STILL A BELIEVER

For the which cause I also suffer

these things: nevertheless I am not

ashamed; for I know whom I have

believed, and am persuaded that

he is able to keep that which I

have committed unto him

against that day.

I Timothy 1:12

It's not unusual to hear from varied spiritual sources that Paul was perhaps the greatest Christian after Jesus there was. I wouldn't argue with that. It's amazing all he went through physically and every way for the spreading of the Gospel. In his humanity, I have wondered how he dealt with hardest of times of threat, imprisonment, physical difficulties and almost always being misunderstood. Despite it all, we see phrases in the above verse that shows us the nitty-gritty of who Paul was, such as: “I am not ashamed....I know....I am persuaded...I have committed.”

What a peace and joy I find in being a believer. All of us can cross our t's and dot our i's when it comes to how deep our believer-ship goes. I know I believe all that's contained in our Church Covenant regarding all of the basics of our faith found in Scripture. However, when the difficult times come, our beliefs can be put to some practical testing. I deeply believe what we fellow believers treasure in those elements of our faith. I've gone through some serious thinking as of late as to those special things that are having meaning in my life right now. They are in my own words, not someone elses. Some of these are:

*God is Sovereign. He's the boss of my life and totally in charge.
*God loves me beyond any love I can ever know.
*God loves our times of talking with one another.
*God is very capable in protecting and providing for me.
*God always has a plan for my life. I may not understand it all but can rest in His working.
*God never makes a mistake. He's never late nor does he ever say “oops.”
*God's Word is as true and accurate today in my life as it's been in any past days.
*God has reserved a place for me with Him in eternity.
*and, as the song goes, “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow.”

I'm sure there are even more things that have crossed my mind. I choose to believe that God does all things well and will continue to do so. Let me encourage you to think through in every day experience, what God means to you in common, ordinary ways. We are so blessed beyond measure. Trying times will come...none of us are exempt. God is faithful and we need to take eyes off of problems as much as we can and focus lovingly on our Heavenly Father.

How wonderful, Father, that You continue to love and teach us no matter our circumstances. Thank You for your keeping us close under Your wings no matter what's going on. We praise You for all You are and for Jesus, our Savior. In His name....Amen

NEVER SAY NEVER

Wherefore let him that thinketh

he standeth take heed lest

he fall.

I Corinthians 10:12

Recalling days gone by, and hearing the above title from folks as to what they would never do. The Corinthian church was for the most part a mess. That church didn't start out that way. I'm sure they could be referred to as a mega church like we would see mega churches in our day. Paul was doing his best to try to rein in this church that had given in to so many ways of the world. We could read both books written to those church folks by Paul and wonder how things could go so wrong.

In many cases, the word “never” comes into play in many such circumstances. When a church is new and growing, that church may have the best of intentions. All is new, fresh and exciting in those circumstances and the believers cannot imagine anything going wrong.

In our day, churches view each other, whether they are in the same community or denomination. Some churches begin to set what they consider worthy goals regarding church size, popularity, varied outreach ministries. Many may view that things will never change but will only get better and better. Because of pride and conceit, things can and often do change.

I've heard many personal “never” comments through the years, such as:

*I'll never forsake the Lord.
*I'll never miss Sunday school and church
*Our church will never turn liberal like others have
*I'll never miss even one day of reading my Bible
*I'll never talk bad about others.
*I'll never forsake my family
*I'll never turn my back on God.

There is nothing wrong in aiming to do things right that will honor the Lord, but we have to remember we are human beings and we must rely on the power of the Holy Spirit in us in fulfilling all those right things. Even in this case, we often try to do too many things in our own strength. Most days, our strength just won't be enough.

I pray we will come to be very knowledgeable about who we are with all of our frailties. It's a worthy goal to be always faithful to God in our spiritual walk. If a “never” ever comes to pass, I pray we will be quick to confront such sin and appreciate so much God's grace and mercy that will be EVER available to us.

Father, we're so grateful for Your grace and mercy in our lives. We are often pompous in our spiritual walk and fall flat because we don't rely on Your Spirit to steer us in Your directions. Thank You that Jesus would never turn His back on us...NEVER. In His name...Amen 

SWEEEEET!

