Isaiah 11: 6
..and a little child shall lead them.
It's an oft-misquoted scripture, but it is powerful in its implications! I love animals. The only ones I am apt to hunt are the buzzing kind that come out at dusk and drink blood. I believe that they ( not the mosquitoes) possess a lot more intelligence and awareness than most people are willing to credit.
This broken world sees animals, as well as people, in a confrontational mode. What we call the food chain, where certain animals prey upon others for food, is, I would contest, not the way things were supposed to be in this world. Sound familiar? Have you noticed that people prey on weaker people. Power and strength seem to be winning factors... until one takes a look at Jesus.
We can agree that Jesus is the way mankind was supposed to be. He is the second and successful Adam. He delivered a knock-out punch to Satan, sin and death on the cross, a place where he steadfastly marched toward a death that would be an atonement for all and an eventual restructuring of this sin-dominated world.
He was not of this world. He did create this world. He has done sufficient work to begin a total change in the New Heaven and the New Earth to come. It is inevitable. God has come and broken the curse by being a curse.
So I have absolutely no doubt that the wolf will, in fact, cohabit ate with the lamb, that animals, as well as people, will live in harmony. That there will be sufficient bread for all God'e creatures provided, of course, by God Himself.
Be a part of this! Do not wait for tomorrow. Answer God's call and learn who King Jesus truly is. He waits because His atonement was sufficient for all who answer His beckon.
Praise our God and His precious animals!!!
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Wednesday, November 23, 2016
Over, under, sideways, down....
Now you would have to be a sixties music affection ado to recognize this as the first few words of a Yardbird's song that continued...backwards, forwards, square and round.
The Yardbirds were Eric Clapton's first stop. My favorite song was Heart Full Of Soul.
This world that we live in is turned inside upon itself. It is broken and not as it was designed to be. It isn't hard to verify. Just look at the news or take a moment to reflect upon the horror that was this most recent Presidential campaign. Accusations, personal attacks, lies spoken as truths, character assassination... hopefully that will all calm down, but the world remains a broken place.
We, also, are not as we were supposed to be. We are sinful from birth, sin inherited
from circumstances in the Garden of Eden where God dwelt with His created and the first refusal to obey occurred. The result, even for those who have chosen to believe in Jesus as the Son of God and Saviour for sinners, remains a spiritual battle between our sinful nature and the work of the Spirit to transform us into more Christ-like souls. If the Apostle Paul continued to sin and do what he should not do, one can see that it is an uphill battle, indeed.
So why would God chose to continue to wait? Why would He not have grown weary long ago and just started over? The answer is rooted in who He is. When He calls us to His son, we begin the task of learning about Him and establishing a relationship with Him. He is long-suffering and amazingly patient for He has given souls to His beloved Son and the process of bringing all of there to Him is one that has taken time and will continue to do so until every promised one is a member of the family of God.
God calls and we are responsible for accepting the call. Once that occurs, we have the hope of eventual resurrection and life eternal in the presence of God. As a thanks for this loving gift, the gift of forgiveness not deserved but freely given, we should, in my opinion, reflect God's grace in all that we say and do. We need to be dependently responsible, striving to help the spirit transform us into more Christ-like souls. We can't do it without God, but we can make every effort to help the change occur.
That's what we should be thankful for; we should take every opportunity to be salt and light and to reflect that love that God has shown to us out to others every chance we get.
Praise our God.
The Yardbirds were Eric Clapton's first stop. My favorite song was Heart Full Of Soul.
This world that we live in is turned inside upon itself. It is broken and not as it was designed to be. It isn't hard to verify. Just look at the news or take a moment to reflect upon the horror that was this most recent Presidential campaign. Accusations, personal attacks, lies spoken as truths, character assassination... hopefully that will all calm down, but the world remains a broken place.
We, also, are not as we were supposed to be. We are sinful from birth, sin inherited
from circumstances in the Garden of Eden where God dwelt with His created and the first refusal to obey occurred. The result, even for those who have chosen to believe in Jesus as the Son of God and Saviour for sinners, remains a spiritual battle between our sinful nature and the work of the Spirit to transform us into more Christ-like souls. If the Apostle Paul continued to sin and do what he should not do, one can see that it is an uphill battle, indeed.
