A Wisp of Steam
Thank You, Father, for giving me the abilities to have a productive day – vacuuming vehicles, researching a couple of things for our home, and getting through the sermon for a first draft. I couldn’t do it with that much efficiency without You!
Acts 18:18-23 (<<click here to read the passage)
I have wonderful memories of my maternal grandma, Ireta Velma Provance. If you look up the word “saint” in the dictionary, you’ll find her picture there (just kidding!) But she was a saint! In everything she did, she lived out her faith. I think that anyone that knew her would say the same thing. She surely walked her talk, as they say. She wasn’t perfect, but she came as close to it as anyone I have ever known!
Today’s passage made me think of her when I read verse 21,
As he left, however, he said, “I will come back later, God willing.” Then he set sail from Ephesus. NLT
The two-word phrase that caught my attention was “God willing”. My grandma in parting would always tag on the phrase, “Lord, willing.” I’ve caught myself frequently saying it as well. I’ll say it as I’m leaving friends after church, and I’ll often at least think it in many other settings.
This whole frame of mind leads me to a passage from James 4:13-15,
Come now [and pay attention to this], you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and carry on our business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know [the least thing] about what may happen in your life tomorrow. [What is secure in your life?] You are merely a vapor [like a puff of smoke or a wisp of steam from a cooking pot] that is visible for a little while and then vanishes [into thin air]. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and we will do this or that.” AMP
Lord willing. None of us knows how much time we have. We may live for years to come, or we may meet our maker before this night is over. Yes, we must plan for tomorrow, but we must hold onto those plans lightly for as James says, “What is secure in our lives? We are merely a vapor – like a puff of smoke or a wisp of steam from a cooking pot…
Lord Jesus, may we keep You in mind at all times – today or making plans for tomorrow.
Lord willing, I’ll post again tomorrow.
June 21st, 2022, Tues, 7:27 pm
Brush the Dust Off of Me
Some days are definitely better than others, Father, so that being the case, I lay myself before You. Where would I be without Your mercy and grace!
Acts 18:1-17 (<<click here to read the passage)
Some time ago, I met a young man who was married to a young lady I had known as a young teen, several years before that. He did some work for us in our home, and I even got to meet a couple of their children. Unbeknownst to me, he was struggling with a drug addiction that eventually brought him to a make-or-break decision in relation to his family.
His wife was (and continues to be) a very faithful follower of Christ and was there for him all the way, but time and time again he fell back into his addiction. She vowed to stand by his side once more if he would fight against it, but in the end, he chose the drugs over his family. The love of his wife and children was not strong enough to give him reason to fight.
Paul dearly loved his people; they were literally his family. Their lineage could all be traced back to Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham. Jacob would later receive the name Israel (Genesis 32:24-32), hence the nation of Israel. Paul loved his family, he fought for his family, but to no avail. Some of his family listened and found their Messiah in Jesus, but others would not. Their addiction to self and pride and tradition and control held them back. For many, it was the easier path…at least in their hearts and minds.
Back in Acts 13:51, Paul and Barnabas, “shook the dust from their feet as a sign of rejection” against the rebellious Jews of Antioch of Pisidia. Then here in verse 6,
…Paul shook the dust from his clothes and said, “Your blood is upon your own heads—I am innocent. From now on I will go preach to the Gentiles.” NLT
Jesus, Himself, stated in Mark 6:11,
“But if any place refuses to welcome you or listen to you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.” NLT
It was a difficult decision for Paul to make. He had done all he could do but moved on at the call of God, to fields ripe unto harvest with the souls of Gentiles eager to accept the salvation extended to them.
That’s where Paul found himself, but I would share one more thought. I, for one, am grateful that God doesn’t shake the dust from Himself as a condemning statement against us. I cannot begin to count the number of times I have stumbled, the number of times I have fallen. God would have every right to shake the dust from Himself and be done with me. That is what I deserve. But time and time again, God chooses to brush the dust off of me – not in condemnation, but in love. His act is one of assurance that when I in true repentance seek His forgiveness, I am forgiven…and the sin is remembered no more. Oh, what a wonderful Savoir we have! Praise and glory to His name!
June 20th, 2022, Mon, 7:40 pm
YOU ARE MORE THAN USELESS!
Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness.
….Let the whole world know what he has done.
Sing to him; yes, sing his praises.
….Tell everyone about his wonderful deeds. Psalm 105:1-2 NLT
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This past Friday marked the seven-year point from when More than Useless put out its very first post. As I reflected and went back and read that post, it still rings true, and we would do well to read through it once more. If it is possible, it is even more true today.
For those who might be interested, here are a few stats about how More than Useless has impacted people over the last seven years.
– 1,779 posts published
– over 74,000 views
– over 41,000 people from 150 countries and 21 territories around the world
….have witnessed God’s impact on me. And I pray that He impacts them, too!
Maybe for some, it changes a life. Others may have one more drop of God’s mercy to moisten the hardness of their hearts, drawing them ever closer to Himself. Only God knows and eternity will tell, how He has used what I have given. May I remain faithful to His call on my life. And you…you cannot sidestep His call! We are all called by the Creator God of the universe to follow Him, giving Him what we have to offer, no matter how small. And He will bless your offerings as well!
He loves us and he has chosen us! What more could we ask! You, my friends, are MORE THAN USELESS!
Here is my very first post from June 17, 2015. May you hear God speaking to you today, as well!
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Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us… Ephesians 1:1-14 NLT
It’s wonderful to see this amazing statement, which I have often proclaimed, firmly set in Your Word. To know that You loved us from eternity past should fill us with great peace and eradicate any doubt as to whose we are.