How sweet are thy words

unto my taste! Yea

sweeter than honey to

my mouth!

Psalm 119:103

A dear friend in college came quickly into my dorm room one morning with her Bible. She had come across the above verse as she was reading her Bible. She was so excited in that she had never noticed anything about honey in the Psalms. It was exciting for her because on her family farm, there were several bee hives. She knew first hand the sweetness of honey.

If I didn't know it then, I know it now that the best honey we can use is that honey that has been developed within our own territory. Honey is different all over the place. It may taste about the same but there are anti-allergy components that build our resistance to local flora.

My friend and I began talking about that verse. To even sip on a teaspoon of honey is about as much sweetness I desire to take in at the time. It seems sweeter than any sugar or other sweetening products. Honey manages to survive even if left on a shelf until it turns to sugar. Dipping it's container in hot water brings that honey back to good use.

What I have to ask myself has to do with how I view God's Word. Through the years it has been instrumental in my salvation. From that point it has strengthened, supported, and comforted me. It has taught me...encouraged me and given me the sense of God's presence in my life like nothing else. There are times when I come across a passage in my Bible that suddenly warms me in a spectacular way. When that happens, I know the Holy Spirit is speaking to just me as if there is no other around. He wants to be just that personal to us and as He speaks through His Word...well, it's sweet, just so very sweet. When I eat honey in any form, I can't help but be reminded of the sweetest of all sweets...Jesus and His Word as well.

God's Word isn't just applicable to any certain territory as real honey might be. It can speak to us through the Holy Spirit no matter our circumstances or places of residence. Once we really taste the sweetness of God's Word, we will want more and more of it. There are scholars who have written books on the attributes of God. I've seen some. There's one attribute of God I've never seen listed...sweetness. How sweet our God is!

Dear Father, the sweetness of Your presence is beyond words and Your Word has the same effect in my life. Thank You for the sweetness of Your Word and Your presence. In Jesus' precious name...Amen

 

THE RING

And we know that all things work

together for good to them that

love God, to them who are the

called accordng to his purpose

  Romans 8:28

There has been some jewelry on my dresser that I've needed to put in my jewelry box. It's not much, but should be in the appropriate place. As I opened the lid of the jewelry case, there sat a small ring. It's the size to be considered a “pinkie” ring, mostly black with tiny engraving on it. For the life of me, I don't remember this ring, where it came from or the where and when's of it's being purchased. I don't think I have any jewelry Brian hasn't bought. It's just a mystery.

I've had a difficult last couple of days, still having the ups and downs of grieving. Despite days like that, I'm so grateful for the comfort and strength God continues to pour into my life. He has done that through His Word, through the love and concern of friends and then in very unexpected ways.

One of those unexpected ways came today in the form of that small ring. Perhaps it was purchased ages ago and got lost among chains and charms. It's hard to tell how I could have missed such a treasure, not remembering how it got into that jewelry box. The print on the ring is so tiny, it's hard to read what it says, but with some broad daylight, I managed to decipher the inscription. It says, “Serenity to accept, Courage to change.” It added the reference Roms 8:28-30 just like that.

In these days, I have been asking the Lord, “What now...what is life after Brian to be like?” We have all gone through drastic changes, some more devastating than others. It may not involve the passing of a relative or close friend, but no matter the change, it still seems to turn our lives upside down. It could be our lives will never again be the same. In God's wisdom, He has His reasons for allowing changes in our lives. We may not know until Heaven all the answers, but when we get there, I don't think any of it will really matter.

I have come to believe that when these drastic things come into our lives, it's too late to prepare spiritually for their coming. If I want God's strength and wisdom for the hard times, I need to be preparing day by day for such in my daily devotion to Him. We can't make up for all the sermons we missed, neglected devotional times in the Word or prayers unspoken. Our Father is so anxious to be a part of everything that comes our way. How sad if we have relegated Him to the back pews of our lives often leaving Him out of all consideration.

You may not find a small forgotten ring in your jewelry box, but God stands ready to minister in His own ways for those of us who are called according to His purpose.

Dear Father, thank You for Your presence and care for me in these days. I love You and so appreciate your love shown to me in unexpected ways. Thank You for this ring...what a blessing. I want to be all You want me to be for your glory. In Jesus' name...Amen