Be A Blessing!

Men are often accused of being “channel surfers.”  Now, I’m not pointing fingers or even saying this is a bad thing, however, it can certainly be an annoying thing when two people are sharing the television – one who is not and one who is a diagnosed “channel surfer.” 

 

In His Word, God doesn’t speak to channel “surfing” but He DOES have something to say about “channels.”  God said to Abraham, “And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing.” (Genesis 12:2)  We are NOT called to be a stingy people!  The get-grab-grasp attitude is far from what God said to Abraham.  He clearly said “you shall be a blessing.”  God blessed Abraham so Abraham could [in turn] bless others.  Just consider the tangible and intangible blessings we enjoy: houses, clothes, food, a job, family, freedom to worship, etc.  These things are not to be hoarded or held so tightly, but rather they are to be given away (shared) as God has graciously given to us.  Consider the Blessed Messiah Who came to us through the great nation God blessed through Abraham.  There is no end to how God desires to and will bless others through us if only we surrender our blessings back to Him.  We are called to be channels of God’s mercy and grace to others.  Let us never forget we are blessed so we can bless – Be a Blessing!

Power of The One

For most of us, there are things which make us cringe and shiver; although past, one such thing for me was piano recitals.  No matter how much I practiced-to-memorize-and-perfect a musical piece, there was never a way to prepare for stage fright!

 

It's hard to imagine the Apostle Paul weak, but even this mighty man of God, was human thus subject to many of the same basic struggles we face.  He sent these words of God to encourage and comfort the Corinthian Christians, "My Grace is sufficient for you, for My Power is made Perfect in weakness." (2 Corinthians 12:9). While I won't argue [perhaps] the recital experience had a positive impact on budding pianists, they were mostly for students to "shine" for their parents.  A good performance, of course,  was a splendid reflection on the teacher who had pushed us to unimaginable heights. The Believer's weaknesses are evident  in every storm and struggle -- no practice required! Personal strength eventually wanes and fails altogether; Christ's Strength in us, however, is both perfect and exemplary.  When we purposefully lay aside who we think we are or who we intend to be, surrender and take up Christ's Power, our battles take new shape.  Surrounded by a mighty Assyrian army, King Hezekiah told God's people, "Be strong and courageous, do not fear or be dismayed because of the King of Assyria nor because of all the horde that is with him; for The One with us is Greater than the one with him." (2 Chronicles 32:7).  John echoed this same message, "greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world." (1 John 4:4).  You see, God's Might always shines brightest and is most effective when we have no strength at all.  I don't remember too much about how well I "shined" on-stage, but who of us cannot delightfully testify of God's faithfulness to give incredible Strength to us in our troubles!  Are you in a storm right now, experiencing trouble on every side, feeling a bit weary from the battle?  Take up the Power of The One ... let God shine!

What About This?

What seems a lifetime ago, Danny and I flew to Delaware to visit my aunt and uncle.  While I packed our essentials, Danny busied himself selecting toys and putting them into a book bag.  Carry-on restrictions were more lenient than today, but even then his toy guns didn't make it through screening!

 

God said this through His prophet, Jeremiah: "I will give your life to you as a prize in all places, wherever you go. (Jeremiah 45:5).  Unfortunately, I had not checked Danny's bag before we left home so as soon as it passed through screening, security officers grabbed it and took it to a remote corner for inspection.  Right on their heels was little Danny -- he wasn't willing to give up the bag nor its contents.  Have you ever wondered why you don't feel a Oneness with God?  As faithfully as you read the Bible, pray, and seek fellowship with The Father, it seems just out of reach.  Perhaps it doesn't come because we're holding on to something God wants us to let go of - unforgiveness, a bad habit, jealousy, etc.  What greater gift can God give to us than life -- He promises us life "as a prize in all places, wherever you go."  Those things we hold so tightly are of no good to us apart from life!  Jim Elliot, martyred missionary to the Auca Indians, said: "God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him."  With a little help from his mama, Danny finally gave up his bag to checked baggage, and we were soon seated and on our way.  It may be letting go of what we hold so tightly is the one thing that delivers sweet fellowship and Oneness with God -- the Giver and Sustainer of life.  Open your closed fist, releasing what you're holding on to, and ask ... Lord, what about this?

Tangle Free

Have you ever been hung on a barbed wire fence?  Let me tell you how absolutely NOT-FUN that is!  File this away just in case it ever happens to you -- don't get in a hurry.  The more you struggle, the more tangled you become.  I watched my Nanny try to untangle from barbed wire once ... while laughing, and I didn't think she would ever get loose!

