I BELIEVE In Mercy and Grace (Thank GOD!!)

I BELIEVE In Mercy and Grace (Thank GOD!!)

“As for [me], [I was] dead in [my] transgressions and sins, in which [I] used to live when [ I] followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit [Satan] who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.” (Emphasis is mine – Instead of pointing to ‘you’, I admit my complicity in these charges laid out to the church in Ephesus by the apostle Paul.)

“But because of His Great LOVE for us, GOD, Who is rich in Mercy, made us alive with CHRIST even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by Grace you have been saved. And GOD raised us up with CHRIST and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in CHRIST JESUS, in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His Grace, expressed in His kindness to us in CHRIST JESUS. For it is by Grace you have been saved, through Faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the Gift of GOD – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are GOD’s handiwork, created in CHRIST JESUS to do good works, which GOD prepared in advance for us to do.” – Ephesians 2:2‭-‬10 NIV

Have you heard “This I Believe (The Creed)” by Hillsong Worship?” It begins like this:

Our Father everlasting
The all creating One
God Almighty

Through Your Holy Spirit
Conceiving Christ the Son
Jesus our Savior

I believe in God our Father
I believe in Christ the Son
I believe in the Holy Spirit
Our God is three in one
I believe in the resurrection
That we will rise again
For I believe in the name of Jesus

Knowing that I am a sinner, and that I am only saved from an eternity of pain and suffering because of JESUS CHRIST and His Love for me – for me – (even though I deserve His wrath!), makes me incredibly thankful for GOD’s Mercy!

There are no coincidences in life – as I began writing this morning, this beautiful song by Hillsong came on the radio, and a little later Lauren Dagle’s song “Trust In You” began. I need those reminders to help me look beyond my own troubles and focus my eyes back on the LORD and His Mercies.

“However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the LORD JESUS has given me – the task of testifying to the Good News of GOD’s Grace.” – Acts 20:24 NIV

What is your life worth to you? Do you believe that this wondrous, incredibly complex being that is you, this creation of the Almighty GOD of the Universe, is just going to turn to dust when you die? Do you believe you will be reborn in karma, or just cease to exist altogether? I don’t understand those views. Intellectually, maybe, but in my heart? No…. we are too intricate, our bodies too intriguing, to have come from nothing without the guiding Hand of the Creator. Come to JESUS and the cross where He has already died for your sins. GOD’s Mercy and Grace awaits you!

Image credit: LCC Daily Devotions

Fix My Eyes

Have you ever come across a verse in the Bible that makes your eyes pop open, because it is so relevant to you in that instant that it’s as though GOD Himself just spoke it out loud to you? I love it when it happens to me!

“Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the LORD will be my Light.” – Micah 7:8 NIV

BOOM. Take THAT, Satan! So much of the time, we are so overwhelmed by the circumstances we are in that we become totally focused on putting one foot in front of the other. As we are trying desperately to see the next step, and hoping it is solid enough to hold us, we forget to lift our eyes enough to see the hand stretched out to assist us. We act like we’re blind, feeling our way through the flood or fire or rain of our situation, tap tap tapping the path, hoping for a clear way. Why are we so determined that we have to do it on our own – like a 2 year old, “I do it!”; that we have to assert our independence, when the LORD of the Universe is waiting right beside us, ready to help??? Is it such a bad thing to accept help?

Miss Independence. If I were in a pageant, that would be me. I can do it. I grew up trying hard to be accepted by my big brother, and I knew I had to be strong and not a “girly-girl” to be one of the guys. When I went into the workforce, I found a job in a builder’s supply, the heart of ‘man-world’. If I couldn’t prove my independence, my ‘I can do it’ attitude, I wouldn’t survive in that atmosphere….. so that’s what I did. The men learned that if I was told I couldn’t do something (implied was ‘because you’re a girl‘), then I would do everything in my power to do that thing. Whether it was determining the difference between a framing hammer and a finish hammer, or stocking 50# boxes of nails and screws; learning to drive a forklift and unloading (and loading) trucks, I did it. Presented with a challenge, my attitude became “I will do it …. on my own, and I don’t want your help.” Those years, and all of those jobs would have been so much easier, so much more pleasant, with someone at my side helping. After years of the struggle, I met and married a man who was truly a partner to me. He didn’t challenge me; he worked alongside me and we learned from each other.

