Horses.. We don’t ride horses, never rode them like some folks do…but we have had horses for years. Today, we have one less…
There are many teachings in scripture using the horse for illustration. “Do not be like the horse…which has no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you.” (Ps. 32:9)
Old Dutch was like that. He was hard to catch. Once the bit was in his mouth, he was completely different. And these last few weeks, he has been different. He was old, he probably had cancer, or a failing heart…and he didn’t run when approached.
Aren’t we so like that? God calls us, and we prance off with our proud tail in the air, blowing back at Him, refusing to answer? When He finally gets His Hand on us, we realize how foolish we were to struggle against Him, that He is kind and gentle, only wanting to groom us and use us for the very purpose we were created.
When we are so tired and worn out from our running, when we grow old and weak, sick, needy…we welcome His Presence and His Touch.
I often joke that I am old and tired. But I am not. Neither am I young and ignorant. I have matured, I have experiences, I have training from life and from the Spirit of God working in my life.
Father, help us not to run when You call, but rather to anxiously submit to Your call. Lord, we want to willfully follow, fulfilling the very purposes You have for our life. Help us that we might do that while we are young and strong…not waiting until we exhaust ourselves with running, or when we have become weak and sick. But thank You Father God, that even then you love us and comfort us. Oh God, we want to have no regrets of being disobedient to Your call.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Pollen
Pollen… There is a green mist in the air. Thankfully, I remembered to start the allergy medicine in time. I’ve decided not to complain…
I love springtime. I love the budding trees, the fresh growth, the flowers…it always makes me think about Day Three. “Let the earth bring forth grass…herbs… trees….” (Gen.1:11) God had already prepared the place for all this vegetation, He had prepared the earth…light, soil, water. Everything to support plant life was in place, inspected, and approved. Then He spoke and the earth burst forth…
Imagine the earth birthing all plant life for the first time. Imagine how beautiful, how fresh and tender. The colors appearing…on the backdrop of an earth newly divided into dry land and seas.
Never again has it been just like that. God said it once. “Let the earth bring forth….”
“And it was so.” (Gen. 1:11) And it is still so. Just take a look around.
He is so good.
I love springtime. I love the budding trees, the fresh growth, the flowers…it always makes me think about Day Three. “Let the earth bring forth grass…herbs… trees….” (Gen.1:11) God had already prepared the place for all this vegetation, He had prepared the earth…light, soil, water. Everything to support plant life was in place, inspected, and approved. Then He spoke and the earth burst forth…
Imagine the earth birthing all plant life for the first time. Imagine how beautiful, how fresh and tender. The colors appearing…on the backdrop of an earth newly divided into dry land and seas.
Never again has it been just like that. God said it once. “Let the earth bring forth….”
“And it was so.” (Gen. 1:11) And it is still so. Just take a look around.
He is so good.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Information
Information… How much information to you have? How much is available that you don’t have? How much of what you have is accurate?
“What things?”, the Traveler asked.
The two traveling on the road to Emmaus had some information about Jesus. He was from Nazareth. He was an inspired speaker, a foreteller of future events. He was powerful in the things He said and did, dynamic. The religious elite had orchestrated His death, a crucifixion. And His body was not in the tomb, it had vanished.
I wonder, what do you know about Jesus? What information do you have? Have you even scratched the surface of knowing? ….I haven’t. The more I learn, the more I realize how much I do not know and understand. I can hardly wrap my brain around it…God in flesh.(John 1:14)
Jesus said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!…
Then, beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself.” (Luke 24:25,27)
Moses…that would be the first 5 books of our Bible. THAT is where Jesus started when He decided to explain Himself to these travelers.
You see, scripture is ALL about Jesus. From beginning to end, it’s about Jesus. From the garden, He has been spoken of and promised. The curse that fell on mankind is only in Him removed. The prophets message was all about Him. The chosen people of God, was all about Him and His Message to the world.
Will you go to Moses and all the Prophets of scripture, open the Bible, and ask Him to show you what is said there concerning Himself?
Just like the road to Emmaus, He comes to help us and give us knowledge and understanding when we use what we have already been given. Just as then, there is much more to know about Jesus than the circumstances of His birth and death. So very much more….
