THE THRONE OF YOUR LIFE

Ego is a powerful thing! Self-discovery begins so early! Have you watched an infant discover his/her toes – even fingers? At that stage, it seems that everything new gets the ‘taste-test’ – it goes right to the mouth!  😂  Almost everything is new to this new-born! S/he is on a journey of discovery and self-identification that will continue unabated throughout life!

I’ve been seeing a series of ‘reels’ lately where a tiny little girl stands nose-to-nose with a huge, furry, friendly dog. She screams in his face as she scolds him. He could easily shove her to the side with his powerful front legs, but he just stands there and submits to her supposed authority with an occasional ‘woof!’ of response.  I laugh when I see it because of this little girl’s early audacity to think that she is the lord of this massive family pet!  Such is the ego of young children who are still learning and growing.

As we grow, we increasingly come to think that the world revolves around ‘us’! This is because we are the center of our experience!

As childhood emerges into the adolescence years the process continues as the young person begins to distinguish him/herself through the self-identification process. With a fully developed personality by age seven, this child continues to grow, learn, explore as they approach adulthood and the realization of accepting responsibility for the direction of their life! It can be an awesome experience; it can also be terrifying.

BUT THIS IS NOT A PSYCHOLOGICAL TREATISE, BUT A THEOLOGICAL ONE!

If somewhere along this child’s path they are introduced to the love of a divine Savior, they may begin a whole new process with a completely different foundation!  If they embrace the reality of a God-directed life, then they – like so many of us – begin to explore the meaning of a totally different way of being!

Many have anchored their thinking – after serious reflection on the words of the Apostle Paul – found in Galatians 2:19-21 [TM]:

^{[Paul writing]} What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn’t work. So I quit being a “law man” so that I could be God’s man. Christ’s life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not “mine,” but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God’s grace.

It has been pictured as follows: 

Through a growing understanding of the Word of God and the Spirit-directed life, the young person [or person of any age] begins to desire to live a life that is totally pleasing to God and consequently brings the deepest satisfaction and joy!

The process of sustaining this last lifestyle is a growing process that will require our full attention throughout our life! It is a sanctifying process that involves repentance, forgiveness, prayer, immersion in the Word, and a desire to grow spiritually into a fruitful follower of Christ. It is a process that is highly defined by the depth and availability of God’s amazing grace!

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Today, I discovered a good biblical picture of this process in the life of King David in II Samuel’s closing chapters.

David is old! He’s living in the latter days of his life. His kingdom has just survived an attempted coo by his son, Absalom!  As David resettles into the palace and the routines of being king over a massive accrual of subordinate nations, David falls prey to his own pride.

The beauty of all biblical characters is the fact that they are all one-hundred percent human – just like us! The great, highly admired King David falters – just like we often do!

He sits one day and wonders how many fighting soldiers he has between Israel and Judah? “Hmmm. I’ll bet it’s a pretty high number!  I think I’ll have them counted!” [he muses].

David orders Joab – his army commander – to take others and move throughout Israel and Judah to count those men. Joab sees the foolishness of the task and resists the order, but ultimately submits.  After nearly ten months, 

“…they canvassed the whole country and…arrived back in Jerusalem. Joab gave the results of the census to the king: 800,000 able-bodied fighting men in Israel; in Judah 500,000…But when it was all done, David was overwhelmed with guilt because he had counted the people, replacing trust with statistics. And David prayed to God, ‘I have sinned badly in what I have just done. But now God forgive my guilt—I’ve been really stupid’” [II Samuel 24:9,10].

 

David’s pride got the best of him!

It happens. To all of us from time-to-time.

Unfortunately for David, this error cost the lives of seventy thousand of his people who died from an epidemic initiated by God as punishment for David’s audacity! A horrible reality that caused David terrible grief and pain! It's also a reminder that leadership has increased responsibility!

