IN THEIR STEPS

For even hereunto were ye called:
because Christ also suffered for us,
leaving us an example, that ye should
follow his steps.
I Peter 2:21

All believers would have to say that Jesus is the priority in our lives as far as being an influence on us. I have an upcoming Sunday school lesson on the subject of “influence” with Jesus being on the top of the list. I realize we've never met Jesus in a physical sense, eye to eye, but we still have met Him through the Word of God. We get a very thorough picture of Him in our Bibles and as we read, we come to know Him more and more. As we go through that process, we should be allowing Him to be the major influence in our lives.

When speaking of spiritual influence in our lives, we tend to reach far back into our lives. I like most can think of Sunday school teachers, pastors, neighbors, etc. who blessed my life. I'm not discounting those dear saints of the past who were faithful to their God-assigned tasks in our early days. However, I'm going through a review of people of influence in my life through the last half of my life.

When reviewing people of influence in my life, my mind quickly went to a lady by the name of Ruth Bartel. When on a church staff, this dear lady walked into our church office area on a rather cold day. She carried a decent size purse and a relatively small suitcase. She was in her 60's as I recall and had a beautiful face with the most beautiful skin. Her hair was neatly combed back and put into a bun at the back of her hairline. She had a radiant smile. Her request was simple: “I would like to talk to the pastor.”

A couple of us smiled at that request for no one just walked into the office and received an immediate session with the pastor because of his busy schedule. He was called in his office, and to our amazement, he asked that she come to his office. He didn't recognize her name and didn't know her. She was from another state. At the end of their session, the pastor came out and asked that she be taken to our church's guest apartment. Someone was assigned to go to the grocery store and get whatever she wanted for the small kitchen in the apartment. We did all we could to make her comfortable.

We learned in short order that the only thing this dear lady wanted was to come to our church, eventually find a small apartment in the area and give her days to prayer for our church. Sounded a little odd. but the pastor was the one who had spoken with her. She was very friendly in a quiet, sweet way, and it wasn't hard to love Mrs. Bartel.

As I came to know her, and made it a point to do so, I came to learn her schedule. She was up in the morning around 4-5:00. She dressed and fixed a very meager breakfast...two pieces of toast, piece of fruit and cup of tea. She then dug into her day. She did the same thing over and over during the day...pray, read Scripture, sing from a hymnbook and pray. Some days, she took a brief nap early afternoon. On one occasion she showed me her prayer list. It was contained at the time in five spiral notebooks full of names (on front and back of sheets). She had names listed of our staff, their spouses and children individually. It was the same of our deacon board, adult choir, ushers, Sunday school personnel, school personnel from K-college, and no telling who else. Mrs. Bartel veered from her schedule only for church services and ladies soul winning on Friday mornings. She was usually in bed by 8:00 in the evening.
 

It was a blessing being her friend. She was often my soul winning partner which gave me even more time to “sit at her feet.” Many folks have been a wonderful influence in my life but that dear lady who just walked into our office that one cold winter day never knew what she meant to me and so many others.

The fact is when we are a godly influence, it's rare we realize it. We feel we're just living life as we usually do. Our influence is shown mostly through our everyday living. We don't see how people observe us. We'll make our share of mistakes, but if our focus is on Jesus, and we follow in His steps, our influence will be taken care of by Him. Any good influence we can be for Jesus is certainly not for our glory but for His. Good influence for for God is not something we can pretend. It will be who we are.

Thank You Father, for saving me and giving me the opportunity to live for and serve You. May I walk and live in the power of Your Spirit. I want Jesus to be seen in me. Thank You for Your goodness in my life. In Jesus precious name...Amen

AT WHAT PRICE

For ye are bought with a price:

therefore glorify God in your body,

and in your spirit, which are God's.

I Corinthians 6:20

Finally got Brian out yesterday to get some clothes he's needed for a long time. While he was trying some things one, I found myself sitting in a place where folks were coming and going...men and boys trying things on in private rooms while the women in their lives were bringing things back and forth to them. I sat with one family who was in the process of purchasing their 11-year-old boys first suit. The suit was settled on but the debate was what shade of blue dress shirt he would prefer. I sat with a knowing smile, having been through those days. One outside lady asked the 13 year old sister if she had her Easter dress yet and she said she did and described it to her. The Dad came out of a room with his new suit on, looking dashing. Mom of the bunch had long ago decided she would go out this next week ALONE to get what she would wear. She had already decided that all of this was going to cost a fortune.

