Hey Boo Boo!
(This isn’t me, but it’s from around the same era!)
Father, as a potentially significant weather system approaches, I would specifically ask for Your watchcare over law enforcement and emergency personnel as they will likely find themselves in harm’s way over the next several hours. Amen.
Acts 4:36-37 (<<click here to read the passage)
Nicknames. I know that they can be used in a detrimental way but many times they are just fun! I remember when I was small, I had an inflatable punching bag. It was generally the shape of a big bowling pin. You could punch it and because of the weight in the bottom of it, it would set itself aright so you could punch it again!
The one I had had Yogi Bear on the front and his sidekick, Boo Boo, on the back. We spent many of our holidays with my mom’s side of the family, and during that time my nickname became Boo Boo!
Nicknames can be things people associate with us and other times we get those monikers because of characteristic traits. In today’s passage, Barnabas was one of those nicknames. He was a Levite from the island country of Cypress. His given name was Joseph, but because of the way he lived and acted, the disciples called him, Barnabas – which means Son of Encouragement. What a name! Interestingly enough, he ends up becoming an integral person in the early church and you never hear him called Joseph again. From that time on, he is referred to as Barnabas!
Encouragement is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit that we find in Romans 12:8. And this Spirit-filled man greatly impacts God’s Kingdom by living out his gift. If it wasn’t for the respect that Barnabas had garnered, who knows what would have happened to the man who would become known as the Apostle Paul?
Paul – formerly, Saul of Tarsus – was a great persecutor of the Way, those who followed Jesus. But Jesus got ahold of him and Paul became His frontman to the Gentiles. When he arrived in Jerusalem, those of the Way were understandably reluctant to welcome him with open arms! But Barnabas stepped forward, got to know him, and understood that Jesus had got ahold of him…and the rest is history.
The thing I want to point out is the fact that most of us wouldn’t put encouragement at the top of the list as one of the most important and impacting gifts that we could get from the Holy Spirit…that is until you think about it. We all like people who can bring the best out in ourselves and others. Who doesn’t like to be around an encourager? To be sure it is not a person spouting empty flattery, but it is someone who can see the good in others, the potential in others, and is very capable at fanning the flames to the point that their gifts grow and blossom having their own impact of God’s Kingdom.
Pray for encouragers. We are all the better for them and should encourage them to keep up the good work!
Feb 2nd, 2022, Wed, 8:20 pm
Of One Heart and Soul
Sitting in our home office this the sunning is shining brightly, and our bird feeders have been quite busy. They are preparing for a storm heading our way. The Creator is guiding His creation. Oh, if only we were so attuned to Him!
Acts 4:32-37 (<<click here to read the passage)
A prickly point of ideology in our society today is socialism. I have made it very clear before that overall, I am not one to share my stand on particular political or sociological viewpoints, but I want to put out a simple comparison – one that brings to light one of the big differences between socialism and communism.
I found this to-the-point explanation, and it seemed that most other sites agreed. It stated, “…under communism, most property and economic resources are owned and controlled by the state (rather than individual citizens); under socialism, all citizens share equally in economic resources as allocated by a democratically-elected government.” (source – ThoughtCo.com)
The reason I bring this up at all is that I’ve often heard it spouted that socialism is a biblical mindset and those who proclaim it point at today’s Scripture to drive home their point.
Now the company of believers was of one heart and soul, and not one [of them] claimed that anything belonging to him was [exclusively] his own, but everything was common property and for the use of all… There was not a needy person among them, because those who were owners of land or houses were selling them, and bringing the proceeds of the sales and placing the money down at the apostles’ feet. Then it was distributed to each as anyone had need. vs32, 34-35 AMP
What needs to be made clear is that both of the aforementioned governmental mindsets are of humanity. Period. God can factor in, as much as He is allowed to, in either one but obviously, both are a human-driven way of doing things.
The early church was full of humanity but the heart and drive of what they did and how they did it definitely used their humanity but was driven, motivated, and inspired by the Holy Spirit. What they were able to accomplish and the great impact they had on the world was most assuredly Spirit-driven!
