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Aug

30

Got life?

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Sin is a horrible thing. Both in life and even death, the results of sin will have an immeasurable impact on our lives for we reap what we sow. When an unrepentant man dies, he dies under the weight of his own sin. Who can pardon one’s own accursedness? Certainly, not that man.

But Jesus took all that away. His trip to the cross on our behalf paved the way to life everlasting. Rest assured, when a believer dies, his soul does not decay through death; it remains untarnished. It’s alive—shiny and bright—in the presence of our Redeemer.

 “There is now no condemnation for those who believe” ~ Romans 6:14

 All of God’s faithful, through the redeeming power of Christ, are united with him in life and also death. The first Adam brought death but Christ brought us life. By faith, we are united to Christ, and by his resurrection we are assured of our own. Through the sin of the first Adam, all men became mortal. Through Christ’s resurrection, we have been given immortality.  For us, death means we enter a glorious rest and a new life that is everlasting. Not by our own moral fortitude but through the grace of Messiah Jesus.

 

Aug

24

Where’s your true strength?

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No other stronghold is needed to keep a believer steady in the face of a storm than when we grab a hold of the rock of our salvation—our blessed Lord Jesus. The winds of defeat may rage all around us, but the buffeting blows can only threaten; they cannot take us down.

When a frightened David cried out for protection from the threats of Saul, he said, “You are my Lord…apart from you, I have no good thing.” In the midst of his situation, David knew that through his adversity, the only sure thing to keep him safe was his Lord.

When we place our trust in our Lord’s care, we know that we’ve entered a sacred place amid enemy territory. While the battle rages, we can be as sure as David and say, “My heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure because you will not abandon me…”

There’s nothing that can separate us from the Lord, his love, and his protection. Though our worldly foes—the flesh and the devil—would wish it otherwise, their efforts cannot stand up to the Lord’s plans and purposes for us. Should we go through hard times in the midst of keeping with the Lord, it is all part of his honing and refining to make us into the image of his beloved son. There is nothing to fear.

While on earth, there will be trouble, but Jesus tells us to take heart because he’s overcome the world!

Aug

16

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Sometimes, our efforts to share the gospel feel like we’re just spinning our wheels. Like a laboratory rat, the wheels go round and round, but we see little progress in the lives of those to whom we’ve ministered. We pray for people or lend encouragement, invitations, etc., and yet there is no fruit for our labor.

Yet, the word of God says that when we serve Him out of a pure heart, it is not our job to reap the harvest. That’s the Lord’s doing. When we are committed to the Lord’s work, our labor is never in vain just because we don’t see change. Our job is to continue to sow the seeds of love. The rest is up to the Lord.

When our expectations don’t meet reality, remember that the work we do is for His glory and not our own. All that is done for the Lord is what counts—whatever the perceived outcome.

Encouraging others to love and good deeds should be an extension of our love for Christ as he leads us; otherwise, we may find our spirits dragging and frayed. Our efforts to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ as ministers to others is our joy, for he is the strength of our lives and he lends the ability. God’s plans and purposes are being fulfilled whether we see the results or not. He is still on the throne.

“Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” ~ 1 Corinthians 15:58

Aug

09

A new song

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With the past several months a blur due to the imposed constraints of quarantine and restrictions taking precedence because of a global pandemic, it’s amazing to realize that spring slipped right by and now the calendar says…yikes, August?

While the new breed of “cancel” culture is thriving, so, too, is the Lord thriving. Our local government may mandate closings, but there’s more liberty in the oracles of God than any man can thwart. As believers, nothing has changed for us, only the culture around us. We remain steady in Christ despite our circumstances.

So, with the government’s restrictions slowly being lifted and most of Pennsylvania now in the green zone, we have double the reason to rejoice. May we sing a new song unto the Lord for delivering us from everything—most importantly, our sins through Christ.

Aug

03

What Path are you on?

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Walking down the right path, we can rest assured of our security and safety. Despite the winds of defeat or the storms that buffet, no other anchor is needed to keep a believer’s head above water than holding onto the blessed rock of our salvation, our savior, Jesus.

In Psalm 16, David seeks the Lord and flees to him for protection from the threats of Saul. “You are my Lord,” he says. “Apart from you, I have no good thing.” David’s desire to cling to the Lord through his adversity is an example for believers today. “I will set the Lord continually before me; because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.”

