Galatians 3:27 says, "For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." I love this verse! Think of when you are dressing to go somewhere very special...a wedding, a prom, whatever. One of your most important preparations is to plan what you're going to wear, prepare it (pull it out of the closet, wash, iron, dry clean, whatever), then put it on. Especially for us women, isn't putting it on exciting? (unless, of course, we find out it no longer fits or has a stain we didn't see when we put it away...) We want to look as pretty, beautiful (for some) or at least as lovely as we possibly can and our garment(s) plays a big part of that. The color, the style, the right season and other properties determine whether or not it's the right or best thing to put on and wear to the special event we'll be attending.
Well, when we clothe ourselves with Christ, it's a done deal! We don't have to worry about the accessories, they're all included! It's the PERFECT color, style, season, it FITS, NO wrinkles and is PERFECTLY flattering to who we are! In fact, clothing ourselves with Christ makes US beautiful, even if we're not the most beautiful person physically! Now THAT'S exciting! We need no makeup to cover flaws, our hair will be perfect, etc. When HE is our clothing, then WE become beautiful in correspondence to the clothing. Earthly clothing may make us APPEAR beautiful, but when we clothe ourselves with Him, He makes us beautiful, inside and out. WOW! And for those who only buy clothing that's on sale, this is the best deal you'll EVER find, as it's perfectly FREE...for US, that is. He paid a VERY costly price for this clothing and we merely accept it from His gracious, loving and generous hand.
So, next time you're trying to decide what to wear, don't forget to put on Christ! And if you love to wear fragrance, that's included, too! 2 Corinthians 2:14 says, "But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place." That's the REAL 'Designer fragrance!'
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Yes, He laughs!
I could have sworn there is a verse in the Bible that says laughter is good for the soul, but I cannot find it. However, I still believe the Lord loves to laugh and make us laugh...or me, anyway. I love a good laugh and I love to make others laugh. I've heard laughing described as 'internal jogging.' haha! I much prefer THAT kind of jogging to 'external jogging!'
Anyway, I have to recount to you a couple of times He made me laugh. About two or three years ago, I had laryngitis. I could only barely whisper. I could NOT talk. Well, our church has classes on Wednesday nights and dinner before in the gym. Well, this particular night, I sat with my friend Laurie and her daughter, Maggie. Another friend, Zee, sat down with us. Now this may be the onlye time I've ever had Wednesday night dinner with these particular friends. Maggie, I learned, after Zee sat down, was going to be singing a song in an upcoming children's musical at church. For whatever reasons, both Laurie and Zee had gotten up and I whispered to Maggie, "What are you singing in the musical?" She said, "I can't hear you." I whispered, "I'm sorry, I have laryngitis." She said to me, "No, that's the name of the song." I cracked up, even though I couldn't make any noise. Now, come on...there are millions of songs in this world, and the night I have laryngitis, this is the name of the song she's going to sing! LOL!!! I think He set me up on that one and had a good laugh Himself!
Then, a few days ago, I got in the car and a song was playing on the radio that I didn't want to listen to. I looked at the radio and it said 94.1, so I changed it to 93.5. Well, the VERY SAME song was playing and even in the same place! I thought, "Now this CAN'T be!" and changed it back to 94.1 to make sure I wasn't living in the Twilight Zone. Upon looking at the radio, I realized the TIME was 9:41...not the station! LOL!!! Again, I think He set me up! I cracked up and I'll bet He did, too!
Does He make you laugh, or do you not take time to notice? Pay a little more attention and let me know the next time He sets you up for a good laugh! Even Sarah said (Gen. 21:6), "God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me."
Anyway, I have to recount to you a couple of times He made me laugh. About two or three years ago, I had laryngitis. I could only barely whisper. I could NOT talk. Well, our church has classes on Wednesday nights and dinner before in the gym. Well, this particular night, I sat with my friend Laurie and her daughter, Maggie. Another friend, Zee, sat down with us. Now this may be the onlye time I've ever had Wednesday night dinner with these particular friends. Maggie, I learned, after Zee sat down, was going to be singing a song in an upcoming children's musical at church. For whatever reasons, both Laurie and Zee had gotten up and I whispered to Maggie, "What are you singing in the musical?" She said, "I can't hear you." I whispered, "I'm sorry, I have laryngitis." She said to me, "No, that's the name of the song." I cracked up, even though I couldn't make any noise. Now, come on...there are millions of songs in this world, and the night I have laryngitis, this is the name of the song she's going to sing! LOL!!! I think He set me up on that one and had a good laugh Himself!
