jesus

That Crazy Thing Called Trust

/ Virginia / 1 Comment

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5) This is the verse that comes to mind as I look at the world this morning. I ask myself how something good come out of so many events that seem to glorify evil, hurt the innocent, and change the world for the worse. It sometimes feels overwhelming.

There’s an old story I heard years ago that helps me in these moments. It goes like this… An old man and his son had a horse who ran away. The neighbors said, “What terrible luck!”

But the old man said, “Maybe yes, maybe no. We’ll see.”

Several days later, the horse returned, leading several wild horses. The neighbors said, “What great luck!”

But the old man said, “Maybe yes, maybe no. We’ll see.”

While the son was trying to break one of the wild horses, he fell and broke his leg. The neighbors said, “What terrible luck!”

But the old man said, “Maybe yes, maybe no. We’ll see.”

A few weeks later, soldiers from the national army came to town, recruiting all the boys for service. They didn’t choose the man’s son because of his broken leg. The neighbors said, “What great luck! Your boy has been spared!”

Again the old man said, “Maybe yes, maybe no. We’ll see.”

As humans, we spend a lot of time trying to determine if a particular event is good or bad. We base our feelings on past experiences and limited knowledge. In the course of our lives, however, how many times do we look back and realize our initial assumption was wrong?

That’s where Proverb 3:5 comes in… “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” God knows all, sees all, and is in complete control.

In another Bible verse (Romans 8:28), we learn, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” So even if things work out poorly, we are assured that God will turn it to good. That certainly has happened in my life. Over the years I have taken enough spins around this planet to realize that life is fragile and uncertain.

Then we are faced with a tragedy like the Texas Guadalupe River flood. My Texas. My home. My neighbors. How can anything good come of it? Babies died. Families were swept away. So much loss and devastation. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it all.

The grief is real. The heartache unimaginable. The loss certain. This is when our trust and faith well up inside us from the depths of our pain. We know that Jesus feels our grief and shares our pain. As an example, Jesus wept when He saw Mary and Martha grieving at the grave of their brother Lazarus (John 11:33). We remember that Jesus was innocent yet betrayed, brutally tortured, crucified, and buried. Jesus knows our pain because He, too, suffered. We can come to Him with our deepest sorrows because He, too, was forsaken. We have hope because He rose from the dead and offers us eternal life with Him (John 11:25-26).

It is in God’s promises that we survive our deepest sorrows. He promises we will meet our deceased loved ones again (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). He promises to heal the brokenhearted and bind up their wounds (Psalm 147.3). He promises to restore us (Isaiah 61:3). He promises to strengthen us and uphold us (Isaiah 41:10). He promises never to leave us or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:8). He even promises that when we go through deep waters, He will be there (Isaiah 43:2-3). Most importantly, Jesus offers the ultimate promise: “Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with Him, we will also live with Him. (1 Timothy 2:11).

Jesus told us that in this world we will have tribulation, but to take heart because He has overcome the world (John 16:33). The Texas flood tragedy reminds us of those tribulations and that this fallen world is not our own nor is it our eternal home. Those of us who love God can trust His goodness, His power, and His will to work out all things for our good… even when the pain is unimaginable.

At times like this, it takes a brave heart to trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding. Yes, we grieve… but not without hope. As the Bible tells us, we are to “comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18). May God richly bless you.

***

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)

Sunday’s Coming

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“It’s Friday. Jesus is praying. Peter’s a sleeping. Judas is betraying. But Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday. Pilate’s struggling. The council is conspiring. The crowd is vilifying. They don’t even know that Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday. The disciples are running like sheep without a shepherd. Mary’s crying. Peter is denying. But they don’t know that Sunday’s a coming.

It’s Friday. The Romans beat my Jesus. They robe Him in scarlet. They crown Him with thorns. But they don’t know that Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday. See Jesus walking to Calvary. His blood dripping. His body stumbling. And His spirit’s burdened. But you see, it’s only Friday. Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday. The world’s winning. People are sinning. And evil’s grinning.

It’s Friday. The soldiers nail my Savior’s hands to the cross. They nail my Savior’s feet to the cross. And then they raise Him up next to criminals. It’s Friday. But let me tell you something Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday. The disciples are questioning. What has happened to their King. And the Pharisees are celebrating that their scheming has been achieved. But they don’t know it’s only Friday. Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday. He’s hanging on the cross. Feeling forsaken by His Father. Left alone and dying. Can nobody save Him? Ooooh it’s Friday. But Sunday’s coming.

It’s Friday. The earth trembles. The sky grows dark. My King yields His spirit. It’s Friday. Hope is lost. Death has won. Sin has conquered. and Satan’s just a laughin’.

