Same Old, Same Old
I’ve been up for a bit but finally settled down for some time together, Father. I pray that I will hear what You would have to share with me this day. May I give You my undivided attention. Amen.
Revelation 3:12-13 (<<click here to read the passage)
Sometimes life here on earth gets old. As King Solomon is credited with writing in Ecclesiastes 1:8-9,
Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content.
History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new.
Now I don’t want to be ungrateful for what You have given us, Lord. And truly the only redeeming factors in everyday life are the blessings which You so generously pour upon us. But the routines of life can become wearying.
The craving for something new, something different, can wreak havoc in our lives. We grow tired of our jobs, our homes, our vehicles, our friends, our spouses…much to our shame. We cast them aside and move on to the next thing. Much like children, we grow tired of toys we have and desire new ones, different ones.
Lord, help us to be content with the things we have. Help us to grow up. May we love and cherish the blessings You have given us. The new will come if we are faithful. And if we are faithful, we will be victorious!
This passage in Revelation speaks clearly of some of the “new” we will experience. We will have citizenship in the “new Jerusalem…” And something that I’ve never realized before, Lord, You will write Your “new name” on us!
In reading the study helps on Biblegateway.com, specifically, the MacArthur Study Bible notes, I read, “At the moment we see Christ, whatever we may have called Him and understood by that name will pale in the reality of what we see. And He will give us a new, eternal name by which we will know Him.”
Lord, I yearn for the day when the routines of life will be something left behind. What a glorious day it will be when we live with You in Your re-created world and when we will have your “new name”! May I be faithful! Amen.
July 27th, 2017, Thurs, 7:00 am
One Author
What a nice, relaxing day Karen and I had together yesterday, Father. Thank You for Your blessings on our services, our bite of lunch together, and the rest of the day that we quietly spent at home. I am truly blessed!
Revelation 3:7-8 (<<click the green)
When we look at the Bible so many people see different things. Many see different writings by different people during different times of history. The only continuity some see is that a great portion of the Old Testament pertains to the nation of Israel and the New Testament deals with the life of You, Lord Jesus, an Israelite, and how Your followers continued to spread his message – the Good News, that is, the Gospel – the salvation You have extended to the world, throughout the world.
But in reality, it is all interconnected…it is intertwined. The books in the Book were written by a variety of people but there was one Author. The Bible, Lord, is Your story, communicating Your creation of us, Your love for us, and Your pursuit of us, from the beginning of time until its end.
I love Your interjection of Isaiah 22:22 in the midst of Your message to the churches here in Revelation. Something written so long ago – 800 years before Your coming to live amongst us – found its fulfillment in a church that came into being after Your return to the Father.
Sovereign Lord, You hold the key of David and what You have opened – salvation – “no one can close” and what You have closed “no one can open” – the judgment of all the world is certain. (Concepts communicated in my study Bible*.)
Lord, Your Word clearly tells us that no matter how independent we may find ourselves, no matter how much free will we assert – we find our salvation in You and You alone, not in and of ourselves, and when all is said and done, we will have to answer to You…no ifs, ands or buts.
July 24th, 2017, Mon, 6:33 am
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
Consistency
Father, as we meet this morning I am so grateful for Your rock-solid consistency. As I think back over the last several months, I have been all over the place. I feel like a teenager in love. It sounds odd but at times I’ve been firmly committed, I wavered some here and there, too. I’ve felt closer to You than ever before and I’ve felt distant. You’ve been right here and I’ve been here, too, but I’ve bounced around a lot, too. Thank You for not giving up on me (not that You would) and for Your never-failing love. Help me to love You deeper every day!
Hebrews 13:8-9 (<<click here)
Lord, there You go again! Reading vs. 8 made me chuckle. You continue to work in me (for which I am grateful) even when I’m clueless. My opening thoughts tie in so well! I am wishy-washy but Your word once again reminds me that You are “the same yesterday, today, and forever.” What assurance there is in that statement!
As human beings, we have a bent toward inconsistency. We’re hot, and then we’re cold. We are just all over the place. And this permeates every relationship in which we find ourselves – in families, our workplaces, churches, you name it and we experience a multitude of ups and downs. It makes it hard to navigate. It’s smooth sailing when out of nowhere there’s an iceberg – we’re “king of the world” and then we’re thrust into the icy cold waters of rejection.
Not so with You! You are never changing. Scripture is replete with statements of Your never-ending love (Psalm 136, Psalm 100:5, 1 Chronicles 16:34 to name a few). You’re always there when we need You – You will never leave us or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6).
Lord, this day may I be more like You. Help me win the battle against inconsistency. You are the example worth striving for!
July 12th, 2016, Tue, 6:42 am
GREED!
May I give my praise to God Almighty!
1 The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.
….The world and all its people belong to him.
