"P" - "Precise Prince of Peace"

December 15, 2011 “He is the sole expression of the glory of God and He is the precise imprint and very image of God’s nature, upholding and maintaining and guiding and propelling the universe by His mighty word of power. When He had by offering Himself accomplished our cleansing of sins and riddance of guilt, He sat down at the right hand of the divine Majesty on high. (Hebrews 1:3) Precise - this may sound like a strange word to use for an Advent writing, but our pastor used this word in a sermon and I immediately began to think of other words having to do with Advent that this adjective, “precise,” would describe. Webster says to be precise is to be “decisive, well defined, accurate, exact, inflexible and uncompromising.” What a wonderful adjective to describe Jehovah God, He is precise. He is decisive and uncompromising, He is the immutable God – He never changes. He has a precise plan for our salvation. That precise plan was for His Son to be born of a virgin, live as a man and die as our Savior, and send the Holy Spirit to live in us & empower us. Jesus never waivered nor was compromising from this precise plan. Jesus was the precise Person and precise Provision that would fulfill the precise plan, just at the precise time. The Father knew that man must have a perfect (exact, without a flaw) sacrifice for man’s sins. Jesus was the only perfect and precise Person that could satisfy God’s requirement for a holy sacrifice and bring us perfect restoration to man. The Father had a precise purpose, which was to pick us out for Himself in Christ, before the foundation of the world, and for us to be set apart and blameless in His sight, and be adopted as His own children through Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:4-6). His precise purpose was to give us peace, joy, healing, hope and all we could ask for, all of which comes to us by our salvation. The climax of God’s precise purpose was in the maturity of time to unify all things and consummate them in Christ, both things in heaven and on earth. In Christ we obtained an inheritance in accordance to His precise purpose, Who works out everything. God’s precise purpose was for those who had relied on Him to be stamped with the seal of the precisely promised Holy Spirit and all the gifts that He has for us (Eph.1:6-14). The Father’s precise purpose and plan was also that His Son would come to us as the Prince of Peace. “For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder, and His name shall be called….”Prince of Peace” (Isa.9:6). A prince is the son of a king. Jesus was born into humanity as the “Prince of Peace, the Son of God.” He would some day be King Jesus – King of kings. But from being “Prince” to “King” Jesus had to do a lot of living as a human. He was tempted with all kinds of sins, like all humans are, but without falling into sin. Have you ever thought when Jesus was a child if He ever bickered and argued in anger like all other children do? Did He tell those childish “little white lies?” Did He disobey His parents and was He selfish and even at times was He hateful like other children – after all, He was human? The answer is no to all these sins – He was sinless from birth. Although He was born into a human body, He was born the God-man. Although human He retained His holiness (purity, separation from sin). The whole concept of the truth of Christ’s incarnation is incomprehensible to us. He was the first and the last sinless human. For this reason we can trust Him to cleanse us from all our sinfulness, to live in us and give us a perfect heart. He came as a Prince (Son) to bring peace to us who, because we were born “children of wrath” (born with a sin nature) and thus we have been at war with the Holy Father. There is no peace, nor rest like having the “war” ended. Only by accepting this “Prince of Peace” can we ever truly know peace of mind and heart. Jesus came as the Prince of Peace but having done His “work” for our peace, He now sits as the King of kings with the Father and desires that we rule and reign with Him in His kingdom of Peace. Wonderful Peace W.D. Cornell Far away in the depths of my spirit tonight rolls a melody sweeter than psalm; In celestial-like strains it unceasingly falls o’er my soul like an infinite calm. What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace buried deep in the heart of my soul, So secure that no power can mine it away while the years of eternity roll. I am resting tonight in this wonderful peace, resting sweetly in Jesus’ control, And I’m kept from all danger by night and by day – now His glory is flooding my soul. And I know when I rise to that city of peace where the Author of peace I shall see, That one of the anthems the ransomed will sing in that heavenly kingdom shall be: Peace! Peace! Wonderful peace, coming down from the Father above, Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray, in fathomless billows of love.

Wonderful Words of Life

November 20, 2012 Sing them over again to me – Wonderful words of life; Let me more of their beauty see – Wonderful words of life; Words of life and beauty, teach me faith and duty; Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life. (Philip P. Bliss) Our tongue is one of the most powerful organs of our body. Proverbs 18:21 tells us that “life or death is in the power of the tongue.” We can speak life, hope, peace and healing with a gentle tongue (15:4), and speaking the truth in love. Also it says in the twelfth chapter and eighteenth verse, “There are some who speak rashly, like the piercing of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” Are we rash or are we wise with our words? Have you ever heard anyone extol the praises of harsh, vile words? I don’t think so. But Solomon, the wisest man ever to live, said in Proverbs 25:11, “A word fitly spoken and in due season (at the right time) is like apples of gold in settings of silver.” Also in 15:23 he says, “A man has joy in making an apt answer, and a word spoken at the right moment – how good it is!” The third chapter of James has a lot to say about the words that come from our tongue. In verses 5-12 it describes our tongue as "a fire, a world of wickedness which can contaminate and deprave our entire body, being itself ignited by everlasting punishment” (vs.6). James goes on to say in verses 7-8, that every sort of beast can be, and has been tamed, by human genius, but no man can tame the tongue. It is described as, “an irreconcilable evil, full of deadly poison.” In verses 9-12, James shows the dichotomy and hypocrisy of our untamed tongue – “With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse men who are made in the image of God - these things ought not to be.” Then James ask us to reason about this unruly, small member of our body, “Does the same fountain simultaneously, send forth fresh and bitter water; or does a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs?” The answer to these questions is, “Of course not!” Neither can a tongue that has been consecrated, cleansed and brought into control by the Holy Spirit speak evil and wicked words. We cannot tame our tongue, but we can yield its control to the Holy Spirit and let Him purify and bring it under His control. When we fail we must confess, repent and again yield our entire being to the Holy Spirit. Our words all start with our thoughts – “As a man thinks, so is he” (Prov.23:7), and we are to lead every thought captive to the obedience of Jesus Christ” (II Cor. 10:5). As we “walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh,” then we can speak words of life. Then, and only then, can we be like Jesus Who spoke words of life. He strongly advised; He warned those who were unruly; He encouraged the fainthearted; He supported the weak, all the while He was patient with all men knowing how weak they were - and He is the same with us. To be like Jesus we must put our tongues on His proverbial altar – we must consecrate it, yield it, and submit it to His control. To speak continuous words of life we must stay filled with His Spirit. Even the Son said in Isaiah 50: 4, “The Lord God has given Me the tongue of one who is taught, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him who is weary.” So we too must be taught (and easy to learn) how to speak the right words at the right time. “All men must be quick to hear (a ready listener), slow to speak, slow to take offense and to get angry. For man’s anger does not promote the righteousness of God (that He requires and requests).” So, I repeat the Word, instead of giving into the flesh and the carnal way of responding we must learn how to be quick to hear and slow to speak and slow to get angry (James 1:19-20) –to speak life instead of death. Remember, “A soft answer turns away wrath but grievous words stir up anger (Prov.15:1). My prayer for all of us: O Lord, empty us of self and fill us with Your Holy Spirit so that the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts will be acceptable to You, our Strength and our Redeemer. Set a guard before our mouths so that only words of kindness, truth, wisdom and love would come forth. Keep watch at the door of our lips so that our words will be so filled with Your love that mercy and truth are met together, and that righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Keep our tongues from evil and our lips from speaking deceit (Ps. 34:13;41:3; Prov.17:28; 26:22-28). Forgive us for our hypocrisy honoring You with our lips when our hearts are far from You (Mark 7:6), but help us to keep a pure heart and wonderful words of life coming from our mouths. Thank You, for Your promise which says, “For let him who wants to enjoy life and see good days, keep his tongue free from evil and his lips from deceit” (I Peter 3:10). Now to You Who are able to keep us without stumbling, and to present us blameless and faultless before the presence of Your glory in triumphant joy and exultation with unspeakable delight – to the One and only God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, might and dominion, and power and authority, before all time and now and forever,unto all the ages of eternity (Jude 24-25). Amen.

Did I Hear A Shout And A Trumpet?

February 26, 2012 “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud cry of summons, with the shout of an archangel, and with the blast of the trumpet of God. And those who have departed this life in Christ will rise first.”(I Thessalonians 4:16 (Amp.) Every day I wake up to a fresh realization that we are one day closer to the coming of Christ. The Word tells us to watch and wait. It also gives us hints as what to look for when Christ comes to catch us up. Tonight I hope it is this night, and tomorrow I will wake hoping it is that day, etc. The above scripture tells us how this rapture (catching up) will happen. Paul is writing to the Thessalonians to enlighten them about questions they had about Christ’s return for believers. In verses 13-17 of the fourth chapter of First Thessalonians, Paul tells believers not to grieve for those who die in Christ as those grieve who have no hope beyond the grave. Believers should know that even as Jesus died and rose again, even so when Christ returns for us, those who have died in Christ will be raised first to newness of life and precede us that are still living on earth. This is how it will happen: “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud cry of summons, with the shout of an archangel, and with the blast of the trumpet of God. And those who have departed this life will rise first. Then we the living ones who remain on the earth, shall simultaneously be caught up along with the resurrected dead in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so always through the eternity of the eternities we shall be with the Lord” (vs.16 & 17). So there is going to be a great delegation of believers who will meet Jesus in the air. I John 3:2 says that when we as God’s children see Him we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He really is. “The Lord Himself will ascend from heaven with a loud shout…” Have you ever speculated on what He will be shouting? I think He will be shouting, “Come on home, children! Come on up with Me! This is your homecoming. THIS IS THE DAY OF THE LORD!” I Corinthians 15:52 Paul tells us that this rapture will happen in “a twinkling of an eye.” I read somewhere that a twinkle of the eye was 1/50th of a second. What a mystery that is, because Revelation 1:7 tells us that every eye will see Him, even those who pierced (hurt and rejected) Him, and all peoples of the earth will look on Him and mourn and lament over Him (because they had rejected Him when they had opportunities to accept). What a wonderful day that will be for the believer, the day for which we are all looking! But for those who have rejected the One Who loves them and died for them so they could live with Him forever, it will be a sad and terrible day (I Thessalonians 1:10). Are you listening for the shout and the trumpet? What A Day That Will Be! Jim Hill “What a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see, and I look upon His face - the One Who saved me by His grace. When he takes me by the hand and leads me thru the promised land, what a day, what a day that will be.”