I realize that there are a lot of good people in the world. People who love and care for others and go far above and beyond to not just love and care but to actually do something about the need so blatantly visible around them. But they are greatly outnumbered in our world by those who care only for themselves.
Remember there was a great spectrum of people that made up the early church. Among the apostles alone, there were fishermen, a zealot, and a tax collector. In the 5,000+ that they now numbered there were the wealthy and the poor, those well-educated and many others were unlearned, priests alongside the common man, and we can’t forget the slaves and slave-owners. All in all a pretty even slice of society.
The only thing they really had in common was the Holy Spirit – but that was more than enough! The love that filled their hearts was enough to even the playing field. Those with far more than they needed willingly gave out of their plenty to help those who were lacking in any way. A Spirit-driven heart, soul, and mind ruled the day! And as it says in the passage, “There was not a needy person among them…”
I know of no communist, socialist, or any other form of society that can claim to have accomplished anything even close on such grand a scale!
Lord Jesus, may we be open to the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives today. May we, like the early church, impact the world around us, so as to make them stop in their tracks and realize that we are a part of something supernatural! Amen.
Feb 1st, 2022, Tues, 12:53 pm
God Doesn’t Always Remove Your Problems
Father, as I sit with You tonight, I would place into Your hands something that is weighing heavily on my heart and mind. For me, though not for You, it is complicated and has overwhelmed me. In Your time, may Your will come to fruition. Amen.
Acts 4:23-31 (<<click here to read the passage)
This passage made me think that though the followers of Jesus were facing a formidable force in the Jewish High Council, they most assuredly stood with a much greater force that could not be hindered in any way. As long as they remained in the center of God’s will -under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, absolutely nothing could stop them from accomplishing what He desired!
When Peter and John rejoined the other believers and shared with them the events that had transpired, they immediately lifted their voices together in prayer to God. v24 NLT
You would think that they would have prayed for some way around the problems they faced. They did pray that God would hold their adversaries accountable for their actions, but they did not turn tail and run – not at all! Instead, they prayed,
And now, Lord, observe their threats [take them into account] and grant that Your bond-servants may declare Your message [of salvation] with great confidence… v29 AMP
They had no intention of doing anything but moving boldly ahead and proclaiming God’s message of salvation!
It made me think of the following quote: God didn’t remove the Red Sea. He parted it. God doesn’t always remove your problems, but He will make a way to get through them.
To my knowledge, it is not attributed to any one person or publication but has shown up several times on the social media platforms through which I have perused.
So many times, in our lives – and my opening prayer is an excellent example – we are overwhelmed by circumstances in which we find ourselves. Honestly, I’d rather run but if I run nothing is accomplished. Change on one front of the other needs to take place. Now maybe nothing will change at all, but the attempt must be made. The parties involved must be made to come face to face with God and His divine will and if one or the other refuses to move or change that is on them.
But if one, or both, yield to God…so much the better.
Once more, God didn’t remove the Red Sea. He parted it. God doesn’t always remove your problems, but He will make a way to get through them.
O Lord…give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word. v29b NLT May we not shy from adversity if it brings You the glory! Amen.
Jan 31st, 2022, Mon, 7:06 pm
There’s a Standard Associated with That
Father today has been all over the board with plenty of good, and some of the bad and ugly as well, Regardless, You are in control and I am grateful that blessings of the good far outweigh the struggles of the bad.
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An interesting conversation took place this morning at one of my churches. Over the last couple of years, we’ve had several Amish families move into our area. One of my members has had quite a bit of interaction with families near his home. He’s provided transport for some of them, they’ve done some work for him, all in all, he’s developed a good relationship with several of them.
For those of you who may not be familiar with the Amish, here is a short description from Wikipedia.
The Amish are a group of traditionalist Christian church fellowships with Swiss German…Anabaptist origins. They are known for simple living, plain dress, Christian pacifism, and slowness to adopt many conveniences of modern technology, with a view neither to interrupt family time, nor replace face-to-face conversations whenever possible, and a view to maintain self-sufficiency. The Amish value rural life, manual labor, humility, and Gelassenheit*, all under the auspices of living what they interpret to be God’s word. (Click here to learn more of Gelassenheit. I found it very interesting!)