That’s the relationship we can have with JESUS! He doesn’t dominate the relationship, He doesn’t ‘boss’ us, He is there, beside us, to carry our burdens so that we aren’t staggering under them. We may still stumble and fall, and the enemy will still come at us with his arrows and throw obstacles in our path, but with JESUS at our side, we have the help we need to go on. Keeping our eyes fixed on JESUS, we aren’t focused on the ugliness of the enemy….. and trust me, he is UUUUG-LY. Worry, anxiety, frustrations, hurts and hatefulness, bullying, gossip – these are ways the enemy gets us to gradually look away from JESUS, until we are immersed in them and we’ve completely lost sight of the LORD. That’s his goal! Don’t let him win.

“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with GOD’s people and also members of His household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with CHRIST JESUS Himself as the Chief Cornerstone. In HIM the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the LORD. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which GOD lives by His SPIRIT.” – Ephesians 2:19‭-‬22 NIV

I pray today that my eyes will stay fixed on my LORD, and off of the frustrating circumstances. I’ve read the back of the Book, devil, and you LOSE, dude.

Listen to Fix My Eyes by King and Country ☝️

Happy Birthday, Dad

He would have been 94 this past Tuesday. His physical earthly presence is gone, but he will be with us in mind and spirit as long as people remember him. He was definitely a strong presence when he was here; a major influence for the LORD in countless lives not just here in Oklahoma, but around the world. He visited a number of countries, including much of Europe, Canada, Mexico, Africa, Egypt, Japan, Taiwan, China, Thailand and more, plus almost every state in our Union. Knowing my Dad and his Love for his SAVIOUR, he shared the Gospel with the hundreds and thousands of people he met.

“For GOD so Loved the world that He gave His One and Only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” – John 3:16 NIV

Don’t think that he was perfect! He was as imperfect as any human, with a major difference: He wasn’t afraid to state the Truth of JESUS to anyone that I ever witnessed; he was bold in his faith. We had our differences, and I got angry with him, but he was – is – a hero. He was kind, charitable, a hard worker; he loved his family and his country. We never danced together on earth, but one day soon, Dad, I’ll get that Daddy-Daughter dance with you in heaven. ❤❤❤

Trust …. In GOD, or Man?

When I finally stopped my busyness this morning, and realized I was pushing GOD behind all these ‘pressing’ matters of daily life, I opened my ears and heard this song by Unspoken on the radio:

You brought me this far
So why would I question you now
You have provided so why would I start to doubt
I’ve never been stranded, abandoned or left here to fight alone
So I’m giving you control

Immediately following was this song, sung by Tenth Avenue North:

As I walk this great unknown
Questions come and questions go
Was there purpose for the pain?
Did I cry these tears in vain?

How many times do we do just these things that are addressed in these words, feeling stranded, abandoned, and alone; feeling hopeless, in pain and in tears? Every day? Right now? This minute? I confess to all of these feelings and more, sometimes. I have HOPE, though, because I know that my GOD is here and in control. He never left me to deal with all the junk in the world by myself, but instead, He has always been right beside me, even when I was blatantly ignoring Him! The song by Unspoken goes on to say this:

If peace is a river then let it sweep over me
If I’m under fire I know it’s refining me
When I hear you calling out I follow now wherever the road may go
I know you’re leading me home

And Tenth Avenue North ends their song with these words:

I have this hope
In the depth of my soul
In the flood or the fire
You’re with me and You won’t let go

What a promise! When we stop running from GOD, and we call on Him to save us through our faith in the LORD JESUS CHRIST, He is right there. Remember what Paul said when writing to the church in Philippi?

