Simple Thoughts

Celebrating Christmas just a few months ago, remembering the birth of Jesus. The virgin birth, the angels rejoicing, the shepherds being notified. The love of God in human flesh. Fully man and fully God. A Babe on a mission. To save those in need of saving. Me. You. Them. Separation from God. Restoration in our relationship is possible. God’s Divine plan in motion. Jesus lived a perfect life. Was in all points tempted yet never sinned. He gets us.

On this Good Friday, I pray you reflect on Jesus and this great act of love for you poured out at the cross. The gravity of that moment was not lost on me. Praise God He opened my eyes and I cried out to Jesus, “Save me! I repent. I love you. I want You, Jesus.” And in that moment, I became a child of God. The searching, the questioning, the listening all came to a head. And in a single moment, I had a decision to make. If not Him, if not Jesus then my destiny for all eternity would have a different path. Thank you, Jesus.

Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

Planning a trip? Make preparations. Preparing for the arrival of a loved one or a new baby? Make preparations. Getting ready to move? Make preparations. When planned events happen in our lives, we make preparations. We make lists, do research, plan an itinerary. We don’t sit idly by or we won’t be ready.

This week is Holy Week. Those of you celebrating Lent look forward to the end of your 40 day fast. Others enjoy the church services this week focused on Jesus and His final week. No matter the day. No matter the season. No matter the upcoming holiday. As Christians, are we making preparations? For the coming of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Is our eternal destination secured? Have we unpacked and laid our burdens and sins at the cross? Galatians 5:24 “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Have we followed the itinerary already ordained by God through Jesus as the only way? John 14:6 “Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Have we done our research by reading scripture, seeing that we don’t have to “do” anything? Jesus has done it all! Ephesians 2:8-9: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.”

We spend a lifetime making preparations. What about in the life to come? I pray that we all examine our hearts, 2 Corinthians 13:5 “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves” looking to Jesus as the “author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2) and decide today to follow Him.

Wowzer! Growing vegetables is not for the faint of heart or weak in spirit. It takes intentionality, research, determination, physical stamina and heart. I am in no way a gardener. I have tried and failed several times. Why now? My son and daughter-in-law have knowledge and find joy in gardening and it has become infectious. So here I am again, willing to try. Same seeds, more knowledge. More time and a willingness to learn.

How similar is our Christian walk. We come to Christ, to the cross, with nothing. We have laid our sins at His feet and in faith we take a step, then two, then three and so on into our new life in Christ. It takes intentionality, determination, knowledge of our Savior, and a redeemed heart in your walk. As a new Christian, I didn’t know much but I had a willingness to learn. My eyes were opened slowly. Jesus knew what my immature heart could consume, digest and hold onto. Years later, as I have matured in the faith, scriptures become more accessible as I learn how to retrieve them. Yet, I am not satisfied. I continue to want to know more. More of my Savior. More of the Bible and how God’s redemptive plan plays out in this 21st century.

This walk has not been easy. There have been droughts, storms, and periods of growth. Yet through it all, I said “Yes” to Jesus. Even when I didn’t understand. Even when I lost friends. Even when the world around me swirled. I allowed God’s word to drown out my worries, my anxieties, and the noise of the world. Like my plants that are growing under the care of me, the gardener, so too, do we as Christians grow under the watchful care of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.

Colossians 2:6-7 “So then, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in him,  being rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing with gratitude.”

Where do you find quiet time? Nighttime when everyone sleeps? In the early morning before the house wakes? Maybe you find it at midday. No matter when, it is important that we do. Let us silence our phones, close the door to interruptions and find the quiet. It is here you can meet with God. To pray. To ask questions. To make confessions. To search the scriptures. To find answers.

This is your one-on-one time with God. He wants this time with us. It is here we are refreshed, renewed to face the day. Not in our own strength or power but by the leading of the Holy Spirit. Do not think yourself weak when you need to retreat to a quiet place, for it is here you will commune with God. Find food for the soul and nourishment for the spirit.

Colossians 3:5a “So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you.” You know the phrase “lurking in the shadows.” Brings about a negative connotation, paints a sinister picture.

As a Christian, when we re-read Colossians 3:5a, we are reminded that we are human. We still have the ability to sin. We have our “pet” sins lurking within us, waiting to present themselves, ambush us at our weakest moments. It is at that moment that we have a decision to make. Do we pursue “that” sin or do we pursue Christ? Do we allow anger, greed, jealousy, pride, idolatry, lustful pleasures, drunkenness, selfish ambition to rule in our hearts? “The Christian life is not a playground; it is a battleground. And sometimes the hardest battles to win are our inner battles.” Warren Wiersbe

Or, do we fall on our knees and ask for forgiveness, mercy, strength, love and fill our minds with better thoughts. As redeemed children of God, we must rid ourselves of these. But not by our own power. We must surrender our will and submit to God’s authority in our lives. Willingly. Obediently. Happily.

I began this by asking you to be aware of the sin lurking within you. Let me finish by saying be an overcomer because of the Holy Spirit, not lurking, but living inside you. Giving you the victory in your weakest moments.

