Tag: God

Advent Reflection: As We Watch and We Wait as We Anticipate and Expect, What Exactly Are We Doing Anyway? James 3:13-18

James 3:13-18 The Message

Live Well, Live Wisely

13-16 Do you want to be counted wise, to build a reputation for wisdom? Here’s what you do: Live well, live wisely, live humbly. It’s the way you live, not the way you talk, that counts. Mean-spirited ambition isn’t wisdom. Boasting that you are wise isn’t wisdom. Twisting the truth to make yourselves sound wise isn’t wisdom. It’s the furthest thing from wisdom—it’s animal cunning, devilish plotting. Whenever you’re trying to look better than others or get the better of others, things fall apart and everyone ends up at the others’ throats.

17-18 Real wisdom, God’s wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others. It is gentle and reasonable, overflowing with mercy and blessings, not hot one day and cold the next, not two-faced. You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

According to 1 Kings 3 in the Bible, In a dream, a young new King Solomon was told by God that he could ask for anything he wanted, and he would receive it.

He is given what amounts to a “blank check” signed, guaranteed 100%, by God.

Instead of asking for a long life, riches, popularity, or power, Solomon asked for wisdom – he understood that the “wisdom that comes from heaven” is the one thing we need more than anything else if we are to be what God wants us to be.

According to our reading from the third chapter of James for today, wisdom is not some intellectual pursuit or intellectual gift that makes us more intelligent.

True wisdom does not come from a high I.Q. or from high scores on high school aptitude tests or college entrance exams.

True wisdom is a gift from God, given to help us live life as God expects us to.

It is the kind of wisdom that literally effects every area of our everyday lives.

Says James,

“The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.”

As we eagerly or not so eagerly watch and we wait, as we anticipate and expect the world around us to either fly apart at the seams or for our Savior’s second Advent, which ever one comes first, this is the #1 wisdom each one of us needs.

Putting our faith into practice, hearing God’s Word, speaking and teaching God’s Word and doing it, begins with asking God for his wisdom (James 1:5).

James 1:5-8 The Message

5-8 If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You’ll get his help, and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, and ask believingly, without a second thought. People who “worry their prayers” are like wind-whipped waves. Don’t think you’re going to get anything from the Master that way, adrift at sea, keeping all your options open.

Without praying for our “blank check” we can’t be what God wants us to be.

Wait for God.

Anticipate God

Expect God.

Listen for God.

Hear God.

Be mindful of God.

Pray for the presence of the Holy Spirit to help you experience as King Solomon had those thousands of years ago -“the wisdom that comes to us from heaven.”

Why? Because It Is God’s Wisdom Our World Needs!

James 3:13-18 Easy-to-Read Version

True Wisdom

13 Are there any among you who are really wise and understanding? Then you should show your wisdom by living right. You should do what is good with humility. A wise person does not boast. 14 If you are selfish and have bitter jealousy in your hearts, you have no reason to boast. Your boasting is a lie that hides the truth.  15 That kind of “wisdom” does not come from God. That “wisdom” comes from the world. It is not spiritual. It is from the devil. 16 Where there is jealousy and selfishness, there will be confusion and every kind of evil. 17 But the wisdom that comes from God is like this: First, it is pure. It is also peaceful, gentle, and easy to please. This wisdom is always ready to help people who have trouble and to do good for others. This wisdom is always fair and honest. 18 People who work for peace in a peaceful way get the blessings that come from right living.

Considering our education system, listening to what is being “taught” to the children as the truth, it is incredibly easy to confuse wisdom and intelligence.

If someone allegedly has all the right answers and an encyclopedic knowledge of seemingly every subject known to man, and particularly of Bible verses, we may be prone to assume that they are wise — and they each very well could be.

But equally true is that they may well not be, for raw intellectual ability and the capacity to retain a vast number of facts don’t necessarily equate with wisdom.

In his epistle, the author James correctly links wisdom not with just knowledge alone but also with good conduct and meekness.

The one who is truly wise in God’s sight will act in a way that accords with the humility (Philippians 2:3-4), gentleness (Ephesians 4:2), joy (1 Thessalonians 5:16) that God asks of His people.

God, who needs no counselor (Romans 11:34), doesn’t need us either to impress Him with what we know or with what we want other people to believe we know.

God tells us what draws His appreciative gaze is the man or woman, girl or boy, who is “humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word” (Isaiah 66:1-2).

Isaiah 66:1-2 English Standard Version

The Humble and Contrite in Spirit

66 Thus says the Lord:
“Heaven is my throne,
    and the earth is my footstool;
what is the house that you would build for me,
    and what is the place of my rest?
2 All these things my hand has made,
    and so all these things came to be,
declares the Lord.
But this is the one to whom I will look:
    he who is humble and contrite in spirit
    and trembles at my word.

James has a memorable phrase for this approach to ourselves and to life:

“the meekness of wisdom.”

A genuinely wise person knows exactly how much they will never know.

They know that however much they come to know, it is only ever going to be a tiny portion, miniscule fraction, of the vastness of the knowledge that God has.

Intelligence marked by wisdom will not be polluted by our showy displays of grandiose verbosity or railroad others with “gold medal” intellectual vigor.

Instead, such a measure of wisdom will be marked by a kingly humility which will always aim to build others up with whatever we have—be that physical, or intellectual, spiritual, or emotional strength.

Wisdom echoes the prophet Isaiah, who acknowledged, “The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary” (Isaiah 50:4).

Isaiah 50:4-9 Easy-to-Read Version

God’s Servant Depends on God

4 The Lord God gave me the ability to teach, so now I teach these sad people. Every morning he wakes me and teaches me like a student. 5 The Lord God helps me learn, and I have not turned against him. I will not stop following him. 6 I will let those people beat me and pull the hair from my beard. I will not hide my face when they say bad things to me and spit at me. 7 The Lord God will help me, so the bad things they say will not hurt me. I will be strong. I know I will not be disappointed.

8 God is with me, and he is the one who shows that I am innocent. So no one can say I am guilty. If anyone wants to try to prove me wrong, they should come here, and we will have a trial. 9 But look, the Lord God helps me, so no one can prove me guilty. As for them, they will all be like worthless old clothes, eaten by moths.

The truly wise maintain a high view of God, a sober view of themselves, and a generous view of other people.

How do I know if I have a high view of God?

If I am constantly aware of just how much I depend on Him for everything.

How will I know if I have a sober view of myself?

If I admit I am aware of my own shortcomings and understand that all I have is only what I have received from God—if by my own public and private lifestyle, if I am in the habit of pointing away from myself instead of towards myself.

How do I know if I have a generous view of other people?

If I am routinely building them up instead of cutting them down.

This is the sort of wisdom from above which pleases God, which the world so desperately needs from you and me—a gentle yet strong expression of wisdom that demonstrates itself in our speech, good conduct and consistent meekness.

As we watch and we wait, just how does this not so eagerly challenge us today?

As we go about our daily affairs waiting for Christmas, waiting for the promise of a new and we pray a better year ahead, how does God’s wisdom challenge us?

As we anticipate and expect How does this, will this, challenge us tomorrow?

How will will either of us eagerly pursue living with this true wisdom today?

In the name of God, the Father, and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 24 New International Version

Psalm 24

Of David. A psalm.

1 The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it,
    the world, and all who live in it;
2 for he founded it on the seas
    and established it on the waters.

3 Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord?
    Who may stand in his holy place?
4 The one who has clean hands and a pure heart,
    who does not trust in an idol
    or swear by a false god.[a]

5 They will receive blessing from the Lord
    and vindication from God their Savior.
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,
    who seek your face, God of Jacob.[b][c]

7 Lift up your heads, you gates;
    be lifted up, you ancient doors,
    that the King of glory may come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
    The Lord strong and mighty,
    the Lord mighty in battle.
9 Lift up your heads, you gates;
    lift them up, you ancient doors,
    that the King of glory may come in.
10 Who is he, this King of glory?
    The Lord Almighty—
    he is the King of glory.

Lord, our God, Author of all life, Giver of every good and perfect gift, grant us our portion of your wisdom to help us understand your Word and to live by it every day. Guide us into peaceful, wise living that shows your love. In Jesus name, Amen.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Advent Reflection: A Mighty God And Hardships, Peace of God in the Chaos. John 16:31-33

John 16:31-33The Message

31-33 Jesus answered them, “Do you finally believe? In fact, you’re about to make a run for it—saving your own skins and abandoning me. But I’m not abandoned. The Father is with me. I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world.”

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

I Will Lift Up My Eyes Praying for Peace in the Chaos

“If there is really a God you want me to believe in, why then is there always so much chaos, trouble everywhere we look, why doesn’t God just take it away?”

Standing in a super market check out line getting my groceries for the week, I got into a line where the customer ahead of me was trying to engage the clerk.

Her message was a simple one in this Christmas season – Happy Holidays and of course, Merry Christmas – but the cashier responded – not in my streets, not in my neighborhood, not in my city where I always read about someone killed.

The cashier’s experience was obviously very different and was far more tragic.

