Stuck Behind the Bus

Good Morning! 

Have you ever been stuck behind a school bus on a busy highway?  

When I was a child … don’t you hate it when a Good Morning begins with that phrase? Anyway, when I was a child in Dekalb County, we walked to and from our bus stop.  But, up here in White County, most of our children are picked up and dropped at their driveway.  And, it appears, most of the children are met by a parent or grandparent.  The result is that the school bus makes many more stops … slowing down traffic behind it.

Yesterday afternoon, I was returning home on Highway 384 (we call it “Duncan Bridge Road”) when my speed went from 55 MPH to a stop and start as I followed a school bus dropping off young people.  It was lightly raining at the time.  Most of the parents waited in their cars … but one mountain of a man was waiting outside for his son. When the boy got off the bus, he immediately went to the mailbox to check for mail.  And then, the dad (I assume it was the dad), held out his arms and the two embraced.  And I was suddenly glad that I was stuck behind the school bus.

Parenting is a tough job. I know this from actual experience.  My children had the benefit of a great Mom who did the lion share of the work.  And, yes, I did a part as well … but Miss Norma was the one who knew the children and their many needs.  In this day and age, it is hard for parents to be there for their children … but I believe it is vital. Your children are not mistakes … they are blessings God has given to you.  Love them. Treat them as precious gifts from God.

Recently I wrote about the Sh’ma … the phrase the Israelite men were to teach their children.  I think it is a good thing to teach ALL children …

Deuteronomy 6:4-5 English Standard Version (ESV)

4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a] 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

Footnotes:

Deuteronomy 6:4 Or The Lord our God is one Lord; or The Lord is our God, the Lord is one; or The Lord is our God, the Lord alone

I truly believe that my children benefited from both Norma and me choosing to honor God by making church a priority in our lives. Our Sundays and our Wednesdays were (and still are) days where gathering with other believers was a priority.

Well, today promises to be another rainy day in Cleveland Georgia.  No golf today … boo hoo.  But Mr. Oscar has a teeth cleaning, I have a mentoring meeting … and I just might have to bake a few cookies for the cast of Number the Stars.  Today is a good day … a day granted to us by God to love one another as He has loved us.

Agape’

Mr. Jim

  

Prayer:  Father, I thank You for allowing me to see the love of a father to his son … and reminding me of how You will greet me when the life bus makes its stop and I get off.  In Jesus’ Name … Amen.

Scripture for today:  Deuteronomy 6:4-5

Love

Good Morning! 

What a week and weekend we have experienced.  We began the week with temperatures that felt like Spring had arrived … followed by torrential rain … followed by snow and culminating in an earthquake in Lilburn yesterday morning.  Up here in Cleveland, we had about six inches of snow Saturday … and it was beautiful.  But it did mean that we canceled morning church services so that no one would get hurt.  Travel Saturday was very difficult – I am told.  I didn’t venture out.  Someone who visited my home once asked what I would do if it snowed since my driveway is almost “straight up”.  My response … I am retired, so I stay home. And I did.

Fortunately, the snow on the roads was mostly gone by early Sunday and I could get up and down the drive without a problem.  I hope all of you were safe and sound throughout the weekend.

The verses of the day on Biblegateway come from Paul’s letter to the church at Corinth.  I took a quick look and decided we needed to see the whole chapter …

1 Corinthians 13 English Standard Version (ESV)

13 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned,[a] but have not love, I gain nothing.

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;[b] 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. 11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Footnotes:

1.     1 Corinthians 13:3 Some manuscripts deliver up my body [to death] that I may boast

2.     1 Corinthians 13:5 Greek irritable and does not count up wrongdoing

Paul reminds each one of us that Jesus’ commandment (see John 13:34-35) is that we love one another.  I think Jesus is talking about genuine love for one another … love that goes beyond just being an acquaintance or being a friend … but being willing to devote one’s self to another. And that is not an easy task … because look what one has to give up:

·         Impatience – I have to be willing to wait on my brother or sister to get to where I might be spiritually

·         Aggravation – I have to actually practice being kind … uggghh

·         Envy and boastfulness - I have to let my actions speak for themselves and not toot my own horn

·         Arrogance and rudeness – I have to be able to see myself as being on the same plane as my brothers and sisters … after all, I am just a sinner saved by the grace of God as are all.