 

Did you know pure words do not necessarily indicate a pure heart.  I can recall many times my lips did not portray a pure heart, and God knew it! Late night entertainers are famous for their off-color humor aimed particularly at a late-night adult audience.  One such entertainer authored a children's book; this seems very odd to me.  David wrote in one of his psalms, " . . . with flattering lips and a double heart they speak." (12:2)  The Hebrew word for heart refers to the "center" of one's being. Describing something having "two centers" seems to be somewhat of an oxymoron -- and, at the very least ... confusing!  Isn't it shameful how we tear down and build up with the same lips, and sometimes in the same breath! It should not be so.  Lest we become entangled in our sinfully loose lips, our morning prayer each day should be, "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord." (Psalm 19:14) By God’s grace, there is hope to live ... tangle-free.

See! See! See!

See! See! See!  Often I remember the beautiful bodies of water I have seen ... the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River, the Dead Sea, the Bosphorus, the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, the Black Sea, the Kantenah River.  I'll never forget the breath taking view of the Mediterranean my first morning in Israel, the crystal clear beauty of the Caribbean, sailing the Bosphorus even though it was windy and cold!

 

God's Word is forever refreshing!  It is new and revealing each time opened. It's immeasurable riches are increased when sought in prayer. Verses recalled from childhood and doctrine of hymns are renewed in hearts and minds each time read and heard.  God's Word is never hum-drum or so-so. It always has a message for us, and each time we read and meditate on It, we are blessed over and over again.  Just like those bodies of water and the uniqueness of each one, along with their memories, so is God's Word.  It never grows old, never becomes outdated, and always stirs the heart and renews the spirit of man.  “More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.” (Psalm 19:10)   See, See, See ... what is new and fresh from above each day!

Plug-Away Day-by-Day

As Mr. Bill and I enjoyed some porch swing-time a few years ago, we admired the freshly-mowed grass and recalled the abuse it took from whiffle ball games, frisbee contests, and plastic swimming pools, which we were certain would leave scars forever. Mr. Bill’s first attempt at a lawn was sown seed which soon washed into gullies formed from a hard rain. Today’s beautiful stand of zoysia, however, was planted plug-by-plug-by-plug-by-plug … or was it only yesterday?

 

There’s no easy route to becoming a good leader. As I read and am sickened by social and moral policies, it’s never been clearer how critical leadership needs to be “right” leadership. Let me bring that home: how important it is WE be “right” leaders in our own spot of the world.  The starting point to changing a culture begins with each individual … yes, me and you. Equally important, leaders need to be rooted in the “right” understanding of the “right” Truth. Leadership founded in anything else is destined to fail on its ever-shifting sands -- much like summer’s sand castles … like Mr. Bill’s seeds washed into rain-crafted gullies. Colossians 2:8 says when we think the world’s way, we are “taken captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” Not so, however, if we plug-away day-by-day in The Truth of God’s Word allowing It to extend Its Divine Root into the innermost parts of hearts, changing us from within. We then become leaders, not in the sense we officially lead huge or even small groups of people, but the way we live leads (reflects, shows, teaches, guides, points) others to Godly Truth.  If you’re not spending time daily in God’s Word, allowing Its Truth  to change and transform you into the leader you’re designed to be, don’t delay -- begin today to plug-away day-by-day!

Choose Wisely

Some things just don't fit.  I've watched Mr. Bill locate just the right size socket wrench -- neither too big or too small, but exact or it is useless for the task.  Without guess work, he seems to know which one to pick.  Guessing works best for me!

 

Paul wrote tenderly as he cautioned his friends at Corinth; an [unhealthy] mingling with unbelievers threatened the Corinthian fellowship.  "Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? ... Therefore go out from their midst, and be separate from them, says the Lord." (2 Corinthians 6:14, 17). Let's be clear on one thing: discrimination, as we know it today, is certainly an unjust and destructive force in the world.  Spiritually speaking, however, believers must understand there is a right and appropriate place for preference when choosing those by whom we will be influenced.  If I want to improve my cooking skills, I hang out with good cooks; if I want to be a smart shopper, I shop with a real bargain hunter -- you get the picture?  Matthew Henry put it like this: "Those relations that are our choice must be chosen by rule; and it is good for those who are themselves the children of God to join with those who are so likewise; for there is more danger that the bad will damage the good than hope that the good will benefit the bad."  Much like choosing just-the-right wrench for the job, so is making wise choices in friends, music, books, television, movies, etc. -- those that influence us for good or for evil.  It’s not guess-work – we have God’s Word for instruction and His Spirit for guidance.  Choose today Whom you will follow – live and choose wisely!

O, Moment Divine

When was your last meal of humble-pie?  My baby sister marched into the gas station one morning when pay-at-the-pump wouldn’t work, and I’m sure she was loaded-to-unload when the clerk told her she couldn’t pay with a Lowe’s card!  LOL!  “Crow” never tastes good, but especially for breakfast!

