Giving from the heart

Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back. Luke 6:38 (NLT)

When going through difficult circumstances, it's easy for our focus to shift from the Lord to our own feelings, especially if we're experiencing fear. Fear has fangs that easily burst our bubble of faith.

When that happens, we withdraw emotionally from the Lord and others. We tend tighten the hold we have on what we've got - whether it's our finances or our possessions, or even the prayer and emotional support we normally give to others.

You know what I mean. Those days you feel so emotionally drained, you'd rather stay in bed with the covers over your head than doing something for someone else or thinking about the problems of those worse off than you.

Rather than giving to others freely we turn away from them because we're afraid we won't have anything left if we give it all.

It's a lot like the illustration of the monkey with his hand in the narrow-mouthed cookie jar. He could easily slide his hand into the jar, but when he grasped the cookie in his fist, he couldn't remove his hand from the jar. But he still refused to let the cookie go because it belonged to him. Even if he couldn't eat it himself, he still possessed a cookie. But if he let it go, he feared he wouldn't have anything at all.

Yet, the scriptures are filled with stories of those who faced dire circumstances and still shared freely with others. The widow who only had enough oil and flour to make one last meal for herself and her son is a good example. When Elijah came to her and asked her to share her last meal with him, she did it freely and God blessed her with an inexhaustible supply until the famine ended. (1 Kings 17:10-16)

Even in his darkest hours, the Lord only thought of us. In the predawn hours he spent praying in Gethsemane's garden, he loosed his hold on his physical life as he prayed, "Not my will but thine be done." As he hung on the cross dying, he prayed for forgiveness for his enemies because they didn't understand what they were doing. He gave up his life so that we might have eternal life.

To be able to loosen our fists on our possessions or on our mental and emotional resources in order to help others around us who are in need, is at the heart of the Gospel of Christ. Especially when we're going through rough patches in life ourselves, the act of giving to others with a heart of love allows the Lord to give back to us - joy during our discouragement and materially to meet our needs.

We don't give in order to get - we give because we're already been given so much! And when our hands are empty, God refills them again so we can give some more. Amen!

Sin stains

““I, the LORD, am the one speaking to you. Come, let’s discuss this. Even if your sins are as dark as red dye, that stain can be removed and you will be as pure as wool that is as white as snow.” Isaiah 1:18 ERV

The new carpet was pristine white, the last thing to be installed before the completion of the renovations. The home owner stood there admiring it and decided to have a party to celebrate the completion of the home renovations.

The guests began to arrive and soon everyone was having a great time, eating and drinking. Then it happened. One guest spilled some dark red wine on the new white carpet.

The hostess declared it was ok since the carpet was that new stain resistant brand as she hurried off to the kitchen to get some towels to blot it up. She grabbed the special spot cleaner that the installers left to complete the job, pitching the product to all the television viewers.

You've gotta love television commercials. In this one, the stain miraculously disappears after treatment, leaving no traces of the dark red wine. Whether the cleaners work as well in real life is debatable, but at least the commercial offers hope. LOL!

Our lives are a lot like that carpet - through everyday wear and tear, they become stained with sin: by the things we do, the things we fail to do or the careless words and actions of others. It's inevitable as we live in a sin-tainted world.

There is only one way to remove those sin stains from our lives - through the shed blood of Jesus. As we ask him for forgiveness for the things we have done or failed to do, his blood cleanses us from every sin and we are as pure as that white wool carpet in his sight.

As we choose to forgive others for those things they have done to us, his blood works to cleanse and heal our hurting hearts - wiping away the stains which could cause us to hurt others down the road.

If you're tired of looking at the dingy carpet of your life, call on Jesus today - he will cleanse and heal you. He's the only product on the market today that can clean your heart 100% - guaranteed!

Bountiful Boxes

This is how we know what love is: Christ gave his life for us. We too, then, ought to give our lives for others! 1 John 3:16 (GNT)

I always love this time of year because it signals our church's Operation Christmas Child shoe box collection week. Everybody seems to get into the spirit of things as they pack shoe boxes full of toys, school supplies personal care items and well...lots of neat stuff!

