Beyond Ourselves

Last year innocent people were killed. Covide didn’t go away as hoped. You made it through one storm and another hit. Are you ready for the new year?  If so, may I recommend how Psalm 61:3 describes God.

You have been a refuge for me, a tower of strength against the enemy.”

A tower is a high place from which we can look at life and see it from God’s perspective. The spiritual tower of prayer is the place from where we can pray, pour out our heart to God, intercede for others, and quietly listen for His counsel. If we want to experience God’s best next year, we can. Our Father is a tower of strength and refuge to whom we can go.  Start the New Year strong…with your face set like flint toward heaven, with your pen in your hand ready to write words of praise to your Father and intercessions for your family, church, nation, friends, and yes, yourself.  The Bible is a journal of God’s interactions with man, of people’s struggles, and God’s faithful interventions and merciful hand. Your copy of Prayers of My Heart becomes your journal of God’s interactions with you, of your struggles, and God’s faithful interventions and merciful hand. I encourage you to get a journal. Why? Because it’s a spiritual, emotional, mental game changer. Take a glance at the benefits of journaling. I also have a Quick Start Video on how to get started, a Quick Start Guide, or you can watch my conference Starting Strong with 2020 Vision. Begin the new year with a new approach – journaling with God.

What Others Are Saying- scroll down

Jesus, tower of strength and refuge, we praise You. When we don’t know how we can get through the next minute, You help us get through the next year. You are our strength and help. Thank You for all the ways You guarded and guided us this past year. We look to this coming year with joy and hope because of You.  

As you look at the past year, are your thoughts, “It’s been great!” Or are your thoughts more along the lines of, “It’s been a rough year”? Perhaps the “rough” is related to health issues, finances, work, your marriage, children, parents, friendships. It may be related to your frustration with yourself, that you continue to struggle with the same issues. Whatever the case, God wants us to be mindful of the fact that just as He was there for us in the past, He’ll be there for us in the new year.  That’s something for which to be grateful!

Why not be intentional about developing a more grateful attitude in the new year? Why bother? Consider – who would you rather be around? A negative person or a grateful person; someone who takes advantage of your kindness or someone who expresses their appreciation?   Psalm 63:4 says,

“I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.”  

Are you daily blessing the Lord by recalling what He does for you each day? I’m not referring to generalities such as, “Thank you, God, for this food and our home and family,” although we should express our appreciation to God for those things. Rather, I’m referring to blessing the Lord by gratefully celebrating how He has worked in your day and in the lives of those for whom you have prayed. I hope you have a copy of  Prayers of My Heart journal so you can begin the new year daily lifting your hands in praise, lifting your pen to paper and journaling God’s character trait and what He has done each day. It is not too late to order.  Make this next year distinct by making it the year you daily bless God with your thanks.

Here’s a good place to start: Our Heavenly Father is

“just and justifierof the one who has faith in Jesus.” Romans 3:26

We bless you, Lord, for being both just and for being our justifier. We are so grateful!

LISTEN

Jesus is the Son of Man who knows what it is to live in human skin. However, what is inside of Him is different from us. His innermost being is holy glowing purity.  Revelation 2:18-20a describes the ascended Christ as having eyes like a flame of fire and feet like burnished bronze. Revelation 1:16 describes His face as

the sun shining in its strength.

Imagine that visual for a minute. Jesus’s face like the sun shining in its strength. Following these magnificent other worldly descriptions of Jesus, we’re told that Jesus, the Son of God, says this,

“I know your deeds, and your love and faith and service and perseverance, and that your deeds of late are greater than at first,, but I have this against you that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, and she does not want to repent of her immorality.”

Yes, Jesus is the Good Shepherd and He is slow to anger, but we must never forget that He is also the Son of God reigning in glory. He sees our deeds and what we tolerate that is against Him. Is there anything we need to repent of before we ask Him for His continued blessings?

LISTEN

Do you ever wish you had more support at work? Perhaps you wish you had support parenting your children. Or, you may wish you had a supportive spouse or friend. I remember a night long ago when I realized that God was my support. I was in a position where no one could help me. It wasn’t that they wouldn’t. It was that I had to go through something by myself. I was lonely and didn’t know what to do. It was just God and me. During that time I found that I wasn’t without help. God was with me. He was my support. As 2 Samuel 22:19  says,

They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my Support.

If you’re looking for support today and don’t have it, it can be lonely. In some cases, terrifying. In reality, though, you do have support. You may be at a time in your life like I was – where God is allowing you to get to a new place with Him, a deeper place, a more real relationship. Jesus is not causing your loneliness, rather He is there for you in it. Remember, if anybody knows what it’s like to go through something alone, He does. If anyone knows what it is to be misunderstood, it’s Him. When you pray you’re talking to a friend who loves you and can appreciate what you’re going through. I guess that’s why Jesus went away by Himself to pray early in the mornings – to get his thoughts straightened out while talking to his Father. If you’ve been blessed with a father or someone you’ve been able to talk things over with, then you know how helpful it can be to talk things out. That’s the same relationship you can have with your Heavenly Father. Just start talking like you would to a trusted person. Now here’s the key we often overlook. Have your Bible and a notepad and pen close by. When Jesus brings thoughts or a verse to your mind, jot them down. Think deeply on the verse. Act on what he brings to mind. Be assured that if David found the Lord to be supportive, you can find him to be supportive, too.

