Wednesday, Mar 22

There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved. Acts 4:12 (NLT)

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”    ― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Tuesday, Mar 21

When the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man and his wife heard the Lord God walking about in the garden. So they hid from the Lord God among the trees. Then the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?” Genesis 3:8-9 (NLT)

Being approached by a snake. Now that's something special. How many of us come face to face with a talking snake? If that isn't an excuse to sin, I don't know what is. In actuality, we've all come face to face with a talking snake. Except it doesn't look like a snake any more. Now, it looks like a temptation that is personal to each and every one of us. To some of us it may be justified in a sale which leads to a shopping spree or a night out with friends that leads to a drinking binge which leads to a one night stand or maybe a way too stressful day which leads to a day of losing our temper with our loves ones. These are all our own personal talking snakes. Satan is an expert at gettingus to hit the pause button on what God wants; jjustify what Satan wants and he disguises it in the form of what we think we need.

And we fall for it. Then, we wish we hadn't. Then, we wish we could take back the one night stand or the day of angry retorts or the "Final Purchase" items sitting unopened in a bag on the closet floor. But we can't. Queue this thing called grace.

As with Adam and Eve in the garden, God comes looking for us. He knows our hiding places. He knows where we go when we feel bad. He's there...gently calling out to us and hoping we'll listen. He's saying "Why are you hiding? I saw what you did. I see you now. Let's talk about it. Let's move on." This is grace. This is who God is. And just as with Adam and Eve, God is calling out to us "Where are you? I am here waiting. You are forgiven." And this....this is where we should be overwhelmed.

Monday, Mar 20

And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. 2 Corinthians 9:8 (NLT)

The weekend is over and we are staring at Monday like an unwanted illness. Why is it on the weekends we seem to be able to forget about all that worries us from Monday through Friday? And then Monday comes and here we go again. Not enough time or resources to do what is on our to-do list. We run from here to there and we feel like the busier we are, the more productive we become. I live in the Washington DC area and I swear people here think being busy is a badge of honor.  We often feel that we can't rest long enough to get our heads on straight. We leave ourselves no room to breathe. Last week, I was talking to God about how I feel like I am unable to do what I want to do (which I hope translates into what he wants me to do). I complained that I am pulled in too many directions and I asked him what I should 'give up' so I could get some stuff done. His reply came in the form of today's text.

And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.

At first I started thinking along the lines of material things. He would provide and I could share but then as I prayed through it, I realized that maybe he was also talking about my time and my energy level. Too often we get distracted with (OK, I get distracted with) what I am doing and I lose focus on who God is and what he is capable of doing. I forget that my day, my week, heck, my life is his and if I dedicate each moment of each day to him, he will provide all that is needed to accomplish all I need and all he wants.

Father God, I give you today, March 20. Do with it what you will and Lord, thank you that as I give it my best shot, what actually transpires is up to you. Amen

Friday, Mar 17

When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” John 5:6 (NLT)

Would you like to get well? Jesus was talking to a man who had serious health issues. He was a paraplegic. At any time, being a paraplegic is difficult but, in this man's day the situation was horrible. He had to live on the charity of others. He either begged for his income or it was given to him by friends and family. To move around, he had to be physically carried or he had to pull himself along the streets with his hands. Imagine it, hands scarred and bleeding from the road and your body scratched and covered with brush-burns or scabs. Paraplegics often have no bladder and bowel control so cleanliness is an issue. Needless to say, folks steered clear.

But not Jesus. When Jesus walked into the pools, he didn't migrate toward the 'easiest'  person to help; he bee-lined it to one of the most difficult cases. Not only was this man physically impaired, he was spiritually impaired as was indicated by Jesus' comment "Stop sinning." No matter how hopeless we seem, Jesus is with us, helping us.

How about you? Do you steer clear of the hard to sort through people with really messy lives? Or, do you get involved and stand by them in the mess. Jesus often got involved in the mess helping people who would have been abandoned otherwise. It seems to me the question "Would you like to get well?" is directed to all of us. Not only do we need his presence in our lives, It is through living as Christ did that we are truly healed.