So why would God chose to continue to wait? Why would He not have grown weary long ago and just started over? The answer is rooted in who He is. When He calls us to His son, we begin the task of learning about Him and establishing a relationship with Him. He is long-suffering and amazingly patient for He has given souls to His beloved Son and the process of bringing all of there to Him is one that has taken time and will continue to do so until every promised one is a member of the family of God.
God calls and we are responsible for accepting the call. Once that occurs, we have the hope of eventual resurrection and life eternal in the presence of God. As a thanks for this loving gift, the gift of forgiveness not deserved but freely given, we should, in my opinion, reflect God's grace in all that we say and do. We need to be dependently responsible, striving to help the spirit transform us into more Christ-like souls. We can't do it without God, but we can make every effort to help the change occur.
That's what we should be thankful for; we should take every opportunity to be salt and light and to reflect that love that God has shown to us out to others every chance we get.
Praise our God.
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
A saddening loss, but a reunion to come!
My precious daughter encountered news that must be so very difficult for any young mother. At the first ultrasound, she heard the news that the fetus had no heart beat. I have cried many tears for this precious young mother of one healthy infant and for the tiny child that God has chosen to take on to Heaven
Scripture has plenty of instances where it becomes very obvious that a tiny unborn child is to be taken immediately to Jesus as His child forever. This is so comforting amidst the heart aches and pain that must be endured and healed with time and faith.
As her father, I have asked God's will, His healing for her and all involved, His understanding of something really hard with which to come to grips. As I lay one evening after she had successful surgery, I had a vision/ dream that I would like to share with her and all mothers who have gone through these circumstances.
I was in heaven walking forward to greet my daughter. As I walked, I walked hand in hand with a young person who immediately recognized my daughter, for this was the child's mother on earth. There was an embrace and wondrous joy... !
Listen. There is a bond established in that womb, for however short the stay, and that bond never, ever is erased or forgotten. In all cases, there will be a reunion, a healing, a forever
encounter of love completed. I know this to the depth of my soul because I know this Jesus. He is love, comfort and truth. He is the answer to all heartaches and sorrows.
This will happen. I will be there and I will be overjoyed!
Praise our God.
Scripture has plenty of instances where it becomes very obvious that a tiny unborn child is to be taken immediately to Jesus as His child forever. This is so comforting amidst the heart aches and pain that must be endured and healed with time and faith.
As her father, I have asked God's will, His healing for her and all involved, His understanding of something really hard with which to come to grips. As I lay one evening after she had successful surgery, I had a vision/ dream that I would like to share with her and all mothers who have gone through these circumstances.
I was in heaven walking forward to greet my daughter. As I walked, I walked hand in hand with a young person who immediately recognized my daughter, for this was the child's mother on earth. There was an embrace and wondrous joy... !
Listen. There is a bond established in that womb, for however short the stay, and that bond never, ever is erased or forgotten. In all cases, there will be a reunion, a healing, a forever
encounter of love completed. I know this to the depth of my soul because I know this Jesus. He is love, comfort and truth. He is the answer to all heartaches and sorrows.
This will happen. I will be there and I will be overjoyed!
Praise our God.
Saturday, October 22, 2016
Some things, you cannot predict....
Others...you most assuredly can.
I was fortunate to teach middle school for 34 years in Worthington, Ohio. When I mention that my students were twelve and thirteen years old, many people express sorrow, but I really loved those young people.
It always amazed me how teachers and other adults were so quick to predict their futures. This one will never go to college. This one will go to Princeton. This one will be a doctor. These predictions were, and proved to be, at best, guesses that often did not turn out as expected.
The same was true of people when I was in high school. Yearbooks offered predictions based solely on what peers thought of folks based on popularity or success at age 18. I don't know about any of you, but I was a total nonsensical silly person at that age. My yearbook photo could have included the caption: 'Headed nowhere in a hurry!'
So all of these kinds of predictions are doomed to be soundless and often incorrect.
There is, however, one area of prediction that is solid and true, and it is a prediction that has eternal ramifications. There is only one way for any person created by God to find salvation and eternal life: Jesus Christ. Anyone who would choose to ignore this truth is operating on a dangerous path of ignorance, one that can only lead to an eternity apart from God, from Heaven and from many loved ones, forever.