 

What makes a moment “divine?”  We all have moments of temporary insanity (at least that’s how we care to refer to them) – when our thoughts and actions are anything but … divine!  When God inhabits our moments, however, there’s constant calmness and peace of mind – we’ll be less to share a “piece” of our mind.  Psalm 121:5 says, “The LORD is your Keeper; the LORD is your Shade on your right hand.”  If He comes in the sunshine, we find rest and joy; if He comes in the storm, we know He is King of the storm, and we are not troubled.  He IS our Peace of Mind, making each day’s moments divine!

 

I rest beneath the Almighty’s shade – My grief’s expire, my troubles cease

Thou, Lord, on Whom my soul is stayed – Wilt keep me still in perfect peace – Charles Wesley

Spiritual Grit

I’m a grits girl!  My Granny taught my Mama,  who taught me,  who taught my boys how to make grits.  The recipe has [at times] been “tampered” with by adding this and that so there’s some debate who makes the “best” grits but nonetheless -- Grits Rock! 

 

God is never in a hurry.  We, on the other hand, are seldom patient!  Have you noticed the more unpleasant the circumstances, the more impatient we grow and more pitiful our whine?   Most of us just don’t do well in God’s greenhouse yet it’s where great spiritual growth occurs … if only we’d surrender to His sovereignty in quiet, peaceful and obedient patience.  Oswald Chambers makes this observation: “If we wait, we shall see that God is pointing out that we have not been interested in Himself but only in His blessings.”  Have you considered whether you’re more interested in what God can do for & give you instead of Who this Almighty Creator & Redeemer & King really is?  When we persevere [by God’s grace], the spiritual hammering produces (like Christ) that “fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:2).  Truth is, we need spiritual grit!  The word “grit” describes something produced by pounding, and we [Southerners] love the taste of that coarsely-ground corn.  Yeah, yeah, I know not everyone appreciates a good bowl of hot grits, but [oh my] how the world needs to see God glorified when His Children patiently wait upon and endure God’s work in us.  Let’s take a breath, step back, and put forth some genuine spiritual grit … to the glory of The Father!

The Company

Have you ever played "Twenty Questions?"  It's an imaginary game teenagers hate to play with their parents -- I know I did!  Until I was a parent myself, all the question seemed pointless: Who's going? Who's driving? Who's going to be there?  By the end of the "game," I wasn't even interested in going!

 

Time with Jesus denotes evidence of a different life.  The religious and military leaders were amazed at Peter and John in Acts 4. Verse 13 says, " ... they marveled; and they recognized that they had been with Jesus." What a distinguishing attribute!  "Twenty questions" wasn't really a game; it was an act of loving and responsible parents who cared about the company I kept.  I ask myself, "what do others conclude by my responses and reactions to life? Do they reflect enough time in the company of Christ." This passage from Beth Moore's poem, "The Company I Keep" says it beautifully:

 

Let me be known by the company I keep - Eclipsed by Your presence that I may decrease

'Til all You have chosen this traveler to meet - No longer see me but the Company I keep.

Stark Naked

The only ones who don't seem to be hindered by “nakies” (an Ella word) are babies.  They actually find great joy in being shed of it all. Give a baby a birthday suit & a mirror, and all is well.  Nakedness and a mirror sounds like a nightmare to me! 

 

What were Job's motives for not cursing God when he lost so much? It had to be something phenomenal because he lost 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 oxen, 500 female donkeys, an undetermined amount of servants, 7 sons, and 3 daughters! I can't say for sure what I would have done, but Job 1:20 tells us that Job "fell to the ground and worshiped." (Job 1:20). Furthermore, through all this, "Job did not sin nor did he blame God." (V.22) Stripped down to nothing, Job found in the smoldering fires of trouble, God really was It!  Have you ever wondered why we, like Job, have to sink so low to see Jehovah as Most High? Mart De Haan wrote that in "stark nakedness of soul, [Job] worshiped God because he had come to see that God alone deserves to be trusted in the dark night of our soul." He is the One and Only to be trusted with today and tomorrow.  In most places it's against the law so I'm NOT suggesting nudity, but standing in "stark naked" before God is a good thing. Actually, it is just how God wants us.

Fragrant Vessel

An herb garden -- what an idea!  Of course, I'm not good at growing things but having my own herbs sounds really cool. I watch TV chefs prepare their recipes using fresh herbs but [get-a-grip-Beverly] -- just continue buying your seasonings in a bottle!

