Belonging to the King

I tell you the truth, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to Christ will certainly not lose his reward.

Mark 9:38-40 (TNIV)

How encouraging is it this morning to hear how you belong to Christ!? How encouraging is it to hear and know that the God of this world who sits on the Throne in Heaven is so in love with you that he is concerned about even the most minute details of you everyday life today? Our God is concerned about something as small as rewarding someone for providing you a cup of cold water. Isn’t it amazing how God is found, not always in the big things that happen around you, as some might think, but in the small ordinary things that happen throughout the day. Small reminders of God’s presence and His goodness; things like the refreshing and ever so fragrant cool air of a fall morning that I enjoyed on my walk across the parking lot from the hotel this morning to the Starbucks where I am right now. Small things like hearing the crashing of the ocean waves or the gentleness and miracle and wonder of a baby’s laugh; small things like hearing the voice of an old friend or being comforted by a smile or watching a beautiful sunset at the end of a busy day. God is all around you this morning! As the world seems to be crashing down and the financial markets spin out of control, take heed and comfort in the fact that God is God and He is here and His love and grace and protection will never let you go – look for Him today and rest in His amazing love as you live your life for Him.

Whoever is not against Us is for Us

“Teacher”, said John, “we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.” “Do not stop him,” Jesus said: “No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us.”

Mark 9:38-40 (TNIV)

We have many different denominations in the Christian church today, many different styles of worship, many different mediums of communicating the Gospel – some contemporary, some very traditional. We have traditions in the Christian church that focus more on God’s Grace; some that focus on helping others; some that are wired simply for evangelism and some that react to a corporate call for justice and peace. We have some churches that excel in music and spend a lot of time and resources on praise and worship songs and some that just sing to God with their own a cappella voice. We have churches where the primary focus is on healing and some that are anchored in the consistent and quiet reverence of tradition and conservatism. Sometimes it is easy to discount and judge other churches that differ from the style of worship in which you and I are most comfortable and enjoy. This verse in Mark is a good reminder to all of us today that the main link that joins all of these sects and denominations together is Jesus Christ and whoever is for Him cannot be against Him. So, as you meet other believers in this world who may be a little different than you in their style of worshiping and celebrating and acting out this wonderful gift of love in their own way; don’t ever judge or look down on them for the way that God is using them, rather, know that if they are not against Jesus then they are for Jesus and that we all are for sharing this great love of God to world who is in desperate need of a Savior.

Faith of a Child

He took a little child whom he placed among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, "Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me."

Mark 9:36-37 (TNIV)

Jesus quite often during his ministry uses the spirit and faith of a child to demonstrate the kind of faith that you and I should have as His children. It challenges me in my own journey of knowing and loving God to consider how the faith of little child actually looks in real life. A newborn child is completely dependent on his/her parents for food and shelter and for all of the essentials of life; a child has no doubt that you have his best interests at heart; a child that has not yet been tainted by this fallen world has an optimistic attitude about life; a child trusts completely in you as his/her parent, not because of past evidence or because they have an understanding of the future and why you are making the choices for them and what the outcome will be, no, none of this, a child trusts in your loving care as a result of being your son or daughter. Our God longs to have this kind of relationship with you and I today. Jesus longs for us to trust Him completely, not conditional on the outcome of our prayers but as a result of our love for who He is, knowing that His way is always the best way and that His plan for our lives is to hold us in His loving arms in such a way that our love for Him would grow and that the two of us could ultimately become one in mind and spirit and relationship. Take on the faith of a child today as you lift up all of your problems and circumstances and desires and fears to the one who is journeying with you in this life; to your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who can see the end of the road and who knows that the only way that you will finish the race is with your hand in His as he guides you into a love relationship that will never let you go!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Fear

They left that place and passed through Galilee. Jesus did not want anyone to know where they were, because he was teaching his disciples. He said to them, "The Son of Man is going to be delivered over to human hands. He will be killed, and after three days he will rise." But they did not understand what he meant and were afraid to ask him about it.

Mark 9:30-32

The disciples were afraid to inquire about such a radical plan that Jesus was discussing with them about death and sacrifice and then rising from the dead. Later, they would know exactly what Jesus was describing here as they were part of the plan and would testify about Jesus to the nations. You may be fearful today of the plan that God has laid out for you? You may be afraid to inquire of God, fearful of what his response might be or fearful of what role he may want you to play in this life. Let me share a comforting word with you this morning if this describes you and if fear is dominating your life today – the same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead is alive and active and available for you today in order that God could carry out His plan for your life effectively for His kingdom and glory. Rest, trust and submit to God’s Spirit today who lives inside of your heart of hearts because He knows exactly what you need and is here today to carry you through the storm. His love will lead and guide and comfort you - His love will never let you go!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Servanthood Evangelism

They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the road?" But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest. Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, "Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all."

