All in Encouragement
As a child, I felt special every time I took a bath at my Granny’s house.
At that time, Granny only had one bathroom. The tub, sink and toilet were probably 30 years old. The water pressure wasn’t that great, but I didn’t care about any of those things.
Our mature live oak trees suffered terribly during the severe winter last year. Barren and stunned by the record cold, the branches, which appeared to be dead, eventually began to sprout foliage in late spring and early summer. Green life appeared!
The battle with perfectionism is an ongoing challenge for me, especially during the holidays. The perfect decorations, food planning, gifts, church activities and family fun and accommodations often result in uncontrolled stress if I begin my agenda with an “upside down plan”—ignoring the inclusion of “unplanned” time.
Just as the disciples watched Jesus leave this earth, we now await His return. The angel on the Mount of Olives who spoke to the disciples didn’t specify that Jesus would return in a cloud, but John did. In his Revelation, John used a variety of Old Testament scriptures to describe what the world will one day see: Look! He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him… (Rev. 1:7). Toward the end of his revelation, John wrote, “Then I looked, and there was a white cloud, and One like the Son of Man was seated on the cloud, with a gold crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand (Rev. 14:14).
Joshua and the Israelites were marching into the Promised Land and were, therefore, engaged in battle against the Canaanites. Repeatedly, they witnessed God’s power working on their behalf as they defeated their enemies in the south. Their enemies in the north were yet to be defeated. But instead of marching northward, Joshua led the Israelites back to Gilgal.
Have you ever let dirty dishes sit for a day or so? Really, it doesn’t have to be that long. Maybe just a few hours.
Some of the worst culprits include oatmeal, tomato sauce, cheese, and even coffee.
Eme had outgrown her dance shoes. But it was just two weeks before her recital and the end of the season.
Kimberly and I met when we were both about 23 years old. We both worked in corporate communication for a large bank.
Trouble and pain. We can’t escape it. Oh, but we try. We may lie or blame someone else to deflect trouble away from us. We may avoid dealing with conflict or stress by distracting ourselves. I can clean really well when I’m procrastinating. Sometimes shopping, social media or television are my diversions.
That our culture—like Esau—is one of instant gratification, is hardly news. The soaring statistics in both credit card debt and divorce have been proof of this fact for many years. The following chart is a stunning summary of what has happened to American/Western culture in the last century and a half:
Modernism: the late 19th/early 20th century. Personal experience questions truth.
Post-modernism: mid-late 20th century. Personal experience defines/chooses truth.
Pseudo-modernism: 1990’s—today. Personal experience creates truth.
If you were looking for material for a daytime television drama, you could hardly do better than the story of Jacob and Esau, grandsons of Abraham, the father of faith. It has sibling rivalry, parental partiality and on-going intrigue, all set against a backdrop of wealth and power within the palace walls (if the walls were made of animal skins…).
Recently, a friend and I met for a catch-up lunch. As so often happens, the conversation drifted to events in the lives of our children and grand-children. Soon we were enveloped in the low-frequency melodrama that is modern family life, along with the seeming inability, in many areas, to do much about any of it. (And mothers hate not being able to fix things!). Then I looked at my friend and said, “We shouldn’t be surprised. Can you name one family in the Old Testament that wasn’t dysfunctional?” She thought about it for a moment, then agreed.
The Greek word, kairos, means the opportune time is now.
Dr. Tony Evans, founder and pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship, Dallas, Texas, outlines his views of a Kingdom Disciples living in the present day culture.
If you have given your heart to Jesus Christ, you are his disciple. The term disciple does not exclusively describe missionaries or clergy; it describes a Christ-Follower. If you are certain you have accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord of your life, you are not exempt from the highest calling to live as a disciple! This is exciting because it means Jesus has given you the authority in heaven and on earth to act as His Disciple.
In the understanding of many, we enter the Kingdom of God only when we enter Heaven.
However, the Bible teaches Christ followers that Jesus sent us out to proclaim the kingdom of God in the world now. We have the responsibility and privilege of inviting people to live under God’s authority in every part of life. But as we proclaim this message, we should live it by acknowledging God’s reign over all of our life.
These are tender words from Jesus. We are his “little flock.” He is aware that some of us need to hear a childlike statement spoken over us now and then. Our hearts yearn for calm and reassurance during these uncertain times. Like being rocked or sung over as a child, this melodious verse could be a lovely nursery song.
Fixing our thoughts on Jesus (3:1), asking WWJD, seeing that HWLF (He would love first), we are moved forward in our thinking by the writer of Hebrews: keep on loving others as long as life lasts. Living a life of love till the end makes sense. It appears though that these Judean believers were losing hope because of all the false teaching and persecution of the time. We too could throw up our hands at the messy theology around us and lose hope of ever seeing our family and friends come to know Jesus.
I breathe a sigh of contentment when reflecting upon this statement:
As believers, we have been granted all that we need
to be what God has called us to be
and to do the things God has called us to do
in the place where He has put us.
Move forward in the certainty that He is with us, for us and in us.
This God of awesome power will grant power to do what is needed. *
Awareness that God uses specific places to mark His interaction with believers encourages me in the dailiness of my faith walk. Since Adam and Eve left their home in the Garden, the longing for a specific place to call home has resided within our hearts. Many of the times when God makes His presence known occurs within these homes. That’s part of what makes a home so significant.