“Rejoice in the LORD always. I will say it again: REJOICE! Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the Peace of GOD, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in CHRIST JESUS.” – Philippians 4:4‭, ‬6‭-‬7 NIV

What an incredible TRUTH is spoken here! Once we become a child of the Living GOD, Creator, Architect, Great Physician; the real Master of the Universe, we are set free from the worry and angst of this world. We receive His Perfect Love and His Peace; a Peace that is inconceivable and incomprehensible to anyone who hasn’t received it. It doesn’t mean that suddenly everything will come up roses; rather, I believe that it means that we will come under heavy attach by the enemy, Satan. He doesn’t want us to find contentment in our circumstances, and he does everything possible to get us to blame God for the bad, the evil in the world, and especially for anything that has happened (is happening) to us.

Again I ask, are you feeling stranded, abandoned, and alone; are you feeling hopeless, in pain, and in tears? It isn’t easy to rejoice in horrendous situations, or when things are falling apart around us, but I promise you, when you lay whatever it is at the Feet of JESUS, He will give you Peace! In recovery ministries, we suggest writing (yes, picking up a pencil or a pen and a sheet of paper, and actually writing as a tangible, visual reminder!) a Gratitude list. Nothing to write down because life is just that bad right now? You say nobody loves me, I’m alone, no job, sick (sick and tired of being sick and tired yet???), and etc….

Here’s a little help. Number one on your list could be: Toilet paper.

Okay? Now, go from there. I had to start with some real basics when I began the journey, and toilet paper made it on my list! I can add that I am alive, reasonably healthy, have transportation, I can drive, and I have my animals. Does that help you get started? By myself, by ourselves, we are not enough. With JESUS, we are. Trusting in man, and trusting in myself only gets me into trouble. Trusting the LORD may not get out of my trouble, but He does carry me through it. I am not alone.

AMEN.

He Is MORE Than Able!

“Now to Him Who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His Power that is at work within us, to Him be Glory in the church and in CHRIST JESUS throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” – Ephesians 3:20‭-‬21 NIV

I love these verses! We used to sing them to a simple melody in the little church we were a part of …. beautiful, and Absolute Truth.

You may have missed my blogs the past few days. I have been without my tablet/computer, and I was beginning to feel bereft! It wasn’t because it was lost or stolen or anything bad; I’ve been really busy and everything has taken a back seat to a rather momentous occasion. 😎 My sweet Mama (she’ll turn 92 in a couple of months!!) just moved back to Oklahoma after spending the past 36-37 years in Tucson, AZ to be closer to more of her kids. I had the privilege of going out to her home in Arizona for several weeks to pack her things in preparation for the move, and now we get to help her settle into her new place here. It’s been a real blessing to work with my sisters and my Mom as we see an apartment turn into a cozy home, with the bonus that she’s now 35 miles from me, rather than 1000! It’s much easier to visit now!

My prayer is that I will be able to move even closer, so that I am more readily available for her…. would you pray for me? My income is severely limited and I need two things: a part-time job close too her, and a small house (also closer) within my budget. On my own, looking at my finances, this is an insurmountable task – especially considering that I’ve spent the majority of the last 2 1/2 years looking for a position! – but then I remember Ephesians 3:20-21 and all of the crazy, overwhelming challenges I have been faced with in my life, and I know I have to turn it over to my LORD. These verses that Paul wrote resonate in my heart as well:

“And my GOD will meet all your needs according to the riches of His GLORY in CHRIST JESUS. To our GOD and FATHER be Glory for ever and ever. Amen.” – Philippians 4:19‭-‬20 NIV

GOD Loves me, He will provide. Listen to the beautiful new hymn, Living Hope, sung by Phil Wickham:

How great the chasm that lay between us
How high the mountain I could not climb …

JESUS CHRIST, my Living HOPE!

Amen!

