I love you, O LORD, my strength.
~ Psalm 18:1 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Those words are so easy to say . . . but often hard to display.
~ We say we love Him, yet we struggle with our selfishness to give a tithe offering on a consistent basis or to be generous to someone who is in need...
~ We say we love Him, yet we want to get back at someone who's done us wrong...
~ We say we love Him, yet we doubt His judgment when things don't go our way...
Jesus says that when we obey His commands, that proves our love for Him (John 14:15). But we struggle and struggle against sin, day in and day out, don't we? Does that mean that we don't love Him at all? No, but we can fall into that mindset. I know I have.
I kind of have an 'all-or-nothing' mentality that I struggle with. Not sure where it came from, but I have my guesses. For example, it's rather legalistic to say that if your kids don't obey you 100%, all the time, that they don't love you. If you disappoint your spouse or your good friend by forgetting a special day or speaking an unkind word, does that mean you don't love them? No. We are not 100% in this life. Our flesh is in constant battle with our spirit, and we face spiritual forces every day of our lives! The same is true for our love relationship with God. If we look at our failure to obey Him here and there, we can be led to believe that we don't love God. But that is legalism. The law leaves no room for error, but grace is giving. And I'm so glad that God is a gracious God.
If our heart's desire is to love someone, we strive to do our best to honor that person in loving ways, in ways that speak to them -- their love language. God's love language is obedience. So if we say we love God, then our lives need to be moving in the direction of obedience to what He calls us to do. If you're not sure what that is, just pick up your Bible and start reading. And please know that what God calls His children to be is not just a list of do's and don'ts -- it's a model of righteousness, a pattern after God's own heart. It's based on love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galations 5:23). Against these things, there is no law.
So love God today -- and you don't even have to speak the words to tell Him, because as we all know, actions speak louder than words.
Love,
Joelene
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Verse of the Day - Proverbs 19:3
People's own foolishness ruins their lives, but in their minds they blame the Lord.
~ Proverbs 19:3 (NCV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you know people like this, people who blame God for all the junk in their lives, yet, if you follow the trail, the issues they're dealing with are really the fallout of their own foolishness?
Or has it possibly been your voice you've heard who's blamed God for the ruin in your life?
It's amazing how humanity is so pridefully accountability-aphobic. We tend to blame others -- anyone will do, really -- for the mess we make in our lives. And when we can't blame any other person for our disasters, we blame God. After all, He is the Creator of the universe and has all power, so this must be His fault! He could do something to fix this, ya know...
Wow.
It's high time we take a hard look at our lives -- and believe me, we may have to go back a ways -- and be accountable for our foolish choices and decisions. Listening to bad advice from foolish sources or running headlong in a fool's direction can reap consequences that last a lifetime. What you're living through now may be fallout from your own poor choices a year ago...or a decade ago. That's the trouble with sin -- it feels good for the moment, but the moment doesn't last. Yet the fallout can be as long-lasting and devastating as the radiation poisoning from an atomic bomb.
We can't justly blame others or God for our acts of indiscretion. We need to own our choices and live humbly with the consequences if we're going to make any headway in becoming wise. If we can humble ourselves before God, owning up to our own ill-choices and conscious rebellion, we can begin to hear the wise words from the Author of wisdom. And God is faithful to teach us, if we're willing to listen.
The blame game is a loser's game -- you'll walk away empty-handed every time. Accountability and humility before God is a guaranteed win -- you'll walk away with a jackpot of wisdom and direction from God for life's upcoming challenges. They're sure to come, and who wants to be empty-handed in the game of life?
Be accountable; go to God; get wisdom. That's a winning hand.
Love,
Joelene
~ Proverbs 19:3 (NCV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you know people like this, people who blame God for all the junk in their lives, yet, if you follow the trail, the issues they're dealing with are really the fallout of their own foolishness?
Or has it possibly been your voice you've heard who's blamed God for the ruin in your life?
It's amazing how humanity is so pridefully accountability-aphobic. We tend to blame others -- anyone will do, really -- for the mess we make in our lives. And when we can't blame any other person for our disasters, we blame God. After all, He is the Creator of the universe and has all power, so this must be His fault! He could do something to fix this, ya know...
Wow.
It's high time we take a hard look at our lives -- and believe me, we may have to go back a ways -- and be accountable for our foolish choices and decisions. Listening to bad advice from foolish sources or running headlong in a fool's direction can reap consequences that last a lifetime. What you're living through now may be fallout from your own poor choices a year ago...or a decade ago. That's the trouble with sin -- it feels good for the moment, but the moment doesn't last. Yet the fallout can be as long-lasting and devastating as the radiation poisoning from an atomic bomb.
We can't justly blame others or God for our acts of indiscretion. We need to own our choices and live humbly with the consequences if we're going to make any headway in becoming wise. If we can humble ourselves before God, owning up to our own ill-choices and conscious rebellion, we can begin to hear the wise words from the Author of wisdom. And God is faithful to teach us, if we're willing to listen.
The blame game is a loser's game -- you'll walk away empty-handed every time. Accountability and humility before God is a guaranteed win -- you'll walk away with a jackpot of wisdom and direction from God for life's upcoming challenges. They're sure to come, and who wants to be empty-handed in the game of life?
Be accountable; go to God; get wisdom. That's a winning hand.
Love,
Joelene
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Verse of the Day - 2 Corinthians 5:21
Christ didn't have any sin. But God made him become sin for us. So, we can be made right with God because of what Christ has done for us. ~ 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIrV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spring is in the air, and love tends to bloom just like the tulips and daffodils in the flower bed (for some who are horticulturally challenged, it's dandelions and clover :-) And along with blooming love comes engagements and weddings. Lots of them! If you are looking for mayhem and chaos to spice up a hum-drum life, just visit a retail bridal store on the weekend in Springtime! It's nuptial madness! :-)
A wedding dress can be as varied and unique as each bride. But, usually, it is white or off-white and gorgeous -- either in its simplicity or its elegance. Beads and crystals, lace and satin -- pristine and pure. And a bride-to-be will guard her dress almost with her life, so that nothing gets on the dress before her big day. It must be perfect.
Now, imagine a bride on her wedding day in her beautiful dress... and a guest slings a handful of mud on her. Then another guest takes a bottle of red wine and pours it all over the front of her dress, and an inebriated person vomits all over the train. Oh my goodness, how awful! How disgusting! All the beauty in that gown is gone, ruined forever...and the bride has been reduced to a puddle of humiliation. Surely this is a nightmare!
Oh, if it only were a bad dream. The reality is that Jesus was that pure wedding gown, and for us, He was thrashed, trashed and humiliated. Our stench and stain of sin was placed on Him so that He could be the holy sacrifice, dying in our place. The brutality that we deserved was dished out to Him. And He took it, for us. Willingly. He said, Throw your filthy insults at Me, spit on Me, tear My flesh with your tools of torture, grind Me into the dusty ground, hoist Me up on a cross as a symbol of all things humiliating. I, as a pure wedding dress, am willing to be soiled and spoiled for you. For all of you. I love you too much to want any of you to die an eternal death, the likes of which make My death look like child's play.
Jesus, the pure, was stained -- and then, slain and laid in a tomb. The Righteous for the unrighteous. And the mystery of God is that our stinking, filthy gown can become pure and clean again, if we choose to accept Jesus as our Lord and savior -- if we choose to believe that He is God and that His sacrifice is sufficient to make us pure and clean.
No one would willingly stain a pure white garment. But Jesus was willing, because our lives depended on it. His grace truly is amazing, isn't it?
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spring is in the air, and love tends to bloom just like the tulips and daffodils in the flower bed (for some who are horticulturally challenged, it's dandelions and clover :-) And along with blooming love comes engagements and weddings. Lots of them! If you are looking for mayhem and chaos to spice up a hum-drum life, just visit a retail bridal store on the weekend in Springtime! It's nuptial madness! :-)
A wedding dress can be as varied and unique as each bride. But, usually, it is white or off-white and gorgeous -- either in its simplicity or its elegance. Beads and crystals, lace and satin -- pristine and pure. And a bride-to-be will guard her dress almost with her life, so that nothing gets on the dress before her big day. It must be perfect.
Now, imagine a bride on her wedding day in her beautiful dress... and a guest slings a handful of mud on her. Then another guest takes a bottle of red wine and pours it all over the front of her dress, and an inebriated person vomits all over the train. Oh my goodness, how awful! How disgusting! All the beauty in that gown is gone, ruined forever...and the bride has been reduced to a puddle of humiliation. Surely this is a nightmare!
Oh, if it only were a bad dream. The reality is that Jesus was that pure wedding gown, and for us, He was thrashed, trashed and humiliated. Our stench and stain of sin was placed on Him so that He could be the holy sacrifice, dying in our place. The brutality that we deserved was dished out to Him. And He took it, for us. Willingly. He said, Throw your filthy insults at Me, spit on Me, tear My flesh with your tools of torture, grind Me into the dusty ground, hoist Me up on a cross as a symbol of all things humiliating. I, as a pure wedding dress, am willing to be soiled and spoiled for you. For all of you. I love you too much to want any of you to die an eternal death, the likes of which make My death look like child's play.
Jesus, the pure, was stained -- and then, slain and laid in a tomb. The Righteous for the unrighteous. And the mystery of God is that our stinking, filthy gown can become pure and clean again, if we choose to accept Jesus as our Lord and savior -- if we choose to believe that He is God and that His sacrifice is sufficient to make us pure and clean.
No one would willingly stain a pure white garment. But Jesus was willing, because our lives depended on it. His grace truly is amazing, isn't it?
Love,
Joelene
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Verse of the Day - Psalm 71:23
My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you— I, whom you have redeemed.
~ Psalm 71:23 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I woke up this morning with a song in my head that I couldn't get rid of. Ever happen to you? I'm sitting here at the computer trying to read Bible verses for VOTD, and the chorus just keeps running through my head, a song that we just learned at worship team practice last night, called "Say So" -- the chorus simply goes like this...
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so
Say so, Say so...
I could not stop the chorus from replaying in my mind this a.m., so instead of trying to fight the tide, I did a Bible word search on 'redeemed'. And there were many references in the Old Testament to the redemption of Israel from the land of Egypt, out of slavery from the hands of Pharaoh. Rescued out of a hopeless situation for which they couldn't get out of on their own. Redeemed.
All of humanity is in this situation, hopelessly stuck in the slavery of sin, chained to the curse of death and held hostage by the evil one. But just like Moses was sent to rescue the children of Israel, Jesus was sent to rescue the children of the world. And whereas in Moses' case, there was no ransom to be paid, this world hostage situation required a ransom. Something had to be given up for the souls of humanity. And that something was death itself. The shedding of blood to pay for sin. That was the price of our redemption, and Jesus chose to pay it. In full.
So, those who have chosen to say 'yes' to accepting that payment for their sin and have decided to live their life by Jesus' way are the redeemed. Plucked out of the hand of the devil and brought to the throne of God! For those who have experienced that redemption, I hope you are praising God right now for the gift you've been given -- new life, eternal life, through Jesus Christ, the LORD! You are redeemed -- can I hear you 'say so'?!?
The song, "Say So", is a challenge to all who have been redeemed. The first part goes like this...
What does it mean to be saved?
Isn't it more than just a prayer to pray?
More than just a way to heaven?
What does it mean to be His?
To be formed in his likeness?
Know that we have a purpose.
Vamp:
To be salt and light in the world, in the world.
To be salt and light in the world.
Chorus:
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so!
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so!
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, say so, say so! (repeat)
Oh that the church would arise,
So that we would see with Jesus' eyes...
We could show the world heaven.
Show what it means to be His,
To be formed in his likeness,
Show them they have a purpose.
To be salt and light in the world, in the world,
To be salt and light in the world.
To be salt and light in the world, in the world,
To be salt and light in the world.
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so! . . .
~ from Say So, by Israel Houghton
(for your listening pleasure, here's a link to the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMq6A__rdPQ)
Those who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb have a purpose -- to give praise and glory to God for who He is and all He's done, AND to say so to a world that needs light in their darkness, to see their way to The Light. Do you sense your purpose as one of God's redeemed?
Let the redeemed of the Lord SAY SO!
Love,
Joelene
~ Psalm 71:23 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I woke up this morning with a song in my head that I couldn't get rid of. Ever happen to you? I'm sitting here at the computer trying to read Bible verses for VOTD, and the chorus just keeps running through my head, a song that we just learned at worship team practice last night, called "Say So" -- the chorus simply goes like this...
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so
Say so, Say so...
I could not stop the chorus from replaying in my mind this a.m., so instead of trying to fight the tide, I did a Bible word search on 'redeemed'. And there were many references in the Old Testament to the redemption of Israel from the land of Egypt, out of slavery from the hands of Pharaoh. Rescued out of a hopeless situation for which they couldn't get out of on their own. Redeemed.
All of humanity is in this situation, hopelessly stuck in the slavery of sin, chained to the curse of death and held hostage by the evil one. But just like Moses was sent to rescue the children of Israel, Jesus was sent to rescue the children of the world. And whereas in Moses' case, there was no ransom to be paid, this world hostage situation required a ransom. Something had to be given up for the souls of humanity. And that something was death itself. The shedding of blood to pay for sin. That was the price of our redemption, and Jesus chose to pay it. In full.
So, those who have chosen to say 'yes' to accepting that payment for their sin and have decided to live their life by Jesus' way are the redeemed. Plucked out of the hand of the devil and brought to the throne of God! For those who have experienced that redemption, I hope you are praising God right now for the gift you've been given -- new life, eternal life, through Jesus Christ, the LORD! You are redeemed -- can I hear you 'say so'?!?
The song, "Say So", is a challenge to all who have been redeemed. The first part goes like this...
What does it mean to be saved?
Isn't it more than just a prayer to pray?
More than just a way to heaven?
What does it mean to be His?
To be formed in his likeness?
Know that we have a purpose.
Vamp:
To be salt and light in the world, in the world.
To be salt and light in the world.
Chorus:
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so!
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so!
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, say so, say so! (repeat)
Oh that the church would arise,
So that we would see with Jesus' eyes...
We could show the world heaven.
Show what it means to be His,
To be formed in his likeness,
Show them they have a purpose.
To be salt and light in the world, in the world,
To be salt and light in the world.
To be salt and light in the world, in the world,
To be salt and light in the world.
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so! . . .
~ from Say So, by Israel Houghton
(for your listening pleasure, here's a link to the song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMq6A__rdPQ)
Those who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb have a purpose -- to give praise and glory to God for who He is and all He's done, AND to say so to a world that needs light in their darkness, to see their way to The Light. Do you sense your purpose as one of God's redeemed?
Let the redeemed of the Lord SAY SO!
Love,
Joelene
Friday, March 27, 2009
Verse of the Day - Psalm 104:4-5
Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done... ~ Psalm 104:4-5 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm part of a small group on Thursday nights, and we place a heavy emphasis on prayer. One of our former members gave us all prayer journals for Christmas last year, and it's been neat to jot down our prayer requests, and subsequently look back and be able to declare God's provision for those requests! Sometimes, it's easy to forget these needs from week to week, but when you can look back on paper, often we are blessed to realize that God did a wonder in that situation. Praise the Lord!