Even in the midst of this punishment, David is careful to keep himself pure! He is told by Gad the prophet to 

“Go and build an altar on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”  

When David attempts to buy this threshing floor from Araunah, he tries to donate it to King David as a gift! But David is wise and responds: “I’ve got to buy it from you for a good price; I’m not going to offer GOD, my God, sacrifices that are no sacrifice…GOD was moved by the prayers and that was the end of the disaster” [vs.24-25].

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We must be vigilant in keeping Christ on the throne of our lives and NOT assuming that role on our own! This is why we call Him LORD!

MINISTRY STORIES: Saved In Sunday School

My years of being on staff at the Cornerstone Church in Akron, Ohio, were some of the most fruitful and exciting days of my life!  Under the influence of Pastor Brenda Young – and her dynamic teaching and leading - this church had become a fast-growing, Spirit-filled, dynamic center for conversion and spiritual growth!

As hard as it is to believe, the foyer would pack with people before the three services that we offered. When the doors were opened, they would run to get the best seats and save them for their family or friends.  The anticipation and expectation were unbelievably high!  

The excitement was palpable as everyone waited for the worship team to begin playing.  The church had gathered and was ready to worship! The make-up of this congregation was 75% ‘first-time believers’!  I’ve never known a church like it! 

During each of the three worship services there were Sunday School options for all ages.  Many would attend Sunday School either before or after worship.  As Lead Associate Pastor, I had the privilege and responsibility for overseeing our adult, youth and children’s ministry leaders. Recruiting and training leaders was an on-going challenge!

As part of my role, I visited every class during each service.  During the first-of-three services I would do so quickly and then participate in worship.  During the other two services I could take more time and observe the classes before moving on.  This also gave me time to welcome and mingle with people arriving for the next service which became a productive time of relationship building.

One of our adult classes met in a small, odd-shaped room adjacent to the worship center. While the worship team was playing, it was often amusingly difficult for the teacher to be heard.  This class was led by one of our younger lay leaders. His name was Ron and he was a charming and engaging leader who also contributed – during periods – on the worship team as a remarkable drummer.

This class was largely made up of newer young and middle-aged couples who had begun attending Cornerstone.  One of the men was known to us all as ‘Skeeter’. He was a highly knowledgeable mechanic and had been attending with his wife for a couple of years.  One Sunday, at the end of the class as Ron was beginning to wrap things up, Skeeter asked Ron a question.

“Ron, I’ve been attending here for a long time now and I hear all this talk about ‘getting saved’.  Just what does it mean to ‘get saved’?”

Ron turned his attention to Skeeter while the rest of us remained silent and prayed.  He carefully and briefly explained the gospel to Skeeter and then asked him if he’d like to be saved right there.  Skeeter indicated that he would, so Ron led him in a prayer of confession and acceptance!  I hope you know how thrilled this class was!  It was SO EXCITING! 

Pastor Brenda always gave a benediction/send-off at the end of each service by raising her hands over the congregation and speaking words of challenge and encouragement. Skeeter immediately began responding to this by raising his own hands to ‘receive’ the good words that she was speaking. 

When questioned about it, he simply said that it was his way of receiving the blessing that the pastor was speaking over him.  It began to catch on until nearly every person in every service also started raising their hands to receive the blessing from Pastor Brenda. 

I haven’t been to Cornerstone in many years, but I often wonder if that’s still being practiced there today?  Maybe someone reading will let us know…

GOD'S PROMISE!

I know that nobody cares about the message of Zephaniah’s three chapters.  I’m not going to bore you with a long treatise about this almost unknown Old Testament prophet.  I’ll give you its essence in abbreviated form.  Here it is:

Chapter 1  -  Judgment Day is coming!

Chapter 2  -  So, get ready!

Chapter 3  -  You don’t want to miss out on what GOD has in store for you!

Let’s remind ourselves that this message was delivered about 2,700 years ago!  Generation after generation have passed with no resolution of God’s promise – YET! 

