The Living Word

About a week ago a friend of mine, Mike, shared with me about a situation and how a post that included some Scripture came to life for him. The point he shared is the God’s Word is alive and active. Hebrews 4:12 says ” For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any double edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”

So I have been spreading the Word via text messages for several months now and hear these stories of how God spoke to them and used His Word in their lives at just the right time. So I will continue to spread the Good Word as long as God enables me to do so. I want God to speak for Himself. He is alive and His Words will “not return empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:11b.

Spread the Word! If God touches your heart by His Living Word, share it! His Word is alive and touching hearts daily and that includes my heart too!

My Tribute to Dad

My Father-in-law, Ken Stone, passed on January 15, 2011.  Here is my tribute to him:

Dad, thank you for taking such good care of us.  I will never forget how hard you worked.  You brought home the bacon and every weekend you would fry it up with the side pork  and make those big breakfasts for us.  You were always saying to me, “have some more.”  We never went hungry with you.

Thanks for loving me and for being the best pinochle partner ever.  I hope that God has dealt you that double run and thousand Aces that we always dream of.  You were always a winner in my life.

Thanks for serving our country in the Air Force.  Thank you for loving us by taking us camping, on road trips, and family vacations.  And thanks for loving Mom by giving her that rose and saying, “I will love you forever.”

I hope to see you again Dad in that place that Jesus has prepared for us.  Keep on singing Dad, the family reunion is coming soon.  Goodbye for now.  I love you Dad.

Bruce

Open Doors

This week has been Missions Week at my church.  The Lord has been stirring my heart.  Here is a personal prayer that came out in church yesterday:

Jesus, All that I am and have and ever hope to be; I place into your hands.  Lord Jesus, I don’t have much to give you financially, but I give myself to you anew today.  Please Lord use me.  Don’t let me hide your light, but shine it brightly.  The greatest gift I can give is you Jesus.  Please take me to new places in sharing the Gospel.  Grant me vision, boldness, courage, and passion for reaching the lost.  Break my heart with the things that break your heart.  Open doors for the Gospel here, in this region, and around the world.  I love you Lord!

There is an overwhelming need for people to hear and receive the Good News of Jesus Christ.  As the disciples were asked to feed 5,000 in John 6, so we are asked to bring the Gospel to many who are hungry and thirsty without Him.  Joel Chute who is a missionary in China and is daily challenged to bring the Gospel to millions without Christ said, “When you face a problem, do not face in in your own strength and resources.”  This is really how I  face overwhelming needs.  So I come with what little I have and place it in the Master’s hands.  He will make little much, because He is in it.  In God’s economy, He can do abundantly more than we could ever ask or imagine.

My challenge is to pray, give of myself to Him, and go as He leads.  I invite you to join me.

“When we realize how much we have been given, we long to be employed in loving service of this universal Gift-Giver.” William Wilberforce

Missions Week

I am sorry it has been such a long time since I have entered a post.  Anyway one of the passions I have is Missions.  This week at my church we are talking about what God is up to in our world to reach others with the Gospel of Christ.  Lately I have been challenged to think and pray outside the box.  I want my heart to break for those who don’t have the hope I have in Jesus Christ.  So I am opening my heart and mind to what God might say to me this week and truly pray that my vision for missions would grow not only abroad, but even here in my community and region.

The theme of “Open Doors” of the Gospel is part of Missions Week.

“And pray for us too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ . .” Colossians 4:3 NIV

Psalm 23

A friend shared this video with me the other day.  Psalm 23 was my Dad’s favorite Scripture and read at his funeral about 8 years ago.  Let this Psalm sink slowly into your soul and encourage and give you strength for the day.  Enjoy!

Common Sense Economics

Here is a SNL video clip that if practiced would make a difference in our world.

Don\’t Buy Stuff

Keep those checkbooks balanced and let’s be good stewards of everything He has given us!

Holiness

The last few days I have been in awe of the greatness and holiness of God.  It is amazing that in His holiness, God even dares to reach out to us.  Through Jesus we can be purified and made holy.  We are set apart for His Kingdom and His purposes.