Happy Valentine's Day

February 14, 2012 "For God So loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him shold not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16) Valentine’s Day is a day to express our love to others. Over the years this expression has evolved from just our sweetheart to anyone and everyone we care about. The post office and the flower shops say this is the busiest holiday of the year. It is good to know there is still a lot of love going around. God created us to love and desire to be loved - love is giving. Our love is manifested to man by “sacrifice” – to give. Just as God the Father gave His Son for us (and it was a Great Sacrifice). And Jesus gave Himself for us (the ultimate sacrifice) - “But God proves His love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). This kind of love (Agape) is inconceivable. Jesus is the personification of love in that He made the ultimate sacrifice for man – His life. But when we truly love someone we are willing to “sacrifice” ourselves (time, energies, resources and even our life) for them. Our love is manifested to God by our “obedience” to Him. We give all we have, all we are and all we ever hope to be, (I John 5:3) “For the true love of God is this: that we do His commands. And these orders of His are not burdensome nor repressive.” Only when the love of God lives within us can we love Him back, then it is a joy to obey Him because we know He knows what is best for us, and not only to love Him and live in His presence, but only then can we truly love another. To love God is to have a deep desire to please Him; and to please Him is to obey Him. There are five different kinds of love: 1) Epithumia, this is a love that is a strong desire to have or own - controlling. 2) Eros, this is love most associated with romance. It is a sexual love. Eros love is wholly emotional and cannot be summoned at will. 3) Storge love is described as a comfortable old shoe relationship comprised of natural affection and a sense of belonging to each other. 4) Phileo, This love cherishes and has tender affection for the beloved but it expects a response. It is a love of relationship, comradeship, sharing, communication and friendship. 5) Agape, this is a love that loves completely and unconditionally, but expects nothing in return. Agape love is usually associated with God’s love – unconditional and everlasting. I read an article a long time ago about a study done on the orphanages in some of the Soviet block countries where the child-care people were not allowed to hold or caress the babies. Even when the babies were being fed the bottles were just propped up. The only time babies were touched was when they were diapered, bathed and dressed. These studies showed these babies who were never touched or showed any kind of love were sickly and many died. A follow-up study showed the survivors of these orphanages were emotionally maladjusted and never knew how to accept or give love, even after they were adopted and cared for. God created us to love and be loved and although we may never know the love of a person, our Heavenly Father wants to manifests His Agape love to all of us. Four of these loves come and go but Agape love, God’s love for us, is unconditional and forever. The following writing is by Charles Stanley, and is a meditation on: ____________ “Our Heavenly Father’s Unconditional Love.” Scripture tells us that love is the very essence of who God is. God is love (I John 4:16). So if you don’t believe that He loves you unconditionally, you’ll never really know Him or have genuine peace about your relationship with Him. How do you define “love”? It is Jesus unselfishly reaching out to mankind, giving Himself to us and bring good into our life regardless of whether or not we accept Him - “God shows and clearly proves His love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). His care and concern are so immeasurable that He laid down His life for us while we were still His enemies. In fact, the Bible says that He first began to express His love toward us before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:3-5) That means your actions had absolutely nothing to do with His love for you! God’s commitment to us has absolutely no conditions or restrictions and isn’t based on whether we love Him back. Nor does He have more love for “good” people who may strike us as more worthy. He loves us even in our sin, even when we don’t repent. Does that give us license to disobey? No, It gives us power to follow Him is to receive the love He has been offering all along. Every single moment, whether awake or asleep, we all live under the canopy of the Lord’s wondrous, absolute love for us. But to fully experience that love, you must receive it. Say yes to this amazing gift that God wants to pour out on you. Bask in it, and let it overflow to those around you. ______________ O Love That Will Not Let Me Go George Matheson O Love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in You; I give You back the life I owe, that in Your ocean depths its flow may richer, fuller be. O Joy that seeks me through pain, I cannot close my heart to You; I trace the rainbow through the rain, and feel the promise is not vain That morn will tearless be. --------------- I send my love to you and pray you will experience God’s Agape love that will not let you go!

Rationalizing - A Common Sin

“Withhold not Your tender mercy from me. O Lord, let Your loving-kindness and Your truth continually preserve!” (Psalm 40:11) The truth is an absolute. There are no shades or partial truth. There is not such a thing as a “white lie.” A lie is false and the opposite of truth. Our courts make us lay our hand on the Bible and swear that we are going “to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.” Just as the courts of our land will not accept partial truth, neither does God. Webster defines the word, “rationalizing” to mean, “To attribute one’s actions to rational and creditable motives without analysis of true, unconscious motives, - to provide plausible but untrue reasons for conduct.” There, rationalizing is sin because it is not telling the truth, and is an excuse that may not contain any truth of our real motives for our actions. To continue to rationalize is not being truthful with others or our self. To rationalize is like falling into a pit that will eventually become our prison from which we can’t escape and we really don’t want to. We would rather stay in the pit than face the pain of truth and reality. The pit becomes deceitfully comfortable. It is a hiding place from those who know the truth and might confront or expose our sham. The one who lives in the pit of rationalization lives in fear – fearful to be accountable for his/her actions – fearful of the opinions of others, fearful of being wrong. The one who lives in this pit is a person of low self-esteem. Guilt, whether real or self and/or others imposed, is usually the culprit which lives with him in the pit, constantly whispering that he must remain covered and in the dark lest others know the truth and disapprove. The pit causes him to become a hypocrite, pretending to be someone he is not – hiding the true motives of his conduct. The pit started just as a small indentation of “excuse.” The more excuses were given the deeper the pit became. The habit of excusing becomes a sharp and very large shovel that quickly digs a deep, but comfortable pit. Hopefully there will come a time when we desire to escape this prison. It is only through the knowledge and acceptance of God’s love for and acceptance of us can we have the courage to climb on the back of our companions in the pit with us, fear and low self-esteem, and climb out into the light. There we have the courage to speak the truth, take responsibility for our conduct, breath in the fresh air of freedom and walk in the sunshine of God’s love and forgiveness for choosing to live in the pit of rationalization. Love cast out fear. To love is to have the freedom to think, speak and act the truth. Prayer: Father, help us to take off our masks, to live in the freedom of Your love, to speak the truth even when we may have to suffer difficult consequences. We choose not to live in the pit of rationalization. Thank You because Your truth sets us free to be all You want us to be. We pray this in Jesus’ Name, Amen!

Before They Call I Will Answer

July 22, 2012 Isaiah 65:24 – “Before They Call I will Answer” This is a story written by a doctor who worked in Africa: One night I had worked hard to help a mother in the labor ward; but in spite of all we could do, she died, leaving us with a tiny, premature baby and a crying two-year-old daughter. We would have difficulty keeping the baby alive; as we had no incubator (we had no electricity to run an incubator). We also had no special feeding facilities. Although we lived on the equator, nights were often chilly with treacherous drafts. One student midwife went for the box we had for such babies and the cotton wool that the baby would be wrapped in. Another went to stoke up the fire and fill a hot water bottle. She came back shortly in distress to tell me that in filling the bottle, it had burst (rubber perishes easily in tropical climates). “And it is our last hot water bottle!” she exclaimed. As in the West, it is no good crying over spilled milk, so in Central Africa it might be considered no good crying over burst water bottles. They do not grow on trees, and there are no drugstores down forest pathways. “All right,” I said, “put the baby as near the fire as you safely can, and sleep between the baby and the door to keep it free from drafts. Your job is to keep the baby warm.” The following noon, as I did most days, I went to have prayers with any of the orphanage children who chose to gather with me. I gave the youngsters various suggestions of things to pray about and told them about the tiny baby. I explained our problem about keeping the baby warm enough, mentioning the hot water bottle, and that the baby could so easily die if it got chills. I also told them of the two-year-old sister, crying because her mother had died. During prayer time, one ten -year-old girl, Ruth, prayed with the usual blunt conciseness of our African children. “Please, God” she prayed, “Send us a hot water bottle today It'll be no good tomorrow, God, as the baby will be dead, so please send it this afternoon.” While I gasped inwardly at the audacity of the prayer, she added, “And while You are about it, would You please send a dolly for the little girl so she'll know You really love her?” As often with children's prayers, I was put on the spot. Could I honestly say “Amen?” I just did not believe that God could do this. Oh, yes, I know that He can do everything; the Bible says so. But there are limits, aren't there? The only way God could answer this particular prayer would be by sending me a parcel from the homeland. I had been in Africa for almost four years at that time, and I had never, ever, received a parcel from home. Anyway, if anyone did send me a parcel, who would put in a hot water bottle? I lived on the equator! Halfway through the afternoon, while I was teaching in the nurses' training school, a message was sent that there was a car at my front door. By the time I reached home, the car had gone, but there on the verandah was a large 22-pound parcel. I felt tears pricking my eyes. I could not open the parcel alone, so I sent for the orphanage children. Together we pulled off the string, carefully undoing each knot. We folded the paper, taking care not to tear it unduly. Excitement was mounting. Some thirty or forty pairs of eyes were focused on the large cardboard box. From the top, I lifted out brightly-colored, knitted jerseys. Eyes sparkled as I gave them out. Then there were the knitted bandages for the leprosy patients, and the children looked a little bored. Then came a box of mixed raisins and sultanas - that would make a batch of buns for the weekend. Then, as I put my hand in again, I felt the.....could it really be? I grasped it and pulled it out. Yes, a brand new, rubber hot water bottle. I cried. I had not asked God to send it; I had not truly believed that He could. Ruth was in the front row of the children. She rushed forward, crying out, “If God has sent the bottle, He must have sent the dolly, too!” Rummaging down to the bottom of the box, she pulled out the small, beautifully-dressed dolly. Her eyes shone! She had never doubted! Looking up at me, she asked, “Can I go over with you and give this dolly to that little girl, so she'll know that Jesus really loves her?” “Of course,” I replied! That parcel had been on the way for five whole months, packed up by my former Sunday school class, whose leader had heard and obeyed God's prompting to send a hot water bottle, even to the equator. And one of the girls had put in a dolly for an African child - five months before, in answer to the believing prayer of a ten-year-old to bring it 'that afternoon.' “Before they call, I will answer.” (Isaiah 65:24) When you receive this, say the prayer. That's all I ask. No strings attached. Just send it on to whomever you want - but please do send it on. Prayer is one of the best free gifts we receive. There is no cost, but a lot of rewards. Let's continue praying for one another. This awesome prayer takes less than a minute. Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless my friends reading this. I ask You to minister to their spirit. Where there is pain, give them Your peace and mercy. Where there is self doubting, release a renewed confidence to work through them. Where there is tiredness or exhaustion, I ask You to give them understanding, guidance, and strength. Where there is fear, reveal Your love and release to them Your courage. Bless their finances, give them greater vision, and raise up leaders and friends to support and encourage them. I ask You to do these things in Jesus' name. Amen! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jesus said in Matthew 18:3, “Unless you change your mind and become like little children (trusting, loving, forgiving), you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven.” Either God is who He says He is, Almighty, or He doesn’t exist. How big is your God?