Last night, I was able to give great praise for a couple of situations that I knew about where God provided for people -- a new place to live for one, and provision and protection in a difficult domestic situation for the other. Oh, Lord, thank You for meeting needs sometimes unexpectedly and sometimes exactly when the crisis requires.
If you have faith in the Lord God, you will go to Him in prayer. But sometimes...or rather, often...God's timeline and method don't match ours, amen? Whether it's a lengthy illness or laborsome relational issues that drag on endlessly, we wonder where God is and what in the world He's doing. We want relief but none seems to come. We want answers but don't hear any. At these times, it is vital to remember what God has done in the past, how He has not fallen asleep at the wheel in your life in the past, and how you really can trust Him to manage your current situation in just the right way. That's what the psalmist did in Psalm 105. Read for yourself the way he reminds people of God's provision... http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%20105&version=31
Our pastor last Sunday talked about how and when God "remembered" people, and one of the references was when the Bible records that God remembered the people of Israel when they were in slavery in Egypt. If you remember the story, he called Moses to rescue them from the hands of Pharaoh. But I thought about that and realized that those people were in Egypt for 400 years! Four-hundred years. Talk about delay! We pray for a month about an issue that begs for resolution or healing, and when we don't see any progress, we get weary and frustrated and angry and depressed. Can you imagine how they felt when generation after generation died in captivity, with no end in sight? Where was God in all of that?
As the psalmist chronicles, God was right there, before they ever went to Egypt and after they left. Lessons were learned all along the way, even when things didn't go the way they wanted them to. We don't hear about the millions of life lessons that God taught to each individual, but I know that they're there -- buried in the untold stories of the individuals that lived it. God does wonders in people's lives continually, whether we can see the forest for the trees, or not.
Let's keep sharing the wonders that God is doing, to encourage those who can't see what He's doing. He is a great God and greatly to be praised! For all we don't see Him doing, there are millions and billions of things He is doing. I pray we can recognize His sovereignty and power over all things, especially the circumstances we're dealing with today.
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm part of a small group on Thursday nights, and we place a heavy emphasis on prayer. One of our former members gave us all prayer journals for Christmas last year, and it's been neat to jot down our prayer requests, and subsequently look back and be able to declare God's provision for those requests! Sometimes, it's easy to forget these needs from week to week, but when you can look back on paper, often we are blessed to realize that God did a wonder in that situation. Praise the Lord!
Last night, I was able to give great praise for a couple of situations that I knew about where God provided for people -- a new place to live for one, and provision and protection in a difficult domestic situation for the other. Oh, Lord, thank You for meeting needs sometimes unexpectedly and sometimes exactly when the crisis requires.
If you have faith in the Lord God, you will go to Him in prayer. But sometimes...or rather, often...God's timeline and method don't match ours, amen? Whether it's a lengthy illness or laborsome relational issues that drag on endlessly, we wonder where God is and what in the world He's doing. We want relief but none seems to come. We want answers but don't hear any. At these times, it is vital to remember what God has done in the past, how He has not fallen asleep at the wheel in your life in the past, and how you really can trust Him to manage your current situation in just the right way. That's what the psalmist did in Psalm 105. Read for yourself the way he reminds people of God's provision... http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%20105&version=31
Our pastor last Sunday talked about how and when God "remembered" people, and one of the references was when the Bible records that God remembered the people of Israel when they were in slavery in Egypt. If you remember the story, he called Moses to rescue them from the hands of Pharaoh. But I thought about that and realized that those people were in Egypt for 400 years! Four-hundred years. Talk about delay! We pray for a month about an issue that begs for resolution or healing, and when we don't see any progress, we get weary and frustrated and angry and depressed. Can you imagine how they felt when generation after generation died in captivity, with no end in sight? Where was God in all of that?
As the psalmist chronicles, God was right there, before they ever went to Egypt and after they left. Lessons were learned all along the way, even when things didn't go the way they wanted them to. We don't hear about the millions of life lessons that God taught to each individual, but I know that they're there -- buried in the untold stories of the individuals that lived it. God does wonders in people's lives continually, whether we can see the forest for the trees, or not.
Let's keep sharing the wonders that God is doing, to encourage those who can't see what He's doing. He is a great God and greatly to be praised! For all we don't see Him doing, there are millions and billions of things He is doing. I pray we can recognize His sovereignty and power over all things, especially the circumstances we're dealing with today.
Love,
Joelene
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Verse of the Day - Luke 6:43-45
No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks. ~ Luke 6:43-45 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ain't it the truth...
It's amazing the crud that can bubble up from our hearts and out of our mouths, huh? So, if a good tree can't bear bad fruit, does that mean that we, as believers, are bad trees? Hmm...
Since we all still struggle with sin in this life, we are bound to have times when negative stuff comes out of our mouths. But I think it's the pattern of living that Jesus is talking about, what's at the core of your being. If God is at the center, in your heart by faith in Jesus, you have a good core, and your words will reflect that...even if, at times, bad fruit comes from some weird grafting that took place when you weren't looking. But, when God is absent from a person's core, it is relatively easy to see when they open their mouth . . . sarcasm, cynicism, hatred, malice, greed, lust, degrading others, degrading God.
If God is at your core, your words should reflect Him. His character-building in your life should be a clear contrast from someone who doesn't have God. So, can you or anyone else see a difference? What do your words prove about what's inside?
If you find yourself speaking in a way that has "bad fruit" written all over it, I hope you can humble yourself and go to God to get right. Ask Him to clean out all the infestation and disease of your tree, so that you can bear good fruit, fruit that sheds like on Him. (1 John 1:9)
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ain't it the truth...
It's amazing the crud that can bubble up from our hearts and out of our mouths, huh? So, if a good tree can't bear bad fruit, does that mean that we, as believers, are bad trees? Hmm...
Since we all still struggle with sin in this life, we are bound to have times when negative stuff comes out of our mouths. But I think it's the pattern of living that Jesus is talking about, what's at the core of your being. If God is at the center, in your heart by faith in Jesus, you have a good core, and your words will reflect that...even if, at times, bad fruit comes from some weird grafting that took place when you weren't looking. But, when God is absent from a person's core, it is relatively easy to see when they open their mouth . . . sarcasm, cynicism, hatred, malice, greed, lust, degrading others, degrading God.
If God is at your core, your words should reflect Him. His character-building in your life should be a clear contrast from someone who doesn't have God. So, can you or anyone else see a difference? What do your words prove about what's inside?
If you find yourself speaking in a way that has "bad fruit" written all over it, I hope you can humble yourself and go to God to get right. Ask Him to clean out all the infestation and disease of your tree, so that you can bear good fruit, fruit that sheds like on Him. (1 John 1:9)
Love,
Joelene
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Verse of the Day - Matthew 6:34
So don't worry about tomorrow. Tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. ~ Matthew 6:34 (NIrV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Borrowing trouble..." Ever heard that phrase? Do you live that phrase?
It's amazing how much we can worry about what hasn't happened yet, about future unknowns. Some are very real concerns that have the writing on the wall . . . pink slips declaring layoffs, a doctor's diagnosis after finding a lump, a divorce after years of marital misery. But the reality is that we have no idea what will happen tomorrow! You might be worried about a meeting with your boss at work tomorrow, but tomorrow, you wake up with a bad cold and have to call in sick...or your boss calls in sick! You worry about getting a layoff notice in the future, but what if tomorrow you get called for an interview for that job you applied for a month ago? We can worry all we want about the future, but today is where it's at. Today is where we're at.
Certainly there is a need for planning in life. If we never looked at the future, we wouldn't even have clean laundry; every day, just opening a drawer and expecting a clean shirt and jeans to be available, without planning a laundry day once a week. :-) But planning for the future is very different than worrying about what hasn't happened yet. Jesus asks us to take each day as it comes and deal with today's troubles today. And tomorrow's troubles tomorrow.
We can't change the past; that is written in cement. We can't forecast the future; that is a bird that hasn't landed. We can tackle today -- it's 16 waking hours of 'in the present'. Just tackle that. Don't borrow trouble. Let tomorrow deal with itself.
When tomorrow's troubles come knocking on your mental door, you have a choice to put the "do not disturb" sign on the doorknob. It really is a choice, ya know? I hope you can learn to rely on God for today, and wait until tomorrow for tomorrow. He'll be there with you to deal with it then, too.
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Borrowing trouble..." Ever heard that phrase? Do you live that phrase?
It's amazing how much we can worry about what hasn't happened yet, about future unknowns. Some are very real concerns that have the writing on the wall . . . pink slips declaring layoffs, a doctor's diagnosis after finding a lump, a divorce after years of marital misery. But the reality is that we have no idea what will happen tomorrow! You might be worried about a meeting with your boss at work tomorrow, but tomorrow, you wake up with a bad cold and have to call in sick...or your boss calls in sick! You worry about getting a layoff notice in the future, but what if tomorrow you get called for an interview for that job you applied for a month ago? We can worry all we want about the future, but today is where it's at. Today is where we're at.
Certainly there is a need for planning in life. If we never looked at the future, we wouldn't even have clean laundry; every day, just opening a drawer and expecting a clean shirt and jeans to be available, without planning a laundry day once a week. :-) But planning for the future is very different than worrying about what hasn't happened yet. Jesus asks us to take each day as it comes and deal with today's troubles today. And tomorrow's troubles tomorrow.
We can't change the past; that is written in cement. We can't forecast the future; that is a bird that hasn't landed. We can tackle today -- it's 16 waking hours of 'in the present'. Just tackle that. Don't borrow trouble. Let tomorrow deal with itself.
When tomorrow's troubles come knocking on your mental door, you have a choice to put the "do not disturb" sign on the doorknob. It really is a choice, ya know? I hope you can learn to rely on God for today, and wait until tomorrow for tomorrow. He'll be there with you to deal with it then, too.
Love,
Joelene
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Verse of the Day - Philippians 2:3-4
Don't be selfish; don't live to make a good impression on others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself. Don't think only about your own affairs, but be interested in others, too, and what they are doing.
~ Philippians 2:3-4 (NLT)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(Note: I had to get up at 3:30am this morning to get a friend to the airport, so again, I am drawing from my VOTD of one year ago today, for your reading pleasure....God bless you today as you ponder His Word in your life.)
I saw a vanity license plate the other day, on a big four-wheeled truck that read, "N2RTOYS". At first, I didn't get it. N2RTOYS? N..2..R...ohhhhh...into our toys! There was nothing more on the vehicle, except a small sticker on the back window, a picture of an all-terrain vehicle with a caption that said, "Got dirt?" And I thought about what this license plate said about the owner. Into recreation and pleasure, BIG-TIME. All about the toys and how they make me happy. The term hedonism came to mind, a mindset or mentality (even a religion of sorts) of living life for personal pleasure that I learned about years ago while studying church history. All about the fun. All about my fun.
Selfish living simply goes against the grain of God and His kingdom, doesn't it? Jesus was God in the flesh, and He was the personification--the epitome--of selflessness. He was God's Exhibit A...no other exhibits needed to show us how to live a godly life. And yet, we fight against this desire in order to serve ourselves, to think of ourselves first and only, to get what we want and to exalt ourselves as #1, stepping on others when necessary. It's a dog-eat-dog world, and we so often just growl and bark like the rest of the pack as we grapple for first position.
Only God can change us on the inside, so that we understand our position with Him and with our fellow human beings. Only He can help us understand what our role and purpose is in God's kingdom. Selflessness is radical to the unbelieving world. It's nonsense! Who thinks of others above themselves? Are you crazy?!? That'll never get you anywhere in this life! And they may be right. But for the believer in Jesus Christ, this life is not just horizontal...it's vertical. It's 4th dimension. It's out of this world.
So be radical. Ask God to turn your heart and mind upside down, and live a selfless life. God will use you in a mighty way to show the secular world what He really looks like...what He's really all about.
Love,
Joelene
~ Philippians 2:3-4 (NLT)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(Note: I had to get up at 3:30am this morning to get a friend to the airport, so again, I am drawing from my VOTD of one year ago today, for your reading pleasure....God bless you today as you ponder His Word in your life.)
I saw a vanity license plate the other day, on a big four-wheeled truck that read, "N2RTOYS". At first, I didn't get it. N2RTOYS? N..2..R...ohhhhh...into our toys! There was nothing more on the vehicle, except a small sticker on the back window, a picture of an all-terrain vehicle with a caption that said, "Got dirt?" And I thought about what this license plate said about the owner. Into recreation and pleasure, BIG-TIME. All about the toys and how they make me happy. The term hedonism came to mind, a mindset or mentality (even a religion of sorts) of living life for personal pleasure that I learned about years ago while studying church history. All about the fun. All about my fun.
Selfish living simply goes against the grain of God and His kingdom, doesn't it? Jesus was God in the flesh, and He was the personification--the epitome--of selflessness. He was God's Exhibit A...no other exhibits needed to show us how to live a godly life. And yet, we fight against this desire in order to serve ourselves, to think of ourselves first and only, to get what we want and to exalt ourselves as #1, stepping on others when necessary. It's a dog-eat-dog world, and we so often just growl and bark like the rest of the pack as we grapple for first position.
Only God can change us on the inside, so that we understand our position with Him and with our fellow human beings. Only He can help us understand what our role and purpose is in God's kingdom. Selflessness is radical to the unbelieving world. It's nonsense! Who thinks of others above themselves? Are you crazy?!? That'll never get you anywhere in this life! And they may be right. But for the believer in Jesus Christ, this life is not just horizontal...it's vertical. It's 4th dimension. It's out of this world.
So be radical. Ask God to turn your heart and mind upside down, and live a selfless life. God will use you in a mighty way to show the secular world what He really looks like...what He's really all about.
Love,
Joelene
Monday, March 23, 2009
Verse of the Day - Psalm 23:1
The Lord is my shepherd. He gives me everything I need. ~ Psalm 23:1 (NIrV)
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So, when you think about it, what does a sheep really need, huh? Food. Water. Protection. "baa..."
We can feel like David just doesn't get it when he likens himself (and, assumingly, us) to a sheep. Are you kidding, David?!? I have A LOT more needs than that! I need a job and a car and a wardrobe and a plasma TV and a vacation every summer and . . .
Now, it's true that we have need for income in order to survive. And most need a car to get there. But so many of the things we've come to believe we need, we really don't need. Perhaps we need to think more like sheep, you know -- the basics. Get down to basics, and enjoy the basics. Food. Water. Protection.
"baa..."
The reality is that we are like sheep, because our Good Shepherd, Jesus, truly is our provider and protector. I hope you know that the food and beverages you consume are given to you by His hand. You must know this, right? If He didn't enable you with the skills, knowledge and abilities to do your job, AND put you in contact with your employer, you wouldn't have your job, which is what puts food and drink on your table. And your health is in His hands, as well as your protection from enemies and calamity. He is the Good Shepherd who does care for His sheep. "baa..."
