Thought of the Day !!

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. But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear--hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.
Jude 1:17-23 NIV

Praying in the Holy Spirit means not just praying for things you want. It means letting the Spirit guide you as you honor your Father in Heaven and as you pray for those who are truly in need.

One more thing that came to mind about this Scripture was the word mercy. It says to "be merciful to those in doubt", and "to others show mercy, mixed with fear." We live in a world of revenge and looking out for number one. Having mercy may include forgiveness. It may mean going into uncomfortable places or situations. It may mean looking weak to peers. But in truth, we can never show as much mercy to others as God has shown to us. Think about that the next time you have something you can hold over another or the next time someone needs help. God is all about love and mercy. And He hopes that His children are like the apples that don't fall too far from the tree.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

"The time promised by God has come at last!" (Jesus) announced. "The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!"
Mark 1:15 (NLT)

This is the beginning of Jesus' ministry as recorded in Mark's Gospel. In it Jesus gives us a mini to-do list. There are two things he tells us to do. We are to first of all repent. Repentance basically means to change or turn away or go in a different direction. God knows how humanity has all been affected by sin and how we are motivated by selfish desires. Jesus is telling us to turn from our selfish motives, which would mean turning to the motives of God that we were created for.

Secondly, Jesus tells us to believe the Good News, or the Gospel. The Gospel is like a net under a person walking on a high wire. Any ordinary person like myself who would attempt to walk on a wire far above the ground would quickly fall. And the ground wouldn't be a soft landing at all. It's the net that would save the falling person from sure death. Believing in the Good News of Christ Jesus (or believing in the Gospel) means having that net to save us from our sins.

Take time today to ask yourself what you need to repent of. Then meditate on what it means for you to believe.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

for my people have committed two evils:
they have forsaken me,
the fountain of living water,
and dug out cisterns for themselves,
cracked cisterns
that can hold no water.
Jeremiah 2:13 (NRSV)

In Jeremiah's day the people of God had abandoned Him (the fountain of living water) and created cracked cisterns.

What does this mean? Cisterns are artificial reservoirs for storing water. In the time of Jeremiah it would be rainwater. Water is needed to sustain life. So what God is saying here is that the people created other ways of sustaining themselves and giving themselves meaning and purpose. In essence they found other ways of salvation. They created their own ways instead of relying on and trusting in Him (the fountain of living water that never runs dry) to sustain them.

The people in Jeremiah's day created cracked cisterns that wouldn't sustain them by turning to other gods and worshiping idols. They also found meaning in sexually immoral ways. Today we do the same things. We've turned to the culture and what it teaches us to find our meaning and purpose and joy. But these things will all become empty because they're all cracked cisterns that cannot hold water. The only place where salvation and a true sense of purpose comes from is our God as brought to us through Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

Make God first and foremost in your life today. Find your meaning and purpose in Him. Don't be swayed by the gods of this world that try to entice you and tempt you away from the ways of the One True God.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced.
Mark 4:19 (NLT)

The message of Jesus Christ for us today is not just that we are saved and have a spot in Heaven. The message is that He is our joy, our peace, our everything. And the key to keeping this message real is by living it and sharing it with our words and our actions.

Somehow though, this message gets crowded out in the midst of our daily lives if we're not careful. Much too often I see Christians who are more focused on things that are to be worried about or on prosperity in this life that the messaged simply gets lost.

Don't let this happen to you. Allow Jesus to transform you instead of being conformed to this world. Follow Jesus' teachings (all of them) instead of the teachings of culture around you. Trust in His ability to make things right instead of worrying about every little thing. Show His love to others instead of treating them as you expect they deserve.

Don't allow the message of Jesus as LORD and SAVIOR to be crowded out by anything in this world, because nothing in this world is worth losing Him over.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, as it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
"I will send my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way"

"a voice of one calling in the wilderness,
'Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for him.' "

And so John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

Mark 1:1-4 (TNIV)

Once upon a time a man by the name of John, who lived in the desert and devoted his life to fulfilling God's purpose for him, came to the forefront and made a proclamation. He told the people that the Messiah was soon to be among them and that they must repent and be forgiven. The people were the Jews, the people of God. Were they not already among the elect? Were they not already God's chosen people? Why did they need to repent (change)?

As it turns out, we're all called to be part of the elect of God. We're all chosen to come to Him through His Son Jesus. But we must make our paths straight for him. This means turning from our selfish ways of living our lives, renounce our sins and seek God's ways for us.