No Holograms

July 13, 2012 “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (II Corinthians 4:18) This scripture makes me think somewhat of holograms I have seen. These have been pictures that appear to be nothing discernable, but as you concentrate on either the light or dark areas, to your delight a clear image emerges; the mystery in the picture is no longer a mystery. Google’s definition of “hologram” is: “a photograph of an interference pattern that, when suitably illuminated, produces a three-dimensional image.” This past week our granddaughter e-mailed us a picture of a sonogram taken of her baby in her womb. She made no explanation but just said, “Another Justin.” We looked at the picture but it just looked like a big blob of something. We could not figure out the mystery. While still looking at the picture I called to ask her to explain. As I concentrated on the abstract lines the close-up picture of the baby’s face just seemed to jump out at me. Once I saw it, it became very real and even was three dimensional. It was all in how I looked at it. So I guess little Johnny’s sonogram picture on the computer is a hologram. This picture proves there is a real baby mysteriously hidden that will someday soon come forth and we can hold him. This picture is temporary and can easily be destroyed, but that baby is real and eternal. So until we can see Johnny with our eyes and hold him with our arms we will just have to enjoy this picture, knowing that the real will soon come to past, and he is eternal, even now. So it is with our spiritual eyes, since we are spiritual beings, created in the image of God, we should not focus on the things of this world, which are temporal, but we should focus on those things of the spirit, for they are eternal and will never go away. Heaven and hell are for real and our spirit being will spend eternity in either heaven, if we have accepted Christ, or hell, if we haven’t accepted Christ. The Word of God makes the picture clear, and that picture is of a born-again child of God who is destined for an eternity with God the Father and Jesus His Son. As we look deeply into the things promised in God’s Word, we can clearly see the distractions and the things here that are temporal, and the things that are eternal - when time shall be no more. On what are we focusing? Here is one man’s testimonial of his path to reality. Through Mr. Cox’s prayer of faith he could now see clearly the eternal things. The distorted, blurred and mysterious things (the temporal) were gone, and the eternal things now became real, and life was no longer a hologram. “It’s Real” (by H. L. Cox) Oh, how well do I remember how I doubted day by day, for I did not know for certain that my sins were washed away. When the Spirit tried to tell me, I would not the truth receive, I endeavored to be happy, and to make myself believe. When the truth came close and searching, all my joy would disappear, for I did not have the witness of the Spirit bright and clear. If at times the coming judgment would appear before my mind, oh, it made me so uneasy, for God’s smile I could not find. When the Lord sent faithful servants who would dare to preach the truth, how my heart did so condemn me as the Spirit gave reproof. Satan says at once, “I will ruin you to now confess your state, keep on working and professing, and you’ll enter heaven’s gate.” But at last I tired of living such a life of fear and doubt, for I wanted God to give me something I would know about. So the truth would make me happy, and the light would clearly shine, and the Spirit gave assurance that I’m His and He is mine. So I prayed to God in earnest, and not caring what folks said; I was hungry for the blessing; my poor soul it must be fed. When at last by faith I touched Him, and like sparks from smitten steel, just so quick salvation reached me; O bless God, I know it’s real! It’s real, it’s real, oh, I know it’s real. Praise God, the doubts are settled, for I know, I know it’s real!

My Prayer For You

June 30, 2012 “Far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you.” (I Samuel 12:23 Amp.) Although God is Sovereign and is in complete control of everything, for His own reasons He has told believers to pray perseveringly (Phil.4:6; I Thess.5:17). I think some reasons He commanded us to pray are to involve us in His miracle working power, and it definitely enlarges our faith. Through this blog I wanted you to know how and what I am praying for you. These are prayers taken from God’s Word (I didn’t think I could go wrong in praying for you in these ways). As I pray for you, personalize (put your name in each prayer as if I were there with you calling out your name, because in the spirit I am). God already knows your needs and desires, so trust Him to answer each prayer as you yield yourself to Him for His good will and pleasure. (I am praying also for me). Heavenly Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus, that name that is above all names, and for all for which that Name stand; and by virtue of my faith in that name I know you hear my prayers for all for whom I am praying – you know their names. Cleanse our hearts from anything that is unlike you (including any hidden sin) which will keep You from hearing our prayers (Ps.66:18). Thank You for cleansing our hearts and for making us pure and holy before You – what a wonder! I praise You because You are fearful and wonderful and that You created each of us to be special and unique. You saw each of us when You intricately formed us in our mother’s womb, and even then all the days of our life were written in Your book before they ever took shape. I thank You that Your love for us is everlasting and that Your thoughts toward us are precious and weighty. How vast is the sum of them – if we counted them they would be more in number than all the grains of sand. If we could count all of those grains, when we finished we would still be with You. Search us thoroughly, O God, and know our thoughts and our hearts, and see if there is any wicked or hurtful way in us, and lead us in Your way that is everlasting (Psalm 139: 13- 24). Father, I pray that each of us would believe that you gave your only Son so we would not and come to eternal destruction; but by believing in and accepting Your greatest gift, Jesus, we can have everlasting life (John 3:16). And by accepting Your magnanimous gift we become Your child and heir to all You have (Romans 8:14-17). Part of that inheritance is Your promises – they are “yes and so-be-it” in Christ (II Cor.1:20) – and we can lay claim to them all. What a wonder to get to know (intimately acquainted with) the Creator of the universe, Jesus, our Savior, and to know You is to love You. Although we are still in this world, this intimate knowledge of Jesus lifts us spiritually out from those who are spiritually dead because they do not know You (Philippians 3:7-16). I pray we may all come to know Christ in this way and be filled and flooded with Your very Self (Eph.3:19). Upon finding this “Pearl of great price” (Jesus), may we give all that we are to You Matt.13:46), because as Jim Elliot (the missionary to the Auca Indians in Ecuador and was later martyred) said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to save what he cannot lose.” Father, enable us to prove our love for You by continually give of ourselves to You and by obeying Your Word and Its commands, (because You know what is best) (I John 5:11-13). And we thank You, Father, because we can be assured of eternal life if we have put our faith and trust in Jesus, your Son (I John 5:11-13). Father, in Matthew 5:44, You told us to “love our enemies and to pray for those who despitefully use us,” but You also know we cannot love without You filling us with Your love and enabling us to love our “enemies.” We confess that we don’t want to love our enemies and those who despitefully use us – so please change our “want to’ and to love the unlovely through us, (who are often unlovely). Father, we know that love is a choice, as well as forgiveness, so help us to make that choice to give up and let go of that hurt and wrong that has been done to us and let You take care of the “making right” part (Matt.6:6-15). Father, help us to even forgive You because we know ultimately “the buck stops with You.” You are a sovereign God and in control of everything that comes into our life. We acknowledge that You don’t cause, but permit, terrible circumstances to happen to us, but Your thoughts and ways are not our thoughts, and the way we would do things, if we were God, are certainly not the way you would do them (Isaiah 55:8-9). We know from Your Word that You permit the enemy of our soul, Satan (the devil), to attack us and try to destroy us, just as he did Job (Job 1, especially vs.6-12). Father, although we may not understand why You have permitted “bad” things that come into our lives, help us to trust that You love us with an everlasting love and that You desire only our good. Because we know it is Satan who has come to “steal, kill and destroy us, but You have come to bring us life that is abundant and full of overflowing joy (John 10:10). Please help us to embrace this Truth and to yield to Your love in the midst of our chaos. Father, help us to pray knowing You always hear when we come with “clean hands and a pure heart” (Psalm 24:3-5). Help us to not live in the counsel of the ungodly, (following their plans, advice and purposes; nor to stand submissive and inactive in the paths where sinners walk. Nor help me not to sit in the place where mockers gather. But help me to delight in reading, studying, meditating and obeying Your Word day and night. If we do this You have promised that we shall be like a prosperous tree that brings forth its fruit in its season and its leaves will not wither; and everything we do shall prosper (Ps.1:1-3). Have mercy on us because You know we are weak and helpless (Numbers 14:18). Your mercies and loving kindness last forever, and Your truth and Your faithfulness endure to all generations (Psalm 100:5). Help us to learn to submit to Your will and wait for Your answers to our prayers, then our strength to persevere will be renewed and we will mount up close to You, and we will walk in Your paths of righteousness and not become tired, and You will cause us to run our course You have planned for us (Jer.11:29) and not be weary (Isa.40:31). Thank You, because in Your time You make all things beautiful (Ecclesiastes 3:11). Help us to trust You with all of our hearts and lean to our own understanding but in all our way to acknowledge You for Who You are, and You will direct our paths (Prov.3:5-6). We pray this in the precious name of Jesus, Amen.