But, what about when a sheep loses his job and ends up on unemployment? What about when a sheep gets cancer and dies? Where is the Good Shepherd then? How good can He be then, and how are needs being met then?
Those are tough questions -- it's hard to understand the harsh realities of living in a fallen world. Jesus never said we would be exempt from them. But in the midst of them, I believe we can still see His hand working on our behalf, giving us encouragement and comfort and strength to endure.
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
~ James 1:12 (NIV)
One thing sheep don't do is worry. They don't sit around on the hillside biting their nails about what's over the next hill. They don't try to hide food in a cave because they're not sure if the next hill has food. They just follow the shepherd and eat, sleep and grow wool. "baa..."
Can we, in simple faith --like a sheep -- follow our Shepherd, believing that what we need He will give us? We can know a contentment in the Lord that is unparalleled if we do.
"baa..."
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So, when you think about it, what does a sheep really need, huh? Food. Water. Protection. "baa..."
We can feel like David just doesn't get it when he likens himself (and, assumingly, us) to a sheep. Are you kidding, David?!? I have A LOT more needs than that! I need a job and a car and a wardrobe and a plasma TV and a vacation every summer and . . .
Now, it's true that we have need for income in order to survive. And most need a car to get there. But so many of the things we've come to believe we need, we really don't need. Perhaps we need to think more like sheep, you know -- the basics. Get down to basics, and enjoy the basics. Food. Water. Protection.
"baa..."
The reality is that we are like sheep, because our Good Shepherd, Jesus, truly is our provider and protector. I hope you know that the food and beverages you consume are given to you by His hand. You must know this, right? If He didn't enable you with the skills, knowledge and abilities to do your job, AND put you in contact with your employer, you wouldn't have your job, which is what puts food and drink on your table. And your health is in His hands, as well as your protection from enemies and calamity. He is the Good Shepherd who does care for His sheep. "baa..."
But, what about when a sheep loses his job and ends up on unemployment? What about when a sheep gets cancer and dies? Where is the Good Shepherd then? How good can He be then, and how are needs being met then?
Those are tough questions -- it's hard to understand the harsh realities of living in a fallen world. Jesus never said we would be exempt from them. But in the midst of them, I believe we can still see His hand working on our behalf, giving us encouragement and comfort and strength to endure.
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
~ James 1:12 (NIV)
One thing sheep don't do is worry. They don't sit around on the hillside biting their nails about what's over the next hill. They don't try to hide food in a cave because they're not sure if the next hill has food. They just follow the shepherd and eat, sleep and grow wool. "baa..."
Can we, in simple faith --like a sheep -- follow our Shepherd, believing that what we need He will give us? We can know a contentment in the Lord that is unparalleled if we do.
"baa..."
Love,
Joelene
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Verse of the Day - Colossians 3:2
Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. ~ Colossians 3:2 (NIV)
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(I memorized this verse as 'Set your mind on things eternal, not on things temporal', but I have no idea what translation that is...it's not KJV. I've quoted it often....hmm.)
My mom loves her dishes. You know, china and stuff you put in china hutches. When I was a teen, my dad bought a HUGE antique china hutch for my mom (hehe...I have dibs on that one when the time comes...:-), something that would hold all of her dishes. And no glass panels for showcasing, either. Are you kidding?!? That hutch is crammed so full of china, glass wear, serving pieces, etc. -- if it had glass panels, well....let's just say, that's why it doesn't have glass panels. It's not for showcasing the stuff inside. It's for storage.
I remember once when I was younger, that I did a bad thing. I got mad while setting the table and sort of accidentally broke one of my mom's cups. She really liked the cup, and I really didn't mean to go so far as to break it, but I did, and she was upset over it. I think I may have thrown today's verse at her, probably to make me feel better. Talk about wielding the Word for our own purposes, huh? Sheesh. But the fact is that she does hold onto her dish possessions quite tightly, and she knows this. It's kind of a regular reminder of today's verse when something in her kitchen gets broken, and she goes through a bit of heartache over it. Set your eyes on things eternal, Mom, not on things temporal...
Our earthly possessions can really get a grip on us, but the reality is that they are so fleeting -- moth and rust and robbers can turn our stuff into a junk heap or thin air (Matthew 6:19). Never mind hurricanes or angry teenagers (both can be so destructive). And that grip on stuff can easily take our focus away from God and His eternal plan and purpose, amen?
Or what about people? When people move in and out of our lives, it can devastate us. We can even have the audacity to say that when someone dies, they did it to us! As if they had a choice to have a heart attack or car accident. We can grieve way beyond what seems reasonable when we cling so tightly to what we have little-to-no control over. Is that healthy? Is that godly?
I have learned, through some difficult times, to hold things of this life loosely. To give God room to give and take away. Since He is the provider of all I have, He has the right to remove as He sees fit. To hold onto things or people with a possessive hand will cause me pain if/when God says it's time to move on/past it. So my life stance is to keep an open hand. I enjoy what God puts there, but I don't close my fingers around the gift. When He takes it away, I've not lost something, but enjoyed it while it was with me.
When Job lost everything -- I mean everything -- this is what he had to say:
"Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised." ~ Job 1:21 (NIV)
Whatever it is that you hold tightly to in this world, I pray you can release it to God. Let Him help you set your eyes on things above, not things of this earth. Allow yourself to grow up spiritually in life matters, so that His concerns about eternal things are what you cling to --
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(I memorized this verse as 'Set your mind on things eternal, not on things temporal', but I have no idea what translation that is...it's not KJV. I've quoted it often....hmm.)
My mom loves her dishes. You know, china and stuff you put in china hutches. When I was a teen, my dad bought a HUGE antique china hutch for my mom (hehe...I have dibs on that one when the time comes...:-), something that would hold all of her dishes. And no glass panels for showcasing, either. Are you kidding?!? That hutch is crammed so full of china, glass wear, serving pieces, etc. -- if it had glass panels, well....let's just say, that's why it doesn't have glass panels. It's not for showcasing the stuff inside. It's for storage.
I remember once when I was younger, that I did a bad thing. I got mad while setting the table and sort of accidentally broke one of my mom's cups. She really liked the cup, and I really didn't mean to go so far as to break it, but I did, and she was upset over it. I think I may have thrown today's verse at her, probably to make me feel better. Talk about wielding the Word for our own purposes, huh? Sheesh. But the fact is that she does hold onto her dish possessions quite tightly, and she knows this. It's kind of a regular reminder of today's verse when something in her kitchen gets broken, and she goes through a bit of heartache over it. Set your eyes on things eternal, Mom, not on things temporal...
Our earthly possessions can really get a grip on us, but the reality is that they are so fleeting -- moth and rust and robbers can turn our stuff into a junk heap or thin air (Matthew 6:19). Never mind hurricanes or angry teenagers (both can be so destructive). And that grip on stuff can easily take our focus away from God and His eternal plan and purpose, amen?
Or what about people? When people move in and out of our lives, it can devastate us. We can even have the audacity to say that when someone dies, they did it to us! As if they had a choice to have a heart attack or car accident. We can grieve way beyond what seems reasonable when we cling so tightly to what we have little-to-no control over. Is that healthy? Is that godly?
I have learned, through some difficult times, to hold things of this life loosely. To give God room to give and take away. Since He is the provider of all I have, He has the right to remove as He sees fit. To hold onto things or people with a possessive hand will cause me pain if/when God says it's time to move on/past it. So my life stance is to keep an open hand. I enjoy what God puts there, but I don't close my fingers around the gift. When He takes it away, I've not lost something, but enjoyed it while it was with me.
When Job lost everything -- I mean everything -- this is what he had to say:
"Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised." ~ Job 1:21 (NIV)
Whatever it is that you hold tightly to in this world, I pray you can release it to God. Let Him help you set your eyes on things above, not things of this earth. Allow yourself to grow up spiritually in life matters, so that His concerns about eternal things are what you cling to --
Love,
Joelene
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Verse of the Day - Jeremiah 17:7-8
But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.
~ Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NIV)
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This is how I want to live, like this tree. How about you?
God gives us a recipe for green, alive living, unafraid of difficulties and trials, able to stay green and productive. The answer? Trust in Him. Put our confidence in Him.
Those are easy words to say, but if you don't actually put them into practice, they're just words, and your green tree will get brown and not produce fruit. Trusting in God takes work, a lot of work. Our tendency is to look at the coming drought or impending heat wave -- down-spiraling economy, bad news from the doctor, difficulties in relationships -- and freak out, basically. Terrified of the unknown, terrified of experiencing pain. But God's word says that those who plant themselves close to Him and receive their life-sustaining water from Him don't go to the brown and fruitless stage, EVEN when the heat and the drought come.
Do you know someone like that? I'm sure you do. But remember, if you're still working through the process of learning how to trust God and not yourself, take encouragement in the fact that the green trees you know went through the process, too. We all have to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18). It doesn't just happen. It's a process, and it's a choice.
I hope you can make the positive choice to plant yourself next to God. Draw from His Living Water day in and day out, and be green and fruitful. Choose to put your confidence in His care for you, completely. Purpose yourself to trust Him with everything you have, all the way. I guarantee you'll see a change in how your tree looks and grows.
Love,
Joelene
~ Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is how I want to live, like this tree. How about you?
God gives us a recipe for green, alive living, unafraid of difficulties and trials, able to stay green and productive. The answer? Trust in Him. Put our confidence in Him.
Those are easy words to say, but if you don't actually put them into practice, they're just words, and your green tree will get brown and not produce fruit. Trusting in God takes work, a lot of work. Our tendency is to look at the coming drought or impending heat wave -- down-spiraling economy, bad news from the doctor, difficulties in relationships -- and freak out, basically. Terrified of the unknown, terrified of experiencing pain. But God's word says that those who plant themselves close to Him and receive their life-sustaining water from Him don't go to the brown and fruitless stage, EVEN when the heat and the drought come.
Do you know someone like that? I'm sure you do. But remember, if you're still working through the process of learning how to trust God and not yourself, take encouragement in the fact that the green trees you know went through the process, too. We all have to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18). It doesn't just happen. It's a process, and it's a choice.
I hope you can make the positive choice to plant yourself next to God. Draw from His Living Water day in and day out, and be green and fruitful. Choose to put your confidence in His care for you, completely. Purpose yourself to trust Him with everything you have, all the way. I guarantee you'll see a change in how your tree looks and grows.
Love,
Joelene
Friday, March 20, 2009
Verse of the Day - Ecclesiastes 1:6-7
The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. ~ Ecclesiastes 1:6-7 (NIV)
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These are the words of someone who is sick of the seemingly meaninglessness of life. Over and over again, the same thing. Nothing new under the sun. What has been, will be again; what you see, has been seen before. Blah, blah blah...
I'm sure you've experienced that mentality in your life at one time or another. Maybe that's how you feel now. The monotony of life may be overwhelming you, and you just want change. Or maybe you just want out.
But I'm here to give you a new perspective on the cycles of life. Yes, it may seem interminably monotonous to do the same things over and over again. I understand that. But to a great degree, we fallen humans need a certain amount of structure and routine in our lives to keep us grounded, kind of like our need for gravity. Without it, we'd be flinging and boinging all over outer space! Yet, within that structure can be a great deal of creativity and surprises, that keeps the monotony from engulfing us in a sea of grey.
God created the seasons and the cycle of precipitation. Yes, these are seemingly endless, monotonous cycles. But within that seeming monotony, God has flair. He surprises us! When Spring comes, we know flowers will bloom. But have you ever been surprised to see a flower or vegetable sprout up where you didn't plant it? What a pleasant surprise! Not all things are predictable in the predictability of the repeated cycles of life. Or what about the rain? Yes, it comes predictably in Winter. But is it really ever the same? Sometimes, it's a fine mist that causes you to stand outside with your face to the sky, just to feel it on your face. Other times, you better have an umbrella, or you're gonna seriously get soaked! :-)
Things may seem like they're always the same, but God has a way of giving us little splashes of difference, if we're willing to look for them. Today, as you head to work, open your eyes and see if you can see something new that wasn't there before. A new tree in bloom, a new billboard, a new sunrise. Don't let the evil one cause you to miss God's blessings in the middle of life's monotony. And who knows? Maybe God will use you today to be the difference in someone else's monotony; maybe you'll be the new flower that blooms for someone who needs color so badly in their sea of grey.
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
These are the words of someone who is sick of the seemingly meaninglessness of life. Over and over again, the same thing. Nothing new under the sun. What has been, will be again; what you see, has been seen before. Blah, blah blah...
I'm sure you've experienced that mentality in your life at one time or another. Maybe that's how you feel now. The monotony of life may be overwhelming you, and you just want change. Or maybe you just want out.
But I'm here to give you a new perspective on the cycles of life. Yes, it may seem interminably monotonous to do the same things over and over again. I understand that. But to a great degree, we fallen humans need a certain amount of structure and routine in our lives to keep us grounded, kind of like our need for gravity. Without it, we'd be flinging and boinging all over outer space! Yet, within that structure can be a great deal of creativity and surprises, that keeps the monotony from engulfing us in a sea of grey.
God created the seasons and the cycle of precipitation. Yes, these are seemingly endless, monotonous cycles. But within that seeming monotony, God has flair. He surprises us! When Spring comes, we know flowers will bloom. But have you ever been surprised to see a flower or vegetable sprout up where you didn't plant it? What a pleasant surprise! Not all things are predictable in the predictability of the repeated cycles of life. Or what about the rain? Yes, it comes predictably in Winter. But is it really ever the same? Sometimes, it's a fine mist that causes you to stand outside with your face to the sky, just to feel it on your face. Other times, you better have an umbrella, or you're gonna seriously get soaked! :-)
Things may seem like they're always the same, but God has a way of giving us little splashes of difference, if we're willing to look for them. Today, as you head to work, open your eyes and see if you can see something new that wasn't there before. A new tree in bloom, a new billboard, a new sunrise. Don't let the evil one cause you to miss God's blessings in the middle of life's monotony. And who knows? Maybe God will use you today to be the difference in someone else's monotony; maybe you'll be the new flower that blooms for someone who needs color so badly in their sea of grey.
Love,
Joelene
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Verse of the Day - Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
~ Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)
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I don't know how many laws are on the books these days, but probably into the tens of thousands. And every year, more laws are put into place. Why? Because people either can't seem to keep their hands to themselves, can't play nice or want what others have. Does this sound like Romper Room, or what?
But the good thing about living in line with the spirit of God is that no law is needed. God's way is never out of line, never offensive to others, never needing correction. It's beautiful to see people follow God's spirit, even if they don't realize it. I saw a commercial the other day that showed a nerdy kid getting bullied in a high school locker hallway, and the football jock took a stand and helped him pick up his books (rats -- I wish I could remember the website that was promoting this). They weren't trying to sell anything; just wanting to help people be better toward others. Wow. From secular TV. Who knew? :-)
God's spirit is alive and active and working in the hearts of people everywhere. Look for it -- and model it.
