Shelter

Revelation 7:15b And he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.

Although much of these surrounding chapters are full of the distress and pain of the punishment for unbelief in the end days, this phrase in this verse is very comforting.  It is talking about believers who are faithful to the very end and I was really struck by the description of God’s protection, His shelter, as being His very presence.  It is not His arms protecting them.  It is not a wall of protection.  It is far more encompassing than any other description of His protection we find in scripture.  This protection is found in the very presence of “God.  “Shelter” implies that there is something unsafe going on and the fact that God’s presence is the shelter speaks strongly of God’s omnipotence as well as His omnipresence.  That is most comforting to this believer!

My heavenly spice rack

II John 3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father’s Son, in truth and love.

Once again I see here that there are certain characteristics, certain qualities, certain gifts God has given me because of my relationship with Him.  I do not have to ask God for these things; they are already mine to use.  Grace, mercy, peace, truth and love are in me and only need to be drawn on and put to use.  I picture the m like a row of bottles of spices in my kitchen cabinet, just sitting there waiting for me to open and add to my kitchen project depending only on what I need to use.  I have been given the whole “spice rack” by my Heavenly Father and my Savior.

Consider Jesus

Hebrews 3:1 … consider Jesus …

As I was reading through Hebrews 1-6 this morning, the phrase “consider Jesus” struck me as I thought about what these six chapters say about Jesus:

            1. He is the radiance of the glory of God (1:3);

            2. He is much superior to angels (1:4);

            3. All things exist FOR Him and BY Him (2:10);

            4. He was faithful to God as a man (3:2);

            5. He has been counted more worthy than Moses (3:3);

            6. He is the source of salvation (6:9).

There are other things in those chapters as well, but these six truths about Jesus were especially powerful to me as I considered Jesus at the beginning of this day.  We have a powerful and glorious Savior!

My beauty

I Peter 3:4 Let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.

I have never felt beautiful and have often joked that my beauty is just well-hidden from view.  In a more serious sense, however, aside from the jest, this verse tells me that what God sees as most beautiful, most precious, about me is indeed emanating from within me.  My true character, honed by my Savior’s work of grace and mercy in my heart and in my spirit, is my gentle and quiet spirit.  That gentleness and quietness is like Jesus’ spirit, displayed for all to see in His life on earth.  The beauty of that way of life is the imperishable beauty and it is what I most want people to see and to remember about me when I am no longer living on this earth.

More training required

Titus 1:7 For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach … self-controlled.

I was stuck this morning as I read through the book of Titus how important self-control is considered for all who name the name of Christ Jesus as Savior and Lord.  A leader in the church (an overseer) has that call to self-control on him, but he is not alone.  Paul goes on to include older men (2:2), older women (2:5), and younger men (2:6) in that responsibility to learn and exercise self-control.  And just in case someone might think themselves to be exempt, Paul concludes by saying that all who have received salvation should train to be self-controlled (v.11012).  The grace of God in us will train us for self-controlled, upright, godly living.  Those areas of my life that show less discipline need to be trained for self-control in order to display godliness.  I must keep working on that, even in my older years because I have not learned total self-control yet, as much as I hate to admit it.

In training

I Timothy 4:7 Train yourself for godliness.

Godliness does not come naturally for the most part.  Because of my sinful nature and even though as a born-again child of God I have the Spirit of God at work in me, I still have the constant battle against sin.  This verse reminds me that I have to train myself to live in a godly fashion, to live a God-honoring life style.  The reason for this diligent training, according to this passage of scripture, is because “it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” (v.8).  As the passage goes on, Paul tells Timothy what should be included in his training of himself, and I find it helpful and revealing to see what he lists as “training exercises”:  1) do not neglect to use my spiritual gifts (v.14), 2) immerse myself in my calling (v.15), and 3) keep a close watch on myself, i.e., be disciplined (v.16).  I have a lot of work ahead of me if I am going to become more godly!

Let peace rule

Colossians 3:15 Let the peace of God rule in your hearts.

One of the main messages I have received from God through my Bible reading this past year is that peace is a gift from God that I already have available to “use” whenever I need it.  Earlier in the year I saw that it is already available (May 8).  Then in 1 Corinthians I realized that it is a calling in my Christian life (Nov. 30).  Now, here in Colossians, I am told that all I have to do is to let it rule.  Allow the peace of God to operate fully in my heart.  May God be pleased to see His peace fully operational in my life in the coming year and in whatever amount of time I still have on this earth.  I know it will be there when I get to heaven as well!

Christmas in pastels

I got a new Papercrafting magazine and it included a free gift of a set of Christmas stamps and some beautiful foiled pastel Christmas papers so I made these three cards with some of it:

The stamps are very nice and the sentiments are equally sweet and more meaningful than some I've seen.  The inside sentiment, which I have not photographed, says "Peace & Joy at Christmas."

Here are close-ups of the three cards:

 The stamp set also included an embossing folder of stars and swirls, which you can see behind the word block on the dove card.