A Beautiful Description of the Beautiful Woman

June 18, 2012 (From writings of Audrey Hepburn) For attractive lips, speak words of kindness (*kind words are like apples of silver in pictures of gold. You can even say something good about the devil - he is determined). For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people (*Try to walk in their shoes, and remember we all have feet of clay). For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry (*exercise your gifts of love and mercy, take long walks while you meditate on the Word of God, and run to help fulfill the needs of others) . For beautiful hair, let a child run his/her fingers through it once a day. For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone (*God is always with you, be confident in Him). People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed (*Jesus is the restorer, the renewer, the reviver, the reclaimer, the Redeemer); never throw out anyone (*including yourself, “God don’t make no junk”).. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, and the other for helping others (*to lift up someone else is to be lifted up yourself because “you reap what you sow”). *(italics are mine)

Abba Father - The Father Knows Best

June 16, 2012 “Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, Abba Father. “ (Galatians 4:6) Back in the 50’s and 60’s the television cereal-type programs were all wholesome and usually taught a moral lesson. Since television was our main source of entertainment there were several we tried to watch faithfully. One was, “Father Knows Best.” The Father’s name was Jim Anderson and he was portrayed as a father who was dedicated, self-sacrificing, wise, moral, understanding and loving. Even when he failed in some way, he would quickly acknowledge his failure and make amends. He seemed to be the “perfect father” (although there is not such a person). But we have a heavenly Father Who is perfect in every way, and when we choose to accept His Son into our life, we become a “child of God,” and have the privilege of calling Him, “Abba Father,” which is an affectionate, informal term (Daddy). As His child, the yearning of our heart is for Him. As His child we desire to crawl into His lap and tell Him how much we love Him, to confess our sins to Him, to tell Him how we are hurting (although He already knows), to thank Him for all He has done for us and for how He will be there for us in the future, and to get counsel for the problems facing us (because He only has the answers). Since tomorrow is Father’s Day I want to share something good about: “How to Become A Successful Father,” by Charles Stanley “No human father is perfect. But with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Scripture, and godly mentors, a man can become a successful dad by intentionally leading his children in these areas: Spirituality – Help your children to trust in Jesus Christ as early as possible, and they’ll grow with the understanding that He is to be at the center of everything they do. Morality – In homes where honesty, purity, and loyalty are lived out, boys and girls learn to value integrity and listen to their conscience. Relationships – Teaching about love, respect, and mutual encouragement is good preparation for friendships and marriage. Vocation – Model cooperation and doing work “heartily, as to the Lord and not to men” (Col.3:23), and your children will form a healthy work ethic. Finances – Teach your kids the right way to handle money; to earn honestly, give generously, invest intelligently, save prudently, and enjoy heartily (I Tim.6:17). Authority – Unless children learn how to function properly under authority – of parents, school, church and government – rebelliousness can easily develop. Our sons and daughters notice when there’s a disconnect between our conduct and words, so setting a good example is essential. The way to build guiding principles into a child’s life is by precept (teaching) and practice (modeling). Dads, if you plant these heartily concepts in your children’s hearts, what a joy it will be to see them equipped and motivated to fulfill God’s purpose for their life." ----------------- Some will read this blog who are not fathers, but you may be an authority figure to someone, and these principles are for everyone: father, mother, grandparents, teachers, friends, boss, etc. They are timeless, practical, and essential to be a successful mentor and to leave a footprint of integrity in which others want to walk. If you have failed in the past it is never too late to start today applying these principles. Remember, you reap what you sow – if you sow godly principles some day others will “rise up and call you blessed.” Integrity will be your badge. Go for it Abba (Daddy)! “Faith of our fathers, we will love both friend and foe in all our strife. And preach thee too, as love knows how, by kindly words and virtuous life.” (Frederick W. Faber)

Have You Had Hematohidrosis?

June 8, 2012 “And being in an agony of mind, He prayed all the more earnestly and intently, and His sweat became like great clots of blood dropping down upon the ground.” (Luke 22:44) (Amp) In my studying I came across a new word to me, a medical term called, Hematohidrosis. Wikipedia describes hematohidrosis as “a very rare condition in which a human sweats blood. It may occur when a person is suffering extreme levels of stress, for example, facing his or her own death. Several historical references have been described; notably by Leonardo da Vinci: describing a soldier who sweated blood before battle, men unexpectedly given a death sentence, as well as descriptions in the Bible, that Jesus experienced hematohidrosis when he was praying in the garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:44).” Jesus is the only one recorded in the Bible to have possibly experienced hematohidrosis. Outward stress moves from the brain through the body causing the vessels to dilate and rupture, releasing blood into the sweat glands which release the blood onto the skin, mixed with sweat. So it is possible that Jesus experienced hematohidrosis in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night of His arrest. He was not in “agony” over facing physical torture and death but agonized over having to take upon His pure, holy personage (the One Who knew no sin), all the sins of the whole world – every person’s sins who ever lived and who would ever live. Although Jesus was in great stress we don’t think of Him as being “anxious” or “fearful.” Webster defines “anxious” as, “characterized by extreme uneasiness of mind or brooding fear – worry.” My definition of worry is, “unbelief that God is in control of our situation.” To be either anxious or fearful would be sin because God tells us in His Word “not to be anxious for anything” (Phil.4:6,7) and that “God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, and of love and of self-control” (II Tim.1:7,8 - Amp.). Jesus agony was not over the fear of torture and death, but His agony was indescribable pain and anguish of spirit over the prospect of Him being the pure, Holy God becoming filthy, vile and desecrated with our sins. It is important to notice what He was doing when this condition happened – He was praying. He took His pain and agony to the Father in prayer, trusting Him for the outcome. As long as we live in this world stress of some kind will be a daily occurrence (consider that we bring a lot of our stress on ourselves by our own willfulness), but in John 16:33 Jesus said, “In this world you will have distress, but take courage, be confident and undaunted for I have overcome the world” (Amp.). II Cor. 4:8-10 says, ”We are troubled and oppressed in every way, but not crushed; we are unable to find a way out, but not driven to despair; we are persecuted and hard driven, but not deserted to stand alone; we are struck down to the ground, but never struck out and destroyed; always carrying about in the body exposure the same putting to death that the Lord Jesus suffered, so that the resurrection life of Jesus also may be shown by and in our bodies” (Amp.). David Jeremiah describes stress as “being a mirror – it reveals better than anything else what is inside.” The way we handle stress defines who we are. In times of fear is the time to trust. I wrote in my blog, “Let Faith Be Your Doorkeeper” - “When fear knocks at the door, let “faith” answer. “God did not give us a spirit of fear, anxiety and worry but of love, power and of a well-balanced mind” (II Tim.1:7, 8). So when fear, anxiety and worry try to dominate your mind go to the Lord in prayer. Remember the verse in Philippians 4:6 which says, “Do not be anxious about anything but in everything pray, with thanksgiving, and let your wants be made known to God. And God’s peace shall be yours, that tranquil state of soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God, that peace which transcends all understanding shall mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Amp.). When you intentionally trust your anxiety to God and walk in peace of mind, your character becomes stronger and more peaceful and filled with faith. We will never experience the kind of stress and agony that Jesus went through, but however great our agony of spirit if we focus on Jesus and His sufficiency to keep us, go with us and love us through it all, we can experience that wonderful peace that comes only from prayer, thanksgiving and trusting God. Wonderful Peace (W. D. Cornell) O Soul, are you here without comfort and rest, walking down the rough pathway of time? Make Jesus your friend ere the shadows grow dark, O accept this sweet peace so sublime! What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace buried deep in the heart of my soul, So secure that no power can mine it away while the years of eternity roll. I am resting tonight in this wonderful peace, resting sweetly in Jesus’ control, and I’m kept from all danger by night and by day, now His glory is flooding my soul. Peace! Peace! Wonderful peace, coming down from the Father above. Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray, in fathomless billows of love. , in fathomless billows of love.>