....love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control...
Love,
Joelene
~ Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I don't know how many laws are on the books these days, but probably into the tens of thousands. And every year, more laws are put into place. Why? Because people either can't seem to keep their hands to themselves, can't play nice or want what others have. Does this sound like Romper Room, or what?
But the good thing about living in line with the spirit of God is that no law is needed. God's way is never out of line, never offensive to others, never needing correction. It's beautiful to see people follow God's spirit, even if they don't realize it. I saw a commercial the other day that showed a nerdy kid getting bullied in a high school locker hallway, and the football jock took a stand and helped him pick up his books (rats -- I wish I could remember the website that was promoting this). They weren't trying to sell anything; just wanting to help people be better toward others. Wow. From secular TV. Who knew? :-)
God's spirit is alive and active and working in the hearts of people everywhere. Look for it -- and model it.
....love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control...
Love,
Joelene
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Verse of the Day - 1 Thessalonians 5:15
Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.
~ 1 Thessalonians 5:15 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It's usually very easy to be kind to someone who is kind to you, isn't it? When I go through the Starbucks drive-thru line, the barista says, "Welcome to Starbucks, my name is ____, how are you doing today?" I respond, "Very good, thank you. And how about yourself?" It's all very pleasant, and I drive away with a yummy coffee and a smile. Simple pleasures, eh?
But what if that barista came on the squawk-box and said, "Hurry up, it's almost time for my break. Whaddaya want?" Hmm....do I tell her, "Nothing, except to get away from your rude behind...", or come back with a kind response, like, "Wow, you must've had a really busy day. Sorry you're stressed. I'd like a ......"
True, when someone is rude to us, it throws us back. We're shocked! But the Lord tells us to check ourselves, to put ourselves in the other person's shoes, to put on the mind of Christ, and show kindness. To speak lovingly and do good. Ooo, sometimes it can be hard, huh?
Depending on the level of wrong done to us, we seem to think that we can gauge whether a wrong done back is deserving. Okay, so a clerk is rude -- you think, "Gee, did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed?", but you can usually take that with a grain of salt and stay pleasant. But if a kid on a skateboard veers off the sidewalk into your traffic lane because he's messing around with his friends, you might be tempted to honk really loud right when you pass him, to scare the mess out of him, or get a little close to him with your car, just so he thinks twice about trying that again. Or take it 20,000 levels deeper: a friend or family member is killed by a drunk driver, and you fight the urge to burn down the suspect's house . . . or worse.
When is it okay to do wrong for wrong? God says never. In the little things and in the big things. Why? Because God says to leave room for Him, as the judge of men...
Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. ~ Romans 12:19 (NIV)
There's a saying that goes, "Kill 'em with kindness." Not sure if that's exactly the attitude we should have :-), but the point is that love does cover over a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8), a gentle answer turns away wrath (Proverbs 15:1) and doing good to your enemies reflects the character and ways of God (Matthew 5:43-48). This is maybe one of the hardest Christian disciplines to grasp and attain. Sure, don't steal or kill -- easy. Be nice to jerks and criminals? Grrr....
No doubt, it's a tough command from God, but it is what we're called to do. So, since we know it easily goes against our natural grain, we need to ask God to help us. Daily. Sometimes, hourly, if you are in the midst of people or circumstances where you have been or are being wronged. I don't believe that we're not to take legitimate corrective action when harm is done, but our attitude should be one of love, not condemnation. Remember -- God loves us, in spite of all the wrong we do to Him, and continues to forgive and cleanse us when we confess our sins (1 John 1:9).
Becoming Christ-like is hard work, amen? But it's the highest form of worship we could ever give to God and the highest blessing we could ever receive from God.
Love,
Joelene
~ 1 Thessalonians 5:15 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It's usually very easy to be kind to someone who is kind to you, isn't it? When I go through the Starbucks drive-thru line, the barista says, "Welcome to Starbucks, my name is ____, how are you doing today?" I respond, "Very good, thank you. And how about yourself?" It's all very pleasant, and I drive away with a yummy coffee and a smile. Simple pleasures, eh?
But what if that barista came on the squawk-box and said, "Hurry up, it's almost time for my break. Whaddaya want?" Hmm....do I tell her, "Nothing, except to get away from your rude behind...", or come back with a kind response, like, "Wow, you must've had a really busy day. Sorry you're stressed. I'd like a ......"
True, when someone is rude to us, it throws us back. We're shocked! But the Lord tells us to check ourselves, to put ourselves in the other person's shoes, to put on the mind of Christ, and show kindness. To speak lovingly and do good. Ooo, sometimes it can be hard, huh?
Depending on the level of wrong done to us, we seem to think that we can gauge whether a wrong done back is deserving. Okay, so a clerk is rude -- you think, "Gee, did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed?", but you can usually take that with a grain of salt and stay pleasant. But if a kid on a skateboard veers off the sidewalk into your traffic lane because he's messing around with his friends, you might be tempted to honk really loud right when you pass him, to scare the mess out of him, or get a little close to him with your car, just so he thinks twice about trying that again. Or take it 20,000 levels deeper: a friend or family member is killed by a drunk driver, and you fight the urge to burn down the suspect's house . . . or worse.
When is it okay to do wrong for wrong? God says never. In the little things and in the big things. Why? Because God says to leave room for Him, as the judge of men...
Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. ~ Romans 12:19 (NIV)
There's a saying that goes, "Kill 'em with kindness." Not sure if that's exactly the attitude we should have :-), but the point is that love does cover over a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8), a gentle answer turns away wrath (Proverbs 15:1) and doing good to your enemies reflects the character and ways of God (Matthew 5:43-48). This is maybe one of the hardest Christian disciplines to grasp and attain. Sure, don't steal or kill -- easy. Be nice to jerks and criminals? Grrr....
No doubt, it's a tough command from God, but it is what we're called to do. So, since we know it easily goes against our natural grain, we need to ask God to help us. Daily. Sometimes, hourly, if you are in the midst of people or circumstances where you have been or are being wronged. I don't believe that we're not to take legitimate corrective action when harm is done, but our attitude should be one of love, not condemnation. Remember -- God loves us, in spite of all the wrong we do to Him, and continues to forgive and cleanse us when we confess our sins (1 John 1:9).
Becoming Christ-like is hard work, amen? But it's the highest form of worship we could ever give to God and the highest blessing we could ever receive from God.
Love,
Joelene
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Verse of the Day - 2 Corinthians 8:12
Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have.
~ 2 Corinthians 8:12 (NLT)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two attitudes are identified here in how we give, be it money or time . . . willingness and humility.
God wants us to be cheerful when we give. If the purse strings are cinched so tight that air couldn't pass through, let alone and offering to the Lord or a donation to a charity, we need to re-evaluate our blessings and remember where they come from. Don't be stingy where money is concerned. Remember that it is God who gives you your job and your ability to do it...and keep it. Be thankful and honor Him by having a generous spirit. And that goes for your clock and calendar, as well as your wallet. Truly, what Jesus said is true: It is better to give, than to receive. (Acts 20:35) When you can let go of self and allow the love of God to fill your spirit, you can know the real joy of cheerful giving!
But -- don't think you need to keep up with the Joneses, either. You may operate in circles where you're on the low end of the economic ladder. Just because Suzy Jones is able to give $1,000 a month for the offering, doesn't mean that you need to take out a loan to put money in the plate at church! And if Suzy Jones is able to be a stay-at-home woman and is able to work at the kids' school and make sack lunches for the homeless and run the PTA drive, doesn't mean that you have to somehow match that if you work 40 hours a week outside the home. God wants us to offer out of our own kettle with our own measuring cup, not someone else's. He wants us our hearts to give out of love, not competition or guilt.
Some types of giving are visible; some are not. But God sees all of it, and more importantly, He sees the heart behind it all. And this principle of giving is very dear to His heart, because, in divine selfless love, He gave all He had for us . . . Jesus, His Son, given as a sacrifice for our sin.
God desires us to have a heart like His. Choose to be generous in what you have, with a cheerful heart, as His dearly loved children.
Love,
Joelene
~ 2 Corinthians 8:12 (NLT)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Two attitudes are identified here in how we give, be it money or time . . . willingness and humility.
God wants us to be cheerful when we give. If the purse strings are cinched so tight that air couldn't pass through, let alone and offering to the Lord or a donation to a charity, we need to re-evaluate our blessings and remember where they come from. Don't be stingy where money is concerned. Remember that it is God who gives you your job and your ability to do it...and keep it. Be thankful and honor Him by having a generous spirit. And that goes for your clock and calendar, as well as your wallet. Truly, what Jesus said is true: It is better to give, than to receive. (Acts 20:35) When you can let go of self and allow the love of God to fill your spirit, you can know the real joy of cheerful giving!
But -- don't think you need to keep up with the Joneses, either. You may operate in circles where you're on the low end of the economic ladder. Just because Suzy Jones is able to give $1,000 a month for the offering, doesn't mean that you need to take out a loan to put money in the plate at church! And if Suzy Jones is able to be a stay-at-home woman and is able to work at the kids' school and make sack lunches for the homeless and run the PTA drive, doesn't mean that you have to somehow match that if you work 40 hours a week outside the home. God wants us to offer out of our own kettle with our own measuring cup, not someone else's. He wants us our hearts to give out of love, not competition or guilt.
Some types of giving are visible; some are not. But God sees all of it, and more importantly, He sees the heart behind it all. And this principle of giving is very dear to His heart, because, in divine selfless love, He gave all He had for us . . . Jesus, His Son, given as a sacrifice for our sin.
God desires us to have a heart like His. Choose to be generous in what you have, with a cheerful heart, as His dearly loved children.
Love,
Joelene
Monday, March 16, 2009
Verse of the Day - 1 John 4:15
All who confess that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. ~ 1 John 4:15 (NLT)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, there you have it -- the essence of Christianity. This is the bare bones, the bottom line.
Who Jesus is and who you believe He is has everything to do with your relationship to God. Believing He was a good teacher is good, but if that's all He is to you, well, "Houston, we have a problem." If you say He was a humanitarian, you'd be right -- but if that concept isn't coupled with His divine nature, you've reduced Him to a good-will ambassador, a Volunteer of America poster child, instead of the Son of God, come to earth, to rescue a dying world, needing salvation and truth and love and wisdom.
You miss the main point if you miss his divinity. And God says, If you choose not to believe in who Jesus is, then we're done here.
See, here's the deal. We, as sin-sick humans, have no access to a holy God. He cannot allow sin in His presence, so we are unfortunately cut off because of our sin. But God, in His loving grace, made a way for our sins to be eternally forgiven, through the shed blood (since the wages of sin is death, Romans 6:22) of His Son, who is pure and holy just like His Father, without sin. His sacrifice was sufficient because He is God. If you believe He is God, then His sacrifice is applicable to you. If you don't believe He is God, then to you, He was just one of millions crucified on a Roman cross a few millenia ago, and His blood is no different than yours or mine, or any other person who's walked the face of the earth.
There's no doubt that faith is a major player in this whole thing. It's a fantastic claim for God to come to earth in the form of a human, to live a humble life only to die a cruel death. But if this is hard for you to swallow, I need to point you to a place that may help you get it. Go down the path to the tomb where they laid Jesus after He died. Talk to Mary, Peter and John. Interview the Roman soldiers who guarded the tomb with their lives. Ask them about the claim that Jesus rose from the dead. Talk to Thomas, who like many, couldn't quite get the fact that Jesus was God and that death couldn't hold Him down in the grave -- that is, until He heard the familiar voice, and saw the tell-tale scars of the nails in His hands. Then, all Thomas could say was, "My Lord, and my God." That was enough. John testifies in today's verse, that that is enough.
We can heap alot of legalism and ritual on top of our faith, rules and regulations that can obscure our vision. We need to be sure that our vision is clear about who Jesus is, bottom line. He is the Son of God, the Living God. Do you believe it? I pray that you can embrace this simple, yet profound, truth about Jesus, because it is the foundation of eternal life with God, who loves you deeply and desires a relationship with you that can begin here on earth and will never end.
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, there you have it -- the essence of Christianity. This is the bare bones, the bottom line.
Who Jesus is and who you believe He is has everything to do with your relationship to God. Believing He was a good teacher is good, but if that's all He is to you, well, "Houston, we have a problem." If you say He was a humanitarian, you'd be right -- but if that concept isn't coupled with His divine nature, you've reduced Him to a good-will ambassador, a Volunteer of America poster child, instead of the Son of God, come to earth, to rescue a dying world, needing salvation and truth and love and wisdom.
You miss the main point if you miss his divinity. And God says, If you choose not to believe in who Jesus is, then we're done here.
See, here's the deal. We, as sin-sick humans, have no access to a holy God. He cannot allow sin in His presence, so we are unfortunately cut off because of our sin. But God, in His loving grace, made a way for our sins to be eternally forgiven, through the shed blood (since the wages of sin is death, Romans 6:22) of His Son, who is pure and holy just like His Father, without sin. His sacrifice was sufficient because He is God. If you believe He is God, then His sacrifice is applicable to you. If you don't believe He is God, then to you, He was just one of millions crucified on a Roman cross a few millenia ago, and His blood is no different than yours or mine, or any other person who's walked the face of the earth.
There's no doubt that faith is a major player in this whole thing. It's a fantastic claim for God to come to earth in the form of a human, to live a humble life only to die a cruel death. But if this is hard for you to swallow, I need to point you to a place that may help you get it. Go down the path to the tomb where they laid Jesus after He died. Talk to Mary, Peter and John. Interview the Roman soldiers who guarded the tomb with their lives. Ask them about the claim that Jesus rose from the dead. Talk to Thomas, who like many, couldn't quite get the fact that Jesus was God and that death couldn't hold Him down in the grave -- that is, until He heard the familiar voice, and saw the tell-tale scars of the nails in His hands. Then, all Thomas could say was, "My Lord, and my God." That was enough. John testifies in today's verse, that that is enough.
We can heap alot of legalism and ritual on top of our faith, rules and regulations that can obscure our vision. We need to be sure that our vision is clear about who Jesus is, bottom line. He is the Son of God, the Living God. Do you believe it? I pray that you can embrace this simple, yet profound, truth about Jesus, because it is the foundation of eternal life with God, who loves you deeply and desires a relationship with you that can begin here on earth and will never end.
Love,
Joelene
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Verse of the Day - Psalm 27:8
My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, LORD, I will seek. ~ Psalm 27:8 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When I was 14 yrs old, I attended a national Covenant church camp in Estes Park, Colorado. It was amazing to meet so many kids from all over the United States. I met a boy there that I liked, and we seemed to connect rather well. Okay, I admit it -- I was smitten. Parting was sad, as he lived in Kansas, and I was headed back to California. On the bus ride home, he filled my thoughts, as you might imagine. But one thing bothered me terribly -- try as I might, I found it hard to see his face in my mind! That was awful! I could see the outline, but the details of his face escaped me. It was a rather torturous ride home...
