Beyond Ourselves
I Did it Again: Failed
I did it again: failed. I failed to pay attention to my thoughts. I failed to check them against God’s Word. I failed to return Jesus’s love by loving Him with all my heart, mind, soul, and strength. I failed to honor Him with my lips. Have you ever been there, done that? What happens when a Christian sins? Is God done with us? No.First Chronicles 16:34 and 1 Peter 1:25 tell us, “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever” and “His Word endures forever.” Every day God loves us. Every day, we can turn to His Word, the truth, and learn how to walk by it. If you, like me, did it again and failed God in some way, look to Him. He may not be smiling, but we have the opportunity to repent and see His smile again.
Heavenly Father and Lord Jesus Christ, thank You for Your enduring love and Word. Help us live it out in a reciprocal way with You and others.
A Time. A Place. A Person.
Does it seem surreal to think about being in heaven and seeing Jesus? For most of us, it probably does. The fact is, Jesus is a real person and at a real time in a real place we will see Him. In Isaiah 6:1-5, he describes his experience. “In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and EXALTED, with the train of His robe filling the temple.”
“I saw the Lord.” Let those words sink in.
There was a time – the year of King Uzziah’s death.
There was a place – sitting on a throne in a temple.
There was a description – lofty…exalted…the train of His robe FILLING the temple. How does that even happen?
There were others – Seraphim stood above Him. There was talking. The seraphim called out to one another, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.”
There was more talking – “And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke.”
Isaiah’s response was, “‘Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.’”
What will our response be in that time and place when we see the EXALTED LORD JESUS?
EXALTED Lord, we can’t imagine what it will be like when we see YOU. Our hearts tremble at the thought of Your majesty and glory. May our awe and reverence for You be lived out in our daily decisions and behavior… in anticipation of the day, time, and place we meet You.
When Life Stinks
Have you ever heard someone say, “This stinks!” Or, maybe you’ve said it. It’s a colloquialism used when something awful or suspicious occurs. If bad things repeatedly happen, the term might be broadened to “life stinks.” Instead of focusing on the foul, though, we have a choice to breathe in what Song of Solomon 2:1 refers to as the Rose of Sharon. Scholar Herbert Lockyer sheds light on why this is a reference to Christ. “Amongst flowers, the rose always and everywhere, with us now and still more in the East and of old, has held the foremost rank; and amongst the rose, the ROSE OF SHARON was chief. If a king were set over flowers, it would be the rose that should reign over them, being the ornament of the earth, the splendor of plants, the eye of flowers, the beauty of the field.” Christ’s title, Rose of Sharon, draws our attention to Christ’s splendor, heavenly fragrance, and beauty. When life stinks, stay extra close to Christ. Breathe in His fragrance.
Lord Jesus, You are the ROSE of SHARON; the fragrant aroma of heaven.Thank You for Your continual presence with us.
“I am the ROSE of SHARON, the lily of the valleys.” Song of Solomon 2:1
*Herbert Lockyer, “All the Divine Names and Titles in the Bible,” Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan, page 247.
Soak Your Soul In This
“You are RESPLENDENT...” Psalm 76:4
Prepare to Meet Jesus
Do you “clean up” before something important? Maybe we have a job interview, are going to a wedding, or out with friends. Do we bathe and put on clean clothes? Sure! We prepare for who we’re going to meet. One of Jesus’s beloved followers, John, tells believers that we should purify ourselves. But hasn’t Jesus already made us pure? Yes. We’re saved by faith in Christ’s completed work on the cross. But John makes a point. As children of God, we should eagerly anticipate meeting Christ and therefore desire to put off sin. If we knew that we’d meet Jesus in a few hours, what would we do? Right a relationship? Make an apology? Release a resentment? Shuck a bad habit? The fact is, we will soon be meeting Jesus. 1 John 3:3 tells us, “everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He (Christ) is pure.” Now is a good time for us to ask forgiveness for our sins and for the Holy Spirit to fill us.
Lord Jesus, You are PURE and we desire to be pure. Forgive our sin. Fill us with Your pure, Holy Spirit.
“Everyone who has this hope fixed on Him (Jesus) purifies himself, just as He is PURE.” 1 John 3:3
When You’re At the End of You
“I can’t be the Christian I’m supposed to be. I can’t overcome this sin.” Have you ever said those words? If we sometimes feel incapable of being the Christian we want to be, we’re not alone. The Apostle Paul, who was instrumental in helping spread Christianity, once referred to himself as the chief of sinners. Here’s the good news. God knows that we can’t live the Christian life by self effort. That’s why He reminds us in Galatians 3:5 that He’s provided us with His Holy Spirit. We don’t please God by trying to improve our old self. We please God by learning to walk by faith in Him. We’re not short on godly provisions. Instead of saying we can’t live the Christian life or we can’t accomplish what God’s entrusted to us to do, we can ask Christ to fill us and accomplish His work through us.
Lord, thank You for PROVIDING us with Your Spirit by whom we can walk and fulfill the work You entrust to us.
“…does He who PROVIDES you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?” Galatians 3:5
When You’re Tired of All the Lies
Have you ever promised something and then didn’t fulfill your promise? If you have, you know what a horrible feeling it is. Maybe we promised, “I’ll never say that again.” Then we did. Or, maybe we said to God, “I promise. If you’ll get me out of this mess, I’ll do better next time.” Then we failed to do as we said. Or, maybe we don’t trust people because they’ve made promises they didn’t keep. When it comes to God, however, Romans 4:21 assures us that what God PROMISED, He was able also to perform.” What a blessing to know that God speaks the truth and keeps His promises. In the midst of the world’s lying and cover-ups, it’s a great time for us to read our Bibles and God’s promises; ones we can be assured are true. Which of His promises are your favorites? Please comment below. I’d love to hear from you.
Heavenly Father, in our world that is filled with lies and cover ups, we praise You that You are a faithful promise keeper.
“being fully assured that what God had PROMISED, He was able also to perform.”Romans 4:21
Nobody’s Perfect!
Have you ever defended your bad behavior by saying, “Nobody’s perfect.” Or, has someone ever said to you, “Nobody’s perfect!” in defense of something they’ve done wrong? It’s a common response because it’s true. Nobody is perfect except Jesus. However, and this is a big however, our imperfections aren’t excuses to stay as we are. Rather, they’re signals for where we need to look to Jesus for His example and empowerment to change. For instance, in Matthew 5:48, Jesus doesn’t say, “Heh guys, give yourself a break. Nobody’s perfect.” Instead, He says, “Your Heavenly Father is perfect. You’re to be perfect.”
Heavenly Father, You are PERFECT. Thank You for the gift of Your Spirit who transforms us when we walk according to His power in us.
“’Therefore, you are to be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is PERFECT.’”