Month: November 2021

I have some friends who come from large families and they tell me how clothes and shoes were passed down to younger siblings as they were outgrown. Older children were taught to take good care of their clothes and shoes; as a result, the youngest child might be wearing items that had been used and passed down several times. I didn’t experience that as a child but as a Christian I know most of the blessings in my life have been the result of blessed brothers and sisters in Christ who have in turn blessed me.

When I was researching my Thanksgiving blog, I ran across a quote from W. T. Purkiser, a preacher, scholar and author who was not familiar to me. “Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.” Blessings are gifts from God. When I receive a tie as a Christmas or birthday present, I can rave about how beautiful it is and how much I appreciate the gift; but it isn’t until the giver sees me wearing it that they know the true depth of my appreciation.  

The chair with a lift to help me stand that I’m sitting in as I write this is a hand-me-down blessing. It came with a house that was purchased and the owner gave it to me when she found out I needed one. My portable air conditioner and my refrigerator are brand new blessings purchased by my church, but they are in my home because someone shared their material blessings in the form of tithes and offerings to bless others, including me. I could never thank my friends enough for all of the acts of kindness they have shown me. I know that I have been blessed because they have been blessed. 

There are two big differences between hand-me-down clothes and hand-me-down blessings. The first is that blessings aren’t always physical. They can be in the form of encouragement, prayers and loving Christian fellowship. The second is that the more you share your blessings and your gifts with others, the more blessings you receive from God. No matter how hard you try, you can’t out give God.

The American Thanksgiving Holiday is tomorrow. I put it that way because I have some readers who live around the world. I have written about thankfulness many times before and its rightful place in our Christian life. There is a phrase I used to hear all the time when I was a boy, but not quite as often today; “Thank Goodness!” It was uttered with a sigh of relief that something bad didn’t happen. I never really gave it much thought until now. What an odd thing to thank! I never heard anyone thank honesty or loyalty; only goodness. I did some research and found what I had suspected all along; it is a way of thanking God without mentioning Him by name.

Why would someone want to thank God without using His name? Do they think it might give God a big head to thank Him for everything? Do they not want someone listening to know they are grateful to God for His mercy?  I think using euphemisms for God might just be a habit picked up by people who also say, “Gosh Darn” instead of using God’s name in vain; somehow believing God doesn’t know what they really mean when they use those words.

The more you get to know God through studying His word, prayer time with Him and the promptings of His Spirit within you, the better you understand that you can’t conceal anything from Him. The thoughts of your mind and the meditations of your heart are open books to Him. He not only understands every language; He knows what is meant by every word you use. Jesus explains that to us when He teaches that keeping the law God laid out in the Old Testament with words and actions isn’t enough. If we lust with our hearts or hate with our minds; we are guilty.(Matthew 5:27-28 and Matthew 5:22) Even what we don’t do or say can make us guilty; sinning by omission. (James 4:17)  That is why we need God’s Holy Spirit to provide the strength and wisdom to get us safely through that minefield of guilt.

Like Adam and Eve, I learned the hard way that you don’t play hide and seek with God and you certainly don’t try to project your guilt on someone else or try to mislead God with the words you use. When something bad doesn’t happen, I say out loud, “Thank you, Lord, for your mercy!” When something good happens, I say, “Thank you for your grace and blessings Lord!” I use the word Lord because today everyone knows it is God and not some human title. Lord also applies to my Heavenly Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

God loves it when we are comfortable sharing our deepest feelings, thoughts and needs with Him; letting our hair down, so to speak, completely relaxed and unguarded. When we open ourselves up to God completely, He will always be happy to fill us completely with His peace and joy. When we experience that kind of relationship with Him here, we can’t help but look forward to eternity with Him in the kingdom of heaven.               