A person's face is the essence of who they are. When they speak, we look at their face, their eyes speaking as much, if not more, than their mouth. When we recall friends, what do we see? Their foot? Their elbow? No, it's their face. It declares who they are, and for those who are dear to us, their face is precious, and we want to see it!
So, what about the face of God? How is that possible, huh?
We know from Scripture that God is spirit, and doesn't possess a body like we do. Yet Scripture references the "hand" of God, the "arm" of God, the "face" of God. How do we know the provision of His hand when it's not a hand? How do we feel the comfort of His arms when they're not arms? How do we seek the comfort and acceptance of His face when it's not a face? Good questions!
These are part of the unique relationship that believers in Jesus have with God -- created physical beings in connection with their invisible eternal God. We trust in His personage, even though it does not exist in a body like ours. That personage has all the qualities that we understand a Father to possess -- provision, guidance, love, correction. An earthly father would talk to us, look us in the eye, correct us with words and/or swattings, hug us, rock us, play with us. Because we are made in His image, we can understand that He functions in a similar way, except that in all things, He is pure and holy.
So, about His face, and seeking His face, what does that mean to you? Can you see His image in your mind? No, no one knows what God looks like. But in this passage, I believe it means that we seek to look squarely at Him, coming boldly in His presence to talk with Him. We need that interpersonal connection, and that's what we do with our friends and loved ones -- we want to talk to them, face to face. We want to look in their eyes and make sure that the relationship is healthy and intact.
I'm sure you've been in a relationship where something is broken. Do you want to look at the other person? No! And they probably don't want to look at you either. Looking someone in the face forces a connection, which can be very uncomfortable when there is a strain. Conversely, when the relationship is healthy, you LOVE to look at that person's face. There is a smile on their lips and a twinkle in their eye for you. And you return them gladly. Like I said, the face speaks volumes.
When we're obedient to God, as His children, He is pleased, and His face shows it -- we're not fearful of coming to Him and seeing a scowl. I pray that you are willing to seek God's face, to desire to share a healthy relationship with Him, in communion with your Creator, being able to look God in the eye through your obedience, living rightly by the power of the Holy Spirit and turning away from the things that go against God's grain.
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When I was 14 yrs old, I attended a national Covenant church camp in Estes Park, Colorado. It was amazing to meet so many kids from all over the United States. I met a boy there that I liked, and we seemed to connect rather well. Okay, I admit it -- I was smitten. Parting was sad, as he lived in Kansas, and I was headed back to California. On the bus ride home, he filled my thoughts, as you might imagine. But one thing bothered me terribly -- try as I might, I found it hard to see his face in my mind! That was awful! I could see the outline, but the details of his face escaped me. It was a rather torturous ride home...
A person's face is the essence of who they are. When they speak, we look at their face, their eyes speaking as much, if not more, than their mouth. When we recall friends, what do we see? Their foot? Their elbow? No, it's their face. It declares who they are, and for those who are dear to us, their face is precious, and we want to see it!
So, what about the face of God? How is that possible, huh?
We know from Scripture that God is spirit, and doesn't possess a body like we do. Yet Scripture references the "hand" of God, the "arm" of God, the "face" of God. How do we know the provision of His hand when it's not a hand? How do we feel the comfort of His arms when they're not arms? How do we seek the comfort and acceptance of His face when it's not a face? Good questions!
These are part of the unique relationship that believers in Jesus have with God -- created physical beings in connection with their invisible eternal God. We trust in His personage, even though it does not exist in a body like ours. That personage has all the qualities that we understand a Father to possess -- provision, guidance, love, correction. An earthly father would talk to us, look us in the eye, correct us with words and/or swattings, hug us, rock us, play with us. Because we are made in His image, we can understand that He functions in a similar way, except that in all things, He is pure and holy.
So, about His face, and seeking His face, what does that mean to you? Can you see His image in your mind? No, no one knows what God looks like. But in this passage, I believe it means that we seek to look squarely at Him, coming boldly in His presence to talk with Him. We need that interpersonal connection, and that's what we do with our friends and loved ones -- we want to talk to them, face to face. We want to look in their eyes and make sure that the relationship is healthy and intact.
I'm sure you've been in a relationship where something is broken. Do you want to look at the other person? No! And they probably don't want to look at you either. Looking someone in the face forces a connection, which can be very uncomfortable when there is a strain. Conversely, when the relationship is healthy, you LOVE to look at that person's face. There is a smile on their lips and a twinkle in their eye for you. And you return them gladly. Like I said, the face speaks volumes.
When we're obedient to God, as His children, He is pleased, and His face shows it -- we're not fearful of coming to Him and seeing a scowl. I pray that you are willing to seek God's face, to desire to share a healthy relationship with Him, in communion with your Creator, being able to look God in the eye through your obedience, living rightly by the power of the Holy Spirit and turning away from the things that go against God's grain.
Love,
Joelene
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Verse of the Day - Luke 16:11
[Jesus says,] "So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?"
~ Luke 16:11 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(Due to time constraints today, please allow me to replay my VOTD from a year ago. Thanks!)
I was just talking yesterday to a friend about stewardship --being a good steward of my time on the job. It's not because my boss is looking over my shoulder to see if I'm on a personal call or sending personal emails...it's because God is watching. And it's not like I envision Him looking down on me, saying, You shouldn't be doing that. I just sense it in my spirit that I need to be honorable toward my employer who is paying me to do my job...not to chit-chat with my friends. God's Holy Spirit works within me to steer me, to prompt me to do the right thing.
I was also convicted recently about spending too much money eating out. Simple enough -- I have a girl in college, and I talk alot about the financial sacrifices that is costing me. And yet, because I had been so lazy not to go to the grocery store and stock my kitchen properly, I was eating at the hospital cafeteria . . . twice a day! Talk about overspending! I rationalized it for a long time. But God was talking to me. Poor stewardship.
Although these kinds of things don't touch on how I use my time and money toward God's endeavors, I think they are linked. When I allow God to mould me to His thinking and His patterns for living, my mind is more centered on Him. I spend more time praying and thinking about what's important to His Kingdom. When a financial need arises in the church body...someones car broke down, or they're laid up from surgery and need some meals brought in...I could have resources available to help out, if I've been wise in the way I manage my money. If I stay focused on work while I'm at work, then my stress level is lessened and I'm more available to participate in Kingdom things after work, instead of coming home and crashing on the couch from mental exhaustion.
It's a mindset thing. Are we living for us, or God? How we use our time, talents, finances, even our mental energies is an indicator of what takes precedence in our lives.
Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. ~ Jesus, in Luke 9:23-24
I think it is possible to abandon oneself and live for God, all the way. Money? It's just money. Time? A new day rolls around every 24 hours. We are given so much by God! Doesn't He deserve to be honored with how we use those resources? Jesus never taught us to be selfish, interested only in what's good for "me". He Himself wrote the manual on selflessness. Look at what He did for you and for me...
...He was all about the Kingdom.
How about you?
Love,
Joelene
~ Luke 16:11 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(Due to time constraints today, please allow me to replay my VOTD from a year ago. Thanks!)
I was just talking yesterday to a friend about stewardship --being a good steward of my time on the job. It's not because my boss is looking over my shoulder to see if I'm on a personal call or sending personal emails...it's because God is watching. And it's not like I envision Him looking down on me, saying, You shouldn't be doing that. I just sense it in my spirit that I need to be honorable toward my employer who is paying me to do my job...not to chit-chat with my friends. God's Holy Spirit works within me to steer me, to prompt me to do the right thing.
I was also convicted recently about spending too much money eating out. Simple enough -- I have a girl in college, and I talk alot about the financial sacrifices that is costing me. And yet, because I had been so lazy not to go to the grocery store and stock my kitchen properly, I was eating at the hospital cafeteria . . . twice a day! Talk about overspending! I rationalized it for a long time. But God was talking to me. Poor stewardship.
Although these kinds of things don't touch on how I use my time and money toward God's endeavors, I think they are linked. When I allow God to mould me to His thinking and His patterns for living, my mind is more centered on Him. I spend more time praying and thinking about what's important to His Kingdom. When a financial need arises in the church body...someones car broke down, or they're laid up from surgery and need some meals brought in...I could have resources available to help out, if I've been wise in the way I manage my money. If I stay focused on work while I'm at work, then my stress level is lessened and I'm more available to participate in Kingdom things after work, instead of coming home and crashing on the couch from mental exhaustion.
It's a mindset thing. Are we living for us, or God? How we use our time, talents, finances, even our mental energies is an indicator of what takes precedence in our lives.
Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. ~ Jesus, in Luke 9:23-24
I think it is possible to abandon oneself and live for God, all the way. Money? It's just money. Time? A new day rolls around every 24 hours. We are given so much by God! Doesn't He deserve to be honored with how we use those resources? Jesus never taught us to be selfish, interested only in what's good for "me". He Himself wrote the manual on selflessness. Look at what He did for you and for me...
...He was all about the Kingdom.
How about you?
Love,
Joelene
Friday, March 13, 2009
Verse of the Day - Romans 8:28
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
~ Romans 8:28 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As many may have heard, last Sunday in Maryville, Indiana, a gunman walked into a church, exchanged a few words with the pastor during the service, and opened fire. When the gun jammed, he drew a knife and stabbed himself and others who subdued him. In the end, the pastor, Fred Winters, died of his gunshot injuries. What a terrible tragedy . . . and in a church, no less. I think even criminals who disrespect the rights of others would look at that act and think that's the height of disrespect and evil. We usually think that the church is sacred ground and that evil doesn't enter in. We must think again.
But we must never think that God has lost control, even when a gunman kills a pastor in church. The Word of God declares that God causes all things to work together for good to them that love Him and are called according to his purpose. In reading the testimonies of this man's life, it's obvious how much he loved Jesus and gave his all to serve his God. And listen to the testimony of his widow: He "died doing what he loved -- communicating the hope found in Jesus Christ. God is so much bigger than this situation, and our hope and trust is in Him."
God is so much bigger than this situation...
This woman shares a testimony to the world of a person of great faith in God's sovereignty, power, and purpose. In the midst of her grief and the swirl of paparazzi over this outrageous and heinous act against her husband, she can and does trust in God. She knows that He works all things together for good -- even the bad, the awful, the horrific.
I know that God is using her testimony to speak to people who have no faith in God or who are weak in their faith. How do I know? Have I heard reports of people getting saved on the heels of her testimony or seen re-dedications to God because of it? No. But I know, because that is the miracle of the mighty Spirit of God, to move in people's hearts and minds by the testimony of believers, often on the heels of heartache, brokenness and tragedy. How followers of Christ react to life events is powerful to touch the hearts and minds of those who struggle with these same events, yet have no God to turn to and no power to deal with them.
If you are a believer and are struggling with difficulties, I must encourage you to rise up and be counted as one who stands on the truth of the Almighty God -- that He is in control and works all things together for good -- and develop a faith that can withstand the onslaught of negative circumstances. We are called to be beacons of light to those lost in darkness, who need to see their way to the Savior. May we increase our faith, so that we understand and embrace the truth of God's ability to make beauty for ashes...
He gives beauty for ashes
Strength for fear
Gladness for mourning
Peace for despair
When sorrow seems to surround you
When suffering hangs heavy o'er your head
Know that tomorrow brings
Wholeness and healing
God knows your need
Just believe what He said
He gives beauty for ashes
Strength for fear
Gladness for mourning
Peace for despair
When what you've done keeps you from moving on
When fear wants to make itself at home in your heart
Know that forgiveness brings
Wholeness and healing
God knows your need
Just believe what He said
He gives beauty for ashes
Strength for fear
Gladness for mourning
Peace for despair
I once was lost but God has found me
Though I was bound I've been set free
I've been made righteous in His sight
A display of His splendor all can see
He gives beauty for ashes
Strength for fear
Gladness for mourning
Peace for despair
~ Beauty for Ashes, by Crystal Lewis
Love,
Joelene
~ Romans 8:28 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As many may have heard, last Sunday in Maryville, Indiana, a gunman walked into a church, exchanged a few words with the pastor during the service, and opened fire. When the gun jammed, he drew a knife and stabbed himself and others who subdued him. In the end, the pastor, Fred Winters, died of his gunshot injuries. What a terrible tragedy . . . and in a church, no less. I think even criminals who disrespect the rights of others would look at that act and think that's the height of disrespect and evil. We usually think that the church is sacred ground and that evil doesn't enter in. We must think again.
But we must never think that God has lost control, even when a gunman kills a pastor in church. The Word of God declares that God causes all things to work together for good to them that love Him and are called according to his purpose. In reading the testimonies of this man's life, it's obvious how much he loved Jesus and gave his all to serve his God. And listen to the testimony of his widow: He "died doing what he loved -- communicating the hope found in Jesus Christ. God is so much bigger than this situation, and our hope and trust is in Him."
God is so much bigger than this situation...
This woman shares a testimony to the world of a person of great faith in God's sovereignty, power, and purpose. In the midst of her grief and the swirl of paparazzi over this outrageous and heinous act against her husband, she can and does trust in God. She knows that He works all things together for good -- even the bad, the awful, the horrific.
I know that God is using her testimony to speak to people who have no faith in God or who are weak in their faith. How do I know? Have I heard reports of people getting saved on the heels of her testimony or seen re-dedications to God because of it? No. But I know, because that is the miracle of the mighty Spirit of God, to move in people's hearts and minds by the testimony of believers, often on the heels of heartache, brokenness and tragedy. How followers of Christ react to life events is powerful to touch the hearts and minds of those who struggle with these same events, yet have no God to turn to and no power to deal with them.
If you are a believer and are struggling with difficulties, I must encourage you to rise up and be counted as one who stands on the truth of the Almighty God -- that He is in control and works all things together for good -- and develop a faith that can withstand the onslaught of negative circumstances. We are called to be beacons of light to those lost in darkness, who need to see their way to the Savior. May we increase our faith, so that we understand and embrace the truth of God's ability to make beauty for ashes...
He gives beauty for ashes
Strength for fear
Gladness for mourning
Peace for despair
When sorrow seems to surround you
When suffering hangs heavy o'er your head
Know that tomorrow brings
Wholeness and healing
God knows your need
Just believe what He said
He gives beauty for ashes
Strength for fear
Gladness for mourning
Peace for despair
When what you've done keeps you from moving on
When fear wants to make itself at home in your heart
Know that forgiveness brings
Wholeness and healing
God knows your need
Just believe what He said
He gives beauty for ashes
Strength for fear
Gladness for mourning
Peace for despair
I once was lost but God has found me
Though I was bound I've been set free
I've been made righteous in His sight
A display of His splendor all can see
He gives beauty for ashes
Strength for fear
Gladness for mourning
Peace for despair
~ Beauty for Ashes, by Crystal Lewis
Love,
Joelene
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Verse of the Day - 2 Corinthians 9:6
Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop. ~ 2 Corinthians 9:6 (NLT)
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We tend to be a rather stingy lot, don't we? We measure out our time, our money, our favor in small amounts, seemingly with a teaspoon, instead of a barrel, and we wonder why God seems so small...but it's often our hearts, and not God, who is small.