Rather than focusing on the sin, let us fully saturate our minds with the word of God that we may stand against the “wiles of the devil.” (Ephesians 6:11)

Colossians 3:1-4 “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

I am sitting here this morning, drinking tea and listening to music. It is Sunday so God is first and foremost on my mind as I prepare to meet Him this morning. Praising His name through song and learning more of Him from the pages of scripture as the Pastor brings God’s message.

I sit here reflecting on what has brought me here today. My faith journey. My eyes opened to seeing myself, a sinner, trying to be good, do good, measuring up. But it will never be “enough.” The truth unlocked my heart and my soul rejoiced as I received the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. A journey thus far with trials, joys, disappointments, maturing in the faith. Pressing on each day to learn more about my Savior and Lord.

I sit here thinking of my loved ones, who live like I once did, giving God acknowledgement on Sunday, trying to live that good life to gain acceptance from God and entrance into heaven. I pray for their awakening and a soul revival of coming to Jesus, one life at a time.

I sit here reading verses of hope, faith, belief in God. A covenant keeping God. Trusting in His promises that bring peace to my heart and calm to my life. This is just a few verses from the pages of scripture. If you are searching, are on your own quest to know more of Jesus, dive into the word, open the doors of a church, reach out to a loved one, email me. It is life changing. It is transforming into a new creation that seeks daily to love and know your Savior more and more. A life in Jesus is a life that leads to eternal life.

Acts 4:12 “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

Titus 3:3-6 “At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, “

John 14:2-4 “My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Matthew 7:13-14 ““Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”

Revelation 5:13 “Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying:

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
    be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!”

Philippians 3:20-21 “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”

Family members. Close friends. Your spouse. Yes. They know you well. Your likes, dislikes. Your passions. Your hobbies. Your insecurities. It is nice to be around people who “get” you.

What if I said the One who gets you best is Jesus. The Bible tells us: “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;” (Psalm 139:13-14) He created you in His image. You bear His likeness. As such, we should want to declare and proclaim Jesus in our lives. In our speech, in our words, in our actions. And totally, fully in our heart. Because Jesus knows us, gets us, we should want to know Him. He is the Son of God. He came into this world fully God and fully man. He walked this earth, was in all points tempted yet never sinned. Hebrews 4:14-16: “Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.  Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

He called people to Himself. Calling people to repent of their sins, their idols, their pride, their fallenness and to pick up their cross and follow Him. Luke 9:23 “Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” Because of Jesus, we can walk in newness of life. Because of Jesus, when we confess our sins and put our faith and trust in Him, as the Son of God and His finished work on the cross, we can lay aside our burdens and “let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” (Hebrews 12:1). Let us pursue Him with our whole heart. Our life.

Jesus gets you because He created you. Do you know Jesus? Do you know your Redeemer, Sustainer, Provider, Savior and Lord?

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Jenny and Tom * were neighbors of ours. After we moved, we soon found out they had separated. What seemed like a happy family, was turned upside down by sin. We were saddened to hear this and lifted them up in prayer. Seeing them occasionally, independent of each other, we were a listening ear. Fast forward to this morning, 5 years later. On our walk, we took a route we don’t normally take and we ran into Jenny and Tom, walking together. A divine appointment. We exchanged pleasantries and as our walk resumed, we praised God for allowing us to see this healed relationship.

Romans 5:6 “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners.”

Thank you for the cross. For through Jesus, we can have reconciliation with God. Romans 4: 24b-25 “assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.” And in the love of Christ, though the leading of the Holy Spirit, we can reconcile with one another.

Romans 5:10-11 “For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.”

* not their real names

Lent begins today. Growing up Catholic, we went to church, received the ashes and decided what we were going to “give up.” The sacrifice would be for 40 days. Easter, the celebration of our Living Sacrifice, Jesus, conquering death and the grave.

What if, instead of “giving up” we focused on “giving in.” Giving in to God’s word and reading it daily. Giving in to God’s commands and submitting to His authority in our lives. Giving in to allowing God to rule in our hearts. Give in to Jesus this Lenten season. Allow His peace, His perfect peace that surpasses all understanding, lay hold of your heart as you rest in Him.

Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Chaos and deception began in the garden. Eve was given new information, lies from Satan and her mind was swirling. She did not know who to believe. Adam had walked with God and taught Eve directly from God. Now, Satan was twisting God’s truth, making them half-truths. It sounded appealing to Eve, just as the fruit appealed to her senses.

Genesis 3:1 “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?”

In today’s culture, as a Christian, we need to make sure the truths we are hearing from our pastors, teachers and evangelists are truths from God’s word. Not half-truths. Not a message that is watered down, sugary and pleasing to the ears. Otherwise, chaos will ensue.

2 Timothy 4:2-4 “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,  and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”

Let us be on guard against the lies, deception and chaos that makes Satan happy.

Jude 18-19 ““In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions. It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.”

We are told to guard our hearts and minds. To mature in the faith. Plug in to truth in scripture bible studies. Open God’s word and directly learn from Him.

Jude 24-25 “Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy,  to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.”

Let the peace of God rule in your hearts that we may share the love of Christ with the world that they may not be deceived.