He Is Risen

Acts 13:22 He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.’

As I post this blog the day before Easter morning, I reflect on the love of the Lord, the heart of David, and the condition of my own heart toward God, praying to the Holy Spirit to create in my heart to do all His will.

While my physical birthday is October 24^th, my spiritual birthday is March 4, 2007. That is the day I was baptized and declared publicly my belief, love, and acceptance of my state of grace through the sacrifice of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

A favorite verse and a favorite song come to mind today. The verse is from Matthew. The song is a worship song from Chris Rice. They intertwine in my thoughts because they both remind me when I call on Jesus how easy it is to stay loving and merciful and faithful. 

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 NLT) Jesus asked us simply to remember and act upon two commandments- Love the Lord over everything else and love our neighbor.

Chris Rice wrote a song titled, “Unnamed Hymn (©2003, Chris Rice).”  In it he writes,

Now your burden's lifted
And carried far away
And precious blood has washed away the stain, so
Sing to Jesus and live!

Last Sunday, our Youth Pastor preached about the righteousness and humility of Jesus as he rode into Jerusalem on the colt of a donkey. It left me in awe of a God who chose to abide in his own humility instead of displaying his power. His ministry turned the world upside down. He honored the shamed, and shamed those with status.

It also left me wondering how many times I have prayed for my own plans to be fulfilled, rather than praying for God to execute his plans through me. I know I have prayed both kinds of prayers, yet the first kind has me in the driver’s seat, has me as the focus, has me pushing my own agenda to the forefront.

The second kind of prayer has God’s strength sourcing the words, has Jesus’ own words of love uplifting them, has the Holy Spirit’s gifts and wisdom behind them. As I recall the prophet Zechariah describing the character of our King – his righteousness and humility – I pray that I will remember to keep my prayers to the second kind. I pray that God’s will be planted in my heart, that His desires become my own, that I become conscious of my perfectly fitted yoke to Jesus, and that I drink from the living water of the Holy Spirit to build His kingdom, not mine.

When I pray for God to search my heart, to help me with my doubt, to bring me patience, to give me wisdom, to speak through me, He does. He shows His expansive and unconditional love whenever I ask. I have experienced fulfilled promises and a supernatural ability to wait on His timing for me. 

He lifts me up, He calms my fears, He stays my focus. He strengthens my heart.  He lived to teach us, to bring us to the Father, to beseech us to repent, to open His arms and welcome us. He overcame death and rose again, forever renewing us in Him.

I, along with the sun, the stars and the moon, with the wind and the birds, lift my voice to praise Him and proclaim His name, and say, “He is Holy; His name will reign forever.”

What's in a Name?

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9

If you are a peacemaker and a Christian, you cannot call yourself a conservative. And if you are a peacemaker and a Christian, you cannot call yourself a liberal. If we are to follow Christ and be his disciples, we must drop these labels and love one another. That’s His message.

Jesus also said, “It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” As long as we continue to call each other names and elevate ourselves by our own labels, we continue to pridefully defile ourselves, hate each other, put ourselves before God, love ourselves first, put our wills first, and take judgment out of God’s hand and into our own.

This includes, by the way, taking sides in any conflict we think we know everything about, even Israel and Palestine. Do you forget that there were Christians living in Israel at the time Jesus walked on that soil – and are still living there today? Do you forget that the people of Palestine were Christians, and that Christians, Jews and Muslims lived together in peace before the United States ever got involved? Do you forget that it is not Muslims who are encroaching on Christian land, but Israelis? Do you forget that the new covenant Christ brought to us was to love your neighbor and your enemies and to bring all nations to himself?

And if you didn’t vote for our current President, are you praying for him? If you disagree with the majority in Congress, have you been praying for wise decision-making and hands that reach across party lines to honor commitments to God and to the people they serve? Have you prayed for an end to lobbying and favoritism on both sides of the Senate and House, and a productive term that accomplishes the best of God’s will for our country?

