How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. (Hebrews 11:32-34 NLT).
I enjoy reading the chapter of faith in Hebrews from time to time just to remind myself of how important just one person can be in the history and plan of God. Our reading today is a part of the long list of the writer telling of the incredible faith of men and women who made such a difference in history. Throughout the entire Bible whenever God had a job to do he called a person, and usually just one person. When he wanted to form a nation, the nation of Israel to be his own people, he chose and called Abraham. When he wanted to deliver the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, he chose and called Moses. When he wanted a leader to take the children of Israel into the Promised Land, he chose and called Joshua. When he needed an earthly mother for the Christ child, he chose and called Mary. When he wanted to take His message of grace to the Gentiles, he chose and called Paul. From Genesis to Revelation, God's methods are people, one at a time. You, too, can be one that God uses. As the unknown poet wrote:
One song can spark a moment,
One flower can wake the dream.
One tree can start a forest,
One bird can herald spring.
One smile begins a friendship,
One handclasp lifts a soul.
One star can guide a ship at sea,
One word can frame the goal.
One vote can change a nation,
One sunbeam lights a room.
One candle wipes out darkness,
One laugh will conquer gloom.
One step must start each journey,
One word must start each prayer.
One hope will raise our spirits,
One touch can show you care.
One voice can speak with wisdom,
One heart can know what's true.
One life can make the difference,
You see it's up to YOU!
Some of you may be saying that you’re not as young as you once were. Perhaps you’re not as strong as you once were. Or, maybe you just simply don’t eel as good as you once were. I like the lyrics of Toby Keith’s song, As Good As I Once Was: “I ain't as good as I once was but I'm as good once as I ever was!” And once is often enough! Who do you need to make a difference for today?
Showing posts with label spiritual life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spiritual life. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Friday, July 23, 2010
"Bureaucratic Red Tape"
One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, “So you’re the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself—and us, too, while you’re at it!” But the other criminal protested, “Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die? We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43 NIV).
I am sure that as you read the title for today’s issue of Morning Devotional you may have been tempted to think that I was about to step over into politics. As much as I might like to do that from time to time, this is not one of them. So, let me start at the beginning so you will have a little context. I am writing this issue on Friday for tonight’s mailing and it has been quite an eventful day. It started with another round of working with my computer to free up some memory. I am not a tech person and that is always a challenge, however I may have put a band aid on it and it seems to be working better. Then my schedule started to compress a bit. I had a pretty long list of details to take care of for the day. Some were benign and others essential to the future of Grace Restoration Ministries.
One of those essentials was to get a bank account established in GRM’s name so that I can begin to receive money from various sources to support the ministry. How hard could that be? Well, as it turns out it was an all afternoon affair as I went from office to office in two cities to get the necessary documentation and licenses I needed to make a deposit! It seems that I needed a license from both the city and county in which I live to declare the “business” in operation. And, I needed the appropriate federal designations and ID numbers to prove that we are duly registered with the state of Tennessee and the IRS. I did think several times that perhaps George Orwell’s 1984 was unfolding before my eyes! I did it done, but it cut into my schedule significantly. By the time I dotted all the “i’s” and crossed all the “t’s” it was three and a half hours later! My first thought was that was a lot of bureaucratic red tape! And my second thought was how glad I am that it’s a lot easier to get into heaven than opening a business bank account!
Then I remembered the penitent thief on the cross next to Jesus. Don’t misunderstand. It is not easy or simple to gain eternal life. It is difficult and costly. But Jesus has already done all that needs to be done and paid all that needs to be paid on our behalf. He has opened an account in our name that is brim-full and overflowing with grace. Further it never needs to be replenished. We can draw from it anytime and as much as we need or want! That’s what the Apostle Paul meant when he said he had discovered the “unsearchable riches in Christ.” No wonder John Bunyan called it “Amazing Grace.” It truly is! My challenge to you today is to believe and practice the life of divine royalty, for so you are when you receive His gift of eternal life. If you have not trusted yourself to Him you can right now. There is no need to wait a moment. His promise to you is the same as that thief… TODAY you will be with Me in Paradise! No red tape in that promise!
I am sure that as you read the title for today’s issue of Morning Devotional you may have been tempted to think that I was about to step over into politics. As much as I might like to do that from time to time, this is not one of them. So, let me start at the beginning so you will have a little context. I am writing this issue on Friday for tonight’s mailing and it has been quite an eventful day. It started with another round of working with my computer to free up some memory. I am not a tech person and that is always a challenge, however I may have put a band aid on it and it seems to be working better. Then my schedule started to compress a bit. I had a pretty long list of details to take care of for the day. Some were benign and others essential to the future of Grace Restoration Ministries.
One of those essentials was to get a bank account established in GRM’s name so that I can begin to receive money from various sources to support the ministry. How hard could that be? Well, as it turns out it was an all afternoon affair as I went from office to office in two cities to get the necessary documentation and licenses I needed to make a deposit! It seems that I needed a license from both the city and county in which I live to declare the “business” in operation. And, I needed the appropriate federal designations and ID numbers to prove that we are duly registered with the state of Tennessee and the IRS. I did think several times that perhaps George Orwell’s 1984 was unfolding before my eyes! I did it done, but it cut into my schedule significantly. By the time I dotted all the “i’s” and crossed all the “t’s” it was three and a half hours later! My first thought was that was a lot of bureaucratic red tape! And my second thought was how glad I am that it’s a lot easier to get into heaven than opening a business bank account!
