Monthly Archives: December 2014

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December 13, 2014

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Holidays & Holy Days, Joy, Love & Works, Today: Make it Count, Worry

JOY TO YOU

IMG_0762AwebTo you who belong to God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: May blessing and peace of heart be your rich gifts from God our Father and from Jesus Christ our Lord. [1 Thessalonians 1:1 (TLB)]

Now that the Christmas season is in full swing, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed instead of over-joyed. Priorities get out of whack, deadlines loom, and both finances and relationships are strained. There never seems to be enough time or money for what we want to do. Gifts have to be purchased, packages mailed, cookies baked, cards sent, letters written, stockings hung, trees trimmed, homes cleaned, reservations made, and parties attended. The purpose of Christmas is not about our ability to channel Martha Stewart, the beauty of our decorations, the length of our Christmas card list, or how much money we managed to save on Black Friday. Christmas has nothing to do with the number of gifts we’ve purchased and wrapped; it’s about the gift of God’s amazing grace that was once wrapped in swaddling clothes in Bethlehem. It has nothing to do with the number of lights festooning our yards and houses; Christmas is about the gift of God’s son: the everlasting light that came into the world!

Joy is the true gift of Christmas, not the expensive gifts that call for time and money. We can communicate this joy simply: with a smile, a kind gesture, a little help, forgiveness. And the joy we give will certainly come back to us. … Let us pray that this presence of the liberating joy of God shines forth in our lives. [Pope Benedict XVI]

Later, in one of his talks, Jesus said to the people, “I am the Light of the world. So if you follow me, you won’t be stumbling through the darkness, for living light will flood your path.” [John 8:12 (TLB)]

 

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December 11, 2014

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Challenges & Difficulty, Faith & Hope, God's Promises, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets, Trusting God

THE BROKENHEARTED

Call to me, and I will answer you. I will tell you great and mysterious things that you do not know. …  I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope. [Jeremiah 33:3,29:11 (GW)]

Be strong, all who wait with hope for the Lord, and let your heart be courageous. Psalm 21:24 (GW)

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Suicide has been on my mind lately: not my suicide, but that of others. After a life-long battle with mental illness, the son of a well-known pastor and author, shot himself. A young mother, terminally ill from brain cancer, publicly chose to determine the day and way of her death. A famed comedian, suffering from dementia and depression, hung himself. While in a dumpster, a young football player, suffering from disorientation and mood swings, ended his life with a gun. I cannot judge their actions; I can only pray for their survivors.

Last week, a young man from our church also took his life. Like many of us, he’d made some poor choices. He’d messed up and hurt the people he loved. Perhaps he was sick at heart and burdened with guilt, regret or embarrassment; perhaps he could face neither his past nor his future. I don’t know and I cannot judge his actions. I can, however, pray for his survivors.

The one thing all these people had in common was loss of hope. Pain, mental illness, disease, brain lesions, depression, dementia, guilt, regret and more had blinded them to hope. Christian hope is the knowledge that no matter what the circumstances, we’re being changed for the better. To do that, however, we must trust in God and his promises. Unfortunately, sometimes circumstances keep people from seeing God’s light in the darkness of their souls, believing God’s plan in the terribleness of their circumstances, accepting God’s love and forgiveness in repugnance at their own behavior, or thanking God for all things.

Sadly, these deaths were not isolated occurrences. Globally, every three seconds someone attempts to take his or her life and every suicide leaves behind six to eight survivors. The loss of a loved one to suicide is devastating; I wish could take away the survivors’ pain, but I can’t. As Christians, however, what we can do is offer hope: prayers, love, comfort and the support of our community.

What gives me the most hope every day is God’s grace; knowing that his grace is going to give me the strength for whatever I face, knowing that nothing is a surprise to God. [Rick Warren]

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. [Psalm 34:18 (NLT)]

May God, the source of hope, fill you with joy and peace through your faith in him. Then you will overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. [Romans 15:13 (GW)]

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December 10, 2014

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Family, Friends & Fellowship, Holidays & Holy Days, Sharing Our Faith, Thanks & Praise

BRAGGING RIGHTS

And so they do what they should not do. …They are rude, proud, and brag about themselves. [Romans 1:28b,30b (ERV)]

“Whoever boasts should boast only about the Lord.” What people say about themselves means nothing. What counts is whether the Lord says they have done well. [2 Corinthians 10:17-18 (ERV)]

It’s that time of year again: Christmas card and letter season! Years ago, two Chicago radio personalities had great fun during their “Merry Medical Christmas” specials reading medical tidbits from holiday letters. You know the ones I’m talking about: the letters that tell in great and gruesome detail about passing kidney stones, colonoscopies, allergic reactions to shellfish, and getting Montezuma’s revenge while on holiday. They use words like “pus,” “seepage,” “mucous” and “festering:” words that definitely do not evoke the spirit of Christmas! Reading these missives gives the impression that enduring medical maladies gives one bragging rights!

