Dignified by Indignity
Father, as I sat here listening to a few golden oldies (of a gospel nature) I am strongly reminded of Your love for me. Thank You for prominent artists who choose to follow You and are proud to let their lights shine! Bless them!
Acts 5:33-42(<<click here to read the passage)
We can ponder “what ifs…” (What Ifs…?) but they are not the realities with which we live. The Jewish High Council should have yielded to the apostles’ teachings, but they didn’t. In fact, they were so infuriated that they had every intention of killing the apostles. (v33) But providentially, sound wisdom prevailed.
One of their own, a Pharisee by the name of Gamaliel (who interestingly enough was the teacher of Saul, who after his interaction with Jesus in a blinding light – Acts 9:1-19 – became the Apostle Paul), advised that they not act so rashly but allow things to take their course. If Jesus was just another “prophet” like so many who had come before, nothing would come of the apostles’ teaching. But… if it is of God [and it appears that it is], you will not be able to stop them; or else you may even be found fighting against God!” v39 AMP
Throughout history, many individuals have had a special anointing of God and have gone on to proclaim what the Lord had shown them. I’m sure thousands were full of themselves and that’s where it ended but others changed the landscape of Christendom for generations to come.
Martin Luther’s life was changed we he realized the truth found in Romans 1:17, “The righteous will live by faith.” NIV His “protests” launched Protestantism!
John Wesley struggled with his own salvation and after reluctantly attending where interestingly someone read from Luther’s Preface to the Epistle to Romans, he felt his heart strangely warmed and his life was eternally changed! His “methods” of teaching progressed to the point where the Methodist Church was brought into being!
Were the actions of either of these two men well received by the powers that be? Absolutely not! There were all kinds of persecution and threats, but they prevailed. Was it because of their strong personalities alone? No. God used them both to bring back into alignment the straying Church of their day.
The apostles followed closely in Jesus’ footsteps. Over time many even succumbed to death in their dedication to following their Lord. Even here at the very beginning of things, they were flogged as a deterrent and ordered not to speak in the name of Jesus then released.
They were so dedicated to Jesus that they left that day rejoicing that they had been considered worthy [dignified by indignity] to suffer shame for [the sake of] His name. vs40-41 AMP
May we see these individuals from different places and times and be inspired! First of all, seek to follow Jesus with all that you are. The reward of knowing Him and living the entirety of your life with Him is worth far more than any effort we might exert!
Secondly, follow God’s leading for your life regardless of the cost. We are not promised “a problem-free, blissful existence” when we do so we may find that obeying God often results in pain and suffering.* But the blessing of doing so result in rewards that are out of this world! You won’t regret it!
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
Feb 13th, 2022, Sun, 7:32 pm
What If…?
Father, as I switch gears to write, I would ask for Your direction on preparing for services on Sunday when I take that task up once more. I realize You know what is needed. May I see it clearly. Amen.
Acts 5:17-32(<<click here to read the passage)
I have always been intrigued by “What if…” scenarios.
What if the South had been victorious in United States Civil War?
What if the Allies in WWII had lost the war?
What if John F. Kennedy had not been assassinated?
What if someone onboard American Airlines Flight 11 had been able to keep it from crashing into the North World Trade tower on 9/11?
What if Adam had refused Eve’s offer of fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil?
What if Abraham had not been able to raise the knife above his beloved son Isaac?
What if the Jewish High Court – the Sanhedrin – had yielded to the apostles’ teachings after the angel of the Lord had released them from prison and they were found boldly preaching in the temple courtyards once more?
I mean really! They had the apostles arrested and put in jail. When the Temple guards went to get them the next morning, this is the report they brought back to the Sanhedrin.