2 For he laid the earth’s foundation on the seas
….and built it on the ocean depths. Psalm 24:1-2
Luke 12:13-21 (<<Flick here to read the passage)
Do you ever find it difficult to be content with what you have and where you find yourself in life? You can’t turn your TV on or listen to the radio or read a magazine or even scroll through your Facebook feed without being inundated! Buy this! Try that! You gotta have this doohickey! Don’t miss this great deal on this thingamabob! Anybody that is anybody has got one of these!
And the sad thing is enough is never enough!
Just today it came out that a leading legislator in Ohio was arrested for his involvement in a $60 million bribery scheme, along with four other individuals. According to a criminal complaint, more than $500, 000 was put into his personal accounts! Isn’t that crazy?!
We may not be guilty concerning those kinds of high-end stakes, but at some point in time, we all have to deal with greed.
Here is verse 15 from the Amplified Bible. Jesus said,
“Watch out and guard yourselves against every form of greed; for not even when one has an overflowing abundance does his life consist of nor is it derived from his possessions.”
Most who read this post are far from poor. We may not consider ourselves “rich” but that’s when we compare ourselves to the culture in which we live. The gross median household income in the United States is over $50,000 – that’s on average throughout the country. There are many countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia where their gross median household income is between $4,000-6,000 with many countries averaging less than $1,000 annually!
It seems that for many “keeping up with the Jones” is a lifetime goal!
My study Bible* says that greed is a desire for what we don’t have.
Our goal as followers of Jesus must be to deliberately tune out the pressure for more, more, more. No matter how many “things” we accumulate, in the long haul, none of them will bring lasting satisfaction. Only our relationship with Jesus and the effect it has on our lives and the lives of others will do that!
I love the music of Steven Curtis Chapman and one of his songs has come to mind a couple of times as I have written tonight. Listen to him sing, More to This Life. Here are the lyrics, too!
Today I watched in silence as people passed me by
And I strained to see if there was something hidden in their eyes;
But they all looked back at me as if to say
Life just goes on
The old familiar story told in different ways
Make the most of your own journey from the cradle to the grave;
Dream your dreams tomorrow because today
Life must go on
But there’s more to this life than living and dying
More than just trying to make it through the day;
More to this life, more than these eyes alone can see
And there’s more than this life alone can be
Tonight he lies in silence staring into space
And looks for ways to make tomorrow better than today
But in the morning light it looks the same;
Life just goes on
He takes care of his family, he takes care of his work
And every Sunday morning he takes his place at the church;
And somehow he still feels a need to search
But life just goes on
But there’s more to this life than living and dying
More than just trying to make it through the day;
More to this life, more than these eyes alone can see
And there’s more than this life alone can be
So where do we start to find every part
Of what makes this life complete;
If we turn our eyes to Jesus we’ll find
Life’s true beginning is there at the cross where He died
He died to bring us …
… more to this life than living and dying
More than just trying to make it through the day;
More to this life, more than these eyes alone can see
And there’s more than this life alone can be
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
July 21st, 2020, 9:18 pm
Finger on My Heart
Father, may we take solace in these verses.
In times of trouble, may the Lord answer your cry.
….May the name of the God of Jacob keep you safe from all harm. Psalm 20:1 NLT
Luke 12:13-21 (<<click here to read the passage)
This is one of those passages that I just can’t cover in one post.
First, verse 13,
Someone from the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” AMP
The note on verse 13 from my study Bible* was enough to pull me up short. The overall note held me, but one sentence, in particular, stopped me in my tracks. “Jesus put his finger on this questioner’s heart.”
One of the things with which I struggled when I worked at Kohl’s was how some managers interacted with me. A couple really rubbed me the wrong way. Karen regularly got an earful and I probably said more than I should have to other associates while at work.
Somewhere along my journaling journey, I decided that I needed to pray for them. I reasoned that if I prayed for them, they might straighten up and my life would get easier.
Well, I prayed for them, alright, and they might have changed some but the person that really changed…was me. I don’t recall specifics of those relationships, but I do remember that God realigned my perspective of my circumstances and instead of just looking at myself, I started taking their circumstances into consideration.
Jesus put His finger on my heart.
The rest of the note from verse 13 reads as follows:
When we bring problems to God in prayer, he often responds in the same way, showing us how we need to change and grow in our attitude toward the problem. This answer is often not the one we were looking for, but it is more effective in helping us trace God’s hand in our life.
Lord Jesus, may we all be sensitive to Your touch on our hearts. You want us to come to You with all of life’s struggles, but may we resign ourselves to the fact that ofttimes than naught, Your ways will be higher than our ways.
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
….Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.
9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
….So are My ways higher than your way
….And My thoughts higher than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9 AMP
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
July 20th, 2020, Mon, 7:17 pm