Forever is a really long time. Many are repelled by the notion of Hell. Many churches absolutely ignore even mentioning such a place. People don't want to hear that God could allow for such a destination. God, however, works endlessly to try and make this reality a non-factor in our lives. He makes Himself known through the beauty of His creation, through the relationships that He created and through His words in the Bible and His Word who came into this dimension with a message of forgiveness and love.
It really comes down to a choice each person makes. Reject the plain truth, available to all, or accept it as a free gift of grace. The Holy Spirit will take care of the rest. He will guide and transform you from the day you call on the name of Christ Jesus.
It's an air-tight, one hundred percent prediction that how you choose will be a decision you will live with long after you leave this planet. PLEASE.
Praise our God!
I was fortunate to teach middle school for 34 years in Worthington, Ohio. When I mention that my students were twelve and thirteen years old, many people express sorrow, but I really loved those young people.
It always amazed me how teachers and other adults were so quick to predict their futures. This one will never go to college. This one will go to Princeton. This one will be a doctor. These predictions were, and proved to be, at best, guesses that often did not turn out as expected.
The same was true of people when I was in high school. Yearbooks offered predictions based solely on what peers thought of folks based on popularity or success at age 18. I don't know about any of you, but I was a total nonsensical silly person at that age. My yearbook photo could have included the caption: 'Headed nowhere in a hurry!'
So all of these kinds of predictions are doomed to be soundless and often incorrect.
There is, however, one area of prediction that is solid and true, and it is a prediction that has eternal ramifications. There is only one way for any person created by God to find salvation and eternal life: Jesus Christ. Anyone who would choose to ignore this truth is operating on a dangerous path of ignorance, one that can only lead to an eternity apart from God, from Heaven and from many loved ones, forever.
Forever is a really long time. Many are repelled by the notion of Hell. Many churches absolutely ignore even mentioning such a place. People don't want to hear that God could allow for such a destination. God, however, works endlessly to try and make this reality a non-factor in our lives. He makes Himself known through the beauty of His creation, through the relationships that He created and through His words in the Bible and His Word who came into this dimension with a message of forgiveness and love.
It really comes down to a choice each person makes. Reject the plain truth, available to all, or accept it as a free gift of grace. The Holy Spirit will take care of the rest. He will guide and transform you from the day you call on the name of Christ Jesus.
It's an air-tight, one hundred percent prediction that how you choose will be a decision you will live with long after you leave this planet. PLEASE.
Praise our God!
Monday, October 17, 2016
Saved by God....
From God.
Salvation. It begins and ends with Jesus. It centers around the cross and the fact that we are ruled by a Just and Compassionate God.
Who needs salvation? WE ALL DO! To go through life ignorant of the fact that we are separated from God by our sin nature is, well, dangerous on an eternal level. Somehow, we all need to be reached, as it were, by God's grace and reborn as adopted children of God. We can want this to happen, but we cannot make it happen.
So what, exactly, are we being saved from? GOD. Yes, it is true that a just and holy God can accept absolutely no sin whatsoever. He is opposed to evil because in Him there is no darkness. Even that small little inconspicuous sin is enough to alienate God from ourselves, and that is not a place where we want to be.
So, as crazy and marvelous as it seems, only God can save us from...God. He has given us one way and that is through the redeeming blood of Christ Jesus. It was a plan hatched before the beginning of time because nothing really ever surprises God. Love the quote: Did it ever occur to you that nothing occurs to God? He knew that man would fall to temptation and that a second Adam would have to succeed where to first failed.
The blood sprinkled on the door frames at Passover was a foreshadowing of the need for blood to wash away sins and keep God from exercising His wrath. The many many animal sacrifices expected in the Old Testament were, again, foreshadowing the need for a once and all blood sacrifice that would truly provide a balancing of the ledger, a propitiation for our sins.
Will all people be saved from the wrath of God when the final judgement occurs? No. Only those who call on the name of the Lord, Jesus, can be saved by the righteousness from Christ. Are you among them? Knees, prayer, repentance. There will come a time that is too late. No second chances. No do-overs. Please. Listen to the quiet calling. He loves His creation and His creatures.
Praise our God!
Salvation. It begins and ends with Jesus. It centers around the cross and the fact that we are ruled by a Just and Compassionate God.
