Category Archives: Holidays & Holy Days

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February 14, 2014

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God's Grace & Love, Holidays & Holy Days, Thanks & Praise

He Sends Us Valentimes Every Day (Valentine’s Day)

But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me, and through each night I sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life. [Psalm 42:8 (NLT)]

We are loved and God doesn’t play favorites with his people. He couldn’t love any of us more than he already does and He won’t love any of us less. He loves the leper as much as the missionary, the street-weary prostitute as much as the social worker, the homeless addict as much as the soup-kitchen volunteer, the embezzler as much as the humanitarian and the sinner as much as the saint. No one is considered damaged goods or ‘seconds’ in God’s world. He loves us all! Thank you, God, for your unwavering love for us your flawed children.

God does not love us because we are valuable. We are valuable because God loves us. [Fulton J. Sheen]

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February 2, 2014

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Holidays & Holy Days, Salvation: A New You, Today: Make it Count

Are We Ready for the Big Day? (Super Bowl Sunday)

I don’t think, friends, that I need to deal with the question of when all this is going to happen. You know as well as I that the day of the Master’s coming can’t be posted on our calendars. He won’t call ahead and make an appointment any more than a burglar would. About the time everybody’s walking around complacently, congratulating each other – “We’ve sure got it made! Now we can take it easy!” – suddenly everything will fall apart. It’s going to come as suddenly and inescapably as birth pangs to a pregnant woman. [1 Thessalonians 5:1-3 (MSG)]

It’s Super Bowl Sunday and the past few weeks have been filled with hype about this event. We’ve heard from coaches, players, sports analysts, bookmakers and weather forecasters; we’ve even seen previews of the ads that will be shown during the game. People have stocked up at the grocery and liquor stores, donned their favorite team’s colors, and planned their parties and menus. With ticket prices so high, many made sacrifices to attend the game; some even sold even their cars to purchase tickets. All of this planning and excitement are for the earthly rewards of a championship trophy, money, fame, a few hours of entertainment and bragging rights.

I couldn’t help but compare the elaborate preparations for this yearly event with our preparations for the day we will meet with God. In football there is a clock that tells us when time is running out; life isn’t that way. We’ll never know when the final whistle will blow. Unlike the Super Bowl trophy, God’s reward will be eternal; there won’t be another opportunity to play again the following year. Some day we will all give an accounting of our lives to our Father in Heaven. What kind of preparations are we making for that special day?

You’ve all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You’re after one that’s gold eternally. [1 Corinthians 9:24-25 (MSG)]

There is no escape for the man who squanders his opportunity to prepare to meet God. [From “Hope for Each Day” by Billy Graham]

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January 12, 2014

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Holidays & Holy Days, Trusting God

The Sabbath: A day of Rest

2014-1-12Remember the day of worship by observing it as a holy day. You have six days to do all your work. The seventh day is the day of worship dedicated to the Lord your God. You, your sons, your daughters, your male and female slaves, your cattle, and the foreigners living in your city must never do any work on that day. In six days the Lord made heaven, earth, and the sea, along with everything in them. He didn’t work on the seventh day. That’s why the Lord blessed the day he stopped his work and set this day apart as holy. [Exodus 20:8-11 (GW)]

Why does God care that we set aside one day of the week to stop work? Can’t we worship him while we’re working? Perhaps it is a matter of trust. We must trust God that we can accomplish all that needs to be done in six days. He did! We must trust that our world really won’t crumble if we take a personal day and allow God to refresh us. The Israelites had to trust that they had gathered enough manna on the sixth day to feed them on the seventh. Our Sabbath (whatever day of the week we may observe) is a day to get rid of distractions and put God squarely at the center of our lives. It’s a day to turn off the world and tune in to God.

Help me, O Lord, to celebrate you and life’s blessings on this my Sabbath day.

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January 2, 2014

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Holidays & Holy Days, Holy Spirit, Salvation: A New You

It’s a New Year – Here’s to a New You

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life – and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. [Romans 12:1-2 (MSG)]

New Year’s morning, I opened my email to be greeted by an ad from my favorite clothing store telling me, “It’s a New Year – Here’s to a New You!” There was a beautiful model attired in the latest fashion color. If only a “new” self could be gotten by a little on-line shopping, plastic surgery, a change of jobs, a different hairstyle, a new house, or other external changes, but it can’t! Romans 12 tells us that make-overs certainly are possible. The transformation, however, is internal not external. The acceptance of Christ and the presence of His Holy Spirit in our lives will make us new, not from the outside in, but from the inside out!

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January 1, 2014

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Attitudes & Behavior, Holidays & Holy Days, Love & Works

New Year’s Resolution (New Year’s Day 2014)

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. [Colossians 3:12 (NIV)]

This day and every day –

I will think of someone to love and for whom to pray;
I will tell someone what it is I like, appreciate or admire about them;
I will practice random acts of kindness;
I will set aside quiet time for Bible study and prayer;
I will resist the urge to disparage, gossip, or complain;
I will express my gratitude to God and other people;
I will intentionally look for the extraordinary in the ordinary;
I will live each day as if it is my last.

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December 31, 2013

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Holidays & Holy Days, Sorrow, Grief & Regrets, Thanks & Praise

New Year’s Eve – What Do You see in Your Rearview Mirror?

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. … Those who are wise will take all this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love of the Lord. [Psalm 107:1,43 (NLT)]

New Year’s Eve is a time we often contemplate the past year, frequently with regrets and sorrow. We ponder the many “would have’s”, “should have’s” and “could have’s” in our lives. We may have lost a loved one, suffered ill health or financial difficulty, or struggled with personal challenges.

As we enter this new year, let’s look back on the joys of 2013. Reflect on the many ways you saw the hand of God at work, the times you heard his voice or felt his embrace, the moments you knew He was guiding or even supporting you. Today, let us look at the past year with grateful hearts for the many blessings and joy God sent to us. May the rear view mirror of our minds only reflect God’s kindness and love.

Let all that I am praise the Lord; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. [Psalm 103:1-2 (NLT)]