Mark 9:33-35

The most effective style of leadership today is known as “servanthood leadership”. The most effective way to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with those who are lost is to show them the selfless and humble all encompassing love of our Creator by treating them as better than ourselves, looking out for their interests and just loving them unconditionally as Christ loves us. This principle goes against every instinct that we have in our flesh to climb the corporate ladder; the hunger for power and control; the competitiveness of wanting to be successful and to be liked; the voices that are screaming all around us to look our for number 1 (ourselves) and to put our own satisfaction and joy and happiness above anyone or anything else. The cool thing, though, is that you can, through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives inside, resist the temptation to promote yourself and refocus your efforts and energy on the development and care of others, it is then that God will elevate your responsibility as well as deepen your knowledge and love of Jesus. If you want to be great in God’s Kingdom then start the process today by looking out for the needs of others above yourself and be a servant of all!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Everything is Possible

A man in the crowd answered, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not." "O unbelieving generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me." So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?" "From childhood," he answered. "It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us." "'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes." Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf and mute spirit," he said, "I command you, come out of him and never enter him again." The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, "He's dead." But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up. After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer."

Mark 9:17-29

Do you believe? Jesus tells us here that “everything is possible” for him who believes! Jesus healed this boy through the power of prayer – have you prayed about whatever situation or circumstance that you are facing today? Have you prayed with a believing heart, trusting that your Father in heaven who loves you more than ever will respond to your situation? Listen, God is waiting to work a miracle in your life today; he is waiting for you to ask Him with a believing heart for His help. The miracle may be that He changes your circumstances, or, the miracle may be that He changes your heart in order that you will be able to reflect His love in the midst of whatever trial that you are facing today. Either way, one thing is for sure and that is that He will do something and all you have to do is ask and believe.

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Plan of Redemption

And he said to them, "Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see that the kingdom of God has come with power." After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters--one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.) Then a cloud appeared and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!" Suddenly, when they looked around, they no longer saw anyone with them except Jesus. As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead. They kept the matter to themselves, discussing what "rising from the dead" meant. And they asked him, "Why do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?" Jesus replied, "To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected? But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him."

Mark 9:1-13

Here marks the beginning of the end – the culmination of God’s plan of redemption for His Creation where the central figures of the old-covenant meet Jesus, the one Moses and Elijah prophesied about who would seal the deal, once and for all for the redemption of your soul and mine back to our Father in Heaven. The final plans here are being drawn in a mighty battle that had been taking place in the 3rd realm called the Spirit world in which Peter, James and John get just a small glimpse of what is to come when Christ is revealed in all His Glory, whiter than snow, when He will return to take all who have trusted in Him back to our Father in Heaven who will transform us as well back to perfection in Him. Oh what a day that will be when we meet God, face to face and all of the mysteries of this world will be revealed to us in the blinking of an eye as we just enjoy the fullness of God’s grace and love, wrapped up so perfectly complete and satisfied in the ever so sweet abundance of His presence in our lives, never to be taken away from us again. A battle still rages on here in the spirit world, the 3rd realm for the control of your heart, for the acceptance by you of God’s Spirit who wants to lead you into your part to play here in this great love story that ends with you being redeemed to perfect peace and ultimate fulfillment back in relationship with the God who made you for His enjoyment and to be the recipient of His awesome love. Stand and fight today, fight with your whole heart as God wants to use you; you have a huge role to play in order that many others could join you on that day when God’s love is made complete and all things are made new! Let God’s Spirit today reflect this image of perfection and of what is to come through your very life today in order that others would see and believe!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Ashamed

If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father's glory with the holy angels."

