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Archive for the ‘Devotional’ Category

Have You Mooned Anyone?

Posted in Biblical, Christian, Devotional, tagged , , , , , , , on November 13, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Think back to your school days. What did you learn about the moon?

It revolved around the earth, which revolved around the sun.ID-10077869

It doesn’t have the ability on its own to create light, but the sun reflects off of it to shine upon the earth.

It goes through stages. Sometimes it is full of light, while at other times it is just a slivered crescent.

It makes the dark not so dark, but sometimes it even appears in the daytime, though then it is not so shiny.

It has pull on the tides, and some say on human behavior.

And of course, there is a man in it – or so it appears!

 

We Christians should be like the moon. We revolve around the Son and even though we are not of this world because our world is His Kingdom in Heaven, we are called to be His shining Light to this world. Our purpose is to reflect His love. Our Lord uses us to shine into the darkness of others’ lives. But even when their lives are fine and they do not think they need our directional light, we can still be hovering as an example that God is ever-present.

As the moon has pull on the tides, we have the ability to pull others to Christ. However, let’s be honest. Like the moon, we also go through phases, don’t we? Sometimes we are not so full of His Light as other times. But, we will always reflect Him in our lives, even if it is just a sliver. No matter what we are going through, or how sure our faith walk is at the moment, Jesus still is evident in our lives. We can still be a beacon to others trapped in darkness.

And just as people look up and envision a man in the moon, so can they envision the Son of Man in us.

In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Who have you “mooned” today?

 

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Out on a limb

Posted in Biblical, Christian, Devotional, tagged , , , , , , on November 6, 2013| Leave a Comment »

“Whoa, he  went way out on a limb with that proposal.” A businessman carrying a briefcase laughed as he left the boardroom.

His colleague shrugged, “Well, it must have been important to him, I guess. ”

To go out on a limb is to take a chance, isn’t it? One man in the Bible did that, literally. Zacchaeus climbed a tree to get a better look at Jesus as He walked towards town.  Zacchaeus was too short to see over the crowds, so instead of putting about how unfair it was for God to make him that way,  he found an innovative, and somewhat risky way, to make sure he got a better view. It was that important to see Jesus. (Luke 19)

Are you willing to take such a daring action of faith to seek your Lord?  That as the question I heard in a recent sermon on this passage. Zaccheus crawled as far as he dared out onto a limb, the preacher suggested. Jesus noticed him for his faith.

Many of us believers become comfortable with Jesus after a while. We stay near the ground with our feet well planted in our daily lives. We enjoy the canopy of His grace, and seek protection there from the elements that may beat down on us – heat of controversy, storms of life, winds of change. We might even say God made us to be where we are, and since we are human, complain about that a bit too much.

ID-100210229What if we climbed up to get a better view of the way Jesus sees things? What if we risked standing out instead of blending into the crowd? If we stopped making excuses and turned them into opportunities?

What if we stretched ourselves, inch by inch out onto that limb, and even when it began to bend, held on because we knew that was where God would touch our lives in a new way?

The Good News is that Jesus meets us wherever we are.  We don’t have to win His attention. But what if, out of faith, we stretched ourselves  and scooted out of our norm ? We just might get a whole new perspective.

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Red Letter Day

Posted in Biblical, Christian, Devotional, Life Experiences, tagged , , , , on November 4, 2013| Leave a Comment »

IMG_20131030_091447_725Have you ever heard the term, “it’s going to be a red letter day?”

It means the day is going to be special, outstanding, worth remembering. Here is what the source of all sources (hmmm) Wikipedia says:

The term originates from Medieval church calendars. Illuminated manuscripts often marked initial capitals and highlighted words in red ink, known as rubrics. The First Council of Nicaea in 325 decreed the saints’ days, feasts and other holy days, which came to be printed on church calendars in red. The term came into wider usage with the appearance in 1549 of the first Book of Common Prayer in which the calendar showed special holy days in red ink.
 