However, one look at Zephaniah’s last word spoken on behalf of GOD, reassures us!  The old King James Version renders these last words as “Thus saith the LORD.”   The New American Standard Version updates it:  “Says the LORD.”  The Message paraphrase brings it current:  “GOD’s Promise!”

God has promised a final resolution that will be totally satisfying to all who have suffered, but who have continued to trust in Him! 

And through the years many have suffered.  They have suffered injustices, prejudice, hatred, persecution, pain, death, war, imprisonment, and SO MUCH MORE!  Yet, many have remained faithful throughout these trials!  They have earned a great reward that they have not yet received. 

In our current world, many have been experiencing these same atrocities for a long time.  However, we in the United States, have been cocooned from most of these painful conditions.  We are only now beginning to feel the birth pains of genuine suffering.  Most of us feel that the pain and suffering will only increase.  It is a fearful time as we watch a stalwart nation begin to crumble from within – victims of an enemy that has been stealthily gaining more and more power and control for decades.  And now – the trend seems irreversible.

What do we do?  To whom do we turn?  Where do we place our hope?  Can this trend be reversed?  Will an election reverse the destruction we are witnessing?  We hold on to whatever hope we can find…

But this is nothing new!  It’s just new here!  Other nations have gone down this painful path scores of years ahead of us!  Whole generations have lived and died with little or no hope for rescue or improvement. 

Yet Christians in all of these places have sustained hope even in the midst of peril!  Matthew 7:13-14 tells us that there are two gates.  One gate is wide and leads to destruction;  this gate is easy to locate and many pass through it as a result!  The other gate is narrow and leads to life, and few are those who find it. 

Every person who has ever lived chooses one of these gates!  You have chosen one of these gates! 

And as a result, your eternal destiny depends on your choice! 

Some say, “Aw, phooey!  That’s all nonsense and spiritual mumbo-jumbo!”  Someday, they will regret that they took this attitude.

Others choose the narrow gate and strive to walk in a way that is God-honoring.  It’s not easy and they’re not perfect.  They struggle.  They fall.  They repent.  They return.  They grow.  They trust.  They persevere!  And God watches it all – looking not at their bodies, but into their hearts!  And He knows! 

And the amazing thing is:  you can travel the wide gate’s path for much of your life, and then suddenly decide to enter the narrow gate.  And that’s okay!  God allows you to do this! 

So, if you’ve exhausted your stubbornness and just want some peace and assurance in your life – CHANGE PATHS! 

Believe me on this:  God really wants you to experience the amazing place that He has been preparing for us!  GOD wants you there! 

As of yet, it’s still a future reality!  When GOD is ready, all believers will inherit this heavenly home at the same time – and it will be GLORIOUS! 

GOD’S PROMISE!!!!!!

THE PRICE OF OUR SALVATION!

I know that it's still two full weeks before Ash Wednesday, but my Bible reading schedule had me consider Matthew 27:27-56 this morning.  

How can you read this without being impacted with the pathos of these hours?

Pilate, having washed his hands of the manipulations of the priests and religious leaders, turned Barabbas loose and handed Jesus over to the soldiers to be crucified.

• the soldiers mock Him
• they strip Him
• they place a red robe on Him
• then comes the crown of thorns
• they place a stick in His hand (as a mock scepter for the King of the Jews)
• then, laughter, mocking and abuse

Next, Jesus is forced to carry His cross.  Unable to do so, Simon of Cyrene is strong-armed into carrying it for Jesus.

At the place of the crucifixion, He is offered a drink to help kill the pain;  He refused it.

In one sentence, Matthew reports that they nailed Him to the cross and gambled over His garments. We can be thankful that he spared us the details of this gruesome process.

They place a placard reading:  THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Then, two criminals are crucified, one on each side of Jesus.

The crowd now jeers and mocks Jesus.  

The high priests, religion scholars and leaders join in the mockery.

