From My Heart

1 Peter 1:6-9  "In this you greatly rejoice, thought now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith - of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire - may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls." Having just spent a week on an Army base, I am just full of all kinds of military metaphors. Considering that the base I was on was Fort Knox, the gold theme seems to fit as well... As I read the scripture above, the thought came to my mind that life is like boot camp for eternity. I have never been through boot camp, but we have two boys who have been there and done that. I have heard the descriptions,...

Matthew 21:21-22 "...I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."  Larry and I enjoy going to the Smokey Mountains on vacation from time to time. We love the peacefulness and quiet of being surrounded by nature and God's creation. I look at those mountains and, even though they are small in comparison to many ranges, they look enormous to me - especially standing on the top of one looking down! To think that I might be able to speak and one of those mountains and it would move is an incomprehensible thought to me.  Overlook from Blue Ridge Parkway. Smokey's in the background. In the scripture in Matthew, Jesus was giving us an indication of God's power - not ours. This is not the power of positive thinking at work. This is whe...

Luke 11: 9-10 "...Ask and it will be given to you: seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." Are you looking for something? Needing some direction? Waiting for a door to open? Do you think the door is open and you aren't sure you are to walk through? Over the years, I have done a fair amount of traveling. Some very distant and some local related to my job. One thing that is incredibly frustrating is to be in a strange place and not know where you are. Before I had a car with GPS, I would fight with paper maps, have to stop and ask for directions, have to make a phone call to find out if I was headed the right way. I have done home health for many years, and I remember going to see a new patient one day. I should have known it was going to be a haul because she lived in a place called Ft. Lonesome. I called the caregiver ahead of time and got dire...

Matthew 18: 21-35 "Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, 'Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?' Jesus answered, 'I tell you, not seven times, but seventy times seven.'" Forgiveness. All of us want to be forgiven, rarely do we find it easy or desirable to forgive. In this parable of Jesus, it seems to be the perfect picture of our dilemma. In the verses following his coversation with Peter, Jesus goes on to describe a man who owed a debt and begged for forgiveness. His master did just that and cancelled his debt. The man then went out and encountered someone who owed him a debt, but he could not return the same favor. He had his debtor thrown into prison. Unfortunately, his original benefactor learned of his behavior and not only had him imprisoned, but tortured until he could repay what he owed. Dictionary.com defines to forgive as "to cease to hold blame, to free from debt or obligation." Accor...

Matthew 16: 15-16 "But what about you?" [Jesus] asked. "Who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God." And what about you? Who is Jesus to you? I think about his own disciples as I write that. In the verses just preceeding these, they didn't step out with a profound answer based on their personal knowledge of him. They simply regurgitated what the culture said he was. They stated what the world's view of Jesus was. Is he just a good man? Someone who lived an exemplary life, but wasn't really God. Is he a prophet? One sent from God to share his word, but, again, not God himself. A great teacher? Or even as one cult that is prominent in the news right now would have us believe, he was just our brother, born no differently than we are and he has made his way to becoming a god among many gods, which is what we are all destined for (all men, anyway). Who IS he? Peter gave the answer. The Chri...

Matthew 14:27-32 "....Jesus immediately said. 'Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.' 'Lord, if it's you,' Peter replied, 'tell me to come to you on the water.' 'Come,' He said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, 'Lord, save me!' Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him..." Why is it the disciples were always caught in a storm on a boat? This time they are caught on the boat and Jesus is not with them. But in verse 26 they see him walking toward them on the water and they think he is a ghost! Can you even imagine? You are on a boat with huge waves pounding you and the wind going crazy, only to look over the bow and there is someone...or something...walking toward you ON TOP of the water. I can't say I blame them on this one. I might have freaked out a little, too. Jesus calls out to reas...

2 Chronicles 20:12b    "We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You." Jehosaphat was the king of Judah and he had a problem. Several other kingdoms (Moab, Ammon, and Aram) had joined forces and were dispatching a "vast army" to attack Judah. Jehosaphat was alarmed, but he did not panic or call together a panel of advisors in his war room to try and decide how to handle this situation. He inquired of the Lord. Not only that, he proclaimed a fast for all of Judah and the people came together to pray and seek the Lord's help. In verses 6-12, he stands before the people and prays a wonderful prayer praising God and acknowledging His sovereignty. But I love the last line, "We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You." I wonder what battle you are facing? I am facing a few. Decisions that weigh heavy on the heart and mind. Concerns for the future. Yesterday I wrote about letting Jesus carry our burdens, letting Him walk with us through...