Whether it's offering your time to help someone move or listening to a little kid tell his story about the bug he saw on the big green leaf, time spent on people are seeds of love scattered. Maybe you can let go of a $20 instead of a $1 when a charity comes calling....they and God are served by your giving, and you are sowing seeds of generosity and self-sacrifice in yourself. And what about prayer? Are you sowing only 2-minute rushed seeds on your knees, or are you willing to expend the time for 30 minutes or an hour to pray to God, seeking Him and His will? With the measure you sow whatever seeds you sow, the harvest will give witness.
Your love and care for others, your generosity in giving, your communication with God in prayer and reading His word -- lavish God with your life by sowing seeds for Him in abundance! And then watch God do His work by nurturing those seeds into a harvest of His glory and good purpose.
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We tend to be a rather stingy lot, don't we? We measure out our time, our money, our favor in small amounts, seemingly with a teaspoon, instead of a barrel, and we wonder why God seems so small...but it's often our hearts, and not God, who is small.
Whether it's offering your time to help someone move or listening to a little kid tell his story about the bug he saw on the big green leaf, time spent on people are seeds of love scattered. Maybe you can let go of a $20 instead of a $1 when a charity comes calling....they and God are served by your giving, and you are sowing seeds of generosity and self-sacrifice in yourself. And what about prayer? Are you sowing only 2-minute rushed seeds on your knees, or are you willing to expend the time for 30 minutes or an hour to pray to God, seeking Him and His will? With the measure you sow whatever seeds you sow, the harvest will give witness.
Your love and care for others, your generosity in giving, your communication with God in prayer and reading His word -- lavish God with your life by sowing seeds for Him in abundance! And then watch God do His work by nurturing those seeds into a harvest of His glory and good purpose.
Love,
Joelene
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Verse of the Day - Proverbs 4:5
Get wisdom; develop good judgment. Don’t forget my words or turn away from them.
~ Proverbs 4:5 (NLT)
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I'm sure you can remember many words of wisdom that your mom or dad gave you when you were growing up, things like...
~ Don't run with scissors...
~ Look both ways before crossing the street...
~ Wash your hands after you use the restroom...
And if you're a parent, you've probably drilled these, and many other nuggets of wisdom, into your kids like an off-shore oil rig -- 24/7, way down deep. Each new generation learns valuable lessons about life from the older generation, and the cycle perpetuates. That is, if they don't forget or turn away.
But how many people do you see who have not remembered the wise advise from the older generation, or chosen to simply turn away from it and walk in the opposite direction? If we're honest, we'd have to say that includes 99% of us. At one time or other, we had our head in the clouds and were oblivious to what we were told, or we thought we knew what was best, regardless of the counsel of others. Ever thought, said or heard these...?
~ "Just because it happened to you doesn't mean it's gonna happen to me..."
~ "What was that my mom used to say?!? Oh well, it couldn't matter that much anyway, I guess..."
~ "I'm smarter than to get caught..."
If you've lived even a little, you know these are usually springboards to disaster, as you take a diving leap into a pool of chaos and regret. And later, wisdom reaches down with a hand to lift you out of the mess you've made and says, I know now's not a good time to say 'I told you so'...but if you would've listened to me, you wouldn't be dripping wet in regret...
Read for yourself the monologue of Wisdom... http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=24&chapter=8&version=31
Wisdom comes from God. Learn to recognize the sound of it, and, then, listen, learn and follow. God knows it's for your own good. For your sake and the sake of future generations, I hope you know it, too.
Love,
Joelene
~ Proverbs 4:5 (NLT)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm sure you can remember many words of wisdom that your mom or dad gave you when you were growing up, things like...
~ Don't run with scissors...
~ Look both ways before crossing the street...
~ Wash your hands after you use the restroom...
And if you're a parent, you've probably drilled these, and many other nuggets of wisdom, into your kids like an off-shore oil rig -- 24/7, way down deep. Each new generation learns valuable lessons about life from the older generation, and the cycle perpetuates. That is, if they don't forget or turn away.
But how many people do you see who have not remembered the wise advise from the older generation, or chosen to simply turn away from it and walk in the opposite direction? If we're honest, we'd have to say that includes 99% of us. At one time or other, we had our head in the clouds and were oblivious to what we were told, or we thought we knew what was best, regardless of the counsel of others. Ever thought, said or heard these...?
~ "Just because it happened to you doesn't mean it's gonna happen to me..."
~ "What was that my mom used to say?!? Oh well, it couldn't matter that much anyway, I guess..."
~ "I'm smarter than to get caught..."
If you've lived even a little, you know these are usually springboards to disaster, as you take a diving leap into a pool of chaos and regret. And later, wisdom reaches down with a hand to lift you out of the mess you've made and says, I know now's not a good time to say 'I told you so'...but if you would've listened to me, you wouldn't be dripping wet in regret...
Read for yourself the monologue of Wisdom... http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=24&chapter=8&version=31
Wisdom comes from God. Learn to recognize the sound of it, and, then, listen, learn and follow. God knows it's for your own good. For your sake and the sake of future generations, I hope you know it, too.
Love,
Joelene
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Verse of the Day - 1 Peter 3:8
Sympathize with each other.
~ 1 Peter 3:8 (NLT)
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I'm not a dog person. In fact, I'm not really an animal person. I'm perfectly content to have no attachment to furry friends, even though the puppy in the film "Marley and Me" did make me kinda wish that maybe sorta I had a dog like that. Dog -- that's the operative word. There is no room for the word 'puppy' in my vocabulary, and certainly no room for it in my house. All the chewing and pooping and peeing and whining and yelping....oh my goodness, it makes me grit my teeth. :-\
BUT -- there are many who absolutely love their pets! They're like family to them, and no expense is too great to keep them around and make them happy, to give them a quality of life to the very end. And when they must pass away, it is devastating. Like losing a child. Or a best friend. And the grief can be overwhelming. Such was the case for one of my co-workers recently.
For those of us who aren't pet people, it's difficult to understand grief over the loss of a pet. We can simply say, Gee, too bad. Just go buy another dog. Seen one, ya seen 'em all, right? But that isn't what God calls us to do. He desires and instructs us to be sympathetic to others. Show some compassion, even when a person's situation seems foreign to you. Rather than say, I just don't get you, try listening to that person with a loving heart. Hurt for them when they're hurting, regardless of why they're hurting. It really doesn't matter anyway, does it? When someone comes running into a hospital ER with a bloody knee, the nurse doesn't say, Well, if you got that injury from softball, I will so help you, 'cuz I play softball and I know how it feels, but if you got that injury from running out in the street, well then, I just don't know if I want to help you, 'cuz you should've known better than to run out in the street...
Either way, they're bloody and in pain, and they need help.
So I spent my lunch one day recently, letting my co-worker talk about his beloved dog. Though I couldn't empathize, I could sympathize. Tears came down as he talked about what a good dog he was, and just how hard it is in the mornings these days, grief just washing over him. Afterward, he said it helped to talk about it and thanked me for listening. I'm not a pet person, but I am a people person.
Sympathy . . . do we give it, even if we don't necessarily "get it"?
God calls His children to display compassion for people, because people need love and care, and God loves and cares for them. How will they sense and know His love, unless God's children dish it out?
Love,
Joelene
~ 1 Peter 3:8 (NLT)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I'm not a dog person. In fact, I'm not really an animal person. I'm perfectly content to have no attachment to furry friends, even though the puppy in the film "Marley and Me" did make me kinda wish that maybe sorta I had a dog like that. Dog -- that's the operative word. There is no room for the word 'puppy' in my vocabulary, and certainly no room for it in my house. All the chewing and pooping and peeing and whining and yelping....oh my goodness, it makes me grit my teeth. :-\
BUT -- there are many who absolutely love their pets! They're like family to them, and no expense is too great to keep them around and make them happy, to give them a quality of life to the very end. And when they must pass away, it is devastating. Like losing a child. Or a best friend. And the grief can be overwhelming. Such was the case for one of my co-workers recently.
For those of us who aren't pet people, it's difficult to understand grief over the loss of a pet. We can simply say, Gee, too bad. Just go buy another dog. Seen one, ya seen 'em all, right? But that isn't what God calls us to do. He desires and instructs us to be sympathetic to others. Show some compassion, even when a person's situation seems foreign to you. Rather than say, I just don't get you, try listening to that person with a loving heart. Hurt for them when they're hurting, regardless of why they're hurting. It really doesn't matter anyway, does it? When someone comes running into a hospital ER with a bloody knee, the nurse doesn't say, Well, if you got that injury from softball, I will so help you, 'cuz I play softball and I know how it feels, but if you got that injury from running out in the street, well then, I just don't know if I want to help you, 'cuz you should've known better than to run out in the street...
Either way, they're bloody and in pain, and they need help.
So I spent my lunch one day recently, letting my co-worker talk about his beloved dog. Though I couldn't empathize, I could sympathize. Tears came down as he talked about what a good dog he was, and just how hard it is in the mornings these days, grief just washing over him. Afterward, he said it helped to talk about it and thanked me for listening. I'm not a pet person, but I am a people person.
Sympathy . . . do we give it, even if we don't necessarily "get it"?
God calls His children to display compassion for people, because people need love and care, and God loves and cares for them. How will they sense and know His love, unless God's children dish it out?
Love,
Joelene
Monday, March 9, 2009
Verse of the Day - 2 Peter 1:5-8
Do your best to improve your faith. You can do this by adding goodness, understanding, self-control, patience, devotion to God, concern for others, and love. If you keep growing in this way, it will show that what you know about our Lord Jesus Christ has made your lives useful and meaningful.
~ 2 Peter 1:5-8 (CEV)
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If you are willing, God is gonna grow you -- no doubt! He will help you be and do things you would never in your wildest imagination believe, all for His glory and good purposes. If you are willing...
This year, God has really grown me in the area of "concern for others". He has prompted me to make some simple inroads for community service and volunteerism, and it's been such a blessing to put myself (and some trusty friends) out there, to help where help is needed. Last weekend, we helped a community group called SacRAFT, that provides low-cost teaching materials and resources to teachers. They receive a plethora of donations (an entire warehouse full!) that are sorted and resold at very reasonable prices. So, four of us went into the warehouse and did whatever they needed us to do. Two of us sorted binders, declaring some new for resale, and cutting the others up with an Exacto knife, for repurposing into Shake Tables (a science project), personal "white boards", and other great ideas that I would NEVER have thought of with reused material. The other two used their mechanical skills to put together brand new office chairs that had been donated -- what great stuff given for free to a worthy cause! We met (3) great staff there, and learned a little about them as we shared about ourselves over a great lunch.
We built bridges that day with some people that I know we'll meet again, and God was glorified -- in our helping hands and our open hearts. Like today's verse says, what we know about Jesus is translating into meaning and usefulness. We know that He loves people and is concerned for the needy. Translation: We love people and are concerned for the needy.
Peter challenges us to grow our faith by adding to our knowledge of Jesus the deeper things of Christian living -- living out the life of Christ, with God and with people. You can build bridges today by stepping out of yourself and being concerned for others. Give it a try -- it just might change your life!
Love,
Joelene
~ 2 Peter 1:5-8 (CEV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you are willing, God is gonna grow you -- no doubt! He will help you be and do things you would never in your wildest imagination believe, all for His glory and good purposes. If you are willing...
This year, God has really grown me in the area of "concern for others". He has prompted me to make some simple inroads for community service and volunteerism, and it's been such a blessing to put myself (and some trusty friends) out there, to help where help is needed. Last weekend, we helped a community group called SacRAFT, that provides low-cost teaching materials and resources to teachers. They receive a plethora of donations (an entire warehouse full!) that are sorted and resold at very reasonable prices. So, four of us went into the warehouse and did whatever they needed us to do. Two of us sorted binders, declaring some new for resale, and cutting the others up with an Exacto knife, for repurposing into Shake Tables (a science project), personal "white boards", and other great ideas that I would NEVER have thought of with reused material. The other two used their mechanical skills to put together brand new office chairs that had been donated -- what great stuff given for free to a worthy cause! We met (3) great staff there, and learned a little about them as we shared about ourselves over a great lunch.
We built bridges that day with some people that I know we'll meet again, and God was glorified -- in our helping hands and our open hearts. Like today's verse says, what we know about Jesus is translating into meaning and usefulness. We know that He loves people and is concerned for the needy. Translation: We love people and are concerned for the needy.
Peter challenges us to grow our faith by adding to our knowledge of Jesus the deeper things of Christian living -- living out the life of Christ, with God and with people. You can build bridges today by stepping out of yourself and being concerned for others. Give it a try -- it just might change your life!
Love,
Joelene
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Verse of the Day - Psalm 146:5
But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord their God. ~ Psalm 146:5 (NLT)
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Everyone has a story...
A friend sent me an email yesterday, a link to an extraordinary video that shares the stories of people, one cardboard sign at a time. I'd seen this done before, and although very moving to me when I watched the first one, I almost didn't click on the link, but I'm glad I did. It really exemplifies today's verse, that joy does come to those who have God as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord their God... http://www.rhchurch.org/pages/cardboard-testimonies/
From attempted suicide to atheism to the uncertainty for parents with the news of fetal deformities, these people have a story -- what it was like to have no real help in life, and the transforming power of the Lord God to make a heart difference deep inside. You can't pay money for this kind of radical change, even if you tried...and many have tried. Money often only buys band-aids for life's challenges and trials. It can't buy what God offers.
God stands ready to change your life, to turn your mourning into dancing, from tears of sorrow to tears of joy, to know peace where there has been no peace, to have contentment when you've only walked the road of restlessness.
When I think of my story, I feel as if I'd have numerous cardboard signs -- maybe you do, too. But here's one from my life: "Lukewarm church girl gets pregnant.......Returns to God for life -- He never walked away from me." That was radical transformation for me, and it has been a blessed (if not always smooth) journey with me and God since.
If you are searching for help in troubled times, I can beg and plead and scold and warn you to go to God. But I don't have to do all that. Just open your eyes to the radical wonder of what God has done in the lives of so many people, people who make a decision to trust Him with all that they have. Then see if these testimonies aren't worth considering for yourself. Perhaps you, too, will have a two-sided cardboard sign -- self on one side, and God on the other. If you do, you'll never be the same. And you'll find that you wouldn't want to be, either.
God bless you as you consider your story, and how God can and does make a world of difference in it...
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Everyone has a story...
A friend sent me an email yesterday, a link to an extraordinary video that shares the stories of people, one cardboard sign at a time. I'd seen this done before, and although very moving to me when I watched the first one, I almost didn't click on the link, but I'm glad I did. It really exemplifies today's verse, that joy does come to those who have God as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord their God... http://www.rhchurch.org/pages/cardboard-testimonies/
From attempted suicide to atheism to the uncertainty for parents with the news of fetal deformities, these people have a story -- what it was like to have no real help in life, and the transforming power of the Lord God to make a heart difference deep inside. You can't pay money for this kind of radical change, even if you tried...and many have tried. Money often only buys band-aids for life's challenges and trials. It can't buy what God offers.
