We Are All Farmers

As I come out of our College of Prayer weekend, the question that stands out to me is simple: what do I need to empty myself of so that I can be filled with the life the Holy Spirit desires for me? Then God affirmed the question as I heard pastor Rick Warren speak about planting seeds and he poses the question: “What seeds do you want to plant this Spring?” 

Somewhere between emptying our lives of things that hinder our spiritual life and being filled with the things the Holy Spirit can only provide is our active farming. We are constantly planting some kind of seed—good seeds and bad seeds. Not only that, as Rick Warren reminded me through his message, other people plant seeds in my life whether or not I am aware of that.

Seeds are powerful! They always generate a harvest of some kind. So the question for us today is what kind of seeds am I planting? I confess I never thought of springtime as an opportunity to consider this question, but it makes sense from an agricultural point of view. You can think of it in terms of plating seeds in your life or planting seeds in other people’s lives. And the question applies to every aspect of life:

• Health

• Relationships

• Finances

• Integrity

• Career

• Spirituality

• Parenting

• Singleness

• Service

• Etc.

I appreciate Rick Warren’s thought as he emphasizes the importance of the seeds we plant: “Sow a thought you reap an action; sow an action you reap a habit; sow a habit you reap character; sow character you reap a destiny.”

So before you jump to follow every desire that drives your soul this Spring, give time to consider this significant question.

Now it is important to consider the extent of our planting. The way the apostle Paul puts it: “Now I say this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows generously will also reap generously.” (2 Co 9:6). So the second question we need to ask is this: Am I sowing sparingly or generously? How I plant determines the level of harvest I will reap.

There is no harvest unless a seed is planted. And the extent of the harvest I reap is determined by whether or not my planting is generous or sparing.

Wouldn’t it be great to take some time and ask God during these days to lead us as we consider these two questions:

What kind of seeds am I planting?

Am I planting generously or sparingly?

May God help us become better and more generous farmers so that our lives and the lives of others can be filled with the things our Father (the vinedresser, John 15) longs to fill us with!

—Diego Cuartas

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

A Pause

Well, I finally got my first Covid shot! Aside from being almost 90, I can check many of the comorbidity boxes, so I guess it was time. And it signals the possibility that these past miserable months may really be coming to an end.

My daughter, with whom I live, is a NICU nurse at INSPIRA, and because of my extreme vulnerability and her exposure to new mamas who might be ill, she shipped me off to Ohio to stay with my son. I love all my sons and daughters, but I was there for months, and my life came to a virtual halt. I’m sure that many of you experienced the same things I did: I won’t bother to list them.

When I came back to New Jersey, some of my dear friends did come to visit me; they on the outside, and me on the inside mostly, and I was so glad to see them, and to talk to others on the phone. But of course because of my vulnerability I didn’t go ANYWHERE. And without my really being aware of it, it began to get to me.

I am really not a negative person; my children have often tired of my”Pollyanna” approach to things, but I recognized that I had little interest in going anywhere or doing anything. I realized that it must be depression!

One result of being as old as the hills is that I rarely pray results, except, of course, when asked to. I figure that God is not sitting up there waiting for me to give Him instructions. I pray for people. But I knew I needed something. He is my Father, He loves me. He knows me. To the best of my ability, I know Him. He didn’t want me like this.

So I looked inside myself, searching for the empty spot where something was missing. And it was so clear; it was JOY! I had no joy! I’ve had three knee replacements, so I can’t kneel, but God knows all about that, and He heard me anyway when I said, “God, give me JOY!” Because He did! Right then! I could FEEL His presence so strongly! And I remembered what I know clearly, that joy does not depend upon circumstances; it depends upon a relationship, with our God, who loves us even beyond our own understanding.

The Lord says I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and protect you.  So rejoice in the Lord and be glad, all you who obey Him! Shout for joy, all you whose hearts are pure.  Psalm 32, v.8, 11

—Norma Stockton

Do Not Neglect Such Great Salvation!

We all have heard at some point or another phrases like these: “Do not take it lightly”, “Make the most of it”, “Do not take it for granted” when referring to a vacation, a marriage, the job, a career, a relationship, a new opportunity or an experience.

But what do we hear in these verses? “Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.” Or “ How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” (Hebrews 2:1, 3). 

During my recent birthday I was meditating on these statements and the context where they are found. As I did that I was filled with gratitude and worship toward God. Something about recognizing that God created me not only to experience the universe He has made, but within that He wants me to experience salvation! He made me so that I could know Him and be enthralled with every aspect of who He is.

But I did paused for a moment and asked myself, “Why the exhortation to not neglect this great salvation?” Here is what I found. This great salvation has been presented by the Trinity—God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. These three are involved in this great salvation.

The Son proclaimed the message to human beings and that message, we are told, has been attested by those who heard it (2:3b)

The Father bore witness through signs, wonders, and miracles (2:4a).

The Holy Spirit made distributions of gifts and supernatural manifestations according to His will (2:4b).

We can’t ignore the fact that this salvation we have experienced by grace is a big deal. It is glorious in nature. Everyone in the Trinity has participated to make a point: salvation is the work of God!

To seal this reality, we are given a sobering reference point to consider. Read if for yourself and take a moment to think about it:

“For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” (Hebrews 2:2-3).

The punch line: if the message given by angels was “reliable,” how much more will the message given by Jesus in the flesh and substantiated and confirmed by the Father and the Holy Spirit demand our whole hearted attention and devotion? The stakes will be higher for us who have received this great salvation by the administration of the Holy Spirit. 

Because God’s salvation is magnificent and glorious, we should consider any ounce of neglect on our part the most absurd choice we could ever make. 

Lent is a season to marvel at this reality. If you need more pointers, I encourage you to read the rest of the book.

—Diego Cuartas

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

The Last Few Days

I do not speak because I have need, for I have learned in whatever state I am to be content.

Philippians 4:11

So I sat here at my computer for quite a while asking the Lord to show me what He wants me to write about - reading through some verses, chapters and posts from others. Over the past few weeks I knew I was going to write soon, so I thought about what I could possibly write about. Things would happen and I would immediately see God’s fingerprints are all over whatever happened and thought maybe I could write about that. Then the memory does what it’s very good at: forgets things. This age thing I’m going through is not really a welcomed journey. To feel like I’m 20 and have trouble getting out of the car. How can I be ok with that?