She then told the customer ahead of me that her neighbors son was just killed by someone- yet to be caught – who walked up to that teenager and shot him.

A Christmas Season now checkered, now colored, by that worst kind of chaos – the loss of a son who was out trying to shop for a Christmas gift for his mom.

Pick up any local newspaper, watch any local news channel, turn on your own computer or iPad or Smartphone and that kind of news is literally everywhere.

Your own life is moving along at its own good pace, in its own good place, in a state of relative peace and quiet and tranquility – then comes the belly buster.

The reality that not all is well, not all is peaceful, not “kosher in their kitchen!”

Things go real somber, sullen and quiet in your own heart in a real big hurry.

Just how fast can peace, joy and the good life life turn on the proverbial dime?

How fast can it turn into something we want to throw away as far as we can?

How does this truth color and checker our own Christmas experience realizing that the person or the people we encounter directly in front of us, the silent and quiet ones, are those whose place of peace, joy and goodwill is now, shattered?

Stop, and think about that today as you go about your day at work or in school.

As you smile, please quietly reflect, fervently pray for those who pass you by.

Reflect on today’s verse from the Gospel of John Chapter 16 verse 33, perhaps making a substantial effort to memorize it and then mightily pray it forward:

John 16:33 Amplified Bible

33 I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have [perfect] peace. In the world you have tribulation and distress and suffering, but be courageous  [be confident, be undaunted, be filled with joy]; I have overcome the world.” [My conquest is accomplished, My victory abiding.]

Pray it forward for the people on the highways and the streets you drive on as you go to work, or go to school, or go to the supermarket and get your groceries, for the strangers on the stores and in the streets, as you watch that daily news.

Keeping in mind that Jesus never promised His followers the absence of trouble.

Nowhere in any of His Gospel narratives does He teach to us, preach to us, that as a result of His coming, dying, rising, and ascending, the world is going to be that more peaceful place or that our place in it is going to be more comfortable.

In TRUTH, what He says to us is this: “In the world you will have tribulation.”

Sometimes we desperately want to import to now that which is promised only for then—that is, for the eternal future of peace of which Christ has assured us.

We might want to claim only for ourselves, just for today all those promises—of God, all the blessed assurances of Jesus’ salvation – wealth, healing, or absence of tribulation—that God intends to bring into fruition during the age to come.

Except, there is an important caveat which Jesus’ commanded us not to ignore:

John 10:11-18 Easy-to-Read Version

11 “I am the good shepherd, and the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. 12 The worker who is paid to keep the sheep is different from the shepherd. The paid worker does not own the sheep. So when he sees a wolf coming, he runs away and leaves the sheep alone. Then the wolf attacks the sheep and scatters them. 13 The man runs away because he is only a paid worker. He does not really care for the sheep.

14-15 “I am the shepherd who cares for the sheep. I know my sheep just as the Father knows me. And my sheep know me just as I know the Father. I give my life for these sheep. 16 I have other sheep too. They are not in this flock here. I must lead them also. They will listen to my voice. In the future there will be one flock and one shepherd.[a] 17 The Father loves me because I give my life. I give my life so that I can get it back again. 18 No one takes my life away from me. I give my own life freely. I have the right to give my life, and I have the right to get it back again. This is what the Father told me.”

There are a few others who are standing in front of us, working right next to us, driving and walking right by us, shopping in the same stores as us, in front of us in the super market check out lines, behind the cash registers serving our needs.

We do not know their stories, we are not privy to their lives at home or at work.

We know they have their stories, and blessed assurance, Jesus knows them all!

Yes, His kingdom has broken into our world with the advent of Christ.

But you, me, we, and all of those people around us, still await its full benefits.

And we “leave someone, their “known but to God” story behind, not prayed for?

And if we make the mistake of thinking that God has promised us today what He has in fact only promised us in eternity, then we will certainly be disappointed, and we will run the risk of turning our backs on Him on the basis that we did not pray for and deliver, He did not deliver what He had never actually promised us.

But though like Jesus taught in that Upper Room to His disciples, we can expect to encounter trouble and tribulation right now simply because we follow Jesus as our King, we’ll pray for others, we still have hope for true peace in this world.

Apostle Paul writes, “Since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1, emphasis added).

This is a peace with God that we can claim now as our own.

This is a peace with God we can, always should be, fervently praying forward.

For us and all of those who are around us, it is ultimate freedom from the fear of judgment and death, from recrimination, and from all the dredging up of all the vileness that Christ has already – once and forever – 100% dealt with at Calvary.

The true gospel is the “good news of peace through Jesus Christ” (Acts 10:36).

We still have trials.

We will groan, suffer under the weight of sin—both our own and that of others.

But in the good news of the gospel we have a true and steady peace, even in turbulent times.

“Let not your hearts be troubled,” says Jesus, “neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27).

We may not feel like it’s true today, but the #1 unchangeable truth remaining is our Lord and Savior Jesus has already overcome the world and all its troubles.

We await His second Advent, the day is not yet here when He will dry all the tears from your eyes, but you can know that that day will arrive, for there is nothing in all of the world that can prevent Jesus bringing His final victory.

In the meantime, you can know, we can know, you and I can share, we can pray it forward at every kingdom opportunity that Jesus always stands with you and me and everybody else, by His Holy Spirit, no matter what “trouble” meets us.

What tribulation faces you today?

What tribulation do we not face but others directly in from of us, assuredly do?

Be sure that Jesus is with you in it and that Jesus will bring you through it—that Jesus will bring them through it too for He has overcome the world! Take heart!

1. Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
born of his Spirit, washed in his blood.
Refrain:
This is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long;
this is my story, this is my song,
praising my Savior all the day long.

2. Perfect submission, perfect delight,
visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
angels descending bring from above
echoes of mercy, whispers of love.
(Refrain)

3. Perfect submission, all is at rest;
I in my Savior am happy and blest,
watching and waiting, looking above,
filled with his goodness, lost in his love.
(Refrain)

Blessed Assurance Text: Fanny J. Crosby, 1820-1915

This IS My Story: Blessed Assurance Jesus Is Mine

In that Upper Room, Jesus told the disciples that he, and they, would suffer.

And, even though the disciples would experience mourning and pain after Jesus’ death, the Holy Spirit would be sent, would come to comfort them.

Ultimately, the disciples’ peace would be in Christ; a peace which is eternal.

The unavoidable truth is that we all have trouble in this life, Christian or not.

But we also have a Mighty God who in the beginning spoke, brought order from the chaos, light from the darkness, creation from the great void of nothingness, who is with us-with that sacred and blessed assurance we are to be courageous, encouraged, no matter what we face as our #1 hope is Jesus who has overcome.

We can be at peace, can face anything; as we too have overcome because of Him.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 16 Easy-to-Read Version

A miktam of David.

16 Protect me, God, because I depend on you.
2 Some of you[a] have said to the Lord,
    “You are my Lord.
    Every good thing I have comes from you.”
3 But you have also said about the gods[b] of this land,
    “They are my powerful gods.
    They are the ones who make me happy.”

4 But those who worship other gods will have many troubles.
    I will not share in the gifts of blood they offer to their idols.
    I will not even say their names.
5 Lord, you give me all that I need.
    You support me.
    You give me my share.
6 My share[c] is wonderful.
    My inheritance[d] is very beautiful.
7 I praise the Lord because he taught me well.
    Even at night he put his instructions deep inside my mind.[e]

8 I always remember that the Lord is with me.[f]
    He is here, close by my side,
    so nothing can defeat me.
9 So my heart and soul will be very happy.
    Even my body will live in safety,
10 because you will not leave me in the place of death.
    You will not let your faithful one rot in the grave.
11 You will teach me the right way to live.
    Just being with you will bring complete happiness.
    Being at your right side will make me happy forever.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Advent Reflection: “Listen to What I Say; Praying for Peace Everywhere!” But Can We Each Really Pray Without Ceasing? 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Easy-to-Read Version

16 Always be full of joy. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Whatever happens, always be thankful. This is how God wants you to live in Christ Jesus.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

On my mind exactly right now is the word ‘Peace.’

Heavy on my soul exactly right now is the phrase: “Pray for Peace Everywhere!”

As I am allowing that phrase to weave in and out of my conscience, the words and music to my favorite Advent/Christmas Hymn start playing – calming me.

Do You Hear What I Hear? Song by Bing Crosby

Do you hear what I hear?

Said the night wind to the little lamb
Do you see what I see?
(Do you see what I see?)
Way up in the sky, little lamb
Do you see what I see?
(Do you see what I see?)
A star, a star, dancing in the night
With a tail as big as a kite
With a tail as big as a kite

Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy
Do you hear what I hear?
(Do you hear what I hear?)
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy
Do you hear what I hear?
(Do you hear what I hear?)

A song, a song high above the trees
With a voice as big as the sea
With a voice as big as the sea

Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king
Do you know what I know? (Do you know what I know?)
In your palace warm, mighty king
Do you know what I know? (Do you know what I know?)

