Category: Meditations

Realizing how to put God’s Word into action.

Get Rid of Those Chains!

Please see the poem “Unshackled Wings” which goes with this meditation.

Have you ever been in such a prison? Maybe you say, “of course not; I’ve never committed a crime that would put me in jail.” No, I never wound up in jail either, but in a prison nevertheless. For a very long time I didn’t recognize it because it had become such a part of me – insecurity, inferiority, trying to do things to prove my worth. Yes, I was a Christian and a “good girl” from my early childhood. But somehow over time, people said things that while wrong, I believed, and when I reached adulthood, I wasn’t very sure of myself.

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Happy Valentine’s Day

I hope each of you has a wonderful Valentine’s Day filled with love from family and friends. I especially pray that you will realize, as far as humans are capable, the love of God. A love so very rich and strong that He sent His only very beloved Son, who was with Him from before there was time, to earth to live a perfect life so He could become the perfect Sacrifice for your rebellion and mine against God. Then Jesus took all that horrible amount of sin upon Himself on the cross and died to pay the price to redeem you and me from hell, so that we might live eternally with Him and God the Father in heaven. Not only for our eventual life in heaven did He die and rise again, though, but also for the rest of our lives on earth.

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Today Is Special: I GET to Go to Church!

I woke up and thanked God that today was Sunday and I had the privilege of going to church to worship Him. Yes, it is a privilege when we live in a country where we can freely attend the church of our choice and worship how we please, but this isn’t an essay about freedom in our country. It’s about freedom in our spirit, where we allow the Holy Spirit to lead us and give us that joy of worshipping our Lord.

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Making Something out of Nothing

Sound impossible? It is for us but not for God because Luke 1:37 tells us, “Nothing is impossible with God.” The context is important: An angel has just announced to Mary, a virgin, that she will have a son; furthermore, her older relative Elizabeth, who was considered barren, is in her sixth month of pregnancy. Then the angel pronounces Nothing is impossible with God.

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Meditations

Since the 1970’s I’ve been writing Christian poems and meditations and currently email them about weekly to almost 200 people. That’s partly why I decided to write a blog, so others can see them who don’t have my email address. I also usually post them on my Facebook page. I can’t explain how rewarding it is when someone writes me that what God has led me to write was exactly what they needed for the day they saw it. One person was even a few days late checking her email, but the message was there the very day she needed it. What a mighty God we have who knows our needs so specifically and meets them over the internet!

In this section you will find devotionals about many topics, as the Holy Spirit gives me ideas from the Bible but also from nature and different life experiences, some of which are very unexpected. My husband and I drove to the Texas City Dike and God used a tug boat and an oil tanker as inspiration. Who would think God would provide an essay on prayer by letting a dirt dauber come through a crack in our screen into our dinette?

Many meditations are simply in the miscellaneous category, but others fall cover different holidays. Letters to the seven churches in Revelation form another category and a set still to be added discuss all the different phrases in Psalm 23.

I pray you will scroll through the different series and find the ones that most encourage you.

It Is Never Too Late

“It is never too late to be what you might have been.”

I saw this quote by George Eliot and pondered it awhile. Yes, we can’t turn the clock back, but we can start where we are today and make improvements. “If I only knew 20 years ago what I know now, what a difference it would have made.” We can probably all say that but life doesn’t work that way, does it? However, what good does it do us to live with regrets? That doesn’t gain any ground and only makes us depressed or doubting ourselves for the future.

Definitely, a better way exists through our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, we can’t change mistakes we made in the past, but we can do things to try to right them, if possible. If not, we simply have to go on from there and learn not to make the same mistake again. How do we start?

2 Corinthians 5:17: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

Ephesians 4:22-24: You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Colossians 3:9-10: Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

Hebrews 10:19-22: Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.

1 Peter 1:3-5: Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade — kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

Today we can resolve to celebrate the new birth that we received when we accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and to do our best to follow God’s way for us to live. We can change our frown for a smile and be pleasant to those who are not. That doesn’t hurt us and we will feel better for it; so will everyone around us. Grumpy people are contagious, but so are happy people. Which would you rather be around? Which would you rather be? Because of the new birth we have, we do have a choice. Our sins are taken from us, God is our Father, Jesus is our Lord and the Holy Spirit lives in us to guide us. Rejoice! Put the past behind and let this day be the beginning of the rest of your life and let it shine for our Lord.

 

 

Part 5: Thyatira

Revelation 2:18-29: “To the angel of the church in Thyatira write: These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. 19 I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first. 

20 Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. 21 I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. 22 So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. 23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds. 24 Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets, I will not impose any other burden on you: 25 Only hold on to what you have until I come.