So where I’m going with this is that I’m going to share a few things I heard over the past few days and share the importance of how those little things I picked up on affected me.

The first one was from Saturday night at worship rehearsal when we played a song just to loosen up: “Rock of Ages.” Wow, did that do it. But I was singing along on this one, “There is no rock, There is no god like our God.” AMEN! Purely a reminder that pursuing God and getting to know him better should be our top goal each day. I’ll be humming that song all week.

The second one was when I heard someone say, “Sounds like Peter when he sunk in the water.” Well, that discussion was all about feeling distant from God. It’s so true, when one’s heart drifts from following Christ and goes after things the heart desires, sinking starts to occur. Remember, Peter cried out to Jesus, but it was Jesus who reached out to Peter.

The third was when I was driving to work and listening to a Vlog where the commentator was discussing the prosperity theology with a pastor and how it is exactly opposite of what Paul says in Philippians, “I have learned in whatever state I am to be content.” Content. The dictionary says it’s the state of being satisfied. I went to a thesaurus and was really surprised that the opposite of content is a whole bunch of negativities. Not one semi-positive word was given.

As I sat here thinking about something to write, the experiences of the past few days that came to mind shed light on something pretty powerful. I’m confident that if I wasn’t following the Lord that I would not have had these reminders of Biblical truths. In other words, If I was living in my own power, I would have missed everything above. There’s an importance to being around our church family and others who are following Christ, around family who loves us and guides us.

Press in to see those God-moments. He really wants us to see them.

And I’m content with 30 minute drive to work - that’s two Vlogs or better yet, 3-4 chapters of the Bible.

I hope you have a great day!

—Brian Rainey

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Sweet Dreams

As a little girl, I lived in a magical world of imagination and make-believe. What glorious days I spent with my dolls in the attic, creating sweet stories of maidens in distress and knights in shining armor, of beautiful and forgotten Cinderellas and rescuing, handsome Prince Charmings.

But nighttime was a different story. That overblown imagination of mine wreaked havoc in the dark. I suffered from terrible nightmares almost every night.

My very resourceful and creative mom came to my rescue….not one of my imaginary cavaliers dashing in on his noble, white steed. She would sit with me on my bed and gently caress my arm and my forehead until I was awake. Soothing me with her quiet words and kisses, she would whisper softy, “I brought the Sweet Dream Drops.” She then would unscrew a little glass bottle and, with her fingertip, place a droplet of the potion on my pillow. Eagerly, I would roll over on my side so I could get my nose nearer the spot. The delightful aroma filled my head and I would sigh with relief. Before too long, I would slip into a peaceful sleep.

Don’t you wish there really was a secret formula that would make all the scary things in life disappear like that? I sure do. But as an adult living in this fallen world, I have sadly come to realize that many of us truly are living, not sleeping, in the middle of many different kinds of very real nightmares. And there isn’t a bottle of anything big enough to bring us the peace and rest and comfort we desperately long for.

Recently, we hosted a marriage retreat featuring Dr. Paul Tripp and a series called The Marriage of Your Dreams. Nearly forty couples, couples of all ages and stages, gathered to listen and learn from this pastor, speaker, writer, and counselor. As I looked around the room, I couldn’t help but wonder if some of the couples, once expectant and smiling brides and grooms, were in fact living out their marriages with fear and trembling, caught up in a painful bad dream. I prayed Dr. Tripp would have words to help them, to help all of us.

For those who attended, here is a mini reminder of what we all heard, God’s words, I think, for navigating our marriages. For those of you who did not attend, here is my big take away.

I thought one of the most astonishing things Dr. Tripp said during the course of the weekend was that it is a miracle that any marriage survives. Not what I was expecting to hear. But he reminded us that marriage is basically the union of two broken, sinful people living in a very broken, sinful world trying to live together in the most intimate and intense of all human relationships—and somehow making it work. At the very least, marriage is difficult. For every couple. Not the stuff of our childhood dreams for sure. And not at all what we expected standing at the altar. 

But, Paul Tripp reminded us, God knows that. The fact that we struggle for harmony in our marriages didn’t catch Him off guard. In fact, He uses our difficult marriages for something great and glorious and good. Isn’t that just like Him?

And besides that, Dr. Tripp wanted us all to remember we are not alone. What we have is so much better than a magic potion.

We have God, the Designer of Marriage, the Comforter, the Healer, the Rescuer, the King.

If we’re God’s children, He wants so much more for our marriages than we can imagine, so much so that He in His loving kindness has “unzipped” us and placed the Holy Spirit inside us to live. We are not left to our own frail and faltering resources. The Warrior Spirit has the power to defeat what we cannot and to achieve what we cannot.

Galatians 6 seems to say there are two ways we can live in our marriages. We can walk in the flesh, held hostage to the evil that still lurks in us and trust our own will power, OR we can wisely walk in the Spirit, choosing to move in alignment with the Father’s character and plans, and He will gift us with love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness, self-control—the stuff of the marriages of our dreams. Don’t we all want marriages and relationships overflowing with these graces? Seems like a no brainer.

Jesus died to make this our potential. He died not just to secure forgiveness for our sins but also to deliver us from them here and now. Jesus died so that we as His children would be transformed. He doesn’t want us to just settle for the mess we have created in our homes by choosing our own selfish ways or by simply learning to negotiate each other’s bad days. We can do better. Our Savior is exercising His powerful grace through the Spirit inside us to change us. That’s His plan for us. When we walk in the Spirit, we must understand that is His goal.  

And how does He do this? He uses our marriages! Do you see the interconnectedness of this, the beauty of His plan? God wants the best for us—His definition of that, not ours. The “best” we would choose for us would be selfish comfort. But God wants more for us, so He wisely puts us in the comprehensive relationship of marriage and uses the struggles in it to transform us. The conflict and poor communication we experience bring to the surface our flaws and weaknesses, blind spots that need attention. When we choose to walk with Him in this process, to walk in the Spirit, we make our purposes His purposes. We say we want to go in the same direction as our Redeemer. We learn to desire to be changed and cooperate with Him, recognizing that even the painful circumstances, the nightmares of this life, are not wasted. God is all about turning even these into something good and useful, tools in His hands as He molds us into the likeness of His dear Son. The Spirit He has given us, living in us, provides everything we need to let Him do His work.