“The jail was securely locked, with the guards standing outside, but when we opened the gates, no one was there!” v23
Of course, we are told that an angel of the Lord came at night, opened the gates of the jail, and brought them out. Then he told them, “Go to the Temple and give the people this message of life!” vs19-20
The men who composed the Sanhedrin weren’t stupid. They had to know that something beyond their comprehension was afoot. But instead, they rebuked them for disobeying their strict orders to never again…teach in this man’s name! v28
But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than any human authority. The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead after you killed him by hanging him on a cross. Then God put him in the place of honor at his right hand as Prince and Savior. He did this so the people of Israel would repent of their sins and be forgiven. We are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit, who is given by God to those who obey him.” vs29-32 NLT
What if they had opened their hearts to the touch of the Holy Spirit? What if they had yielded themselves heart, soul, mind, and strength to God instead of wrapping themselves even more tightly in their power-hungry, self-righteous arrogance? What might the world have looked like?
What’s sad is the nation of Israel never, as a whole, embraced God and His promises for them. At times they followed Him as a body, but only to a certain degree. Most assuredly some individuals did but overall, they never fully committed themselves to Him. God’s plan was to reach the world through His chosen people. But that didn’t happen until He sent His one and only Son to do it. And then they rejected Him…
Are we all that different than them? What if we really strove to be more than just lukewarm followers? What if we yielded ourselves heart, soul, mind, and strength to God and His leading? What would the world look like?
Feb 10th, 2022, Thurs, 1:11 pm
Count Your Blessings (Instead of Sheep)
Some of the greatest blessings You have given us, Father, are those around us. My helpmate in life is one straight from You. Bless her, Father, and may I be a blessing to her as well. Amen.
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I think I’m the only one in my home who loves classic old movies. This past Christmas season, if I remember correctly, Karen and Massey had gone down to spend some time with her parents. I stayed home to write my blog or wrap up some things for Sunday, I don’t remember exactly. I finished what I needed to get done and with some time to spare I sat down to watch a DVD of It’s a Wonderful Life with Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed. I thoroughly enjoyed it!
Another old Christmas movie I have is White Christmas with Bing Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, and Danny Kaye. I watched it a couple of years ago. But as I wrote my opening prayer this afternoon, I thought of one of the lesser tunes from that flick, entitled Count Your Blessings (Instead of Sheep). It’s a simple song, and the lyrics don’t really say a whole lot to me except for the refrain.
When I’m worried,
And I can’t sleep,
I count my blessings instead of sheep,
And I fall asleep,
Counting my blessings.
How often do we forget our blessings? Especially amongst the stress of life, it is easy to do. It is so easy to take those closest to you – those who mean more to you than you could ever begin to say – for granted. They do what they do, and we do what we do, and sometimes that’s the way we live for extended periods of time.
Unfortunately, far too often we only wake up to the blessing we really have when their or our lives are in jeopardy…or worse still when they are taken from us. What a great tragedy!
We should count our blessings every day! Take today’s post as a wake-up call.
None of us are perfect. We sure know that we aren’t! So why do we expect perfection from those around us…family, fellow workers, our church family, our neighbors, etc.
I should never take Karen for granted…but I do. I let her do what she does (which is a lot!) and I do what I do (which I’m sure is not nearly enough…) My prayer recently has been to appreciate her more and I’ve asked God to help me love her more in what I do, in what I say, in how I act.
When I first started driving a school bus, I prayed pretty consistently for my fellow drivers and the students on my routes. I’ve allowed myself to get out of the habit. This week I’ve started doing it again. It takes me most of my early route to get through everyone. I know that I can tell a difference in my life. And I pray that they will, too!
There are always things we can improve upon, especially in our spiritual lives. Prayer is one of those things that impact us and those for whom we are praying. And…it draws us closer to God, in that of course, that’s who we’re talking to! So, it’s a win, win, win!
So, there’s your wake-up call and your challenge for the week! May God bless your efforts!
And my God will liberally supply (fill until full) your every need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19 AMP
Feb 9th, 2022, Wed, 1:12 pm
No Shadow of Doubt
A beautiful day to sit with a beautiful Savior! Thank You, Father, for all Your many blessings!
