Sin's Desire

Cain knew what God required but did what he thought was best.  Then he became angry with God.  God asked him "why" and offered him this most merciful and loving advice: "If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up?  And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it."  (Genesis 4:7)

WOW!  Is that not the need of each of our days??  Is that not why we must start our day at God's throne asking for power, strength and right thinking?  Cain did not listen to God.  Sin won out and had its desire fulfilled as Cain gave in to jealousy and anger with the murder of his brother.  And he proceeded with lies, selfishness and lack of love for his Creator.  He answered God with sarcasm about the slaying of Abel and then whined about the consequence.  We shake our heads in disbelief as we read this loathsome account.  But I see myself here more than I like to admit.

Again, I contend that prayer is the only recourse for our life's path.  For the steps ahead, we may try to plan but we really do not know what lies ahead.  And we need to learn from this portion of God's word the sneakiness of sin.  It is "crouching" and it desires to render us useless in the service of our King!  Let us master it with the power we have been given in Christ our Lord!  AMEN!!

Kicking and Screaming

Michael Card is one of my favorite musicians.  He is truly a musical theologian!  His songs have ministered to me now for about 26 years when a good friend gave us the CD gift of "Present Reality".  A couple of days ago, I listened to yet another new song by Card (new to me; it's been out a while).  As I listened, I thought of many people I know who persist in unbelief.  However, as I listened to it again after several times, I realized that I, too, am at fault for behaving in the same way.  And I'm talking about in my Christian walk!  You know what I mean?  Those times we go through worrying, unfaithful, angry at God for unanswered prayer.  Well, the list goes on but you make the application however you want.  Here are the lyrics: (Oh, and if you want to listen, go to youtube: "I Will Not Walk Away From You")

I made the Man of Sorrows sorry by all my foolish lies.  I drove the nails, I raised the cross; I was the reason that He died.  Utterly unfaithful then, I added anger to my sin.  In a world already dark to me, I closed my eyes and would not see.  So I may kick and I may scream, say many things I do not mean.  Hold blindly to what is not true but I will not walk away from You.

 Just why I choose to disobey, I simply cannot tell.  Why I blame You when I rebel and weep for wounds I give myself.  Then screaming at an empty sky, I search for You and wonder why.  Though I cause you so much agony, You refuse to walk away from me.

 Don’t read me pointless poems, friend, don’t diagnose, don’t condescend.  Though you may be right to disagree, I need someone to weep with me.   

I made the Man of Sorrows sorry by all my foolish lies.  I drove the nails, I raised the cross; I was the reason that He died.  So, I may kick and I may scream, say many things I do not mean.  Hold blindly to what is not true but I will not walk away from You.

The Cross

Sunday, our pastor shared the following written by his wife.  He said he wanted her to give testimony to the “power and preciousness of the cross”.  This is what she wrote:

“The power of the cross…to speak of it in detail would be an endeavor into eternity, I couldn’t do it.  If I were to talk about the preciousness of the cross, well I’m incapable of putting words together to do the slightest bit of justice worthy of the One Who declared me just before God, because of His work on my behalf.  The power of the cross enables our escape from hell and the preciousness of it escorts us into the presence of God.  The power of the cross gives us life and the preciousness of the cross allows us to live life abundantly.  The power of the cross is what the cross does: it destroys the destroyer; it cancels our unpayable debt; it robs the grave and gives life to the dead.  Through the power of the cross, what should be incinerated is instead redeemed.  The power of the cross is undeniable, it is unstoppable and it is irreversible.  The preciousness of the cross is the humiliation of the One for the exaltation of the many.  The preciousness of the cross is in its single, sinless sacrifice for the guilt-ridden masses.  The preciousness of the cross is in its success.  The preciousness of the cross is its effective result for all the defective alternatives.  The power of the cross is that it is God’s answer to our biggest problem.  The power and the preciousness of the cross enables me to share in, both with Him and for His cross the ability to take it up and die daily to myself so that I can live for Him and for them.”