Then, a few days ago, I got in the car and a song was playing on the radio that I didn't want to listen to. I looked at the radio and it said 94.1, so I changed it to 93.5. Well, the VERY SAME song was playing and even in the same place! I thought, "Now this CAN'T be!" and changed it back to 94.1 to make sure I wasn't living in the Twilight Zone. Upon looking at the radio, I realized the TIME was 9:41...not the station! LOL!!! Again, I think He set me up! I cracked up and I'll bet He did, too!
Does He make you laugh, or do you not take time to notice? Pay a little more attention and let me know the next time He sets you up for a good laugh! Even Sarah said (Gen. 21:6), "God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me."
Friday, June 25, 2010
The Lord our Light
During my quiet time yesterday, a thought came to my mind that hadn't visited there before. I've always loved Ps 104:2, which says, "Covering Yourself with light as with a cloak, Stretching out heaven like a tent curtain." Well, as much as I love that verse, I don't think I'd ever really taken time to behold it for very long. So, yesterday, I thought about Him, covering Himself with light as we would put on a coat. Wow...can you imagine the glory? Another favorite verse of mine is 2nd Peter 1:17, in which Peter refers to Jesus Christ as "the Majestic Glory." Don't these two verses 'hold hands?'
But, then I thought about the account in Acts of Saul's conversion. In Wuest's expanded translation of Acts 22:6, he translates the verse this way: And it came to pass that as I was proceeding on my journey and nearing Damascus, about noon, suddenly out from heaven there flashed around me like lightning a great light, and I fell to the ground and heard a voice...(etc) But what I want to point out from that verse is, what blinded Paul? It was not 'just any old light,' but, I believe, that same light that He covers Himself with as a cloak. I'd never put those verses together before and no wonder Paul was blinded! Yes, the sun alone could have blinded him, but this light was unexpected and knocked him off his horse! Yes, verse 7 says, "and I fell to the ground and heard a voice..." Then in verse 10, Jesus the Nazarene says to Paul, "Get up and go on into Damascus..."
John 1:4 says, "In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men." John 1:5 says, "The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it." Paul didn't comprehend it, at first! He certainly did later, but having had THAT experience, he had been blinded that he might be able better to see! spiritually! Then, John 1:7 says, "He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him (John the Baptist). Yes, our Lord said in John 12:46, "I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness." Aren't you glad He has covered Himself with light?
But, then I thought about the account in Acts of Saul's conversion. In Wuest's expanded translation of Acts 22:6, he translates the verse this way: And it came to pass that as I was proceeding on my journey and nearing Damascus, about noon, suddenly out from heaven there flashed around me like lightning a great light, and I fell to the ground and heard a voice...(etc) But what I want to point out from that verse is, what blinded Paul? It was not 'just any old light,' but, I believe, that same light that He covers Himself with as a cloak. I'd never put those verses together before and no wonder Paul was blinded! Yes, the sun alone could have blinded him, but this light was unexpected and knocked him off his horse! Yes, verse 7 says, "and I fell to the ground and heard a voice..." Then in verse 10, Jesus the Nazarene says to Paul, "Get up and go on into Damascus..."
John 1:4 says, "In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men." John 1:5 says, "The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it." Paul didn't comprehend it, at first! He certainly did later, but having had THAT experience, he had been blinded that he might be able better to see! spiritually! Then, John 1:7 says, "He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him (John the Baptist). Yes, our Lord said in John 12:46, "I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness." Aren't you glad He has covered Himself with light?
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Who's on Your List?