·         Insisting in having all things my way – even though I always think I know best.

·         Irritableness and resentment – I forfeit the “right” to get irritated at my fellow believer or to resent what he or she has that I don’t.

·         Rejoicing when another is wrong – this works out well when I am wrong …doesn’t it.

But look what I gain:

·         Love bears all things – I see people in a different light … and care about what they need

·         Love believes all things – I see possibilities instead of fallacies

·         Love hopes all things – I give my brothers and sisters second and third chances hoping they will succeed.  I hope they will do the same for me.

·         Love endures all things – I don’t give up … because God has never given up on me

Listen … I don’t understand it all … but I know this one thing … God’s love is forever … and so should my love for you, my brothers and sisters, be.

God walk with each of us this good day, granting us peace, love, joy and hope.

Agape’

Mr. Jim

  

Prayer:  Thank You, dear Father, for reminding me of how much You love me and how much I should love my fellow believers. In Jesus’ Name … Amen.

Scripture for today:  1^st Corinthians 13

Suffer the Little Children

Good Morning! 

Rain!!!  We have had almost six inches of rain over Wednesday and yesterday.  I noticed that Lake Patton is higher than I have ever seen it.  You can hear the water rushing through the spillway from my deck.  In Helen, there are some places where the Chattahoochee River has flooded.  How about your area?  I pray that all of you are safe from harm.

For those of us who are reading the gospels through, our text today is found in Mark 10.

Mark 10:13-16 English Standard Version (ESV)

13 And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 15 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” 16 And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.

Jesus understood that life toughens the ability of people to believe in the simplicity of God’s salvation.  There HAS to be something else … something beyond just trusting in the blood of Jesus to cover the sin of all of humanity.  Surely God expects us to demonstrate our faith … right?  We have to DO something to prove our faith to Him.

When one thinks about how a child believes, it becomes apparent that all they do is just say “yes”.  The Bible teaches that a person has to do is to confess with their mouth and believe in their heart that Jesus is Lord (Romans 10:9-10). 

Is that all?  Yes … but the Bible also teaches that when we believe, we become a new creation. Our desires change … we want to be like Jesus; we want to live in the way God would have us live; we want to gather with people of like mind to worship God.  But none of these are essential to our salvation … these actions are an expression OF our salvation.

Each of us must pose the question to ourselves … what do I believe?  I urge you to believe as a child would believe.  Jesus is the Christ … the One anointed by God to be the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all humankind. He offered Himself and His blood is sufficient to cover my sin and your sin.  When we believe in Him and His completed work on the cross, our faith alone is enough to bring us AT ONE with God.  Everything else that we might do to honor God and Christ is a praise offering.

Friday … and the weekend comes.  I hope you will use the Lord’s Day to honor God by gathering with people who also believe.  God bless you this weekend … and please, stay safe.

Agape’

Mr. Jim

  

Prayer:  I believe, dear Father, but help me in my unbelief. Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Your sight. May all that I say and all that I do bring honor to You. In Jesus’ Name … Amen.

Scripture for today:  Mark 10:13-16

Love One Another

Good Morning! 

Tonight is opening night the drama Number the Stars at Habersham Community Theatre.  The play is a fictional work, coming from a book by the same name.  Annemarie Johansen and her family help her good friend, Ellen Rosen, and her family escape from occupied Denmark to freedom in Sweden.  The play is based on the actual occurrences in Denmark from 1940 through early 1945. Danish citizens did not look upon each other as Christian or Jew or anything other than Danes. They bonded together to resist the Nazi desires for racial purity.

I was thinking early this morning about our current times.  In our world today, the most persecuted people are those who are Christian.  In some countries, being a Christian and proclaiming Christ could result in arrest, imprisonment … and even death.  Remembering the Holocaust is as important to Christian believers as it is to our Jewish friends … for Scripture point us to the time when our persecution will be as vile as it was during World War II. 