Radiant! You look radiant. Do people say that when they see you? Does the glow on your face cause them to comment? If you said no, neither has anyone said that about me. Guess who that is said about, though? Jesus. Hebrews 1:3 describes Him in this way:

 “He is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature,…”  Hebrews 1:3

The word “radiance” is only used 5 times in the Bible and in each instance refers to God. Commentator Vines defines God’s “radiance” as “shining forth, of a light coming from a luminous body.” Isn’t that exciting? One day we will see Jesus and His radiance. So remember that when things around you are dark, Jesus isn’t. Nothing can extinguish His radiance. One glorious day we’ll join those who are living in God’s radiance. We’ll fall on our knees overwhelmed by what we see. That day is coming when we go to Jesus or when He returns through the clouds. Keep watching and living for Him!

Heavenly Father and Lord Jesus, our hearts are overwhelmed when we think of how we will one day stand in Your radiance.  We praise You and look forward to that day! 

“He’s coming with a sleigh and reindeer.” That’s what some parents tell their children about Santa and kids get excited in anticipation of his arrival. But hey, believers! The real gift-giver from above is coming in the clouds and not with a sleigh and reindeer. Rather, Christ will come with the armies of heaven following Him. (Revelation 19:14) Rather than wearing a human made santa suit, Revelation 19:16 describes Christ’s robe and what is written on it:

on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, ‘KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.’

Christ’s coming isn’t a fairy tale. It’s a fact. It’s incredible and beyond exciting.  As Old Testament believers once looked forward to the day the Messiah would come, believers look forward to the day Jesus will return to earth in glory. How magnificent that will be!

Christ Jesus, LORD OF LORDS, we bow in worship and praise You, King of Kings. 

Do you agree that our world is filled with a variety of gods to which we give our time, energy, and money? What kinds of gods? Sports gods, education gods, work gods, money gods, pleasure gods, political gods, and social gods to name a few. In effect, we worship them when they become the driving force in our life, occupy our thoughts, and even affect our mood.  However Jesus makes it clear in John 17:3 that there is only one TRUE GOD. He is to be the object of our love and passion. He is to occupy and control our thoughts, emotions, energy, and resources. We are to love the LORD with ALL our heart, and ALL our soul, and ALL our mind. (Mark 12:30)  And, importantly, as He states in John 17:3, He is the way to eternal life.  

This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only TRUE GOD, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. 

What or whom do we worship and therefore give power to in our lives?

In the last several years, there has been an increase in the number of people wanting to know about their ancestors. However, genealogy has always been important in the Bible. For instance, consider the first verse of the first chapter of the first book of the New Testament, Matthew 1:1.

The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”

Just in case someone might doubt Jesus’s rightful place as heir to King David’s throne, His lineage is recorded for the next twenty-five verses.  Yes, Jesus is the Son of God, but He is also the Son of David. Among the many important implications, it is important to recognize that Jesus knows what it is to live in human skin –  to need a nap, to feel tears roll down His cheek, and to thirst as He hung on the cross.  Jesus’s genealogy is well proved and we will one day see Him sitting on His throne.

Son of David, we praise You for willingly leaving Your heavenly home to put on flesh and live among us. We love and adore You.

I love to gaze on the glory of the moon. The moon – IS – something that exists. The moon – WAS – created by God in eternity past. The moon WILL BE in our tomorrows. It appears in different phases but it is still the same moon. So why would we doubt that Jesus is the LORD WHO WAS the creator, WHO IS self-existent in heaven and in our hearts, and WHO IS TO COME? On December 25, we celebrate the LORD who came in the past in the appearance of a baby. But Revelation 1:4 says, CHRIST is not only “HE is WHO IS and WHO WAS,” He is the LORD “WHO IS TO COME…” Think about it. Jesus is coming again!

Lord Jesus, WHO IS, WHO WAS, AND WHO IS TO COME, help us mindfully serve Your purposes until You return again!

Happy Thanksgiving, friends!

One of the things I love about the change in seasons is it’s such a reminder that whatever we’re experiencing or whatever we’re going through, it is just that – a season. It doesn’t mean that things are always going to stay that way. We must never feel stuck. 

I’d like to invite you to join me in a Thanksgiving blessing. Regardless of where we are – alone or with family and friends, whatever our circumstance, Psalm 136:1-9 points out the things for which we can be thankful. 

In this Psalm, after each statement of thanksgiving, we’re invited to join in a chorus and say, “For His lovingkindness is ever lasting.” So please join me after each statement and say, “For His lovingkindness is ever lasting.”

Psalm 136:1-9

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

Give thanks to the God of gods,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

To Him who alone does great wonders,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting;

To Him who made the heavens with skill,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting;

To Him who spread out the earth above the waters,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting;

To Him who made the great lights,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting:

The sun to rule by day,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting,

The moon and stars to rule by night,

For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

What a great truth from the Lord for us to remember during this Thanksgiving season when we may not have much else for which we can say, “I’m so thankful for this.” There are many things for which we may not be thankful. But for the things we just read as well as many other things, we can say, “Give thanks to the Lord for….”

During this Thanksgiving season, I invite you to join me in focusing our minds, hearts, spirits, and souls on that for which we can be thankful. 

We have a wonderful God who made the heavens and earth, who brings us the seasons that are a reminder that just as the seasons change, things in our life change. We can always know that God is constant, faithful, and above all rulers and all authorities. We we will one day see Him, and it will make this time on earth a blink in light of eternity. 

So, sweet friends, give yourself a hug from me and tell your Heavenly Father thank you for His loving kindness that is everlasting. 

God bless you and Happy Thanksgiving.