Many years ago, I had to give a speech in Sunday School by this title. At that time, I did not know a lot about Easter, but I knew that it was a celebration of life. We used to sing about life - He rose from the dead! We were excited about Christ and all of the events surrounding the resurrection. It meant everything that the Blood had signed our names.
Of course, as kids we were also excited about candy and about dressing up in new clothes. The smaller we were, it seemed the bigger the Easter basket. My mom made Easter baskets for us until we were well into our teens.
When I was really small, I remember sitting in the kitchen, getting my hair pressed on the day before Easter. The importance of putting our best foot forward for the Lord was impressed upon us from our earliest days.
Now people have a very casual approach to God and to His presence. We come before him any way we please - and get mad if we feel He does not accept it. But back to Easter.
I am so glad that I understand the power of the Resurrection. Christ conquered death, hell, and the grave! He told His disciples that they would live because He lived (John 14:19). That promise extends all the way to us! Not only that, He promised to come back and receive his followers to Himself (John 14:2-3). The Blood did indeed sign our names - they are written in the Lamb's book of Life and will not be blotted out.
Every Easter is a reminder of the victory and the promises. I can sing with jubilation, "Because He lives, I can face tomorrow!" Whatever tomorrow brings, I know Jesus has it under control. He has conquered everything, even death - the great equalizer. What can conquer us when we are more than conquerors? Not a thing.
Gladly I will present my best for him on Resurrection Sunday - not to be the finest lady in the Easter Parade, but to represent the One who gave his very best for me. His life, laid down, and then taken up again. He rose, He rose, He rose from the dead!
Friday, April 22, 2011
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Celebrate Love
I just want to encourage you to celebrate love - regardless of your marital status. So many times when one is single, they feel annoyed at holidays, such as Valentine's Day, that seem to emphasize their singleness or exalt marriage. What many singles may not realize is that sometimes married people are not excited about Valentine's Day either. It could be that the celebration has become a farce, as two people are more like cohabitants than loving spouses. For some, it may be another day of dashed dreams and unrealized expectations.
But we should all celebrate love because God loves us universally, without regard to whether or not we are attached to another person. His love motivated Him to give us all the very best He had. John 3:16 lets us know that the gift of eternal life was motivated by the love of God. Too many times we seek fulfillment through a person, not realizing that they cannot give us what we need - they do not have the capacity to satisfy our soul.
We have got to learn to extend grace to those around us - we are all imperfect - none of us is able to completely fulfill another person. While you are making a list of how those around you have fallen short of your expectations, keep in mind someone may be making the same list concerning you! And there's nothing wrong with that. In our humanity, we cannot meet all of another person's needs.
I'm not saying that if you are married you should not attempt to meet some of your spouse's needs; that is part of our obligation. But we cannot hold ourselves in an exalted position by virtue of the fact that we are married; it does not make us superior to those who are not. And those who are single should not begrudge or envy those who are married; each circumstance has its own unique privileges and perils. There are positives and negatives on both sides of that coin.
If we are going to celebrate love, really celebrate it, we must go beyond attaching love to a marital or familial status. We have to look at the source of love - God. The Bible tells us that God is love (1 John 4:7-8), and that because we are in Him we are obligated to also love one another.
Not only that, we are called to love ourselves. If you cannot celebrate another person, if you will not be celebrating with another person, please take some time and celebrate yourself. Your value is not tied up in a ring or a ceremony that may or may not have taken place. Your value is determined by the one who created you - and unless you're a twin, you were born single, and even twins don't come out at the same time. Every individual is of great price to God (Psalm 8).
I want to encourage you to see yourself through the eyes of love-motivated sacrifice - the eyes of God, and of Jesus Christ, who displayed the greatest love of all by laying down His life on our behalf. They love you, and I do too.
Happy Valentine's Day.
But we should all celebrate love because God loves us universally, without regard to whether or not we are attached to another person. His love motivated Him to give us all the very best He had. John 3:16 lets us know that the gift of eternal life was motivated by the love of God. Too many times we seek fulfillment through a person, not realizing that they cannot give us what we need - they do not have the capacity to satisfy our soul.
We have got to learn to extend grace to those around us - we are all imperfect - none of us is able to completely fulfill another person. While you are making a list of how those around you have fallen short of your expectations, keep in mind someone may be making the same list concerning you! And there's nothing wrong with that. In our humanity, we cannot meet all of another person's needs.
