Jesus
Emmanuel--God with us
Jesus was God in flesh, God "with skin on" is what I tell little kids in church. God robed himself in flesh. He made himself needy, hungry and small. He made himself as needy as any newborn. The Christ-child was born as any baby is born.
The moment air filled his little lungs for the first time, he let out a painful cry and shivered in the cold night air that must have been in that stable. Soon his mother wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in the manger. He needed his mother and he needed Joseph.
By being born of a woman God infused himself so much with humanity that he could not have stayed alive as a human without milk! He fully entrusted himself to a young Jewish girl named Mary.
Do you realize the power that is in this story?
God lived among us and will forever be a part of his creation. His intense love for us is proven over and over through Scripture.
When we say the name of Jesus we are saying Jehovah has become my Savior. The Messiah!
Ponder this for awhile....when we are baptized in Jesus' name, we have the blood of the God that became a Man who purchased our salvation washing our sins away.
Even Mary knew who her unborn child was......Luke 1:46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
"God my Savior" is another way of saying the Christ child or Emmanuel. Isaiah, whose writings Mary understood declared,
I, [even] I, [am] the LORD; and beside me [there is] no saviour. (Isa. 43:11)
She knew what she was a part of; she knew who the babe was!
The Jews knew there was but one God and she knew that she was with child of that one God. Duet. 6:4
Glory to God in the Highest and on Earth Peace, Good will toward men!
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
What do you do when your head and your heart don't agree?
When we know in our head that our decision is reasonable, but our heart is putting up quite a fuss, we need to step back and really wait on God. Or, when our heart is large and in charge, and has shut reason in the closet and locked the door. We need to stop and weigh things out. Where is the balance? Where do you we go for wise counsel? How do we make the right choices?
God loves all of us: the rational,logical people that are predictable and dependable, and those that think with their hearts and rush into actions without much forethought. He loves those that are a little bit of both and those that are too timid to make any decisions. But of all personality types, I believe God loves those that have a heart like King David. For the shepherd boy-turned king was a "man after God's own heart".
God was so much in love with humanity that he robed himself in flesh and "walked" his love. He was an irrational lover of our souls. His plan of redemption was reckless and fearless. He seemed to have stumbled into the first miracle and never looked back until he was being chased by those that wanted his life to be snuffed out. It was all prophesied and planned by God, but as Jesus moved throughout the countryside teaching and preaching he didn't seem to have a plan. In fact, when the people grew so hungry after listening to his teaching, the only food that would be found was the lunch of a little boy whose mother must have been one of those "planners". Jesus did a miraculous thing; he fed everyone (and their uncle) with just one little lunch.
I know those that never seem to plan ahead and those that are so thoughtful that they have trouble with deviation or transition of any kind.
Jesus understand all of these things.
If we are going to error, it's best to err on the side of the heart-led decisions. Jesus rewarded all those that used their talents to make more, but the one who counted the costs and found that there was too much risk in doing anything with the talents was judged harshly.
In first-aid and life saving techniques it's rarely a problem legally for someone who is trying to save your life if they make a mistake in the process. But to not try and help someone, there can be a potential lawsuit. The judges know the intent was to save a life.
Follow your heart. Let reason counsel with you, but let your heart believe and trust and act.
God loves all of us: the rational,logical people that are predictable and dependable, and those that think with their hearts and rush into actions without much forethought. He loves those that are a little bit of both and those that are too timid to make any decisions. But of all personality types, I believe God loves those that have a heart like King David. For the shepherd boy-turned king was a "man after God's own heart".
God was so much in love with humanity that he robed himself in flesh and "walked" his love. He was an irrational lover of our souls. His plan of redemption was reckless and fearless. He seemed to have stumbled into the first miracle and never looked back until he was being chased by those that wanted his life to be snuffed out. It was all prophesied and planned by God, but as Jesus moved throughout the countryside teaching and preaching he didn't seem to have a plan. In fact, when the people grew so hungry after listening to his teaching, the only food that would be found was the lunch of a little boy whose mother must have been one of those "planners". Jesus did a miraculous thing; he fed everyone (and their uncle) with just one little lunch.
I know those that never seem to plan ahead and those that are so thoughtful that they have trouble with deviation or transition of any kind.
Jesus understand all of these things.
If we are going to error, it's best to err on the side of the heart-led decisions. Jesus rewarded all those that used their talents to make more, but the one who counted the costs and found that there was too much risk in doing anything with the talents was judged harshly.
In first-aid and life saving techniques it's rarely a problem legally for someone who is trying to save your life if they make a mistake in the process. But to not try and help someone, there can be a potential lawsuit. The judges know the intent was to save a life.
Follow your heart. Let reason counsel with you, but let your heart believe and trust and act.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
just ask.....
Maybe we think he cannot get it for us..but just ask....ask anyway...
Can you imagine a doting father not wanting to know the desires
of his child's heart?
Then couple your request with, "if it's your will, Lord...."