A Child, a Child shivers in the cold
Let us bring him silver and gold
Let us bring him silver and gold

Said the king to the people everywhere
Listen to what I say! (Listen to what I say!)
Pray for peace, people, everywhere
Listen to what I say! (Listen to what I say!)
The Child, the Child sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light
He will bring us goodness and light

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Noel Regney / Gloria Shayne

Do You Hear What I Hear? lyrics © Regent Music Corp., Jewel Music Publishing Co. Inc.

“Said the king to the people everywhere …”

“Listen to what I say! Listen to what I say!

“Pray for Peace, people everywhere …!”

Psalm 85:8 Easy-to-Read Version

8 I heard what the Lord God said.
    He said there would be peace for his people and his loyal followers.
    So they must not go back to their foolish way of living.

Psalm 85:8 Names of God Bible

8 I want to hear what El Yahweh says,
    because he promises peace to his people, to his godly ones.
        But they must not go back to their stupidity.

Well, I definitely want to hear what El Yahweh says, because I definitely want to live long enough to bear witness to the works of El Yahweh achieving His Peace.

Because I want to live long enough to bear witness to El Yahweh’s fulfillment of this great promise of His Perfect Peace to His imperfect people, His Godly ones!

Because I am, as so many other of His people are, so utterly tired of stupidity!

And it goes without saying, that El Yahweh, is utterly fed up with our stupidity!

Getting away from our stupidity to that place of perfect peace with El Yahweh is admittedly a onerous task, an impossible for us to accomplish on his own task.

Admittedly, too great a proportion of humanity loves their stupidity more than they love their El Yahweh and they refuse to give up their foolishness for Him!

But with El Yahweh, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love for His most wayward of His stupid children, nothing is impossible-if God’s people will Pray.

2 Chronicles 7:11-18 English Standard Version

If My People Pray

11 Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord and the king’s house. All that Solomon had planned to do in the house of the Lord and in his own house he successfully accomplished. 12 Then the Lord appeared to Solomon in the night and said to him: “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a house of sacrifice. 13 When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, 14 if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. 15 Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place. 16 For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that my name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time. 17 And as for you, if you will walk before me as David your father walked, doing according to all that I have commanded you and keeping my statutes and my rules, 18 then I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man to rule Israel.’

El Yahweh Gives His Command: Pray Without Ceasing

1 Thessalonians 5:17 Amplified Bible

17 be unceasing and persistent in prayer;

This is the spoken Word of God for we who are the Children of God.

Apostle Paul affirms the significance of prayer, and wrote in one of the epistles, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

Prayer is a powerful way to connect with God, to develop a relationship with Him, and to cast your cares upon Him.

There are countless examples of prayer throughout Scripture.

It is apparent that prayer is significant to the faith of a believer.

When we read about the life and ministry of Jesus in the Gospel accounts, we find that He prayed often and made this spiritual discipline a priority in His life.

Jesus deliberately took time to get away and spend time with God.

Prayer is incredibly important for every believer’s spiritual growth.

To pray is God’s will for us.

But, as inspiring as that sounds, is it possible to pray without ceasing?

What did Paul mean by such a statement?

Praying without ceasing means to have a heart inclined to prayer, to pray often, and to make the spiritual discipline of prayer a high priority, just as Jesus did.

What Does “Pray without Ceasing” Mean?

The Apostle Paul wrote the epistle we know as 1 Thessalonians to the church of Thessalonica.

He sent it shortly after he had established the congregation there.

In the letter, he affirmed and commended their ongoing love and passion for Jesus.

Paul also warned the church of Thessalonica to be prepared for the second coming of Jesus by keeping their hearts pure and holy for His return.

It is in this context that we find Paul’s assertion to “pray without ceasing.”

Here in the fifth chapter of Thessalonians, Paul urged the church to cling to the Gospel message they had received, to hold onto what was good and righteous.

They were to continue living holy lives and the spiritual discipline of prayer was essential to that instruction.

Paul reminded them of the importance of prayer to keep their faith strong, to stay connected to God’s truth so they would not be deceived by false messages.

The Greek word translated to “without ceasing” is (adialeíptōs), which means constantly or without intermission.

In most Bible translations, this word is interpreted as “without ceasing,” but other versions also translate to continually (NIV) or all the time (The Message).

Whichever version of the Bible you read, the meaning remains the same and consistent with the Greek word.

The various translations of the Bible help emphasize the same message, which is to pray often and pray diligently.

Can We Really Pray without Ever Stopping? 

Throughout the Bible, there are many kinds of prayers demonstrated.

In our own lives, we may also be accustomed to saying a variety of prayers.

The verses and prayers that we read throughout Scripture can become the prayers we use in our time with God.

Realistically, it would be impossible to actually pray without ever stopping.

We have thoughts, we read, we sleep, we eat, we converse with others, we work, and have a whole host of responsibilities to tend to throughout the day that would quite naturally and obviously disrupt our attempts at constantly praying.

There are an over abundance of tasks and roles we need to participate in that would naturally hinder our ability to ever be able pray without ever stopping.

When we take into account the context of what Paul wrote, we recognize that Paul wasn’t instructing believers to give up their responsibilities and only pray.

Rather, the Apostle Paul teaches us in this passage that we each need to commit ourselves to maturing our discipline to prayer, make it top priority in our lives.

By doing so, we will remain holy and pure, living lives consecrated to El Yahweh making our life paths straight – having our hearts ready for when Jesus returns.

Prayer helps us stay accountable to living righteously.

Can We Realistically Apply This Verse to Our Lives?

The verse 1 Thessalonians 5:17 serves as a serious reminder to all believers how significant prayer is to our faith.

Prayer is the way we talk to God, hear from God, and keep our minds on Him.

Prayer is the channel in which we can let go of fears and concerns, and how we lift up our praises and thanks to God.

Prayer is vital to our spiritual formation and growth.

Just as Jesus was often seen taking time away to go pray, we should do the same.

Paul knew prayer was key to guarding our hearts against evil and to keeping ourselves in line with God’s will.

Proverbs 4:23 English Standard Version

23 Keep your heart with all vigilance,
    for from it flow the springs of life.

As Christians, it bears continual repeating that it is important to pray to God and to carve out time throughout the day to speak to Him and worship Him.

Paul was right when he wrote to the church of Thessalonica, urging them to pray often because prayer is what helps us find our way through difficult times, tough decisions, or expressing our hopes for a lasting peace and everlasting joy.

Prayer draws us closer to God and helps us practice our faith.

Prayer has been a spiritual practice since the beginning of time and the point Paul made was that the spiritual discipline of prayer is still something each and every Christians needs to spend quality time maturing, integrating in our lives.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

“This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one’”

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Advent Reflection: To Make Room, to Truly Put Jesus First this Christmas. Luke 2:6-7

Luke 2:6-7 New King James Version

6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a [a]manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

The time had come for Mary to give birth to her first child.

Husband Joseph goes from place to place to find warmth and comfort.

All Joseph hears is: “I am sorry but …!”

Place after place – rejection even for a pregnant teen mother about to give birth.

Let the words of these constant rejections come in direct contact with your soul:

“Sorry …”

“No room for them.”

“Sorry again …”

“No vacancy.”

“Nope! Don’t tell me, I know … I heard it before … but Sorry …”

“No place – no not none.”

Words when seriously considered, still seem to hang close, cold, cruel, today.

Makes my soul just bristle with anger-does no one care enough about this child.

Surely, not in our caring and compassion driven healthcare systems would the sound of such words ever be heard or if they were heard they’d not be tolerated!

No room in anyone’s heart to offer mercy, a place to stay – to save a life or two?

In our divided chaotic world that seeks to crowd the message of the child Jesus out, where busyness and distractions abound, and hearts are stirred to focus on other fear focused things, it can be hard sometimes to choose to keep Him first.

Why is it for us that it’s all too easy to get caught up in the whole hurried dash of the holidays, and not give our fullest attention to what seems more urgent?

Too many of us, focus gets blurred; and the most important gets pushed aside.

There is too much of that attitude – “Sorry, not today, but no room in my Inn.”

It takes an active, daily choice to put Christ first, especially in a culture that says you’re too busy to focus there. Or that life is too full. And there’s no more room.

I sit and pray a whole lot now that I have had my Triple Bypass Heart Surgery.

Proverbs 4:23 New American Standard Bible

23 Watch over your heart with all diligence,
For from it flow the springs of life.

Proverbs 4:23-27 The Message

23-27 Keep vigilant watch over your heart;
    that’s where life starts.
Don’t talk out of both sides of your mouth;
    avoid careless banter, white lies, and gossip.
Keep your eyes straight ahead;
    ignore all sideshow distractions.
Watch your step,
    and the road will stretch out smooth before you.
Look neither right nor left;
    leave evil in the dust.

The proverb writer is deeply concerned about helping his children build a wise and discerning life. “Listen,” he pleads, “pay attention to what I’m saying.”

“Make room for God – Maximize all spaces within your soul => solely for God!”

Throughout the early chapters of the book of Proverbs we find one plea after another from author King Solomon who the wisest man to ever live, like this.

