Category: Sister Judy (Page 3 of 276)

Jesus knew what it was like to be rejected, but His security and acceptance was found in the Father only. I was reading in John recently that after Jesus cleansed the temple, many people entrusted their lives to Him, but others rejected Him. It says in John 2:25, “But Jesus didn’t entrust His life to them. He knew them inside and out, knew how untrustworthy they were. He didn’t need any help in seeing right through them.“ Jesus was hated by many without any cause though He lived a perfect life.

We are to believe what God says to us about who we are, not what others say about us. He looks beyond the outside and knows what is in our hearts. Do we accept that He says we are His beloved child, or do we continue to go by what the world around us says? The Lord is for us and wants to love and care for us. Like the song says, “Be not dismayed, whate’er betide, God will take care of you! Beneath His wings of love abide, God will take care of you. Lonely and sad from friends apart, God will take care of you! He will give peace to your aching heart, God will take care of you!”

I wonder if I have mentioned to you of the night I was soundly sleeping and woke in the middle of the night, unable to go back to sleep. A message came to me of something that I had never thought of before or considered, and it was a bit puzzling. It still is. At first, I wondered where it was coming from and wanted to ignore it, but yet it was so unexpected and definite. I asked the Lord if I was hearing right, gaving it thought and prayer for three hours. I could not go back to sleep until I said yes to the Lord. Even if I don’t understand the why, I know that when and if He desires, He will let me know. His will is always best!

Later, a friend sent me a message of the story of Samuel as a young boy who heard a voice in the night three times and thought it was Eli calling him. (I Samuel 3) But the priest realized it must be the Lord and told him to answer, “Speak Lord for your servant hears.” Samuel did exactly that and was open and willing to hear what God said.

Sometimes a word may come to us that does not fit our expectations or what we want to hear. But may we be like young Samuel and embrace whatever it is.

       Christmas Light Eternal

In the hush of winter’s night,

A star breaks through the veil of sky,

Guiding hearts with gentle light,

To where Love’s promise will not die.

No gold, no crown, no earthly throne,

Just straw and breath, a manger bare,

Yet Heaven’s gift is fully shown—

God’s own heart, laid open there.

So let the world grow still and hear,

The whisper born in Bethlehem,

That every soul, both far and near,

Is cradled in His diadem.”

 On this Christmas day, may we look beyond the glitter and gifts we will receive and celebrate the greatest gift of all: Jesus and the revelation of His love for us and His presence with us.

1. O what a wonderful, wonderful day, day I will never forget;
After I’d wandered in darkness away, Jesus my Savior I met.
O what a tender, compassionate friend, He met the need of my heart;
Shadows dispelling, with joy I am telling, He made all the darkness depart.

Chorus
Heaven came down and glory filled my soul, (filled my soul)
When at the cross the Savior made me whole; (made me whole)
My sins were washed away and my night was turned to day,
Heaven came down and glory filled my soul! (filled my soul)

2. Born of the Spirit with life from above into God’s family divine,
Justified fully thru Calvary’s love, O what a standing is mine!
And the transaction so quickly was made, when as a sinner I came,
Took of the offer, of grace He did proffer, He saved me, O praise His dear name!

3. Now I’ve a hope that will surely endure after the passing of time;
I have a future in heaven for sure there in those mansions sublime.
And it’s because of that wonderful day, when at the cross I believed;
Riches eternal and blessings supernal, from His precious hand I received.

May you know for certain the joy that comes from knowing the Lord. If you are reading this and have never received Him, on this Christmas Eve day confess your sins and invite Him into your heart. He will wash away all your sins, giving you joy, hope and a future in Heaven.

We can start by recalling what we did to cause the other person to suffer as we try to see it from their perspective. We shouldn’t try to defend or excuse ourselves, but see things from the viewpoint of the one who is hurt and ask for forgiveness so the healing process can begin. The Lord is so full of mercy and pours out His grace to us. We can live this one day at a time. It should just be a regular practice for us to confess our sins and make amends quickly so that we are in tune with the Holy Spirit.

At the end of the day, we can review our day and ask to see it as the Lord sees it. What were the blessings that we can be grateful for? For what things do we need forgiveness? How can we grow and learn from our mistakes? How do we live in peace with ourselves and others? Let us not get discouraged when we blow it, but keep going, keep repenting and confessing, and let the Lord draw us ever closer.

We are given good exhortation from Paul in Gal. 5:16 where he writes, ”So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.” I like how the Message translation says it, “My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness.” Paul goes on to say: we need to chose to be led by the Spirit so as not to live under our erratic compulsions as we try to live whatever we feel like on any given day.

There are times I just say to the Lord, ‘I’m not there yet, as I’m not wanting to do what you ask, but I am saying no to my flesh and will do your will.” I am always glad later, and the good feelings also seem to catch up. Jesus paid the ultimate price of following His Father’s will even to the point of death. He trusted His Father in all that He went through, and the more we trust Him, we will desire His will above ours. Jesus knows and cares about our needs even more than we do, so let us trust Him for what is best and not our flesh!!

Jesus’ way always works, but why do we cling to our own way so often and experience failure and frustration? God’s way is one of faith, and it always works if we are willing to follow through. Every single day we need His help, but we must surrender our way for His. That doesn’t mean that we do the mechanics of it the same way every day, for we can vary how we do things. Our son could stay in his office each morning and have devotions there, but instead he stops at Starbucks about 7 a.m. on his way to the gym to work out. Only before he gets to the gym he parks in a parking lot and watches the sunrise as he has His devotions and prayer time. He says it is his favorite time of the day. Then on to the gym and a work day!

Maybe we feel stuck as we methodically work out our devotional life, but why not try some new things? Some days we could go on a walk as we commune with the Lord or sit out in the woods. I used to occasionally have my quiet time with the Lord in a deer stand when we lived in Brunswick. Things looked so much different up in the tree when my eye was level with the birds. Be creative, and let each day be a fresh experience with the Lord. “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!” (Psalm 118:24)