Besides the joy I see on our students' faces as they pack the boxes, I personally love the stories that come from the children who receive the boxes. Several memorable ones stand out in my mind:

One little orphan boy didn't have much. But he learned in his orphanage Sunday School class that Jesus answered prayer. The only thing he wanted more than anything was a pair of gloves, so he prayed each night for Jesus to give him some gloves. He fully expected to wake up in the morning and find a pair of gloves at the foot of his bed, but it didn't happen.

That didn't dampen this young boy's faith though. He continued to pray. One day the Operation Christmas Child team came to his orphanage and distributed gift boxes. When he opened his box. he found the gloves he prayed for, and also a hat and scarf. Now he wears his hat constantly and proudly tells people that God answers prayer.

Another child received a box filled with nothing but socks. He began to weep when he opened the box. A worker came over to him and told him they could get him another box if he would rather have some different things, but he clutched the box to his chest and refused, still weeping as he told the worker why he was crying. The child had a foot disease and needed to wear socks to keep his feet from becoming infected. Being poor, his parents could not afford to buy the socks. God had answered his prayer for the socks he so desperately needed.

It never ceases to amaze me how God can orchestrate even the contents of a small shoebox, giving it to exactly the right child in answer to a prayer! I can't wait to hear more stories of this year's distribution!

Lord, help us to show our love in the care we take to fill our boxes. Show us other ways we can give our lives for others. Amen.

God has a plan!

“God told us the secret of what He wanted to do. It is this: In loving thought He planned long ago to send Christ into the world. The plan was for Christ to gather us all together at the right time. If we are in heaven or still on earth, He will bring us together and will be head over all.” Ephesians 1:9-10 NLV

Reality TV shows are fun to watch. One of my favorites is "Chopped," a cooking show where four chefs compete for a $10,000 prize.

In each round there are four items in each chef's food basket, some unusual, some crazy and some normal items. They must choose what they will prepare and how to do it almost instantly as the items are revealed. I mean, really..., how can you incorporate gummy bears into a beef main dish? I'd have to think about that for quite awhile before starting to cook!

Then the fun begins as the clock starts ticking and they go to work creating their restaurant quality appetizers, main course and desserts in a short period of time.Usually something will go wrong - something burns, a key ingredient gets prepared, but left off the finished plate or they are working so hard and fast that they forget to season it properly.

At the end of each round, the dishes are judged on taste, creativity and presentation by a panel of three celebrity chefs who chop the least successful contestant from the competition. In the last round, one of the remaining two chefs is selected as the chopped champion.

While I enjoy watching it, I know I could never compete like that because my brain just doesn't work that fast. Whenever I do something, whether it's making a craft, cooking a meal or putting together a lesson for youth church, I have to have a plan. Then I have to plan how to execute my plan. And of course, I have to follow my plan. LOL!

Thankfully, God doesn't make up his plan for the world on the spur of the moment as time whizzes by. He lovingly thought things out and planned every detail of our lives as well as the details of the universe a long time ago. At just the right moment of time, he sent Christ to earth to fulfill that part of his plan. And he's still working to orchestrate the final phases of his plan to bring us together with him, with Christ as the head over all.

It's exciting to watch as God's plans for our lives come to fruition. We may have some nail-biting moments as we watch it all come together, and it may seem like it won't work, but the fact is, he has everything under control Unlike the chefs on "Chopped," every bite of God's plan will work perfectly with no failures or inedible results!

Thank you Lord for being in control of my life and of the world around me. Even when it seems chaotic, help me to trust your wisdom and your plans. Amen.

Our all-seeing God - Monday moments with God

My Dearest Child.

I know you by name. I know where you are going and why. I know you feel like running away because things hurt so bad, you don't feel like you can bear them. But there is no need to run from the difficulties of your life, for I am here with you in the midst of them. I am El Roi, the God who sees you.