The mall had their Easter bunny picture setting with crying children scared of the furry creature holding them just to have a picture taken to keep parents happy. Easter goodies were sold in various places in the form of eggs, rabbits, etc. Folks were carrying bags indicating special clothing and shoes had been purchased. There was an air of exuberance with the coming Easter Sunday approaching. It's such a special day...no, it celebrates THE day.

Brian and I have one son...Johnny....and we love him very much. I don't know of a single person facing execution for a crime where we would give Johnny over to authorities to take the place of that criminal, taking his place for a crime not of Johnny's doing. That would only be a one on one one thing. It's been so hard for me to imagine how God, in His loving mercy, could one day say to His Son, “It's time to go.” Jesus came from Heaven, becoming a human being, God knowing what Jesus' end on this earth would be. I can't imagine a mother standing at the foot of her son's cross, watching His agonizing death.

So God gave and what a price it was for God to give, Jesus to pay and a mother to watch. Most mothers I know at one time or another have wished they could take the place of their suffering children. As I see St. Jude ads on TV and the sick children with cancer, I pay attention to parents of those children. Probably most would take the suffering on themselves and off of their child if they could.

It bothers me how so many only seem to think deeply about Easter on just one day. Easter should be an ongoing mental practice for us every day of the year. Jesus didn't just die for one day. Our salvation is an ongoing privilege every day we live.

We have been purchased at great price and Scripture is very clear as to God's expectation of us. We are to glorify God in our bodies and in our spirits. God says that both belong to Him and we are to so live in our physical being and spirits that He receives glory in all we do or say. This is an ongoing expectation no matter the holiday. It's just as important to remember on Christmas day as on Easter, that we strive with all we are to please our Father and bring glory to Him.

Father, thank You for the gift of Your Son Jesus. Thank You, Jesus, for Your willingness to die in such a horrible way for us not as a group but as individual people. We are needy of the blood You shed but so undeserving. People will purchase their Easter finery...You wore a crown of thorns and a robe mocking Your kingship. Thank You for it all...in Your precious name...Amen

THOSE EVERLASTIN' WEEDS

But when the blade was sprung up,

and brought forth fruit, then appeared

the tares also.

Matthew 13:25

Jesus taught so often using wonderful parables. A parable is an illustrative story with a spiritual meaning. He often spoke such parables using things of nature...birds, lilies of the field, wheat and tares, sowing seed, mustard seed and some other things. It has come to my mind this week of His teaching of the wheat and tares. He spoke of how the good plants grow and flourish but unfortunately, so do the tares (weeds) that appear around them.

Any of us who try to even have the fewest of plants or flowering bushes know that no matter how hard we try with chemicals or weed deterrents, they still show up. Such weeds that gather around the flowers or small shrubs almost seem to look at us teasingly and jeering, daring us to do something about them.

I often hear in our area of back aches, sore shoulders and painful knees and can pretty much guess they have been weeding in gardens and plant life in various areas of their yards. Most have told me and I agree that once the weeds appear, there's no riddance of them like them being pulled out of the ground, roots and all. That takes time and plenty of energy with a whole lot of patience.

Farmers may have vast fields of waving grain, but tall weeds may still appear and make themselves known. Farmers don't pull weeds. They harvest the wheat and find it easy to pull the weeds from the good stalks of grain. They don't seem to panic when they see a weed.

Weeds are plants, but they are unwanted ones. We here in East Tennessee are beginning to see some little indicators that spring is upon us. People flock here in April and May just to view wild flowers. May I tell you that many of those lovely “wild flowers” are for the most part weeds...more sophisticated ones with names...but weeds. So the fact is, there are weeds that may be pretty that one might want to hang onto.

People think of spring also as being housecleaning time. Housecleaning in certain areas that have been put on a shelf for “later” may be taken care of in the Spring. Pulling weeds isn't necessarily a year round thing. I have weeds that seem to disappear during the cold months but bless me in abundance when spring comes.

Spiritually, I'm wondering about our personal weeds. Colossians 3 is an excellent chapter for spiritual checkups any time of year. In that chapter we are told some things we need to “put off”...mortify them which means to kill them out. For instance, verses 8 and 9 are examples of what the weeding out process might be for us:

But now, ye also put off all these:

anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy,

filthy communication out of your mouth.