My first real Bible- the one I was given when I confirmed Jesus as IMG_20131030_075636_787my Lord and Savior- is precious to me. It is the first one I read cover to cover, eager to absorb all the heavenly wisdom it contained.  In it, all the words attributed to Jesus were in red letters. They were special. Our Lord had uttered them. They stood out from the page and made the rest of the words fade into the background. The red letter words were the ones worth noting.

As I grew, I began to realize they were not just words. They were not just wisdom. The Bible is alive, a breathing extension of my faith. The old acronym – Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth –  is true. With the Holy Spirit’s help, these words are God-inspired,  breathed into me to guide, instruct, correct, convict and comfort me. (2 Timothy 3:16)

I want today to be a red letter day- a special holy day because I choose to include the holy in it.  I want it to be a day where I  read, hear and act upon the words of Jesus. A day where He dominates the page of my life. A day where my thoughts, words and actions, solely for my benefit, fade into the background while what I think, say and do for Him and for others stand out.

Who knows? Maybe that will make it a red letter day for someone else- someone I least expect!

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Fall Back

Posted in Christian, Devotional, Life Experiences, tagged , , , , , on October 28, 2013| Leave a Comment »

????????????????????????????????????????This next Sunday, November 3rd,  at 2:00 a.m., most of the U.S. will be prompted to turn their clocks back one hour. It is called “Fall Back”, to reverse the hour we lost in the spring when we went adjusted our clocks forward one hour for Daylight Savings Time.

Many,  like me, crumble about this whole concept originally joked about by Benjamin Franklin 200 years ago and conceptualized by George V. Hudson in 1895. We not only relish that precious one hour of sleep, we applaud that we are finally getting back to “God’s time”.  Good riddance it’s about time! (Pun intended.)

But, we don’t have to wait until Congress deems it is time to go back to God’s time. His mercies are new every morning. (Lamentations 2:3) Each day, we can choose to fall back into His ways and not rely upon our man-made choices. Each moment,  we can choose to follow His timing instead of trying to manipulate things to march to our own schedule.

Scripture tells us He is working His purpose out, (Romans 8:28, Philippians 2:13)  and that His ways are not our ways. But our limited view often blocks us from realizing this. We want it all to happen now  — our way, please.

We only have this present second — God has all of eternity. We can only make our decisions based on the now, and our skewed version of the past as seen through our eyes and experiences. God sees all, knows all.

Who will you fall back on today?

 

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Love Letters

Posted in Christian, Devotional, tagged , , , , on October 25, 2013| 1 Comment »

I love this quote. Thanks Steve for finding it.
If we are these pencils in the hands of a writing God, then that means He is involved, He is active, He is influential in our lives and those of others–whether they realize it or not.
But, it is up to us to stay sharpened. We can all get “used” up in serving God. When we wear down our “lead” we won’t be able of much use to Him. Let us be willing to be put in the sharpener for a good grind every now and then. That means spending time in His Word, listening to His Spirit, and yielding to His will. We must go through the process of shaving away what is keeping us from being His instrument.

Grind away, Lord. I want to be sharp for you.

Steve's avatariChristian

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We are all pencils in the hand of a writing God, who is sending love letters to the world.

 

Mother Teresa

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Reaching Down

Posted in Biblical, Christian, Devotional, tagged , , , , , , on October 19, 2013| 12 Comments »

I knew it was him. I could see him through the sheets of rain, as if he was walking inside a waterfall. The waves crashed around the boat, swirling it like a leaf in a gutter.  Yet he kept inching towards us, steady-footed, calm, assured.

Wait. He was on top of the water! A few cried out,”It’s a ghost!”. But, my heart knew it was him. If he was near, all would be alright. Through the whoosh of the wind I heard his voice in my soul. “Come to me.”

Without a second thought, I jumped in the water and rushed towards him.