Even the criminals mock Him!

"I'M A RESURRECTION STORY! I'M A RESURRECTION STORY!"

The following is a story told by Shane Claiborne in IRRESISTIBLE REVOLUTION, pp. 247-249.

In the early days of our community, Michelle, a founding partner of the Simple Way, and I headed out to get a loaf of bread.  We walked underneath the El tracks just a block from our house, a strip notorious for its prostitution and drug trafficking, where the air is thick with tears and struggle.  We walked past an alley, and tucked inside was a woman, tattered, cold, and on crutches.  She approached me, asking if I wanted her services.  Our hearts sank, but we scurried on to get our bread.  Then we headed quickly home, nodding at the woman as we passed.  When we got home and opened the bread, we noticed the bag had a large gash in the side and the bread had gone bad.  We would have to go back, and we both knew what that meant.  We would have to walk by that woman again.  We walked by that alley and saw her in there crying, shivering.  We got our bread, and as we saw her yet again, we could not just pass by.  We stopped and told her we cared for her, that she was precious, worth more than a few bucks for tricks on the avenue.  We explained that we had a home that was a safe place to get warm and have a snack.  So she stumbled onto her crutches and came home with us.

As soon as we entered the house, she started weeping hysterically.  Michelle held her as she wept.  When she had gained her composure, she said, "You all are Christians, aren't you?"  Michelle and I looked at each other, startled.  We had said nothing about God or Jesus, and our house doesn't have a cross in the window, a neon "Jesus Saves" sign, or even a little Christian fish on the wall.  She said, "I know that you are Christians because you shine.  I used to be in love with Jesus like that, and when I was, I shined like diamonds in the sky, like the stars.  But it's a cold dark world, and I lost my shine a little while back.  I lost my shine on those streets."  At that point we were all weeping.  She asked us to pray with her that she might shine again.  We did;  we prayed that this dark world would not take away our shine.

Days, weeks went by, and we did not see her.  One day, there was a knock at the door, and I opened it.  On the steps there was a lovely lady with a contagious ear-to-ear smile.  We stared at each other.  We see a lot of people, so I was going to try to fake recognizing her, but she called my bluff and beat me to it.  "Of course you don't recognize me, because I'm shining again.  I'm shining."  Then I knew.  She went on to explain how deeply she had fallen in love with God again.  She said she wanted to give us something to thank us for our hospitality but sadly confessed, "While I was on the streets, I lost everything I owned.  Except this."  She pulled out a box and apologetically confessed that she smoked a lot and always collected the Marlboro Mile points from the cigarette packs.  "So this is all I have, but I want you to have it."  And she handed me the box bursting at the seams with hundreds of Marlboro Miles.  It's one of the most precious gifts I've ever been given, like receiving the widow's last pennies.  And they make good Bible markers.  Now, whenever I am speaking somewhere and open up the Word, I see a Marlboro Mile and am reminded of all the broken lives that have lost their shine a little while back.

Not too long ago, I got a phone call, and it was my friend!  She had heard a sermon of mine in which I told this story, her story.  And she got all excited.  "I'm a resurrection story!  I'm a resurrection story!"

That's what we get to do - love people back to life.

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So, have you done it lately?  Have you loved anyone back to life?  It can happen in an alley, or a grocery store line (even with social distancing), over the phone, in your workplace, with your neighbor, in the hospital, - actually anywhere you happen to be and meet a broken person!  God wants to use you to help people get their shine back!  Why not tell Him you're willing right now?

LIKE A LAMB

Many years ago, when Debbie and I were just getting established in our marriage, we were cheated by a landlord in Nicholasville, Kentucky.  We had only lived in the apartment for a year and took care to leave it in immaculate condition.  However, the unscrupulous landlord refused to return our escrow.  By today's standards it was a small amount;  however, at the time it was a huge amount to us.  We felt so taken-advantage-of.  It was unjust and we felt the pain of it.