Lie not one to another, seeing that ye

have put off the old man with his deeds.

There are other listed in that chapter that need “weeding out.” As faithful as we are to confess our sin, it's amazing how it can raise its ugly head again and again. Just like in our yards, the weeding process is ongoing and will be until we get to Heaven.  

Our problem is, if we don't do any weeding of our sin, those sins just multiply and soon we are so inundated with (weeds) sin that we lose all effectiveness for God. God is the answer to our (weed) sin problem. We read:

If we confess our sins (weeds), he is

faithful and just to forgive us our

sins (weeds), and to cleans us from

all unrighteousness (weeds).

I John 1:9

He is so precious to forgive us, clean us up and use us to the utmost in His grant plan as we live, love and move in this gigantic plot (earth) of His. Where I may have to do spring housecleaning by myself if it is to get done, with the spiritual weeding I know needs done, He is the one who actually comes to my aid...I confess and repent and He does the rest.  Beware though, as I said before, there are some weeds that are pretty.  We may have some sin in our lives we favor whether we want to admit it or not.  Those have to go too.

Father, thank You for the seasons You have put in place for us and for the blessing of each one. Thank You that even the weeds around my bushes, remind me that my life can more beautiful for You without the weeds in my life. Thank You for Your cleansing and forgiveness. Thank You for Jesus who made it all possible...in His precious name....Amen

COURAGE NO MATTER

Be strong and of a good courage,
fear not, nor be afraid of them: for
the Lord thy God, He it is that doth go
with thee; He will not fail thee, nor
forsake thee.
Deuteronomy 31:6

When I think of courage I tend to think of our military personnel, missionaries serving oversees, police and firemen, and all such persons. I looked up some definitions of of courage and was a little surprised that its definition extended beyond my expectations. Courage defined by scholars say that courage is strength in the face of pain, grief or hardship. A courageous person is also one who stands on principle despite opposition. As I see it, there is no limitations on race, sex, age, culture, etc. when it comes to showing courage.

Growing up in Sunday school, I learned of David and Daniel. David went up against a giant and Daniel spent the night, lion sitting in a den. I still don't think I've grasped the courage it took for both of those men, one perhaps just a kid, but both who stood up for right and for what they believed. It's hard for us to gauge courage even after an event, mostly because we didn't have to be involved.

Any of our military wars have had their share of military persons taken prisoner and tortured for important information. I remember during some of those earlier days reading about John & Betty Stamm, missionaries in China who were beheaded for their faith leaving their baby girl hidden under blankets for their nurse to find and protect.

I'm thinking of recent pictures we have seen of Christians in the middle east who face death with courage in standing for their faith. They attend church not knowing if it will be bombed with them in it. I remember young Christian men lined up on their knees about to be beheaded by Islamic terrorists because they wouldn't deny their faith in Jesus.

Courage isn't limited to overseas or even back into our history. We hear of courage on every side in our own country. In a recent school shooting, three male school personnel rushed into the fray and gave their lives to save students from being shot by a young maniac. At Columbine in Colorado, we saw young Christians admit to their faith and were killed. But courage doesn't always have to do with dying.

All of us know of folks who live courageously with horrible disease in their lives. Some of those folks require caregivers which also takes a great deal of courage. Some folks live in great pain most of their lives but never miss a church service...they just keep going, doing what is right to do.

Courage came to my mind close to home when I received a picture on face book of my granddaughter who lives in Florida. Even while in Texas before a family move, she was by all means a very advanced competitive swimmer for being in early elementary school.

A few months ago, she had an ankle injury which took her out of racing as she knew it in order to go through a therapy process. She doesn't have parents who insist she swim. They want her to swim for all the right reasons and enjoy it at the same time. Madelyn has recently returned to the pool as far as meets are concerned. It can be intimidating for a 9 year old to return to a place where she has felt physical pain, but has now returned to the water with coaches praise for her accomplishment.

I've seen courage in children who don't even know the meaning of the word and have seen it in older folks like a 99 year old Billy Graham who probably never considered himself as being courageous, but he certainly was. I've seen it in the eyes of a friend going through chemo and a neighbor man who cared for his wife the last few years and now is planning her funeral. I've heard pastor's preach the Word at the risk of their jobs before people who only wanted to be entertained. I've seen courage in a president of our country who is undergoing the persecution he and his family are enduring right now. Courage is all around us and we rarely recognize it.