No matter how bad things look, I have a plan already in place for you. Go back; meet your struggles head on and rest in me. You may think you are alone in the wilderness of your struggles, but I am there. I see how life buffets you, causing you to run and hide. I see how you weep, alone in the night, ready to give up and die because you hurt so much inside.

Hold my hand and walk through the difficulties with me. I will bless you and hold you up for I am the God who sees you.

Love,
Jesus

* Based on Hagar's story in Genesis 16:13.

Because of the acts of others, we are often bruised and beaten down, finding ourselves in painful circumstances. We may even feel like running away, but El Roi sees and cares for us. He comes to us, offering to help bear the pain we feel, strengthening us and building us up according to his plan. Hold the hand of the God who sees you as you face the most difficult circumstances of your life today.

COWs in the craft room

“But you are God’s chosen and special people. You are a group of royal priests and a holy nation. God has brought you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Now you must tell all the wonderful things that he has done. The Scriptures say,” 1 Peter 2:9 CEV

One of my favorite commercials these days are the California Dairy commercials. In one commercial, there is a group of girls having a play date. The moms are sitting in the kitchen drinking coffee and talking. At one point the noise from the upstairs bedroom gets out of hand so the hosting mom calls upstairs, telling them to keep the noise down. The scene flashes to the bedroom where the black and white Holstein cow is the instigator.

That commercial reminded me of an elite group I belonged to several years ago: the C-O-W Sisterhood. I'm not sure what it stood for - maybe "Crafts Or Whatever" - but I proudly wore the stamped "C-O-W" letters to church on my right arm. Whatever the letters stood for, to me, they signified a bonding time together with the young teen girls in our church.

Those girls loved crafting. Since I had a whole room full of card making tools and sewing supplies, I invited the group of giggly girls over to the house to play in my craft room.

 No rules - just be careful with the tools and put one thing back before getting another out so I didn't have a huge mess to deal with later. Every scrap of paper, every tool and every crafting supply was available to use.

What a fun time! The girls quickly busied themselves with projects and just talked all afternoon. Somehow cows became a theme of the day. When suppertime rolled around, we carried the fun into the kitchen and decorated pizzas.

All too soon it was over, but before heading off to church, we each received the "C-O-W" stamps on our right arms and promised to do it again. Of course, the ink smudged and  got on everything else, but to me, it became a symbol of bonding with the girls - a way to impact their lives with the Gospel through an afternoon of fun.

God has stamped his image on our hearts, bringing us into his elite group of chosen people. He has given us each unique gifts and talents to use to shine into the darkness of this world so that others might see his light to follow him.

What unique talents and abilities has God given you? How can you use those abilities to reach the world around you for him?

Prayer warriors needed in the aftermath of Sandy

Never stop praying. 1 Thessalonians 5:17

As reports of Sandy's destruction begin to pour in, this verse seems appropriate.

Though we didn't suffer drastically from the hurricane, many of our sister churches and their pastors did. Church buildings along the coast suffered flood damage. Many of their members lost their homes and possessions due to the flooding and high winds.

One story in particular stands out - that of a pastor in NYC. Two weeks ago, he lost his father to cancer. Then while cleaning out a halfway house run by his father, the pastor was severely burned as a can of solvent exploded. He was undergoing skin grafts when Sandy hit. Their home was lost to flooding and fire as well as their two cars. Please remember to pray for this pastor, his wife and three children. I'm sure the losses of the past two weeks seem overwhelming. They will need the prayers of God's people to hold them up even though their world seems to be crumbling around them.

All we have to do is listen to the news for many other heartbreaking stories of loss and destruction from this storm to fuel our prayers. The needs seem overwhelming, but we serve a BIG God and prayer is the best weapon we have against these overwhelming circumstances.

Pray for those who've been affected and pray about what you can do to help!

As you hear of the needs in the aftermath of Sandy's destruction, make time to pray today!