Give Me This Mountain

“Give me this mountain of which the Lord spoke, He said there would be giants, bigger and stronger and fortified stronghold cities.” (Joshua 14:12) Many an unbeliever has said the Bible was boring, but to anyone who knows the author it is the most exciting, insightful, adventuresome and informative book there is. And what is so wonderful is that every word in It is true. Jonah really was swallowed by a big fish; the Red Sea really was rolled back like a scroll to let Moses and the Children of Israel cross on dry land; David really did kill the giant, Goliath, with a sling shot and five stones; and Jesus really was born of a virgin, He did live on this earth, was crucified and died for our sins, was buried and rose from the dead by God’s resurrection power. God’s righteousness is a wonderful gift we are given when we are saved. It is our “breastplate” to protect us against the onslaughts of the enemy. His righteousness covers us so we never have to fear that Satan can steal this gift away or inflict a fatal wound to us so we would be lost to our Savior or hope to spend eternity in heaven. Our struggles are not with physical opponents and circumstances but with the master powers of this world and spirit forces of wickedness, so we must daily appropriate all of God’s gifts to stand against these forces and God will help us to be victorious and take the mountains and fight the giants in our life (Eph.6:10-18). We are promised victory in Jesus (Philippians 4:13). Consider Joshua because he was a man of faith who listened to what God said and led his people on a conquest to conquer the enemies’ territory which the Lord had promised his people. There were mountains to scale, giants to overcome and fortified cities to invade and conquer. What a hero, what a role-model, what an example! He was all those things not because he did any of them on his own and or that he was so courageous, but because he sought God for direction when he didn’t know the next step to take. He sought God for protection and courage when he knew there were great dangers ahead and enemies to destroy. There were walls he had to tear down and idols he had to destroy, and he did great exploits, but he chose to trust God through it all, and he challenged those under his command to, “Choose today whom you will serve, but for me and my house we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). He lived an intentional, faith-filled life to the end and died at 110 years old. He was buried on that mountain for which he had asked God. Have you, or are you now facing circumstances in your life that loom before you like an insurmountable mountain? Are your circumstances overwhelmingly big? Satan has a way of holding a magnifying glass of worry up to our mind’s eye that brings fear and anxiety to make our problems seem like mountains. When we are in a valley of discouragement it may seem like we are not only in the valley but under an immovable boulder of circumstances in that valley. We may be paralyzed with all kinds of fearful thoughts not knowing how we can possibly solve our heap of problems. But God has some leverages to roll that boulder off our back and a broad, level path on which to climb that mountain. God gives us some powerful spiritual weapons to fight those opposing giants and reminds us of His promises to give us “the mountain.” He tells us in Isaiah 54:17 that “no weapon formed against us shall prosper and every tongue spoken in judgment against us will be shown to be in the wrong because we are servants of the Lord and this is our inheritance.” The fundamental piece of our weaponry is the Word of God, which is the Sword of the Spirit. We must study It, meditate on It, appropriate It in our life and let It change us. God’s Word will show us our sin, instruct us in the Truth, guide us in life, comfort us in sorrow, encourage us in our failures and It gives us hope for this life and for eternity. As we skillfully wield this most powerful weapon It will destroy our enemies and build our faith in God. The Bible is God’s Word and It will never fail, become extinct nor pass away. God’s Word will stand forever! "Try It, you’ll like It." Prayer is another key weapon we have been given to climb our mountains and kill our giants. “The earnest, heartfelt and continued prayer of a righteous person makes tremendous power available – dynamic in its workings” (Jas. 5:16b Amp.) We are told in Psalm 66:18 that if we see and approve sin in our hearts that God will not hear us when we pray; so before coming before the Father in prayer we must agree with Him about the sin in our life so we may be forgiven, cleansed and healed from all unrighteousness (I John 1:9). When cleansed we can come boldly before the “throne of grace to present our needs” (Heb 4:16); and a big need we have is to conquer those mountains in our life. Because of prayers Peter was delivered from prison when he was chained, there were two guards by his side and there were sentries at the doors guarding the prison (Acts 6:6-19). “But urgent prayer was made to God by the Church.” This scripture tells of the mighty miracle of Peter’s release, all as a result of prayer. “That force of earnest prayer is mightier than any King’s or President’s authority, and mightier than all of hell.” There is no force that can stand against the power of earnest, faith filled prayer. If we have accepted Jesus as Lord in our life we have been given God’s own righteousness and we can come right into His presence to talk with Him about anything. We can tell Him about the areas in our life in which we are struggling and ask for help. We can pour out our heart over the hurt or fear in our life, or in someone else’s. Because of His righteousness He has given us we are filled with praise for Who He is and are so thankful for all He has done in our life and all He will do for us in the future. The Word tells us that God inhabits the praises of His people (Psalm 22:3), so God is there! Praise and thanksgiving are mighty weapons to dispel anxiety over taking the mountain. Consider the mountain Jehoshaphat conquered in II Chronicles 20. Although he was afraid, he set himself determinedly, and all of Judah, to seek the Lord with all their heart by prayer, fasting, believing God’s Word for possession of their mountain, which was their inheritance, but was inhabited by their enemies who were strong and many in number. They acknowledged their weakness and that they didn’t know what to do, but their eyes were on God. The Lord heard their cries and told them, “The battle is not yours but God’s.” Jehoshaphat, with Judah and Jerusalem, obeyed, sang praises to God and thanked Him for His everlasting mercy and loving kindness. The results: the enemy was self-slaughtered and Jehoshaphat and Judah received their mountain – Victory! As Joshua conquered and overcame by faith and courage. We also must live by faith in the only One Who can and will fight our battles for us and will enable us to conquer and overcome the mountains in our life. The first weapon we must acquire is our salvation from sin and the devil’s kingdom and power. Our salvation and all our weapons are gifts given by our Father Who has wonderful plans for us, to prosper us; to give us peace and a hope for the future (Jer. 29:11). He has given us His Truth and we don’t have to be deceived by the lies of Satan. We can know the Truth of Who Jesus is, Who the Father is, and who our enemy is and his tactics to defeat us. Faith in the Truth will set us free from the bondage of Satan. Don’t forget Esther (Esther 2), who learned obedience when being raised by Mordecai, her cousin. She learned sacrificial courage to climb her mountain when presented with Mordecai’s challenge (4:14-16). Taking Esther’s mountain meant life or death to her and all her people, and because of her courageous obedience God gave Esther her mountain (her life and the lives of her people). We also can be God’s victors by fully committing to Him, seeking the Truth in His Word and then in prayer and faith courageously obey His will and His ways and rejoicing in “Him Who is able to do abundantly all we could ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20). Got any rivers you think are uncrossable? Got any mountains you can’t tunnel through? God specializes in things thought impossible. He’ll do for you what no other one can do. (Oscar C. Eliason)

Why Did Jesus Come?

May 8, 2012 "I am come that you might have life and have it more abundantly!" (John 10:10) Have you ever thought about why Jesus, the Son of God would leave the glories and wonders of heaven to come to earth to live as a human and be rejected by friends and family and persecuted and killed by His own people the Jews. There are many scriptures answering that question, “Why?” My findings are certainly not complete but I thought I would give the scriptures I have found so far that tell us as to Why He came to earth. 1) One of the reasons the Son of God was made manifest (visible) was to undo (destroy, loosen, and dissolve) the works the devil has done. (I John 3:8b). Some of the devil’s work was to bring sin into God’s perfect world by Adam and Eve’s falling into his temptation, and consequently bringing sin into every human heart through all generations. Satan continues to “work” to try to steal, kill and destroy mankind, God’s handiwork (John 10:10a). The thief (the devil, Satan) has come to steal all Jesus came to give us – our abundant life with its joy, peace, love, provision, etc., he tries to do it by deceiving us (Rev.12:9). Satan works to deceive us by coming as “an angel of light” (II Cor.11:14). One of Satan’s works is to bring fear (I Peter 5:8). 2)Jesus came to do the Father’s work to reconcile fallen man to Holy God. By virtue of Adam’s sin we all are born estranged from the Father, but Who had a “plan” to fix the chasm that had been created by our sin. Jesus’ death did the “work” which brought us, by our faith, back into fellowship with the Holy Father (John 5:17, 35-40). 3)Jesus came to “make all things work together for the good of those who are in Christ Jesus and fitting into His purposes” (Romans 8:28). He came to open their eyes that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness and release from their sins and a place and portion among those who are consecrated and purified by faith in Him (Acts 26: 18). 4)Jesus did not come to condemn the world but that the world through Him might be saved (John 17). Jesus was born to die for our sins (I Timothy 1:15) and this would satisfy the Father (I John 4:10; John 3:16). He came to triumph over sin (John 12:31, 32; Acts 26:18), then to vanquish death by rising from the grave and ascending to glory (Acts 2:24). Therefore, He delivered us from the fear of death (Heb.2:14, 15). 5)Jesus came to adopt us into His family (Galatians 4:5); and to lavish all His good things on us (Ephesians 1 & 3; Romans 8:28; Ephesians 3:20; Jeremy 29:11; John 10:10. 6)Jesus came to show us the Father (John 14:6). To look at Jesus with all His attributes was to look at the Father – “like Father, like Son.” 7)The Lord came as man so we could understand Him (I John 5:20). Finite man cannot comprehend the sovereign God and His ways, so Jesus and His love helped us to understand this Almighty God. 8)Jesus was born to be king (John 18:37). Thank You, King Jesus, for coming! To believers He now reigns as King of our hearts, but one day He will reign in His new earthly kingdom where we will reign with Him forever. These are reasons why Jesus came. Aren’t you glad He did?

The Lord's Prayer (How I Pray It)

“Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil, for Thou is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever! Amen!” (Matthew 6:9-16)

As a child I learned the “Lord’s Prayer” by rote memorization, and when with a group I love to recite together as I learned it in the “King James” language. But, as I have grown older I have loved to pray this prayer, when by myself, with more elaboration and more understanding. When I pray by myself it is not always the exact words, but the thoughts of elaboration that come to me. Praying this prayer with my elaborations has become much more full and meaningful to me. Jesus gave His disciples (and us) this form and is just as an example of how to pray.