I have written about the power and importance of forgiveness in our Christian life; but I read something recently that brought if back to mind. Just before his release from prison, Nelson Mandela said, “As I stand at the door of my freedom, I know if I don’t leave my pain, anger and resentment behind me, I will still be in prison” Nelson Mandela had serious injustice and grievances to forgive, but he knew clinging to hatred and resentment would harm him far more than those who did him wrong. So many people are living in a prison of their own making because they can’t forgive and move on. Like acid, hatred and resentment eat away at them inside negatively affecting their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health.

Of course there is a much greater example of forgiveness. Jesus not only forgave the very people who were driving spikes into his hands and feet and executing  him in one of the most cruel, painful and humiliating ways possible; He asked His heavenly Father to forgive them as well. (see Luke 23:34)  Jesus went beyond forgiveness. He actually loved those men and died for their sins (and mine). None of that should surprise us. He was just putting into practice how He teaches us to live. “Then Peter came to him and asked, ‘Lord, how many times should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?  ‘No, not seven times’, Jesus replied, ‘seventy times seven.’” (Matthew 18:21-22) “But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!” (Matthew: 5:44) “But to those who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you!” (Luke 6:35)     

I don’t think Jesus was telling Peter to keep track and when you have forgiven them 490 times, you can stop forgiving. I think he was telling him to stop counting and just forgive. Only God can actually forgive sin, so our forgiveness is for our benefit not theirs. Forgiving sets us free from anger, hatred and the temptation to seek revenge. Carrying a grudge will drag you down to the level of the person who wronged you and it will rob you of God’s peace and joy. It is easier to forgive someone who asks for our forgiveness; but Jesus commands us to forgive our enemies – all of them. If there is ever someone I can’t forgive, I will do what Corrie ten Boom did and ask the Holy Spirit to forgive them for me. That removed the burden from her shoulders and placed it in God’s hands. I don’t know about you, but I find it hardest to forgive myself. Even after God has forgiven me, the enemy still tries to get me to cling to the guilt. With God’s help I have learned to put sins He has forgiven behind me for good.

Jesus affirmed the Old Testament Law “Love your neighbor as yourself”. That law is referenced nine times in the New Testament.  I always thought loving yourself was egotistical; but when I accepted Christ as my Savior, I experienced God’s love and finally felt worthy of my own love. Jesus takes us into Godly territory when He tells us to love our enemies. We can only forgive and love as He does through the power of the Holy Spirit within us.  

Have you ever wondered about the people who make a brief “cameo appearance” in the Bible? Sometimes we don’t even know their name, but something they did or said was important enough for God to include it in His word. One such person was a young Hebrew girl who was captured by raiders from Aram and given to the wife of their commanding officer as a servant far from her family and home. She Is mentioned in the fifth chapter of 2 Kings and her brief suggestion is quoted there.

That chapter is the familiar story of Naaman, the commander of the Aram army who was healed by God of leprosy through the prophet Elisha. None of that would have happened if that young Hebrew servant girl had not told Naaman’s wife, “I wish my master would go to see the prophet in Samaria. He would heal him of his leprosy.” The fact that she cared about his illness tells me that she had a Godly heart and that she was probably treated well in that home. The fact that Naaman and his wife listened to her suggestion and he acted on it tells me she must have impressed them with Godly service.

There are several lessons to be learned in that chapter of scripture. There is the despair the king of Israel experienced because he did not immediately turn to God and His prophet. There is the fact that Naaman almost let anger and arrogance keep him from God’s blessing. There is the severe price Elisha’s servant paid for his greed and lies. But I think the most important lesson is found in the way that young girl made the best of a very bad situation with God’s help.

Some experts tell us that we are a product of our environment, but it is actually our reaction to our environment that determines our thoughts, actions and who we are. Have you ever noticed that one person will give in to the pressures of a poor environment and allow it to destroy them, while another will gain strength from resisting those same pressures and overcome their situation? Those of us who have a personal relationship with God have an advantage in that regard. Like that young servant girl, we know our strength comes from God and we find our calling to lead others to that source of healing and strength in spite of our personal situation. Her focus was on serving others and she shared her God with them in spite of her unpleasant circumstance. We can, and should, do the same.