Upon returning home, we shared the story of this injustice with Debbie's family in great detail.  After doing so, her father spoke very directly to me.  He said:  "Harold, you shouldn't repeat this story again.  Every time you do, you relive the anger of the moment.  Why do that to yourself?"

To be honest, I was offended at his admonition.  I had been wronged!  Didn't I have the right to share my pain with those I loved?  But, inside, I knew he was right.  The telling of that story raised vengeful feelings in me.  I wanted to get back at the landlord and even fantasized about doing so. This was not appropriate behavior for a seminary student.  It was not appropriate behavior for a Christian couple.  

The Holy Week experiences of Jesus reveal horrible physical and emotional abuse.  The sinless Son of God suffered immeasurably!  This chain of suffering ended with the cross and its cruelties and shame.  It is a week that we presently commemorate and regard as 'Holy'.  It is the pivotal week in the Christian year!  We reflect on this week with the deepest gratitude.  

Robin Mark sings it so well:

  You exchanged the Joy of Heaven

For the suffering of the cross
And the presence of Your father
For the friendship of the Lost

You took on the form of servant
All Your Godly glory veiled
For this broken world submitted
To the cross, the thorns, the nails

Now we know there was no other way
To release this world from sin
You endured the cross, despised the shame
Opened Heavens gates
So that we might enter in

Jesus endured the greatest of injustices as He laid down His life to be our sacrifice for sin!  He did not complain.  He did not cry out against the injustice.  There are many indications that He simply chose silence as His response:

Matthew 27:12

And while He was being accused by the chief priests and elders, He did not answer.

Matthew 27:14

And He did not answer Pilate with regard to even a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed.

Luke 23:9

And Herod questioned Him at some length; but He answered him nothing.

It's easy for us to forget that Jesus could have taken an escape route.  Remember in the garden when Peter drew his sword?  Jesus responded:   [Matthew 26:52-54]

"Put your sword back in its place,…Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?'"

There seem to be three points for us to consider here:

1. It is probable that we have not fully appreciated the depth of Christ's sacrifice!  I will not expand on the details of crucifixion here, nor will I attempt to describe how it must have felt to have His Father abandon Him as He bore the sins of the whole world.  It is sufficient to say that there has been no greater sacrifice made in history - and He did it out of His love for me and you!
2. It is likely that we spend too much time and energy holding on to resentment and bitterness.  We unwittingly punish ourselves for the wrongs of others.  How foolish!  How much better for us and how much wiser to take the path of Christ:  "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."  [Luke 23:34] 
3. Jesus also offers us another alternative to injustice:  accept it as part of God's greater will and plan.  Don't resist it.  Trust the Father for the grace to endure and prevail.  Believe in His persistent love for you and His capacity to see you through the greatest of adversity with a high hand!  

I Just finished watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy with my grandchildren.  Repeatedly throughout these stories I find myself saying, "Well, this is the end;  they're surely defeated now!"  But in each scenario, resources and forces beyond my imagination rise up to deliver victory and freedom!  It is an epic story of good triumphing over evil despite overwhelming dilemmas.  

But, in the end, Frodo drops the ring into the river of fire and then after a brief respite back in the shire, he boards a ship for the enduring land.  

If we capture these truths, we can be certain - because of the empty tomb - that we will experience the same ending!  Trust Him!

HE SAVED MY LIFE!

Right about this time of year in 1941, ten prisoners disappeared from the German death camp at Auschwitz.  In retaliation and an attempt to deter further escape attempts, the camp deputy commander ordered that ten men be starved to death in an underground bunker.  When one of the selected men, Franciszek Gajowniczek, cried out, "My wife! My children!", Father Maximilian Kolbe, a Franciscan friar, volunteered to take his place.  Father Kolbe was then 47. Mr. Gajowniczek was 41. 