Fortunately, most people skip the health details in their Christmas letters; unfortunately, many do use their holiday letters to brag about everything else in their lives. They begin with their exceptionally attractive and brilliant children and continue with their even more extraordinarily beautiful and gifted grandchildren. What follows next is a list of their fabulous trips to exotic destinations, their outstanding strategies and many stellar accomplishments at work and in the community, their latest expensive purchases, their magnificent homes and furnishings, and even the number of Christmas ornaments and holiday lights on their tree. Granted, Christmas letters are a great way to share our lives with friends far and near, but many of these letters are nothing more than self-aggrandizement. The Bible is pretty clear about boastfulness: bragging about ourselves isn’t countenanced! Bragging about God, however, is! God is always pleased when we tell others about the glorious things He’s done in our lives.

Will you be sending a Christmas letter this year? After writing this devotion, I must admit that I had to rewrite mine. Has God done anything good for you lately? Do you have any of God’s Good News to share?

I will praise the Lord at all times. I will never stop singing his praises. Humble people, listen and be happy, while I brag about the Lord. Praise the Lord with me. Let us honor his name. [Psalm 34:1-3 (ERV)]

“But if someone wants to brag, then let them brag about this: Let them brag that they learned to know me. Let them brag that they understand that I am the Lord, that I am kind and fair, and that I do good things on earth. I love this kind of bragging.” This message is from the Lord. [Jeremiah 9:24 (ERV)]

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December 9, 2014

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Holidays & Holy Days, Love & Works, Money & Wealth

“WHAT SHOULD WE DO?” – Stroller Sunday

The crowds asked, “What should we do?” John replied, “If you have two shirts, give one to the poor. If you have food, share it with those who are hungry.” [Luke 3:10-12 (NLT)]DSC02134aWEB

There are two towns in our county that, while separated by only a few miles, are worlds apart. In one, a diner may pay as much as $17 for a simple tomato salad; in the other, the person who picked those tomatoes may well go to bed hungry. In one town, two homes recently sold for over $40 million each, another home is on the market at $80 million and a 1-acre lot is listed at $25 million. Nearly half the population in the other community lives below the poverty level; home values there are less than half the state’s average. One city boasts Maserati and Rolls Royce car dealerships, Porsches are frequently seen at McDonald’s drive-through windows, and private jets fly in and out of the local airport every weekend. People in the other community, however, rarely own even a “beater” car; most have no easy DSC03399WEBmeans of transportation. In one municipality, it’s common to see pampered pooches riding in designer strollers. In the other, where most families have to walk or use buses to go anywhere, even a used baby stroller is a precious commodity. Their serious need for baby strollers was brought to the attention of our pastor and he has designated December 14 as “Stroller Sunday.” Our goal is to gather 100 strollers for the people of that community. I’m confident that there will be a stage lined with baby strollers the 14th.

We don’t have to do anything as dramatic as gathering 100 strollers, however, to make a difference in someone’s life. As we rush through the malls this holiday season, buying what we consider “necessities” but for many others would be luxury items, why not stop by one of the many giving trees and pick a name or two of someone for whom to purchase gifts? The Wise Men brought gifts to the baby Jesus, let’s think about bringing some gifts to those less fortunate. Let Christmas truly be a time of giving, not getting; may it be a time of bringing comfort and joy to others with acts of kindness and generosity.

Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most. [Ruth Carter Stapleton]

Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to poverty will be cursed. [Proverbs 28:27 (NLT)]

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December 8, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, God's Grace & Love, Love & Works, Money & Wealth

NOTHING BUT THE BEST

Honor the Lord by making him an offering from the best of all that your land produces. [Proverbs 3:9 (GNT)]

Our guest room is a jumble of wrapping paper, ribbon, tape, tissue and gifts waiting to be wrapped. Whenever another package is delivered by UPS or Fed Ex, I eagerly open it, examine the contents and then start wrapping. I looked forward to the arrival of some projects I’d made on my favorite photo web site but, when I opened their bright orange package, I was disappointed to find two small manufacturing flaws in one of the items. I wouldn’t give anything less than the best to my family so I immediately e-mailed my complaint. The company is making another (and hopefully perfect) one for me, but my refusal to give something slightly flawed to someone I love brought to mind this verse from Proverbs. 
If I’ll only give “the best” to a loved one, what makes me think that less than my best is good enough for God? If we love God, we should honor Him by giving Him only the best we have to offer! Yet, instead of giving Him the first and finest, we often give Him only what’s left-over or substandard. Instead of choosing the items most needed by the food bank, do we ever look through our pantries and only donate what we’ve overstocked or, worse, what is outdated? When we contribute to charity auctions, rummage sales, or resale shops, do we choose items we’d ever consider possessing or just the stained and damaged things we’d never consider wearing? Do we have the unspoken caveats of “Only if it’s convenient… if I remember… if nothing better comes along!” when we volunteer to help a worthy cause? When we contribute our time or talents, do we ever slack off and think, “Well, it’s close enough for volunteer work,” and do shoddy or sloppy work? When (perhaps I should say “if”) we use our money to help the disadvantaged or sick, is it just our spare change that is dropped into the bell-ringer’s bucket or do we dig deep into our pockets? After serious thought and prayer, do we budget money for the church’s work as readily as we do for our mortgage and vacation fund, or do we just give God whatever money happens to be left over once we’ve spent all we want?
Let us never forget that everything we have, every blessing we enjoy, is a gift from God. It’s only right that we should return it to Him. He knows we’re not perfect and he doesn’t expect perfection from us. He does, however, demand the first and best from each and every one of us. After all, He cared enough to send the very best, his only begotten Son, so that we could have eternal life. We should always give him our best in return.

When you care enough to send the very best. [Hallmark Cards slogan]

Give all ye have, as well as all ye are, a spiritual sacrifice to Him, who withheld not from you his dear Son, his only Son. [John Wesley]

Now, our God, we give you thanks, and we praise your glorious name. Yet my people and I cannot really give you anything, because everything is a gift from you, and we have only given back what is yours already. … O Lord, our God, we have brought together all this wealth to build a temple to honor your holy name, but it all came from you and all belongs to you. I know that you test everyone’s heart and are pleased with people of integrity. In honesty and sincerity I have willingly given all this to you, and I have seen how your people who are gathered here have been happy to bring offerings to you. [1 Chronicles 29:13-14,16-17 (GNT)]

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December 5, 2014

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Bible Stories, God's Grace & Love, God's Word: The Bible, Knowing Him

NOT HOW, BUT WHO (Genesis, part 2)


Grand Canyon-cape royal 171aFaith convinces us that God created the world through his word. This means what can be seen was made by something that could not be seen. [Hebrews 11:3 (GW)]

For some of us, the Book of Genesis doesn’t satisfactorily explain how the world was made. But that doesn’t matter, because it does explain who made it all happen. It answers the basic questions we all have. Who made the universe? God. Who created me? God. Why am I here? To have a relationship with God. What keeps me from this relationship? Man’s sinful nature.

The Book of Genesis tells us about man’s character: we sin. We want what we can’t have, we lie, we get jealous, we disobey and we don’t trust God. More important, however, the Book of Genesis tells us about God’s character. We see that God is omnipotent; He has unlimited power and authority over all things. He not only gave form to the universe, but He also filled the earth with all sorts of living things. He can speak things into existence and create something from nothing. He is omnipresent; He can be everywhere all of the time. He was here before anything else existed and yet He is transcendent. He exists outside of our universe; things like time and space don’t limit Him. He is omniscient; He knows everything. No one can hide from Him and nothing escapes His notice. Although He is a demanding and jealous God, He is also loving and forgiving. He is a personal God who will speak to us. That is what Genesis tells us and that is all I really need to know and understand.

O Lord, you have been our refuge throughout every generation. Before the mountains were born, before you gave birth to the earth and the world, you were God. You are God from everlasting to everlasting. … Indeed, in your sight a thousand years are like a single day, like yesterday—already past—like an hour in the night. You are God from everlasting to everlasting. [Psalm 90:1-2,4 (GW)]