When he arrived, he saw a great crowd waiting. He felt sorry for them...So he began to teach them many things. ( Mark 6:34)
When Jesus lands on the shore of Bethsaida, he leaves the Sea of Galilee and steps into a sea of humanity. Keep in mind, he has crossed the sea to get away from the crowds. He needs to grieve. He longs to relax with his followers. He needs anything but another crowd of thousands to teach and heal. But his love for people overcomes his need for rest....
Many of those he healed would never say " thank you," but he healed them anyway. Most would be more concerned with being healthy than being holy, but he healed them anyway. Some of those who asked for bread today would cry for his blood a few months later, but he healed them anyway.... He had compassion on them.
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
My Peace
My Peace is the treasures: the pearl of great price. It is an exquisitely costly gift, both for the Giver and the receiver. I have purchased this peace for you with My blood. You receive this gift by trusting Me in the midst of life's storms. If you have the world's peace-everything going your way-you don't seek My unfathomable Peace. Thank Me when things do not go your way, because spiritual blessings come wrapped in trials. Adverse circumstances are normal in a fallen world. Expect them each day. Rejoice in the face of hardship, for I have overcome the world.
Matthew 13:46, James 1:2, and John 16:33
Matthew 13:46, James 1:2, and John 16:33
God of Life
A few winters ago, my hometown experienced an unusually long blast of bone-chilling temperatures that finally gave way to the warmer weather of spring. For two weeks straight, the outside thermometer dipped well below the sub-zero degree mark ( -20 C; -5 F).
On one particularly bitter cold morning, the sound of chirping birds broke the silence of night. Dozens, if not hundreds, sang their hearts out. If I didn't know any better, I could have sworn the little creatures were crying out to their Creator to please warm things up!
Bird experts tell us that the multitude of birdsongs we hear during late winter mornings are mostly male birds, attempting to attract mates and claim their territories. Their chirping reminded me that God fine-tuned His creation to sustain and flourish life-because He is a God of life.
In a psalm that marvels at God's flourishing earth, the author begins, " Let all that I am praise the Lord." He went on to write, " The birds of the sky nest by the waters; they sing among the branches."
From the singing and nesting birds to a vast ocean " teeming with creatures beyond number," we see reasons to praise the Creator for the lengths He's gone to ensure that all of life thrives.
Thank God for the world He has made. List the parts of His creation that You especially enjoy. Thank Him for them one by one.
He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
On one particularly bitter cold morning, the sound of chirping birds broke the silence of night. Dozens, if not hundreds, sang their hearts out. If I didn't know any better, I could have sworn the little creatures were crying out to their Creator to please warm things up!
Bird experts tell us that the multitude of birdsongs we hear during late winter mornings are mostly male birds, attempting to attract mates and claim their territories. Their chirping reminded me that God fine-tuned His creation to sustain and flourish life-because He is a God of life.
In a psalm that marvels at God's flourishing earth, the author begins, " Let all that I am praise the Lord." He went on to write, " The birds of the sky nest by the waters; they sing among the branches."
From the singing and nesting birds to a vast ocean " teeming with creatures beyond number," we see reasons to praise the Creator for the lengths He's gone to ensure that all of life thrives.
Thank God for the world He has made. List the parts of His creation that You especially enjoy. Thank Him for them one by one.
He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
Monday, January 22, 2018
Jesus Calling
I want you to be all mine. I am weaning you from other dependencies. Your security rests in Me alone-not in other people, not in circumstances. Depending only on Me may feel like walking on a tightrope, but there is a safety net underneath: the everlasting arms. So don't be afraid of falling. Instead, look ahead to Me. I am always before you, beckoning you on-one step at a time. Neither height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, can separate you from My loving Presence.
( Deuteronomy 33:27) ( Romans 8:39)
( Deuteronomy 33:27) ( Romans 8:39)
The Reachable Jesus
He remembered us when we were in trouble. His love continues forever. ( Psalm 136:23)
God chose to reveal himself through a human body.
The tongue that called forth the dead was a human one. The hand that touched the leper had dirt under its nails. The feet upon which the woman wept were calloused and dusty. And his tears...oh, don't miss the tears...they came from a heart as broken as yours or mine ever has been.
So, people came to him. My, how they came to him! They came at night; they touched him as he walked down the street; they followed him around the sea; they invited him into their homes and placed their children at his feet. Why? Because he refused to be a statue in a cathedral or a priest in an elevated pulpit. He chose instead to be a touchable, approachable, reachable Jesus.
God chose to reveal himself through a human body.
