God put this devotional on my heart this afternoon and I couldn’t get through typing it without breaking down several times as He revealed it to me. I want to share it with you because Jesus assures us that, no matter how difficult it gets, no matter how much we feel like quitting, no matter how bad the odds look, He will prevail and that by simply believing in Him we can be 100% assured that we will meet Him in Heaven...and catch a glimpses of Him here on earth!
I imagine Heaven is like…
… freezing cold all day long in a winter’s storm and coming home to a warm house and a cup of steaming, hot chocolate with little marshmallows that your mom made especially just for you.
… blasting your favorite song full-blast to sing-along at the top of your lungs.
… witnessing a breath-taking sunrise dawning a beautiful day that God’s created, special and unique like none other…just like Him.
… toiling all day in a garden, swatting biting insects in the sun-scorched heat, your fingernails encrusted with earth, and then being rewarded with a cool, refreshing shower, washing all your dirt, aches, and pains away, and emerging clean.
… tears streaming down your face as you touch your Bible just to see if the ink might still be wet on the beautiful scripture you just read because it speaks exactly to your heart, so much that it almost appears that it had been written just for you.
Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Psalm 34:8 (NIV)
…working up a really good appetite after a particularly difficult day’s labor and sitting down, in the presence of all your family and friends, to a home-cooked, Thanksgiving-style meal with all the trimmings.
… wrestling with your kids and them, bubbling up with joy to tell you, out of the blue, that they love you…they REALLY love you.
… entering early morning into a bakery to catch the delicious aroma of the day’s hand-prepared, fresh-baked cakes, bread, pastries, and pies.
… the wonderful anticipation you enjoy of yearning all day to be with your wife and the kids are safely asleep for the night.
… knowing you did the right thing, even though it was difficult and unpopular and enjoying the Holy Spirit’s peace that passes all understanding.
But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13b-14
… the deep peace you experience when you’ve finally fallen asleep after a violent thunderstorm has run its course.
… being a little boy in your daddy’s arms – your hero and your role model – and him encouraging you that he’s so proud of you, and that one day only too soon you’ll be a grown man, too.
… the smells of a Christmas tree on Christmas morning as your just awakened, giggling children scramble down the stairs with eager expectation and wide eyes.
… taking in a free, Friday-night jazz performance on a warm summer’s evening.
… standing in the most beautiful field you’ve ever seen, alive and green with life, and hugging Jesus, just basking in His comfort and breathing in His scent – a spring in full-bloom – and Him assuring you that it’s all going to be all right because He loves you and you love Him.
“In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” John 14:2-4 (NIV)
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
Recurring miracles, failing faith
Despite the plethora and magnitude of the miracles God performed in bringing his people out of Israel, the Israelites still strayed from the Lord. Is it any different with us? Do we become numb or desensitized to such things? My guess is yes.
Similarly, Jesus performed miracles among the people, some in public and some in private. There were times when he did it for public consumption, but other times He asked the healed not to say anything. Jesus, though, wanted people to believe primarily by faith, not on miracles alone. Jesus clearly knew the historical results of His own people Israel who didn’t believe even after having seen miracles that were unsurpassed at that point (only the making of the universe was greater in my opinion!).
In fact, this is proven in the scriptures:
The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven.
He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. Matthew 16:1-4 (NIV)
The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. He sighed deeply and said, “Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it.” Mark 8:11-12 (NIV)
The fact that he sighed deeply tells me of Jesus infinite patience for us and perhaps of the temptation He felt to simply “tell us off.” Miracles still happen every day of our lives - and I praise God for them – and all we need to do is simply believe and have faith in Jesus and we will be saved!
Similarly, Jesus performed miracles among the people, some in public and some in private. There were times when he did it for public consumption, but other times He asked the healed not to say anything. Jesus, though, wanted people to believe primarily by faith, not on miracles alone. Jesus clearly knew the historical results of His own people Israel who didn’t believe even after having seen miracles that were unsurpassed at that point (only the making of the universe was greater in my opinion!).