After two weeks of dehydration and starvation, only Kolbe remained alive. The guards wanted the bunker emptied, so they gave Kolbe a lethal injection of carbolic acid. Kolbe is said to have raised his left arm and calmly waited for the deadly injection.  He died on August 14.  For his sacrifice, he was declared a saint in 1982, by Pope John Paul II.  Gajowniczek - the man Father Kolbe saved died on March 13, 1995, at Brzeg in Poland, 95 years old - 53 years after Kolbe had saved him.   [credit:  Wikipedia]

History is punctuated with many stories of people who made similar sacrifices for loved ones and even unknown others.  Some fell on grenades to save comrades;  others plunged into floodwaters to save drowning people.  

The 1961 movie, BARABBAS, tells the fictional account of the man who was released before Jesus was crucified.  In the story-line, he goes on to live a violent and rebellious life of suffering and misfortune, until circumstances cause him to turn to faith in Christ.  His is the proverbial story of a person who was granted life because someone else took his place in death.  

I was reading the Bible this morning and came to my psalm for the day:  Psalm 87.  Verse 13 caught my attention for more than a few moments:   [from The VOICE]

"...Your loyal love for me is so great it is beyond comparison.  

You have rescued my soul from the depths of the grave."  

I was captivated by David's (the psalm-writer) devotion and conviction that he had been rescued from death by the grace of God.  

By divine coincidence (I love that phrase), I also read Colossians 1, today.  I was stunned as I read verses 21-23a:   [also from The VOICE]

"You were once at odds with God, wicked in your ways and evil in your minds;  but now He has reconciled you in His body - in His flesh through His death - so that He can present you to God holy, blameless, and totally free of imperfection as long as you stay planted in the faith."

It hit me:  I am Franciszek Gajowniczek!  I am Barabbas!  I live because someone else died!  This person was a real, live person - even though He lived two thousand years ago.  However, He was more than just a person - He was a God-man!  This God-man, Jesus, said in John 8:51 (another chapter I coincidentally read today):  [from The VOICE]

"I tell you the truth, anyone who hears My voice and keeps My word will never experience death."  

Point taken:  I have been rescued from death by Jesus!

According to his own reports, Mr. Gajowniczek felt guilty.  The other inmates became brutal and mean to him because his outcry took away their confessor and confidant.  He lived every day with a deep sense of gratitude to Father Kolbe for his sacrificial action.  How could he not?

David seems to express that same measure of gratitude.  Nearly half of our book of 150 psalms were penned by this man-after-God's-heart!  

After thinking through the above, I have come to realize that I have not lived every day with a due sense of appreciation to the One who saved my life!  

Oh, I 

• visit His House once-a-week,
• read His Word from time-to-time,
• say a prayer before most of my meals,
• call out to Him when I have a problem,
• occasionally wear Christian T-shirts,...

Are you seeing (as I have) how pathetic this is?  

He stepped into MY PLACE!

He took the punishment for MY SIN!

He declared ME innocent!

He rescued me from death ETERNALLY!  

Is this the best I can do for someone who has given so much?  

Do I, like Franciszek Gajowniczek, think of my savior EVERY DAY?

Do I live with a sense of deep, deep gratitude to the One who took MY PLACE?
Do I talk about Him daily?  Do I praise Him to others?

Can I do better?

Oh, YES, I can do better.  And I've spent some time this morning talking with Him about my determinations to live my life more purposefully as an expression of my gratitude for what He has done for me!  

How about you?  Have you acknowledged Jesus as YOUR Savior?  If so, that means He took YOUR place, too!  Are you thinking of Him with gratitude every day?  Are you making your life count?  

If you haven't acknowledged Him as your Savior - and want to, call or text me;  I'd love to talk with you about that...   (724) 944-3881

CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS

Yesterday Debbie and I were out shopping.  This time of year, I always get hit with the same wave of discouragement while moving through the stores.