For example, I am incapable of loving Kenny like I should, so I pray each day that God will help me love him. I know that is God’s plan. He wants to show Kenny His love through me. So I look for ways to do it. My job to love Kenny must be more valuable to me than being right or having peace. As I do this daily, especially when he is not so lovable and I am not so willing, God invades our mess by His grace and grows us to a brand new way of living. He gives me what I lack. He promises me He is near. We are growing and changing and He graces us with His gifts of love, joy, peace, gentleness, and patience…all His precious graces, all things we long for in our home.

To have the marriage of our dreams, we must let our marriages with their inevitable struggles and nightmares continue to refine and rescue us and make us more like Jesus, cooperating with the purposes of God and leaning on the indwelling power and presence of the Holy Spirit for help each day. Who knew the way to have the marriage God desires for us, the marriage I really want too, is to let the sometimes hurtful issues of that very marriage change us into the persons He wants us to be? Seems counter-intuitive…

Please don’t be discouraged if you are in the beginning or middle of His work in your marriage. Trust His good plan even when it hurts or seems impossible. He desires to accomplish something beautiful and is committed to defeating selfishness and transforming you. He gives grace. He gives strength. He gives hope.

Your God is big. He is faithful to complete the work He started in you.

The marriage of your dreams may be on the horizon.

You don’t need Sweet Dream Drops.    

 —Eileen Hill

Seven Pounds of Guilt

Seven Pounds (Columbia Pictures, 2008), starring Will Smith and Rosario Dawson, is summarized by the Internet Movie Database like this (here): “A man with a fateful secret embarks on an extraordinary journey of redemption by forever changing the lives of seven strangers.”

IMDB.com gets this mostly right. An anguished man with a secret—huge spoiler alert coming!—has, with the help of a friend, hatched a plan to identify seven individuals whom he finds worthy of benefiting from his body parts, after he commits suicide.

This is the strange impetus that drives the plot of Seven Pounds. It’s what makes the film both loved and hated, depending on your demographic. Meaning, if you get paid to rate films, you generally hated it; if you don’t, you generally loved it.

Specifically, by a roughly three-to-one margin, the professional critics panned it. On the other hand, everyday audience members loved it. That is, Rotten Tomatoes, here, shows that 195 critics gave it an overall score of 27 percent, while over six-hundred thousand non-paid viewers gave it a score of 75 percent. Hundreds of thousands more people freely offered their generally positive opinion than the relative handful who were paid to review the film.

* * *

Regardless of who you are, I believe one thing about film and film-making: to understand the medium, one has to understand what’s beneath the visuals of the story and maybe even the story, itself. The result of that may have nothing to do with what you’re watching, yet everything to do with it.

For example, Steven Spielberg’s E.T: The Extraterrestrial (Universal, 1982) appears to be about an alien boy stranded on Earth and befriended by a non-alien boy named Elliot. However, as Spielberg told Roger Ebert, in 1997, “From the very beginning, 'E.T.' was a movie about my childhood—about my parents' divorce” (for more on that, see Ebert’s page, here).

So, on the surface, the narrative gives us E.T., a boy who must phone home. But just below the surface is separation from the family unit and the grief and anxiety that the separation generated. These are the aspects of life that the Apostle Paul might call common to man (I Corinthians 10:13, NASB); they are universal experiences illustrated by the story-teller. The narrative is just the placeholder for those common-to-man experiences.

With this in mind, the jury may be out on the film Seven Pounds. This is because the film doesn’t touch on something universal, as Spielberg’s E.T. had done. It instead considers something philosophical. It conveys two interdependent ideas that three quarters of its unpaid critics appear to agree with. It first says that for one to die for another individual is a good and noble thing; it then says that the laying down of one’s life ought to only benefit those who are worthy of the ultimate sacrifice.

Seven Pounds tries to be Spielbergian. It tries to tap into a universal truth—namely, that to lay down one’s life is beautiful. And the film wonderfully illustrates how such a selfless act can forever impact the life of another—or, seven others, as in this film.

The film delivers a corollary to this truth. Namely, that to make the sacrifice worth it, it ought to only be made on behalf of those who are good; it should only benefit the truly deserving.

The film’s screenwriter, Grant Nieporte, must have believed that, in this, he was simply relating another universally held belief. His story’s protagonist—Ben Thomas, played by Will Smith—believes that only a good man (or woman) ought to receive the gift of life being offered to them. We see this in a portion of dialogue that Ben has with a man named George, to whom he would donate a kidney:

George: You know, Ben, I keep asking you this but why me?
Ben: Because you are a good man.
George: No, really.
Ben: Even when you don't know that people are watching you.

This same thought is seen again, as Ben talks with Emily, to whom he would donate his heart: 

Emily: Why do I get the feeling you're doing me a really big favor?
Ben: Because I get the feeling that you really deserve it.

Nieporte and Thomas—and, I assume, Will Smith—seem to believe that the beneficiaries of an ultimate sacrifice must be worthy of that sacrifice. I believe that they also thought they were conveying something which the majority of the public had also thought, along these same lines, if the film’s approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes is any indicator.

But God has another opinion. As Paul writes to the Romans, Christ didn’t die for those who had lived good lives and were therefore worthy of his sacrifice. No; instead, he died for the sinners (5:8), as every one of us are such (3:23), and for the ungodly (5:6).

While the film Seven Pounds attempts to confirm the supposed universal idea that ultimate sacrifice requires worthiness, the maker of the universe had another idea. Instead, he flipped that thought on its head and changed the economy of that contract from one of worthiness to that of worthlessness.

The economy of God says that none are worthy of benefitting from his Son’s ultimate sacrifice, yet all are invited to participate, anyway. Worthiness has actually been taken out of the equation, altogether. As Matthew Henry puts it (here), Christ didn’t die for the “good” (as Ben told George) or the deserving (as Ben told Emily), but for the ungodly among us; He died for the:

helpless creatures, and therefore likely to perish, but guilty sinful creatures, and therefore deserving to perish; not only mean and worthless, but vile and obnoxious, unworthy of such favour with the holy God.

Moreover, Henry says that we are “enemies,” “traitors and rebels, in arms against the government.” We were of “carnal mind.” He says that we were “not only an enemy to God, but enmity itself.” We were not only unworthy of the sacrifice of Christ, we were totally and completely worthless.

Yet, we were—and are—those for whom Christ died. He died for us vile and obnoxious ones.