In fact, this is proven in the scriptures:
The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven.
He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. Matthew 16:1-4 (NIV)
The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. He sighed deeply and said, “Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it.” Mark 8:11-12 (NIV)
The fact that he sighed deeply tells me of Jesus infinite patience for us and perhaps of the temptation He felt to simply “tell us off.” Miracles still happen every day of our lives - and I praise God for them – and all we need to do is simply believe and have faith in Jesus and we will be saved!
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Suffering comes before glory
"Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” Luke 24:26 (NIV)
Last night I was reading On the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35) when God shared an amazing insight with me. Reading over Luke 24:26 (above) we find Jesus reminding His followers that He had to suffer before entering His glory - it was the prerequisite. I was struck by the fact that we, too, must go through the same progression! We know from God’s Word that we must first die to ourselves and be reborn (i.e., John 11:25 and John 3) and many scriptures talk about the suffering we Christ’s followers will endure (i.e., James 1:2-18), however it was God’s revelation to me on why we ourselves must suffer – it’s the only way to glory!
Our Lord Jesus Christ blazed the path to glory, taking on infinite suffering for sins that we, not He, committed. We’ve seen The Passion of the Christ and can somewhat begin to understand, or at least, visualize the physical pain Jesus suffered on His cross to bring us redemption. But we will never know the spiritual and mental pain Jesus endured as God rejected Jesus, His only Son, leaving him forsaken and utterly alone. It brings new understanding to Jesus’ cry on the cross:
About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi Eloi, lama sabachthani?” — which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46 (NIV)
And it had to happen this way so that God could save us from the certain death sin brings and wonderfully reconcile His children – us! – to Himself!
Thus, as painful as suffering is to us and as much as we dislike going through it, rest in the fact that Jesus Christ Himself has planned it this way so that His glory may be revealed to us in God’s perfect plan in His perfect timing.
Thank you, Jesus, for showing us the true way to glory!
Last night I was reading On the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35) when God shared an amazing insight with me. Reading over Luke 24:26 (above) we find Jesus reminding His followers that He had to suffer before entering His glory - it was the prerequisite. I was struck by the fact that we, too, must go through the same progression! We know from God’s Word that we must first die to ourselves and be reborn (i.e., John 11:25 and John 3) and many scriptures talk about the suffering we Christ’s followers will endure (i.e., James 1:2-18), however it was God’s revelation to me on why we ourselves must suffer – it’s the only way to glory!
Our Lord Jesus Christ blazed the path to glory, taking on infinite suffering for sins that we, not He, committed. We’ve seen The Passion of the Christ and can somewhat begin to understand, or at least, visualize the physical pain Jesus suffered on His cross to bring us redemption. But we will never know the spiritual and mental pain Jesus endured as God rejected Jesus, His only Son, leaving him forsaken and utterly alone. It brings new understanding to Jesus’ cry on the cross:
About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi Eloi, lama sabachthani?” — which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46 (NIV)
And it had to happen this way so that God could save us from the certain death sin brings and wonderfully reconcile His children – us! – to Himself!
Thus, as painful as suffering is to us and as much as we dislike going through it, rest in the fact that Jesus Christ Himself has planned it this way so that His glory may be revealed to us in God’s perfect plan in His perfect timing.
Thank you, Jesus, for showing us the true way to glory!
Monday, May 18, 2009
Leave Everything for Jesus
Together, Matthew, Mark, and Luke are considered the “synoptic Gospels” which means “seeing together,” or “having a common view of.” It is used specifically of the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke, which are similar in form, outline, and contents. Reading in Luke this morning as part of our Bible-in-a-year program, the Lord revealed an amazing nuance to me- but oh the difference it makes! As we know, Matthew and Mark both talk about Jesus’ calling of the disciples, but Luke (Chapter 5) puts in a way that absolutely underscores their dedication to Jesus Christ:
One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.
When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”
Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”
When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.
Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. Luke 5:1-11 (NIV)
Can you imagine Peter hearing these words? He is completely overwhelmed with what his eyes see, but he initially he has trouble believing. He capitulates. I broke down this morning reading this because I could envision myself on the ground telling Jesus, “I’m not worthy!” When Jesus responds to Peter with His calming words of assurance He could have no more clearly and directly spoken to me!
Just a few verses later in this same chapter of Luke 5, Jesus approaches Matthew:
After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi (Matthew) sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. Luke 5:27 (NIV)
Again, Matthew, like his fellow apostles and brothers in Christ, left everything to follow Jesus. Matthew and Mark tell of their calling; only Luke highlights the fact that they left everything. As tradition has it, 10 of the 12 original disciples were martyred (Judas Iscariot killed himself; John was banished to the island of Patmos where he eventually wrote, among others, the final book of the Bible, Revelation). Thus, it’s easy to affirm that, yes, the disciples left everything to follow Jesus. They surrendered their lives to Christ to follow Him.
So it must be with us – we are to leave everything behind: our old life; our old ways; our old habits; our old selves. Leave everything behind and embrace all that Jesus Christ is. In Him, and Him alone, we have new birth and new life. Jesus himself left everything behind, dying a sinner's death, so that we might have eternal life through Him!
One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.
When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”
Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”
When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.
Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. Luke 5:1-11 (NIV)
Can you imagine Peter hearing these words? He is completely overwhelmed with what his eyes see, but he initially he has trouble believing. He capitulates. I broke down this morning reading this because I could envision myself on the ground telling Jesus, “I’m not worthy!” When Jesus responds to Peter with His calming words of assurance He could have no more clearly and directly spoken to me!
Just a few verses later in this same chapter of Luke 5, Jesus approaches Matthew:
After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi (Matthew) sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. Luke 5:27 (NIV)
Again, Matthew, like his fellow apostles and brothers in Christ, left everything to follow Jesus. Matthew and Mark tell of their calling; only Luke highlights the fact that they left everything. As tradition has it, 10 of the 12 original disciples were martyred (Judas Iscariot killed himself; John was banished to the island of Patmos where he eventually wrote, among others, the final book of the Bible, Revelation). Thus, it’s easy to affirm that, yes, the disciples left everything to follow Jesus. They surrendered their lives to Christ to follow Him.
So it must be with us – we are to leave everything behind: our old life; our old ways; our old habits; our old selves. Leave everything behind and embrace all that Jesus Christ is. In Him, and Him alone, we have new birth and new life. Jesus himself left everything behind, dying a sinner's death, so that we might have eternal life through Him!
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Unemployment: not a permanent layoff but a temporary layover
Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:
"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22:34-40 (NIV)
On Thursday, April 2, 2009 at approximately 2pm EDT I was blessed with unemployment. I’m a veteran now - it’s the second time within the past four years I’ve been unemployed. It’s not that I didn’t see it coming, though.
Oh, the signs were there, and towards the end I occasionally ignored them, instead plowing through, head-down, at what I was doing. My story isn’t unique, isn’t special, isn’t remarkable. I lost my job and joined the ranks of the 12+ million people in our country who are also, like me, unemployed. So, different as it sounds, there’s a kind of a brotherhood, a fraternity to it. As a friend of mine remarked, “You join a club you never wanted to be a part of.” True…but not exactly. There are many blessings to unemployment.
You see, now that I’m going through unemployment a second time, you begin to see certain patterns repeat and many analogies come to mind. Here’s one.
The first time I blew a tire on an interstate I was absolutely terrified to change it. You know the feeling: cars whizzing by you at 80 MPH brushing closely by your car – and you – as they ignore your 4-way emergency flashers. As you get out of the car, it’s as though you’re planning a jail breakout: your back hugging the car tightly, kind of like a reverse Spiderman, clinging to the metal body, as your head and eyes dart back and forth trying to avoid being pegged by a hypersonic semi.