I’m Asking …. I’m ASKING, LORD and I’m Listening

“Keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching, and you will find. Keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What man among you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your FATHER in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! Therefore, whatever you want others to do for you, do also the same for them – this is the Law and the Prophets.” – Matthew 7:7‭-‬12 HCSB

“Therefore I tell you, all the things you pray and ask for – believe that you have received them, and you will have them.” – Mark 11:24 HCSB

What are you asking for? Is it to be recognized in your field, or to make lots of money; that you get a bigger, more impressive house or car/truck? Is your prayer, your ‘ask’, that you succeed as an entrepreneur or business person? Is your ‘ask’ that your sports team or favorite athletes win? Is it wrong to pray for these things? I don’t have an answer to that question. Like others, I have prayed for and worked towards all those things, and my LORD has provided me with countless blessings throughout my life.

Now, my prayer is just to have enough. I don’t want, or need, a big house or a fancy automobile. Right now I’m caught, stuck, in the web of my own making, a big one. I can’t see a way out, but my GOD sees the bigger picture, and because He loves me, He hears my prayer. Like the father of the boy who was possessed cried out to JESUS, I also cry out to my LORD, “I do believe! Help my unbelief.” – Mark 9:24 HCSB

Just enough, LORD, just enough. I do believe, and I’m listening!

Apathy, Oh, Apathy

I am emphatically NOT a morning person. This is a fact which is rather ironic considering that I’ve spent the majority of my working life starting work by 6-6:30 am, including over 4 years of operating a Bed & Breakfast, getting up by 5:30 to start preparing. It’s a dichotomy, because I love the early morning as the world around me wakes up, especially when I’m holding a steaming hot cup of coffee. If I could somehow manage it, my ideal sleeping arrangement would consist of my bed on a screened porch, open to the sounds and smells of nature (i.e. the ocean and surf) with a coffeepot right next to the bed, ready to flip the switch. Could it be any better? Snuggled under the blankets with the indoor critters, and all with that beauty around you?

Eventually, I know, I have to get up and stop dreaming….. but I don’t want to! I want nothing more than to lie there, boneless and driftting, letting apathy carry me along. Why get up when it feels so nice to stay where I am? Reality creeps in, steps in, screams in, or sometimes stomps in, shattering the peace. I can jump up in anger and frustration, or I can take a deep breath and focus on this selection from the Psalms:

“I lift my eyes toward the mountains. Where will my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.” – Psalms 121:1‭-‬2 HCSB

My personal peace is rather fragile right now. I’m really struggling financially and haven’t found a job since I left my last job (involuntarily) over 2 years ago. I’m in a rather deep hole of debt, and there are things that need to happen quickly for me. I’d be lying if I said I’m not concerned, and I tend towards worry at times, but my GOD is so good at reminding me that HE is in complete control of the situation. The situation looks hopeless to me, so I have to look for my Hope in Him and remember, again, David’s words: “My help, my HOPE, comes from the LORD….”

Where do you find your hope? In your spouse? That’s dangerous. They can change their minds and leave in a heartbeat. In your children? They have to make their own way in the world, and even though they can stay close, they cannot be your everything. What about your job? It’s so easy to get wrapped up in our jobs and careers and feel like we are on top of the world, only to have someone higher up decide you are no longer relevant. Is the hope in financial security? Financial security in this day is an oxymoron. Perhaps your hope comes through religious rituals and the rote repetition of prayers and petitions to a priest or some vague ‘higher power’. All of that is man-made and doomed to failure because of man’s fallibility.

The only Hope we can depend on, no matter where or what or when, is the Hope we find in the SAVIOUR, our LORD JESUS CHRIST. Not in man, who will always fail us and disappoint us.

“My help – my HOPE – comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.”

My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.”

Blue-Footed Booby and the Platypus

It’s almost the end of July here in the center of the contiguous United States. The average temps run in the mid-high 90’s, and we’ve been topping out the 90’s for the past several weeks with equally high humidity….. Today, it feels more lke October – it’s chilly!

I’m not complaining!