Something I was reading yesterday sparked a question in my mind. So, I'll ask you the question. Who (after Christ Jesus, of course!) are you MOST looking forward to meeting in Heaven? Now, when this question came to my mind, I was thinking of people in the Bible, but for you, it may be your grandmother, or other family member, or, or, or...So I'll narrow it down for you. OTHER than someone you knew here on earth, and not necessarily from the Bible, would you like to meet 2nd, after Jesus Christ?
Tough question! I've always thought I'll love to sit with Paul...and not necessarily talk, but LISTEN! But there are so many others, as well! I've always loved Samuel! And David, of course! The master psalmist! I've logged many hours in his psalms, but then another psalmist I love is Asaph! Now I've read that Asaph, as the designated psalmist of Psalm 74, lived long before this psalm was written, so it could have been written by one of his descendants or to a choir guild that bore his name. But Psalms 50 and 73 through 83 all say they were written by Asaph, so I always like to think of Asaph as one man, the composer of them all. But, we'll find out when we get there!
The above assortment certainly leaves out MANY others I can't wait to visit with. I mean, aren't you looking forward to sitting down to dinner with Ruth? Here she was, a Moabitess, but comes back to Judah with her mother-in-law and ends up in the line of Christ! WOW! AND she was David's great grandmother! Yeah, I'm DEFINITELY looking forward to meeting HER!!!
But then, think of all the saints who are already home with Him who aren't in the Bible, but who God used to greatly impact the Church! George Muller, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the first Christians who crossed the Atlantic to live in America, and on & on. Then there are contemporary saints to look forward to meeting: Charles Stanley, David Jeremiah, Steve Green, Ravi Zacharias, Erwin Lutzer ...please don't tell me you're not looking forward to Heaven! It's gonna be GREAT!!! :)
Tough question! I've always thought I'll love to sit with Paul...and not necessarily talk, but LISTEN! But there are so many others, as well! I've always loved Samuel! And David, of course! The master psalmist! I've logged many hours in his psalms, but then another psalmist I love is Asaph! Now I've read that Asaph, as the designated psalmist of Psalm 74, lived long before this psalm was written, so it could have been written by one of his descendants or to a choir guild that bore his name. But Psalms 50 and 73 through 83 all say they were written by Asaph, so I always like to think of Asaph as one man, the composer of them all. But, we'll find out when we get there!
The above assortment certainly leaves out MANY others I can't wait to visit with. I mean, aren't you looking forward to sitting down to dinner with Ruth? Here she was, a Moabitess, but comes back to Judah with her mother-in-law and ends up in the line of Christ! WOW! AND she was David's great grandmother! Yeah, I'm DEFINITELY looking forward to meeting HER!!!
But then, think of all the saints who are already home with Him who aren't in the Bible, but who God used to greatly impact the Church! George Muller, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the first Christians who crossed the Atlantic to live in America, and on & on. Then there are contemporary saints to look forward to meeting: Charles Stanley, David Jeremiah, Steve Green, Ravi Zacharias, Erwin Lutzer ...please don't tell me you're not looking forward to Heaven! It's gonna be GREAT!!! :)
Monday, June 21, 2010
Longing for Home
Many years ago, for a period of time (can't remember how long), I would ask the Lord to please take me home. Now, life wasn't bad here, but I just longed (and still do) to be in my FINAL home, with Him, free of all the ugliness down here which will prevail until He returns.
A dear friend of many years and with whom I'd been a prayer partner for at least 18 years (neither of us could ever remember when we actually started) invited me to accompany her to Ladies Week at Ravencrest in Estes Park, CO. The topic that year was prayer, which, obviously, was dear to both our hearts. So I joyfully accepted the invitation.
At the beginning of the week, they gave each of us a book with suggested readings for our quiet time each day that we would be there. Well, one morning the suggested reading led me to another verse that He was directing me to read. I really can't remember the suggested verse, but I ended up at Romans 12:1 & 2. Now I've known those verses for most of the past 30 years, but had, for the most part, focused on verse 2..."do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind..." Well, that particular morning, the Lord got out His laser pointer and directed my attention to the part of verse 1 that says, "present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice." He then proceeded to point out to me that I could not do that if I was not HERE! Hmmm...good point, Lord!