Isn’t it interesting how small things bring back strong memories? When I look down at my walker, I see the word Guardian printed on one of the metal bars. It is the manufacturer’s logo, but it always reminds me of the nurse who visited my home to evaluate my condition five or six years ago. She wanted to see me use the walker and I was speeding along trying to impress her. She said, “Slow down! Never walk faster than your guardian angel can fly.” I always say that my Lord walks with me, holds my hand and strengthens my knees when I’m on my walker, but for all I know it might be an angel given that duty by God.

Do we have a guardian angel looking after us? I may not know exactly how God has protected me and strengthened me in this life until He tells me all about it when my tour of duty here has ended, but I do know that I am old and wiser now because God protected me when I was young and foolish. There are two scripture passages that come to mind about guardian angels. The first is found in Hebrews 1:14; “Therefore, angels are only servants—spirits sent to care for people who will inherit salvation.” The other one is found in Matthew 18:10; “Beware that you don’t look down on any of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels are always in the presence of my heavenly Father.” Of course, there are also countless examples in the Bible of angels sent from God as messengers or in answer to prayer.

I’ve written before that I can’t understand how I can pray in faith to God for something and then sometimes be surprised by His answer to my prayer. I don’t think it is God’s response that surprises me; I think it is often how He does it that catches me by surprise. A dear friend has been my advocate with the VA for a few years now trying to get me a ramp and power chair so I can get out on my own on a handicap bus or to neighborhood businesses. A beautiful ramp was built in my garage months ago. The custom, state of the art power chair arrived on Friday and I have to include my praise report for it in this blog. The chair is fantastic with a display screen; switches, dials and a joy stick to control movement. It feels like I’m in the pilot seat of a fighter jet. It will take a week or two of daily practice to master it, but once I do it will provide a vast improvement to my lifestyle. I thought I would qualify for the ramp and power chair from the beginning, but I never expected the quality workmanship of them both. Thank you Lord for that persistent friend you placed in my life. ! know every good and perfect gift comes from you. Your will is done on Earth by your angels and our brothers and sisters in Christ.

For the last year, I have been thanking God for hearing and answering my prayer even before I say amen. He has never let me down. When our prayer passes through the Holy Spirit within us we can always be sure it is pleasing to our heavenly Father to grant it; whether it is for others or for ourselves. I pray that like God’s angels you and I will always minister to God’s children here on Earth.        

I recently saw another quote from my favorite educator, Dr. Thomas Sowell that I found interesting and true. “If you want to help someone, you tell them the truth. If you want to help yourself, you tell them what they want to hear.” It reminded me of what the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy. “For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear.” (2 Timothy 4:3)

Looking around us today, we might easily think that the time Paul wrote about is here and now. I told someone the truth about something that happened years ago that I personally witnessed and he preferred to believe a lie about it someone else told him. It bothers me when people rewrite history while I’m still living it and people would rather believe the lie than the truth. I have friends who attend a church regularly and believe they are worshipping God but what they are being taught is not God’s word or His truth. They concentrate on God’s love, but ignore His righteous judgement. It leaves them free to also follow political or social ideals that directly conflict with God’s full  word. They love the story of Jesus saving the woman caught in adultery by saying, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone,” but they stop there and ignore what He told that woman when she told Jesus there was no one left to accuse her. “Then neither do I. Go and sin no more.” (See John 8:1-11) The enemy loves to cherry pick scripture and present only what itching ears want to hear.     

But is today any different than the past? I’m sure Timothy eventually saw teachers in his day that told people half-truths and lies that they wanted to hear in order to build a large following.. I remember seeing a cartoon years ago that showed two desks with a man sitting behind each of them. A sign over one read, “Comforting Lies” and there was a long line in front of that one. The sign over the other one read, “Unvarnished Truth” and no one was in front of that one. Even more than six hundred years before Paul wrote to Timothy, Jeremiah wrote these words, “To whom can I give warning? Who will listen when I speak? Their ears are closed, and they cannot hear. They scorn the word of the Lord. They don’t want to listen at all.” (Jeremiah 6:10)

As Christians, we follow Jesus, who is the way, truth and life. We have God’s Spirit of truth within us and it is our duty to share God’s truth; not only with our lips, but also with our lives. As Dr. Sowell put it, if you want to help someone tell them the truth. Sadly, not everyone will be able to recognize or handle the full truth. Not everyone who heard Jesus followed Him. But we are called to cast His light into this dark world.   

