Tag: Jesus

Way Maker

Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

There is a worship song we sang at church last week called “Way Maker”.  A few lines of the song say “Even when I don’t see it, he’s working.  Even when I don’t feel it, he’s working.  He never stops, he never stops working.”  This song has been on my heart all week.  I knew I wanted to write about it, but I wasn’t sure exactly how.  Then God gave me this Bible verse and it all came together. 

God has a plan and His plan is that everyone comes to know Christ Jesus.  So, you and I, as Christians, go about our everyday life but behind the scenes, the Holy Spirit is working on people.  He is working, even when you don’t see it.  He is working, even when you don’t feel it.  He is working on your neighbor.  The neighbor that doesn’t mow his lawn and leaves his trash cans out two days too long.  He is working on the funny co-worker that sits across the office from you.  He is working on the total stranger that rides the same train to work as you do.  He is working on your brother.  He never stops working and you are part of his plan.  He is going to use you, because you have been called according to his purpose.

If you are a Christian, the Bible says that ALL THINGS that have happened to you will be used by God for good.  Not just isolated incidents, ALL THINGS.  But that doesn’t mean that everything that happens to you will be good.  The pain of loss, the sorrow of depression and the sting of rejection can be used for good too.  Because you have experienced those things yourself, you can recognize them in the friends, family, co-workers and strangers you encounter every day. 

Then comes the cool part, the Holy Spirit will do what he does best and put that person in your path.  All you have to do is be aware of the people around you.  Look up.  Smile.  Say hello.  Have a conversation and let the love of Jesus shine out of you.  You may be the only Jesus that person sees today.  Then when the time is right and that person is ready, invite them to your church.  Most people that have never been to a church say they have never been invited to church.  So, let’s get that obstacle out of the way.  Invite them.  Then let the Holy Spirit do the rest.

Lord, thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to help me with your plan.  Please open my eyes to what the Holy Spirit is doing in the people that are all around me every day so that I can be the physical hands and feet of Jesus on earth.  Amen

Unclean

Mark 5:27-29 (NIV) When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

Did you know that in the old testament, if a person was ritually unclean (which means they had a skin disease, discharge of bodily fluids, touched something dead, or ate an unclean food), they could not touch or approach another Jew?  If they did, it would cause them to be unclean too. The woman in Mark 5 was ritually unclean.  She had been bleeding for 12 years!  She had spent all her money on doctors trying to stop the bleeding, but they didn’t help. In fact, the Bible says, “She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors.” 

Can you imagine what her life must have been like?  She could not socialize with anyone in her family, any of her friends or go out in public. She was broke and she was in pain.  She must have felt lonely and depressed.  So, when she heard about the man they called Jesus healing people, she probably thought, “I’ve got to go see if he can help me too.”  But she had no money and she wasn’t even supposed to be outside in the crowd.  How would she convince Jesus to help her?   Despite all these doubts she went.  She had faith.  She went into the crowd, reached out and touched his cloak.  The courage this woman showed is unbelievable.  She left the safety of her home and reached into the crowd for her last chance to be saved.

How many people in your life are feeling the same way?  They are lonely, depressed, broken, and afraid but despite all these feelings (or maybe because of them) they are there reaching out for Jesus to save them.  How much courage and faith does it take for them to take that first step, to reach out?  You know, we are the physical hands and feet of Jesus today.  So, when God sends someone to you, at church, at work or at the gym, that needs a little Jesus, be ready to help them encounter Him.  

Lord, I know you are working in the lives of people all around me.  Please open my eyes and ears so that I recognize your plan and can be ready to help them encounter you.  Amen.

And So I Thank The Lord

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1 Thessalonians 5:16-19 Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

I’m a singer.  I hear something throughout the day that reminds me of a song, and I sing it.  I’m not a great singer and I don’t usually know the whole song, but what I do know gets sung with gusto and joy.  This morning I woke up and started singing “Oh, the Lord is good to me and so I thank the Lord for giving me the things I need, the sun and the rain and the apple seed, the Lord is good to me.  Amen… Amen… Amen, Amen, Amen.”  I’m not even sure where I learned that one.  Probably from VBS when I was a kid, but it put me a thankful frame of mind.

The Lord has always been so good to me.  He has walked with me throughout my life even when I wasn’t walking with him.  There were times when I was ashamed of what I was doing, so I didn’t walk with the Lord.  There were times when I thought I could do it all by myself, so I didn’t walk with the Lord.  There were times when I thought I was too cool, so I didn’t walk with the Lord.  But he was ALWAYS with me.  That is the wonderful thing about God.  He loves us with all his heart.  He is not going to force me to love him or to walk with him but as soon as I turn to him, he is there.  My life is sooooo much better with God than without. 

But that doesn’t mean God gives me everything that I want.  Even the song says, “things I need”.  In the song, the Lord gives the sun, the rain and an apple seed, not an apple.  Those are all the things we need to grow an apple.  It is our choice to plant the seed and nurture it while it grows into a tree and begins to produce fruit.  Think about it.  God is not going to give you a house or a car, but he will give you the skills you need to get a job, the willpower you need to save money and the wisdom you need to purchase the house or car that is right for you.  It is your choice to use and nurture the skills, willpower and wisdom God has given you until the fruit begins to grow.

So now I choose to walk with the Lord and thank him daily for what he has given me.  My health, my children, my family, my friends, my career, my home, my bed, my . . . . the list goes on and on.  We really have so much more to be thankful for than most of us realize.  So, as we approach Thanksgiving, I encourage you to be thankful.  Be grateful.  Have an attitude of gratitude because the Lord IS good to you.  Start each day with a prayer of thanksgiving. 

Lord, thank you for walking with me every day of my life.  Thank you for giving me the things that I need. To you be all the glory. Amen.

Love One Another

Mark 12:31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.

Way back before Jesus was born, God helped the Israelites (also called the Jews) escape Egypt where they were slaves.  God led them to a special place he called the Promised Land. When they finally arrived, God told them not to marry or mingle with the people in that land because they did not believe in the one true God.  Now fast forward to Jesus’s time.  Jesus preached about love, grace and forgiveness.  He said the most important commandment was to love God and in Mark 12:31 it says, “The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”  Many Jews did not believe that Jesus was God’s son and did not want to love one another.  They only wanted to love other Jews. 

Since many Jewish people rejected Jesus and didn’t want to believe that he was God’s son, Jesus’s friends began to tell other races about Jesus so that everyone could have an opportunity to believe and be saved.  They were very successful and lots of people believed and were saved!  So, one day, Peter, one of Jesus’s friends, was asked to go to Cornelius’s house.  Cornelius was the captain of the Italian Guard and not a Jew.

When Peter got to Cornelius’s house, the Bible says in Acts 10:27-29 (MSG) “Talking things over, they went on into the house, where Cornelius introduced Peter to everyone who had come. Peter addressed them, “You know, I’m sure that this is highly irregular. Jews just don’t do this – visit and relax with people of another race. But God has just shown me that no race is better than any other. So, the minute I was sent for, I came, no questions asked. But now I’d like to know why you sent for me.”

So, there you have it.  No race is better than any other.  That is what God says in the Bible.  Another race may look strange to you, but you look strange to them too.  You may listen to different music, have different ways of talking to friends or wear different clothes.  But different isn’t bad, it is just different.  Take a minute to get to know people for who they are not what they look like and you will be pleasantly surprised about how much you actually have in common.

Lord, thank you for making so many amazing and wonderful people.  Help me to remember that you want me to love my neighbor as much as I love myself. Amen