From First to Last
Heavenly Father, You are always at work. Why should I ever doubt? For behind the scenes, You are moving, and though we may not see it Your will will be made known in this world! All to praise to our God Almighty!
Romans 1:17 (<<click here to read the passage)
I’ve mentioned before that I enjoy watching YouTube videos of people starting with a mess and ending with something “beautiful”. These include old, abused furniture being dismantled and cleaned up, stripped of varnish or paint, then reassembled with everything repaired, then once again stained, or painted, bringing it back to its original glory.
I enjoy the same process with power washing dirty and stained sidewalks, driveways, and patios, and also mowing/trimming extremely overgrown properties. The popular thing now is for people to donate their services as they are supported by revenue from the volume of views, likes, and comments on their YouTube channels.
What I enjoy most is the satisfaction of watching the process from start to finish, from filthy, unkempt, disrepair to a beautiful end product of order and respectability, often at the hands of masters in their field (or at least the very good workmanship of dedicated amateurs!)
In verse 17 Paul speaks about how the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel – the Good News. And in God’s act, we see the Master Himself reveal a righteousness that is by faith from first to last. God left nothing to chance but laid everything out in meticulous detail as only He could. And we, as His children, have the great satisfaction of knowing, beyond any doubt, that we are the beneficiaries of His great love for us. The Righteous One has made it possible for the unrighteous to obtain His righteousness as our own!
And the most wonderful news of all – the ultimate Good News! – is that, while it cost Him everything in the death and resurrection of His one and only Son, Jesus, the Messiah, it costs us nothing! Our only responsibility is to accept this wonderful free gift! No one is denied, it is offered to all!
Many in the past – and yet today! – struggle with feeling that they are not worthy of the gift and that because of the unworthiness they feel that somehow, they need to work and “earn” what they ultimately discover to be totally unearnable!
The end of verse 17 is the verse that set Martin Luther free. It’s the same verse that John and Charles Wesley latched on to. And actually, Paul is quoting an Old Testament text. Paul states, “The righteous will live by faith.”
But here is the passage from which Paul quoted.
Then the Lord replied:
“Write down the revelation
….and make it plain on tablets
….so that a herald may run with it.
For the revelation awaits an appointed time;
….it speaks of the end
….and will not prove false.
Though it linger, wait for it;
….it will certainly come
….and will not delay.
“See, the enemy is puffed up;
….his desires are not upright—
….but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness… Habakkuk 2:2-4 NIV (emphasis mine)
From the beginning to the end God worked to bring about our righteousness and it is entirely failproof because as we trust God, we are saved; we have life both now and forever! Amen and amen!
*Life Application Bible New Living Translation
Sept 25th, 2022, Sun, 7:59 pm
Of Minks and Men
Thoughts have been rambling around in my head, Father. Mold them into whatever you deem fit to inspire me and others who would read these words. Amen.
********
On my early morning route last week, I glanced into a yard off to my right and was surprised to see two American minks running towards a line of brush and trees. I thought, “Were those what I think they were? They were too small and trim to be raccoons, so with their sleek dark bodies, they had to be minks!” It was pretty cool!
They are beautiful animals, but I discovered that to enjoy them, you’d have to spot them in the wild. They are not good as pets in that they can be aggressive and with that, they have razor-sharp teeth. They are in the same family as skunks, and though their scent is not as potent, it still isn’t pleasant. They also require water and aquatic prey to be happy. So, they are not pet material.
From a purely human perspective, one other way to benefit from their existence is to catch them (or raise them in captivity) to take their fur, which in times past was highly prized but today is less so. Another byproduct Is the rendering of mink fat removed from their pelts. The oil produced is used in several medical and cosmetic products. It is also used for treating, conditioning, and preserving nearly any type of leather.
A lot of people probably have no problem with that part of their story, but I struggle with it. I’ve never hunted (in my youth with a small handgun, I tried to hit a target on a huge tree – I missed the tree!) and it bothers me when I hit any kind of animal when I’m driving.
So, here’s our lesson. Are we “consumers” of people? Do we just get what we want out of them, no matter how they fare in the long run? Are we guilty of using, abusing, and milking them for all they are worth, and think nothing of it?
Although many people do those things to others, that is not why God created the victims or the perpetrators. Be warned! God sides with the oppressed.
It says in Proverbs 22:22-23,
Don’t rob the poor just because you can,
….or exploit the needy in court.
For the Lord is their defender.
….He will ruin anyone who ruins them. NLT
How about Zechariah 7:9-10?
“This is what the Lord Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’ NIV
Jesus, Himself had this to say in Matthew 25:34-37a, 40,
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
“Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we (do all those things?)
“And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’ NLT
May we do to them as we would do for Him!
Sept 21st, 2022, Wed, 1:08 pm
We Need a Reset
A beautiful day, proceeding a misty morning – thank You, Father, for the beauty of the world that You have created! Praise and honor to You!
Romans 1:8-17 (<<click here to read the passage)
Yesterday, I spoke of Not Loving Out of Obligation. If we are striving after Christ, there are many things that fit into the category of not doing out of obligation. For example, service.
