Month: May 2024 (Page 1 of 4)

Hope you wake to a day of peace. Today I will be going to my exercise class (much needed since I missed walking yesterday and have had rich desserts), craft class, and Bible study.  After our company yesterday our grandson came, and he cleaned up the leftovers. 

  Because a person is a Christian doesn’t mean we will just naturally get along, but we may need to work at it; Paul gives some good pointers in Ephesians 4 as to how to stay unified. It made me think of our past mission teams to Mexico as we traveled many miles in the church van together, did ministry and then a long trip home again. We had to not focus on what we wanted but what was good for the whole. Some team members were easier to get along with and a few might have been challenging for the whole team. Paul tells us to have humility and “steadily pour ourselves out for each other in acts of love, alert at noticing differences and quick at mending fences.” He goes on to say we need to all grow up and keep in step with one another and be permeated with Oneness. He encourages us to use the gifts we were given and let God reproduce His character in us.

 Paul also warns us against lying to each other and to be truth tellers instead, saying what would help them. We are to be gentle and sensitive to one another and watch out for back biting. Yes, we may get angry with one another, but we aren’t to stay that way but quick to make amends. What Paul is telling the people is not just for them but also for us today, whether it be with others at church or our family members, to remember we are on the same team with an awesome destination. Let us not make it harder for them but use our gifts to encourage them. Who knows, they may be ushered into heaven first and will one day reach out to welcome us into our eternal glory.

Eugene Peterson writes how David was anointed to be king while Saul reigned, but it wasn’t until 20 years later that he actually ruled and reigned as king. In the meantime, he learned how to rule with a servant’s heart How about us? What does our work reveal about us? Does it express our values and convictions, or do we do we hide behind our role and present ourselves as how we think others want to see us in a certain way? Some employees are shocked when they see their boss at a Christian rally as they had no idea that they knew the Lord. That doesn’t say much for their everyday behavior at work. Peterson writes, “The place in which God’s purposes are developed in our lives is a workplace in which we learn how to do king work.”  The way we do our work is equally important as the work we actually do. That includes being the CEO or being a housewife.

If we are to finish well in life, we need to be aware of the Lord in whatever work we do and do it for His glory. Our work should stand as a witness to others as to who reigns in our lives. Each day God desires that our work will develop our character and express His love. As it says in Isaiah 60:1 (Amplified), “Arise (from the depression and prostration in which circumstances have kept you—rise to a new life)! Shine (be radiant with the glory of the Lord), for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you!”

When we know the Lord things can change in our lives. In many instances where there has been no fruit, we are noticeably transformed as we receive God’s love pouring into our hearts. It is not wise to give up hope not only ourselves but others also. It may be hard to even picture a grumpy, negative person who is transformed into a person of joy, but the Lord is in the business of changing hearts and fruit results! We all can change but not by gritting our teeth and trying harder but by surrendering to the Lord and letting Him make us new. As Jesus said in John 15:16, You didn’t choose me, remember, I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won’t spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, He gives you.” Let us be fruit bearing and may it show up in loving actions and spiritual growth in our lives etc.

God values each one of us and He takes the broken parts of our lives and makes us new. We need to give him our fears, our failures, our wounds so that life-changing things can begin to happen. We all have been wounded but we also have wounded others, so the key is forgiveness. We are called to forgive others, even as the Lord has forgiven us. If we live close to the center of God’s love, we will discover who God made us to be and desire to give up our selfish ways to find our true life and fruitfulness in the Lord.

As we pray and reach out to win others, a good place to start is in our own neighborhoods. It may simply begin with inviting them for coffee and getting acquainted and then maybe even a neighborhood outdoor picnic. We can ask the Lord how we might pray for them and then follow with acts of kindness as led. If they commit their lives to the Lord, we can follow up on them and help them grow by having a Bible study etc. Our church once had a period of several weeks where we prayed for unsaved neighbors and then invited them to a service where the way of salvation was made clear. We prayed for our unchurched neighbor and yet were so wonderfully surprised when she accepted the invitation, which we knew was only a result of prayers.

Of course, we don’t need to stop by just praying for our neighbors but gather with others to pray for our churches, our cities, and our nation. Jesus told us in Luke 18:1 to pray always and not lose heart.”