“What things?”, the Traveler asked.
The two traveling on the road to Emmaus had some information about Jesus. He was from Nazareth. He was an inspired speaker, a foreteller of future events. He was powerful in the things He said and did, dynamic. The religious elite had orchestrated His death, a crucifixion. And His body was not in the tomb, it had vanished.
I wonder, what do you know about Jesus? What information do you have? Have you even scratched the surface of knowing? ….I haven’t. The more I learn, the more I realize how much I do not know and understand. I can hardly wrap my brain around it…God in flesh.(John 1:14)
Jesus said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!…
Then, beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself.” (Luke 24:25,27)
Moses…that would be the first 5 books of our Bible. THAT is where Jesus started when He decided to explain Himself to these travelers.
You see, scripture is ALL about Jesus. From beginning to end, it’s about Jesus. From the garden, He has been spoken of and promised. The curse that fell on mankind is only in Him removed. The prophets message was all about Him. The chosen people of God, was all about Him and His Message to the world.
Will you go to Moses and all the Prophets of scripture, open the Bible, and ask Him to show you what is said there concerning Himself?
Just like the road to Emmaus, He comes to help us and give us knowledge and understanding when we use what we have already been given. Just as then, there is much more to know about Jesus than the circumstances of His birth and death. So very much more….
Information
Information… How much information to you have? How much is available that you don’t have? How much of what you have is accurate?
“What things?”, the Traveler asked.
The two traveling on the road to Emmaus had some information about Jesus. He was from Nazareth. He was an inspired speaker, a foreteller of future events. He was powerful in the things He said and did, dynamic. The religious elite had orchestrated His death, a crucifixion. And His body was not in the tomb, it had vanished.
I wonder, what do you know about Jesus? What information do you have? Have you even scratched the surface of knowing? ….I haven’t. The more I learn, the more I realize how much I do not know and understand. I can hardly wrap my brain around it…God in flesh.(John 1:14)
Jesus said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!…
Then, beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself.” (Luke 24:25,27)
Moses…that would be the first 5 books of our Bible. THAT is where Jesus started when He decided to explain Himself to these travelers.
You see, scripture is ALL about Jesus. From beginning to end, it’s about Jesus. From the garden, He has been spoken of and promised. The curse that fell on mankind is only in Him removed. The prophets message was all about Him. The chosen people of God, was all about Him and His Message to the world.
Will you go to Moses and all the Prophets of scripture, open the Bible, and ask Him to show you what is said there concerning Himself?
Just like the road to Emmaus, He comes to help us and give us knowledge and understanding when we use what we have already been given. Just as then, there is much more to know about Jesus than the circumstances of His birth and death. So very much more….
“What things?”, the Traveler asked.
The two traveling on the road to Emmaus had some information about Jesus. He was from Nazareth. He was an inspired speaker, a foreteller of future events. He was powerful in the things He said and did, dynamic. The religious elite had orchestrated His death, a crucifixion. And His body was not in the tomb, it had vanished.
I wonder, what do you know about Jesus? What information do you have? Have you even scratched the surface of knowing? ….I haven’t. The more I learn, the more I realize how much I do not know and understand. I can hardly wrap my brain around it…God in flesh.(John 1:14)
Jesus said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!…
Then, beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself.” (Luke 24:25,27)
Moses…that would be the first 5 books of our Bible. THAT is where Jesus started when He decided to explain Himself to these travelers.
You see, scripture is ALL about Jesus. From beginning to end, it’s about Jesus. From the garden, He has been spoken of and promised. The curse that fell on mankind is only in Him removed. The prophets message was all about Him. The chosen people of God, was all about Him and His Message to the world.
Will you go to Moses and all the Prophets of scripture, open the Bible, and ask Him to show you what is said there concerning Himself?
Just like the road to Emmaus, He comes to help us and give us knowledge and understanding when we use what we have already been given. Just as then, there is much more to know about Jesus than the circumstances of His birth and death. So very much more….
Monday, April 5, 2010
Sadness
Sadness.. It is a heaviness of heart we’ve all felt, brought on by various thing..…
It needs no introduction, when we are sad, it is evident. It shows itself in our expressions, our body language, our voice…even the words we choose are colored by the sadness of heart.