Then He reminded me of John the Baptist, who prepared 30 years for a six-month ministry! He then posed the question to me that, what if the last six months of my life were to be the main reason He put me here? So, by asking Him (repeatedly) to take me home before the time appointed by Him, I would be missing out on that! "Wow..." I thought, as one of the first verses I fell in love with as a believer was Jeremiah 29:11, "'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope." Then, He very sternly told me to quit asking! Whoa! That was and still is the firmest reproof He has ever given me! I still long for Heaven, but I have quit asking Him to take me home. :)
A dear friend of many years and with whom I'd been a prayer partner for at least 18 years (neither of us could ever remember when we actually started) invited me to accompany her to Ladies Week at Ravencrest in Estes Park, CO. The topic that year was prayer, which, obviously, was dear to both our hearts. So I joyfully accepted the invitation.
At the beginning of the week, they gave each of us a book with suggested readings for our quiet time each day that we would be there. Well, one morning the suggested reading led me to another verse that He was directing me to read. I really can't remember the suggested verse, but I ended up at Romans 12:1 & 2. Now I've known those verses for most of the past 30 years, but had, for the most part, focused on verse 2..."do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind..." Well, that particular morning, the Lord got out His laser pointer and directed my attention to the part of verse 1 that says, "present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice." He then proceeded to point out to me that I could not do that if I was not HERE! Hmmm...good point, Lord!
Then He reminded me of John the Baptist, who prepared 30 years for a six-month ministry! He then posed the question to me that, what if the last six months of my life were to be the main reason He put me here? So, by asking Him (repeatedly) to take me home before the time appointed by Him, I would be missing out on that! "Wow..." I thought, as one of the first verses I fell in love with as a believer was Jeremiah 29:11, "'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope." Then, He very sternly told me to quit asking! Whoa! That was and still is the firmest reproof He has ever given me! I still long for Heaven, but I have quit asking Him to take me home. :)
Friday, June 18, 2010
My Lord and my God
One verse I've loved for many years is John 20:27. It says, "Then He said to Thomas, "Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing." But I also love the next verse, which says, "Thomas answered and said to Him, "My Lord and my God!" It makes me exclaim the same thing every time I read it or recall it.
It arouses many responses in me. How often do I really stop and acknowledge Him as my Lord and my God? I mean REALLY acknowledge Him as my Lord and my God? And how often do I stop long enough to take note of His tenderness and patience toward me? Thomas had been one of His disciples for THREE YEARS, yet when the other disciples told him they'd seen the Lord, his response was, "Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." We might be quick to say, "Hellooo?" but can we honestly say we would have had a different response? Maybe not...
But let's go back to the passage. Thomas made some very specific requirements that would have to be met before he would believe the others' report. Well, our Lord met Thomas in each demand he made. He didn't have to. He could have just said, "Ok, Thomas, here I am. NOW do you believe?" He could have reproved him for his unbelief. But He didn't. Even though Thomas may have backed off from those demands when he saw Him, He told Thomas to do the very things Thomas had said he needed to do to believe. Our Lord met Thomas 'where he was.'
Then, He goes on to make a promise to us! Verse 29 says, "Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed." WOW! That's for you and me! (as well as those who trod the earth the same time as He did, yet did not get to see Him).
All of this takes me back to the beginning of the book where, in chapter 1, verse 14, John describes Him as 'full of grace and truth.' Oh, isn't He? Even in this one, tiny little episode of what is recorded about Him, in His interaction with (doubting) Thomas, He was full of grace and truth. And He still is...always has been...and always will be. My Lord and my God!
It arouses many responses in me. How often do I really stop and acknowledge Him as my Lord and my God? I mean REALLY acknowledge Him as my Lord and my God? And how often do I stop long enough to take note of His tenderness and patience toward me? Thomas had been one of His disciples for THREE YEARS, yet when the other disciples told him they'd seen the Lord, his response was, "Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe." We might be quick to say, "Hellooo?" but can we honestly say we would have had a different response? Maybe not...