Whether our enemies are across the sea or across the aisle, a church member who disagrees with our stance, our neighbor across the street or a disagreeable family member, we are to act in love, and in so much as it depends on us, we are to live in peace with everyone. (Romans 12:18).

Why have we as Christian chosen to become increasingly difficult as models to those of the world? We act just like everyone else, and still expect others to see our humanity, our faith, our love, our patience, our self-control, our generosity of spirit, when our hearts don’t abide in love. For if our hearts had love, we would certainly bear the fruit of that love in our actions. Jesus said that the world would know we were his disciples by our love for one another. It’s no wonder they don’t know us; it’s sadder still they don’t know Him through us.

And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness. James 3:18

My Strength

The Lord is my strength and my shield;

in Him my heart trusts, and I am helped;

my heart exults,

and with my song I give thanks to Him.

Psalm 28:7

 

As I reflect on a devotional I read this morning, and on one particular prayer I have written in my journal over the past several months, I realize that God has spoken to me and let me know clearly and succinctly that he has answered my prayer. He has, in fact, answered it all along; I just haven’t listened or obeyed. He reminded me of what having faith and trust in Him is really all about.

Christians talk and sometimes joke about “God’s timing.” We seem surprised when our prayers are answered at “just the right time.” Yet we fail to understand that God has been working all along to set things in place; we just haven’t stopped long enough and looked around to see it. We have to be paying attention to hear God’s voice, to see His work. We must pray continually and reach out to Him in order for us to notice that He is working constantly in our lives.

Moses, Esther, Hannah, Samuel, David, Nehemiah, Daniel; Simeon, Anna, Peter, Paul, and of course Jesus: all examples of people who never stopped praying. Not just once a day, but throughout the day, and throughout their lives.

My prayer has been for the energy to work on the task He has given me in this season of my life. I am often tired, and sleep overtakes me during the day. In my journal today, “Jesus Calling,” by Sarah Young¹, I read the following: “Instead of assessing your energy level, and wondering about what’s on the road ahead, concentrate on staying in touch with Me. My Power flows freely into you through our open communication.”

I will continue to pray each morning, but as I feel tired during the day, I will stop, and talk to God, and ask Him to provide me with His strength, ask the Holy Spirit to give me wisdom, and ask Jesus to intercede so that I may continue in His work.  Perhaps I’ll even just ask Him to take a walk with me, or sit with me and watch the birds in the yard. Who knows?

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. Colossians 4:2

¹Thomas Nelson Publisher, ©2004, p. 32

Merry Christmas

Oh God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you.

My soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Psalm 63:1-2

Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”

John 11:40

Dear Heavenly Father,

You are my God. You are mighty and wise and your thoughts and ways are above mine. You cherish us and all of creation in ways that are outside our own ability to love and cherish. You forgive and embrace in ways that are so much more expansive than we can ever imagine. Your heart encompasses emotions that are rich and deep and leagues beyond our capacity to feel or measure.

I see your glory in dawn’s vermillion clouds and night skies brilliant with lightning. I hear it in the cooing of mourning doves and the twilight call of coyotes. I smell it in the fresh, fall rain and newly stacked hay on roadside pastures. I taste it in an orange picked straight from the tree and the kiss on a baby’s just-bathed belly.

Yet, at this time of year, I remember your glory and your heart in your Son, who you gave to us as a living sacrifice, to purge us of our sins, to offer us a chance at repentance, new life, a new heart, a new relationship with you.

You offered up your Son, who was born for us, who lived for us, taught us, was tortured for us, who died for us and who rose again for us, that we might continue his legacy and, in love, spread the gospel to everyone and build your Kingdom.

Heavenly Father, help us to love you first and greatest. Help us to be examples of Christianly love in our walk. Help us to remember we carry the Holy Spirit inside us and help us to honor him – and you, and our Lord Jesus – at all times. Help us to surrender our hearts fully to all that Jesus taught so that we build your Kingdom by embodying the fruit of the Spirit in all we think, in all we say and in all we do.

Help us to become the people you intended us to be.