Paul writes about the coming of the end of time in his second letter to the church at Thessalonica …

2 Thessalonians 2 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

2 Brothers and sisters, we have something to say about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We want to talk to you about that time when we will meet together with him. 2 Don’t let yourselves be easily upset or worried if you hear that the day of the Lord has already come. Someone might say that this idea came from us—in something the Spirit told us, or in something we said, or in a letter we wrote. 3 Don’t be fooled by anything they might say. That day of the Lord will not come until the turning away from God happens. And that day will not come until the Man of Evil appears, the one who belongs to hell.[a] 4 He will stand against and put himself above everything that people worship or think is worthy of worship. He will even go into God’s Temple[b] and sit there, claiming that he is God.

5 I told you before that all these things would happen. Remember? 6 And you know what is stopping that Man of Evil now. He is being stopped now so that he will appear at the right time. 7 The secret power of evil is already working in the world now. But there is one who is stopping that secret power of evil. And he will continue to stop it until he is taken out of the way. 8 Then that Man of Evil will appear. But the Lord Jesus will kill him with the breath that comes from his mouth. The Lord will come in a way that everyone will see, and that will be the end of the Man of Evil.

9 When that Man of Evil comes, it will be the work of Satan. He will come with great power, and he will do all kinds of false miracles, signs, and wonders. 10 The Man of Evil will use every kind of evil to fool those who are lost. They are lost because they refused to love the truth and be saved. 11 So God will send them something powerful that leads them away from the truth and causes them to believe a lie. 12 They will all be condemned because they did not believe the truth and because they enjoyed doing evil.

13 Brothers and sisters, you are people the Lord loves. And we always thank God for you. That’s what we should do, because God chose you to be some of the first people[c] to be saved. You are saved by the Spirit making you holy and by your faith in the truth. 14 God chose you to have that salvation. He chose you by using the Good News that we told you. You were chosen so that you can share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So, brothers and sisters, stand strong and continue to believe the teachings we gave you when we were there and by letter.

16-17 We pray that the Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father will comfort you and strengthen you in every good thing you do and say. God loved us and gave us through his grace a wonderful hope and comfort that has no end.

Footnotes:

·         2 Thessalonians 2:3 belongs to hell Literally, “is the son of destruction.”

·         2 Thessalonians 2:4 Temple Probably the Temple in Jerusalem. See “Temple” in the Word List.

·         2 Thessalonians 2:13 to be … people Some Greek copies say, “from the beginning.”

Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)

Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International

Have we learned the lessons of impact of hatred?  Our sordid history reveals the heart of humankind … and we often find that it is vile.  But Jesus has raised us to obey His simple command to love one another. The Holy Spirit that indwells us teaches us to love. In love, we glorify Christ Jesus … and ourselves.

John writes … “Beloved, let us love one another.”  Let us stand firm in that love regardless of what the World may do to squash that love.

Agape’

Mr. Jim

  

Prayer:  Remind us, dear Father, of our need to follow Your command to love one another as Jesus loves us.  Keep our eyes focused on You and our hearts on the teaching of the Lord. In Jesus’ Name … Amen.

Scripture for today:  2 Thessalonians 2

How Long Has It Been

Good Morning! 

Does prayer change things?  

My short answer is “you betcha!” 

The theme of prayer runs throughout Scripture.  Men and women approach God …  and He faithfully responds.  One of my favorite examples of God’s responding is found in 1^st Samuel where Hannah prays to God for a child … and He gives her Samuel.  Let’s take a brief look at the passage:

1 Samuel 1 English Standard Version (ESV)

1 There was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim of the hill country of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephrathite. 2 He had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other, Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.

3 Now this man used to go up year by year from his city to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the Lord. 4 On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters. 5 But to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb.[a] 6 And her rival used to provoke her grievously to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. 7 So it went on year by year. As often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. 8 And Elkanah, her husband, said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? And why do you not eat? And why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?”

9 After they had eaten and drunk in Shiloh, Hannah rose. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. 10 She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. 11 And she vowed a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.”

12 As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. 13 Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli took her to be a drunken woman. 14 And Eli said to her, “How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.” 15 But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. 16 Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for all along I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.” 17 Then Eli answered, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.” 18 And she said, “Let your servant find favor in your eyes.” Then the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad.