As Christians, this is what we proclaim. Which leads to the question, "Are we living out the proclamation?" How much of our lives are still selfishly lived by our own will without regards to what God would have for us? How often do we renounce God by our actions, even if not by our words? How often do we truly seek God's will in our lives when we know it will mean change?

John the Baptist came to show the way to the people of his time. But his message still lives on. Let us "Prepare the way for the Lord, (making) straight paths for him."

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12 (ESV)

Let me tell you about one day when I went through the checkout at Wal-Mart. This was one of those days where the cashier never said a word to me. This is unusual since I'm almost always greeted with some degree of recognition there. But when the person basically ignored me until she handed me my receipt, I said to her, "You have a nice day."

As I say this to you, you might think I'm trying to share with you how we should treat others when we're not treated the way we feel that we should be treated. But the truth of the matter is that even though I said the right thing, I neglected to share with you the tone in which I spoke those words. It was one that spoke louder than any words I could've said as I allowed the indignation to swell up in me and be sarcastic to someone who did not deserve it.

So in this case I use the example of myself not for you to follow, but to show what it means to disobey the Golden Rule of doing to others what we'd wish them to do to us.

When Jesus interacted with people, he showed them something that we should all show each other. This is respect. I mean how many of us doesn't want, or even think we deserve other's respect? But how often is it that we neglect to show this same respect others?

Think about what this week would be like if we would show respect to every other person we meet. No one would be looked down upon or judged by appearances. No one would be talked about behind their backs or discounted. People would be spoken to that are usually ignored. People would receive smiles even when we're not in that cheerful of a mood. People would be asked opinions instead of being told what they should do. And checkers would receive a "have a nice day" that has meaning behind it instead of being spoken in a sarcastic tone of voice.

Can you imagine how many people could be affected, and possibly even changed, if we treated others the way we would like to be treated? If only one is changed, I would suspect that one to be me. How about you?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love has been brought to full expression through us.
1 John 4:11-12 (NLT)

When John wrote "since God loved us that much", he was talking about verse 9 that reads "God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him." So God loves us so much that He gave of Himself for us. He was born into a cold world and died an even colder death. And since He loved us this much, the least we can do is love each other. It is only then that God will reside in us. If we have hate for people who are different, people of different color, people that think differently, people in our churches and outside of them, people who come from our own household, people in general, then we do not have God in us. This is simply because God is love and where hate resides, God does not.

Break down those barriers that separate you and whomever. Forgive a friend. Shake the hand of a stranger who may look or act different from you. Speak to someone you normally wouldn't. Smile at anyone today. Let us allow the love of Christ to show through us so that others will know that we are different...that we are set apart...that we are with God and He is with us.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the brokenhearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach
Give me your heart for the once forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see.

This is the chorus to the Brandon Heath song "Give me your eyes so I can see". The reason I fell in love with this song is that it reminds me of how we so often go through life being tunnel visioned. It's impossible to not see things through our our imperfect lenses. The Apostle Paul taught us that "Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face". (1 Cor. 13:12 NIV) But it doesn't mean we can't ask God to give us His eyes, which are perfect.

Wouldn't it be great if we could see things as God sees them? How might this world be if we were not consumed with prejudices and worldly teachings that made us see through cloudy lenses? What if we saw each other as children of God instead of by the path they've chosen or the color of their skin or the circumstances in which they live?

I guess if we all saw with God's eyes, this place would be more like Heaven. And isn't that what we ask for when we pray "Thy will be done, thy Kingdom come, on earth as it is in Heaven"?

Today ask God for His eyes. Today look at the world in a fresh new way. Ask God to show you the good in people and to have the love that reaches out to humanity instead of just passing them by. Today may we all be a little more God-like as we see the world in a whole new way.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
James 2:17 (NIV)

Our actions do not save us. But they do show our salvation. If we claim to have faith, but there are no deeds that show that our hearts have changed and that we truly love God and love each other, then we don't have the faith we claim to have. For true faith is not only intellectual, but something of the heart.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

Since you excel in so many ways—in your faith, your gifted speakers, your knowledge, your enthusiasm, and your love from us—I want you to excel also in this gracious act of giving. I am not commanding you to do this. But I am testing how genuine your love is by comparing it with the eagerness of the other churches. You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty he could make you rich.
2 Corinthians 8:7-9 (NLT)

We've all seen small children playing before. Sometimes they'll get along, and sometimes they won't. I've seen a child hoard all the toys, even the ones that he wasn't playing with before, because he didn't want the other one to touch his stuff.