But let's go back to the passage. Thomas made some very specific requirements that would have to be met before he would believe the others' report. Well, our Lord met Thomas in each demand he made. He didn't have to. He could have just said, "Ok, Thomas, here I am. NOW do you believe?" He could have reproved him for his unbelief. But He didn't. Even though Thomas may have backed off from those demands when he saw Him, He told Thomas to do the very things Thomas had said he needed to do to believe. Our Lord met Thomas 'where he was.'
Then, He goes on to make a promise to us! Verse 29 says, "Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed." WOW! That's for you and me! (as well as those who trod the earth the same time as He did, yet did not get to see Him).
All of this takes me back to the beginning of the book where, in chapter 1, verse 14, John describes Him as 'full of grace and truth.' Oh, isn't He? Even in this one, tiny little episode of what is recorded about Him, in His interaction with (doubting) Thomas, He was full of grace and truth. And He still is...always has been...and always will be. My Lord and my God!
Monday, June 14, 2010
Children & Mirrors
I just found out that ANOTHER friend of mine is pregnant! I've been a believer for a little over 30 years and NEVER in my lifetime have I known so many people having babies all at the same time (like in a span of one year, maybe a year and a half). I find this incredible. The couple I just found out about today did not plan this. They've only been married for not quite six months. And another couple I know didn't plan their current pregnancy, as their third child is less than a year old! I think God is up to something!
Psalm 127:3 & 4 says, "Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth." Well, I'm thinking this is one of the WORST times to be having babies in light of the state of our nation, but obviously, He disagrees! (I didn't tell that to those having the babies). Therefore, I'm thinking He must be planning for all these babies that have been born in the last year and that will be born in the coming year to be like arrows in the hand of a warrior! Him being the warrior, of course!
So, please join me in praying for all these little warriors He's raising up. They may never know the pleasures of life that we have known and may have to pay a higher price to be called by His Name than we have. America is changing rapidly, and not for the better, sadly enough. We are in the phase of reaping what we've sown and it's not pretty.
But I don't want to end this on a glum note. Going back to verse 3, He tells us children are a GIFT of the LORD! HIS personal gift to those who have them! That is precious. So, for all the mothers of those children who are difficult, yes...they are God's GIFT to them! I've heard that the things that cause the most tension between parents and their children are the things the parents see in the child that is most like them. So, it sounds like God uses children like little mirrors that the parent can't easily walk away from! And why wouldn't He, when He tells us in James 1:23 & 24 that if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror, goes away and immediately forgets what kind of person he was? That's a lot harder when you have a child that is a mirror! So, even if you've never had a child, join me in praying for those parents who are having a hard time with their little mirrors! That they'd 'get' what it is He's trying to show them through their child/children...instead of just being angry at them.
Psalm 127:3 & 4 says, "Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth." Well, I'm thinking this is one of the WORST times to be having babies in light of the state of our nation, but obviously, He disagrees! (I didn't tell that to those having the babies). Therefore, I'm thinking He must be planning for all these babies that have been born in the last year and that will be born in the coming year to be like arrows in the hand of a warrior! Him being the warrior, of course!
So, please join me in praying for all these little warriors He's raising up. They may never know the pleasures of life that we have known and may have to pay a higher price to be called by His Name than we have. America is changing rapidly, and not for the better, sadly enough. We are in the phase of reaping what we've sown and it's not pretty.
But I don't want to end this on a glum note. Going back to verse 3, He tells us children are a GIFT of the LORD! HIS personal gift to those who have them! That is precious. So, for all the mothers of those children who are difficult, yes...they are God's GIFT to them! I've heard that the things that cause the most tension between parents and their children are the things the parents see in the child that is most like them. So, it sounds like God uses children like little mirrors that the parent can't easily walk away from! And why wouldn't He, when He tells us in James 1:23 & 24 that if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror, goes away and immediately forgets what kind of person he was? That's a lot harder when you have a child that is a mirror! So, even if you've never had a child, join me in praying for those parents who are having a hard time with their little mirrors! That they'd 'get' what it is He's trying to show them through their child/children...instead of just being angry at them.
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