Mark 8:38


The world loves to discount the truth of the Bible as non-intelligent ideas that are only meant for fanatics or for people who do not have the mental ability to think rationally. This lie that is spread by people who do not know the Savior is driven by their own selfish desires to call their own shots in this life. The reality is that these children of God are blinded by the enemy, Jesus says it like this in John 12:40: He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn--and I would heal them." The reason that Jesus is so adamant here about not being ashamed to spread the good news about his awesome love and saving grace to the world around us is because his plan is to use your life to help remove the blinders of unbelief through living a life that reflects his love and image to the world around you in such a way that it rises above all rational thinking and reason. Now, in order to explain the power that you have to live such a life of faith may indeed require you to use “words” as well, in order to proclaim all the great things that our Savior has done in your life and to give Jesus the Glory for the life that you live. Don’t ever be ashamed of your Lord and Savior – tell the world that Jesus lives today and proclaim the miracle of what He has done for you!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Daily Dying to Self

Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?

Mark 8:34-36

If indeed you have been blessed with the extraordinary gift of the risen Jesus Christ, living inside of your heart of hearts as a result of you surrendering your very life to him then you must realize that there is a constant struggle going on for the control of your heart. The struggle takes place every day in the midst of ordinary things as you go about your life. The struggle is with your old sinful nature that unfortunately will always be present until that final day when you have reached the end of your journey and stand before the risen Lord in Glory, having been made perfect and totally complete in Him. Until that day however, there is a job for you to do in order to be sure that you stay on the narrow road that is in sync with God’s will and purpose for your life. Jesus explains this important act here to the disciples through the analogy of taking up your cross. Every day and even every minute of every day, if you want to know God in a very personal way and if you want to be used by Him to achieve great things for His kingdom in this world then you must consciously take up your cross by choosing to obey the Spirit’s direction for your life instead of your old sinful nature that always opposes the best decision that you can make. God’s Spirit who is living inside of you will always give you not only the direction to take in any decision but He will also give you the power to make that choice if indeed you stay connected to Jesus in thought life and attitude throughout the day. Let me give you an example: You have been back stabbed at work and your flesh is crying out for you to gossip and take vengeance on your colleague, who has unfairly hurt your reputation and corporate standing, and although you feel this way, there is another part of you that is whispering, if indeed you are listening, that God is in control of the situation and that God has the perfect plan and that you should just love and forgive your colleague in order that he or she could see and experience the same unconditional love that your Father in heaven has shown you. What do you do? Jesus would tell you to “take up your cross and follow Him” by dying to your sinful nature, that so wants to fire back, and through prayer and submission to the awesome power of God’s Spirit you have the ability to turn the other cheek and to love unconditionally, even in the midst of great hurt. Today, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Jesus!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Bad Advice

He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. "Get behind me, Satan!" he said. "You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men."

Mark 8:31-33

Be careful who you look to for advice in this fallen world because if the one giving the advice is not tuned in to the Spirit of God in their mind who is the giver of all wisdom, then indeed they will give you advice like the advice that Peter gave here to Jesus. Peter, may have been more concerned here with his own situation as a result of not understanding all the things that needed to play out in order for God’s Kingdom to begin to be built. Here is a man that left everything he had – his family, his job, his friends – he surrendered his entire life in order to follow Jesus and now Jesus is telling him that He is going to be rejected and killed, gone for good. What Peter didn’t know is that Jesus was going to come back in Spirit in order that He could be a much deeper part of Peter’s life as His Spirit would then be living inside of Peter and giving him wisdom and strength and power and encouragement as he would live on to testify about Jesus Christ and eventually be martyred himself. Don’t be blinded today by temporal things of this world that have nothing to do with the big picture of what God is doing in and through your life here on earth. Don’t take the advice of someone who is only looking out for worldly or fleshly matters of the present but look to one who is tuned in to God’s Spirit and has an understanding of the wisdom of God as a result of the one who lives inside. Seek out a Godly mentor today to help guide and direct you in your journey of knowing and loving God more.

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Who do YOU Say that He is?

Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, "Who do people say I am?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the Christ."

Mark 8:27-29

Who do you say that He is? Not who your pastor or your spouse or your colleague or your friend says that He is but who do “you” say that He is? There comes a time in your life when this Christianity thing needs to be real and personal for you and not just a by-product of someone else’s faith. With the seeker friendly mega churches today it is so easy to just blend into the crowd and to pass off the appearance of godliness without really knowing Jesus for sure in a very real way in your heart that prompts you to action and to speak words that testify about your relationship with Him. Who have you told recently about your relationship with Jesus Christ? To whom have you shared how Jesus has transformed your heart and life? What would you say? Do you know Him – I mean really know Him in such a way that you would have evidence of how His Spirit has somehow made a difference in who you are and what you do here on this earth? If the answer is no, then it is time to surrender to Jesus and get to know Him in a very real way as His Spirit is drawing you now, at this very moment to enter His kingdom in order that you too could testify about who He is and how He has touched your life. This is the final act of many happenings lately where you have felt drawn to God, experiences which you just passed off as coincidence – well let me assure you this morning that they are not coincidences, they are the Spirit of the living God inviting you into a loving relationship with the one who died on a cross in order to make all of this possible for you this morning. Jesus says in scripture that there will be many that stand before Him in judgment at the end of the world to whom He will tell with tears in His eyes, “Depart from me, I never knew you”. Do you know Him today? Are you proclaiming to the world who Jesus is and what He has done for you? You can know Him for sure today by praying this prayer:

“Jesus, I believe you died for my sins and this morning I ask and accept your forgiveness and invite you into my heart and life. Take me this morning Lord – I give everything that I have and everything that I am to you, I want to live this life for you and with you. Teach me how to walk in your ways as I just want to know and love you more – Amen”

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Twenty - Twenty Focus

They arrived at Bethsaida. Some people brought a sightless man and begged Jesus to give him a healing touch. Taking him by the hand, he led him out of the village. He put spit in the man's eyes, laid hands on him, and asked, "Do you see anything?" He looked up. "I see men. They look like walking trees." So Jesus laid hands on his eyes again. The man looked hard and realized that he had recovered perfect sight, saw everything in bright, twenty-twenty focus. Jesus sent him straight home, telling him, "Don't enter the village."

Mark 8:22-26


Oh how easy it is to have a distorted view of the world and of God and of your relationship with Jesus just as this blind man’s view was distorted at first as Jesus began the healing process in his life. This fallen world has a way of clouding your focus and indeed it will undoubtedly take a lifetime of healing and restoration for you to see 100% clearly when you are finally in front of your Father in heaven where all the mysteries of who he is and how much he loves you will be perfectly understood as you will be perfectly united to him once again in mind and Spirit and heart. Until then though, it is good to understand that seeing clearly is indeed a process and that your Christian walk and relationship with God is a healing process that is ongoing and never-ending. I took one more step in my own journey and process of having 20/20 vision toward God as I was reminded by His Spirit just yesterday that there is nothing outside of my body that will make me happy or bring me peace or contentment, no, the key to inner peace and true fulfillment lies inside of your heart as you let God’s Spirit flow within you to bring you the peace and joy that passes all understanding. For me anyway, it is easy to anxiously want God to change my circumstances in order that I could gain some sort of false security or significance in outward activities or objects, knowing full well that there is no true fulfillment or fullness in anything but a heart that is in relationship and communication and servitude to our loving Father in heaven. I believe, in fact, that God allows us to go through tough times in this life because it is in those times when we really experience His love the most as we cling to him and He carries us through the storm. So today, take one step closer to seeing clearly by drawing near to Christ, in the midst of any circumstance that you may have and you too will find what true joy and perfect fulfillment is all about as you are consumed by the love of your Savior who loves you more than you could ever imagine and who will never let you go!

****To Post a Comment, Please click on the "comments" word below - Cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Blinded by Material Matters

"Be careful," Jesus warned them. "Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod." They discussed this with one another and said, "It is because we have no bread." Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: "Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear? And don't you remember? When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" "Twelve," they replied. "And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" They answered, "Seven." He said to them, "Do you still not understand?"

Mark 8:15-21

Jesus is warning the disciples here about spiritual matters, about the spiritual warfare that is happening during Jesus’ ministry whereas the Pharisees are trying to create doubt, discontent and agitation among the follower’s of Jesus in order to bring Him down and stop the building of His Kingdom. The disciples however are blinded and do not understand what Jesus is talking about, even in the midst of recent miracles performed before their very eyes, their hearts continue to be consumed with present, worldly, physical cares such as not having enough bread to eat, when Jesus had time and time again proven that He has the power from heaven to meet their every need. Today, what is the condition of your heart? What is your mind being consumed with? Is your mind being saturated by present concerns through which our Lord has promised to carry you? Hasn’t your Father been there for you in the past? Don’t you remember the miracles that He has already performed in your life, how He has forgiven you and loved you unconditionally; how He has met your needs of old and restored your relationship with Him and with family and friends; how He has healed your broken heart and physical ailments; how He has so graciously given you that peace that passes all understanding and that great joy that is unexplainable and yet a very real part of your life? Jesus is asking you today to set the temporal matters of this life aside, to let Him worry about meeting your needs and to set your sights on the Spiritual battle that is happening all around you for the redemption of human hearts and to discover what role you are to play in this much more important and eternal matter of how God would use you today to reflect His love to others in order that you could act out, in a very real way, God’s purpose for your life. Don’t let the enemy blind you today with unimportant issues when God has already proven that He can and will handle those in your life, instead, tune in to His Spirit who is begging for your attention in order that you too could be used by God!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Evidence of Disbelief

The Pharisees came and began to question Jesus. To test him, they asked him for a sign from heaven. He sighed deeply and said, "Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it.".