A simple gesture

Acts 28:15b On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage.

I think there are times when we think what we do or say does not make any difference when in actuality we have said or done something at “just the right time” for someone.  We never know when a simple word of loving encouragement may be just what that person needed.  When I drive down the road or walk down an aisle in a store, I am often reminded that the person I pass may be carrying some heavy burden that does not show but is weighing heavily on them.  Frequently, when I have spoken to them, their response tells me of that burden or their facial expression makes it clear that I have somehow brightened their day.  I see that response often at Aldi’s when I give my shopping cart to them and refuse their quarter.  It reminds me that even a simple gesture can shine the

The WAY

My goal had been to write on my blog every weekday during the year, but that is proving to be more challenging at times than I had expected! 

Acts 24:14 But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, …

The Way … that title for following Christ struck me as I read it this morning.  “The Way” reminded of numerous scriptures as I though about it:

* “I, being in the way, the Lord led me” (Genesis 24).  God leads me because I am following The Way.

*”There is a way that seems right to a man, the end thereof is the way of death.”  There is only one right Way.

* “As for God, His way is perfect” (Psalm 18:30).  Following God is the only Way of confidence and security.

* “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go” (Psalm 32:98* “I am the way” (John 14:6).  Jesus is the only Way to salvation, peace and eternal life. 

Paul said a lot when he said he worshipped and lived according the The Way!

God's kindness

Romans 2:4b God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance.

Why is God good to us?  Why do we have so many blessings from Him?  The Bible is full of reminders of God’s love, faithfulness, mercy and goodness toward mankind.  We know He loves us even when we do not love Him.  We know that His mercy is new every morning.  We know that His faithfulness is to every generation, but why?  Why does He extend all of this to ungrateful, unloving people?  This verse in Romans 2 tells us why.  All of God’s kindness is for only one reason … to lead us to repentance.  Through the salvation that comes out of true repentance, God can have the relationship with us that He created us for.  His kindness is meant to lead us back to full fellowship with Him.

Belly Band Book

I bought (on sale, 2-4-1 from Dayspring) pads of religious paper with pretty colors and designs.  I was not certain just how I would use it but it was like nothing I have ever seen in the store and I figured if nothing else I could use it for cards.  But then I found a tutorial on YouTube for making a small book with fold-out pages and pockets and it seemed just the right thing for my new paper.  This book is the result.  I added some quotes to make it more meaningful and am happy with the result.

Each page is made to the same design... a large pocket with a large tag and a fold-out page.  The back side of the pocket section has a small pocket in which I put one or two smaller tags.

There are plenty of spaces for adding one's own quotes or thoughts as well as some photos if desired.
Here is the front view with and without the belly band:

And some samples of pages opened up:

And some showing the backs of pages with the small tags:

Godly grief vs. worldly grief

II Corinthians 7:10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.

Recently in Sunday school we have been talking about repentance and what it means, so I was especially interested when I read and pondered this verse this morning.  One thing I had been thinking a lot about after our discussion in class was the nature of true or “real” repentance and was there true repentance outside of Christ.  Here was my answer!  Yes, in a sense there is, but repentance outside of godly grief has a totally different result.  If I am repentant in the context of my grief over my spiritual condition, that leads to repentance that produces my salvation.  As we can see in news events from around the world, worldly grief has a far more drastic result.  When I hear of riots resulting from the death of a person that a crowd considers unjust, I am seeing the result of grief from a “worldly” cause, not grief that lead to salvation.  God grief lead to no regrets … worldly grief has a totally different outcome.

Pulling back the curtains

II Corinthians 3:16 But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 

There is a lot about God, His Word, and even about living a godly life that is not easily known or understood.  After all, God is so great, so powerful, so all-encompassing that He is unknown-able in many ways.  It is as though there is something covering up all that.  That is what makes it such a blessing when a person submits his life to God for salvation.  In that act of faith and surrender, the veil is lifted, making it possible to know more about God, to understand more of His character, to have the freedom of living joyfully.  Then, and only as that veil is lifted, we are able to see God’s glory and be transformed into people who can reflect some of God’s glory to the world around us.  This is the glorious picture we see described by Paul the Apostle in II Corinthians 3:14-18.  Through Christ, and only through Christ, is that veil taken away, the curtain is open.  We can see what's on the other side.

One Bread, one body

I Corinthians 1-:17 Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body for we are all partakers of the one bread.

In this book of I Corinthians Paul gives some compelling arguments for unity among believers.  As I have been reading through this book this year, the example he gives of the bread and the body has been the most impressive to me.  I had never spent much time thinking about the example before, but this year it struck me.  In the gospels, Jesus called Himself the Bread of Life.  Everyone recognized the values of bread for life, and every culture has its own bread of bread substitute (such as rice for Chinese or yams for West Africans).  Bread is a food that unites a culture and so it is with the Christian “culture.”  Our bread, our one main uniting factor and the basic item in our sustenance is The Bread of Life.  We are all partakers of it.  We are one body sustained by one Bread.