God stands ready to change your life, to turn your mourning into dancing, from tears of sorrow to tears of joy, to know peace where there has been no peace, to have contentment when you've only walked the road of restlessness.
When I think of my story, I feel as if I'd have numerous cardboard signs -- maybe you do, too. But here's one from my life: "Lukewarm church girl gets pregnant.......Returns to God for life -- He never walked away from me." That was radical transformation for me, and it has been a blessed (if not always smooth) journey with me and God since.
If you are searching for help in troubled times, I can beg and plead and scold and warn you to go to God. But I don't have to do all that. Just open your eyes to the radical wonder of what God has done in the lives of so many people, people who make a decision to trust Him with all that they have. Then see if these testimonies aren't worth considering for yourself. Perhaps you, too, will have a two-sided cardboard sign -- self on one side, and God on the other. If you do, you'll never be the same. And you'll find that you wouldn't want to be, either.
God bless you as you consider your story, and how God can and does make a world of difference in it...
Love,
Joelene
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Verse of the Day - Psalm 139:23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
~ Psalm 139:23-24 (NIV)
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Complete abandonment to God . . . that what I read from David. A willingness to be laid bare before the One who sees and knows already, ready and willing to be challenged toward holiness, asking to be cleansed through testing and hard questions, desiring to be purged of all that resists righteousness through the Refiner's Fire.
How many of us can say, "Bring it on!" to God, huh? That takes guts, my friend. But hopefully a time comes in your life when you are sick to death of the sin and self stuff that has crept in and invaded your heart and mind. You are weary of the pattern of poor choices and their regretful consequences. You see and feel the sadness and hopelessness of living without accountability and connectedness to God. And so you say, Go ahead God. Do Your thing in me. I'm ready for an overhaul, 'cuz I just can't stand myself anymore.
I believe that when you experience the divine joy of submitting completely to God, you will desire that way of living over the old self-driven way. This verse, then, becomes a daily pattern of turning over the keys, allowing God to continue to challenge and test and convict for your good and the good of the relationship.
This complete abandonment is really the highest form of worship. You become the living sacrifice, as it says in Romans 12, laid on the altar before God, putting to death the sin that needs slaying; yet, He allows us to walk off the altar and live, as Isaac did in Genesis 22, because God provides the offering to be slain in our place -- Jesus Christ. The mystery is that God refines our souls by cutting out the impurities of sin, and we live on through the power and grace of His Son...
So, are you up to the challenge? Are you ready to tell God, "Bring it on..."?
"Huge waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer produce a tremendous thrill for the surfer who has ridden them." ~ Oswald Chambers
Bring it on
Let the lightning flash,
Let the thunder roll,
Let the storm winds blow
Bring it onLet the trouble come,
Let the hard rain fall,
Let it make me strong
Bring it on
Now, I don't want to sound like some hero
'Cause it's God alone that my hope is in
But I'm not gonna run from the very things
That would drive me closer to Him
So bring it on...
~ from Bring it On, by Steven Curtis Chapman
Love,
Joelene
~ Psalm 139:23-24 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Complete abandonment to God . . . that what I read from David. A willingness to be laid bare before the One who sees and knows already, ready and willing to be challenged toward holiness, asking to be cleansed through testing and hard questions, desiring to be purged of all that resists righteousness through the Refiner's Fire.
How many of us can say, "Bring it on!" to God, huh? That takes guts, my friend. But hopefully a time comes in your life when you are sick to death of the sin and self stuff that has crept in and invaded your heart and mind. You are weary of the pattern of poor choices and their regretful consequences. You see and feel the sadness and hopelessness of living without accountability and connectedness to God. And so you say, Go ahead God. Do Your thing in me. I'm ready for an overhaul, 'cuz I just can't stand myself anymore.
I believe that when you experience the divine joy of submitting completely to God, you will desire that way of living over the old self-driven way. This verse, then, becomes a daily pattern of turning over the keys, allowing God to continue to challenge and test and convict for your good and the good of the relationship.
This complete abandonment is really the highest form of worship. You become the living sacrifice, as it says in Romans 12, laid on the altar before God, putting to death the sin that needs slaying; yet, He allows us to walk off the altar and live, as Isaac did in Genesis 22, because God provides the offering to be slain in our place -- Jesus Christ. The mystery is that God refines our souls by cutting out the impurities of sin, and we live on through the power and grace of His Son...
So, are you up to the challenge? Are you ready to tell God, "Bring it on..."?
"Huge waves that would frighten an ordinary swimmer produce a tremendous thrill for the surfer who has ridden them." ~ Oswald Chambers
Bring it on
Let the lightning flash,
Let the thunder roll,
Let the storm winds blow
Bring it onLet the trouble come,
Let the hard rain fall,
Let it make me strong
Bring it on
Now, I don't want to sound like some hero
'Cause it's God alone that my hope is in
But I'm not gonna run from the very things
That would drive me closer to Him
So bring it on...
~ from Bring it On, by Steven Curtis Chapman
Love,
Joelene
Friday, March 6, 2009
Verse of the Day - Isaiah 25:1
O LORD, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done marvelous things, things planned long ago. ~ Isaiah 25:1 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Oh Lord, you are my God...
This is a declaration of devotion and commitment, of loyalty to the Holy One. This person has given God the reins of their life and submitted to His leadership.
I will exalt you and praise your name...
Focus is on the person of God. Not the economy, health concerns, or whether it will rain and mess up the hair or the bike ride. This relational communication makes it all about Him.
...for in perfect faithfulness...
This is recognition of two of God's attributes -- perfection and faithfulness. When put together, it says that He is steadfast with humanity in the proper way, even when our constancy lags. Who do you know that can do that day in and day out, over and over again? How can we not be drawn to someone who can love like that?
...you have done marvelous things...
Everything God does is marvelous. Look around you! The trees and flowers -- He made them. Your body, with the intricacies of the nervous system, eyesight, the brain -- He made them. Miracles of salvation in men's souls, restored relationships, physical healing, protection from harm -- He does them. These are marvelous things, that cause us to recognize that there is a higher power greater than our humanity, and that power has a name. His name is Almighty God, maker of heaven and earth, who speaks -- and the world is made, the storms are calmed, and the dead are raised. How can we not marvel at His works?
...things planned long ago.
This is a reminder of the grand plan of God. He is far from haphazard or off-the-cuff. He is the master designer, weaving His works for the grand scheme, of which we are mostly clueless but can take great comfort in. There is comfort in knowing that He has a plan, that He knows what He's doing, that He has infinite perfection and eternal faithfulness, and that He has all the power to accomplish His loving purposes.
I pray we can see God better today for having pondered who He is, what He has done, and what He continues to do until the Day of Christ Jesus. May our thoughts of Him cause us to gladly lay down our lives before Him in humble honor and glory to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who reigns victorious over all things!
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Oh Lord, you are my God...
This is a declaration of devotion and commitment, of loyalty to the Holy One. This person has given God the reins of their life and submitted to His leadership.
I will exalt you and praise your name...
Focus is on the person of God. Not the economy, health concerns, or whether it will rain and mess up the hair or the bike ride. This relational communication makes it all about Him.
...for in perfect faithfulness...
This is recognition of two of God's attributes -- perfection and faithfulness. When put together, it says that He is steadfast with humanity in the proper way, even when our constancy lags. Who do you know that can do that day in and day out, over and over again? How can we not be drawn to someone who can love like that?
...you have done marvelous things...
Everything God does is marvelous. Look around you! The trees and flowers -- He made them. Your body, with the intricacies of the nervous system, eyesight, the brain -- He made them. Miracles of salvation in men's souls, restored relationships, physical healing, protection from harm -- He does them. These are marvelous things, that cause us to recognize that there is a higher power greater than our humanity, and that power has a name. His name is Almighty God, maker of heaven and earth, who speaks -- and the world is made, the storms are calmed, and the dead are raised. How can we not marvel at His works?
...things planned long ago.
This is a reminder of the grand plan of God. He is far from haphazard or off-the-cuff. He is the master designer, weaving His works for the grand scheme, of which we are mostly clueless but can take great comfort in. There is comfort in knowing that He has a plan, that He knows what He's doing, that He has infinite perfection and eternal faithfulness, and that He has all the power to accomplish His loving purposes.
I pray we can see God better today for having pondered who He is, what He has done, and what He continues to do until the Day of Christ Jesus. May our thoughts of Him cause us to gladly lay down our lives before Him in humble honor and glory to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who reigns victorious over all things!
Love,
Joelene
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Verse of the Day - Nahum 1:7
The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him. ~ Nahum 1:7 (NLT)
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As you may know, I check several websites when choosing a verse of the day. If those don't speak to me that morning, I end up striking out on my own and hittin' the Bible directly for the Lord's leading. But today, this verse popped up on Air 1 Radio's website (http://www.air1.com/), and I immediately thought it came from the Psalms. If you had read this verse without seeing the Scripture reference, would you have thought it came from the Psalms?
This theme seems to be threaded over and over again in the Old Testament! Probably numerous times in the Psalms, as well as other books from the prophets. So, it makes me wonder: Was this just a chant that became so familiar in the synagogues and the temple, that it became an ancient cliche or catch-phrase? It's true that things we hear over and over again become a part of our verbiage and yet may have little real meaning to us. (For an example of this, check out this precious video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR4PQ30VkBk)
I believe that the Holy Spirit inspired the writers of the Bible, so I doubt God would insert cliches that lacked heart, unless He interjected sarcasm or criticism along with it (which He did from time to time...check out your Old Testament -- God is just awesome the way He talks to people!....straight up, He doesn't pull any punches.) Rather, I believe that the writers of the Old Testament knew God and walked with Him. They knew God was good and that He was a place of refuge, being close to those who trust in Him, because they had experienced it for themselves! This wasn't rhetoric for them . . . it was REAL LIFE!
So, my question to you is: Is this verse rhetoric or real life to you? Have you walked with God and known the personal care He's given you as you trusted Him to take care of you, or is this a rather meaningless cliche that trips off the tongue like the National Anthem, whose lyrics get messed up so often because people don't really know the words or the meaning of them?
Some people might say, "Well, when God comes through for me, I'll trust Him." But God says, "Trust Me, and I'll be there for you." Faith is vital to seeing and knowing God for all that He is. (And not faith in faith, either, which people can get caught up in, if that makes sense.) It's believing and trusting in the Living God to not only be able to manage your life, but do it in all love and goodness, regardless of circumstances. Read for yourself how the people of the Old Testament relied on their God, whom they knew personally, to manage their life. No, things weren't always hunky-dory -- check out Jeremiah or Isaiah, David or Solomon. They found out through their trials and failures that God is constant, good and loving. Always. Forever.
I pray you can choose faith in God today for your life; first, for salvation from your sins through the Messiah Jesus, His Son, because without cleansing from our sins, we can't have a relationship with God; second, that you could actively trust God in your daily life, to guide and counsel you, to comfort you, to use you in the midst of this roller coaster we call life.
"The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him." I can say that myself with confidence, because He has proved Himself to me over and over again, as I've put my faith and trust in Him. I hope that is true for you, too.
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As you may know, I check several websites when choosing a verse of the day. If those don't speak to me that morning, I end up striking out on my own and hittin' the Bible directly for the Lord's leading. But today, this verse popped up on Air 1 Radio's website (http://www.air1.com/), and I immediately thought it came from the Psalms. If you had read this verse without seeing the Scripture reference, would you have thought it came from the Psalms?
This theme seems to be threaded over and over again in the Old Testament! Probably numerous times in the Psalms, as well as other books from the prophets. So, it makes me wonder: Was this just a chant that became so familiar in the synagogues and the temple, that it became an ancient cliche or catch-phrase? It's true that things we hear over and over again become a part of our verbiage and yet may have little real meaning to us. (For an example of this, check out this precious video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AR4PQ30VkBk)
I believe that the Holy Spirit inspired the writers of the Bible, so I doubt God would insert cliches that lacked heart, unless He interjected sarcasm or criticism along with it (which He did from time to time...check out your Old Testament -- God is just awesome the way He talks to people!....straight up, He doesn't pull any punches.) Rather, I believe that the writers of the Old Testament knew God and walked with Him. They knew God was good and that He was a place of refuge, being close to those who trust in Him, because they had experienced it for themselves! This wasn't rhetoric for them . . . it was REAL LIFE!
So, my question to you is: Is this verse rhetoric or real life to you? Have you walked with God and known the personal care He's given you as you trusted Him to take care of you, or is this a rather meaningless cliche that trips off the tongue like the National Anthem, whose lyrics get messed up so often because people don't really know the words or the meaning of them?
Some people might say, "Well, when God comes through for me, I'll trust Him." But God says, "Trust Me, and I'll be there for you." Faith is vital to seeing and knowing God for all that He is. (And not faith in faith, either, which people can get caught up in, if that makes sense.) It's believing and trusting in the Living God to not only be able to manage your life, but do it in all love and goodness, regardless of circumstances. Read for yourself how the people of the Old Testament relied on their God, whom they knew personally, to manage their life. No, things weren't always hunky-dory -- check out Jeremiah or Isaiah, David or Solomon. They found out through their trials and failures that God is constant, good and loving. Always. Forever.
I pray you can choose faith in God today for your life; first, for salvation from your sins through the Messiah Jesus, His Son, because without cleansing from our sins, we can't have a relationship with God; second, that you could actively trust God in your daily life, to guide and counsel you, to comfort you, to use you in the midst of this roller coaster we call life.
"The Lord is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him." I can say that myself with confidence, because He has proved Himself to me over and over again, as I've put my faith and trust in Him. I hope that is true for you, too.
Love,
Joelene
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Verse of the Day - Mark 4:26-29
[Jesus] also said, "This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come."
~ Mark 4:26-29 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you are a believer in Jesus, you are a seed-sower. You might not be deliberate in that task, but the life you live sows seeds -- hopefully, godly seeds planted in the hearts and minds of those who don't know God. When you plant seeds of love and concern for others, seeds of truth about God and man, seeds of peace in the midst of storms, you are infiltrating the soul soil of people who need to see God in all His fullness.
And the mystery is that you don't know how these seeds grow in each individual. You can't predict how long the seeds will take to mature into a harvest. You can worry and fret over a seed planted, but do you have anything to do with the growth? No, that's the Holy Spirit's job. Actually, it's a relief that we can sleep or get up, as these verses say! I think alot of believers stress over the seeds sown, as if they're responsible for making the harvest. But you can no more make a soul harvest any more than you can force a seed to sprout by staring at a flower bed in Springtime 24/7. You'll get tired and fall asleep waiting for something to happen. The good news is that something is happening, even though you can't see what's going on nor really understand the process by which it takes place. Just another of God's mysteries...
Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven!