It’s Friday. Jesus is buried. A soldier stands guard. And a rock is rolled into place. But it’s Friday. It is only Friday. Sunday is a coming” ~S.M. Lockridge

***

From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land.  About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).

When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”

Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. The rest said, “Now leave Him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save Him.”

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He gave up his spirit.

At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

When the centurion and those with Him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely He was the Son of God!” Matthew 27:45-54

Do You Love Me?

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Easter is quickly approaching. I woke up last night thinking about an Easter message I heard several years ago. I wanted to share it with you again. It is a reminder that Jesus loves us as we are, and that no one is beyond His Grace.

The Bible tells us that Peter denied Christ three times the night before Jesus was led to the cross.  It is a powerful reminder of Christ’s love for each of us.  You remember the story in Luke 22:54-62:

Then they seized Him and led Him away, bringing Him into the high priest’s house, and Peter was following at a distance. And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. Then a servant girl, seeing him as he sat in the light and looking closely at him, said, “This man also was with Him.” But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.” And a little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.” And after an interval of about an hour still another insisted, saying, “Certainly this man also was with Him, for he too is a Galilean.” But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how He had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.

Later, after His resurrection, Jesus met Peter on the beach.  Even though Peter had denied knowing Him three times, Jesus didn’t :

Confront him and make him feel small;
hold a grudge for years,
ask him to grovel and plead on the sand,
order him to work hard for his forgiveness.

When Peter met Jesus on that beach, after he had denied knowing Him three times, Jesus asked Peter three times:  ‘Do you love me?’

And then He gave him a new start, a fresh beginning.  ‘Come be my disciple, He said, “Follow me.”

But we may say… that was Peter, a beloved disciple of Jesus.  What happens with us?

The truth is, when we meet Jesus each morning, after another day of ups and downs, Jesus doesn’t:

Confront us and make us feel small;
hold a grudge for years,,
ask us to grovel and plead on the sand,
order us to work hard for our forgiveness.

Instead, Jesus asks us again each morning:

‘Do you love Me?’

Even with the little love we have in our hearts, Jesus offers us a new start, a fresh beginning. ‘Come be my disciple,’ He says, ‘Follow me.’

Please… take the chance.  Follow Jesus.  

When Jesus spoke again to the people, He said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”  John 8:12

Portions reprinted from David Hopwood/engageworship.org

Swaddling Cloths

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“This shall be a sign unto you: You shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:12 KJV)

As I’ve grown in my Christian faith, it has become obvious that every detail in the Bible has significant meaning. Reading the Christmas story this season, the words swaddling cloths jumped out at me. Why did Luke add this detail? Why was it so important that we know that the baby Jesus was wrapped in swaddling cloths before He was laid in a manger? I felt compelled to research various Bible translations, linguistics, and traditions to see if scholars might know.

What I found were four very different opinions. The first was simply that Mary was an attentive mother, swaddling her baby, much like we do our babies today. The second opinion hearkened back to Jewish tradition when a betrothed maiden would embroider a cloth with designs from her husband’s lineage (perhaps the Lion of Judah for Joseph’s lineage because he was of the House of David). That cloth would then be wrapped around their hands during their marriage ceremony, signifying their union. It would then be wrapped around their babies to strengthen the bond and covenant of their marriage.

The third opinion was that often when people of that time traveled, they would wrap lengths of fabric around their waist so that in case of death, it would be easier to transport the body if it were wrapped in lengths of cloth. If the baby Jesus were wrapped in these cloths, it would foreshadow His being wrapped in linen burial cloths after His death at Calvary and prior to His resurrection.

The fourth option was the most intriguing to me. It weaves history, Jewish tradition, and stories found in the Old Testament with Christ’s birth. In Genesis 35:21, we read that Rachel died after giving birth to her son Benjamin and was buried at Migdal Eder. In Micah 5:2, we read the prophecy that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem Ephrata, “the place where Rachel died.”

By the time Jesus was born, Migdal Eder had become the Tower of the Flock where shepherds would bring their best lambs to be inspected by the Levitical priests. The most perfect and unblemished lambs would then be sacrificed during the Passover ceremony. The ceremony dated back to the time of Moses and Israelite captivity in Egypt when God told the Israelites to paint lamb’s blood over the door frame so that He would pass over that house and not allow “the destroyer” to enter. Any home without lamb’s blood would lose their firstborn to death. The Passover lamb ceremony was a foreshadowing of Jesus, the perfect sacrificial lamb who would allow those who believe in Him to escape from death into life eternal.