I'm not saying that if you are married you should not attempt to meet some of your spouse's needs; that is part of our obligation. But we cannot hold ourselves in an exalted position by virtue of the fact that we are married; it does not make us superior to those who are not. And those who are single should not begrudge or envy those who are married; each circumstance has its own unique privileges and perils. There are positives and negatives on both sides of that coin.
If we are going to celebrate love, really celebrate it, we must go beyond attaching love to a marital or familial status. We have to look at the source of love - God. The Bible tells us that God is love (1 John 4:7-8), and that because we are in Him we are obligated to also love one another.
Not only that, we are called to love ourselves. If you cannot celebrate another person, if you will not be celebrating with another person, please take some time and celebrate yourself. Your value is not tied up in a ring or a ceremony that may or may not have taken place. Your value is determined by the one who created you - and unless you're a twin, you were born single, and even twins don't come out at the same time. Every individual is of great price to God (Psalm 8).
I want to encourage you to see yourself through the eyes of love-motivated sacrifice - the eyes of God, and of Jesus Christ, who displayed the greatest love of all by laying down His life on our behalf. They love you, and I do too.
Happy Valentine's Day.
Monday, December 6, 2010
Wisdom Speaks from Proverbs 3
Wisdom Speaks:
Love is a funny thing. Depending on the source of love, the object of love, it carries with it a wide variety of emotions. Love makes you feel – joy, happiness, excitement, nervousness, fear. Most of these emotions we welcome; some we do not care for at all. But there is one emotion, one feeling, that most of us despise. Unfortunately, it is the one that God uses to shape us into what he wants us to be.
According to Wisdom, love – real love - makes you feel pain. The thing we have to remember is that it is not needless pain. Love’s pain is for a purpose. Wisdom says that we are chastened because we are loved. The analogy here lets us know that God is to us as a father is to his children. It is he who is responsible for our upbringing, our provision, our protection. In his role as our father, he is also responsible for training us to walk upright.
When I was a child, I didn’t always have a father – my stepfather was around for a time – but I always had discipline. My mom firmly believed in applying the rod, the extension cord, the belt – well, you get the picture. Unfortunately I did not always appreciate her fervency. So I did what most children who despise discipline do – I ran away from home. But I found out that other people don’t treat you like your parents. They may let you go without discipline, but it’s really because they don’t have a vested interest in how you turn out.
Wisdom warns us not to get tired of the Lord’s discipline – don’t run away from God when you are chastised. Just take your punishment and get back in line – repent and change. Nobody you can run to will love you like your Father. He has a vested interest in your outcome – he wants to see you make something of yourself with all of the gifts and abilities he has placed inside you. He delights in you; therefore, he does what is necessary to keep you on the right track. We are loved so much that we are not allowed to ruin ourselves. Some people say there is no love stronger than a mother’s love – but I disagree. The Father’s love is stronger still.
My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth.(Proverbs 3:11-12 (KJV)
Love is a funny thing. Depending on the source of love, the object of love, it carries with it a wide variety of emotions. Love makes you feel – joy, happiness, excitement, nervousness, fear. Most of these emotions we welcome; some we do not care for at all. But there is one emotion, one feeling, that most of us despise. Unfortunately, it is the one that God uses to shape us into what he wants us to be.
According to Wisdom, love – real love - makes you feel pain. The thing we have to remember is that it is not needless pain. Love’s pain is for a purpose. Wisdom says that we are chastened because we are loved. The analogy here lets us know that God is to us as a father is to his children. It is he who is responsible for our upbringing, our provision, our protection. In his role as our father, he is also responsible for training us to walk upright.
When I was a child, I didn’t always have a father – my stepfather was around for a time – but I always had discipline. My mom firmly believed in applying the rod, the extension cord, the belt – well, you get the picture. Unfortunately I did not always appreciate her fervency. So I did what most children who despise discipline do – I ran away from home. But I found out that other people don’t treat you like your parents. They may let you go without discipline, but it’s really because they don’t have a vested interest in how you turn out.