Acts 5:12-16 (<<click here to read the passage)
Faith is a very simple thing. We tend to make it complicated. Part of our problem is the fact that there are many situations where we need something so very desperately, that we pour ourselves into great times of concerted prayer. We get everybody we know to pray with us and are eager to have any church that has a Prayer Chain or List to note our need, as well.
Verse 15 of today’s passage gives an example of desperation that we can at least relate to.
As a result of the apostles’ work, sick people were brought out into the streets on beds and mats so that Peter’s shadow might fall across some of them as he went by.
Many of us would do just about anything for our pleas to be answered. In faith believing, we pray that God, in His grace and mercy, will answer our prayers. And I will say that He most definitely does answer, each and every time we pray. Oft times, He answers with the answer we want but where we struggle is that then there are times, He answers with what is best…even though we may not understand.
I am grateful that in most circumstances knowing that God might not answer in the way we desire, doesn’t deter us from pleading our case. For our God is merciful. He is full of compassion. He hears our prayers. He feels our pain and we know without any shadow of doubt that He understands.
So, with all that being said, I would encourage all of us – myself included – to do as the Apostle Paul admonishes us,
Rejoice always and delight in your faith; be unceasing and persistent in prayer; in every situation [no matter what the circumstances] be thankful and continually give thanks to God; for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 AMP
Know with the utmost of certainty, that God hears our prayers and in that alone we can find great comfort. And that gives us great reason to rejoice and take delight in our faith. Know with confidence as well that He will answer with the best answer. And regardless of how our prayers are answered may we continually be grateful for His love, knowing that it is unfathomable. For it will carry us through beyond that point where we stand before Him face to face. We are most surely blessed!
Feb 8th, 2022, Tues, 1:05 pm
Rough Spots Along the Way
Let the heavens be glad, and the earth rejoice!
….Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise!
Let the fields and their crops burst out with joy!
….Let the trees of the forest sing for joy
before the Lord, for he is coming!
….He is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world with justice,
….and the nations with his truth. Psalm 96:11-13 NLT
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Overall, I have pretty good roads on my bus route, but I can tell you where about all of the rough spots are along the way. One of the big culprits is when counties and townships have to replace culverts. I don’t know of any that are as smooth as the road on either side of those areas. Most often there is a pronounced dip where they have taken place.
Another bad place is a turnaround in a driveway of my high school/middle school route. It is not paved or cement and has not had new gravel put down in some time. Backing into it isn’t too bad but when I pull out of it, the whole bus rocks back and forth because of the difference in height from the driveway to the paved road.
Yet there is one good side effect of the ice and snow we had coming into last weekend, many – but not all – of those dippy, rocky places are barely noticeable! The snow and ice have filled those areas and frozen solid. So as long as it is below freezing, I get a smooth ride. The bus didn’t rock at all pulling out of the driveway today!
In life, I think we can all agree that relationships can get pretty rocky. We just know that when we have to interact with certain people things are not going to go smoothly. A contributing problematic factor is that we know. So, before we even get to the interacting part, we are bracing for the worse…and most often we are rarely let down. Our anticipation raises the stress level and then our interactions raise it even further
What if there were some way to cool the stress and friction that so often occur. Do you know there’s a verse for that? Proverbs 10:12 tells us,
Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers and overwhelms all transgressions [forgiving and overlooking another’s faults] AMP
We know God can do anything. We also know that God has unlimited resources of love…compassion…forgiveness…and patience – just to name a few. All we have to do is ask! He freely gives us what we need!
At least for me, the problem is remembering to ask for His help before I step into those situations.
Lord Jesus, may we be a reflection of You. In and of myself, I often fall short of doing that, but I would pray that You would prompt us to pray before we get into those dreaded interactions. Fill us with all that is good of You and may we be a vessel that freely disperses it to all around. Amen.
Feb 7th, 2022, Mon, 7:48 pm