Category: peace

Debt and Debtors

I’m not talking about debt we owe to banks or credit credit card companies. Today, i was convicted by a this story that Jesus told to His followers.

“Then Peter came to Him and asked, “LORD, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!” “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt. But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.” – Matthew 18:21‭-‬35 NLT

Money is a very touchy subject, and obviously has been for millennia. There are individuals who have taken advantage of me in the past, and who owe me thousands of dollars. I have been holding on to the debt and tne paperwork for years, determined to somehow collect it. As I read this parable, I was again struck by the final sentence. Even though I am completely unworthy of any forgiveness, or any Mercy or Grace from my LORD, I desire forgiveness from Him with all of my being. I know, without any doubt, that I have received the Salvation of Jesus Christ, I have a healthy respect for the LORD and His Judgment. I don’t want Him to see that I have harboured resentment against anyone who I believe owe me a debt. I don’t want Him to find forgiveness in my heart when I face Him.

To that end, today I am determined to go through my files and destroy any paperwork on people who “owe” me. As for those whom I owe, I beg the indulgence of time in order to repay them. Forgiveness is hard, but it is possible through the Holy Spirit working in me. Left to my own thoughts and feelings, forgiveness would never happen. I turn to Christ. As the Father has forgiven me, LORD, I plead for a forgiving heart and mind. I pray for forgiveness for emotional hurt as well as monetary hurt. It is only through the Grace and Forgiveness I receive from You that I can forgive others. You don’t call for me to forget, because by remembering, we can hopefully not fall into the traps and situations set up by the enemy, and remain in Your Will. Thank You, JESUS, for Your Love and unimaginable sacrifice. AMEN.

Nothing

“NOTHING in all creation is hidden from GOD. EVERYTHING is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the One to Whom we are accountable. So then, since we have a Great High Priest Who has entered heaven, JESUS the Son of GOD, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for He faced all of the same testings we do, yet He did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our Gracious GOD. There we will receive His Mercy, and we will find Grace to help us when we need it most.” – Hebrews 4:13‭-‬16

“The LORD is King! Let the nations tremble! He sits on His throne between the cherubim. Let the whole earth quake! The LORD sits in Majesty in Jerusalem, exalted above all the nations. Let them praise Your Great and Awesome Name. Your Name is Holy! Mighty King, Lover of Justice, You have established fairness. You have acted with Justice and Righteousness throughout Israel. Exalt the LORD our GOD! Bow low before His Feet, for He is Holy!” – Psalms 99:1‭-‬5 NLT

Nothing is hidden from the Almighty. All of the stupid decisions, the ugly gestures and remarks, the mean thoughts that I have had, the gossip I have shared. GOD knows them ALL. Thanks to the amazing Grace and Mercy of GOD, and because I accepted Jesus as my LORD and my Savior, NOTHING stands between me and Him. With JESUS as my High Priest and my Advocate, I don’t have to fear standing in the Great White Throne Judgment, where EVERY knee will bow to Him. When the Creator King, GOD above all gods and all things, pronounces His verdict of guilty – and I am guilty, I can make no excuses – my Savior will stand up for me and proclaim my sins forgiven and washed clean with His Blood. His Mercy and His Grace covers me; Hallelujah!

Do you have the confidence that you will be spared eternity without GOD? Can you say that you are at peace with your destiny? There is a real heaven and a real hell, and I don’t mean the hell some of us live through on this earth. The Good News is that any of us, ANY human, is here to give us that Peace. Accept JESUS, let Him into your heart and your life. He’s just waiting for you to ask! He stands right beside you, hand out, waiting for you to take it. “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.” – Isaiah 1:18 NLT AMEN.

Faith

“The thought of my suffering and homelessness is bitter beyond words….. Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The Faithful Love of the LORD never ends! His Mercies never cease. Great is His Faithfulness; His Mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in Him! The LORD is good to those who depend on Him, to those who search for Him. So it is good to wait quietly for Salvation from the LORD.” – Lamentations 3:19‭, ‬21‭-‬26 NLT

“But let all who take refuge in You rejoice; let them sing joyful praises forever. Spread Your Protection over them, that all who love Your Name may be filled with Joy.” – Psalms 5:11 NLT

I am not homeless at this moment, but I have been, in my past. Other than that, I must admit to being in a frightful place financially. It amazes me each morning as I get up to find these verses of encouragement in my emails, so appropriate to my life. God is GOOD. He sustains me in the darkness. The situation that doesn’t seem viable to me is easily doable for the Almighty GOD. I know His Words are true, and what appears to me to be a hopeless situation is, instead, an opportunity for Him to show His Mighty Love and Mercy. I am standing on His Promises that He will deliver me. His deliverance may not be of my liking or my desires, but it will come. I do believe, LORD, help my unbelief! I will put my Hope in Him.