Oh, my Lord. I was on the surface of the lake as well, my feet barely dampened by the waves.  This can’t be.  No one can walk on water.  It can’t be done.  What was I thinking?

The waves lapped my feet. Then my knees. Something  jerked me downwards into the frigid lake. Help me, Lord. Help me.

A wave crashed over my head. My mouth filled with muddy water and choked the words I tried to cry out. I floundered, even though my arms and legs pushing against the waves with every ounce of strength I had.  The gripping force pulled my legs straight down. My head ducked underwater. My tunic billowed around me then slapped against me like a death shroud. My  chest crunched against the pressure. My heart pounded against it like fists on a  closed door.I looked up through the water.  I was going to die. Lord, don’t let me die.

Then, through the shimmering murkiness appeared a hand. It reached for me. I saw his soft face smiling, beckoning beyond the surface of the lake. I stretched my fingers. They touched his.

Warmed strength surged through me as he grabbed hold and lifted me to His face. His caring eyes smiled into mine. “Believe, my friend,  and live.”

(Inspired by Matthew 14:22-32)

Jesus reaching inDo you feel like you are being pulled under? You don’t have another smidgen of strength to fight it. The pressures of your world push against you, jerking you down into the murky unknown where faith is drowned by anxiety and doubt. You sputter for breath. You may even whisper in a resolved plea, “Okay. I quit. Take me then.”

Stop struggling on your own.  Look up. He is there to reach down and lift you out into His loving arms. Stretch to meet his fingers. Believe, and live.

I found God today in this picture – it made me realize once again that if I fix my eyes on Jesus,  grab hold of His hand,  give Him the control, I will not sink.

 

To order a copy go to: http://www.goodsalt.com/cart/print_yskas0001.html

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Which way?

Posted in Biblical, Devotional, tagged , , , , , , , on October 2, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Have you ever come to a crossroads in your life?  It’s that tough decision between two or more choices you have to make.

You can’t go back. The past is the past.  But you can’t go ahead the way you had been either, because there are now several paths open to you.

Which do you choose?

Robert Frost wrote a poem called the Road Not Taken, and how choosing that lesser traveled path made all the difference in his life.

Jesus talks of the narrow road (Matthew 7:14) – and it, too, is the one fewer people choose to travel down.

But what if the signs are not that clear? You peer down and both seem narrow. Both veer off so you can’t see where they lead. Maybe both are filled with potholes?

Isaiah was given a clue – and your ears shall hear a word behind you saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.” (vs.30:21)

ID-100146465So often we try to figure it out on our own. We expect God to send up smoke signals, or leave a piece of thread dangling on a branch. Maybe a footprint or two would help.  Bread crumbs?

When, all we need to do is stop, ask, and then listen.  The answer may not come right away. That doesn’t give us permission shrug it off and trek out on our own.

If we wait patiently, we may see a barricade pop up, or see sunbeams shine down on the direction we need to go. We may even see one way disappear entirely, as if it was a mirage.

Or, we may just hear that voice inside of us, which we know is not our own, whisper, “Go this way my child. It is the way I’ve prepared for you.”

One thing is certain. God will always go with us, no matter what direction we choose –even if we choose poorly. All we need to do is ask.

After all, no matter where life leads,  one thing remains the same.  Jesus is The Way.

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Running Into It

Posted in Biblical, Devotional, tagged , , , , , , on September 30, 2013| 1 Comment »

Black letters on an illuminated white screen. The Bible verse of the Day on my phone app.  Simple verse, powerful message:

The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe. Proverbs 18:10

Paul tells us that one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess the name of Jesus.  (Philippians 2:11) But, on the street today, it seems the average person either rolls their eyes or gets glassy-eyed if Jesus is mentioned. Some wrinkle their brows and just walk away.

Yet, He is our refuge. We can run into His arms and be held. He still calms storms – the ones that rage inside of us.  Whengods-love-2[1] the world is shaking us up, we can dash to Him and He will give us something firm to hold onto during the tremors.