C.S. Lewis seems to have anticipated Seven Pounds and its viewpoint on sacrifice and worthiness. He must have understood the idea’s pervasiveness when he mentioned the valiant nature of the sort of thing that the film’s Ben Thomas had done. Lewis says that, “As St. Paul writes, to have died for valuable men would have been not divine but merely heroic; but God died for sinners”(1).

* * *

Ben Thomas, dying for the lives of seven others was merely heroic. He died for valuable men and women, donating his heart, eyes, kidneys, and lungs, so that others might see and live.

Our Lord’s death, on the other hand, was beyond heroic. It was divine. It was such because it refused to consider the worthiness, godliness, or guilt of those for whom the sacrifice was made. Whereas, in the film Seven Pounds, it was Ben Thomas’s guilt that had motivated him to go through with the sacrificing of his life in the first place (he had accidentally killed seven people, as he texted while driving).

Christ laid down His life not because of any degree of worthiness on our part. Instead, He knew how unworthy we were and laid down His life, anyway. In this case, the guilt belonged to the beneficiary of the sacrifice and not the one who had become the sacrifice.

Jesus’ motivation was not guilt, but love—His love for a people who had gone astray: namely, all of us (Isaiah 53:6). He was so motivated by love that He, “for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame” (Hebrews 12:2) in order to bring us into His presence.

* * *

My philosophy of life is that everything in life is a lesson. And I see two lessons here.

The first is the lesson of Seven Pounds, that sacrifice like Ben Thomas’s is merely heroic; the second is that of the New Testament: we need to consider how we might be more like Jesus. With those two thoughts in mind, then our directive for this day is that, as we lay down our lives for the King, we ought to think about how we can be more than heroic.

We are not and we cannot be divine, but we have the divine God living in us. As we follow Him, with His Spirit within us, He will direct us to the ungodly, to the unworthy, and speak to us about how to sacrifice ourselves, to lay ourselves down, so that we might love them into the Kingdom.

This is our mission. This is why we’re still here: so we can love the obnoxious into the Kingdom. You and I were worth the blood of Jesus. Likewise, those around us are worth loving—not because of who they are, in themselves, but because they, too, are those for whom Christ died.

In the film Seven Pounds, Ben Thomas literally gives the woman he loves his heart, that she might survive a soon-to-be-fatal cardiac condition. This is, for us, but a weak metaphor for what God has done for us through His Son: He has given us His heart, so that we might do the same—that we might, in turn, give our hearts to Him.

This is the message of the Gospel. It’s a message worth dying for. At the very least, it’s the message that we can sacrifice a part of ourselves to every day, as we’re directed by God. There are plenty of unworthy ones around us, in days like this. Even during a pandemic.

* * *

1. C.S. Lewis. “Membership.” The Weight of His Glory and other addresses. 1946. Harper Collins. Hat Tip: Pastor Greg Hill.

—Kevin Hutchins

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Everlasting Peace

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. - John 14:27 

The peace Jesus gives is not of this world. I pray the Spirit of God will help us define, pursue, and take hold of the peace that God gives while avoiding the entrapments of the peace offered by the world.  

In reading John 16:33 we see that Jesus and the world offer different types of peace. Before we go any further, it is imperative to recognize that the world does offer peace. Jesus does not deny this. Instead, He clearly states, “I do not give to you as the world gives.” It is crucial to understand that there is a peace that comes from the world that does not come from God. Lacking this understanding, I fear many wrongly attribute their current peace to God in vain. The roots of their folly will be exposed by the storms of life. May His Spirit reveal the type of peace we are seeking. 

The world’s peace is skillfully marketed and promoted by the prince and the power of the air, a.k.a. the devil.  He markets this peace to men, knowing the sinful, worldly desires of our flesh. He offers us a peace that can be earned; therefore, our flesh craves it. The one who earns this peace will definitely make a good name for himself. For some, signs of this peace may include large mansions, beachfront vacations, and hyperbolic chambers. However, many more pursue this counterfeit peace without ever catching it. It is crucial to recognize the incredible internal and external influencers selling this type of peace so we may be careful to avoid its enticing bait and snare. May we take a closer look at this peace that the world gives. 

The peace the world gives is based on circumstances. A circumstance is a situation or condition.  Furthermore, circumstance is defined as one’s state of financial or material welfare. This worldly peace is the one you will find most people working and praying for. It is the one God is often praised for though this peace is not from Him. This peace is ushered in with familiarity, predictability, and independence. It is the peace of a settler, one who establishes one’s own kingdom on earth. In Genesis chapter 11 we find an example of people searching for this kind of peace. 

“And it came about, as they journeyed east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar and  settled there. Then they said to one another, “Come, let’s make bricks and fire them thoroughly.” And they used brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar.  And they said, “Come, let’s build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let’s make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of all the earth.” 

Here we see people who, after the chaos of the flood, seek peace. They want to settle down and make a home for themselves of the world. They don’t want to travel anymore. They see no need for further movement. Their goal is to get their circumstances just right so that they are satisfied and protected by the work of their hands. They endeavor to build themselves a dwelling that will be heaven on earth. This is the peace the world gives. This peace, at its best, is temporary and ends in everlasting torment. May God never give us our desires for this worldly peace that seeks self-exaltation. 

In contrast, in the next chapter of Genesis, we see God offering a different peace, His peace, to a man named Abram. God calls Abram to leave His settled life and follow Him, trusting that God himself will be his shield and great reward. In Genesis 15:6 we read that Abraham “believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.” This is the difference between the peace of God and the peace of the world: 

The peace the world gives changes with circumstances. The everlasting peace of God comes from knowing you have been made right with God in Christ. 

In the fourth chapter of Romans it is written, 

No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. - Romans 4:20-25  

I can imagine Jesus saying to Abram, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Abraham stored his treasure in Christ by trusting in God’s promises. In Hebrews 11 it is written of Abraham, 

“By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” 

Like Abraham, God offers us a peace that grows when we trust in His promises. Unlike the world’s peace, this peace cannot be forfeited with the change of a circumstance. The Scriptures reveal to us that unshakable peace comes from beholding the glory of God in the person of Jesus.   

This peace comes not from peaceful circumstances, but from being made right with God.   