Give Thanks to the LORD

“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is Good! His Faithful Love endures FOREVER.” – Psalms 107:1 NLT

Read the whole chapter if you are feeling discouraged. Even better, here are some selected verses:

“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is Good! His Faithful Love endures Forever. Has the LORD redeemed you? Then speak out! Tell others He has redeemed you from your enemies. For He has gathered the exiles from many lands, from east and west, from north and south. Some wandered in the wilderness, lost and homeless. Hungry and thirsty, they nearly died. “LORD, help!” they cried in their trouble, and He rescued them from their distress. He led them straight to safety, to a city where they could live. Let them praise the LORD for His Great Love and for the wonderful things He has done for them. For He satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. Some sat in darkness and deepest gloom, imprisoned in iron chains of misery. They rebelled against the words of GOD, scorning the counsel of the Most High. Some were fools; they rebelled and suffered for their sins. They couldn’t stand the thought of food, and they were knocking on death’s door. “LORD, help!” they cried in their trouble, and He saved them from their distress. He sent out His Word and healed them, snatching them from the door of death. He changes rivers into deserts, and springs of water into dry, thirsty land. He turns the fruitful land into salty wastelands, because of the wickedness of those who live there. But He also turns deserts into pools of water, the dry land into springs of water.” – Psalms 107:1‭-‬11‭, ‬17‭-‬20‭, ‬33‭-‬35 NLT

Where do you stand today? Things can change in a moment of time, and we can think we are standing on firm ground when we have actually stepped onto quicksand. It is OUR choices that put us on the quicksand, when we make decisions without seeking GOD’s will first, before our own; it’s when we let go of His Hand and venture out on our own. He will never let go or leave us, but we can – and do – let go of Him. Have you been a fool; in rebellion against Him and miserable in your gloom and darkness? I’ve certainty been there. I kept myself busy having “fun” so that I didn’t have to see how truly miserable and despairing I was. Read that last verse again.

“But He also turns deserts into pools of water, the dry land into springs of water.”

All we have to do is open our clenched fists and our closed hearts and minds to the Savior, JESUS. He will lift you out of the muck and the mire and carry you to solid ground. He will carry you until you can stand and walk again, however long it takes. The LORD may not deliver us from a financial situation, or keep us from losing a job or things, but He will be there to comfort you. I stand on that promise today as I face a very uncertain future. I know what I would like to see happen, but I have to content myself that my LORD knows the path and will lead me on it. By myself, I cannot see the way at all! Again and again,“Give thanks to the LORD, for He is Good! His Faithful Love endures Forever.” Amen.

It’s Snowing!

In central Oklahoma, snow is not the norm for the cold winter months. We have lots of ice, generally, and cold, windy days, but not much snow. Today, it is snowing gentle flakes, coming down with hardly a breeze, and there is a light dusting sitting on my holly bushes by the front windows. I am sitting on the couch, cozily situated with a blanket, my two pups sprawled across my lap, and a steaming cup of coffee at my elbow. The Christmas tree is sparkling across the room, and a fire dances merrily in the fireplace. Cozy and warm. Does it get any better than this?

There won’t be enough snow for a snowman ⛄, and it shouldn’t affect the roads. The kids will be sad, and the adults will be thankful the roads probably won’t be slick. Not like the mountain states with feet of snow, or back east where they have been having blizzard conditions. I am thankful for where I live.

Days like this have me checking my gratitude list. Notwithstanding my lack of a job and the dismal state of my finances, there is much to be grateful for. I have a home that has heat and running water. There is my vehicle, sitting in the garage (I have a garage!), food in the pantry and refrigerator. I get to care for my pups and my cats, and I receive unconditional love and acceptance from them. I have a man who loves me, and family and friends who love me in spite of myself. Most of all, I have a Savior Who gave His Life in order for me to spend eternity with Him. Does it get any better than this? I don’t think so…..

The Day After

Did you survive the chaos? Maybe you are depressed and discouraged by all the hoopla. It’s so easy to lose our way in the aftermath of the Christmas celebrations. The adrenaline rush and the endorphin high are wearing off, and the realization that the bills will soon be streaming in is beginning to sink in. The excitement and anticipation is gone. The kids are getting bored with their presents. It’s too cold/wet/stormy/hot ( 😁 ) to send them outside to play, so they are stampeding through the house and screaming bloody murder. Schools are out until after the new year, and parents are pulling their hair in frustration.

Sound familiar?

