiveness?  Of course not!  Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it?" (Romans 6:1) 

A daily struggle between good and evil.  Let's start over today and ask for God's forgiveness for past wrongs, and His prescence and power for todays challenges.

(All scripture from the New Living Translation)

Radical Love

We have all probably read Paul's words about love in 1 Corinthians 13, but do we really practice it?  How far are we willing to go?  How long will love last?  Listen to him here in verse 7, "Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." (NLT)

 Thats a lot of love.  Does God really expect us to go that far?  Never lose faith?  Endure every circumsstance?  I would challenge you with yes.  Of course we know that God is the only one who can show perfect love, but I think we fall way too short way too much of the time. 

What if we tried this radical experiment?  Love as God loves us, or at least try.  What a different life we would all lead.  What kind of changes might you and I make?  How might the people around us respond?  It couldn't hurt, right?

Listen to the words of Peter in 1 Peter 4:8 as I leave you to ponder this radical love.
"Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins."  (NLT)

God Bless.

Reverence for God

Do we really have the reverence for God we should?  We use things like "omg" sometimes without even thinking.  We just "over-look" when His name is used in vain in movies and by others because thats just the way the world is theses days.

The scribes, when originally writing the scriptures down, showed amazing respect even for God's name.  Jewish people were already afraid even to speak the name of God, but the scribes went over the top in reverence for God!  While writing or copying the Hebrew Bible, anytime they came to God's name they would throw away the quill they had been using, go wash their hands 30 times, come back and with a new quill and write the name of God. They did this EVERY time God's name was written

Wow!  Isn't that reverence even just for the name of God.  What if we had just a portion of that?  Let's go out and through today with the thought of showing God's love to others.

Oh and by the way, they washed 30 more times and used a new quill again after they wrote God's name.

Father God

Thanks to John McGuire for this thought. 

When we think about Jesus' relationship with God we often think of God as the Father and Jesus as the Son.  Jesus also used this relationship all during his earthy ministry until what Point?  He refered to God as Father in every instance but one.

"Eloi Eloi Lama sabachthani?" - which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

So only when Jesus had your sins and mine all poured on him did he loose that Father he had known for all of eternity.  He became God, who can't look on sin, even when on His own Son.  What a sacrifice! 
Thank you Jesus.

Morning Musings

What do you do every morning?  Get the kids to school?  Get the coffee going?  Maybe think about what to wear or what kind of day you are going to have?  What about God?  Do we think about him first thing in the morning?

Today, I confess, I didn't.  I was already up and going about life and then it hit me.  GOD!  I had forgotten God for the morning.  I pray at least once, usually many times, a day.  But this morning I seem to have been Godless. 

God was there.  God was with me,  He will never leave or forsake us (Heb 13:5).  I had just not taken time to start my day off right.  What a difference that can make in our daily lives. 

We should start off just like God does. Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.(Lamentations 3:22-23)

Matthew West "The Story of Your Life" CD

This CD is amazing!  I love every song, but my favorites are The Reason For the World and Strong Enough.  You have to check it out!  Here is a link to Matthew talking about Strong Enough.

http://vimeo.com/15064457

This song really spoke to me.  I hope you can relate as well.
God Bless

Welcome to Prodigal Posts

This is a blog for prodigals, anyone who has been or might become a prodigal, and for those who want to keep from being prodigal.
Does that cover everyone?  If so, that's what I was hoping.  This blog is a spot where I, who am only here today by the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ, will post my daily musings and thoughts.  I don't promise to always be deep or thought provoking. I just to hope to allow Christ to live through and maybe, if we are lucky, blog through me. 
If you like what you some come on in and hang around the post.  We will help each other grow.

Rick