Eventually, you slink your way to the rear of the car and awkwardly fumble through your trunk, searching for the tire jack hidden amongst all the youth soccer ball bags, old McDonald’s happy meals containers, and used clothes you promised to drop off at Goodwill all of which you’d earlier made a mental note to remove from your trunk but never got around to. You repeat the same process as you return, becoming one with your the car as you unceremoniously loosen the lug nuts – NASCAR makes it looks so easy! But, God is good and you successfully exit the pitstop and live to make it to your destination a little later, a little greasier, and more than a little exasperated.
So, the second time I blew a tire on the interstate I didn’t panic. It’s not that I relished taking my life into my hands again by getting out of my car, but I approached it with more confidence this time. “Bummer!” I muttered, but I made it a point, this time, to pull further off the interstate and took my time changing the deflated tire. And, of course, God is still good (always good!) and you live to make it to your destination a little later, a little greasier, but not so exasperated this time. That’s unemployment.
Here’s another analogy. Being unemployed twice is like returning to your high school for your 10th year class reunion. There’s a certain comfort you experience with the familiarity of the surroundings because you went to school there…but you wouldn’t want to live there again. That’s unemployment.
Later, a few days after my second termination as I was drifting off to sleep on a Friday night, talking to God as I faded, God put an amazing truth in my head. I didn’t lose my first three jobs – and never will. And nor will you. Wow, that got my attention! We all have the same first three jobs:
Job #1: Love God and proclaim Him!
Job #2: Love others (though I’m certain God wants to fire me from this one!)
Job #3: Take care of my family (see 1 Timothy 5:8)
I simply, temporarily, lost my fourth job, the paying one. But God knows this; it’s really just a detail to Him that shouldn’t stop us from working our first three jobs God’s assigned us. The God of the universe who knit us together in our mom’s belly (see Psalm 139), the same God who created heaven and earth, all the stars, planets, and galaxies (see Genesis 1:1), and the same God who sent His Son, Jesus Christ, as permanent unemployment insurance for us when we underperform our first three jobs (see John 3:16), is in charge and on the throne! God clearly laid it on my heart that in losing my fourth job it’s not so much a permanent layoff as it is a temporary layover. God knows the exact departure time and gate assignment for our next flight out! We need only be still and know that He’s God (see Psalm 46:10), waiting patiently and attentively for Him to make the departure announcement!
God is so merciful, caring, and compassionate to us. In fact, right now, he’s arranging and filing our flight plan, tidying up the cabin of our lives, spinning up the engines, and the cleaning the windscreens. Forget that, “God is my co-pilot” stuff; if God’s your co-pilot you need to move over and let him take the stick! God’s our master aviator, the best boss ever, and the most loving, caring, compassionate Father! Allow Him to fly you to calmer skies and bask in the glory of His Son, Jesus Christ!
"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22:34-40 (NIV)
On Thursday, April 2, 2009 at approximately 2pm EDT I was blessed with unemployment. I’m a veteran now - it’s the second time within the past four years I’ve been unemployed. It’s not that I didn’t see it coming, though.
Oh, the signs were there, and towards the end I occasionally ignored them, instead plowing through, head-down, at what I was doing. My story isn’t unique, isn’t special, isn’t remarkable. I lost my job and joined the ranks of the 12+ million people in our country who are also, like me, unemployed. So, different as it sounds, there’s a kind of a brotherhood, a fraternity to it. As a friend of mine remarked, “You join a club you never wanted to be a part of.” True…but not exactly. There are many blessings to unemployment.
You see, now that I’m going through unemployment a second time, you begin to see certain patterns repeat and many analogies come to mind. Here’s one.
The first time I blew a tire on an interstate I was absolutely terrified to change it. You know the feeling: cars whizzing by you at 80 MPH brushing closely by your car – and you – as they ignore your 4-way emergency flashers. As you get out of the car, it’s as though you’re planning a jail breakout: your back hugging the car tightly, kind of like a reverse Spiderman, clinging to the metal body, as your head and eyes dart back and forth trying to avoid being pegged by a hypersonic semi.