We can call on the name of Jesus in our prayers and watch the enemy flee with his hands over his ears.

We can whisper it in the dark, or shout it in praise with hands lifted.

There is truly power in His name.

Call on him, hear Him say, “Here- I AM.”  Run into His arms of love- the one He stretched out on the cross for you.

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Plug In

Posted in Christian, Devotional, Life Experiences, tagged , , , , , , on September 26, 2013| Leave a Comment »

ID-10037643Have you ever lost power during a storm?

It is amazing how dependent we are on our plug-in devices. We are cut off from the world when we lose power in a storm, especially if our cell phone batteries were low at the time. We can’t refrigerate our foods, or nuke it ii the microwave. Even if you have a gas stove, it may have an electric ignition.  We may have candles, but they burn down, and battery operated lanterns give out after a few hours.  A gas or charcoal grill will soon deplete. We begin to realize just how powerless we are when we suddenly have no power source.

As Christians, we have an eternal power source. But so often, we let our batteries run down because we stop connecting with His Holy Spirit.  We think we can get through our day on our own energy, forgetting the deep need to recharge through prayer.  Like our cell phones, we need to pug into God each and every day. That is the only way we can continue to, like that battery bunny, keep going and going.

The best thing? Even in the midst of a major storm in our life, God’s power will never flicker on and off. It will never go out.  All we need to do is plug ourselves into His mercy and grace again and be filled with powerful His Spirit.

I have a battery strength indicator device. I put a rechargeable battery to it and it will glow green for full strength, yellow for partial strength and red for need more power quick.  My soul has a battery strength indicator as well. I can tell when I am running low on strength. I need a recharging of His holy power. I must plug into His wisdom through prayer.

Don’t forget to recharge today- before the next storm hits!  When you feel weakened, you can find strength in God. No one can act on their own resources for very long.  We all give out after a while. Realize where the true power lies and tap into it. It’s the wise thing to do. When we are weak, He is strong.

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV)

 

 

 

inspired by a devotional by Linda McCutcheon –http://powertochange.com/blogposts/2013/09/24/recharged-not-disconnected/

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Walking in the Fire

Posted in Biblical, Christian, Devotional, tagged , , , , , , , , , on September 15, 2013| Leave a Comment »

When the fires of life’s demands are blazing around you, and the corruption of the world is lapping at your hands and feet and threatening to suffocate you – how do you react?

© Sergiu Bacioiu Dreamstime.com

© Sergiu Bacioiu Dreamstime.com

Recall the three young men – Shadrack, Meshach and Abdenego ? Their story is found in the third chapter of the Book of Daniel. They refused to denounce their faith so the king threw then into the fiery furnace. At first they crouched down. But, instead of the fires consuming them, the Lord came and protected them from the flames. Together, they walked in it and through it.

The Lord promised He would never forsake us (Psalm 37;28), and that He is with us until the end of the ages. (Matthew 28:20). Even when we feel the heat of evil and worldliness flickering around us, He is always present.

We just need to seek Him.  If we cry, “Daddy!?,” He will come. He will take our hand, and walk us through the situation, or if we are too weak to walk, like a heroic fireman, He will carry us out.

As Natalie Grant, and others, sing in the song, In Christ Alone, there is no power of hell nor scheme off man that will ever pluck us from God’s mighty and loving hands.  But even more than that, His holy fire protects us.

In the Texas Hill Country, when a brush fire forms, the volunteers often start a barrier fire in it’s path to thwart it’s  spread.

The fire of the Holy Spirit is stronger than any other fire. He will thwart any scorches of hell or schemes of the secular world from consuming our souls once we ask Him into our hearts. We may feel the heat, but we won’t be eternally singed.  So walk- heh, why not dance?  You have a covering of holy asbestos.

In the midst of the flames, let people know you are “on fire” for Jesus.

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