And in Proverbs 4:23 the writer points out the central issue in all this teaching.

“Above all else,” the writer says, “guard your heart.” In other words, “Look inside – less room for sin and maximum room for God who is our salvation.”

Be concerned about your inner life before you build your external life.

After all, your heart, your inner life, ‘is the very wellspring of life.’ Your heart shapes who you are.” More room for darkness means far more room for chaos.

Jesus taught this truth also. He said that a person produces good things when that person has a good heart— that is, a heart focused on living for God.

But if a person has room for only an evil heart, a sin darkened heart closed off to God, that will show up inside the evil things that person does. (See Luke 6:45.) 

Let’s simply talk about what’s inside. After all, it would be a wasted effort to try building a way of life (on the outside) if the heart wasn’t healthy (on the inside).

We can hardly go through any Christmas season without at least receiving one reminder that the infant Jesus was born in much less than ideal circumstances.

Christmas cards often have scenes of a stable filled with animals, while Mary and Joseph both look lovingly into a manger, where the baby Jesus is lying.

While many written and cinematic portrayals of this one scene aim for a warm, sweet, nostalgic approach, the birth of Jesus was far from a pleasant experience.

But remember how it began -forced to travel to Bethlehem for a Roman census, Mary and Joseph were repeatedly rejected, found no comfortable place to stay.

So Joseph had to go from place to place, each less savory, healthy, and Mary gave birth in a cold, dirty stable and used the animals’ feedbox for Jesus’ crib.

What irony! Repeated rejections, no room was available here for the birth of our Savior who had in truth came to prepare a place for us in heaven (John 14:1-3).

John 14:1-3 English Standard Version

I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life

14 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God;[a] believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?[b] 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.

Everyday life has plenty of room its own ironies too.

For example, people were created to live in community and enjoy each other’s friendship.

The sheer chaos and havoc that sin has wreaked in this world often breaks down that sense of community and friendship, leaving far, far too many of us feeling as though there’s never going to be no place where we can actually feel at home.

The infant Jesus was born into a place that was hostile to the presence of God.

But, thanks be to God, the infant became a man who made room in His heart for all of God’s Children of all coming generations-made room, changed the world.

Throughout his entire ministry here, Jesus called people to Himself, where those who felt homeless, lost, lonely, and unwelcome could find a place where they experienced the warmth of being at home in the presence of the Lord.

May God help us to choose wisely, what room we make for whom, what voices we choose to listen to, and in Jesus’ name, where we give our attention today.

He is the only One who makes room, who brings true meaning to Christmas.

He is the only One who brings real peace in this all-too-often hectic season.

He is the only One worthy of making room for, giving our maximum time and attention, listen for God, we slow down the maddening rush around our lives.

We can make more room for God, we can know all of this in our heads, but may He help us to really believe it in our hearts…and choose to live it out this season.

Reminded.

Renewed.

Refreshed.

Repenting.

Believing the Good News.

That the Kingdom of God has, in maximum truth, Come Near.

And He will surely and certainly, as promised, come again!

Standing on the Promises of Christ our King and our Savior!

Making maximum effort to clear out maximum room for Him alone, first.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

ABBA Father, Help us to keep our focus first on Christ this season. Please forgive us for giving too much time and attention on other things. Help us to reflect again, on what Christmas is really all about. Thank you that you came to give new life, peace, hope, and joy, that you came to make room in our eternal darkness for your Son.

Help us to repent, make room for Him, remember that the gift of Christ, Immanuel, is our greatest treasure, not just at Christmas, but for the whole year through. Fill us with your joy and the peace of your Spirit. Direct our hearts and minds towards you. Thank you for your reminder that both in seasons of celebration and in seasons of brokenness, you’re still with us. For you never leave us. Thank you for your daily powerful Presence in our lives, that we can be assured your heart is towards us, your eyes are over us, and your ears are open to our prayers. Thank you that you surround us with favor as with a shield, and we are safe in your care. We choose to press in close to you today…and keep you first in our hearts and lives. In Immanuel‘s Name,

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Advent Prophet: if John the Baptist Called Out into the Gathered Crowds? Luke 3:1-14

Luke 3:1-14 New Living Translation

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

3 It was now the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius, the Roman emperor. Pontius Pilate was governor over Judea; Herod Antipas was ruler[a] over Galilee; his brother Philip was ruler[b] over Iturea and Traconitis; Lysanias was ruler over Abilene. 2  Annas and Caiaphas were the high priests. At this time a message from God came to John son of Zechariah, who was living in the wilderness.  3  Then John went from place to place on both sides of the Jordan River, preaching that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven. 4 Isaiah had spoken of John when he said,

“He is a voice shouting in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming!
    Clear the road for him!
5 The valleys will be filled,
    and the mountains and hills made level.
The curves will be straightened,
    and the rough places made smooth.
6 And then all people will see
    the salvation sent from God.’”[c]

7 When the crowds came to John for baptism, he said, “You brood of snakes! Who warned you to flee the coming wrath? 8 Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones. 9 Even now the ax of God’s judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire.”

10 The crowds asked, “What should we do?”

11 John replied, “If you have two shirts, give one to the poor. If you have food, share it with those who are hungry.”

12 Even corrupt tax collectors came to be baptized and asked, “Teacher, what should we do?”

13 He replied, “Collect no more taxes than the government requires.”

14 “What should we do?” asked some soldiers.

John replied, “Don’t extort money or make false accusations. And be content with your pay.”

The Word of God for the Children of God

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

Hypothetically, imagine slipping into an airline seat for a three-hour flight or boarding that same old commuter train for that long morning work commute.

The man next to you politely begins to exchange some general pleasan­tries.

But as the commute continues, the polite tone of the conversation changes.

The man begins to mutter something, in fact, he mutters several somethings.

These “somethings” are things which instantly cause you to bristle, to squirm.

Luke 3:7-9The Message

7-9 When crowds of people came out for baptism because it was the popular thing to do, John exploded: you “Brood of snakes! What do you think you’re doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to deflect God’s judgment? It’s your life that must change, not your skin. And don’t think you can pull rank by claiming Abraham as ‘father.’ Being a child of Abraham is neither here nor there—children of Abraham are a dime a dozen. God can make children from stones if he wants. What counts is your life. Is it green and is it even flourishing? Because if it’s deadwood, it goes on the fire.”

Very soon you discover, realize that he also has extreme views about religion, even more extreme views about politics and governance, how people respond.

His goal as you fly the friendly skies or just try to get to work for another day, is to convince you that your far too casual way of life is putting you in danger of snake venom, the fires of hell – it dawns on you it’s going to be a very long day!

Now imagine that it is not just you who are in ear shot of all these harsh words.

You aren’t the only one on the airplane nor the only one on the commuter train.

On the plane we might hope that the louder and more raucous this guy gets that the flight attendants would not be so slow to intervene on this guys intrusions.

They might even try to move him to another seat – but that is no promise nor is it any guarantee that this guy will not just stand up and cause another ruckus.

Maybe if it gets to be too much – someone would inform the pilot – or if there was an Air Marshall with a pair of handcuffs and something to cover his mouth.

Maybe if it goes to the extreme of extremes, the Pilot will turn the plane around.

Anything, anywhere-as long as someone figures out how to shut the guy down.

Now, back in the commuter train – the people just have to sit restlessly and just listen until they get to the next station and hope he gets tired and he gets off or they do and they simply accept the uncomfortable fact they will be late for work.

Imagine walking the downtown streets of any city or serving meals in a shelter and this guy walks up beside you, gets into your ears, or hands you a meal tray.

Perish the thought and pray such an occurrence is one you’ll never experience.

In a homeless shelter?

In an overnight shelter?

Spending a morning, an afternoon or evening or a whole night with the words of John the Baptist ringing in your ears would have been a similar experience.

After all, John’s hardcore extremist views believed you got ready for Christ’s coming by taking a hard, long, in­tense look at the ethical quality of your life.

Hearing enough of this message, listening to all the vitriol, high end criticism spewing from his mouth about quite literally everybody – who would not want have the plane turned around, to call the police this guy arrested – like Herod?

Luke 3:19-20 New Living Translation

19 John also publicly criticized Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee,[a] for marrying Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for many other wrongs he had done. 20 So Herod put John in prison, adding this sin to his many others.

Which one’s of us reading this reflection would be praying to God to keep such a man out of our lives, as far away from our “Christian experience” as is possible?

The Covenant Reality of Becoming an Advent Prophet

Isaiah 40:1-3 New Living Translation

Comfort for God’s People

40 “Comfort, comfort my people,”
    says your God.
2 “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem.
Tell her that her sad days are gone
    and her sins are pardoned.
Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over
    for all her sins.”

3 Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting,
“Clear the way through the wilderness
    for the Lord!
Make a straight highway through the wasteland
    for our God!

Yet our preparing a pathway for the coming of the Messiah is our Advent task.

That means listening to John’s words and some (Psalm 51) clearing away the moral rubble that prevents God from taking His straight path to your hearts.