Wisdom warns us not to get tired of the Lord’s discipline – don’t run away from God when you are chastised. Just take your punishment and get back in line – repent and change. Nobody you can run to will love you like your Father. He has a vested interest in your outcome – he wants to see you make something of yourself with all of the gifts and abilities he has placed inside you. He delights in you; therefore, he does what is necessary to keep you on the right track. We are loved so much that we are not allowed to ruin ourselves. Some people say there is no love stronger than a mother’s love – but I disagree. The Father’s love is stronger still.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Wisdom Speaks from Proverbs 2
Wisdom Speaks:
There is a lot of meat in this passage, but I want to focus on the verse that sums it all up: verse 6. It lets us know that even in our earnest desire for wisdom and understanding, we can mess up if we go to the wrong source. Don’t get me wrong – wisdom does not just sit there waiting for you in an obvious place. It is something that must be sought after diligently. But again, it must be sought in the right place.
The scripture lets us know that the Lord gives wisdom. But it doesn’t come from his hand – it comes from his mouth. We can spend our time seeking the Lord without ever seeking wisdom because we are looking to tap into the wrong source.
We seek the Lord’s hand for provision, protection, healing, and deliverance. But it is his mouth that we must seek for wisdom. Wisdom comes only from the mouth of God – the word of God. You cannot have true wisdom without the word.
Wisdom says that when you are seeking God’s wisdom on an issue, you must look to the source – the word of God – the mouth of God – the express representative of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. Tabloids and television, magazines and novelties, cannot give you the wisdom of the Word. It cannot be found in celebrities or personalities.
True wisdom is given – by God’s mouth – sit at his feet, please. But while you’re there, please pay attention to his mouth. Get into God’s Word. Don’t just look; listen. Wisdom speaks, but it uses a mouth to do it.
1 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; 2 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; 3 Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; 4 If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; 5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. 6 For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.Proverbs 2:1-6 (KJV).
There is a lot of meat in this passage, but I want to focus on the verse that sums it all up: verse 6. It lets us know that even in our earnest desire for wisdom and understanding, we can mess up if we go to the wrong source. Don’t get me wrong – wisdom does not just sit there waiting for you in an obvious place. It is something that must be sought after diligently. But again, it must be sought in the right place.
The scripture lets us know that the Lord gives wisdom. But it doesn’t come from his hand – it comes from his mouth. We can spend our time seeking the Lord without ever seeking wisdom because we are looking to tap into the wrong source.
We seek the Lord’s hand for provision, protection, healing, and deliverance. But it is his mouth that we must seek for wisdom. Wisdom comes only from the mouth of God – the word of God. You cannot have true wisdom without the word.
Wisdom says that when you are seeking God’s wisdom on an issue, you must look to the source – the word of God – the mouth of God – the express representative of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. Tabloids and television, magazines and novelties, cannot give you the wisdom of the Word. It cannot be found in celebrities or personalities.
True wisdom is given – by God’s mouth – sit at his feet, please. But while you’re there, please pay attention to his mouth. Get into God’s Word. Don’t just look; listen. Wisdom speaks, but it uses a mouth to do it.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Wisdom Speaks from Proverbs 1
Wisdom Speaks: My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. (Proverbs 1:10).
This instruction is so simple, it seems that it shouldn’t even have to be given. But even as the writer was instructing his son, this simple direction is relevant to us today. “If sinners entice thee…”
As people of God, we have to be able to distinguish, and be distinguished from, sinners. It is important that we know whose advice to take, whose plans to buy into, whose decisions to uphold. You can tell by their activity. Sinners entice. They make bad look good – evil look righteous – ugly look pretty. They flatter and flirt until you see things their way. They are the people who will tell you, “Nobody else will know,” or “just do it this one time” or “what can it hurt?”
The writer says we have power over the enticement. We are admonished, “Consent thou not.” In other words, don’t give into suggestions that will take you outside the will of God. Run if you have to, pray if you have to, cry if you have to, but don’t consent. Do not give in to the enticer.
It is wonderful to know that we are the ones with the power. We can resist! The Bible tells us what will happen if we do.
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7 (KJV).That is good news! But it only works if we follow the first part of the equation: submit to God. It is He who gives us the power to resist the devil and to withstand the ridicule of those who choose to live contrary to God’s ways. Enticers cannot withstand the power of a life truly submitted to God.
Something good to think about when someone other than Wisdom speaks.
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