26 To him who overcomes and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations — 27 ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter; he will dash them to pieces like pottery’ — just as I have received authority from my Father. 28 I will also give him the morning star. 29 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Continue reading →

Part 3: Letter to Smyrna

 Revelation 2:8-11 “To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. 9 I know your afflictions and your poverty — yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. 11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death. Continue reading →

Part 2: Letter to the Church at Ephesus

Revelation 2:1-7: To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: 2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. 4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. 5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. 6 But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. Continue reading →

Letters to the Seven Churches of Revelation: Part 1

Part 1: Background

 The letters to the churches of Revelation 2 and 3 have much to teach us almost 2000 years later because what Christ said to them, He might also say to us. Therefore, we need to study them carefully to see how they speak to our churches and us individually. I know these letters enrich me each time I study them. Some years ago I had a similar series, but these are totally new. Let me also state that when God gives me idea of what to write, that I’m not saying, “I’ve got it made and this is what you need to do.” No, usually I have to apply the same message to my own life before I can pass it on to you. First, we look at a little background: Continue reading →

Tug Boats and Oil Tankers

Tug Boats and Oil Tankers

My husband and I drove to the end of the Texas City dike Saturday, hoping to see some dolphins jumping and pelicans diving for fish. We saw neither, but what we did see greatly impressed me. For perhaps 30 minutes we watched a very large tug boat pushing an unusually long barge. I guessed the tug was either ocean-going or had made the trip down the inter-coastal waterway, probably going most of the way from Florida to south Texas along that route. Since we often go to the dike and also frequently go to Galveston and sometimes ride the ferry that goes four miles across to Bolivar Peninsular, I’m used to seeing tugs pushing barges, but I’ve never seen one so large or a group of barges so long.

The second sight that intrigued me was an oil tanker, most likely going to the Houston ship channel. From our vantage point at the end of the dike, you could see the channels going both ways. Because of its high waterline, we knew the tanker was empty, so it was almost certainly going to be filled. Tankers are not unusual sights in this area either, but what caught my attention was how fast it was going compared to the tug – like seeing a car going 70 mph versus one going 30. While the tug was still making its slow way towards Galveston even when we left, the tanker came into view some time after we arrived and had made the bend quickly where we could no long see it from our parking place.

I thought of how God sometimes uses people. Some spend their whole lives serving Him and have great ministries, but they keep plodding away at them, taking years to build whatever it is God has for them to do. Other people come to have a relationship with Father God through our Lord Jesus Christ and seem very quickly to become known in a ministry that is equally important. Think of Billy Graham and Chuck Colson. Both are great servants of God, doing important work, but Dr. Graham spent his whole life serving the Lord, whereas Mr. Colson was converted when imprisoned near middle-age. That’s the way I thought of the huge tug and the tanker.

Leaving the end of the five-mile long dike and heading back towards Texas City and then home, we saw a much smaller tug pushing perhaps 5 barges. This tug was smaller than usual, so I figured it must not get out into the main part of Galveston Bay where waters can become quite rough. Probably it simply went from Texas City to Galveston, doing its job in the calmer waters. This tug was maybe a fourth or a fifth the size of the huge one. However, it was doing its job just as well; also, that job was just as important as the part the larger tug and the tanker played. Each was designed for their specific purpose.

So it is with God’s children. When we yield ourselves to Him, He sets us in the place He has already designed us to fill. I’m much more like the small tug than either of the others, but I can be happy because I’m doing what God has called me to do. The same can be true for each one of you. If we are fulfilling our God-given purpose, then it really doesn’t matter what size tug we are or even if we’re a tanker. Let’s just check to be sure each one of us is doing what our loving Father created us to do.

For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Ephesians 2:10)

 

The Story of Christmas

The Bible’s story of Christmas is the third to the most powerful ever told. The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the next most powerful, in my opinion. But the reason all this happened is the most powerful, the most wonderful, and the most unimaginable story possible! What a tremendous amount of LOVE Father God had for you and for me! We had no idea of such a God or that we might even need Him. We were much more interested in going our own way.

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A Child of Lord God Almighty!

How often do you stop and think of what it means to be a child of the Lord God Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, Creator of all that is? I know I don’t consider that often enough. Enough to make me totally humble. Enough to fill my heart with the greatest joy anyone could ever have, to raise my feet almost off the ground.

Think with me for a few moments just a bit of what this means to each of us. First of all, we can’t begin to imagine how much greater God is than we are. We all have an idea of that and know He is more than we can even consider with our small minds. But how often do we mentally bow down before Him like faithful servants, wanting only to do His desire? How much do consider just what God’s will is as we busily move through our days? Don’t we usually take them as they come and make our plans to do what we think best? How often during the course of the day do we stop and simply say “Thank you” for the tremendous blessing of being His child?