I mean we’ll never like, nor appreciate, anyone calling us a “brood of snakes!”

Yet, OUR King is coming, and He will remember the poor, cut down the proud.

The all too comfortable, utterly corrupt order of things, must come to a change.

The hardest thing for “contemporary Christians” is actually taking the time for us disciples to make the U-turn of repentance, to straighten out their priorities.

Preparing our homes for the season, getting it ready for Christmas isn’t first a matter of our remembering our perfect gifts for everyone on our family gift list.

It’s about remembering the very nature of citizenship in the King’s king­dom!

It’s about taking a moral inventory of our lives. What changes do we need to make so that we can welcome Christ with integrity on Christmas morning?

More Like Christ – More Like John the Baptist First?

Ephesians 5:1-2 New Living Translation

Living in the Light

5 Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. 2 Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us[a] and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

When I have asked, very Christian I have ever known will always profess this:

“Work in progress, trying to be more like Jesus every moment of every day!”

But, what about a bit more like John the Baptist in his camel hair wardrobe?

Luke 3:10-14 New Living Translation

10 The crowds asked, “What should we do?”

11 John replied, “If you have two shirts, give one to the poor. If you have food, share it with those who are hungry.”

12 Even corrupt tax collectors came to be baptized and asked, “Teacher, what should we do?”

13 He replied, “Collect no more taxes than the government requires.”

14 “What should we do?” asked some soldiers.

John replied, “Don’t extort money or make false accusations. And be content with your pay.”

The changes John the Baptist was calling for do not appear .0001% radical.

One teacher I know of thinks John’s counsel is, for us, rather commonplace.

All we need to do, it seems to him, is to love a little, show a little kindness.

No career change is required.

I believe that interpretation goes too easy on many of us.

After all, many of us are well-to-do.

Many of us out there in the world have far more than two sets of clothing; many of us also have two cars, two or more credit cards, and maybe even two homes.

Our freezers are probably most full preparing for the Christmas feasts to come.

Yet, our hardcore reality: in light of our riches, John’s words become unsettling.

They demand a radical generosity that few of us are genuinely accustomed to.

True, John the Baptist does not specifically order anyone to leave his or her job.

But he definitely and directly does demand that we actually live out our faith by actually being honest and genuinely content and not ever abusing our power.

Clearly, any reading of Luke’s narrative reveals “John the Baptist Discipleship” is not something for the uncommitted, the timid nor for “after-hours only.”

We are not, so to speak, called or covenanted by God to moonlight for Christ.

Quite the contrary, our allegiance to Christ rules not only our after-work hours but also our hours travelling to work, our hours of actual work in the office, at the plant, on the road, in the air, on the trains, in class, at those sales meetings.

We can neither ignore the hardcore words of John the Baptist, leave Christ in church on Sundays nor let him “wait for us in the parking lot” on weekdays.

Here’s a question:

How do we, who are supposed to be dying to self and coming alive to Christ, do our work and other activities so that we honor Christ and respect our neighbor?

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Lord Jesus, too often after hearing the good news we go right back to business as usual. Forgive us, and make our every thought captive to you. Lord, we admit that our lives are a mess. It’s been a long time since we’ve held them up to the light of your truth. Now is the time. Help us to begin today. Let us read these words from Luke’s narrative, let us hear the hardcore accusations spoken by John the Baptist against us as so called “contemporary Christians” and your so called Body of Christ, the Church in your kingdom, let us finally come to our senses. In your name, Amen.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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Advent Reflection: “Behold! God Sends His Messenger! Prepare Ye, Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord!” Mark 1:1-8

Mark 1:1-8 New Living Translation

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

1 This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God.[a] It began 2 just as the prophet Isaiah had written:

“Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
    and he will prepare your way.[b]
3 He is a voice shouting in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming!
    Clear the road for him!’[c]”

4 This messenger was John the Baptist. He was in the wilderness and preached that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven. 5 All of Judea, including all the people of Jerusalem, went out to see and hear John. And when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River. 6 His clothes were woven from coarse camel hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. For food he ate locusts and wild honey.

7 John announced: “Someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not even worthy to stoop down like a slave and untie the straps of his sandals. 8 I baptize you with[d] water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit!”

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

A Message is Sent – “There Will Come a Fresh Start!”

After Israel’s long 40 year sojourn in the desert, God opened a way before Joshua for the people through the Jordan River and into the promised land.

The waters upstream “piled up in a heap,” perhaps like the “wall of water” on the right and left as the people of Israel crossed the Red Sea (Exodus 14:22).

Both stories say that the people passed through “on dry ground” (Joshua 3:17).

Although God had been faithful to Israel, keeping His promises to rescue them and bring them to the land He had promised them (Genesis 12:1-8; 15:13-16; 28:10-15; 46:3-4; Exodus 3:4-10), the people turned away and rebelled.

They did that again and again in a long history of unfaithfulness (Exodus 32; Numbers 14; Judges 2:10-23; 2 Kings 17:1-23; 25:1-21).

Eventually they were punished and sent into exile, but God, still ever faithful, brought them back again (Ezra – Nehemiah).

Nehemiah 8:1-11 New King James Version

Ezra Reads and Explains the Law

8 Now all the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded Israel. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month. 3 Then he read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate [a]from morning until midday, before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law.

4 So Ezra the scribe stood on a platform of wood which they had made for the purpose; and beside him, at his right hand, stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Urijah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah; and at his left hand Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbadana, Zechariah, and Meshullam. 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. 6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God.

Then all the people answered, “Amen, Amen!” while lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law; and the people stood in their place. 8 So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading.

9 And Nehemiah, who was the [b]governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the  Lord your God; do not mourn nor weep.” For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law.

10 Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

11 So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be grieved.”

The people who had been gathered in that place before Ezra and the Scribes had just just been read, had just received for the first time in who knows how long, a fresh reading and a fresh anointing from God’s messenger, of the Word of God.

Then they were sent on their ways back to their homes – to their families – to their friends – to their neighbors – to their neighborhoods – their communities. (Verse 10) “Be Still for the Day is Holy; Go and Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord!”

Then, about 30 years after the birth of Jesus (Matthew 1; Luke 2), God called a man named John to again send God’s message before the people: prepare ye the way for the Messiah, who had come to be the Savior of the world (John 1:29-31).

John 1:29-31 The Message

The God-Revealer

29-31 The very next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and yelled out, “Here he is, God’s Passover Lamb! He forgives the sins of the world! This is the man I’ve been talking about, ‘the One who comes after me but is really ahead of me.’ I knew nothing about who he was—only this: that my task has been to get Israel ready to recognize him as the God-Revealer. That is why I came here baptizing with water, giving you a good bath and scrubbing sins from your life so you can get a fresh start with God.”

Now, here in the first 8 verses of Mark 1 we see John preaching in the wilderness, calling the people to gather, to repent and baptizing them in the Jordan River.

And here the people are called not to cross the Jordan but to be baptized in it.

God calls them back to receive a fresh anointing, to make a new start through repentance, seek forgiveness, prepare their hearts for the coming of the Savior.

God’s Messengers Are Still Sent With God’s Message

Christmas is always a time when everyone tries to give that special someone that perfect gift – that gift that genuinely says “I Love You and I always will!”

In these days when those perfect gifts are probably far too expensive to buy, but we still have the same heart to give that special someone a “100% perfect gift,”

I suggest that this year for Christmas, remembering that Christ comes first in the season of Christmas because that is the way it is spelled, the gift of a Bible.

Yeah! I know, another Bible … but this year make a plan to go beyond just the receiving of the physical book, but instead, enter into the messengers head.

The coming of the new year is always a great time to begin a new challenge.

On January 1st 2024, many of us make those self same automatic resolutions.

Some resolve to break bad habits, while others resolve to pick up good habits.

Others attempt to acquire a new hobby or even a new skill throughout the year.

Many Christians might even resolve to read the Bible daily or might challenge themselves (a bit self centered) with another reading plan throughout the year.

Here are 5 challenges for you to consider (selflessly this time) sharing in 2024.

1. Read through the Bible in a Year

The most basic challenge is to read through the Bible in an entire year.

There are 1,189 chapters in a typical English Bible.

Divide this by 365, that means you would need to read only a little over three chapters of the Bible each day to read through every word of the Bible in a year.

When you consider that some of these chapters are only a few verses long, that is not that daunting of a task.

But where do you start?

Is it always good to start in Genesis and read three chapters of every book?

That is one possibility, but my experience is that most people end up just like the Israelites – lost in the wilderness for 40 years inside the book of Leviticus.

Many give up these challenges when they have to trudge through the historical books of 1 and 2 Kings 1 and 2 Chronicles, then sort through the minor Prophets.

From all your Android and Apple smart phones, you can go to their respective “stores” and you can download many apps to assist with a Bible reading plan.

Many of these plans will have the reader in one chapter of the Old Testament, read a Psalm or Proverb per day, and a chapter or two in the New Testament.

2. Devote Your Year to Discerning God’s Wisdom

Reading through the Bible in a year can be incredibly daunting and rewarding.