Our Father, thank You for the privilege and honor to call You our Father, by virtue of becoming your child through the redemption of Your Son, Jesus, and You have adopted me into Your family – “The Family of God,” and You have given me a new name, “The Righteousness of Christ Jesus,” instead of “sinner.” Thank You, that as a loving earthly father would, you invite me to come boldly into Your presence to tell you what is on my heart. You take me in Your arms, and on Your lap (like the child that I am) and You are never too busy to listen to all my praises, heartaches, intercessions, confessions and cries for help. Thank You, that with the rest of “the Family” I can say “Our Father.”

You are high and lifted up above me in all Your attributes, and Your righteousness fills the temple of my heart, because Your Holy Spirit lives there.

Holy is Your name, and Your name is exalted above every name, and I choose to bow my knees to Your precious name, as every knee some day will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, Master, and Sovereign over all.

Your kingdom come, and Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. I invite You to reign in my heart as Lord and Master in righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, and I relinquish my will to Your will, here and now. I pray for Your soon reign here on earth – “Lord Jesus, come quickly!”

Give us this day and our daily bread. Father, You know the needs of my life, spirit, soul, and body, and I thank You for supplying my every need according to Your riches in glory (which are unfathomable and readily available). Thank You, for forgiving me when I confess my sins and for molding me into the perfect image of Your Son, Jesus. Thank You, for giving me the mind of Christ and for renewing it as I absorb Your Word and appropriate it in my life. Thank You, for Your touch when I need physical healing. Thank You for daily providing my every need!

Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. Father, I daily (sometimes momentarily) need your forgiveness of how I fail You. You know my heart, and You know I don’t want to fail You, but so often I fail to walk in the power of Your Spirit and sin against you and others, so I ask for your forgiveness and cleansing. As I ask forgiveness for my sins, please help me to forgive others who I feel has sinned against me, in the same way I expect You to forgive me. This isn’t possible without You enabling me to forgive, so I choose to forgive all who I feel have wronged me.

Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. Father, don’t permit my heart to be inclined toward any evil thing, and make a way out of any overwhelming temptation, for You tempt no man. Deliver me from the evil one who wants to steal my joy, peace and witness.

For Yours is the kingdom, and the power and the glory forever, Amen. Father, You are the sovereign God Who reigns over all, and You are Almighty and all the honor, glory and majesty belong only to You, and I bow at Your feet and worship You, Holy Father.

Change - The Sure Sign of Life

“We shall not fall asleep in death, but we shall all be changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye.” (I Corinthians 15:51b-52a)

They say that one sign of “old age” is that you don’t like change. In some respects I think that is true. The older I get I have noticed some inevitable changes: grey hair, less strength and energy, set in my ways, new pains nearly every day, memory loss. I don’t like the grey and thinning hair, the fast enumeration of wrinkles and my memory loss. I don’t like running out of energy before I finish my task, etc. But changes in my old body is inevitable and go with the territory, so I try to grin and bear it.

But some changes we should embrace. There is a quote on the wall of Alcatraz Penitentiary that reads, “If you do not change your direction, you may end up where you are heading.” In Acts 22, Paul testified of how he experienced some very dramatic changes that turned his life and his future around 180º, for the good - I am so glad! His changes went from being a terrorist bent on destruction of believers and the Church of Jesus Christ, to becoming a teacher and co-laborer bent on heaven and loving and building up the Church and evangelizing the known world for Christ. He went from fighting the Church to fellowship with the Church. Physically he changed from having sight to being blind, but spiritually he went from blindness to having his eyes opened and seeing clearly the Truth of the Gospel. He changed from being full of pride and rebellion to being humble and obedient. He went from self-sufficiently to being completely God dependent. He was changed from being self-assured with all of his education and status to being desirous to “only know Jesus and Him crucified,” and knowing he could do all things only through Christ, Who strengthened him (Philippians 4:13). This is what I call, "change and awe." For Paul, all of these changes were growing him into the perfect image of Jesus Christ. He was changed from glory to glory, until one day in God’s time, He would take Paul to live with Him in a changed and glorified body to not have the scars anymore, his sight was perfect and his hope was changed to reality.

To get a smile, a church put a sign on their nursery door which said, “We shall not all sleep but we shall all be changed.” Although some of us will still be alive when Christ returns all believers will then be changed and transformed into His perfect likeness – pure, holy and altogether righteous (II Cor. 15:51-52). As we now read, meditate and appropriate God’s Word we will see God’s glory and will be changed from one degree of glory to another(II Cor.3:18).

Here it is spring and there are changes in everything in nature. The trees have changed from their fall colors of red, yellow and gold to their winter attire of bare, naked branches to the beautiful green clothes of spring and summer. This change only comes because the trees are full of life. The same is true of the flowers and plants which have faded away during the harsh cold of winter, but as warm days have returned change is taking place in all the living plants. The stems first appear, then a bud, then the flower.

The resurrection of our Savior was so like the springtime. Just as the trees, grass and plants stand (or lie) dormant through the winter, then in the springtime they "resurrect" and grow and bloom because of the life within, just so is the resurrection of our Savior. His change from humanity back to divinity was “awesome.” Jesus was changed from death to life. Therefore, we also who believe are changed in this life from the curse of sin’s death to the hope of eternal life and from “glory to glory” to become more like Jesus, here and now.

That first Easter the whole world was full of change! The long awaited Savior of the world had finished the work of redemption for the hearts of all mankind. He was, is and will be the only One Who does not change,because He is God. He is the Creator of all things. The heavens and earth grow old like a garment but when they vanish away (and they will), God remains the same. He is the immutable God (Hebrews 1:10-12). None of His attributes will ever change!

Because God is love, His love never changes. Just as you can’t stop the waves from rolling into shore, you can never stop God from loving you. His love is constant and unconditional. There is no sin is so black that He cannot forgive, nor any pit so deep that God’s love cannot reach and save. And there are no chains so strong and binding that He cannot break and free. There is nothing so dark that the power of God’s love cannot change into light and joy! He is the CHANGER!

Look at the changes the Holy Spirit made in the lives of the disciples. Before Pentecost and them being “filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:1-4), they were doubtful, fearful and weak. But because of the Holy Spirit’s filling they were changed into bold, faithful and strong witnesses, even in the face of death. What made the difference? They were changed by the power of the Holy Spirit filling them – they were “born again,” old ways of thinking and acting had passed away – all things had become new. They saw Jesus with new eyes and their relationship with Him was changed. Where Jesus had been their teacher and friend, after Pentecost Jesus became their Savior and Lord. They had new hearts, new resolve, new speech, new purpose and new hope of eternal life. They had been changed into new men by the power of the Holy Spirit within. They no longer ran away and denied Christ, but boldly ran to the defense and proclamation of Jesus, the risen Christ.

If we are not changing we are not growing and have never truly come alive in Jesus. Coming face to face with the claims of Jesus and accepting His love and sacrifice for us means an instantaneous change, and that changing to be like Him will continue until we see Him - then we shall be perfectly like He is!

CHANGE ME, LORD
(author unknown)

To come into the presence of the living God is to be changed.
We cannot come into His high and holy place and stay the same.
So change me Lord, Remake me Lord, Conform me to the image of Your Son!

So change me, Lord, Remake me, Lord, Conform me to the image of Your Son!

My 75th Birthday Prayer, March 3, 2012

“Search me, thoroughly, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there is any wicked or hurtful way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23-24)

Dear Heavenly Father,

You told me in Your Word that I am to come before Your presence with clean hands and a pure heart so I want to first confess my sins. Forgive me for my lack of unceasing prayer; for not taking every thought captive to the obedience of Jesus Christ; for sometimes dwelling on the negative instead of praising You that You are able to take care of my care; and to thank You for being the answer to my care. Forgive me for sometimes holding onto old hurts, instead of praying in faith for the healing and to remember how much You have forgiven me when I have hurt You with my pride or indifference. Where I am blind to my own sins, open my eyes. When I am prideful with my own self-sufficiency, forgive me and humble me. Forgive me of any pre-judging without knowing all the facts, and then when I must make a judgment, help me to do it with mercy, grace and forgiveness. Help me to be quick to restore relationships and to go the second mile when someone has hurt me. Please, continue to teach me how to be more like You.

As I look out on the beauty of this new day I want to praise You for being El Elyon, our Creator – the Maker of heaven and earth (and me). You are the Strongest strong One and You hold this universe (and me) together with the Word of Your power. You cause the sun to “rise” and nourish the earth and all its inhabitants with its rays. You cause those clouds I see to pour forth Your rain to water Your creation and keep it all alive (including me). You feed, nourish and keep all your creation (including me and mine) with the good things from Your loving hand and wise heart. Thank You for eyes and health to be able to richly enjoy Your creation You have made for me and others. Thank You for the Flicker Woodpecker, the Robin, the Cardinal and the Titmouse I can see eating the berries off the pear tree in back of the house. I thank You for letting me see the turtles sunning on the bank, the fish jumping in the water, the Herons fishing from the bank and the herd of deer grazing on the winter grass. You have made them all for me to richly enjoy – thank You.

I want to praise You for being El Shaddai, the Almighty God, Who is my Sufficiency. I praise you for being El Roi, the God Who sees. You not only see my need but are the Source and Sufficiency (El Shadai) to fill up all of my needs, spirit, soul or body.

I want to praise You for being Adonai, the Lord of all, the King of Kings, the Sovereign God, the Master of my life. I choose to daily relinquishment my will, and what I think are my rights, to You Who has a plan for good and not for evil for my life; a plan to give me hope and a future and Who knows what is best for me.

I praise You for being YHWH, Jehovah, Elohim – “the faithful, covenant keeping God,” Who is good and Whose mercy and loving-kindness are everlasting and Your faithfulness and Truth are to all generations (including mine). You never grow weary with my self-centeredness and luke-warmness, to the point of giving up on me, because You are faithful to keep your covenant to forgive all my sins, when I confess them and turn from them.