Mark 8:11-12

Once again Jesus sighs deeply here at the condition of the Pharisees hearts that is very clear as we examine the question that they asked. Apparently it wasn’t enough to see Jesus feed four thousand people with only seven loaves of bread; it wasn’t enough to see the countless other miracles that Jesus had performed, right in front of their very eyes, no, they were looking for more as a result of their hardened hearts that were very far from God. Jesus, being astutely aware and painfully bothered by the disbelief of the Pharisees does not grant them any other miracles or signs because He knows that without a heart change in the Pharisees His efforts would be in vain. It is interesting that no miracle is ever performed by Jesus where there is evidence of disbelief. In fact, Jesus says in all cases that it is as a result of faith that the blind see, the dead rise, the deaf hear and the oppressed are set free. Do you want God to perform a miracle in your life? If the answer is yes, then you must first surrender your heart to God in such a way that you trust Him completely and that you believe in His omnipotent power and control over your life. As you draw near to God, He will draw near to you. As you walk with Him in faith, you will not need to see a miracle to know that He is God as you will experience His presence in your life and you will hear the whisper of His Spirit in your mind as He guides and directs you into a deeper relationship with Him. Come to Jesus this morning on bended knee, trust in Him with your whole heart today and just watch what He will do!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Slow Learner

During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance." His disciples answered, "But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?" "How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked. "Seven," they replied.

Mark 8:1-5

I can see myself so much in this story as I read the response of Jesus’ disciples to His statement here where He wants to feed the four thousand people that had been gathered for three days with nothing to eat. Now, Jesus had just fed 5,000 people with only 5 loaves of bread and two fish earlier in His short ministry here on earth. “Where will we get enough loaves of bread to feed them?”, I can just imagine Jesus’ thoughts as He heard the ones, who had just witnessed His raising people from the dead, healing the blind and deaf, and feeding over 5,000 people shortly before this dilemma, speak their words of disbelief and spiritual dullness yet once again. I can just imagine Jesus thinking to Himself, “have you not seen what I have done?”, “how can you be such slow learners and forget how I have been there for you in the past and the power that I have put forth for the ones that I love”. God has been great to Paula and I blessing us unimaginably with miracles that we never thought would happen in our lives and in our marriage and with our finances and in many other ways and yet I struggle with worry and disbelief and doubt and anxiousness about His plan for us and what happens next and how we could ever possibly live out the life that I feel like God is calling for us to live in our short time here on earth. Have you forgotten as I the power of the one who lives inside of your heart of hearts and how He has been there for you in the past? Are you a slow learner as well? Do you doubt that God will be here for you this time in the difficult circumstance that you may be facing today? Well, the good news today is that God never changes. He still loves you just as much today as He did in the years past, no matter what you have done or what hole you might have dug yourself into in times of late. If you have indeed accepted Jesus into your heart of hearts and have committed to living your life for Him, then His Spirit is still living inside and the same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead in available to you today if you would only just believe in Him once again. So, it’s okay to be a slow learner as long as you do indeed learn and in the end you lay your worries and anxieties down at the feet of Jesus and let His omnipotent power and unquestionable providence lead and guide you in this life as you just learn to love Him more. Lay it all down today and live your life for the King!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

A Sigh of Grief and Compassion

There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged him to place his hand on the man. After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means, “Be opened!”). At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.