Sadness expresses itself as anger often….or hopelessness. Circumstances of life deeply affect us, and we process it….often in unwise and unhealthy ways. Often in cooperation with our enemy instead of with the Holy Spirit of God.
When sadness settles over us, we can listen to the wrong voice and become more defeated, angrier, hopeless, or depressed…or we can listen for the His Whisper and remember His promises.
There were some sad faces on the road to Emmaus. (Luke 24) They walked along with it all over their face, obvious to a fellow Traveler.
“What are you discussing…?” the Traveler asked.
“Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard..?”, they answered.
“What has happened?” the Traveler replied.
“Jesus of Nazareth…He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people !…”, they began to tell the Traveler. “…but we had hoped….” (Luke 24:21)
Things hadn’t turned out like they had expected. They had the scenario all worked out in their mind…and it didn’t turn out that way. So….the sadness came.
“What things?” Jesus asked . (Luke 24:29)
He asked what things brought on the sadness. He is still the same. The sadness we struggle against still concerns Him.
Lord Jesus, do not let us be slow to perceive Your Presence with us and in our circumstances. As You did then, on the road to Emmaus, do today…. in the places where we are, the roads we walk on… thru Your Holy Spirit, walk with us and reveal truth to us. As we open our Bible, teach us and enlighten us just as You opened scripture to these travelers on the road to Emmaus.
It needs no introduction, when we are sad, it is evident. It shows itself in our expressions, our body language, our voice…even the words we choose are colored by the sadness of heart.
Sadness expresses itself as anger often….or hopelessness. Circumstances of life deeply affect us, and we process it….often in unwise and unhealthy ways. Often in cooperation with our enemy instead of with the Holy Spirit of God.
When sadness settles over us, we can listen to the wrong voice and become more defeated, angrier, hopeless, or depressed…or we can listen for the His Whisper and remember His promises.
There were some sad faces on the road to Emmaus. (Luke 24) They walked along with it all over their face, obvious to a fellow Traveler.
“What are you discussing…?” the Traveler asked.
“Are you the only one in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard..?”, they answered.
“What has happened?” the Traveler replied.
“Jesus of Nazareth…He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people !…”, they began to tell the Traveler. “…but we had hoped….” (Luke 24:21)
Things hadn’t turned out like they had expected. They had the scenario all worked out in their mind…and it didn’t turn out that way. So….the sadness came.
“What things?” Jesus asked . (Luke 24:29)
He asked what things brought on the sadness. He is still the same. The sadness we struggle against still concerns Him.
Lord Jesus, do not let us be slow to perceive Your Presence with us and in our circumstances. As You did then, on the road to Emmaus, do today…. in the places where we are, the roads we walk on… thru Your Holy Spirit, walk with us and reveal truth to us. As we open our Bible, teach us and enlighten us just as You opened scripture to these travelers on the road to Emmaus.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Finished
Finished… Done. Over with. Accomplished. The end. Concluded.
I wonder what a sigh of relief the chief priests and their followers sighed when they saw Jesus sentenced to death. They thought it was finished. Done. Over with. They thought they had accomplished something. They thought this latest bout with a so-called Messiah was concluded. Their positions were no longer threatened. Life would go on as usual.
They didn’t want their Passover messed up. They wanted Jesus not only quieted, but eliminated. They wanted their traditional and religious holiday to go on as always…all the while with schemes of orchestrating an innocent death. (John 18:28)
Finished. He was dead. He was in the tomb. They thought it was finished.
About the time the lambs were slain on the altar, the Lamb of God spilled His blood on a Roman cross. There were no cries or bleeting from this Lamb. He was not drug or carried. He himself, even carried the cross He was to die on. While blood ran from the altar where the lambs were sacrified, His Blood drenched the timbers of the rugged cross of Calvary.
While the prepared pascal lambs of Passover were laid out on their tables, The Lamb of God lay in a tomb between two angels. (John 20:12)
They feasted on the animals they sacrified as an atonement for their sin and a reprieve from the curse of death…over and over, year after year.
I feast on the Lamb of God…I feast on The Bread of Life.