Ask your heavenly Father! I dare you. Try him. Luke 12:32
Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
How's that for a short and sweet devotion?
Can you imagine a doting father not wanting to know the desires
of his child's heart?
Then couple your request with, "if it's your will, Lord...."
Ask your heavenly Father! I dare you. Try him. Luke 12:32
Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
How's that for a short and sweet devotion?
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Is it a circle or a straight line?
As I was teaching school recently, our class was discussing some native American stories where life is explained by the use of circles. Many have heard the term the "circle of life". One thing that I enjoyed very much was the teaching that if one fails at a task or ability whether social or physical, they will stay stagnant and unable to proceed until that task is achieved. Hence, we can easily find 50 year old teenagers; the Peter Pan syndrome in our society.
In a chemical dependency class I took during college we learned that once a person is depending on a chemical they stop the process of maturation. So you can find a 31 year old woman who suddenly has to deal with issues that she had when she was 16. For at the age of 16 she began to depend on chemicals to live her life. Dealing with issues that a teenager faces when one is an adult can be very difficult and embarrassing. But, to never face the tasks is to be stuck in limbo.
Naturally, I think of scriptures that I have read that certainly shed light on this subject. I think of Jacob, who had to come to terms with his deceptive nature as an older man. He limped the rest of his life after his personal encounter with God, but he limped with a peaceful and matured heart. Now he could proceed on to REAL LIVING. God even gave him a new name as a result of that wrestling match: Israel.
Esther faced the the biggest test imaginable but passed with flying colors on her first try. Had she failed the test, she most likely would have had to deal with her "true" identity at some later date. But by the time she again would be challenged as to her Hebrew upbringing, most of her Hebrew family would have been killed.
I don't agree with all of the teaching of the circle of life theories, for there are non-biblical teachings embedded in them about reincarnation, but I see why the old storytellers began to see the world from the "circle of life" perspective. Our water is provided to us using the hydrological cycle. We watch it rain and then it evaporates, only to rain or snow again.
Genesis 3:19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou [art], and unto dust shalt thou return.
We may be made of dust but God breathed into man and he became a living soul. Now we were made in the image of God, not just dust and not to ever truly die. We were elevated from the other creation by the act of God's breath.
So, do you think that life is a circle or a straight line? Let me know....
In a chemical dependency class I took during college we learned that once a person is depending on a chemical they stop the process of maturation. So you can find a 31 year old woman who suddenly has to deal with issues that she had when she was 16. For at the age of 16 she began to depend on chemicals to live her life. Dealing with issues that a teenager faces when one is an adult can be very difficult and embarrassing. But, to never face the tasks is to be stuck in limbo.
Naturally, I think of scriptures that I have read that certainly shed light on this subject. I think of Jacob, who had to come to terms with his deceptive nature as an older man. He limped the rest of his life after his personal encounter with God, but he limped with a peaceful and matured heart. Now he could proceed on to REAL LIVING. God even gave him a new name as a result of that wrestling match: Israel.
Esther faced the the biggest test imaginable but passed with flying colors on her first try. Had she failed the test, she most likely would have had to deal with her "true" identity at some later date. But by the time she again would be challenged as to her Hebrew upbringing, most of her Hebrew family would have been killed.
I don't agree with all of the teaching of the circle of life theories, for there are non-biblical teachings embedded in them about reincarnation, but I see why the old storytellers began to see the world from the "circle of life" perspective. Our water is provided to us using the hydrological cycle. We watch it rain and then it evaporates, only to rain or snow again.
Genesis 3:19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou [art], and unto dust shalt thou return.
We may be made of dust but God breathed into man and he became a living soul. Now we were made in the image of God, not just dust and not to ever truly die. We were elevated from the other creation by the act of God's breath.
So, do you think that life is a circle or a straight line? Let me know....
Friday, October 22, 2010
seven years of waiting ....
It broke my heart to leave South Minneapolis.
But....we had an incredible opportunity to own a church building that we really needed, the only trouble was it was near Lake Minnetonka and that is pretty far from Minneapolis. Without a doubt God had moved miraculously on our behalf and provided a lovely church building for us to purchase. So, we began to work in our new area. For one year we continued to hold weekly meetings in our home in South Minneapolis. But those services ended when we moved closer to the church. We had no where to hold services any longer in our old neighborhood.
I can't tell you how many times I have been in anguish just thinking that we had left the work God had called us to do.... I felt that I had failed God so many times.
Then to our surprise, our grown children shared with us their burden some months ago. They both felt God calling them to go back and re-start the Minneapolis work. After they had prayed and fasted, their calling was confirmed in a very supernatural way this summer. They waited until they had returned from the General Conference in Houston, TX. to hold the first service. The spirit of the Lord certainly was in their first meeting!
Seven years after we had to quit holding services in Minneapolis, on Oct. 7, 2010, the first service was held right back where we had started in 1996. Now I realize that the Lord was not saying "no", to us but he certainly was saying, "wait".