Do we consider how far removed from God we are in wisdom, knowledge, justice and especially holiness? Imagine a Father who knows the tiniest detail about you – your thoughts, feelings, strengths, weaknesses, and even how many hairs are on your head. And He knows that about every person living on earth, or who ever has lived or will ever live. That is some awesome God! Not only is He marvelously aware of us, our Father loves us more than any person can love another. Father loves in spite of all our faults, our disobedience and rebellion. Yes, He loves but unless Jesus’ blood covers us, we have no right to call Him Father or to expect to live eternally with Him.

On the other hand, look at what all we inherit when Jesus is our Savior: Yes, we live eternally with God in heaven, but even on earth we gain so much. I’m using two versions of a great Scripture that describes just what happens when we become a child of Almighty God. As you read either version, look for the many ways we are blessed that are listed in these verses. We know also that we have tremendous resources and riches that are not mentioned, like prayer to name just one.

Ephesians 1:2-19 NIV     Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will — to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ .

Ephesians 1:2-9 The Message       I greet you with the grace and peace poured into our lives by God our Father and our Master, Jesus Christ. How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He’s the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in him. Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son. Because of the sacrifice of the Messiah, his blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, we’re a free people — free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds. And not just barely free, either. Abundantly free! He thought of everything, provided for everything we could possibly need, letting us in on the plans he took such delight in making. He set it all out before us in Christ. (THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language © 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)

Can you really read either version of that wonderful set of verses without feeling like clapping and shouting hallelujah? Maybe you decide to jump up and down instead, or to fall on your face in reverence and worship before this mighty God and Father. Yes, God exalts us by calling us His children, and we in turn are more humble than ever as we praise Him and dedicate our lives to this amazing One, who is willing to allow us to call Him Father, and He calls each of us His beloved child.

Rejoice in being a child of the Lord God Almighty!

Help for the Hectic Christmas Season

Christmas, being rushed, tired out and more money than month seem to go together for many of us, and we definitely don’t want it that way. Our minds picture time and money for everything we want and need to do during this period. However, we often simply face the fact that it is and hope for more rest and calm in January. Do you think that could be changed? At least, to some extent? Would you like for it to be? Continue reading →

Lingering on Giving Thanks

Even though we are barely in December, let’s linger a little longer at the end of November and consider thanksgiving again – the word not the holiday. Certainly, Christmas brings great reasons to be thankful. First because Jesus was born as a baby so He could grow up to be the perfect human and then pay the price of our sin by His death on the cross. Other than Easter, that’s the greatest reason any month has for being grateful. Continue reading →

Be A Barnabas

When was the last time someone surprised you with a word of encouragement or praise for a job well done? Perhaps a friend wrote a note simply telling you they appreciate you. Whatever happened, it brought a smile to your face and made you feel just a bit better, didn’t it? We all appreciate such thoughtfulness and it inspires us to do even better in our work or family.

Let’s take the opportunity to encourage others as much as we can. A good example was Barnabas, an encourager par excellence. We all remember how he traveled with Paul on the first missionary journey, but even before that he was well-known to fellow Christians. Many people had heard the Gospel in Antioch and believed in Jesus as their Savior, as it was preached by those who had fled the persecution in Jerusalem. Acts 11:22-24 tells us News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

Later, Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch (Acts 11:25-26). Saul’s name had not yet been changed to Paul, the Greek form of the word.

Wouldn’t you like to be more like Barnabas? I certainly would! One of the spiritual gifts is encouragement, and Barnabas had it. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. . . if it is encouraging, let him encourage (Romans 12:6a, 8c). Perhaps we’d think, ‘Well, that’s not my spiritual gift, so I don’t need to encourage others.’ Nothing could be further from the truth. Everyone needs reassurance from time to time, and we may just be the person who can see that need and minister at a particular time.

God can use anyone in any way He likes, so our biggest job is to simply be available for the way He wants us to serve daily. I’ve heard people preaching the salvation message when they were simply talking in a small group of people; that did not mean God called them to be a pastor. He was only using an available person to speak to one who needed to hear. In the same way, God can use you and me to give a cheerful word to someone who may need it at that very minute. So, let’s start a new habit simply by being alert to the feelings of those around us wherever we are. See how God would use you in someone else’s life to bring a good word for the day to them!

 

Why Can’t I Be Happy with the Way God Made Me?

Ever have computer problems? Anyone thinking knows that machines are not made in God’s image, so it’s no wonder they sometimes fail to act as they are supposed to. However, since people are made by God in His image, then we need to act the way Jesus behaved while on earth. Therefore, how do we need to change our behavior so that when others see us, they see more of Jesus than they do a worldly person? We need to continually strive to become more Christ-like in our thoughts and actions so that we are a witness of Him to others. That is one side of the story. The other side of the story is that God loves us, warts and all; He accepts us even when we are unloving and unacceptable to others. That’s simply the way God’s kind of love is; it’s called agape love. That’s what we want to concentrate on today.