19 They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord; then they went back to their house at Ramah. And Elkanah knew Hannah his wife, and the Lord remembered her. 20 And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, “I have asked for him from the Lord.”[b]

Footnotes:

·         1 Samuel 1:5 Syriac; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain. Septuagint And, although he loved Hannah, he would give Hannah only one portion, because the Lord had closed her womb

·         1 Samuel 1:20 Samuel sounds like the Hebrew for heard of God

Talk about fervent prayer … to be so deep in prayer that, when observed, to be considered as being drunken!  But, more importantly, see the results … a son who would spend his entire life serving God faithfully. 

As usual, there is a song reverberating in the vacant space between the ears as I key these thoughts …

How long has it been since you talked with the Lord
And told him your heart's hidden secrets?
How long since you prayed?
How long since you stayed on your knees till the light shone through?

How long has it been since your mind felt at ease?
How long since your heart knew no burden?
Can you call him your friend?
How long has it been since you knew that he cared for you?

How long has it been since you knelt by your bed
And prayed to the Lord up in heaven?
How long since you knew that he'd answer you
And would keep you the long night through?

How long has it been since you woke with the dawn
And felt this day is worth living?
Can you call him your friend?
How long has it been since you knew that he cared for you?

So … how long has it been?  Pray without ceasing!!!  God bless you this good, good day …

Agape’

Mr. Jim

  

Prayer: Father, teach me to pray in all situations. Teach me to seek Your face when I am considering the moments of my day. Teach me to pray when rejoicing in Your goodness and Your mercy. Teach me to pray when I doubt and when I find myself in life’s difficulties. Teach me to pray and to listen to Your answer.  In Jesus’ Name … Amen.

Scripture for today:  1^st Samuel 1:1-20

What Is Your Gift

Good Morning! 

What are you doing with the gifts God has given you?  You do KNOW that God has given you a gift, don’t you? Every believer is endowed with a special gift from God that He wants us to use. Some are gifted in being able to speak the message of Jesus to people.  Others are gifted in helping their fellow believers in times of need. Still others have been given the means to provide for all.  We could keep on going … but the point is that YOU have a gift from God that is intended to be used for HIS glory.

So … what is your gift?  One of the joys I had as a husband was seeing Miss Norma discover her gift.  She was endowed with the gift of mercy.  She displayed her gift in the church setting as she willingly worked in the nursery at each stop along the way … until her health prevented her from doing so.  Outside the church setting, Miss Norma served as a volunteer at Southern Regional’s Mother-Baby unit.  One might ask how bathing and rocking a newborn would be a display of mercy … until they hear of when she had to comfort a father who had just lost his wife in childbirth ... or had to hold a mother of a newborn that had to go to NICU.  God gave her the ability to help people in their time of need. 

So … what is your gift?  In the ministry I have at the nursing home, I have observed some of my co-workers who have that special ability to make things go smoothly.  One such person is Elba. Elba is originally from Brazil.  She sweeps into the different homes each week – going from patient to patient, asking in broken English if they want to attend the service, helping move them into the room where we gather.  She seeks out chairs for those who are ambulatory … and helps align the wheelchairs of those who aren’t.  She gives each one a hug … spending a few moments with each one individually.  After the service, is the first one to help get the chairs back in place.  Elba exhibits the gift of helps … a gift often overlooked but very necessary for those in ministry.

So … what is your gift?  Peter writes …

1 Peter 4:10-11 English Standard Version (ESV)

10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Some points to consider on this good day:

·         The gift God gives you is to be used to serve one another.  If our gift is one that is visible …  for example, the gift of teaching, we should teach with confidence; if our gift is service, we should do so with joy.  We should rejoice in the opportunity to use our gift to enhance the life another.

·         The gift God gives you is a trust He places in you.  Note that Peter tells us that we should be good stewards of the gift.  A steward is a person who has gained the trust of another.  God endows you with a gift because He knows that you can do what that gift requires.  And, while you may feel that you are not able, you can know that He is able to give you the strength to carry through.

·         The gift God gives you is for His glory alone. Miss Norma would be mortified to hear me talk about what she did.  Elba would just smile and continue to move forward.  The point is that each gift is given to bring glory and honor to God. 