The tongue that called forth the dead was a human one. The hand that touched the leper had dirt under its nails. The feet upon which the woman wept were calloused and dusty. And his tears...oh, don't miss the tears...they came from a heart as broken as yours or mine ever has been.
So, people came to him. My, how they came to him! They came at night; they touched him as he walked down the street; they followed him around the sea; they invited him into their homes and placed their children at his feet. Why? Because he refused to be a statue in a cathedral or a priest in an elevated pulpit. He chose instead to be a touchable, approachable, reachable Jesus.
It's in the Attitude
Regina drove home from work discouraged and tired. The day had started with tragic news in a text message from a friend, then spiraled downward in meetings with co-workers who refused to work with any of her ideas. As Regina was talking to the Lord, she thought it best to put the stress of the day aside and made a surprise visit with some flowers to an elderly friend at a care center. Her spirits lifted as Maria shared how good the Lord was to her. She said, " I have my own bed and a chair, three meals a day, and help from the nurses here. And occasionally God sends a cardinal to my window just because He knows I love them and He loves me."
Attitude. Perspective. As the saying goes, " Life is 10 percent what happens to us and 90 percent how we react to it." The people James wrote to were scattered because persecution, and he asked them to consider their perspective about difficulties. He challenged them with these words: " Consider it pure joy...whenever you face trials of many kinds." We are each on our own journey of learning to trust God with hard circumstances. The kind of joy-filed perspective James talked about comes as we learn to see that God can use strugglers to produce maturity in our faith.
Lord, please change my attitude about hard times. Bring about joy, perseverance, and maturity in me.
God can bring times of growth out of our times of heartache.
Attitude. Perspective. As the saying goes, " Life is 10 percent what happens to us and 90 percent how we react to it." The people James wrote to were scattered because persecution, and he asked them to consider their perspective about difficulties. He challenged them with these words: " Consider it pure joy...whenever you face trials of many kinds." We are each on our own journey of learning to trust God with hard circumstances. The kind of joy-filed perspective James talked about comes as we learn to see that God can use strugglers to produce maturity in our faith.
Lord, please change my attitude about hard times. Bring about joy, perseverance, and maturity in me.
God can bring times of growth out of our times of heartache.
Saturday, January 20, 2018
My Help!
For decades the renowned Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir has blessed multitudes through their soul-refreshing gospel songs. One example is their recording from Psalm 121 titled " My Help."
Psalm 121 begins with a personal confession of faith in the Lord who brought all things into existence, and He was the source of the psalmist's help. Just what did this mean? Stability, around-the-clock care, constant presence and protection, and preservation from all kinds of evil for time and eternity.
Taking their cues from Scripture, God's people through the ages have identified the Lord as their source of " help" through their songs. My own worship experience includes lifting my voice with others who sang a soulful rendition of Charles Wesley's, " Father, I stretch my hands to Thee, no other help I know; if thou withdraw Thyself from me, Ah! wither shall I go." The great reformer Martin Luther got it right when he penned the words, " A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing; our helper He amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing."
Do you feel alone, forsaken, abandoned, confused? Ponder the lyrics of Psalm 121. Allow these words to fill your soul with faith and courage. You're not alone, so don't try to do life on your own. Rather, rejoice in the earthly and eternal care of God as demonstrated in the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ. And whatever the next steps, take them with His help.
Father, how grateful we are that scripture and song remind us that You are our source of help. Help me to not forget that this day.
The Maker of the universe is the helper of God's people!
Psalm 121 begins with a personal confession of faith in the Lord who brought all things into existence, and He was the source of the psalmist's help. Just what did this mean? Stability, around-the-clock care, constant presence and protection, and preservation from all kinds of evil for time and eternity.
Taking their cues from Scripture, God's people through the ages have identified the Lord as their source of " help" through their songs. My own worship experience includes lifting my voice with others who sang a soulful rendition of Charles Wesley's, " Father, I stretch my hands to Thee, no other help I know; if thou withdraw Thyself from me, Ah! wither shall I go." The great reformer Martin Luther got it right when he penned the words, " A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing; our helper He amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing."
Do you feel alone, forsaken, abandoned, confused? Ponder the lyrics of Psalm 121. Allow these words to fill your soul with faith and courage. You're not alone, so don't try to do life on your own. Rather, rejoice in the earthly and eternal care of God as demonstrated in the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ. And whatever the next steps, take them with His help.
Father, how grateful we are that scripture and song remind us that You are our source of help. Help me to not forget that this day.
The Maker of the universe is the helper of God's people!
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