Romans 5:8 says: But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. When we were at our very worst, God allowed His own Son to suffer the worst death imaginable so that we could become a child of God! That, my friend, is true love. When we can really get that fact into our hearts and spirits, not just our minds, it goes a long way towards releasing us from that superficial concentration on our physical appearance or inabilities and helps us become more accepting of ourselves. We see the attitudes we have that need to change, but we work on those and don’t beat ourselves up because of them. We gain a positive image of ourselves because we ARE made in the image of God. We also realize that the Holy Spirit lives in us and is working to give us the desire to change wrong thoughts and actions. It’s not all up to us; it’s simply following His guidance, which makes change much easier.

Let’s also get this thought deep within ourselves: Christ in you, the hope of glory, taken from Colossians 1:27. To them [the saints/believers in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord] God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. If Christ, though the Holy Spirit, lives within me, then consider seriously what I have to look forward to in heaven. And that applies equally to you also! And not only there but here on earth besides. Christ, through His Spirit, lives within us! What a tremendous idea, if we can only grasp it. That means that when we see a fellow Christ-follower, we don’t look at them so much on the outside, but we see what our Lord wants to make of them, just like we hope others look at us, seeing what He wants to make of us.

We see then that living the Christian life is balancing between us doing those things we need to do and relying on the Holy Spirit living within us to do what He needs to do. We come to a resting place where we can stop continually trying so hard to be perfect and relax in our Father’s hands, knowing that He will perfect what needs to be done within us. Philippians 1:6 tells us He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. This means that when we believed in Jesus Christ as our Savior, God loved us enough not only to save us but also to work in us until we’re more like the image of our Lord, and He will keep on doing that until we are in heaven with our Father.

When we realize that, we can do that balancing act of doing those things we need to do and relying on the Holy Spirit to do within what we cannot do. Therefore, our spirits have peace because Hebrews 4:9-11 states: There remains, then, a Sabbath — rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their [the Jews in the wilderness] example of disobedience. There is an eternal rest waiting for us in heaven, but we also rest here on earth in allowing God to make us into the people He has called us to be. We’re no longer fighting a hard battle we’ll never win against a bad temper or inferiority or whatever other problems we face. We have confidence that our lives belong to a loving God who has a much better future for us than we can ever imagine. Now let’s rest in His goodness.

Bridge-Builders

A very sick little boy was stacking lots of Legos on top of each other, making several columns with them, when his dad asked, “What are you building with all the columns?”

The boy replied, “Oh, those aren’t just columns, Dad, they will be a very long bridge when I’m finished. You see, I’ve still got to put the connecting pieces on. My bridge will take people to a new land where they’ve never gone, a land full of everything good, and nothing bad ever happens there. No sickness and pain can cross that bridge because a huge army surrounds the bridge: that land is ruled over by an excellent and wise king who wants everyone to be happy and healthy. There are lots of things I can’t do, but I can build the best bridge ever.”

This story makes me think of you and me because Christians are also called to be bridge-builders. Perhaps we never think of ourselves that way, but we all know that Jesus tells us to be witnesses of Him. Matthew 28:18-20, known as the Great Commission, is probably the most well-known of these commands. In Mark 9:15 we read Jesus’ words, He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Another well-known Scripture is Acts 1:8: just before Jesus ascended to heaven He told the disciples, You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

Now Jesus is the highway between sinful mankind and our totally righteous and holy God. We have no way to get to God the Father without Jesus. John 14:6 tells us, Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. So we see that the only highway that takes us to God is Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection. But you and I must build a bridge to those who do not know Him, so they can get to that wonderful highway of life, Jesus Christ the Savior.

If we are to be at all obedient to our Lord, we know we must tell others about their sin and God’s righteousness, but how do we explain this without turning them off? We can’t say, “You are a sinner and damned to hell,” even though they are. We need a way to explain to them why they are sinners and how to fix that awful condition. I’ve witnessed a stranger we’ll call Bill going into a home and opening his Bible to tell the truth of the Roman road to the homeowner, we’ll call Joe. Bill assumed Joe was an unbeliever because he didn’t attend the Bill’s church. In less than 10 minutes, poor Joe was so offended and disgusted with Bill, he said he was busy and showed Bill to the door. Obviously, Bill’s well-intended visit did no good.

That brings us to the point that first of all we must pray for those we think are unbelievers and then let the Lord show us how to build that bridge between them and our Savior. Often that starts with friendship so they can tell our lives are somehow different and gain interest in what – really Who – makes that difference. Our own testimony of how God has changed our lives and how we relate with a loving Father may be the very topic someone needs to hear so we can build that bridge. So the question is, what will we do? Will we build bridges so others can know the love and peace of the Father? If we don’t already, let’s start asking God to lead us to those who do not know Him as we go through our daily lives. When He leads us to someone, the Holy Spirit will show us how to build the bridge to Jesus.