I praise You because you are Jehovah – The self-existent One Who reveals Himself to me and to all who will “see” and “hear,” and You are the Redeemer Who bought me back from the pit of death and then beautifies, dignifies and crowns me with Your loving-kindness and tender mercies. You forgive me of all my sins and heal all my diseases. You satisfy my necessities with Your good so, although I am 75 years old, you renew my strength like the eagles (strong, overcoming and soaring).

I praise You for being Jehovah-Rohi, my Shepherd, and have made me one of the sheep of Your pasture; and because of that relationship I can hear Your voice when you speak to me. And because of that relationship when my life is sometimes filled with turmoil and chaos, You cause me to rest beside You where it is quiet and peaceful. I praise You that Your Holy Spirit will comfort me through all the “times” of life. When life seems to leech all the joy, hope and strength from me Your sweet Holy Spirit comes to restore all those things my enemy, Satan, has stolen. Your Holy Spirit is the Comforter and Restorer, and I praise You!

I praise You because You are Jehovah-Tsidkenu (“God is Righteous”). Not only are You Righteous (right), but You chose to make me righteous by the Great Exchange that took place on the cross where You exchanged my old dirty coat of self-righteousness for Your pure white robe of righteousness, all for my just accepting it. I didn’t have to work for it or be good enough to receive it, but I could own my Robe just by putting it on, because possession is the right to ownership. Jesus, I thank You for Your salvation by paying for it by your death on the cross, and Your death was sufficient payment for me to receive my Robe of Righteous! And it will forever be mine!

Father, I praise You that although I have to walk through anguish, heartaches and testings while I am in this life, I know that You (Jehovah-Shammah, “The God Who is there”) will always be with me and will never forsake me. You are the Omniscient God Who knows what I am going through, how to solve all my problems and when. I thank You that I cannot go into the deepest sea, the highest heaven or anywhere that I will be out of Your presence. Thank You for seeing and understanding my deepest needs and that You have the sufficiency to fill all those needs abundantly. Thank You for being here in the place where I am now, and at this time when I need You, and I know that in Your time You will make all things beautiful.

I praise You for being the One and Only God Who is my All-in-All, the Great I Am – whatever I need You are Sufficient! I praise You for being the all-knowing, the Almighty, all merciful, the ever-present God; my God Who is Love and that loves me with an unconditional and everlasting love; the only true and faithful God.

I praise You for being Jehovah-Ropha – “My Healer.” You are the One Who has healed me spirit, soul and body, by Your stripes you took. I thank You because You will supply all my needs in Christ Jesus, according to Your riches in glory. I praise You for being Jehovah-Nissi – “My banner of victory.” You cause me to triumph in all things in Christ Jesus. You made me to be the head and not the tail, above and not beneath. You cause me to run through a troop and jump over a wall. I thank You for the victory I have in Christ Jesus.

I thank You that You have consecrated me to fulfill Your purpose and plan for my life; and You have enabled me, by Christ Jesus, to be steadfast and unmovable in this walk to which You have called me; and I know I can do all things through Christ Who strengthens me. I thank You that You are working in my life to do abundantly, above all I could even imagine, through Christ Jesus. I thank You that all of your blessings of mercy and goodness will follow me all the days of my life; and then when my life is over I will live in Your presence forever!

Father, I want to lift each member of my family to You. You know their needs, the desires of their hearts, so help them to “delight” in You so they may have those needs and desires met. When they are searching for something to satisfy their longing and fulfill their dreams, help them to realize that You are the “End” of man’s desires. Help them to know early that all true answers and fulfillment are in You and You alone. Help each of them to relinquish all their hopes, plans, dreams and desires to You, and to seek what Your plans and desires are for them.

Father, help each of my family members to walk in humility before you. May they realize that without You they are zero, but with You (Who is everything), they can be Everything. May they desire to grow into the perfect image of Jesus. You were meek and lowly in heart when You walked on this earth, and all the while You were the King of the universe. May each one realize without You they can do nothing; but with You they can do anything! May they live their lives doing justly, loving mercy and walking humbly before You. May they realize that if they will humble themselves, You will lift them up.

Father, help each of my family members to keep short accounts with You and others. Help them to not let petty grievances build a wall between them and others. Help them to be quick to say, “I’m sorry, Forgive Me,” and then to move on in that relationship. Help them to realize that if they don’t forgive, You can’t forgive them. Help them to walk in love in the same way that You love us.

Father, help each member of my family to love You with all their heart, mind and soul and then to love their neighbor as themselves. Only You can fill their hearts with this kind of love, give them a desire for You to fill them with Your very Self (which is love). Help them to think loving thoughts, speak loving words and act in loving ways. As they relinquish themselves to You, make them into new creations in Christ as You promised.

Father, I thank You for the privilege of the invitation to come to You in prayer; to climb up on Your lap, like Your child that I am, and be able to face to face praise Your wonderful attributes, to thank You for all You have done for me and are going to do, to confess all my known sins and to intercede for all my family members that You will rise up big in them and be paramount in their lives. On this my birthday I pray each one will receive these prayers with all the love with which I send them.

I pray all these things in Your precious and powerful name, that name that is above all names and at that name every knee will bow and every tongue must confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Amen (so be it).

He Is Able

Eph.3:20, 21 – “Now to Him who, in consequence of the action of His power that is at work within us, is ABLE to carry out His purpose and do super-abundantly, far over and above all that we dare ask or thing, infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams – To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations forever and ever.” (Amp)

To those of us who call God, “Father,” these verses bring great comfort, peace and hope while living in this world with all of its questions, problems, pain and turmoil, and because it is God’s Word we know it is true and we can trust him to be El Shadai, God Almighty.

El Shadai is our Almighty, all sufficient, all wise, all loving, all merciful, all faithful God (our All in All) – He is ABLE to do for us infinitely beyond our finite imaginations and wildest dreams to carry out His purpose for us. He is everlasting; He never grows weary; He never sleeps nor goes on vacation. He is never distracted from our smallest problem by the great earth-shaking problems going on in the world or in someone else’s life. He is not “careless” with our needs and cries, but keeps every tear.

Our Almighty God is never without provision or weak or sick. He is never late nor is He unconcerned. He is never confused, but is a God of order and plan. He is never afraid of any formidable foe, for He is the Almighty, omniscient and omnipresent God, against Whom nothing nor anyone can stand – after all, He created that foe, can’t He subdue it? That foe is only formidable to us who are helpless without El Shadai being our defense. So, even for us, who or what is there to fear with our Almighty God being our rear guard; He winnows the path before us; He covers us with His presence and He is the Rock under our feet? He is the only One who can dispel all our fears. He cannot fear but is to be feared.

HE IS ABLE (Greg Ferguson)
He is able - more than able – to accomplish what concerns me today.
He is able - more than able to handle anything that comes my way.
He is able - more than able to do much more than I could ever dream.
He is able – more than able to make me what He wants me to be.

We have no other in heaven or on earth besides our Almighty God – and we want no other. He is the irreplaceable and one essential in life. We can live without everything and everyone else, but we can’t live without Him. He is filled up with power, ability and desire to meet our needs, spirit, soul and body. His almighty power is Who He is. His power is part of His DNA – part of His essence. It is never depleted for its much use and He is not dependent on anyone or anything else.

When Jesus was on this earth He manifested this almighty power not only when He stilled the stormy seas, raised the dead, cast out demon spirits, and healed the sick, but the power of God was manifested best when He changed men’s hearts (many of the disciples, Zacchaeus , the demoniac, Mary Magdalene, and more). If He can change our hearts from being rebellious, selfish and idolatrous to being submitted, loving, giving and focused only on Jesus, He certainly is ABLE to change, restore, renew, provide and to do abundantly more in any of our “situations.” As God was Able to take the Children of Israel out of Egypt’s bondage and to take them into their promised land, where there was plenty, freedom, He is Able, through His provision of salvation, bring us out of the dark bondage of sin into the light and liberty of “knowing” Jesus. What a mighty God we serve!

After Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension, He sent the Holy Spirit to live within all believers. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead, and since the Holy Spirit lives within all of us believers, we have the “fullness of the Godhead” living within us, with all of Its innate power is at work within us (Colossians 2:9-10). So by His power at work in us we can resist temptations, be fearless, shrink from that which might offend God, and creating in us the power and desire to will and work for His good pleasure, satisfaction and delight (Philippians 2:12-13). This is dynamite (dunamis (Gr.) power – explosive! Therefore, we should not be reluctant to ask the Holy Spirit to help us accomplish those things God is calling us to that are far beyond what we can even imagine. Because of His wisdom and power the Holy Spirit will guide us into all Truth; He will teach us the will and ways of the Father; He will lead us in the right paths; He will comfort us in our sorrows and losses and He will lift us up when we are depressed or oppressed.

If we have all this power within us why do most Christians live far below all the benefits God has for them?” I suspect it is because they “believe” God can do anything but have never come to the place of “trusting” Him to do it for them. There is a difference between “belief” and “trust.” It is like a story I heard once about a crowd of people who were watching a man push a wheel-barrel across Niagra Falls on a tight-rope. After he had walked across and returned safely he asked a young man in the crowd if he thought he could push the wheel-barrel with someone in it across the Falls. The young man quickly said, “Yes.” The tight-rope walker then invited the young man to get in the wheel-barrel, but the young man declined because, although he believed the tight-rope walker could push the wheel-barrel (because he had seen him do it), he didn’t trust and put his confidence in the ability of the tight-rope walker to get him safely across. To believe is to have head knowledge, but we must believe to the point that our “knowing” drops into our hearts and we can “trust” our very lives to the One in which we “believe.”

