It's Hard To Imagine...

"The fire that lit the boiler of the New Testament Church was an unquenchable belief that if Jesus had been only a man, he would have stayed in the tomb.  The earliest Christians couldn't stay silent about the fact that the one they saw hung on a cross walked again on the earth and appeared to five hundred people.



 

Let us ask our Father humbly, yet confidently in the name of Jesus, to remind us of the tomb.  Let us see the victorious Jesus: the conqueror of the tomb, the one who defied death.  And let us be reminded that we, too, will be granted that same victory!"

 

~Max Lucado.  Walking With The Savior

May Be Knocked Down...

What a cool Video!

Click here to see it on YouTube!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=0lkoY1Muw1M

Wet Grass, Burrs and Hunting With My Father...

Anybody besides me recognize these?

As I stepped out of my house this morning, the wet grass and dew covered world reminded me of my childhood days.  My dad would wake me up on a Saturday morning early, it was time to go hunting (please no anti-hunting comments).  Mostly squirrels were on the agenda, occasionally the rabbits had to beware, but overall we went and came home, empty handed.

Though the meat was scarce, the hitchhikers were not.  Often, unknown to me, would be a glob of these burrs, stuck to my pants and in need of removal before entering the car.  One thing is stuck in my mind about these unwelcome little visitors, they didn’t go away easily.  Nor did they seem to ever give up their grip on my clothing and skin.  Even when I got the majority, I seemed to always find a few stragglers once I got home and changed clothes.  Persistent little irritants.

I sit here wondering…  what in the world was God thinking when he created burrs?  Your question may be different than mine, but the result is the same, why are there things that irritate and distract our attention?

Some insight can be found in the passage from our founding father Adam…  “the ground will produce thorns and thistles.” (Genesis 3:18b).  That is a technical answer.  But there is a real outgrowth of this early choice that Paul speaks of…   ^“I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate.”*… 

Just a few words later we see “I want to do what is right, but I can’t.  I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.” *

What a conflict, yet many of you reading this know this fight.  Burrs are in your pantlegs and they are irritating.

Some of you know the feeling he then expresses…  “Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life…?”*

What is your burr?

Disappointment?

Discouragement?

Doubt? 

Distrust?

Anger?

A physical desire?

 

Hurt?

Let me ask you?  Is there any hope?  If I say yes will you listen?  I know I don’t listen all the time, it’s not the right way to live my life, yet I find from time to time I am covered with burrs and I become satisfied with leaving them attached.  It’s hard when you are tired of pulling burrs.

Some are reading now, you’re not freshly covered with burrs.  You’ve forgotten your days of irritation so those struggling with burrs are feeling your “encouragement”.  And if you’re not careful, you and Jobs friends may be sharing the same pot of sour water.  What the struggling, tired, thirsty traveler needs is hope and it’s found in a clear, cool, clean drink of water, not another cup of burrs.  Helping now is contingent on your ability to remember the darkness of your own burr covered days.  For all you know, your attitude may be the burrs you’ve missed.

Back to the HOPE issue.  Paul throws us a “burr remover”… “Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord…  So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.  And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you”*

You may not feel freed.  Everything may be going poorly.  Your heart may be fighting for one more beat.  Fresh air may seem out of breathing range.  Your sight may be dimmed.  Your limbs may be weary.

But in Christ…  YOU ARE FREE!

Not free from the burrs along the path, but you have a “burr puller” who knows where all of them have hidden and how to remove them.

Look to him today, be encouraged…

It’s my goal for my day, come join me!


* Romans 7:18-8:1 portions selected

Monday Morning, Eeyore and the devil...

Seated…

Check…

Pen in hand…

Check…

Devotion book open..

Check…

Topic…

Uh Oh…

This morning I woke up discouraged.  You may know what I’m talking about.  A couple of weeks of a busy schedule with a little frustration added in and a pinch of undone chores and a spoonful of lack of sleep.

The recipe is never the same, the packaged snack is.  It hits you when you least seem ready for it and even your best laid plans for its arrival can seem useless.

So it comes…

It visits and begins to unpack its suitcase...

The contents are familiar, but they are nonetheless effective…

The first question hits… “What about that _______________ project, was it your best effort?”  Second guessing lodges, your heart wonders and so do you.

