I used to be a long distance runner…and during those hours on the back roads, I’d yell at God. At the time, I was in the middle of a very personal hell and wanted God to know just how scared and powerless I felt. In my head, I knew the Lord was well aware of the situation…but in my heart, I needed to verbalize the pain. Baring my soul out loud to God was a way I could express feelings I had never spoken to anyone…no one. Putting words to pent-up fear and terror helped me gain perspective. By listening to my own words of anguish, my plight was somehow validated within me. Yes, I yelled at God, but He quietly listened to every word I spilled out…every inner most feelings I couldn’t tell anyone else. For God was there and He listened…He didn’t judge or admonish…He listened.
Tag: daily inspirational blog
Mark 3: 31-33 ” Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call Him. A crowd was sitting around Him, and they told Him, ‘Your mother and brothers are outside looking for You.’ ‘Who are My mother and My brothers?’ He asked.”
The crowds were getting larger and larger that followed Jesus and His disciples. In these verses, many have crammed themselves into a private home to hear Jesus teach. No wonder Jesus’ family sent word into the house they were outside wanting to see Him…there was no way they could get into the packed house! When Jesus asked this question, “Who are My mother and My brothers?” He wasn’t showing disrespect, but rather saw it as a teachable moment. The story goes on in verses 34-35, ” Then He looked at those seated in a circle around Him and said, ‘Here are My mother and My brothers! Whoever does God’s Will is My brother and sister and mother.” Jesus wanted the crowd huddled around Him to see that they were just as highly regarded to Him as part of “The Family of God” as His own kin were.
Isaiah 35:8 ” And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not journey on it; it will be for those who walk in that Way; wicked fools will not go about on it.”
So what exactly is “the Way” and holiness mean to you? Is it being committed to the Lord with all your heart, soul, and mind? Is it a way of life that exemplifies Godly actions and behaviors? The Way is a Highway…a road less traveled by most, but a life-long journey for the upright.
John 10:17-18 ” The reason My Father loves Me is that I lay down My life – only to take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from My Father.”
By human standards it looked like Jesus had no control over His arrest, trial, crucifixion, and death. But here in these verses He emphatically states otherwise. Jesus was totally in control of every detail, every minute of that horrendous event…and He still is. When trials and tribulations come, remember that the same control and power Jesus had over His own life is at work in yours. Remember also, that nothing will ever happen to you that hasn’t already gone through your Heavenly Father’s hands first.
I Chronicles 16:23 ” Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim His salvation day after day.”
When was the last time you actually thanked God for saving you? When was the last time you expressed profound gratitude and appreciation for delivering your soul from the guilt and punishment of sin? If it’s been a while, then take the time right now to stop and thank Him. But as important… when was the last time you told someone else about Jesus? Isaiah 52:7 exclaims, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!” Telling someone the Good News of Jesus isn’t hard if you can imagine it this way…you’re simply a beggar telling another beggar where they can get bread.
Jude 17-19 ” But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold. They said to you, ‘In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.’ These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.”
The world started scoffing at the notion of Jesus being resurrected from the very start. The Roman guards who were watching His tomb and the High Priests cooked up a story about Jesus’ disciples stealing His body and spread the lie far and wide. (Matthew 28:12-15) Over the course of history, the world has gleefully questioned and ridiculed Believers with, “Where is this coming He promised?” (II Peter 3:4) The world would like us to doubt and question our beliefs about the second coming, but we need to stand strong against those who malign the name of Jesus.
II Samuel 22:7 ” In my distress I called to the Lord; I called out to my God. From His Temple He heard my voice; my cry came to His ears.”
Unfortunately, when we become Believers, God doesn’t wrap us up in cotton batting and place us carefully in a box for safe keeping. No, we’re subject to every evil and despicable thing the world can throw at us. But in the midst of all the pain, suffering, anguish and grief, we as Believers have one thing the rest of the world doesn’t… when we cry out to the Lord…He hears us. This verse says that He hears my voice…He knows and recognizes my voice above the din of the whole universe. But God doesn’t stop there…He acts when He hears our cry to Him…for when we summon the Lord, He will come to our aid.
Acts 8:36 ” As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, ‘Look, here is water. Why shouldn’t I be baptized?’ “
Philip, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, had found a Ethiopian eunuch traveling the road between Jerusalem and Gaza. The eunuch was reading the book of Isaiah, but was perplexed, so Philip started with that scripture, (Isaiah 53:7-8) and explained to the eunuch the good news of Jesus. Later as they traveled together, they came upon some water and it’s here the eunuch asks, “Why shouldn’t I be baptized?” Now in some late manuscripts verse 37 is added which says, “Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ The eunuch answered, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ ” Baptism is the public demonstration of a personal decision…it symbolizes spiritual renewal, forgiveness of sins, adoption by God and eternal life. If you are a Believer but have never been baptized…ask yourself the same question the eunuch did, “Why shouldn’t I be baptized?”
Ecclesiastes 11:5 ” As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.”
One of my very first jobs as a Nurse was in Labor and Delivery…and to this day I still marvel at the tiny perfection of a newborn baby. For God’s activity is without question evident in the flawless development, and impeccable anatomy and physiology of a newborn. But what I really enjoyed the most was watching new parents meeting their child for the first time…the awe and wonder of this little creation they held could only testify to God’s greatness and creativity.
Colossians 1:6 ” All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth.”
The Good News of Jesus is for everyone. It needs to be scattered lavishly and with abandon across the face of the earth. It needs to flow freely and without hindrance from the four walls of every Church… out to the hurting and lost world. So why doesn’t it? Why are we hoarding this treasure, just allowing it to circle around and around the confines of our Church rather than setting it free? Jesus Christ did not tell us to keep the Gospel Message to ourselves…storing it away deep inside, letting no one else hear it. No, quite the opposite, for in Mark 16:15 Jesus says, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” The Good News of Jesus is too wonderful…too powerful…too prolific to just squander away.
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