Isaiah saw the glory and holiness of God in the temple.  His response was “Woe to me! . . I am ruined!  For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty. ” Isaiah 6:5

God purifed Isaiah and took away his guilt and sin.  He was changed forever and God used Isaiah as his mouth piece to the people of his time and His words speak to us today.  When we see God for who He is as Holy and Mighty, our lives will never be the same.  I have been struck with God’s Holiness, which causes me to worship Him with reverence and awe (see Hebrews 12:28).

Michael W Smith wrote and sang the song “Purified”.  Here are  some of the lyrics:

“I will open up my heart,

Search me in the deepest part,

I will stand in cleansing fire,

By you I’m purified

By you I’m purified.

You are Holy

You are Holy

Yes, You are Holy.”

Distractions

This morning I woke early.  Something was stirring in my soul.  I have been distracted.  My eyes have wandered from the Lord on other things in this world.  And so I confess that I have been distracted and fallen into the trap of the “Big 3″.  They are found in 1 John 2:16:  The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.  How have I used my time, talents, and the resources that God has entrusted me to steward?  Not very well lately.  I have watched too much TV, read very little, and taken very little time to write or journal.  How much time have I taken to commune with the Lord in contrast with my running to and fro each day?  I have been distracted even with what some may say are “good things”.

So what must I do?  I must focus and fix my eyes on Jesus and leave the distractions behind.  Here are some reminders from the Word on where my focus should be.

Job 31:1  “I have made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a girl.”

Ezekiel 24:25  the Lord is my “stronghold, my joy and glory, the delight of my eyes, and my heart’s desire . .”

Hebrews 12:1-2 “Therefore since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.  Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Where is your focus and what are your eyes fixed upon?  As a reminder let us sing in our hearts the song:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus

Look full in his wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of His glory and grace.

Relational Prayer

Currently I am reading a book by Dr. Larry Crabb called “The PAPA Prayer”.  I have been challenged in my prayer life lately as I have been reading.  Many times I will go to the “Give me” petitionary type prayers without any consideration of my relationship with God.    In Larry’s book, I am being challenged to center my prayer in relationship with God.  What is most important is how I am relating to Him and often it is the quick 5 minute version of a list of “give mes” or my own selfish perspectives.

To change my perspective I must focus on my relationship with Christ as if He were sitting in a chair facing me.  Having a conversation as I would anyone I know or love should come easily, but with the Lord it can become more of a challenge.  So Dr. Crabb has a pattern to the PAPA prayer that I hope to practice in the coming days:

P Present yourself to God.

A Attend to how you are thinking of God.

P Purge yourself of anything that blocks your relationship with God.

A Approach God as the “first thing” in your life.

I am excited to experience relational prayer in my spiritual life in 2009.  I look forward to spending more time like Mary who sat at the feet of our Lord Jesus.

Signs of Redemption

This morning I awoke with a song in my heart that we sang on Sunday in church.  The lyrics go like this:

“You have redeemed my soul from the pit of emptiness,

You have redeemed my soul from death.”

God has redeemed me and bought me with His precious blood on the cross.  How thankful I am for His redemption in my life.  My life was empty and dead until Christ and His Spirit gave me new life and forgiveness.  I was like a dry branch that was lifeless and now I have hope and the budding green of new life because I am now connected to Christ.

I asked students a couple weeks ago about a symbol of redemption in their life.  It was a difficult question for some of them to answer.  I gave them the example of Glenn Beck’s story called The Christmas Sweater in which the gift of a sweater by his mother at the age of 12 was a symbol of redemption for him.  He was hoping for a new bike and got a hand made sweater made with love by  his mother instead.  In his words,

“I guess the real lesson I learned that last Christmas with my mother was that the greatest gift is any gift that is given with love. . . Pick up your redemption.  Cherish it.  Wear it.  Share it.  It has the power to transform lives.  It has transformed mine.” pp 271-272.

My sign of redemption is the star of Bethlehem.  When I was little my family all piled in our car and went to the Christmas Eve program at our church.  We would often have clear cold nights in Minnesota and as I looked out the window and into the sky I was looking for the star of Bethlehem, the star that marked the place of Jesus’ birthplace.  The wonder of Jesus, taking on flesh, being born in a lowly stable on a cold winter night, and giving his life for mine truly  humbles me.  Why would the God of the universe do this for me?  Because of His amazing love for you and me.  The “morning star” now shines in my heart and I am so thankful for His redemption and the price He paid for me.

What is a sign of redemption for you as you consider Jesus birth this Christmas?