Mercy and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed. Truth  shall  spring out of the earth, And righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yes, the Lord will give what is good; And our land will yield its increase. Righteousness will go before Him, And shall make His footsteps our pathway. - Psalm 85: 10-13 

The peace Jesus gives is the peace that remains when comfortable circumstances turn uncomfortable. It is the peace that testifies that He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world. This is the peace that comes from knowing Jesus, our Savior, is Lord of all.   

Are you seeking peace by taking hold of the world, by settling down, by storing up treasures on earth or do you find peace by journeying with your Shepherd through this world into the very presence of God? You must put down the world’s peace to take hold of His. Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.  

In Christ, 

—Roger Garrison 

 Further verses for encouragement: Isaiah 26:3; Numbers 6:24-26, John 14:24, John 16:33 

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

They Call it Murmuration

It is the beauty of starlings flying in close proximity to one another.  If you've been lucky enough to see it in person, it will fill you with wonder and a sense of joy. They are a pulsating, shape-shifting, work of living art. Scientists  have been observing and trying to grasp how starlings fly in such tight formations without falling from the sky, victims of many mid-air collisions.

Some have suggested that there is some telepathic signal that the flock gets from one leader. Through the years, advances in technology have given us a better picture of what is going on.  

I recently read a small article at the website, Howstuffworks (https://animals.howstuffworks.com/birds/starling-murmurations.htm), that caused me to think about the implications for Spiritual Family. In his post there, John Donovan gives us the results of a study that may have unlocked the secret of our little friends who paint the sky as they swam for protection in the evening. He quotes researchers who said,  "In a flock with 1,200 birds, it is clear that not every bird will be able to keep track of the other 1,199 birds, who is keeping track of whom?” He then goes on to explain that “Italian physicists used more than 400 photos from several videos to find out, plotting the position and speed of birds as they flocked. From that, they built a mathematical model that identified the optimal number of flock-mates for each bird to  track.

Turns out the magic number is seven: Each bird keeps tabs on its seven closest neighbors and ignores all else. Considering all these little groups of seven touch on other individuals and groups of seven, twists and turns quickly spread. And from that, a whole murmuration moves.”

Mario Pesendorger, a researcher at Cornell, draws three points that are causing me to think about my relationships and how I think of spiritual family. He observes:

“individual birds are concerned with only three aspects of their flight and the flight of those around them."

An attraction zone: "Which means, in this area, you're going to move toward the next guy.”

A repulsion zone: "Which means, you don't fly into his lane, otherwise you both fall.”

Angular alignment: "So you got to kind of follow his [a bird's neighbor] direction.”

“Depending on how you change those three parameters," Pesendorfer says, "you can get everything from those barrel-looking baseballs that you get in ocean fish, to loose-looking insect swarms, to highly, highly organized fish swarms and murmurations. All in those three little parameters.”

So, how do the insights gained from the study of murmuration help us as spiritual family?

Simply put, it might encourage us to consider deeply that, as a church, if we want to paint beautiful pictures on the chaotic skies of our current culture, we would do well to identify that smaller family of strange birds with whom we will fly in close proximity and mutually support. Finding them, doing life together, enjoying one another and letting Father build a network of families out of us.

Perhaps, then, we can enjoy liquid and mesmerizing flight for all to see.

—George Davis

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

What is Repentance?

In a week when we are focusing on the theme of repentance, as part of our 40-Days of Prayer emphasis, it is important that we expand our understanding of what it means to repent. Is repentance a feeling? Is it an attitude? Is repentance saying no to something that has enslaved us? I want to share with you this week three quotes Josh Etter, from desiringGod ministries, shares in a short post he released a few years back. I encourage you to take your time to read each quote and ask the Holy Spirit to show you how He may want to adjust your understanding of repentance. Click here to access the three quotes.

—Diego Cuartas

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Be Positive

As the new year has begun, and because last year was difficult, I have been hearing people state they wish everyone to “be positive in the new year.” Maybe make it a new year’s resolution. Well, I’m going to tell you something about me right here. Years ago I made a resolution to never make another new year’s resolution. I just don’t do it. If I need to change, then and there I commit to make the change and do my best to make it happen. It could be July.

Hmm… what about this “be positive” thing? I want to share something with you that our discipleship group went over this past summer. We read Jude. We went over and dug into the things in Jude. There is a theme throughout it that takes “be positive” to a level we should really consider.

Jude 1
3 Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. 4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

14 It was also about these that Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” 16 These are grumblers, malcontents, following their own sinful desires; they are loud-mouthed boasters, showing favoritism to gain advantage.

A Call to Persevere

17 But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.
18 They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.”
19 It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.
20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,
21 keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.

I really feel that Jude wrote this concerning the church; today it’s called “progressive theology.” There is a lot of negativity and troubled times in verses 3-4 and 14-16 above. There are a whole lot of these descriptions in the world around us too. We see it everywhere. Shopping, work, news, government, schools etc. The turning point of the book is verse 20. BUT YOU, BELOVED!! (that’s us!), All the earlier things are negative, and after verse 19 is the positive.

“building yourselves up in your most holy faith” – encouraging others, that’s positive
“praying in the Holy Spirit” – Yes, that’s positive.
“keep yourselves in the love of God” – Yes, that’s positive. This is what I would say is a lifestyle that involves embracing Jesus without letting go. “Keep yourselves IN the love of God” doesn’t say “keep yourselves near the love of God”

Philippians 4:8-9    “Apostle Paul’s list” – all positive. 
8 Finally, brothers, whatever things are true, whatever things are honest, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue, and if there is any praise, think on these things. 9 Do those things which you have both learned and received, and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

We embrace what we constantly think about.

So, what am I doing about it? About a month ago I started to listen to the Bible on the way to and from work. 35 minutes each way. (Ok, it was a November resolution…lol). It doesn’t happen every trip, but it does happen. When someone reads scripture to you, you hear things a little differently than if you hear yourself in your mind reading it. It positively is opening my heart to a love of scripture.

In life’s situations, I’m seeing the positive more than I’m seeing the negative. That’s the God of peace being with me. Changing me.

I hope you have a great day!

—Brian Rainey

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Christmas Eve Every Day

In the little devotional for December 24 in Our Daily Bread, James Banks retells one of my all-time favorite and true Christmas stories. I think it’s worth repeating here—even if you read it last week. It’s just that good! I hope you agree.