~ Jesus, in Matthew 5:16 (NIV)
[Jesus] commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. ~ Acts 10:42 (NIV)
My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
~ Jesus, in John 15:12 (NIV)
Trust me -- God is at work when you sow seeds. So, now that the pressure is off of you to make a harvest happen, you are free to sow seeds in abundance!
Love,
Joelene
~ Mark 4:26-29 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
If you are a believer in Jesus, you are a seed-sower. You might not be deliberate in that task, but the life you live sows seeds -- hopefully, godly seeds planted in the hearts and minds of those who don't know God. When you plant seeds of love and concern for others, seeds of truth about God and man, seeds of peace in the midst of storms, you are infiltrating the soul soil of people who need to see God in all His fullness.
And the mystery is that you don't know how these seeds grow in each individual. You can't predict how long the seeds will take to mature into a harvest. You can worry and fret over a seed planted, but do you have anything to do with the growth? No, that's the Holy Spirit's job. Actually, it's a relief that we can sleep or get up, as these verses say! I think alot of believers stress over the seeds sown, as if they're responsible for making the harvest. But you can no more make a soul harvest any more than you can force a seed to sprout by staring at a flower bed in Springtime 24/7. You'll get tired and fall asleep waiting for something to happen. The good news is that something is happening, even though you can't see what's going on nor really understand the process by which it takes place. Just another of God's mysteries...
Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven!
~ Jesus, in Matthew 5:16 (NIV)
[Jesus] commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. ~ Acts 10:42 (NIV)
My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
~ Jesus, in John 15:12 (NIV)
Trust me -- God is at work when you sow seeds. So, now that the pressure is off of you to make a harvest happen, you are free to sow seeds in abundance!
Love,
Joelene
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Verse of the Day - 1 Chronicles 16:34
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.
~ 1 Chronicles 16:34 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This really should be our mantra, our anchor in life, our grounding wire. In all things, this is where we need to come back to: God is good, and He will never stop loving us. So thank Him for that!
I hate cliches. And one of them is a very familiar call-and-response that believers like to say: "God is good...all the time. And all the time...God is good." I don't like cliches because they become campy, cheesy, and relatively meaningless. It becomes just a catch-phrase, instead of a heartfelt truth. So let me break down that cliche to some heartfelt truth for you today:
God's heart has no evil in it, no deceit or trickery, no bad motives. Goodness fills every fiber of His being, and His desire is to lift people up from the ashes of sin and self and into the blessings of salvation and righteousness. And not only that, but He's not wishy-washy, nor an "Indian giver". He's not a fair-weather lover, who takes a hike when the going gets rough or if He gets bored. His love is as enduring as He is, and that's forever -- this you can count on. 100%. Always.
We all go through hard times. Sometimes, very severely. And we can get derailed in our faith by somehow thinking God doesn't love us anymore, or that He's just being mean, or that He's just handed us over to "fate", cast to the wind of "whatever", sailing on the seas of mysterious calamity with no captain, no sail, and no rudder. But, we need to hold onto the reality of who God is, and His purposes for us. Don't think for a minute that you aren't being tested, because you are. Like going through an Army obstacle course. In the rain. After a 10-mile hike. In the dark.
I challenge you to be pro-active in growing up spiritually. In the midst of whatever you're facing today, or tomorrow, or the next day -- believe me, something will come up -- look to God and recognize His goodness and love, and be thankful, truly thankful, that He is who He is to you. That's your anchor, my friend, and it's truth we must stand on. Abraham raised the knife to slay his son, Isaac, as God told him to, because He relied on the truth about His God (Genesis 22). Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego willingly walked into the fiery furnace because they relied on the truth about their God (Daniel 3). Are you willing to go through the obstacle course of life, trusting in the good God who loves you forever? Or do you throw in the towel and refuse the faith challenge, doubting God and all that He represents?
This is the basis of spiritual growth -- believing in God's goodness and love when life looks bleak, and thanking Him for who He is when the cancer returns, or the bankruptcy notice arrives, or a loved one dies. Turn your eyes upon Jesus and know in the depths of your heart that these circumstances don't define Him. But they do refine you. That is, if you will let them.
Love,
Joelene
~ 1 Chronicles 16:34 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This really should be our mantra, our anchor in life, our grounding wire. In all things, this is where we need to come back to: God is good, and He will never stop loving us. So thank Him for that!
I hate cliches. And one of them is a very familiar call-and-response that believers like to say: "God is good...all the time. And all the time...God is good." I don't like cliches because they become campy, cheesy, and relatively meaningless. It becomes just a catch-phrase, instead of a heartfelt truth. So let me break down that cliche to some heartfelt truth for you today:
God's heart has no evil in it, no deceit or trickery, no bad motives. Goodness fills every fiber of His being, and His desire is to lift people up from the ashes of sin and self and into the blessings of salvation and righteousness. And not only that, but He's not wishy-washy, nor an "Indian giver". He's not a fair-weather lover, who takes a hike when the going gets rough or if He gets bored. His love is as enduring as He is, and that's forever -- this you can count on. 100%. Always.
We all go through hard times. Sometimes, very severely. And we can get derailed in our faith by somehow thinking God doesn't love us anymore, or that He's just being mean, or that He's just handed us over to "fate", cast to the wind of "whatever", sailing on the seas of mysterious calamity with no captain, no sail, and no rudder. But, we need to hold onto the reality of who God is, and His purposes for us. Don't think for a minute that you aren't being tested, because you are. Like going through an Army obstacle course. In the rain. After a 10-mile hike. In the dark.
I challenge you to be pro-active in growing up spiritually. In the midst of whatever you're facing today, or tomorrow, or the next day -- believe me, something will come up -- look to God and recognize His goodness and love, and be thankful, truly thankful, that He is who He is to you. That's your anchor, my friend, and it's truth we must stand on. Abraham raised the knife to slay his son, Isaac, as God told him to, because He relied on the truth about His God (Genesis 22). Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego willingly walked into the fiery furnace because they relied on the truth about their God (Daniel 3). Are you willing to go through the obstacle course of life, trusting in the good God who loves you forever? Or do you throw in the towel and refuse the faith challenge, doubting God and all that He represents?
This is the basis of spiritual growth -- believing in God's goodness and love when life looks bleak, and thanking Him for who He is when the cancer returns, or the bankruptcy notice arrives, or a loved one dies. Turn your eyes upon Jesus and know in the depths of your heart that these circumstances don't define Him. But they do refine you. That is, if you will let them.
Love,
Joelene
Monday, March 2, 2009
Verse of the Day - Isaiah 45:8
"You heavens above, rain down righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness grow with it; I, the LORD, have created it. ~ Isaiah 45:8 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It's raining again today here in Sacramento. It rained all day yesterday, and I heard it coming down before the alarm clock went off this morning. (...or was that after I reset my alarm clock for 15 more precious minutes under the cozy covers... :-)
So I did a Bible word search on 'rain' this morning, and found this verse. It's kind-of a 'wow' to me, as I see God's plan of salvation likened to the cycle of rain. As the rain falls, the seeds germinate, the plants grow. The water evaporates, clouds form, rain falls, and the cycle renews. So think of God's righteousness like rain. Jesus was the Righteous Rainfall, coming from heaven to wash and water a dry and desert land. He watered the people with righteousness and truth and many flourished. He went into the ground, like the rain, and ascended into heaven, like water evaporates into the sky. And He continues the cycle, through His Holy Spirit, falling on people of the earth. Some seeds germinate and salvation is born -- rebirth of the dead. Then the believer grows in righteousness, and their prayers of thanksgiving and petition evaporating into the heavens to rain down again on others.
I, the Lord, have created it...
As the fields could not produce shrubs or plants until God sent rain (Genesis 2:5), so we cannot have salvation or produce righteousness apart from the Righteous Rainfall, Jesus Christ. He gives us the living water to awaken our souls from death, just like the seeds in the ground are awakened by the rain. And when we commit ourselves to Him and allow the Holy Spirit to nourish us, we grow like the green plants of the field, yielding a harvest of righteousness.
I love God's analogies, don't you?
So, the next time you hear or see or feel the rain, remember Jesus, our Righteous Rainfall. May you be open to the life-giving water that He rains down for salvation and the growth of right living -- a healthy crop in keeping with the Grower.
Love,
Joelene
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It's raining again today here in Sacramento. It rained all day yesterday, and I heard it coming down before the alarm clock went off this morning. (...or was that after I reset my alarm clock for 15 more precious minutes under the cozy covers... :-)
So I did a Bible word search on 'rain' this morning, and found this verse. It's kind-of a 'wow' to me, as I see God's plan of salvation likened to the cycle of rain. As the rain falls, the seeds germinate, the plants grow. The water evaporates, clouds form, rain falls, and the cycle renews. So think of God's righteousness like rain. Jesus was the Righteous Rainfall, coming from heaven to wash and water a dry and desert land. He watered the people with righteousness and truth and many flourished. He went into the ground, like the rain, and ascended into heaven, like water evaporates into the sky. And He continues the cycle, through His Holy Spirit, falling on people of the earth. Some seeds germinate and salvation is born -- rebirth of the dead. Then the believer grows in righteousness, and their prayers of thanksgiving and petition evaporating into the heavens to rain down again on others.
I, the Lord, have created it...
As the fields could not produce shrubs or plants until God sent rain (Genesis 2:5), so we cannot have salvation or produce righteousness apart from the Righteous Rainfall, Jesus Christ. He gives us the living water to awaken our souls from death, just like the seeds in the ground are awakened by the rain. And when we commit ourselves to Him and allow the Holy Spirit to nourish us, we grow like the green plants of the field, yielding a harvest of righteousness.
I love God's analogies, don't you?
So, the next time you hear or see or feel the rain, remember Jesus, our Righteous Rainfall. May you be open to the life-giving water that He rains down for salvation and the growth of right living -- a healthy crop in keeping with the Grower.
Love,
Joelene
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Verse of the Day - 1 John 3:17-18
If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
~ 1 John 3:17-18 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Friday, I spent a lovely day off with a girlfriend of mine. We had a nice breakfast at Denny's, did some window shopping, had a healthy lunch at Olive Garden, and then enjoyed a showing of "Marley and Me" at the budget theater. What a great day we had!
On my way home, as I got off the freeway, I saw a young girl -- late teens or early 20's -- on the side of the offramp. All I could see of her cardboard sign was, "Lost my job..." I was sitting at the red light, and though I wasn't in the lane next to her and was actually past her, I pulled out my wallet, rolled down my window and called after her. She came between the cars, and I handed her a $5 bill. I said, "God bless you," and when she saw what I handed to her, her eyes lit up and she said, "Thank you soooo much! I've been out here for an hour, and no one has given me anything. I know I don't look real needy (as she looked at her modest jeans, t-shirt and sweatjacket), but I've been looking for work all day." I asked her her name -- it's Renee -- and said I'd be praying for her. She thanked me kindly for that. And then she was gone.
(I wish I'd mentioned my church name, so that maybe I might see her again if she ever needed a place to come, where people could love and help her. Rats.)
I drove away, reminding myself of the blessings God's given me and thanking Him for that, thanking Him that I could help someone else. And then the verses came to mind about what kind of believers in Jesus can we be if we see someone in need, and then simply say, "Well, take care...,"without doing anything to help. My mind couldn't pull out the Bible reference for it, but I knew the essence of the verse. Today's verse isn't the one I was thinking of, but the message is the same. John and James think alike...
What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. ~ James 2:14-17
Years ago, when my son was a teenager, he shared with his dad and me that he'd given everything in his wallet to a beggar on the street. We asked him how much he gave. He said it was about $30. And I say this now, with tears in my eyes -- we chastised him quite severely for that lapse in judgment, that he shouldn't have given so much to a beggar, perhaps someone who was just out to swindle people.....HOW DARE I TELL HIM NOT TO BE GENEROUS TO PEOPLE IN NEED, WHEN HE FELT GOD WAS LEADING HIM TO DO THAT?!?!? I am ashamed of the poor example I gave to my son that day. Forgive me, Lord...
I know I've talked alot about this topic in recent weeks. I can't seem to help it -- God keeps bringing before me the idea of social justice, and our responsibility and our right to be a part of the solution. To be His hands and feet, by showing His love in tangible ways. I urge you to open your heart to those in need, letting go of selfish wallet-clenching and clock-watching. Things in this country may well go from bad to worse, and many have lost their jobs, their homes, and their hope. We need to help lift the fallen, as we have means to do so, amen?
Love,
Joelene
~ 1 John 3:17-18 (NIV)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Friday, I spent a lovely day off with a girlfriend of mine. We had a nice breakfast at Denny's, did some window shopping, had a healthy lunch at Olive Garden, and then enjoyed a showing of "Marley and Me" at the budget theater. What a great day we had!
On my way home, as I got off the freeway, I saw a young girl -- late teens or early 20's -- on the side of the offramp. All I could see of her cardboard sign was, "Lost my job..." I was sitting at the red light, and though I wasn't in the lane next to her and was actually past her, I pulled out my wallet, rolled down my window and called after her. She came between the cars, and I handed her a $5 bill. I said, "God bless you," and when she saw what I handed to her, her eyes lit up and she said, "Thank you soooo much! I've been out here for an hour, and no one has given me anything. I know I don't look real needy (as she looked at her modest jeans, t-shirt and sweatjacket), but I've been looking for work all day." I asked her her name -- it's Renee -- and said I'd be praying for her. She thanked me kindly for that. And then she was gone.
(I wish I'd mentioned my church name, so that maybe I might see her again if she ever needed a place to come, where people could love and help her. Rats.)
I drove away, reminding myself of the blessings God's given me and thanking Him for that, thanking Him that I could help someone else. And then the verses came to mind about what kind of believers in Jesus can we be if we see someone in need, and then simply say, "Well, take care...,"without doing anything to help. My mind couldn't pull out the Bible reference for it, but I knew the essence of the verse. Today's verse isn't the one I was thinking of, but the message is the same. John and James think alike...
What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. ~ James 2:14-17
Years ago, when my son was a teenager, he shared with his dad and me that he'd given everything in his wallet to a beggar on the street. We asked him how much he gave. He said it was about $30. And I say this now, with tears in my eyes -- we chastised him quite severely for that lapse in judgment, that he shouldn't have given so much to a beggar, perhaps someone who was just out to swindle people.....HOW DARE I TELL HIM NOT TO BE GENEROUS TO PEOPLE IN NEED, WHEN HE FELT GOD WAS LEADING HIM TO DO THAT?!?!? I am ashamed of the poor example I gave to my son that day. Forgive me, Lord...
I know I've talked alot about this topic in recent weeks. I can't seem to help it -- God keeps bringing before me the idea of social justice, and our responsibility and our right to be a part of the solution. To be His hands and feet, by showing His love in tangible ways. I urge you to open your heart to those in need, letting go of selfish wallet-clenching and clock-watching. Things in this country may well go from bad to worse, and many have lost their jobs, their homes, and their hope. We need to help lift the fallen, as we have means to do so, amen?
Love,
Joelene
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