While walking through the Christmas section of a large discount store, I was checking the prices on Christmas lights.  Aisle after aisle were loaded with Santas, reindeer, snowmen, snowflakes, etc., etc.  I couldn't find any symbol that would remotely remind you of the One whose birthday we celebrate!

A few years ago you could occasionally find bells or stars, but they seem to have been put on the 'naughty' list now.  I wasn't able to find a manger scene in this store!  Debbie found one roll of wrapping paper that included the words: "Merry Christmas". 

The One who is the cause of the celebration is being completely removed from the recognition of the day.  The Holy Day has truly become a holiday.

We get cards from Christian friends that say, "Happy Holidays".  We even rode by the house of Christian friends who had "Happy Holidays" in their front yard.  More and more followers of Christ are exchanging greetings with the words:  "Happy Holidays".  Innocent people are buying the mantra of a secular culture!

Sorry!  I don't like to use this vehicle for disparaging rants.  Let's see if I can turn it around?

As for me and my house - we will forever celebrate CHRISTMAS!  My decorations will point to the Savior of the world!  Our cards will always convey a message about the One who offers us the hope of Heaven!  We'll put up a Christmas tree and decorate it with:

• candles and lights to symbolize the light of the world
• shiny balls to symbolize the gift of gold given by the magi
• tinsel to remind us to reflect His love to a needy world
• candy canes - which we call candy J's...for JESUS!!
• bells to remind us to ring out the Good News that a Savior is born!
• stars because of the Star of Bethlehem
• and maybe even a picture of Santa - kneeling at the Manger!!!

You get to make your own choices.  Are you going to advance the secular message or the true message of joy and hope?

2,000 years ago, in the little town of Bethlehem, a baby was born.  This baby was planted in a young Jewish girl named Mary, by the Holy Spirit!  This God-child was the Son of God - the Maker of the universe.  He came to give His life for you and every other person on earth.  His sacrifice for sin opened the way for your salvation.

Proclaim it or ignore it.  Make your choice!

STORY BOOK TALE

Her name is Jessica;  she's eight years old.  Her mother reads to her every night before going to bed.

On this night they read a book about Jesus.  At the end of the book was a prayer about giving yourself to the Lord.

Jessica told her mom that she wanted to give herself to the Lord all by herself.  After leading her daughter through the prayer, there was a place for Jessica to draw a smiley face and sign her name - with the date.

The next day, her mom told a co-worker about Jessica's commitment.  The co-worker attends FMCC.  She knew that we light a candle during worship every time someone from our congregation leads someone to faith in Christ.  She emailed me to see if I would like to light the candle for Jessica.

With Jessica and her mom's permission, we did so the next Sunday!  Even though they were not able to attend because of distance, we continue to rejoice at an eight-year-old life that is now dedicated to serving the Lord! 

Oh Lord,
Help us to burn through that candle so fast that we have to start buying them by the case!
Amen.

MORTALITY

I was called to the bedside of a good friend yesterday.  She is suffering from cancer.  She was surrounded by family and friends who spoke tenderly to her.  They kissed her forehead and caressed are arms and shoulders.  They offered ice chips and cool washcloths.  It was a picture of family love and tenderness!

Early this morning I prayed for my friend and her family. 

Then I prayed for myself.  Someday, I too, will be making the transition from earth to Heaven. 

Like most people, I'm sure I'll struggle to let go of this world and its realities:  family, friends, familiar roles, possessions, memories, etc., etc..

Yet most of us - even secular people - believe that Heaven will far exceed this world.  It will be a better place where we will be free from pain, suffering, tears, stress, and so much more! 

For Christians, we have clear hints of what Heaven will be like from the Bible.  If we have accepted Christ's substitutionary death for our sins, we will be welcomed there!

Being certain of Heaven is as easy as praying:

Dear Jesus,

I acknowledge that I have sinned.

I'm sorry!

Forgive me.

Come and be my Lord!

Help me to live to please You!

Amen.