On a cold Christmas Eve in Belgium in 1914, the sound of singing floated from the trenches where soldiers were dug in. Strains of the carol “Silent Night” rang out in German and then in English. Soldiers who earlier in the day had been shooting at each other laid down their weapons and emerged from their trenches to shake hands in the “no man’s land” between them, exchanging Christmas greetings and spontaneous gifts from their rations. The ceasefire continued through the next day as the soldiers talked and laughed and even organized soccer matches together.

The Christmas Truce of 1914 that occurred along World War I’s western front offered a brief glimpse of the peace the angels proclaimed on the first Christmas Eve long ago. An angel spoke to terrified shepherds with these reassuring words: “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.” Then a multitude of angels appeared, “praising God and saying ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.’”

We still need peace today. Not the kind of temporary or conflict-avoiding peace the world tries to sell us. We need the joyous peace the angels proclaimed that first Christmas Eve. It is both something we receive and something we pursue.

Jon Bloom from Desiring God explains.

The Bible calls Jesus the “Prince of Peace” (Isaiah9:6). And the Prince of Peace, the Son of God, said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9). How far did the Prince of Peace, the Son of God, go to make peace with us? To the death. Jesus made peace between us and God “by the blood of his cross” (Colossians1:20). When we were still sinners (Romans 5:8).

How far should the sons of God go to make peace? To the death. What does that mean? It depends on the nature of the conflict. But at the very least it means, “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you” (Colossians 3:5). It means, “Love one another with brotherly affection” and “outdo one another in showing honor” (Romans 12:10). It means, “Bless those who persecute you,” “live in harmony with one another,” “never be wise in your own sight,” never “repay . . . evil for evil,” and “do what is honorable in the sight of all,” never seeking revenge when wronged, treating our enemies with graciousness and compassion, and, so far as it depends on us, living “peaceably with all” (Romans 12:14-21).

 After accepting the incredible personal gift of peace Jesus gives us, our peace with God, it seems to be a crazy kingdom irony that we then have to fight—to strive— so hard for peace around us, for peace among us. But that is what the author of Hebrews insists we do.

This is what it looks like to “strive for peace with everyone” (Hebrews 12:14). Most of the time, when a conflict is brewing, we should assume it is avoidable and do everything to pursue peace. We should assume the best of the other(s) and assume we are misunderstanding something or being tempted by warring passions. We should not enter into conflict as such until we have clear confirmation that it is unavoidable in the biblical sense. And even then, we speak the appropriate truth in the appropriate form of love, whether it be tough or tender (Ephesians 4:15). Peace requires a rigorous, disciplined commitment to being quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.    

This is hard. Like all forms of spiritual endurance and warfare, we must strive. We must die. But this kind of dying to make peace is blessed. It’s what sons of God do. And God’s reward to his peacemaking sons will be out-of-this-world wonderful.

It will be like that 1914 Christmas Eve miracle.

Someone took that first step into no man’s land that wintry night. Someone extended their hand in friendship to their sworn enemy first.

I’d like to think that “someone” was a son of God, a humble peacemaker who had come to personally know the peace of God through the redemptive work of Jesus, the Prince of peace. So on that lonely, war ravaged field, he remembered the message of the angelic hosts. He remembered he was a peacemaker. He had peace from God to share.

In the midst of a broken, painful, miserable situation, even for an only brief season, there was peace.

May we find—and create—those precious moments of peace in our families, in our neighborhoods, in our work places, and in our church.

After all, we know the Prince of Peace.

In fact, we are His sons and daughters.

May your new year be filled with His incomprehensible and overwhelming peace.

—Eileen Hill

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Schindler’s Christmas List

Video essayist Jack Nugent, on his YouTube Channel Now You See It, refers to the film Schindler’s List (Universal, 1993) as “The story of the color red.” I’d like to consider this thought and how the Bible can be viewed in the same light.

In this Christmas week, as we see poinsettias at home and in the malls—if we’re brave enough to venture out—we ought to consider how red is used as a visual in the Bible, in much the same way it is used in this film (and others). If we comprehend its significance, we can better understand the season we’re now in.

* * *

If you’ve seen Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List, you know that it is filmed almost exclusively in black and white, not color. However, it is bookended by two scenes filmed in color.

 These scenes include a Jewish family gathered for prayer and the lighting of two candles, as well as the epilogue, showing current-day Jews laying stones and a rose on Oskar Schindler’s grave, in Jerusalem. The film also includes two pivotal scenes where the color red represents a turning point in the heart of the businessman who would save nearly 1,200 Jewish lives, during World War II.

Spielberg makes conspicuous use of red in these middle scenes. It stands out in a predominately black and white film much more so than, say, the woman in red, in The Matrix; Dorothy’s ruby red slippers, in The Wizard of Oz; or the red doorknob in The Sixth Sense. It is not merely one color among many, as in these other films, but the only color to be seen, at this point in the film.

So, the director is obviously making a deliberate choice to use that color. In so doing, he demands his audience consider his use of it and its meaning.

As Jack Nugent says, “Schindler’s list perfectly embodies all the symbolic uses of red: its origins in fire and blood; the religious significance developed from pagan rituals, all the way to Christianity; and the harnessing of the color’s dual meaning”—i.e., that of life, passion, and love, as well as death, horror, and punishment. (See Nugent’s essay, “The Meaning of Red in Movies,” here).

When we see red in the middle of this mostly black and white film, it is attention-getting. It screams to us of what is happening: not in the visible world, but in the invisible heart of the man who would become savior to many.

We see red in the coat of a three-year-old girl, just as Oskar Schindler witnesses the liquidation of the Krakow, Poland ghetto. This is the point in the film where the Jews, already rounded up from within and around Krakow and placed into the ghetto, were forcibly removed from their homes to be murdered—either there, on the spot, or else in Auschwitz, after being loaded onto nearby cattle cars. Schindler sees the girl separating herself from the crowd; we see her re-entering an apartment building, and hiding under a bed.

This is also the point where Schindler—who may, up until this point, have viewed the Jews as a collective workforce—began to view them as a collection of individual lives worth saving. This journey toward understanding began, from Schindler’s point of view, as he lay perched above the city, on horseback, witnessing Krakow, Poland’s Kristallnacht, or The Night of Broken Glass, as it has come to be known, and took note of the girl in red.