“Listen in silence before Me, you lands beyond the sea. Bring your strongest arguments. Come now and speak. The Court is ready for your case. …. Don’t be afraid, for I AM with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I AM your GOD. I will Strengthen you and Help you. I will hold you up with My Victorious Right Hand.” – Isaiah 41:1‭, ‬10 NLT

As difficult as it is to sit still and listen, it is crucial to our well-being that we do it. We don’t have to be in a great cathedral, or even a simple, humble little chapel. To escape the noise, it might have to be in a closet with the door closed, and part of your prayer could be that the house is still standing and in one piece when you come out. Take a few minutes today, and tomorrow, and the next day, Ad Infinitum…. We need the proclivity to continue this practice. I believe that after a few days of spending quiet prayer time with the LORD, you will feel bereft if you try to go through a day without it. The best resolution we can make is to carve out a few minutes of every day to spend with Him. You don’t need any accoutrements, or any specific place. You just need Jesus, and He will do as He promised. He will never leave us to make it on our own, unlike any human man or woman.

Photograph courtesy of Mark Campbell in Big Sur, CA.

Let Heaven and Nature Sing

“For this is how GOD Loved the world: He gave His ONE and ONLY Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have Eternal Life. GOD sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through Him. …. And the judgment is based on this fact: GOD’s Light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the Light, for their actions were evil.” – John 3:16‭-‬17‭, ‬19 NLT

Incomprehensible. That’s the best word I can conjure up to explain how I see this.

“Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him IMMANUEL, which means ‘GOD is with us.’” When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the LORD commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.” – Matthew 1.23-25.NLT

Miraculous, no matter what you think. GOD, Creator, Almighty Jehovah, Yahweh….. left everything to be born into a human family. He went from a place of unimaginable wealth and comfort, to be laid in a manager full of straw, in a stable full of animals. Know any really wealthy people? I do, and the thought of any one of them giving up one of their children to be laid in a stable and raised in poverty….. well, it’s beyond my imagination. They just wouldn’t do it, yet the GOD Who owns the entire universe, the earth, moon, sun, and ALL of the planets and stars, put His Son, His ONLY Son, in just that place. See, it’s incomprehensible. Almost unimaginable, but true.

Merry Christmas, and Happy Birthday, JESUS!!

Why December?

Why NOT December? Scholars and theologians debate the month, date, and year that JESUS was actually born, but really, why do they think it matters? Do YOU think it matters? For myself, it doesn’t. His actual birth date is irrelevant. The thing we should be focused on is the FACT of Jesus’ birth. Historically, we know He was born in Bethlehem, we know that He entered Jerusalem (triumphantly!) when He was 33 years old, and that He was hung on a Roman cross like a common criminal. History supports His empty tomb, and the multitude of eyewitness accounts support His resurrection from the tomb.

“Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.” ” – Matthew 2:1‭-‬2 NLT

“Many people have set out to write accounts about the events that have been fulfilled among us. They used the eyewitness reports circulating among us from the early disciples. Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I also have decided to write an accurate account for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can be certain of the truth of everything you were taught.” – Luke 1:1‭-‬4 NLT

No matter when you choose to celebrate the birth of our Saviour, what counts is that you celebrate it. It could be as simple as a single candle for His Birth day, and it can be an all-out decorated extravaganza, as long as we remember the reason we are celebrating. The food and trees, the lights and decorations and presents are all great fun, but the WHY…. that is what truly counts.

Merry CHRIST-mas!

The Blessings of Christmas – Day 3

“Oh, how Great are GOD’s Riches and Wisdom and Knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand His decisions and His ways! For who can know the LORD’s thoughts? Who knows enough to give Him advice? And who has given Him so much that He needs to pay it back? For everything comes from Him and exists by His Power and is intended for His Glory. All Glory to Him FOREVER! Amen.” – Romans 11:33‭-‬36 NLT

Celebrate His Power, His Mercy, and His Grace this Christmas season! Give Praise to the Father for His Gift, His sacrifice, and His Glory! Without all of these, there wouldn’t be a holiday season, Or anything to celebrate. What can we give Him; what can we give JESUS during this season to celebrate His birth day? We may be the shepherd, who had nothing to offer the new baby except their homage. We could be like the wise men, the Magi, who brought the little King of Heaven the most precious, most expensive gifts. Maybe you are like the angels and the heavenly host, singing in perfect voices, “GLORY to GOD in highest heaven, and Peace on earth to those with whom GOD is pleased.” (Luke 2:14 NLT) – or the little drummer boy, who had nothing to give except his music.

Whatever we offer the baby boy Jesus, let it be the most important gift of the season. The thing He wants most from us – the ONLY thing He wants from us – is not the most expensive thing we can find. Remember, Heaven is His home, and He already is in the midst of the most beauty and wealth that you can imagine. MORE than you can imagine! Riches don’t impressive Him. All He wants is to know that you love Him above all else; that you accept His sacrifice and let Him into your heart. Then we can worship Him with Thanksgiving and Hope. Gratitude.