Help this to be foundational in how I think of myself and how I think of all others, even those that “Christians”* tend to reject. Father, help me to see people through the lens of Your perspective.
*A little expounding on my use of this term in this way might be helpful. So-called “followers of Christ” have gotten a nasty reputation in recent years. Far too often we are haters and that’s not just a label others have put on us – many who bear the name of Christ are haters. If “sinners” don’t agree with us and they take a stand for what they believe, we don’t love them, pray for them, or try to live lives before them that draw them to Christ. Instead, we blast them, berate them and out-and-out condemn them! In the Old Testament and the New, we are told over and over again, “Love your neighbor as yourself…” Read the Gospels and you will not find one example of Christ condemning a “sinner”, he loves them, forgives them, and commands them to “go and sin no more” (John 8:11 NLT) but, in no way, shape or form, does he hate them. On the other hand, He does condemn the spiritual leaders of His day. They were two-faced (hypocrites) and self-serving. They had the Law, and they knew the Law but chose not to obey it. I for one am grateful that he does not condemn sinners for I wholeheartedly agree with Paul when he wrote in 1 Timothy 1:15, “This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them all.” NLT Father, help us all to see people through the lens of Your perspective.
June 19th, 2022, Sun, 10:09 pm
Dependence vs. Independence
This week has had different components, Father, but it has still been full and has worn on me physically and mentally. May our time together bear good fruit. Amen.
Acts 17:24-34 (<<click here to read the passage)
Not too awful long ago, when our son was graduating from high school, one of his friends, in a speech at an awards ceremony, spoke of her and her fellow graduates’ newly earned independence. My wife enjoyed ribbing them both for some time afterward because becoming independent may sound like one of the best liberations a young person can experience. It has its pros but in reality, it also has many cons.
Merriam-Webster defines independence as the quality or state of not requiring or relying on something else. It’s freedom but it is also chock full of important decisions about your future.
Dependence can be restraining and confining for again as Merriam-Webster defines dependence, it is the quality or state of being influenced or determined by or subject to another.
It’s one thing to make that transition as a high school graduate – apron strings are cut, but mom and dad are still in the picture as they often should be to help out (or hold back) as young adults learn what it means to be independent.
But what about the spiritual realm of our lives? One of the biggest tug-of-wars is coming to the point where we realize that there is no better place to be than living our lives dependent on our all-loving, all-knowing Father.
Another thing that complicates things is that we often think we have to help God, that in some way He is dependent upon us! We are His hands and feet, right? Yes, God works His will through us but He by no means is dependent upon us to accomplish it!
Paul proclaims in verses 24-25,
“He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. NLT (emphasis mine)
God is the only entity in all of eternity that is truly independent. In the blink of His eye, if He chose, we could cease to exist, and He would carry on just fine. Because we are precious in His sight, He would never do that but chooses to work through us to bring about His Kingdom on earth.
We on the other hand are totally dependent upon Him. The very air we breathe, the daily mechanics of our bodies, the entirety of creation working together in harmony – it all takes place because…and only because of His mighty hand. …he satisfies every need.
Lord Jesus, all praise to You for Your never-ending love for us. May we find great comfort, and not restriction, in our dependence upon You. Amen.
June 16th, 2022, Thurs, 10:01 pm
His Mercy Is More
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live.
….I will praise my God to my last breath!
May all my thoughts be pleasing to him,
….for I rejoice in the Lord. Psalm 104:33-34 NLT
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Most people, churched or not, would recognize the old hymn “Amazing Grace” – throw in some bagpipes and a few more might remember it! Some might know that its author was John Newton. Living from 1725 to 1807, he was a converted slave trader, preacher, and hymn-writer. Although he had worked as a ship’s captain in the slave trade and later an investor in the same trade, he came into a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ becoming a prominent supporter of abolitionism – eventually living to see the British Empire’s abolition of the African slave trade in 1807, just months before his death (according to Wikipedia).
This evening as I was searching for a song to write about and post, I came across one that was inspired by a letter Newton wrote to a “Dear friend” on March 18, 1767. The inspirational passage is as follows:
Are not you amazed sometimes that you should have so much as a hope, that, poor and needy as you are, the Lord thinketh of you? But let not all you feel discourage you. For if our Physician is almighty, our disease cannot be desperate and if He casts none out that come to Him, why should you fear?
Our sins are many, but His mercies are more: our sins are great, but His righteousness is greater: we are weak, but He is power. Most of our complaints are owing to unbelief, and the remainder of a legal spirit. And these evils are not removed in a day. — John Newton
Matt Papa’s modern hymn, “His Mercy Is More”, co-written with Matt Boswell, is the result of Newton’s inspiration.
I will say no more, but I’ve included the text with a beautiful rendition of the song as sung by the Praise and Harmony Singers. Let its words speak to you as it did to me.
What love could remember
No wrongs we have done
Omniscient, all-knowing
He counts not their sum
Thrown into a sea
Without bottom or shore
Our sins they are many
His mercy is more
REFRAIN
…Praise the Lord
…His mercy is more
…Stronger than darkness
…New every morn’
…Our sins they are many
…His mercy is more
What patience would wait
As we constantly roam
What Father so tender
Is calling us home
He welcomes the weakest
The vilest, the poor
Our sins they are many
His mercy is more
REFRAIN
What riches of kindness
He lavished on us
His blood was the payment
His life was the cost
We stood ‘neath a debt
We could never afford
And our sins they are many
His mercy is more
REFRAIN
…Praise the Lord
…His mercy is more
…Stronger than darkness
…New every morn’
…Our sins they are many
…His mercy is more
REFRAIN
Our sins they are many
His mercy is more
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead… 1 Peter 1:3 NIV
June 15th, 2022, Wed, 8:50 pm