Schindler’s journey ends when he later sees the lifeless body of the same girl being hauled away on a cart, to be burned along with many of her former family members and neighbors. There, she is no longer the representation of lives about to be extinguished. She has become the symbol of the lives that will be lost unless Schindler does more than merely employ them in his enamelware factory. This is why he is horrified, grief-stricken, as she is carted off toward the flames, right before his eyes.

As the film begins with red, the last color seen in the last burning candle on the Jewish family’s table, it concludes with red, as shown in the red rose placed on Oskar Schindler’s grave. If the color red were a thread pulled tight, it would be center-stitched into the blood-red heart of Schindler, in the scenes mentioned above, where the girl in the red coat is burned onto the conscience of the man who would save many from the Nazi holocaust.

* * *

As Schinder’s List may be considered a story of the color red, so may the Word of God. Some consider this the Bible’s Scarlet thread.

In many instances, the Bible includes the color red as an important thematic element contained in the story of man’s fall and redemption. In this context, red is used to convey the same things seen in Schindler’s List: life, passion, and love, as well as death, horror, and punishment.

Judah and Tamar were to have twin sons. Zerah, about to be delivered, held out his hand but was brought back into the womb, to be replaced by his brother Perez. The momentary appearance of Zerah was marked by a scarlet thread tied to his wrist by his mother’s midwife, indicating he had been replaced by his twin brother Perez, the ancestor of Jesus (Matthew 1:3).

Scarlet is also mentioned as belonging to the temple, where the ritual sacrifices were made, and as belonging to the priests, those who performed the sacrifices. “You shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns” (Exodus 26:1, ESV). “And they shall make the ephod [apron / breastplate] of gold, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and of fine twined linen, skillfully worked” (Exodus 28:6, ESV).

Before the Israelites took the city of Jericho, spies were sent in. They were later given refuge and safe passage out of the city through a window in Rahab’s house and let down the city wall by a scarlet thread. This was the same scarlet thread used to tell Joshua, when they reentered the land, that she hadn’t told the authorities they were there, earlier, and to remind her that she and her family would be kept safe from the invading Israeli army.

This red sign marked Rahab’s family safe from the death and destruction to come upon her family. It was a reminder of how the scarlet red markings on the doorposts of the Israelites had marked them safe from the death angel about to ravage Egypt, killing all of its firstborn.

The scarlet thread of Rahab extends back to the Exodus and beyond, all the way to the garden, where animals were sacrificed by God, covering the sin of Adam and Eve. It extends forward to God’s ultimate sacrifice, that of His Son, sent to redeem mankind. It includes the scarlet worn by Jesus’s uncle Zacharias, clothed in the same ephod of his ancestors, as he performed his priestly duties in the temple, the year that Jesus was born.

* * *

This brings us back to where we had started: the Christmas story. As with the twins, Zerah and Perez, the Lord, whose arrival is heralded by “a multitude of the heavenly host” (Luke 2:13), does something similar. He ties a scarlet thread around the wrist of those willing to recognize that He is their substitute on the cross, for the punishment they deserve, even as Perez was substituted for Zerah.

As with Rahab, we had been prostituting ourselves with the ways of the world. But we are now rescued by the scarlet blood of the lamb, He who had been slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8). He who could not be sacrificed unless He was first born to a woman and placed in a manger (Luke 2: 7,12,16) extends the scarlet thread of Rahab toward us. He does so that we might be rescued, saved from the destruction that will ultimately come upon the world—much as it came upon Jericho, with every wall of separation torn down and every loved one who would be saved forever rescued from eternal devastation.

The scarlet thread is woven throughout the fabric of the Bible. It tells us how the love of God reaches out to the lost and rescues them, giving them life in place of death. It speaks of how God’s great passion redeems His people from death and the horrors of eternal punishment. It is seen in the garden, the lineage of Jesus, and the redemption of the gentiles. It is visible in the temple, the priests, the blood-loss coming from Mary in her delivery of Jesus, and in her Son’s death on the cross.

Oskar Schindler, a flawed and fallible man, rescued hundreds once he looked to the scarlet threads woven into a young girl’s coat, once he permitted her plight to work its way into his heart. Jesus, our perfect and infallible Savior, whose birth we remember this week, wants to take the plight of lost humanity and work it into our hearts this Christmas. He asks that we might comprehend the message of the Scarlet Thread and convey it to others, that they, too, might be rescued.

* * *

Shall we, the rescued, not take the Scarlet Thread’s message, the Gospel, to those in desperate need of it, this season? Perhaps we need an epiphany, as Schindler had, when he saw the certain death facing the Jews and permitted his heart to be moved, so that he might rescue them.

If we haven’t had such a moment, we need to ask God to provide us one. The eternal lives of one or two, or perhaps hundreds, depends on such a moment being birthed within us.

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Weary of 2020? What to do?

This week I want to invite you to consider Clarissa Moll’s blog on this relevant question. She posted a blog yesterday in the Gospel Coalition website. In answering the question of what to do if you are weary and exhausted coming to the end of the year 2020, Clarissa invites us to do more than get good rest, though that might be necessary. Her insight was refreshing to me, and I hope it is to you as well. To read her blog click here.

—Diego Cuartas

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Noisy Cows and Goats

Long ago, after the Jews had gotten out of Egypt, there was a woman named Hannah who begged God for a son. God blessed her, and she did have a son, and this was Samuel. Hannah promised God that she would dedicate Samuel to Him. After he was weaned, she took him to the temple and left him with Eli, who was a judge over Israel for 40 years. Samuel helped Eli with his work, and was very close to God.

But the people saw that all the surrounding nations had kings, and they decided they wanted a king, too. So God showed Eli the man He should appoint as king, and that was Saul, the first king of Israel.

Now, when the people were traveling from Egypt, one of the countries they passed, Amalek, treated them poorly, and God told Saul to take his army and destroy every Amalekite and everything in their country. After this war, Samuel went out to meet Saul as they returned from battle. But Saul had gone to the town of Carmel to build a monument to himself! And God spoke to Samuel and told him that He was sorry He had ever made Saul king, because Saul had not been loyal to Him and refused to obey God’s command! Samuel was very upset and the next morning went to meet Saul. Saul was very proud of himself, and bragged about how he had obeyed the Lord’s command! But Samuel demanded,

“Then what is all the bleating of sheep and goats and the lowing of cattle I hear?!

And Saul answered, “It’s true the army spared the best of the livestock, but they are going to sacrifice them to your God! We destroyed everything else! And I brought back King Agag!”