You often “open your eyes” to see those things that you’ve never seen before.

But that can also be a bit like taking a road trip through a state where you only see the state through tinted windows while driving 70 mph to your destination.

You learn things and see beautiful sites, but you may not get the full impact.

Wouldn’t you know a state better if you decided to live there for an entire year?

What if you decided to spend an entire year in a book like Psalms or Proverbs?

Solomon’s wonderfully simple Proverbs is helpful because there are 31 chapters.

That corresponds to each day on the calendar – except in those months which only have 29 or thirty days and those years – like 2024 – which are “leap years.”

Pick up that nice monthly business planner with those individual days which are set apart by all those wonderfully convenient lines for the individual hours.

Look at your monthly calendar, spot the date, look for all of those wonderfully empty lines just waiting for a single entry and read that chapter of Proverbs.

Do that for every day of the year, with some Biblical text and the Psalms and you’ll be quite surprised at how much wisdom you glean from the Scriptures.

You can do the same thing with Psalms.

There are 150 psalms.

If you choose to dedicate the 31st of each month to working through the largest Psalm, Psalm 119, then that means you have 5 psalms you could read each day.

Simply take the day on the calendar and then add 30, 5 times.

For example, as today is the 5th, you could read Psalm 5, 25, 51, 10o, or 150.

3. Do Twelve 30-Day Challenges

This is the same concept as reading through Proverbs and Psalms.

Yet, here you would find twelve different 30-day Bible reading challenges.

Here you would challenge yourself to pick 12 books of the Bible and spend a month in each one, or seek, find, a topical 30-day challenge and conquer it.

You could take that challenge even further – add something like a chronological New Testament Bible Reading Plan to send this challenge to furthest horizons.

There is a great one at Bible Study Tools that you can use here.

They also have a 45-day gospel challenge that you might find helpful.

4. Deep Dive into a Topic

This one will be much more difficult to organize but might be one of the more rewarding yearly challenges.

Consider working with your Pastor’s at picking a point of doctrine or Christian living and deep ocean-diving into everything the Bible says about that topic.

You could do several of these as mini-challenges throughout the year as well.

Can you imagine how high your understanding would increase if you picked something like justification and studied it in the Scriptures for an entire year?

Years ago, I independently tried something like this with the attributes of God.

I meditated upon a particular attribute of God every month of the year and used these attributes to preach and teach the gospel to myself and to a legacy church.

It was incredibly daunting but also incredibly “eyes>ears>hands” beneficial.

If you decide to do this challenge, consider picking up a Strong’s Concordance to find out quite everything the Bible text’s says on a particular word or topic.

5. Pick a Person and Start Your Own Bible Fellowship

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 New Living Translation

9 Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. 10 If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. 11 Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? 12 A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.

Proverbs 27:17 Amplified Bible

17 
As iron sharpens iron,
So one man sharpens [and influences] another [through discussion].

2 Timothy 2:14-18 English Standard Version

A Worker Approved by God

14 Remind them of these things, and charge them before God[a] not to quarrel about words, which does no good, but only ruins the hearers. 15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved,[b] a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. 16 But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, 17 and their talk will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus, 18 who have swerved from the truth,  saying that the resurrection has already happened. They are upsetting the faith of some.

In fellowship together we are “as Iron” motivated when reaching toward a goal.

Our adrenaline flows, our creative juices churn, and our mind works overtime at solving the problems that stand in the way of achieving God’s vision for our life.

In the United States, where I live, there is an defeating, unhealthy trend toward mediocrity.

Recent sales of tee shirts; the most widely distributed logo in the United States is now seemingly “Undereducated and Underachiever and !@%$ Proud of It.”

I remember the days when the most popular shirt read, “We’re Number One.”

Even in our church today we can become more satisfied with less than our best.

Paul admonishes Timothy, faith communities, and the church community to “come together, to fellowship, do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman [a community] who does not need to be ashamed.”

Paul was not content with anything but the best. He valued repetition, valued community here now instructing Timothy to “keep reminding” his listeners.

Fellowship and Repetition through Bible study and prayer really works for me.

There are certain critically important messages I must hear over and over again. from someone other than “Me, Myself and I.”

My Mother’s favorite Proverb saying “the early bird gets the worm” nudges me out of bed each morning to feast on God’s manna.

I used to have a card in my wallet, “Prayer changes things,” moved me to pray before I attempted to fix a problem in my own malignant, selfish strength.

A sign on my wall once reminding me, “People are forever,” calls me to put people before projects no matter how inconvenient that may seem at times.

Repetitious Fellowship, Repetitious Bible Study, Prayer, produces excellence.

God has given us His permission to come together to create GOD opportunity.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Dear Lord, as I read these passages of scripture, show me Your truth and what you want me to learn. Pinpoint the things in my thinking and my life that aren’t right. Help me to remember that Your word is life and always true, whereas my ideas are often fleeting. Use the truth of Your Word to transform my limited thinking and behavior. Let Your truth inform my faith and let my faith guide my actions. Amen.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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This Advent Reflection: About Being That Person With a Prophetic Vision of Our God In and Within Our Lives. Proverbs 29:18

Proverbs 29:18 Names of God Bible

18 Without prophetic vision people run wild,
    but blessed are those who follow God’s teachings.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

We serve a God of boundaries.

In God’s limitless capacity, endless creativity, and boundless existence God still chose to create boundaries which man cannot hope to pass. (Genesis 3:22-24)

Genesis 3:22-24 New King James Version

22 Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil. And now, lest he put out his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever”— 23 therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. 24 So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.

Even so, God still had vision for what was good, right, pleasing, and perfect.

And as children made in His image, we are to live, think, and create as he does.

In this time of year leading up to Christmas marked by busyness and infinite distractions from seemingly infinite opportunities to be more like our God, it’s important now more than ever for us to create boundaries, establish priorities.

May we find our vision of God, find freedom and joy these days ahead as we receive His vision and set boundaries under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.

About Being The Person Who Sees What God is Doing

Proverbs 29:18 The Message

18 If people can’t see what God is doing,
    they stumble all over themselves;
But when they attend to what he reveals,
    they are most blessed.

The world we live in constantly bombards us with its attempts to define who we are and what we should do.

The internet and television are bombarded with advertisements hard selling all their products telling us why we fall short of expectations, sell us what we need.

Our jobs tell us how we should spend our time and find a sense of self-worth.

Our families and friends often define us by what we’ve done or said in the past.

And even our churches will sadly define us according to how we can best meet the needs of the worlds cultures rather than getting to know who God truly is.

TBTG, we serve ONE God who knows us even better than we know ourselves. 

Psalm 139:1-4 says, “O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.” 

And then later in Psalm 139 verse 16 David writes, “Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”

Then as we try to plumb the depths of God’s words, we simply have no concept so, instead of trying to reach the ends of understanding, grasping God’s Words,

David concludes with blessed words which accept His humanities limitations –

Psalm 139:17-18 English Standard Version

17 How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
18 If I would count them, they are more than the sand.
    I awake, and I am still with you.

From the foundation of the earth, God knew He would make us.

On the day we took our first breath He already had perfect, pleasing plans for us.

He has known our every thought and looked upon our every action with grace.

We could not be more known than we are right now by our heavenly Father.

And there could not possibly be anyone better, Shepherd us through the chaos, morass, of this life than God, the Father and God the Son, God the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 23 Authorized (King James) Version

Psalm 23

A Psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul:
he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;
thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life:
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

Reading, envisioning those ancient words of Psalm 23, to be that person with healthy, life-giving, God first boundaries starts with being a person of vision.

And the only place to get true vision is from the only One who truly knows us.

God longs to be the true north on our compass.

The Word of God which stands as the only Global Positioning System we need.

Through His Words, He longs to give us honest insight into how He’s made us.

He longs to give us a prophetic vision of how He sees us and feels about us.

And in our receiving a prophetic revelation of who we are we will each be better equipped to envision God, follow his leadership into his perfect, pleasing will.

As we take the Word of God into the next week of Advent, proceed into this week of vision and boundaries by a fresh meeting with our heavenly Father in prayer.

From Alpha to Omega, Our God longs to help us see ourselves, this world, and vision opportunities before us, as He does that we might gain wisdom, insight.

We can choose to become more like God – become that person of Godly visions.

We can choose to pick our heads up and put on the lens of the Holy Spirit.

We can Ask God questions.

We can inquire of God about our vision of our life and our “God” opportunities.

In response God will provide the leadership we all need, exactly how we need it.

May we be overwhelmed by fresh revelation of how loved we are-just as we are.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

1. Meditate on the simple truth that God truly knows you. 

Allow Scripture to lead you to a place of faith, trust, in God’s knowledge of you.

“O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.” Psalm 139:1-4

“Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”  Psalm 139:16

Psalm 139:17-18 Authorized (King James) Version

17 How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God!
how great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand:
when I awake, I am still with thee.

2. Ask God to give you a revelation of how he sees you. Ask Him for a revelation of his nearness and love. Begin to talk to Him about any imperfections you have.