Paul says in verse 15,
So I am eager to come to you in Rome, too, to preach the Good News. NLT (emphasis mine)
Many of us would be hard-pressed to serve Jesus in a spirit of eagerness. I feel that way sometimes but, I’m afraid that too much of the time, as my study Bible* suggests, I serve out of habit, a feeling of obligation, or perhaps even with a feeling of reluctant duty.
How many of us as children relished brushing our teeth and bathing every day, whether we “needed” to or not? Talk about reluctant duty! Those things may not have led to life-or-death situations in our lives, but not doing either for a time could have led to severe tooth decay and possible serious skin conditions, not to speak of all the friends we would have lost!
But serving God is a life-or-death situation. It can mean life or death for us as well as others. We all need God. And God uses us all to reach those who don’t know Him. He needs us to eagerly serve Him.
The same motivators for loving Jesus apply to serving Jesus. There’s an unending list of things that Jesus has done for us, foremost our salvation – which we could not possibly have achieved on our own. The list would be endless if we began to write out all the things we benefit from every given day that come from His boundless supply of blessings. To name a few: the roof over our heads, food on our table, loved ones – near and far, our health, our bodies, the entirety of creation both great and small!
So why aren’t these things motivation enough to prompt us to proclaim the wonders of the gifts He extends to us all? Even with prompting, I doubt that eagerness would describe any of our approaches to sharing His amazing provision.
Maybe what we need is a reset – a mental reset.
I recently watched some TikTok posts featuring the lead pastor of a large multi-church organization. He began by saying that he had gone to a counselor because he was in pretty “bad shape”. The counselor put him through a barrage of tests, and everything came back great – physically, spiritually, and relationally he was healthy. His problem was that he was mentally exhausted.
When asked about the greatest commandment, he was challenged. “Are you loving God with all your heart?” “Yes” “Are you loving God with all your soul?” “Yes” “Are you loving God with all your mind?” …and then the pastor paused and said, “Interesting. How do you love God with all your mind?”
Long story short, it took him over 18 months to get his mind to shut down on “church, church, church” which for him meant “work, work, work”. He changed as he focused on God and His word, finally getting to a point where his mind was reset.
Maybe we are stuck in a rut of uncertainty and doubt about what we can and cannot do for God. He’s our Creator, right? He knows who we are down to the molecular level, down to every neuron that zaps through our brain. He knows what we can do! Ask God to help you reset your mind so that a fresh eager attitude is born that wants to obey him and tell others about Christ. Amen.
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
Sept 20th, 2022, Tues, 12:31 pm
O How I Love Jesus
A beautiful addition to today’s post. An old hymn arranged by my friend, Geri Rosser. The lyrics are included on herp YouTube post. Enjoy!
Not Loving Out of Obligation
An excerpt from Christ Is All of The Valley of Vision:
Thou hast loved me everlastingly, unchangeably,
….may I love thee as I am loved;
Thou hast given thyself for me,
….may I give myself to thee;
Thou hast died for me,
….may I live to thee,
……..in every moment of my time,
……..in every movement of my mind,
……..in every pulse of my heart.
********
I had a bus trip this past Saturday. I drove one of two buses that took our band to a competition. Also, I changed routes this year. Since I began driving at the end of 2018, I have driven bus #25. To compact and make our schools routes as efficient as possible they moved some things around. #25’s high school/middle school route didn’t change very much but the elementary route changed totally. I figured the older kids wouldn’t care a whole lot, but I felt the need to keep the connection with the younger ones, so this year I am driving #18.
Anyway, back to the band trip. Several of the students from #25 are in the band and (supposedly) I drove the “quiet” bus. All but a couple of #25’s students got on my bus! The fun thing was, they were all happy to see me! And, every single one of them spoke to me getting on the bus before we left! (High school students for the most part don’t say a whole lot, getting on or off the bus.) It definitely brought a smile to my face.
I remember in my first full year of driving, I had a high school student who never responded to my, “Good morning!” That is until one day, I got what I think was a grunt – I was thrilled! He hadn’t said “boo” in all the months he’d been on my bus!
Affirmation…communication…it is all important! Karen gets the same thing as a teacher. Her classroom is in the hallway where most of the kids pass to get to and from the buses, she has several students that will stop to hug her. It gives you a little “I did something right! I obviously had an impact on that kid!” kind of feeling.
As a child of God, I pray that the way I live my life reflects my Heavenly Father’s love and compassion for me! He’s known me since before the creation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), and though I’ve known him for a relatively short time (comparatively!), I wholeheartedly believe that when I communicate with Him, when I affirm His love and compassion for me, it brings Him abundant joy!
I don’t think any of those band kids said what they said out of obligation. No one told them that they had to say anything when they saw me. It was a natural response. It was an action based on “love” (if I can use that term loosely. 😊)
God doesn’t demand that we love him. And though we should proclaim our love for Him, it definitely should not be out of obligation. Instead, it should be because there is a genuine, heartfelt love for Him and all He does for us! Regarding our love for Him, as His love for us, “loosely” should not apply!
All who declare that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love.
God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world.
Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear… We love each other because he loved us first. 1 John 4:15-18a, 19 NLT
Sept 19th, 2022, Mon, 12:42 pm