Who needs salvation? WE ALL DO! To go through life ignorant of the fact that we are separated from God by our sin nature is, well, dangerous on an eternal level. Somehow, we all need to be reached, as it were, by God's grace and reborn as adopted children of God. We can want this to happen, but we cannot make it happen.
So what, exactly, are we being saved from? GOD. Yes, it is true that a just and holy God can accept absolutely no sin whatsoever. He is opposed to evil because in Him there is no darkness. Even that small little inconspicuous sin is enough to alienate God from ourselves, and that is not a place where we want to be.
So, as crazy and marvelous as it seems, only God can save us from...God. He has given us one way and that is through the redeeming blood of Christ Jesus. It was a plan hatched before the beginning of time because nothing really ever surprises God. Love the quote: Did it ever occur to you that nothing occurs to God? He knew that man would fall to temptation and that a second Adam would have to succeed where to first failed.
The blood sprinkled on the door frames at Passover was a foreshadowing of the need for blood to wash away sins and keep God from exercising His wrath. The many many animal sacrifices expected in the Old Testament were, again, foreshadowing the need for a once and all blood sacrifice that would truly provide a balancing of the ledger, a propitiation for our sins.
Will all people be saved from the wrath of God when the final judgement occurs? No. Only those who call on the name of the Lord, Jesus, can be saved by the righteousness from Christ. Are you among them? Knees, prayer, repentance. There will come a time that is too late. No second chances. No do-overs. Please. Listen to the quiet calling. He loves His creation and His creatures.
Praise our God!
Monday, September 19, 2016
You aren't the alpha dog...
and neither am I !
There is a wonderful, ornery quote attributed to Hanna Smith that goes like this:
"Unless you are the lead dog, the scenery remains the same."
None of us is the lead dog. There is only one lead dog, and He is God. He is the alpha and the omega; He is the One who created each of us and who is sovereign over our lives and the lives of all created beings in the universe. That translates into: You are not in charge, and neither am I!
There are all sorts of ramifications to this. One, we don't really like reading that, let alone believing that. We like to think that we are the captains of our own ship, the drivers of our own car, the decision makers of this journey we find ourselves on. Like it or not, God's design, knowing what we are like, is to plant Himself firmly at the top of the food chain. He knows that without Him, we spin and spin and really have no purpose to our lives.
Like the many dogs in a sled of dogs, someone has to be leader. Someone has to know the appropriate direction to travel, the one that will result in true happiness and attainment of important goals. In order for is to maximize our potential in this fleeting life, we really have to surrender the reins to One who knows us best and knows what is best for each of us.
This isn't easy. It is never really easy to lose oneself as primarily important. Think of the number of times one uses the pronouns I, me, we, us, mine, etc. We tend to live in the first person. We are called to give glory to God. To live lives that reflect His power, His truth, His righteousness... I could go on. He has called us to glorify Him so that we don't glorify ourselves because self-glorification is blinding and purposeless.
He created each of us, having been a part of a family relationship with His Son and with the Holy Spirit, a relationship that means everything to Him. The happiness there in and God's natural openness to communicating with His created made Him want a larger, more inclusive family; the family of God. It is a family whose membership requires being secondary, being humble, being aware that Jesus, the Son of God, is our Lord and our King. If you are the lead dog, you cannot and will not attribute power of another.
But that isn't the issue because you aren't and neither am I. So relinquish, submit, honor, become humble and take joy in the fact that He knows what is best and wants you to be His child.
Praise our God!
There is a wonderful, ornery quote attributed to Hanna Smith that goes like this:
"Unless you are the lead dog, the scenery remains the same."
None of us is the lead dog. There is only one lead dog, and He is God. He is the alpha and the omega; He is the One who created each of us and who is sovereign over our lives and the lives of all created beings in the universe. That translates into: You are not in charge, and neither am I!
There are all sorts of ramifications to this. One, we don't really like reading that, let alone believing that. We like to think that we are the captains of our own ship, the drivers of our own car, the decision makers of this journey we find ourselves on. Like it or not, God's design, knowing what we are like, is to plant Himself firmly at the top of the food chain. He knows that without Him, we spin and spin and really have no purpose to our lives.