So … what is your gift?  Find out … and then use it to the max.

God bless each one of you this good day.

Agape’

Mr. Jim

  

Prayer: Father, I thank You for Your gracious endowment of gifts to Your children. Show each one of us where we can serve You and our fellow humans. Encourage us to use the specific gift we have for Your glory.  In Jesus’ Name … Amen.

Scripture for today:  1 Peter 4:10-11

Thou, O Lord

Good Morning! 

Well, the 2019 football season is finally over.  Kansas City finally won a Super Bowl.  Well, just six months before we begin this all again.  Actually, I spent my time watching something else last night.  It wasn’t because I was not interested … I just didn’t want to get involved in the game and not be able to sleep afterwards.  So, I snoozed while watching the National Geographic channel, awakening at 9:43 so I could go to bed.  Getting old is fun.

Talk about “fun” … have you ever watched the Waste Management Phoenix Open?  This golf tournament boasts as having the largest attendance of any sports event in the world.  It is not unusual for the gate on any given day to be as high as 200,000 spectators.  A significant portion of the gate goes to charitable causes in the Phoenix area.  The most fun hole is hole 16.  The hole is a par 3 set in a stadium that holds thousands of rowdy spectators who cheer and boo the golfers as they play the hole.  A golfer can be cheered for a great drive and then booed when he misses the putt.  By the way, the best shot of the week came on Saturday when Webb Simpson carded a hole-in-one on hole 12.  Webb eventually won the tournament in a playoff with Tony Finau.

I am sure you didn’t join me this morning to get a sports report.  So, let’s turn our attention to God’s Word … and to how He is encouraging me this Good Morning.

It seems that I need a pick-me-up every once in a while.  One of my favorite songs to get a fresh filling is the song Thou O Lord as sung by the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir.  I just listened to it this morning to get the juices flowing.  (YouTube it and give it a listen … it’s a good use of 6 minutes of your day.)  The song comes from Psalms 3 … a song of David when he was fleeing from his son Absalom.  The Psalm reads …

Psalm 3 English Standard Version (ESV)

Save Me, O My God

A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son.

3 O Lord, how many are my foes!
    Many are rising against me;
2 many are saying of my soul,
    “There is no salvation for him in God.” Selah[a]

3 But you, O Lord, are a shield about me,
    my glory, and the lifter of my head.
4 I cried aloud to the Lord,
    and he answered me from his holy hill. Selah

5 I lay down and slept;
    I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.
6 I will not be afraid of many thousands of people
    who have set themselves against me all around.

7 Arise, O Lord!
    Save me, O my God!
For you strike all my enemies on the cheek;
    you break the teeth of the wicked.

8 Salvation belongs to the Lord;
    your blessing be on your people! Selah

Footnotes:

Psalm 3:2 The meaning of the Hebrew word Selah, used frequently in the Psalms, is uncertain. It may be a musical or liturgical direction

Bob Deffinbaugh writes about Absalom’s rebellion in his article entitled The Darkest Days of David’s Life that covers 2^nd Samuel 16:20 -19:8. You can find this article on Bible.org. It is a good read. 

Imagine having one of your children come against you, attempting not only to dethrone you but also to kill you.  And, imagine that child has been able to garner a large portion of the population against you … so much so that you feel that you must flee to save your life.  That is where David was.  Would you be as likely to turn to God under those circumstances? 

In this Psalm, David states his trust in God to sustain him even in this dark hour.  And God did!!! Ultimately, Absalom was killed (even though David didn’t want that to happen) and David’s throne was upheld. 

So … what does this do for us this morning?  Listen, all of us are going to encounter some dark days in our lives.  And sometimes we will feel as though everyone is against us.  In those times, we should follow David’s lead and praise God for His faithfulness to us.

Well, we begin a new week in a new month.  May God bless you and keep you throughout this good day.

Agape’

Mr. Jim

  

Prayer: “Thou, O Lord, are shield to me, my glory and the lifter of my head.”  Father, help me to always remember that You never abandon Your children … especially in the tough times of life. Thank You for Your faithfulness to me. In Jesus’ Name … Amen.

Scripture for today:  Psalms 3