Mark 7:32-25

The prophet Isaiah foretold the coming of Christ in Isaiah 35: 5, 6 when he said: “Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer and the mute tongue shout for joy.” So this miracle was just one of many miracles that proved that Jesus was indeed the Messiah. The interesting thing to me about this passage is the sigh that Jesus takes as he looks up to Heaven for power from the Father to perform the miracle. It could certainly be a sigh of compassion and grief for this man and all that he has suffered as a result of his iniquity. I however read it also as a sigh of grief and compassion for all of the unbelief that exists in the world, a sigh for the brokenness of people’s hearts as a result of being separated from their Creator, a sigh for the realization of what He is about to do to save mankind and to bridge the gap between us and God through His very own death on a cross. I find it encouraging through these stories that it is indeed in brokenness and in pain and suffering that we reach out to Jesus for help, even today. Paula and I had a horrible argument the other evening concerning a friend who is lost and broken and making choices that we had varying opinions on. The next day, feeling the pain and sorrow for words that I said to my wife that should never have been said and can never be taken back, I came to Jesus, on my knees and just wallowed in his unconditional love and grace and asked for healing of the brokenness of my heart that would cause me to speak such selfish words to the love of my life. It was only in this pain and humility that I began to understand again how much God loves me and how much He wants to interact with me every minute of every day through the power of His Spirit in order to protect me from losing my way in this fallen world. So, yesterday, I had the most amazing day with Jesus. I listened to his Spirit as I went about my day doing ordinary things and saw Him work in amazing ways that I hope to tell you about later on in this book. In addition, I had the most awesome conversation with my wife last night as I called her from Dallas – I was actually attentive and my heart longed to be with her as I genuinely missed the beautiful treasure that God has blessed me with to journey together through this crazy life. Bring to Jesus today all of your brokenness and all of your heart and he will meet you and you will be renewed in the power of His beautiful and amazing Spirit that lives inside!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

Crumbs

Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret. In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an evil spirit came and fell at his feet. The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. "First let the children eat all they want," he told her, "for it is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." "Yes, Lord," she replied, "but even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." Then he told her, "For such a reply, you may go; the demon has left your daughter." She went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.

Mark 7:24-30

I can so relate to this woman from Tyre this morning. She was so happy and willing and begging actually to just eat the crumbs off of the floor beneath him of the bread of life that Jesus was offering. By children, Jesus here was referring to the children of Israel, for this woman was not of Jewish decent but rather was Greek and a gentile that was a condemned race at that time. Jesus, acknowledging her position does not make any bones about who she is, where she came from and how unworthy she is to receive such a blessing from Jesus. This lady though, amazingly enough, humbles herself so much that she is willing to take whatever Christ has to offer her, knowing full well that even the crumbs are undeserved and that even the crumbs will be enough to release the demon from her daughter. I long for just the crumbs of what Jesus has to offer me this morning. I feel so undeserving of anything that he has to give as nothing in me is good and nothing that I have to offer is of any worth for His Kingdom. It is only through Him and in Him that any value can be found in my life and it is only as He works in the midst of my weakness that any good can come of my life today.

Jesus – thank you so much for your love and grace and the crumbs of your righteousness and goodness that you offer to all who look your way this morning. Please fill me with your Spirit and somehow use this broken vessel today to make a difference in this world for you. I am nothing without you – I pray that the world would see you today and not me as I strive to learn to love you more!

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****

A Matter of the Heart

Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. Nothing outside a man can make him 'unclean' by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him 'unclean.'" After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable. "Are you so dull?" he asked. "Don't you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him 'unclean'? For it doesn't go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body." (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods "clean.") He went on: "What comes out of a man is what makes him 'unclean.' For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean.'"

Mark 7:14-23

How is your heart? Jesus would argue that you can tell the condition of your heart by the words that you speak, the actions that you take or don’t take and the thoughts that you let consume your mind. So, I ask you again, how is your heart? Well, if you are like me then you may have come to the realization that your heart is broken, that indeed what comes out of it is far from being holy and clean at times. The good news today is that Jesus is in the business of healing and transforming broken hearts! It is the whole reason that He came and died in order that He could heal the brokenness that you have on the inside as a result of this fallen world. Jesus came to restore your relationship with your Creator, first and foremost by bridging the gap of sin that separates you from Him and then ultimately by healing your brokenness in order that you could once again enjoy life and enjoy the presence of God in your life as you learn to love Him ever so much more in the process. So, if indeed you are in need of healing then I would encourage you to ask Jesus, the Master Healer to come in today and to start the process of change and transformation in your life. He is already there, right where you are, waiting for you to ask Him in; wanting to make you whole and new; wanting to be your most intimate friend and lover and Lord and Savior; longing to have His relationship with you restored to the oneness that brings joy and laughter and love and hope; waiting for you to take the first step.

****To post a comment, please click on the "comments" word below - cookies must be enabled on your computer****