I never would have dreamed how God would answer these deep plaguing questions of ours. At the time we left Minneapolis, our older kids were only teenagers. I never thought that this was how God would work, but all along God was preparing them for the ministry.
Psalms 27:13-14 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
Forgive me, Lord for not trusting you. Help me to learn to wait. You do all things well.
But....we had an incredible opportunity to own a church building that we really needed, the only trouble was it was near Lake Minnetonka and that is pretty far from Minneapolis. Without a doubt God had moved miraculously on our behalf and provided a lovely church building for us to purchase. So, we began to work in our new area. For one year we continued to hold weekly meetings in our home in South Minneapolis. But those services ended when we moved closer to the church. We had no where to hold services any longer in our old neighborhood.
I can't tell you how many times I have been in anguish just thinking that we had left the work God had called us to do.... I felt that I had failed God so many times.
Then to our surprise, our grown children shared with us their burden some months ago. They both felt God calling them to go back and re-start the Minneapolis work. After they had prayed and fasted, their calling was confirmed in a very supernatural way this summer. They waited until they had returned from the General Conference in Houston, TX. to hold the first service. The spirit of the Lord certainly was in their first meeting!
Seven years after we had to quit holding services in Minneapolis, on Oct. 7, 2010, the first service was held right back where we had started in 1996. Now I realize that the Lord was not saying "no", to us but he certainly was saying, "wait".
I never would have dreamed how God would answer these deep plaguing questions of ours. At the time we left Minneapolis, our older kids were only teenagers. I never thought that this was how God would work, but all along God was preparing them for the ministry.
Psalms 27:13-14 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
Forgive me, Lord for not trusting you. Help me to learn to wait. You do all things well.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
even though he didn't have to.....
Jack Cunningham, the crusade evangelist asked the preachers to repent first. At General Conference we saw an unprecedented move of the Holy Ghost (Spirit). Close to 3,500 attendees were baptized with the Holy Spirit speaking with tongues (Acts 2:4) in the arena in Houston, TX this last Sunday evening.
Are there words to describe this night? Many things touched my heart, but one in particular was that Bro. Cunningham asked the leaders to sincerely model repentance. It was so beautiful to hear the choir of preachers raising their voices in prayer to God for repentance. Then others joined in, pretty soon the whole place was crying out to God for a clean heart.
Jesus didn't NEED to be baptized but he modeled that humble act for us. He fulfilled all righteousness. Matt.3:15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer [it to be so] now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness.
Maybe some preachers didn't really need to repent, but when the unsaved saw the example of preachers with outstretched hands to God asking for mercy, it was a little easier for the others to soften their hearts to God and admit their need for a Savior to forgive them of their sins.
I'm still convinced that repentance is the first essential part of salvation.
Are there words to describe this night? Many things touched my heart, but one in particular was that Bro. Cunningham asked the leaders to sincerely model repentance. It was so beautiful to hear the choir of preachers raising their voices in prayer to God for repentance. Then others joined in, pretty soon the whole place was crying out to God for a clean heart.
Jesus didn't NEED to be baptized but he modeled that humble act for us. He fulfilled all righteousness. Matt.3:15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer [it to be so] now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness.
Maybe some preachers didn't really need to repent, but when the unsaved saw the example of preachers with outstretched hands to God asking for mercy, it was a little easier for the others to soften their hearts to God and admit their need for a Savior to forgive them of their sins.
I'm still convinced that repentance is the first essential part of salvation.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Back from the dead...
Recently, someone very dear to our family was restored to us. It was incredible, I am overwhelmed with joy. Though it was by no fault of this person, divorce and distance had separated them from our family. Now after literal decades, a miraculous restoration has happened.
I am so amazed at how God performed this miracle. Tears streamed down my cheeks over and over at the healing joy I felt. Some did not understand why I was so moved; they may in time understand.
God can do it; he can restore our lost loved ones. God sent this person dreams in the night. The troublesome dreams were the gentle hand that led them back, and opened their blinded eyes.
God can and he will use whatever means necessary to bring about restoration. Leave "them" in God's hands. Never stop believing!
And whatever you do, don't get bitter. Bitterness may prevent the miracle from happening. Keep the door open to your heart. As the old preacher said, "God has been God a real long time and he's really good at being God". God is good at restoring the lost..that is why we call him our Savior.
I am so amazed at how God performed this miracle. Tears streamed down my cheeks over and over at the healing joy I felt. Some did not understand why I was so moved; they may in time understand.
God can do it; he can restore our lost loved ones. God sent this person dreams in the night. The troublesome dreams were the gentle hand that led them back, and opened their blinded eyes.
God can and he will use whatever means necessary to bring about restoration. Leave "them" in God's hands. Never stop believing!
And whatever you do, don't get bitter. Bitterness may prevent the miracle from happening. Keep the door open to your heart. As the old preacher said, "God has been God a real long time and he's really good at being God". God is good at restoring the lost..that is why we call him our Savior.
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