Psalm 23 Authorized (King James) Version

Psalm 23

A Psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul:
he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;
thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies:
thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life:
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

“Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.” Matthew 10:29-31

3. Ask God for a revelation of what God has called you to. 

Ask Him about your role in your family and His calling on your life as a spouse, child, parent or grandparent.

Ask Him for vision for your work, for your roles with your co-workers and even with that “connection” those “relationships” you have with your Supervisors.

Ask Him for vision for your relationship with His Son – Journal His responses.

God my Creator, God my Father, pray restrain me to your will and vision for my life. Father I will wait expectantly for your vision and the steps I should take according to your will. I will go forth in faith as I step because I surrender my will to you. Amen.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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An Advent Reflection: “On Them, the Great Light has Shone.” Isaiah 9:2-7

Isaiah 9:2-7 English Standard Version

2 [a] The people who walked in darkness
    have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
    on them has light shone.
3 You have multiplied the nation;
    you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
    as with joy at the harvest,
    as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
4 For the yoke of his burden,
    and the staff for his shoulder,
    the rod of his oppressor,
    you have broken as on the day of Midian.
5 For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
    and every garment rolled in blood
    will be burned as fuel for the fire.
6 For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon[b] his shoulder,
    and his name shall be called[c]
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and of peace
    there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
    to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
    from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

From Alpha to Omega, the Bible never ever disguises just how dark life can get.

The Scriptures are clear that when sins multiply, when evil is celebrated, when God is left out, darkness ensues, darkness spreads to every corner it can reach.

And yet, over and over in the Bible’s storyline, we are abundantly reminded that God is not afraid of, not shy about His thoughts of or defeated by such darkness.

In fact, He makes an everlasting habit of drawing near and turning it into light.

We see Him drawing near in the third chapter of Genesis.

Sin had entered the world; the only two people alive had rebelled against their Maker, and when God came near to them they ran, they were hiding in shame.

Thinking about it, it would have been completely understandable for God to have shown up in Eden, dropped a hammer of His hardcore judgment on Adam and Eve, picked up more dust, and started over with another man and woman.

But that’s not what He did.

That is not what we read and learn in the Word of God for His Children.

He arrived in the garden, came near and asked, “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9).

And when He found them naked and ashamed, He stayed on the scene, and He put enmity, open hostility, between the serpent and all mankind in mercy, He provided animal skin covering for them, and expelled them from the Garden.

So, too, with His people Israel.

By the time Isaiah began his ministry, there was again an established history of the people forgetting God and ignoring His prophets – all would lead to exile.

As a result, they labored long and hard under the wicked kings they deserved and found themselves “greatly distressed and hungry,” leading them to “speak contemptuously against their king and their God” (Isaiah 8:21).

Again, it would have been reasonable for the Lord to have done away with His people at this point, start over – leaving them to experience the “distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish and defeat” (v 22), without a hope or a future.

After all, by their words and their actions, they were communicating that they didn’t want Him around in their garden of the knowledge of both good and evil.

Imagine God’s thought process here – Why would He, should He, stick around?

But the next chapter of Isaiah begins with a glorious, even miraculous reversal:

“There will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish” (Isaiah 9:1).

The Lord would not leave His people, and He would not allow them to remain in misery – No, for these people in darkness, “on them has a great light shone.”

The light of the grace of God was breaking into their self-inflicted gloom of sin.

Centuries after the words of Isaiah were written, spoken, preached and taught, that endless cycle of sin – the people of God again found themselves in anguish.

There were again foreign rulers over them, and now came something different from God – there had been no prophetic word heard for too many, many years. 

Imagine the thought of the people – “Perhaps He’s really finally done it this time, the people may have thought – the Lord has finally had enough of us, turned His back.

In these contemporary of days, we know better.

We believe that into this darkness a child was born.

We believe a glorious once in a lifetime has light shone in the sky, leading to the discovery of a baby who would prove to all to be the light of the entire world.

The question for us this Advent season, in any season, is whether the light has dawned in our own hearts or whether we have let the darkness of sin creep in.

The good news of this season of Advent and Christmas is that the God of the Bible is the God of grace, the God of Light who comes into the darkness and emptiness of our hearts to bring His light, His love, His joy, and His peace.

It is a great certainty we are each walking in darkness today, whether that is the darkness of our own sin, our fear or the darkness caused by the sin of others.

God’s promise is this: God is neither afraid of nor defeated by, these things.

In Immanuel, God with us, God is within us – in Jesus, He has drawn near.

By His Spirit, He can bring light to the dark.

Look to Him and look for Him for He wants to be found – and walk in His light.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Psalm 8 Names of God Bible

Psalm 8

For the choir director; on the gittith;[a] a psalm by David.

1 O Yahweh, our Adonay, how majestic is your name throughout the earth!

Your glory is sung above the heavens.[b]
2 From the mouths of little children and infants,
    you have built a fortress against your opponents
        to silence the enemy and the avenger.

3 When I look at your heavens,
    the creation of your fingers,
    the moon and the stars that you have set in place—
4         what is a mortal that you remember him
            or the Son of Man that you take care of him?
5         You have made him a little lower than yourself.
        You have crowned him with glory and honor.
6         You have made him rule what your hands created.
        You have put everything under his control:
7             all the sheep and cattle, the wild animals,
8             the birds, the fish,
            whatever swims in the currents of the seas.

9 O Yahweh, our Adonay, how majestic is your name throughout the earth!

Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.

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For We Walk by Faith and Not by Sight. 2 Corinthians 5:6-10

2 Corinthians 5:6-10Amplified Bible

6 So then, being always filled with good courage and confident hope, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord— 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight [living our lives in a manner consistent with our confident belief in God’s promises]— 8 we are [as I was saying] of good courage and confident hope, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. 9 Therefore, whether we are at home [on earth] or away from home [and with Him], it is our [constant] ambition to be pleasing to Him. 10 For we [believers will be called to account and] must all appear before the [a]judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be repaid for what has been done in the body, whether good or [b]bad [that is, each will be held responsible for his actions, purposes, goals, motives—the use or misuse of his time, opportunities and abilities].

The Word of God for the Children of God.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.

What does it mean to live by Faith?

Those words seem simple enough, yet it may be a lot tougher than we think.

It requires tremendous courage and strength.

Preaching the gospel to the world brought Paul and his co-workers much suffering.

Yet they continued the work contending for the faith.

They refused to quit and “pressed toward the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14)

Living in the end times requires living by faith and not by what we see going on around us.

Yet it is a journey of tremendous hope, blessing and reward.

Walking by faith and not by sight requires you to trust God, not knowing where you are at times in the larger scope of God’s plan and purpose.

Take the example of Abraham, “when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going”. (Hebrews 11:8)

That’s walking by faith.

Walking by faith requires a strong determination to follow God’s plan as outlined in the bible, regardless what life throws your way.

Like 2 Corinthians 4:18 urges us, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

It is a deep trust in what cannot be seen that provides hope.

Paul wrote to the church at Corinth that “we walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).

Jesus stated, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).

Jesus ascended and left his Spirit as a guarantee.

Walking by faith is sometimes lonely, except for the presence of Christ by his Spirit, left to all believers as a “guarantee” (2 Corinthians 5:5).

Christians are frequently called to stand firm in spite of the isolated place their faith leads them to.

Our faith is reasonable, but there are aspects of the gospel we accept on faith and are unable to see.

What are these invisible things?

And what is the walk of faith?

The Second Letter to Corinth

First of all, here is some context for 2 Corinthians 5:7.

Paul’s relationship with the church at Corinth was a difficult one.

Paul had led them to faith with the assistance of mature believers in Christ, but when Paul was gone the church was easily swayed by outsiders who opposed his teaching.

In Paul’s absence, they fell apart and it was easy for opponents to convince the church that his suffering was a sign that Paul’s faith was actually folly.

If Jesus Christ has really come to save sinners, how could the apostle’s life be so horrendous?

To Paul’s mind, his way of life represented faith.

How else could someone suffer so much, if not for the reasonable expectation of eternal gain? (ESV Study Bible, Introduction to 2 Corinthians).

The Corinthian church was struggling, and Apostle Paul’s letter suggests a big part of the problem was the followers trusting the Holy Spirit to work in their lives and coming to that place in their life of trusting in the promise of Heaven.

Faith is trust.

Fabulous Adventures In Trusting Him!

Fantastic Adventures In Trusting Him!

Fulfilling Adventures In Trusting Him!

Futuristic Adventures In Trusting Him!

But faith in Christ does not come in the exact instant we snap our fingers.

Time and effort, trials and tribulations, radically counter cultural responses.

Faith not in what we see ‘Now’ but what we cannot see in Eternity

2 Corinthians 5:1-5Amplified Bible

The Temporal and Eternal

5 For we know that if the earthly tent [our physical body] which is our house is torn down [through death], we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our [immortal, eternal] celestial dwelling, 3 so that by putting it on we will not be found naked. 4 For while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened [often weighed down, oppressed], not that we want to be unclothed [separated by death from the body], but to be clothed, so that what is mortal [the body] will be swallowed up by life [after the resurrection]. 5 Now He who has made us and prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave us the [Holy] Spirit as a pledge [a guarantee, a down payment on the fulfillment of His promise].