Many believe Jesus is the divine Son of God (even Satan believes that), and maybe even believe His death on the cross was for the sins of mankind, but they have never “trusted” (to put their confidence in, rested in, and hoped in Him) for their salvation. Many believe God will do mighty things for others (because they have seen it), but that He is too busy, or their problem is too insignificant or personal for Him to care enough to answer their prayer. “Trusting” is crawling up into the wheel-barrel of God’s promises and character without seeing and experiencing the end result – this is “faith.” Without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews ll:6). If we want to come near to God we must believe that God exists (most believe this, but the “kicker” comes next), and that He is a rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him out. The reward for our earnestly “seeking” Him with all our heart, is to find Him in all His glory and with all His answers, power, love and willingness “to do abundantly all we could ask or imagine” (Jeremiah 29:13).

So how do we get faith? Romans 10:7 tells us that “Faith comes by hearing what is told of the Word of God; the message that came from the lips of Christ the Messiah Himself” (Amp). We may hear it by preaching, by hearing others read God’s Words or by reading the Word ourselves, but we must “hear” not just with our ears but with our hearts and accept Its Truth and adhere to It and cling to It. Faith then becomes our conviction of the reality – the perceiving as a real fact what is not revealed to the senses. Faith moves God and He will bless us who have not “seen” yet believe in Him (just because He said so in His Word). Faith confesses, “My Almighty God said it, I believe it and that settles it.”

Did you know El Shadai is unmanageable? He is sovereign. Our Almighty God’s thoughts and ways are not our thoughts and ways (or He would not be God) (Isaiah 55:8). Our thoughts and ways are skewed because we are finite but God’s ways are perfect. Therefore, when we come to God with our problems and needs, we must not only come in faith that He hears us and is ABLE and willing to provide our needs, but that we are asking in His will. Some scriptures tell us plainly what is God’s will, others just allude to His will. If we are praying within all the guidelines of God’s will, why are we not experiencing the answers to our prayers?

1) One reason is that we are asking in a “evil” way. We are asking with selfish motives (James 4:3). 2) Another reason is that we are not “delighting” in the Lord. The Hebrew meaning for the word “delight” is, “to be soft and pliable.” Is your spirit submitted and yielded to whatever God’s will is for you (Psalm 37:4). If you are “delighting” in Him, “He will give you the desires of your heart.”

3)Another reason is that it may not be God’s time to bring about the answer. Ecclesiastes 3 tells us how God has a time for everything in this life. Verse eleven says, “In His time He makes all things beautiful.” By demanding an answer in our way and at our time is not submitting to His will, or “delighting” in Him. 4) We must always be led by the Holy Spirit in our asking and believing. We cannot see God’s almighty power exerted on our problem to do abundantly above all we could ask or think or expect Him to “make all things beautiful” when we are “stuck on ourselves” and our ways and ignoring the Holy Spirit. When we remain “filled” with Him, He can work in our lives to bring about “beautiful” answers.
So take all things to the Lord in prayer.

IN HIS TIME (Steven L. Foster)

In His time, In His time, He makes all things beautiful in His time.
Lord please show me every day as you’re teaching me your way,
That you do just what you say in Your time.

In Your time, in Your time, You make all things beautiful in Your time.
Lord my life to you I bring, may each song I have to sing,
Be to You a lovely thing in Your time.

El Shadai is God of the “big and little stuff.” Philippians 4:19 says, “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory.” What is it about “all” that you don’t understand? All means “all.” Here are some synonyms from my thesaurus: completely, totally, wholly, every, any, each and every, everybody or anybody, anyone, anything, everything, sum total, aggregate, whole kit and caboodle, lock, stock and barrel, the works, the whole schmear. I think that means ALL! So take all things to the Lord in prayer – small and large. Know that He is ABLE to do abundantly above all you could ask or imagine, according to the power of the Holy Spirit working in you. Are you filled with Him or have you put Him in a box or closet and only let Him be God when you have tried all your homemade remedies? He is the only One Who is ABLE !

WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS (Joseph Scrive

What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer!

Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged – take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a friend so faithful Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness – take it to the Lord in prayer.

From My Wonderings

"He satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with good.”(Psalm 107:9)

I am a very inquisitive person. I like to know the details about most things that are going on – politics; Bible questions that at first glance seem to be unanswered; family, friends and world happenings, etc. – everything - (maybe this is the “woman” in me). I like to be informed so I will know how to pray with specificity, or just to be able to discern situations in making decisions when those circumstances concern me. In this campaign year I try to be “up” on all the correct information regarding the political candidates. But sometimes some details are best left unknown or unanswered, and certainly best left unrepeated (Lord, give me wisdom when to leave all the details to You, since you know all things anyway). Since we have now entered the Lent/Easter season, and since I have always wondered about Ash Wednesday, my curiosity has piqued my interest in Ash Wednesday, which is the beginning of the Lent season (46 days leading up to Easter, the Resurrection day, this includes the Sundays). Although I have always heard of it I have never been connected to a denomination which celebrated Ash Wednesday. But I now have a dear friend who is a Methodist minister and she was preparing for the Ash Wednesday service at her church. So being curious about this special day I asked her for details of this service. She sent me a copy of their Ash Wednesday service program, since I couldn’t attend. To my joy I was most touched with the meaning and purpose of this time and whether I attend a special service, or not, I plan to make it a part of my time of worship during the time of Lent.

After looking over her bulletin, and in my further study, I was reminded of how Jesus went apart for forty days into the wilderness to prepare for His ministry. This was a time of fasting, reflection, contemplation and preparing His heart for the time of ministry and testing which lay ahead of Him. Ash Wednesday begins the 40 days (plus Sundays) which lead up to the most holy Christian day – Easter – which is the celebration day of Jesus’ Resurrection. We celebrate because Christ rose from the dead (as He said He would), after taking our sins to the cross, which paid the price of the forgiveness of our sins, and reconciling us to the Father, and giving us the privilege of becoming children of God Almighty. Many Christians join Jesus in a period of fasting (abasing the flesh so the Spirit within will be exalted), in contemplation on the cost of following Jesus, and in addition, a time of humbling ourselves, confessing and repenting (changing our minds and turning from our sins), and seeking His face.

Lent consists of the forty days before Easter. In the western Church, we skip over the Sundays when we count the days of Lent, because Sunday should always be the joyful celebration of the Resurrection. Therefore, the first day of Lent in the western Church is always a Wednesday.

In the Old Testament times to wear sackcloth and ashes was to be contrite, penitent over our sins. It was an ancient Hebrew custom to wear sackcloth dusted with or accompanied by ashes as a sign of humility in religious ceremonies. So ashes became a sign of remorse, repentance, and mourning. Back then people put ashes on their foreheads.

In Germany, in the days of Hitler, the Jews had to wear around their necks or on their clothing the six pointed star, the “Star of David,” to signify, and plainly show they were Jews. This sign was to Hitler and his followers a sign of shame, to be ridiculed, to be persecuted, ostracized and hated. To a Christian the sign of the cross is a sign of suffering, forgiveness, freedom, peace, joy, hope and love for who-so-ever-will receive its message.

If you have read the book, The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, you will remember how the young, Hester Prynn, fell into sin and had to wear a letter the rest of her life on the outside of her clothes in plain sight. This letter was a patch of fabric in the shape of an “A,” signifying “Adulterer,” a letter to signify shame and guilt. Conversely, the sign of the ashen cross on the forehead of Christians isn’t a sign of shame but it is a sign of repentance, humility and forgiveness, restoration and love.

To some, regrettably, the sign of the ashen cross on their forehead in public, becomes “fashionable” and prideful thing to show that “I have religion.” It is sad how some may use a smudged, ashen cross to hide their true prideful heart (only God knows our heart). Man may look on the outside, but God sees and knows our hearts.
Although the Bibles does not mention the customs of Ash Wednesday and Lent, those Christians, who now are observing Ash Wednesday, will have the sign of the cross marked in ash on their forehead. This is to show to all their willingness to humble themselves and be contrite over their sins. This ashen cross on their foreheads should signify their changing their minds about their sins, to recognize they are sinners in need of the Savior. It is to signify their acceptance of Jesus’ payment for those sins and cling to Him as the only One Who can forgive them of all their sins.

Some people only celebrate the happy times in Jesus’ life: Palm Sunday, Easter Sunday, and Christmas. But I think as true followers, although our church may not celebrate Ash Wednesday or Lent, we can on our own humble ourselves, confess our sins and seek His face. We should retreat with Him into a solitary place not just during Lent but every day. We should also watch and pray on Maundy Thursday, as Christ asked His aplostles to do. We should stand by Him, symbolically, at the cross on Good Friday and every day and look into His face and see the suffering because of His love for us. Then we can rejoice that Christ is risen and has given us new life, and now sits on the right hand of the Father interceding for us. Rejoice that He is preparing a place for us that where He is, we someday will be with Him!!!


Prayer: “Thank You, Jesus, for Your willingness to pay such a magnanimous price for me for my salvation. Thank You for the cross, that terrible weapon of death, on which You were willing to die. Thank You for giving me Your Holy Spirit Who convinced me of my sinfulness, Who showed me, Yourself, my only Savior, Who wooed me with love and then baptized me into Your Body. Thank You for that same Holy Spirit Who satisfies my inquiries for more to know about You.”

More About Jesus
(John R. Sweney)

More about Jesus let me know, more of His grace to others show, More of His saving fullness see, More of His love Who died for me.

More, more about Jesus, More, more about Jesus; More of his saving fullness see, More of His love Who died for me.