I am not required to sacrifice an animal to atone for my sin. God Himself has done that once and for all. (Rom. 3:25, Heb. 9:26, Heb.10)
‘Through Jesus…I continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise…the fruit of lips that confess His Name….not forgetting to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.’ (Heb. 13:15-16)
He is not dead….‘He is risen.’ (Luke 24:6)
Hallelujah !!
I wonder what a sigh of relief the chief priests and their followers sighed when they saw Jesus sentenced to death. They thought it was finished. Done. Over with. They thought they had accomplished something. They thought this latest bout with a so-called Messiah was concluded. Their positions were no longer threatened. Life would go on as usual.
They didn’t want their Passover messed up. They wanted Jesus not only quieted, but eliminated. They wanted their traditional and religious holiday to go on as always…all the while with schemes of orchestrating an innocent death. (John 18:28)
Finished. He was dead. He was in the tomb. They thought it was finished.
About the time the lambs were slain on the altar, the Lamb of God spilled His blood on a Roman cross. There were no cries or bleeting from this Lamb. He was not drug or carried. He himself, even carried the cross He was to die on. While blood ran from the altar where the lambs were sacrified, His Blood drenched the timbers of the rugged cross of Calvary.
While the prepared pascal lambs of Passover were laid out on their tables, The Lamb of God lay in a tomb between two angels. (John 20:12)
They feasted on the animals they sacrified as an atonement for their sin and a reprieve from the curse of death…over and over, year after year.
I feast on the Lamb of God…I feast on The Bread of Life.
I am not required to sacrifice an animal to atone for my sin. God Himself has done that once and for all. (Rom. 3:25, Heb. 9:26, Heb.10)
‘Through Jesus…I continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise…the fruit of lips that confess His Name….not forgetting to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.’ (Heb. 13:15-16)
He is not dead….‘He is risen.’ (Luke 24:6)
Hallelujah !!
Friday, April 2, 2010
Arrested
Arrested… They arrested Him last night. It was a long night. Drug before every judge in town….all of it really illegal. But He never asked for His rights.
Imagine the trials of Jesus today, in our courts. There would be such an outcry about violated rights. But don’t think our system would have prevented His death.
I wonder what methods would be used today to stop Jesus. Our culture seems to have perfected the political smear tactics. But…that’s not a new thing. They did that. They attacked the circumstances of His birth.
John 8:41, when read with some knowledge about the culture, is an accusation that His mother was pregnant when she married Joseph, not a virgin as was claimed. They suggested that Jesus had more than one ‘father’. Questioning someone’s honesty chips away at the foundation of any relationship. Ask Eve, Satan used that tactic successfully on her in the Garden. He questioned the honesty of God…Eve considered the possibility…and you and I live in the rest of the story.
Perhaps today we would scrutinize His finances, look at His tax returns. They did that too. (Luke 20 and Matthew 17)
Or get a loose woman involved…they did that too. (John 8)
“There is nothing new under the sun..” (Ecc. 1:9) Don’t think we’re any different than the people who drug Jesus from court to court all night and saw to it that He was nailed to a Roman cross. We are not.
But He was different. Hallelujah.... what a Savior.
Imagine the trials of Jesus today, in our courts. There would be such an outcry about violated rights. But don’t think our system would have prevented His death.
I wonder what methods would be used today to stop Jesus. Our culture seems to have perfected the political smear tactics. But…that’s not a new thing. They did that. They attacked the circumstances of His birth.
John 8:41, when read with some knowledge about the culture, is an accusation that His mother was pregnant when she married Joseph, not a virgin as was claimed. They suggested that Jesus had more than one ‘father’. Questioning someone’s honesty chips away at the foundation of any relationship. Ask Eve, Satan used that tactic successfully on her in the Garden. He questioned the honesty of God…Eve considered the possibility…and you and I live in the rest of the story.
Perhaps today we would scrutinize His finances, look at His tax returns. They did that too. (Luke 20 and Matthew 17)
Or get a loose woman involved…they did that too. (John 8)
“There is nothing new under the sun..” (Ecc. 1:9) Don’t think we’re any different than the people who drug Jesus from court to court all night and saw to it that He was nailed to a Roman cross. We are not.
But He was different. Hallelujah.... what a Savior.
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