To most who know of them, who they are and what they do is closely associated with their faith. They still use horses and buggies. They don’t have electricity. They are very respected craftsmen and farmers.
The discussion at church revolved around how many of the Amish in our area bend some of the commonly held rules of their order. Someone mentioned them cutting ice blocks to be stored away for use in warmer weather (remember, no electricity – no refrigerators).
How do they cut it? They use a circular saw.
How is it powered? With a gas engine.
What? They don’t use those kinds of things, do they? Yes, they do.
They bend rules to accomplish a task.
In a later conversation, one member felt the Amish were out of line in a lot of areas – all in the name of their faith. One example is that they don’t pay any taxes – though, for instance, they use the same roads we pay taxes to maintain. And then a few other things were said in that regard.
As I thought over these things later, I found it interesting that we would hold the Amish to certain expectations because we associate their faith so closely with their lifestyle. It made me think, is that the pot calling the kettle black, or what?
We live our lives pretty much however we want. Others may know of our faith, but the question is, do we conscientiously live out our faith in what we say and do each and every minute of each and every day? Or do we bend the rules to accomplish the task at hand?
People are watching us, whether we like it or not. If we’ve ever admitted to following Christ, there’s a standard associated with that. What do people say about how you live your life? And most importantly, how does how you live, reflect on Christ?
Be careful, therefore, that the light that is in you is not darkness. Luke 11:35 AMP
Jan 30th, 2022, Sun, 7:38 pm
What Love Can Do
Father as I come to sit before You this evening, my mind and body are weary. May I clearly hear You through the fog in my mind and may I plainly share the word that You have for me. Amen.
********
This afternoon, through a majority of my routes, we had a beautiful snow! There were huge flakes, and it was quite heavy at times. We have snow on the ground from over the weekend and this round was a nice dusting over it all. What gets plowed off the highway in front of our home isn’t very attractive, but this prettied it up very nicely!
Driving through it brought to mind a story I shared a while back, but it’s such a simple – but special – memory, that I need to share it again.
Back in high school, my dad pastored a church that was nestled in the mountains of West Virginia – Parsons, WV to be specific. It was the norm to get quite a bit of snow there (this past weekend they were supposed to get around two feet of it!)
One winter evening, my sister Katrina and I decided to take our dog, Sugar, for a walk into the center of town. It had been snowing steadily and all around us was white. It was less than a mile and we were in no hurry. It was late enough that traffic was non-existent. No one was around and we just quietly walked through the falling snow, with nothing but the sound of crunching snow beneath our feet. I remember walking past the streetlights and looking up into the shining lights to see the snow continue to come in steady sheets blowing and swirling as it gently fell to the ground. It was breathtaking.
If enough snow falls it does an excellent job of smoothing things out. Jagged edges are rounded. Lumpy ground is covered in a carpet of snow and often we can’t even tell what lies below. A miracle of God’s creation accomplishes on a grand scale what man cannot. Mile upon mile is coated, many times bringing portions of our lives to a standstill, if only for a short time.
1 Peter 4:8 communicates a beautiful and impacting command. It reads,
Above all, have fervent and unfailing love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins [it overlooks unkindness and unselfishly seeks the best for others]. AMP
Just as humanity cannot accomplish the immensity of a winter’s snow, we are incapable of loving as we should. In our humanity alone, we falter in our love, but when we share our love out of God’s limitless reserve, great things happen. In that setting, our love for one another can be fervent. It can be unfailing. And in the process, that kind of love can cover a multitude of sins!
In our world, it’s a challenge to overlook unkindness. Our instinct is constantly fed by our culture and instead of overlooking unkindness, we seek retaliation. Instead of unselfishly seeking the best for others, many are all about looking out only for themselves.
Lord Jesus, as we strive to love You with all that we are, may our love for others, which is a natural byproduct of that love, cover the parts of the earth that we individually touch. In so doing may our combined touches, thoroughly cover a multitude of sins so that we can begin to see past the jagged edges of pain and hurt and instead see the world as You do…and forgive. Amen.
Jan 27th, 2022, Thurs, 7:41 pm