At the time of Jesus’ birth, the shepherds would wrap their best lambs in swaddling cloths to keep them from becoming blemished and take them to Migdal Eder to be inspected by the Levitical priests. When the angel appeared to the shepherds the night Christ was born, he told them that “this will be a sign unto you.” The commentary concludes that the shepherds would have known exactly where to find the newborn King… wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger in Migdal Eder. (See Fotet.org)

Each time I read the Christmas story in Luke 2, I am reminded how many old testament prophecies were fulfilled by Jesus at His birth. Does His being wrapped in swaddling cloths also point to Jesus being “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29)?

Perhaps it matters not… what does matter is that Jesus was born, lived, and died to take away our sins. His is a free gift offered to each of us if only we believe (Romans 10:9). I pray that you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior today. May God’s richest blessings be upon you and yours this Holy Christmas.

***

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.  An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.  This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.  When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child,  and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. (Luke 2:8-18)

A Glimpse Beyond the Veil

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I lost my mother this past October. She died two weeks before her 96th birthday. We’re not certain what happened. Her death was sudden. Up until five weeks prior, she was living independently. Her rapid decline was astonishing even to caregivers, doctors, and Hospice.  As an example, she spent less than 18 hours under Hospice care.. In the midst of it all, however, God showed up in an astonishing way.

The week before she passed away, I arrived at Mother’s care facility to find she had left a gathering.  When I caught up with her, Mother was smiling and asked me, “Did you see them?”  

“See who?” I asked.  

“The family.  They were all there,” she said.

Mother was an only child, and the family she was referring to were her parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and great aunts and uncles, all of whom had long since passed away. 

I questioned her further.  Mother said, “I saw them all.  They were each holding a glass of red liquid.  Their glasses were full, while mine was over half empty.”  

Mother said she had approached one woman who she thought was her Aunt Lorena, but the woman did not answer her.  Mother fell into my arms, sobbing.  “I miss them so.”

From that moment on, Mother was inconsolable.  She insisted that she wanted to go home.  But home was nowhere to be found… at least not in this world. I asked her where home was, but she couldn’t answer.   

The night of her death, Mother asked the nurse, “Why are they putting flowers on my bed?”  Moments later she looked up in surprise, calling her dad’s name.  My grandfather had come to take her Home.  It was fitting that it was Grandfather… Mother was the apple of his eye.  Then Mother took her last breath.  

Luke, the head of Mother’s Hospice team, reminded me that Mother’s visions were an assurance that she had seen beyond Heaven’s veil and was now with those family members that meant so much to her. It was a reminder to me that Heaven is real.  God, in His mercy, had lifted the veil for us between this world and the next. He had shown us a glimpse of the reunion that awaits each of us in Heaven (see 2 Samuel 12:23 as another example). If you do not know our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, I pray that you will investigate and embrace Him.  He promises a similar beautiful eternity in heaven for all of us who believe on Him.

May God bless each of you during this season of Thanksgiving.  Rest in peace, my dear mother. I pray that you are basking in the loving arms of family while worshipping the One who called you Home.

***

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will come down from Heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words. (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)

For an uplifting song and visual, check out I Believe, by Brooks and Dunn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5z-jjWyAJQ

In honor of my mother and her vision, we sang In the Sweet By and By at her memorial service: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWNEX7hHuVo

Why Did Jesus Come?

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The Christmas story is a true love story. The Bible tells us that God sent Jesus into the world because of His love for us. In John 3:16, we read, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  Because of Jesus, we need not doubt God’s love for us. 

God sent Jesus as a baby so that He could experience every aspect of being human.    Jesus knew what it was like to be a child, to experience adolescence, and to struggle with temptation. He knew what it meant to be ridiculed, mocked, and betrayed. He understood sorrow and death. He felt the pain and agony of His crucifixion. Because of His earthly experiences, Jesus is our advocate in Heaven, pleading our case to reconcile us to God the Father. The Bible tells us, “For we do not have a High Priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet He did not sin.” (Hebrews 4:15)

Finally, Jesus came to earth to offer each of us salvation. In Mark 10:45, Jesus says, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” 

Through His crucifixion and death, Jesus paid the sin debt each of us owes so that we might have eternal life with Him in heaven.

This gift of love and salvation that Jesus offers is ours, but it is not forced upon us. We must choose to open and accept His beautiful gift.  In Romans 10:9 we are assured, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

I pray this Christmas that you choose Jesus to be your loving Lord and Savior.  Merry Christmas and may God’s riches blessings be with you and yours. 

For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon His shoulder,
    and His name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

For further reading, visit https://www.crosswalk.com/culture/books/why-did-jesus-christ-come-as-a-baby-1458843.html