Worry

This is pretty simple:  "So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own."  Great passage!  Why is it so hard for us to do it?  I'd say maybe we have too low a view of how awesome and powerful is our God!!

A special friend sent this to me today.  She had studied the passage and needed a visual so she doodled herself one!   Channel 1 - Reruns (past); Channel 2 - Up to the minute (present); Channel 3 - fuzzy (future)  We go from channel 1 to channel 2 to channel 3 and it divides the mind with anxiety, worry, and fear.  We weren't made to tune our minds to channel 1 or channel 3.  God deals with the day.  Our work is to pray!

Love

The Love Chapter!  Most Christians know this well!  But I will say for me...it's not a chapter I go to often.  I'm ashamed to say that every single time I go, I get sick at my stomach!!!  Do you ever go at something willingly that is going to make you sick??  But since my husband is teaching 1 Corinthians in a Bible Study on Fridays and that's where we are right now, read I must.  I want to be prepared.  So I am prepared and down-trodded!

I know I haven't arrived!  I am well aware of that fact.  But that passage gets to me every time!  I fall so incredibly short of "true love" and in every point!  But praise God, He is not without power to deal with this in me and I press on toward the mark!   And I "rejoice with the truth".  And I in "ALL THINGS, bear, believe, hope and endure"!!!

Eternal Life

John Riddle, a Bible teacher of a class I was in recently, said, "Eternity and death are the kings of terror."  Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that God put eternity in our hearts.  Jesus Christ said in John 17:3, "This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."  John 1:12 says, "but as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name."  And Matthew 7:24 says, Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them..."

There's hope for those who are hopeless in regard to the terror of eternity and death.  That's eternity and life.  Jesus said it as simply as it gets:  "know You, the only true God and Jesus Christ".  Throw off your very foolish pride and bow down to the sovereignty of a holy God.  Man bases his conclusions on reason, however, the conclusion of eternity and death is in the hands of that God with Whom one day, you will have to give account!!  Bow down NOW to His mercy and grace while the breath of life still flows.

This calls for the "action" of Matthew 7:24.  Jesus in talking to God about His disciples in John 17, comments on the actions they manifested in verses 6-8: "kept, come to know, received, understood, and believed".  Yes, all by grace but doesn't it make sense that something as vital as "eternal life" should be sought with every ounce of your being?!!

Joy Full Work

I’ve been WAY busy lately.  Sometimes, I get frustrated and confused as to how I got to this point.  Every moment is full.  There’s barely any down time, even on Sunday.  But, it’s also energizing.  The goals are short and reactions encouraging so I plug away.  And I’m finally learning a very important lesson.  Pray!  Give it to God.  Watch what He does with you once you’ve turned into a bundle of over-anxious nerves.  (Actually, if we’d start with Him, we would not get to that point.)

As I contemplated all the busyness this week (and after I had to survive yet another question of  “what do you do all day?”), I began to dissect each activity and why I was doing them.  As it turned out, if I wasn’t a Christian, I wouldn’t be doing any of the things I was doing.  Now, this is not a brag!!  I’ll have to say, I was in utter amazement at that realization.  It excited me that God in His grace has taught me “great and mighty things I did not know” and has brought me to the place where, these things are second nature.  I need you to know that I do not mean that I’ve arrived.  To the contrary, I believe I have just begun.  He continues to show me sin in my life, people who need Him, and work that needs doing.  And isn’t that what it’s all about for believers?

In studying Jesus prayer in John 17, one of the first things He says is, “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.”  What my prayer needs to be is, “God give me the discernment to know which work to do and give me the power to do it.”  And then in John 16:24 and 17:13, He says, “…ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.”  “…these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.”   That’s definitely energizing!  To have Jesus’ joy made full in us!  Joy full work!  “For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.”  Colossians 1:29  AMEN!!