Finishing Well

     Lots of hate of late. Killings of Christians, bombings in Israel. The sermon on Sunday was about loving our enemies. Is that even possible??  Jesus says it in Matthew 5: "Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you."          As sobering as that commandment is, it is His Truth, same as for today, as yesterday, and the future. Is that why we sit silently? Is the Truth too hard for us to carry out?  Is it possible at all to fathom that Sovereign God sees and knows?      How long do we cry in anguish?  What must we do to put this passage in practice? Can we trust that it will all be for His glory? Trust is a key word. Psalm 70: 14 says "You are the God who does wonders; You have declared Your strength among the peoples."      So, we pray. We plead with this God of wonders......bring peace we cry.......ta...

     The drought is severe. The corn has dried up. The cucumbers are parched. Peas and limas barely hanging on. Tomatoes may be ok for a while longer, but there could be a revival if we get a good rain.      Maybe there's a spiritual drought in your life -  certainly in our country. Dryness. Deadness. Amos 8:11 "Behold, the days are coming," says The Lord God, "that I will send a famine on the land; not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of The Lord."      Revival can be easy for the crops - a good soaking rain or two. For us, it can be just as easy. Fall on our faces. Repent. Listen as God whispers sins we haven't even noticed. Repent for our Nation while we are on the floor. Cry out for mercy. Seek Him while He can be found!      Sometimes our drought is noticed by others before we are aware of it. People may come to us and ask if anything is wrong. Pay attention to the signs: goin...

     In searching for the elusive cucumbers and zucchini, I have discovered that they plot to hide until they are gigantic. So is sin, starts out small, lurks and entices, anticipates our scrutiny and then BAM, too late. Too big. But for God, we can be overtaken and ruined. Thankful that He is a forgiving Savior.  No sin too big! Cucumbers can be!      Seems all the good stuff is near the bottom, and we have to get down to that level to see the fruits. I open the Bible and sometimes get distracted by the simple reading and not getting anything out of that read and have to stop and bend down to the context or stop and observe more closely.      Then there're bees, busy little critters - all those flowers to visit. Busy stuff is a trip up for many of us. Have to be careful to not get tangled up in the vines while diligently seeking. Keep focus!      Oh I forgot the bunnies and squirrels! They are near. They aren't too ...

     Many people don't want to believe in God, or if they do, they don't fully believe in the Bible. There are so many excuses given to not believe. But what if you're wrong?        What if heaven and hell are real places, for eternity? That's a very long time to be wrong. Hell is real and it's not including an eternal party.        I choose to believe. I have hope that my eternity is with God in heaven. His Word gives me assurance of that.      I choose to believe that God is good, even when this life is not. I believe that God loves me and that He loves you too.      I believe God doesn't make mistakes. (Isaiah 46:10) and that everything that comes into my life has been filtered through His fingers of love.      I know that His grace is sufficient for my struggles  (2 Corinthians 12:9)   I trust that He forgives every sin I confess. Suffering will not last forever, u...

     There's been a quote going around that says don't judge me because my sin is different from yours, and believe me I don't judge, because I certainly do sin. And there is a Holy, Righteous God who does the judging.      The thing is, when I sin, I realize that it offends that Holy God, and because I want to please Him, I desire to repent and not commit that sin anymore. That woman in the Bible, when caught in the act of adultery and was brought before Jesus -  was not condemned before Him but admonished to go and sin no more. I want to believe that she did exactly that.      Sin is indeed judged. Sin indeed has consequences. But God has given us the free will to come to Him and say we are sorry and also the power to not continue sinning.  And when we do that, He forgives. Forgives freely and remembers the sin no more.      But today we don't want to call our behavior sin. Trust me, God still does. He declares s...

     You remember when it happened? Santa wasn't real! The Easter Bunny. I remember the day I saw something my young eyes shouldn't have seen, and shame flooded my soul and I wished I could've "un-seen" it. I remember wondering about everything and everybody after that. Are they nice people or not? Do I trust them or not?      I see pictures of little girls on Facebook and other places that sadden me. They are posed provocatively and dressed like teenagers. Of course little girls all want to look like teens and go to great lengths to try to pull off the fashions they see. But you see, we are shattering their innocence before time. They see too much, know too much, do too much and by the time they actually are teens and young adults they have already been bored by it all. Growing up has already occurred, there's nothing left. So, then, they must experiment in even more destructive behaviors and do things they will regret.      I wish we coul...

     Today people went to the altar during a song, a rather uncommon thing. One of them was a Pastor, and the sight of it made me weep. I don't know why those folks were there except that Holy Spirit God met them and placed them there. I don't know why it made me weep except that Holy Spirit God melted my heart.      There's an old song, The Altar, that says "that's what this altar is for, you don't have to carry those burdens anymore." I don't know why more of us aren't moved to go to that place of unburdening - that place of deliverance - that place of seeking peace - that place of surrender.      We're told to not stifle the Holy Spirit. How many times do we do that when we harden our hearts or see no need for that place?      Move among us please God - set us ablaze with wonder, Your wonder and majesty that still stirs and changes things. Praise and thanks to the God who knows and cares and gives us the power to go, t...