The most courageous I can think of in these days is Jesus who came to earth, took on the form of a man. Although sinless, He came to earth to live and to die an impossibly cruel death that you and I might live. He gives us life right now as we live, but also provides eternal life for us. When we read of all He went through on the part of Roman soldiers, it's incredible He even looked human when they were finished. Scripture tells us He was hardly recognizable as a human being after all the abuse inflicted on Him.

  Then He had the cross to face. He did that for you and for me. He exemplified courage at it's greatest in the worst of circumstances. He could have called angels to His rescue, but chose to die in the face of circumstances you and I will never know. How can we ever dare disappoint or deny Him. In His strength and love, we find our own courage.

Dear Father, thank You for all You've done in my life. Help me to have courage to take whatever stands You call me to take. Thank You for being my Father and for all Your goodness in my life. In Jesus precious name....Amen

ARE YOU FAT ?

I beseech you therefore, brethren,
by he mercies of God, that ye
present your bodies a living sacrifice,
holy acceptable unto God, which is
your reasonable service;
And be not conformed to this world:
but be ye transformed by the renewing
of your mind, that ye may prove
what is that good, and acceptable,
and perfect, will of God.
Romans 12:1,2

Recently, thousands watched a funeral on television while a couple of thousand people actually attended the service in honor of Billy Graham. It was a sweet, refreshing and encouraging time. Billy Graham was very much a part of the planning of it all, but I never got the feeling that he himself was the guest of honor. Everything was about Jesus from start to finish. He would have had it no other way.

Each of the Graham adult children had something to say during the service, each from different angles, but each, warm and informative as only those close to their father could do. The last to speak was Ned, the youngest of the five children. He got up with a coy smile on his face and announced quietly that his Dad was a FAT man. I thought quickly that I had never pegged Mr. Graham as having a problem with obesity. However, Ned was quick to explain in a very few words what he meant. He gave three words he saw defining who and what his dad was:

F-faithful....A-available....T-teachable.

What a blessing to hear an adult son be able to say those things about his father who had just gone to Heaven, three wonderful characteristics for any of us to attain to. A son could honestly say of his father, now gone to Heaven that his father was spiritually FAT.

When I think of faithfulness, I think of being true to those things one knows to be right and then consistently do them. Those guidelines come to us from the Bible, God's word. It means adhering to those things no matter what our culture dictates. It means being true to relationships and responsibilities. It also means being people of our word in transparency, living openly with nothing to hide.

Availability is a problem for most living in this very busy world. Time seems so limited to give to others whether family and friends or in serving the Lord in those ways God has gifted us. We've become so used to hearing “Call me anytime you need me” that we hardly pay any attention to those words anymore even though we might mean them if we say them. Our culture has isolated us to some extent with our running to and fro. Growing up, we knew the names of people on our street two blocks up and two blocks down. We may not have been close to everyone in a personal way, but I think I could guarantee folks would be available to those on that street. Worse yet is our lack of availability to our Lord when He calls on us to the smallest of tasks for Him. Availability is based on taking eyes off of self. Jesus was always available to people no matter where he traveled.

Then there is that quality of being a teachable person. I have taught ladies for years. When I come into a new group of ladies to teach in a class session, I can just about tell if there is someone who looks at me almost daring me to teach them something. There isn't a one of us who knows everything about everything, especially in the spiritual realm. Being teachable is a very personal thing...something we determine to be. I think of times from high school through college when I just put in time in the classroom, biding time until the 50 minutes was over. I don't think I even tried to look teachable let alone be teachable. I'm sure I've still at times refused to sit up and learn, even if by observation only. Even at the age of twelve, do we honestly think the boy Jesus in the temple really needed to ask the elders any questions? He set an example for us even then to be teachable.

Spiritually speaking, how FAT are we...how faithful, available and teachable in the things of Christ? How wonderful it would be for people to view us in these ways, not for self glory but for God's glory alone.

Father, I fall so short in my dedication and devotion to You and am so sorry. In Your power and in Your power alone, I want to be more for You than I've ever been up to the present. I am grateful for Your every kindness and blessing in my life. Above all, I thank You for Jesus and it's in His precious name I pray....Amen