Our Creator GOD has a sense of humor; I am thoroughly convinced of it. Who else would have the creativity to make a snowquakenado? (FYI, that’s when you have snow, an earthquake, and a tornado, all at the same time. Only in Ooooooook-lahoma!) Who else has the genius (and sense of humor!) to make the Platypus, the Blue-Footed Booby, or the Pangolin? Who else could have engineered the complex, precise mechanisms of the human body; not only physically complicated, but the brain. And especially, what human would make something to be their companion, and then give them free will? In all of the Robot novels by Isaac Asimov, robots are limited in the scope of what they can do. They are constructed to never be able to harm a human (e.g. The First Law of Robotics: 1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.)

When humanity was created by GOD, it was designed to be companionship for Him, never causing harm to each other or to GOD’s incredible earth. The difference between humanity and robots is that we are not constrained by a similar law. Instead, our Creator gave us free will, and we have been making poor choices ever since. Still, despite our best efforts to belittle and minimize the LORD, He continues to love us, forgive us, and reach out to protect and save us. I certainly wouldn’t be open to any person who treated me as badly as I have treated my Saviour!

He has kept His sense of humor throughout the ages, regardless of mankind’s actions. Look at the variety of humans! We come in a plethora of colors and shapes and sizes and abilities. In our wildest imaginings, could a mere human have done the same? Oh sure, we’ve manipulated gene pools and adapted, but we haven’t created anything. After humanity’s diversity, there are the animals…. really, a Platypus??? A Blue-Footed Booby??? And that’s just barely tapping the surface! I haven’t even started on the lanscape or the ocean or the stars and planets…. You’ll never be able to convince me that GOD is a dour, grumpy old man 😁 that doesn’t enjoy laughing with His people!

P.S. Don’t pet the Platypus!!

To The Unknown GOD

“For as I was passing through and observing the objects of your worship, I even found an altar on which was inscribed: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you. The GOD who made the world and everything in it — He is LORD of heaven and earth and does not live in shrines made by hands. Neither is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives everyone life and breath and all things. From one man He has made every nationality to live over the whole earth and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live. He did this so they might seek GOD, and perhaps they might reach out and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’ Being GOD’s offspring then, we shouldn’t think that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image fashioned by human art and imagination. Therefore, having overlooked the times of ignorance, GOD now commands all people everywhere to repent, because He has set a day when He is going to judge the world in righteousness by the MAN He has appointed. He has provided proof of this to everyone by raising Him from the dead.” – Acts 17:23‭-‬31 HCSB

I found this on eBible.com, written by S. Michael Houdmann (http://www.gotquestions.org/normative-ethics.html).

CHRISTIAN ETHICS

Unlike the other normative ethical schools, Christian ethics answers the questions. It identifies truth (God), outlines the basis of ethics (principles found in the Bible), and even lists some universal laws that apply directly to the unchanging truth.The problem with manmade ethics is that they start with a false assumption of truth and try to build from there. Deontology says ethics are based on obligation, without basing that obligation on God’s truth. Consequentialism says that “good” is truth, but then can’t define what “good” is. Relativism says we cannot know the truth. And virtue ethics claims that we can work to embody truth ourselves. Only Christian ethics says that truth exists (Psalm 51:6), truth is knowable (Proverbs 3:3), and we will need help from the Creator of truth to find it (John 14:16-17). It is foolish to base a standard of behavior on our feeble notions of the truth of the cosmos when the Truth Himself is willing to guide us (John 14:6).

I love research!

Our LORD GOD is Absolute, the Alpha and the Omega, and He will sit as the Final Judgement on all of His creation. Are you prepared to stand before Him? I know I have been forgiven and redeemed by the MAN our GOD has appointed, and I know that this MAN, JESUS CHRIST, will be my Advocate and show me as Righteous in front of the ALMIGHTY at the Great White Throne Judgement. NO ONE is Righteous without the Covering of the Blood of JESUS, and the Saving Grace and Mercy this MAN JESUS CHRIST has provided us. I ask again, are you ready? Remember, only HIS Judgement matters!