Next in line are the simple ponderings of doubt, its questions can be unending…  “maybe you have made God angry”, “you will never amount to anything”, “if you only made better decisions”, “you’re not qualified” there are thousands of these questions and the list may be running around inside of your mind as you read this.

Hurt crawls over the edge of the overnight case and slithers it’s way to your heart and the next thing you know you are upset, with yourself, with others, with those you love, or just those in the vehicle in front of you on the way to work.  The results are always the same, anger, mistrust, sharp words and a hesitation to love.

These elements of discouragement are not a complete list, I’ve seen heavier and lighter luggage, but regardless of the content, the outcome seems to be similar…

Discouragement…

The devotion passage that dredged this little rambling up?  …“the devil, your enemy, goes around like a roaring lion looking for someone to eat.” (I Peter 5:8 NCV)  

I have found that satan has a keen sense of smell and my busy, chore filled, frustrated, hurt, tired world has left a wound that is bleeding.  So, whether I wanted to or not, I bleed.  Sometimes I’m the cause of the injury, other times the abrasions are the result of human interaction, either way, the blood is spilled and the carnivore senses an opportunity, discouragement sets in as quickly as the weariness.

But, this morning, not even by design but by grace, my mind found a weapon to ward off the lurking fanged fiend.  “ If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:29 CEV). It’s a verse that actually come to me from my study in the middle of the night last night, it meant very little to me while I was “wide awake” at 3 am awaiting the sleepiness to return so an hour or two of sleep could be grasped before the alarm shocked me into Monday morning.  But right now, as I sit reading this little devotion about satan and his devouring ways, it jumps up and down and reminds me of a counterattack.

The next verse in the devotion, seals the deal, “refuse to give in to him, by standing strong in your faith.”  (I Peter 5:9 NCV).  Stand strong?  Not me!  Not this morning!  Not in this state of mind!  But Jesus, that’s another issue. 

He says “come”.

I run. 

He says “weary?” 

I say yes. 

He asks “life heavy?” 

You bet Lord! 

He speaks to my heart… “REST”…

Mmmmm  that’s nice.  Lord, what is that warm breeze I feel.

 “My love”.  

Can I have an extra portion of that?

“Sure, I’ve got plenty!” 

“My Grace is sufficient…”

Thanks Lord… 

“You’re welcome child”

I think I might be ready for Monday…

Oh by the way Lord, I forgot this again, will you come with me…

Child, “I will never leave you…”

Thanks Lord!

Darkness for our good...

What a great reading this morning..

"At noon the whole country was covered with darkness, which lasted for three hours"

Matthew 27:45

"Of course the sky is dark; people are killing the light of Light of the World.

The universe grieves.  God said it would:

“In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord,“I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight... I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day."

Amos 8:9-10

The sky weeps.  And a lamb bleats.  Remember the time of the scream?  "At about three o'clock Jesus cried out".  Three o'clock in the afternoon the hour of the temple sacrifice.  Less than a mile to the east, a finely clothed priest leads a lamb to the slaughter, unaware that his work is futile.  Heaven is not looking at the lam of man but at the "Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29)"

From Max Lucado's book, "Next Door Savior"

Dark hearts...  Dark day...  New Life!

Amen!

This day will always be a day or remembrance, no matter the year.

Time may cause the painful emotions of this day to fade due to distance future generations will be from that heart stopping day, but they will remember none the less.

I was not alive when Pearl Harbor was bombed but my family was impacted dramatically that day.
I was alive, and so were my children, when this atrocity was perpetrated on our soil...

So, join me in remembering...

No bickering...

No politics...

No religious rhetoric...

No finger pointing...

Just remembrance...

And maybe the same thing we did that day...  Pray...

A New Day Dawning...

I sit looking at the sun rising…

Another day dawns and so does my desire to enter the world of blogging again…

Just wanted to invite you to join me from time to time as I begin a journey of attempting to write a regular post once again…

It has been a few years, six to be exact, since I sat regularly and reflected on life and God’s place in it…

From headlines to receding hair lines, my goal is to be honest before you and God about what life is about, even if I’m honestly wrong…

It is my prayer that these few words shared each time will bring you faith building and thought provoking opportunities…

Both of which I hope will make each of us, including the author, better people…

Feel free to comment or send e-mails with thoughts and items of interest…

Comment below or send thoughts to billramblingblog@gmail.com