The God Who Is There

“Who will separate us from the love of Christ?  Will tribulation, or distress, or peril, or sword?  But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor things present, not things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Romans 8:35, 37-39.

If there is a Bible verse which gives us the courage to say “so what” when things go wrong, this is it.  Great or small, there is nothing in life that can remove us from the love of God.  The Bible is full of stories of people who made mistakes, who God loved and redeemed.  From Moses who argued with God that he could not lead the people of Israel to the promised land (Exodus 3-4) to the Apostle Paul who held the coats of the men who stoned Stephen (Acts 8:54-60)  God has revealed His unchanging and uncompromising love.  His desire is for us to declare Jesus to be Lord, Master and Savior of our lives, and to bask in His unconditional love.

Hallelujah! 

Standing at My Right Hand

“With my mouth I will give thanks abundantly to the Lord; And in the midst of many I will praise Him.  For He stands at the right hand of the needy, To save him from those who judge his soul.”  Psalms 109:30-31.

We all know them:  Needy people.  They may be the victims of situations beyond their control or they may be victims of their own stupidity.   They may be us.  It is easy to beat up on ourselves and other people when things go wrong.  God does the opposite.  When everyone else is running away from us, He stands with us.  When things are at their worst, God is at His best.   

Now, thank God for rescuing us.

Entertaining

“Let love of the brethren continue.  Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.”  Hebrews 13:1-2.

Here in Ohio, we used to say “Hi” to everyone we met.  This custom is rapidly fading.  People walk with their heads down and their hoods up.  People are so engrossed in texting and cell phone talking that they can barely navigate where they are going let alone acknowledge other human beings who are right in front of them.  What can we do?   How about we declare a week of Christian hospitality?   

Who knows, maybe we will entertain angels.

Now, hang up your cell phone and say “Hi.”

Stormy Weather

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”   Isaiah 41:10.

Today, many of us are preparing for the arrival of tropical storm Sandy or a spinoff winter storm.  We cannot control the weather but we can take comfort in God’s promises to strengthen us and help us.

Now, pray, prepare and be confident in God’s promises.

Dignity

“First of all, the, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.  This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.”  I Timothy 2:1-3.

This year’s political advertisements are void of godliness and dignity.  Accusations, complaints, ugly candidate photographs, and poor sportsmanship are rampant.  It makes me wonder if these people will be able to kiss and make up when it’s over. 

If anybody needs prayer these candidates do.  Therefore, we might do well to follow Timothy’s directive.  We serve a living God who hears our prayers, and making mention of our leaders and potential leaders before God is honorable. 

Now, let’s pray for those irritating politicians.

Forgiven

“For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.  Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”   Hebrews 4:15-16.

When I was a child I worried about getting in trouble at school because my parents promised me that if I got in trouble at school, I would be in more trouble when I got home.  Needless to say, I worried about my every misstep.

God is not like that.  He does not give us a double whammy of punishment; He gives forgiveness.  Jesus paid the full price for our sins.  If we don’t feel forgiven, maybe it is because we are short changing ourselves when it comes to God’s mercy. 

Now, ask forgiveness, be forgiven and loose the guilt.