Then I remembered the penitent thief on the cross next to Jesus. Don’t misunderstand. It is not easy or simple to gain eternal life. It is difficult and costly. But Jesus has already done all that needs to be done and paid all that needs to be paid on our behalf. He has opened an account in our name that is brim-full and overflowing with grace. Further it never needs to be replenished. We can draw from it anytime and as much as we need or want! That’s what the Apostle Paul meant when he said he had discovered the “unsearchable riches in Christ.” No wonder John Bunyan called it “Amazing Grace.” It truly is! My challenge to you today is to believe and practice the life of divine royalty, for so you are when you receive His gift of eternal life. If you have not trusted yourself to Him you can right now. There is no need to wait a moment. His promise to you is the same as that thief… TODAY you will be with Me in Paradise! No red tape in that promise!
Monday, June 7, 2010
"The Thirsty Deer" (Part 1)
As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. (Psalm 42:1-2 NIV).
Mary and I have been moving the past few days. What I thought would be a relatively easy task has turned into quite a project! We are still not finished completely as of this writing! An interesting thing happened while we were moving that sparked a line of thought for this series The Thirsty Deer. Kyle and Brandy, as well as Faith and Logan were present to help us move. They were indispensable. However, the kernel of the devotional thought came to me when Logan saw me taking my guns out of the cabinet and safe to move them to the new address. He knew they were real guns, but wanting to help, he asked, “Grandpa, can I help you carry the guns?” I answered him that I’d better do it myself. Even though I had checked to make sure they were unloaded, I felt it was safer for me to carry them down the stairs and into the truck. I didn’t want him to feel left out though, so I asked him to carry some of my other hunting gear.
On the way down the stairs he began a rapid fire series of questions about the rifles and what they were used for. When I told him that I used some of them to deer hunt, he became very interested in that. He asked when he could go deer hunting. I told him that was up to his mom and dad. He ran inside to ask immediately! Kyle said he might be able to shoot a gun when he was twelve. Then Logan came back to me and recited his plan to go deer hunting on November 28, 2015. That’s the day after he will be twelve! He allowed a day to travel back to Texas after his birthday, since he thought that would be the best place to hunt deer!
There are many places in Texas where the deer population is very dense. I’ve hunted many of them. Some of the roads that took me to those places were some of the most beautiful countryside I have ever seen. These roads could also be some of the most dangerous to travel at night. There are so many deer along the side of the road that you must exercise extreme caution. Sometimes they will dart in front of you without any notice at all. I’ve often wondered why they were in such a hurry to cross the road. Maybe they were being chased by some unseen threat. Maybe they were just thirsty!
I wonder if that is the background the Psalmist uses meant in today’s reading. Had he witnessed deer in such a frenzy to find water? Had he seen the anticipation of a deer who was heading to quench its thirst? I’m not sure exactly what correlation the Psalmist was making to deer in their search for streams of water, but I’m fairly certain he was saying that He had a deep thirst for God. Whatever the reason the deer was in such a hurry, I know it must have been critical in its mind. At that moment nothing mattered like getting to the water. What matters most in your life? What do you need most? Run to the God who cares for you more than you can imagine. Develop a passion for Him so great that you will be like the deer who panted for water. Let your soul thirst for God!
Mary and I have been moving the past few days. What I thought would be a relatively easy task has turned into quite a project! We are still not finished completely as of this writing! An interesting thing happened while we were moving that sparked a line of thought for this series The Thirsty Deer. Kyle and Brandy, as well as Faith and Logan were present to help us move. They were indispensable. However, the kernel of the devotional thought came to me when Logan saw me taking my guns out of the cabinet and safe to move them to the new address. He knew they were real guns, but wanting to help, he asked, “Grandpa, can I help you carry the guns?” I answered him that I’d better do it myself. Even though I had checked to make sure they were unloaded, I felt it was safer for me to carry them down the stairs and into the truck. I didn’t want him to feel left out though, so I asked him to carry some of my other hunting gear.
On the way down the stairs he began a rapid fire series of questions about the rifles and what they were used for. When I told him that I used some of them to deer hunt, he became very interested in that. He asked when he could go deer hunting. I told him that was up to his mom and dad. He ran inside to ask immediately! Kyle said he might be able to shoot a gun when he was twelve. Then Logan came back to me and recited his plan to go deer hunting on November 28, 2015. That’s the day after he will be twelve! He allowed a day to travel back to Texas after his birthday, since he thought that would be the best place to hunt deer!
There are many places in Texas where the deer population is very dense. I’ve hunted many of them. Some of the roads that took me to those places were some of the most beautiful countryside I have ever seen. These roads could also be some of the most dangerous to travel at night. There are so many deer along the side of the road that you must exercise extreme caution. Sometimes they will dart in front of you without any notice at all. I’ve often wondered why they were in such a hurry to cross the road. Maybe they were being chased by some unseen threat. Maybe they were just thirsty!
I wonder if that is the background the Psalmist uses meant in today’s reading. Had he witnessed deer in such a frenzy to find water? Had he seen the anticipation of a deer who was heading to quench its thirst? I’m not sure exactly what correlation the Psalmist was making to deer in their search for streams of water, but I’m fairly certain he was saying that He had a deep thirst for God. Whatever the reason the deer was in such a hurry, I know it must have been critical in its mind. At that moment nothing mattered like getting to the water. What matters most in your life? What do you need most? Run to the God who cares for you more than you can imagine. Develop a passion for Him so great that you will be like the deer who panted for water. Let your soul thirst for God!
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