One book of the Bible that I have had trouble reading is Ecclesiastes. It is so depressing. Solomon, with all of his God-given wisdom, is searching for the meaning of life down one path after another and finding the same literal dead end – death.  I want to throw up my hands in despair and say with him, “All is vanity!”  However, when I finally made it to the end his final conclusion gives me hope. “That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion. Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)

Solomon’s gift was wisdom, not prophesy, so he couldn’t know that God’s mercy and grace would one day provide a way through that dead end into eternal life. Today, it is still our fear of God’s judgement, our need for His mercy and grace, and our desire to follow His teachings through His word and the promptings of the Holy Spirit within us that provide us with the true meaning of life. Solomon was right when he concluded the meaning of life is only found when we turn to the Creator of life and follow Him.

When we buy a new car or a new appliance if we are wise we read the owner’s manual from the manufacturer to learn all of the features and their uses. God, the Creator of all life, has provided us with a written manual for our human life – the Holy Bible. We would be foolish to put that manual in a drawer somewhere and try to learn the meaning of life through trial and error as we live it. His manual not only gives us instructions to get the very best out of our life; it gives us a history of human life that includes the mistakes others have made so we can avoid them. It even shows us that the wisest of men couldn’t find meaning in life without God.   

As a Christian, I have found true meaning in my life in my personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ. That meaning comes as a result of God’s love. It is God’s unfailing love for me and my love for Him. It is through sharing God’s love with those around me and serving their needs that I have found meaning and purpose in my life. The Holy Spirit within us and our prayers to our heavenly Father through His Son provide us with a direct line to our Creator, but don’t be surprised when you are referred to His “manufacturer’s guide” for your answers. It is all there for us to read, understand and follow.   

Have you ever known a perfectionist? They spend so much time concentrating on every little detail they miss out on the joys of life. Perfection is a lofty goal that will never be achieved in this life. There has only been one human who is perfect. His Father is God. He gave His life as a perfect sacrifice for our sins, and then He was raised from the dead and leads His followers into eternal life.  As Christians, we strive to be like Him. When you and I are completely honest with ourselves, we know how far we are from perfection. Am I closer to Christ-like perfection now than I was sixty years ago? Absolutely! Do I still have a way to go? Absolutely! The key is to draw a little closer to God through His Holy Spirit and His word each and every day.

What confuses us is Satan’s favorite con game called comparison. We see someone else whose Christian life seems perfect. That is because we only see what they want us to see. If the grass is greener on their side of the fence, it is probably Astroturf. Or, as Irma Bombeck once wrote, “The grass is always greener over the septic tank.” I have mentioned before that our Christian life is not a competition with other believers. We are to help each other be the best we can be so that we all cross the finish line together and then celebrate our victory together.

Perfection won’t be found in relationships or groups of imperfect people. My definition of a perfect marriage is two imperfect people who love and support each other in spite of imperfections, while worshipping and following a perfect God together. My pastor once said that if you ever find a perfect church, don’t join it, because it won’t be perfect anymore. Being part of a group of imperfect people doesn’t hide our imperfections; it seems to magnify them instead.

Now, for the good news; the imperfections and sins of Christians are forgiven and covered by the blood of Jesus. When our heavenly Father looks at us He sees His Holy Spirit within us and the perfect blood of His Son covering us. When we finally enter His Kingdom, our transformation will be complete; no more physical imperfection or limitation, no more mental lapses or misconceptions, and no more spiritual temptation or sin. Perfect just as God has always intended us to be.