What does the gospel tell us which we cannot prove by way of anything other than faith?

For one thing, we cannot see what awaits the faithful around the next bend in their roadways, over the next mountain— eternal life in the Kingdom of God.

Apostle Paul is confident: “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God” (verse 1).

That building is the individual body, the church body, a real Kingdom, invisible to us for now. “We know,” says Paul; not “we believe,” or “we imagine.”

The original Greek uses “eidó,” which means “be aware, behold, consider, perceive.” “Knowing” in this sense combines knowledge with an intelligent perception of an idea, which cannot be physically represented —just yet.

Paul based his belief in eternal life on sound, objective evidence as well as his subjective, personal experience of Christ.

His suffering could have become a distraction from this truth — it certainly was for the Corinthians.

To Paul, his counter cultural response to immediate suffering was supposed to demonstrate his deep trust in what could not be seen, provide a reason to hope.

Christians “look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).

A Connecting Faith

Christ’s message of eternal salvation through his death and resurrection was explosive.

Master Pharisee Saul, before becoming Paul, had originally sought to persecute these blasphemers, run them all to ground, imprison them all until he realized that the Old Testament had been leading Israel unto the empty tomb all along.

When Apostle Paul described the body as a “tent” (2 Corinthians 5:1), he was also connecting the new church with the Old Testament.

God’s people had frequently been sojourners, both in the days before Solomon and during Jesus’ ministry.

Moses and the Israelites followed a pillar of smoke and a pillar of fire, setting up temporary Sukkoth shelters to cover themselves against cold desert nights.

They had nowhere to permanently call “home” until Solomon built the temple.

The body as a “tent” evokes the Israelite’s trust God would meet their needs day by day.

A tent is impermanent, just like a body is temporary, but once this covering is shed God provides something eternally better.

Faith in the Spirit

2 Corinthians 3:15-18Amplified Bible

15 But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil [of blindness] lies over their heart; 16 but whenever a person turns [in repentance and faith] to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty [emancipation from bondage, true freedom]. 18 And we all, with unveiled face, continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into His image from [one degree of] glory to [even more] glory, which comes from the Lord, [who is] the Spirit.

As believers, to some extent, we already see more than those who choose to turn their faces from God.

We have an “unveiled face,” although we only see “in a mirror dimly” for now, it is by faith we believe we will one day see Christ “face to face” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

Meanwhile, we have the Holy Spirit.

Here is one aspect of the Christian life we cannot lay hands on and inspect up close.

There are ways to detect the Spirit in us; evidence of “fruit.” 

Galatians 5:22-23 describes this fruit: “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”

When one has grown in any of these ways, the Holy Spirit is responsible, and we are invited to delve into and recognize this gift living inside of us and in others.

The Spirit is not a virus or an implant; it cannot be scrutinized with the naked eye or under a microscope.

Everyone holds a belief in something, and Paul says we can be confident.

That is the word used in the NIV and KJV for “courage” so “we are always of good courage” (2 Corinthians 5:6, ESV) is a statement of certainty.

Faith is not blind; it merely sees in other ways.

Every Faithful, Faith-Filled Christian

1 Peter 3:13-15Amplified Bible

13 Now who is there to hurt you if you become enthusiastic for what is good? 14  But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness [though it is not certain that you will], you are still blessed [happy, to be admired and favored by God]. Do not be afraid of their intimidating threats, nor be troubled or disturbed [by their opposition]. 15 But in your hearts set Christ apart [as holy—acknowledging Him, giving Him first place in your lives] as Lord. Always be ready to give a [logical] defense to anyone who asks you to account for the hope and confident assurance [elicited by faith] that is within you, yet [do it] with gentleness and respect.

Every faithful believer sees something that is not visceral but still real — much of our knowledge is like that.

We believe someone is trustworthy based on actions, which demonstrate their character.

We know that an event took place in history based on statements of witnesses and on physical remains.

We must examine the evidence and be ready to give our testimony, “always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15).

We all live by faith in something, although not the same things.

It is theologically accurate to say and to insist that the Christian must always seek to live by faith and trust in God and his promises, and not be motivated by only what he or she can see and hear in their present circumstances.

But the Apostle Paul says the church at Corinth is already doing that.

Apostle Paul “directly and unequivocally says that we, all believers, do, in fact, live by faith.”

This faith must also stand firmly by the strength of internal reasoning, against external forces, and without an apostle to hold one’s hand in a spiritual sense.

The Corinthians’ faith was strong in the presence of mature disciples such as Priscilla and Aquila (Acts 18:18) but definitely blindsided by “partisanship, with the Corinthians factionalizing behind rival leaders.”

Paul knew what made “considerate and appropriate relating especially hard at Corinth,” which was an “unusually diverse” and tough, working-class culture.

Paul sought to “overcome the tensions these differences were bringing into the community” by talking about how to just love one another in Christ-like ways.

What Does it Mean to Walk by Faith?

Ephesians 4:1-6 Amplified Bible

Unity of the Spirit

4 So I, the prisoner for the Lord, appeal to you to live a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called [that is, to live a life that exhibits godly character, moral courage, personal integrity, and mature behavior—a life that expresses gratitude to God for your salvation], 2 with all humility [forsaking self-righteousness], and gentleness [maintaining self-control], with patience, bearing with one another [a]in [unselfish] love. 3 Make every effort to keep the oneness of the Spirit in the bond of peace [each individual working together to make the whole successful]. 4 There is one body [of believers] and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when called [to salvation]— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,6 one God and Father of us all who is [sovereign] over all and [working] through all and [living] in all.

And what about the action of walking in faith? “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called,” wrote Paul (Ephesians 4:1).

Our walk as Christians should be identifiably different from the walk of one who does not believe and has been saved by grace.

There is a practical element, which must not be overlooked, for if we love God there will be an outpouring of that love towards others.

Jesus embodied a unifying love for the marginalized and Paul taught that their Savior was the best example of “what a Christian leader should look like. It could hardly be more dramatically countercultural, and Paul lived out this leadership style in person.”

Yet walking, or living, by faith, is also about our relationship with Christ “God is looking for not only a clinging bride but also a walking partner.”

13 No one has greater love [nor stronger commitment] than to lay down his own life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you keep on doing what I command you. 15 I do not call you servants any longer, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you [My] friends, because I have revealed to you everything that I have heard from My Father. 16 You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed and placed and purposefully planted you, so that you would go and bear fruit and keep on bearing, and that your fruit will remain and be lasting, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name [as My representative] He may give to you. (John 15:13-16)

When we walk with him, we recognize that worship of Christ is not so much a “catalyst” to action but “an everyday walk of unbroken communion with our Lord and friend.”

Jesus calls us “friend,” and we are called to live our lives close to him, confident and worshipful.

This is personal and real — other people cannot fill in for Jesus, whether they are our pastors or mentors or BFFs.

Such individuals promote growth, but they are not the vine.

Only Jesus is the vine (John 15).

Is Sight Coming?

Will we see Jesus when we die?

Paul says it himself: We see dimly today, but the mist will lift one day revealing his face – the veil between God and man was torn when Jesus died on the cross.

John 20:11-18Amplified Bible

11 But Mary [who had returned] was standing outside the tomb sobbing; and so, as she wept, she stooped down and looked into the tomb; 12 and she saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. 13 And they said to her, “Woman, why are you crying?” She told them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”  14  After saying this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you crying? For whom are you looking?” Supposing that He was the gardener, she replied, “Sir, if you are the one who has carried Him away from here, tell me where you have put Him, and I will take Him away.” 16  Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in [a] Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, “[b]Do not hold Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’” 18 Mary Magdalene came, reporting to the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that He had said these things to her.

So, while we cannot fully see him as Mary Magdalene did right now, this definitely does not mean that we are cut off from fellowship with the Lord.

Living by faith, not by sight, is no hindrance to communion with our Savior.

In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,

Let us Pray,

Psalm 24The Message

24 1-2 God claims Earth and everything in it,
    God claims World and all who live on it.
He built it on Ocean foundations,
    laid it out on River girders.

3-4 Who can climb Mount God?
    Who can scale the holy north-face?
Only the clean-handed,
    only the pure-hearted;
Men who won’t cheat,
    women who won’t seduce.

5-6 God is at their side;
    with God’s help they make it.
This, Jacob, is what happens
    to God-seekers, God-questers.

7 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
    King-Glory is ready to enter.

8 Who is this King-Glory?
    God, armed
    and battle-ready.

9 Wake up, you sleepyhead city!
Wake up, you sleepyhead people!
    King-Glory is ready to enter.

10 Who is this King-Glory?
    God-of-the-Angel-Armies:
    he is King-Glory.

Adeste Fidelis! Venite Adoremus! Dominum.

Gloria! In Excelsis Deo! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! Amen.

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