Eventually, you slink your way to the rear of the car and awkwardly fumble through your trunk, searching for the tire jack hidden amongst all the youth soccer ball bags, old McDonald’s happy meals containers, and used clothes you promised to drop off at Goodwill all of which you’d earlier made a mental note to remove from your trunk but never got around to. You repeat the same process as you return, becoming one with your the car as you unceremoniously loosen the lug nuts – NASCAR makes it looks so easy! But, God is good and you successfully exit the pitstop and live to make it to your destination a little later, a little greasier, and more than a little exasperated.
So, the second time I blew a tire on the interstate I didn’t panic. It’s not that I relished taking my life into my hands again by getting out of my car, but I approached it with more confidence this time. “Bummer!” I muttered, but I made it a point, this time, to pull further off the interstate and took my time changing the deflated tire. And, of course, God is still good (always good!) and you live to make it to your destination a little later, a little greasier, but not so exasperated this time. That’s unemployment.
Here’s another analogy. Being unemployed twice is like returning to your high school for your 10th year class reunion. There’s a certain comfort you experience with the familiarity of the surroundings because you went to school there…but you wouldn’t want to live there again. That’s unemployment.
Later, a few days after my second termination as I was drifting off to sleep on a Friday night, talking to God as I faded, God put an amazing truth in my head. I didn’t lose my first three jobs – and never will. And nor will you. Wow, that got my attention! We all have the same first three jobs:
Job #1: Love God and proclaim Him!
Job #2: Love others (though I’m certain God wants to fire me from this one!)
Job #3: Take care of my family (see 1 Timothy 5:8)
I simply, temporarily, lost my fourth job, the paying one. But God knows this; it’s really just a detail to Him that shouldn’t stop us from working our first three jobs God’s assigned us. The God of the universe who knit us together in our mom’s belly (see Psalm 139), the same God who created heaven and earth, all the stars, planets, and galaxies (see Genesis 1:1), and the same God who sent His Son, Jesus Christ, as permanent unemployment insurance for us when we underperform our first three jobs (see John 3:16), is in charge and on the throne! God clearly laid it on my heart that in losing my fourth job it’s not so much a permanent layoff as it is a temporary layover. God knows the exact departure time and gate assignment for our next flight out! We need only be still and know that He’s God (see Psalm 46:10), waiting patiently and attentively for Him to make the departure announcement!
God is so merciful, caring, and compassionate to us. In fact, right now, he’s arranging and filing our flight plan, tidying up the cabin of our lives, spinning up the engines, and the cleaning the windscreens. Forget that, “God is my co-pilot” stuff; if God’s your co-pilot you need to move over and let him take the stick! God’s our master aviator, the best boss ever, and the most loving, caring, compassionate Father! Allow Him to fly you to calmer skies and bask in the glory of His Son, Jesus Christ!
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Unlocking the Code
As you may know, many software programs are advertised and sold as a basic package, such as Quicken Basic. However, if you pay the money for the upgrade after you buy it you can enter an access code to open up the full-featured version, such as Quicken Deluxe. Thus, these types of discs have the complete program on it; you simply need to unlock the code to have access.
Children, and for that matter, adults (just big kids, really!) are similar is this way. God gives us all the DNA we need to complete our earthly lives and, at the correct time, it develops us into children, young adults, and then mature adults. Thus, the code is already there.
He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
Ecclesiastes 3:11
Jesus Christ, though, is the ultimate code – He’s in every one of us!
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. John 15:4
By accepting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior we unlock the code to eternal life and treasures in Heaven – the ability to worship God for all times sake!
Children, and for that matter, adults (just big kids, really!) are similar is this way. God gives us all the DNA we need to complete our earthly lives and, at the correct time, it develops us into children, young adults, and then mature adults. Thus, the code is already there.
He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.
Ecclesiastes 3:11
Jesus Christ, though, is the ultimate code – He’s in every one of us!
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. John 15:4
By accepting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior we unlock the code to eternal life and treasures in Heaven – the ability to worship God for all times sake!
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