David, like all believers, knew that God was his security and would never leave him. When we walk with the Lord and place our trust in his hands, we can rest knowing that he’s got our backs. “Therefore, my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure because you will not abandon me to the grave (Sheol) nor will you let your holy one see decay.”

On earth, there will be trials but by abiding in God’s word, we will not fall into the pit of destruction nor will we be shaken with every wind of trouble. If we stay on the path he ordains, we can rest in knowing he’s there.

Like David, we, too can say, “You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”

Jul

26

Looking to Jesus

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The world has been— from the beginning of time—a place where man seeks his own predominance. Love of one’s self began in the Garden when the serpent tempted Eve to become a self-seeker and deny God’s commandment. The battle continues today to gain ground when we take our eyes off of Jesus.

Cultural clashing of one group over another is more than ideologies butting up against each other. It’s not just about civil unrest vs. civility, racial fairness vs. inequality. It’s more about man’s idea that he wants to take the reins of power upon himself to live, rule, and dictate toward these same ends. It’s all about domination and dictating as man sees fit and not seeking God in the process. Unless the Lord builds the house, our labors are in vain.

In the midst of cultural warfare, there is but one weapon that needs to be used. It’s God’s truth shared in love. If man were to take his cues from the Almighty and keep his eyes focused on him, there would be no necessity for war, rioting, or societal upheaval.

Jul

19

The right kind of hope

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What do you hope in? To what do you ascribe your faith? Most would say they have faith in things that make them secure. The Hebrew word for faithfulness literally means “firmness”; figuratively, it means “security,” and “fidelity” is the moral definition.

In 2 Thessalonians 3:3, Apostle Paul appeals to the believers and reminds them the Lord is faithful. His promise to us is that he will strengthen and protect his children from the evil one because he is faithful.  He demonstrates this to us in several ways. Through his faithfulness, God not only protects us from evil, he sets limits on our temptations, forgives our sins, and sanctifies us.

While God is faithful to us in various way, our faith in him has different facets as well. There are different ways to ascribe our faith to God:  Faith as belief, faith as commitment, faith in our waiting on God, and faith in him as our refuge. Our whole world can fall apart, but Jesus has said that he will never leave us or forsake us.

God’s faithfulness is the pivot upon which turns his whole purpose for humanity. God calls and then through his goodness leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4; 1 John 1:9). “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

The better we truly know God, the more we will want to put our complete hope and trust in him. God’s children walk by faith and not by sight.

 

 

 

Jul

14

A Quilting of Love

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The magnificent works of the Lord are above and beyond amazing. Can mere words do them justice?

Take a look at nature, the sky, or a flower and marvel at the handiwork of our Lord. If he can be concerned for such things, how much more for you? Remember what the Lord has done for you in the past and his promises for the future. Call back the trials you’ve hurdled, the wounds he’s healed, and the way he’s pardoned all of your iniquities—all because of his loving desire for you. Meditate on how much he loves you and is as close to you as bone is to marrow.

The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaims His handiwork. ~ Psalm 19:1

He weaves a new dawn in the stillness of morning, and prompts the sun to melt the night’s shadows.

He uncovers the buds cut finer than satin, sprouting fresh life in splashes of dew.

His presence is sewn in a sparrow’s song, a trickling riverbed, the hush of a mountain top, while the rocks and hills proclaim His name.

Each moment, His glory enrobes the landscape, a tapestry bountiful as grains of sand.

Jul

06

Different but equal

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All men are created equally by our God. One only has to look at the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights to see that. There will always be racists. But they are ignorant, sad and misguided. One should not be defined by another’s prejudice.

This country has bent over backwards to bring equality to the people. They’ve been a little slow IMHO. Though, sadly, some conflate equal opportunity with equal OUTCOMES. That would be COMMUNISM. Having a better outcome–however you define better–requires personal responsibility here in America. It’s not something the government hands out.

There was a time when equal opportunity was not a factor for all citizens as we all know. That was abominable. But it is no longer. Actually, the scales have been tipped for a long time in favor of minorities. Also wrong. Meritocracy would serve us better as a nation.