 

God desires our brokenness. Psalm 51:17 says the most acceptable sacrifice to God is a broken spirit, broken with sorrow for sin and humbly and thoroughly penitent; in this He delights! This is the process to becoming that "sweet-smelling aroma" of Christ to others who need the Savior (Philippians 4:18).  Only when the chefs cut or crush the fresh herbs is the fragrance and flavor released, when it becomes an effective seasoning. God wants to use us through our circumstances (often terribly grievous) to be "salt" and "light" (Matthew 5:13-14). These times are not opportunities to turn away from or question God or to complain. No, they are seasons to release the true Fragrance of Christ. The "treasure" of Christ is ours, not to be withheld but to be made real in every area and at all times of our lives. Christ in us and through us is powerful. Will you be a fragrant vessel for Christ today?

Share the Shade

Oh, the comforts of home: my bed, my comfy chair, my porch swing, my routine.  A brief get-away is nice, but there really is no place quite like home!  I’ve mostly lived an on-the-on lifestyle, but this older-me seems to enjoy the ... home-style.

 

You don’t have to read much of the Apostle Paul’s writing before you see how much he loved his friends in-the-faith.  He begins most of his letters with the warm and affectionate greeting, “grace to you.”  Paul didn't just long to be with his friends -- he deeply desired to bless them usually across great distances.  In 1 Corinthians 1, he writes, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, Who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." (V.3-4). Because life is continuously stormy, so is our capacity to grow in Christ.  In our front yard is a sugar maple -- I brought it home some 30 years ago in a coffee can.  Mr. Bill shook his head at the pitiful little thing, nonetheless he dug a hole and planted it.  We've watched it grow, and now in the summer time it's probably 10 degrees cooler in its shade.  As we grow in grace through life's storms, we have so much to offer others in their stormy times.  As Paul gave God glory for "all comfort" in his difficulties, he recognized the responsibility to faithfully share the shade of Godly comfort with his friends.  Consider what blessing-delight-favor (grace) you can extend to someone who may be experiencing a once-familiar storm.  As the amazing God-of-all-Comfort comforts us, so let us comfort one another … share the Shade.

The Way

Memberships are often intriguing to us!  As early as the school playground, we wanted to be part of something, involved in games or exploring.  The older us are now enticed to join or signup with free introductory offers such as a cool-looking travel bag or ball cap.  What easy targets we are!

 

One of the most exclusive statements in history came from the lips of Jesus, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6).  This statement has also become one of the most contestable statements of our time!  The culture in which we live is a massive collage of thoughts, ideas, and theories of how a person receives eternal life.  Jesus frequently asked questions, and one such was to His disciples at Caesarea Philippi, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” (Matthew 16:13).  A street poll of that question opens the door for a host of answers – even blank stares!  Even Jesus received numerous answers from His friends – “Some say You’re John the Baptist, others say Elijah, still others think You are Jeremiah, and others suggest You are just another one of the many prophets who have come our way.” (Matthew 6:14).  Those answers caused Jesus to probe further, deeper to the heart: “But who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16:15).  Forget about public opinion, what you read online or in the morning paper, not what your daddy or mama or grandparents say – who am I to YOU?  Ah! and Oh!  The answer to Jesus’ probing question was Peter’s real claim-to-fame; it was he who declared, “You are the Christ!” (V.16).  Jesus’ question was personally intrusive – Peter’s answer was deeply personally!  The answers today are endless as are the false voices who suggest them.  The question is nonetheless personally intrusive -- who do YOU say that I am?  It was Jesus, God’s Son, Who identified Himself as The Way -- not a way.  Proclaim The Way today – live in the Light of the Great I AM!

End In Sight

What are some things we look to end?  Paying off a loan.  Running a marathon.  Buying diapers and formula.  Setting a morning alarm.  The anticipated end to such things is often great and when “the end” comes, we look back and wonder how we endeavored to persevere to … the end!

 

What would you do if you knew today was your last day on this earth?   Most likely, we would overlook the trivial things of life and do our best to make each moment significant.  Jesus knew well His time was growing short.  He knew the last time He would enter Jerusalem, visit the temple, the last time He would share a meal and laugh with close friends, the last time He would have need of His dusty sandals, the last intimate conversation He would have with His disciples.  Just a few days before His arrest, we find Jesus in the Jericho countryside but not distracted, He tells His disciples: “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn Him to death and deliver Him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and He will be raised on the third day.” (Matthew 20:18-19)  We know from Scripture the religious leaders were already plotting against The Messiah, but to be sure – Jesus was not walking into a trap!  He arrived on earth ON purpose WITH a purpose, and His journey to the cross did not begin in Jericho or Galilee or Nazareth or Bethlehem: the taste of the apple was still on Adam’s tongue when Jesus considered the journey He would make to Calvary.  The Son (Father and Spirit) always had the end in sight, and the Great Love [for us] that began Jesus journey is the same Great Love that brought His journey to the Perfect End.  Oh, what a Savior!