Thursday, Mar 16

Jesus said to him, “Go your way. Your son will live.” The man put his trust in what Jesus said and left. John 4:50 (NLV)

The man came to Jesus because his son was sick and dying. Jesus told him "Go home. He'll be fine." The Bible says the man put his trust in him and left. WOW. Why did he trust Jesus? Was it the rumors he heard about him? Was it stories other people shared about their encounters with him? Did he personally experience Jesus prior to this moment?

If any of these are the reasons he trusted Jesus, why don't we? We've heard things about him. We've listened to stories others have shared and we've even heard stories about miracles. And we've probably encountered him personally. So......why do we not trust him?

The Bible doesn't say the man said "Well, we'll see what happens. When he proves himself, I will believe it." It says he trusted his word and left. He went home. He went home to hold his son, healed and well.

Could it be that our faith is a choice? We take all we've heard, all we've experienced and all we know and then....then, we must choose. The choice is completely up to us. No special gimmicks. No big show. Just a quiet decision made within our hearts.

What are you struggling to trust God with today? What choice will you make?

Wednesday, Mar 15

Happy Hump Day! It's the middle of the week; has it been trying already? Here are a few texts to remind us that God is not finished yet. No matter what is happening, he is still working. His plans will come to be and they are plans for your future and prosperity.

For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)

The Lord will work out his plans for my life—
    for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.
    Don’t abandon me, for you made me.
Psalm 138:8 (NLT)

And so I am sure that God, who began this good work in you, will carry it on until it is finished on the Day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6 (GNT)

I know that you can do all things;
    no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
Job 42:2 (NIV)

The Lord of hosts has sworn:
“As I have planned,
    so shall it be,
and as I have purposed,
    so shall it stand.
Isaiah 14:24 (NLT)

Tuesday, Mar 14

And [Jesus] said, “I assure you that unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of heaven.  Matthew 18:3 (GNT)

My husband and I are blessed with lots of family around. The eldest is my husband's father who is 89 and the youngest is my grandson, who is one. Some days caring for them is very similar as the circle of life plays out before our eyes. One of the differences I have noticed though is tied to this verse in Matthew. When my grandson is in a pickle and I help him or I suddenly appear when he is unsure, he looks at me with a look that says "I knew you'd be here." He expects me to show up and help him whenever he needs me. My father-in-law, however, always looks surprised. Even though he is thankful when it happens, he is never confident we'll be there for him. Even though we've been helping him for three years, he still doesn't trust it.

As I reflected on this, I pondered if this is one of the character traits Jesus was talking about when he said we must become like little children. God wants us to trust him. He wants us to know that he will show up and help us every single time. He doesn't want us to say "I wasn't sure you were going to show up, I'm sure glad you did." He wants us to always say "I knew you'd show up. You always do."

Where are you in your walk with God? Are you surprised when he shows up or are expecting him with a childlike faith that can't be rocked by your circumstance?  Maybe you are somewhere in between. Where ever you are, know that God loves you and will show up for you, every single time.

Monday, Mar 13

What does the Lord your God require of you? He requires only that you fear the Lord your God, and live in a way that pleases him, and love him and serve him with all your heart and soul. And you must always obey the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good. Deuteronomy 10:12-13 (NLT)

As I watch my little grandson grow and assert his will into the mix of his life, I realize there are going to be times when he will need to obey what his parents or I (or anyone that is caring for him) says. Even if he doesn't want to. As he gets older, he is going to ask "Why must I obey?" Our answer? "Because we love you so very much, we know what will be best for you." We can't expect a child of one or two or sometimes even 16 to know everything about life. We then impose our will on them so they are safe and are making the best choice for their life and more importantly, for their future.

It is the same with God. He asks us to obey him. Not because of some arbitrary rule he's imposed but because he loves us so very much and wants the best for our life and our future. When we rebel against obeying (knowing the request is made in love), we don't have an obedience problem, we have a love problem. Our relationship with God is not in the right place. God will never, ever, ever offer us second best. He can't. It is not in his nature to do so. Trust him. It's the difference between a good life and the best life.

God is love. 1 John 4:16 (NLT)