One can keep this victimhood alive by promoting this kind of division but it only fuels the fire of racial divide, and the race baiting will continue to exploit and encourage the situation while some folks earn a living from it.

Is there racism in the world? Sure. But should anyone allow another’s ignorance to define them? Bound by injustice or oppression? That is where Jesus should enter the picture and, sadly, people would rather promoted their oppression rather than the healing that comes from Christ.

Bob Woodson of the Woodson Institute, a grassroots effort to bring about healing of races, clearly states that until people stop dividing the races, no healing will ever come about.

Jun

29

Masks: to wear or not to wear?

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Wear a mask! Don’t wear a mask! COVID-19 is a virus; no, it’s a bacteria!

Between the CDC, WHO, OSHA and the word on the street, COVID-19 is the scariest contagion that has come down the pike–ever.  Is it really? Even above SARS, H1N1, and the Spanish flu of 1918?  Enough to stop an economy even? Does an election season in the U.S. have anything to do with the new cultural enemy?

There have been a lot of poignant statements and interesting perspectives recently conveyed about COVID-19, including the  concern regarding the safety and efficacy of masks. Studies on the efficacy vary from clinical trial to outside the laboratory, and much more information is needed to come to any considerable consensus. But one thing has been brought to light.  Now, even mask WEARING has been recognized as having a down side. Breathing in one’s own CO2 is not healthy. While many wish to convince or even convict one to wear a mask, some are unable to; namely, asthmatics, the overweight, and those with breathing issues. The top American organization for occupational safety and hazard (OSHA) cites the following about masks:

• N95 masks: are designed for CONTAMINATED environments. That means when you exhale through N95, the design is that you are exhaling into contamination. The exhale from N95 masks are vented to breathe straight out without filtration. They don’t filter the air on the way out. They don’t need to. Conclusion: if you’re in Target and the guy with Covid has an N95 mask, his Covid breath is unfiltered, being exhaled into Target because it was designed for already contaminated environments, it’s not filtering your air on the way out.

• Surgical Masks: These masks were designed and approved for STERILE environments. The amount of particles and contaminants in the outside and indoor environments are CLOGGING these masks very, VERY quickly. The moisture from your breath combined with the clogged mask will render it useless. IF you come in contact with Covid and your mask traps it, YOU become a walking virus dispenser. Every time you put your mask on, you are breathing the germs from EVERYWHERE you went. They need changing often. The surgical mask is not designed for the outside world and will not filter the virus upon inhaling through it. It’s filtration works on the EXHALE. Like a vacuum bag, it only works one way, but likely stops after 20 minutes, rendering it useless outside of a STERILE ENVIRONMENT.

• CLOTH masks do not filter anything. You mean the American flag one my grandma made? Yes. The one with the flowers that looks so cute? Yes. The old scarf,  cut up t-shirt, the bandana. None offer FILTERING whatsoever. As you exhale, you are ridding your lungs of contaminants and carbon dioxide. Cloth masks trap this carbon dioxide the best. It actually risks your health, rather than protecting it. The moisture caught in these masks can become mildew ridden over night. Dry coughing, enhanced allergies, sore throat are all symptoms of a micro-mold in your mask.Cloth masks are WORSE than none. It’s equivalent to using a chain link fence to stop mosquitoes..

In  researching each mask’s designed use and purpose, there is little if any info on their use in the way of “viral defense.” Some say masks are being used to provide false comfort and push forward a specific agenda. Others believe it’s a measure of social control and is just the beginning test case for a future exercise in tyranny on a bigger scale. Some also say that if masks were important in saving lives, then we should wear them constantly all the time lest someone gets sick by our not doing so.  Where does it end?

Whether you believe masks are for the SICK who have a contagion or not, or you just can’t breathe in one, or if you just don’t buy into the hype or any other reasoning, if so, let each person be subject to one’s own conscience through God’s conviction. For the saved by grace, there should be no fear one way or the other. Are not the number of hairs on our heads known? Likewise, the days of our lives. Will our lives be spared or not spared by the Coronavirus mask or non-mask wearng? Living in fear negates one’s faith. Trusting in the Lord for one’s days is where we should be focused.

There’s a lot of false and inconsistent information circulating, all perpetuated by the media, and to buy into everything is not always prudent, especially if the information changes from day to day.