I've also noticed a little girl who spent a great deal of time creating some craft, only to hand it to me when she was done.

The difference is not between little boys and little girls. For either can hoard their toys, and either can share generously. The difference is that one is showing love for self and the other is showing love for another.

We are the little boy with all the toys, as well as the little girl with the newly made creation. But it's up to us to choose which we will act like.

Are we insecure and afraid to give? Or are we satisfied knowing that what we have is not really our own, but something that is on loan from God?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

(Jesus) was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples." He said to them, "When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come."
Luke 11:1-2 (NRSV)

This is not all that Jesus said in this passage. He goes on to teach his disciples what we now call the Lord's Prayer. But I was thinking about a portion of this prayer that I wonder if we really want to come true or not. Do we really want God's Kingdom to come here on earth? In the Gospel of Matthew Jesus is recorded as saying it the way we think about it when we recite this prayer: "Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven." Luke shortens it to simply state, "Your Kingdom come."

Either way, I assume that if God's Kingdom and/or His will were to come and be done, our lives would be different. I believe it would mean different things for us such as:

• It would mean that we'd welcome any and everybody into our worship service…no matter who they were.
• It would mean that we'd not only invite people into our worship setting, but also into our lives.
• It would mean that we'd not only treat everyone as equals, but also see them as such.
• It would mean that everyone would find time during the week to worship God in a private way and also in a corporate way.
• It would mean that we'd all give of our time and money to the church (which is the people who make up the body of Christ and not a specific group or denomination).
• It would mean that we'd have to think less about how things have always been done and more about how they can be done to help promote the love of Christ in today's world.
• It would mean that there'd be no sexual misconduct or drunkenness, no backbiting or gossip or crude remarks or jokes or hurtful acts of any sort. We'd give all that up.
• It would mean that people wouldn't be hungry because we'd share our food with all those around us.
• It would mean that we we wouldn't worry about whether or not someone deserved our help.
• It would mean that people wouldn't be lonely because we'd make sure that there was always a place for them.
• It would mean that we'd leave the job of judging others to the one most qualified to do so, Jesus.
• It would mean that we'd take our sins seriously and not make excuses.
• It would mean that we'd love God with our whole beings and love each other as Christ loves us.
• It would mean that we'd give up selfishness for humility and service.

I wonder if this is a part of what it's like in God's Kingdom in Heaven? If so then when we pray that God's Kingdom come, we are praying for just these things.

Could it be that we're not only supposed to pray for God's Kingdom to come, but to also work on bringing it about? I'd say most definitely. So I urge you to take this list and add to it all the ways that you can help usher God's Kingdom here on earth. Let us all pray for God's Kingdom as we work for the results.

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”

Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
Matthew 16:21-23 (NIV)


When Jesus tells Peter those often quoted words, “Get behind me Satan”, he’s telling Peter that his place is not in front of him. It is behind him, following him. Peter gets upset at the fact that Jesus has decided that going to Jerusalem and dying is the way to go about this Messiah thing. Peter thinks he has a better idea. And that idea is to fight. After all that is what everyone was thinking the Messiah would do when He came.

Peter is trying to control Jesus here. He’s trying to get Jesus to do things his way. But Jesus tells Peter that it is He who should be leading Peter and telling him what to do, not the other way around.

I wonder how often we try to lead Jesus to where we want Him to go instead of following Him to where He wants us to go?

In the love of Christ,
greg

Thought of the Day !!

If you wait until the wind and the weather are just right, you will never plant anything and never harvest anything.
Ecclesiastes 11:4 (TEV)

Sometimes we decide to wait until things are just right to do what the Lord asks us to do. Many people want to wait till later to become a Christian because they're having a good time with living in the world. Others try to wait until they're better Christians before going to church. Still others think that they can work on that habitat home or go on that mission trip next year when there will be more time. And then there are those who've missed the chance to share Christ with someone because they didn't feel comfortable at the time.

To be honest, I have been guilty of all these over my lifetime, but I tend to believe I'm not alone. We all want to do good things as Christians. But how often do we put them off until just the right time. If we're not careful, that right time will never come again and we'll realize we missed the opportunity to serve God and our risen Savior.

Don't put off till tomorrow what God desires of you today.

In the love of Christ,
greg