Like the many dogs in a sled of dogs, someone has to be leader. Someone has to know the appropriate direction to travel, the one that will result in true happiness and attainment of important goals. In order for is to maximize our potential in this fleeting life, we really have to surrender the reins to One who knows us best and knows what is best for each of us.
This isn't easy. It is never really easy to lose oneself as primarily important. Think of the number of times one uses the pronouns I, me, we, us, mine, etc. We tend to live in the first person. We are called to give glory to God. To live lives that reflect His power, His truth, His righteousness... I could go on. He has called us to glorify Him so that we don't glorify ourselves because self-glorification is blinding and purposeless.
He created each of us, having been a part of a family relationship with His Son and with the Holy Spirit, a relationship that means everything to Him. The happiness there in and God's natural openness to communicating with His created made Him want a larger, more inclusive family; the family of God. It is a family whose membership requires being secondary, being humble, being aware that Jesus, the Son of God, is our Lord and our King. If you are the lead dog, you cannot and will not attribute power of another.
But that isn't the issue because you aren't and neither am I. So relinquish, submit, honor, become humble and take joy in the fact that He knows what is best and wants you to be His child.
Praise our God!
Friday, September 9, 2016
We all need laser surgery
Not a big fan of surgery! I have been so blessed in life to, at this point, only have had two experiences many years ago. I did undergo laser surgery performed by the Great Physician, and I would like to offer it to anyone who needs it. It is painless and life-preserving!
This is a surgery of the heart, a surgery that shines the laser of hope and grace into hearts that are darkened by the absence of God. You see, there is an incompleteness about those people whose heart does not contain a fill-up by the Holy Spirit of God. Every human heart desires to be filled with the glory of God's healing light. When one is without this light, he or she is swimming upstream against the ravages of sin and loneliness. We can be fooled by the evil one and society into thinking that we can make it on our own, that we can be good enough people to make a difference and end up in Heaven.
Not true, unfortunately. No amount of good deeds can sustain us against a God who hates our sin and is completely aware of each evil deed and thought. We are deserving of wrath and lost from His desire to be in relationship with us. Enter the Gospel and the Great Physician. While He is a powerful God who sustains everything and is fully sovereign, He is also a God of love and reconciliation. It's a weird combination, but it truly benefits those of us who know our condition and yearn for the chance to remove the barriers and be adopted into the Family of God.
He must begin the process; yet, we have to be aware of Him and respond to His wooing. In a magical way, He fills us, simultaneously, with the recognition and with the understanding of His glory and the gospel of Jesus Christ. It's obvious in so may ways; we have to "see" it and open our hearts to the Spirit. The rest is up to a wonderful surgeon who truly knows what he is doing.
No health insurance needed, here. You need not call for an appointment. Just get on your knees and listen, carefully. Then surrender to the power and the glory of the God of the Universe. You are covered; He is ready.
Praise our God!
This is a surgery of the heart, a surgery that shines the laser of hope and grace into hearts that are darkened by the absence of God. You see, there is an incompleteness about those people whose heart does not contain a fill-up by the Holy Spirit of God. Every human heart desires to be filled with the glory of God's healing light. When one is without this light, he or she is swimming upstream against the ravages of sin and loneliness. We can be fooled by the evil one and society into thinking that we can make it on our own, that we can be good enough people to make a difference and end up in Heaven.
Not true, unfortunately. No amount of good deeds can sustain us against a God who hates our sin and is completely aware of each evil deed and thought. We are deserving of wrath and lost from His desire to be in relationship with us. Enter the Gospel and the Great Physician. While He is a powerful God who sustains everything and is fully sovereign, He is also a God of love and reconciliation. It's a weird combination, but it truly benefits those of us who know our condition and yearn for the chance to remove the barriers and be adopted into the Family of God.
He must begin the process; yet, we have to be aware of Him and respond to His wooing. In a magical way, He fills us, simultaneously, with the recognition and with the understanding of His glory and the gospel of Jesus Christ. It's obvious in so may ways; we have to "see" it and open our hearts to the Spirit. The rest is up to a wonderful surgeon who truly knows what he is doing.
No health insurance needed, here. You need not call for an appointment. Just get on your knees and listen, carefully. Then surrender to the power and the glory of the God of the Universe. You are covered; He is ready.
Praise our God!
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