But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the Lord;

                                   your burnt offerings and sacrifices

                                  or your obedience to His voice!

                                  Listen! Obedience is better than sacrifice,

                                  and submission is better than offering

                                                      the fat of rams

                                  Rebellion is as sinful as witchcraft,

                                       and stubbornness as bad

                                      as worshiping idols.

                                 So because you have rejected the

                                       command of the Lord,

                                He has rejected you as king.”  

Well…how does this apply to me? I’m not a king. I don’t have a Samuel to tell me what God wants me to do.

No, but I have far more than Samuel ever had. I have Jesus Christ, who sent me the Holy Spirit! And I have my blessed Bible, which provides me with all the instruction I will ever need! MY problem is this: when I KNOW what God wants me to do, will I find a reason to do it a little differently? Or a little later? Or with the wrong attitude? Or with any one of a number of changes that are more appealing to ME?

Obedience, I sometimes find, is as hard for me as it is for my precious little great-grandsons.

—Norma Stockton

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Her Prayer, Our Foundation

Mary, did you know? Every year I hear that song around the Christmas season, and the song reminds me of good questions we can ask Jesus’ mother. This year, however, as I read Luke 1, I have a new question for her: Mary, did you know that your prayer reveals so much about who God is?

This is what Mary prayed in her desire to magnify the reality of God:

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

    and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.

    For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;

for he who is mighty has done great things for me,

    and holy is his name.

And his mercy is for those who fear him

    from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm;

    he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;

he has brought down the mighty from their thrones

    and exalted those of humble estate;

he has filled the hungry with good things,

    and the rich he has sent away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel,

    in remembrance of his mercy,

as he spoke to our fathers,

    to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”

I have identified at least 10 realities Mary’s prayer reveals about God: (perhaps you will find more!)

1. God saves!

2. God considers the humble.

3. God is mighty—He does great things for us.

4. God is Holy.

5. God is merciful toward those who fear Him.

6. His strength is often quiet—He has scattered the proud in their thoughts.

7. He brings down the “mighty” and exalts the “humble”.

8. He fills our hunger with good things.

9. He remembers mercy—even when we fail to be faithful to Him.

10. He speaks through each generation!

While this year, 2020, has shaken up so many things about our existence and even take up lives with it, I find that the more I reflect on God’s character, the more I want to see Him magnified, exalted over my thoughts, interpretations, and even feelings. 

If Mary was here today perhaps she would ask us, “Did you know that your God and Savior is like this…? 

May the Spirit of the Lord give us clarity to know Him as He wants to be known in this season.

—Diego Cuartas

I Wish You Could Sit Here

Psalm 6

No, Lord! Don’t condemn me. Don’t punish me in your fiery anger.
Please deal gently with me, Yahweh; show me mercy, for I’m sick and frail.
I’m fading away with weakness. Heal me, for I’m falling apart.
How long until you take away this pain in my body and in my soul?
Lord, I’m trembling in fear!
Yahweh, return to me and deliver my life because I know your faithful love is toward me.
How can I be any good to you dead?
For graveyards sing no songs.
In the darkness of death who remembers you?
How could I bring you praise if I’m buried in a tomb?
I’m exhausted and worn out with my weeping.
I endure weary, sleepless nights filled with moaning, soaking my pillow with my tears.
My eyes of faith won’t focus anymore, for sorrow fills my heart.
There are so many enemies who come against me!
Go away! Leave me, all you troublemakers!
For the Lord has turned to listen to my thunderous cry.
Yes! Yahweh my healer has heard all my pleading and has taken hold of my prayers and answered them all.
Now it’s my enemies who have been shamed.
Terror-stricken, they will turn back again, knowing the bitterness of sudden disgrace!

This past week was quite difficult in a lot of ways. I don’t want to dwell on the details, but issues with my health and the side effects are reaching an overwhelming height. And this past Saturday was the height of it. All I could think about was that I want to go home, but there was a darkness about it as if the enemy was smiling. I was to run sound at church, so I was out the door early Sunday and on my way to the church. Ah.. A new day. Then these feelings of failure, frustration, anger were coming back, and I just wanted to give up. But I pushed on to get to church. I could just picture the enemy saying, “No. No. No. Don’t go there.”

While driving, I was praying and said to Jesus, “I wish you could sit here and talk to me.” As I pulled up to the church, it was early. Pastor George was in the driveway looking at something before everyone was showing up. He drove over to where I was parked, and he could tell by something I did that something wasn’t right. He jumped out of his vehicle and came over to me. We talked for a minute or so and he prayed with me. I told him what I said to Jesus just minutes before that, and George asked God to reveal Himself to me in the best way that He knows that I need to hear from Him.

I went inside and after a few minutes Pastor Greg was asking me how I was doing. I guess he sensed I had been teared up from the parking lot with Pastor George. Greg told me he would be praying for me. After the band practiced, we assembled at the front of the church. We always read a Psalm and have prayer time before the first service. We read a chapter a few times, pray it over the church, pray for the church. We started to read Psalm 6 around the group, and my verses were 6 and 7. “I’m exhausted and worn out with my weeping. I endure weary, sleepless nights filled with moaning, soaking my pillow with my tears. My eyes of faith won’t focus anymore, for sorrow fills my heart. There are so many enemies who come against me!” This was me. Exactly me. I was choking up in tears. The writer was right where I was. God was talking to me. The Psalmist goes on “Go away! Leave me, all you troublemakers! For the Lord has turned to listen to my thunderous cry.  Yes! Yahweh my healer has heard all my pleading and has taken hold of my prayers and answered them all.”

Pastor Greg prayed for the people of the church who are feeling the effects of what Brian read. No one but God Almighty could have orchestrated the meeting between me and Pastor George in the parking lot and then to read the two verses out loud that I could relate to so well. As the service went on, I could see in the message if I was to give in to the disappointment that I thought would happen and the frustration of having to deal with my issues while doing my responsibility at the church, then that day I would have missed out on God revealing Himself to me, His answer to my prayer. I’m sure He won’t show Himself to me, because of Faith and Hope. As we see Jesus face to face, our Faith and Hope will disappear. He knows in this life we need both Faith and Hope, and until that day, I’ll have to be ok with that.

Yes, it was another day, a day where God showed Himself right with me. Through perfect timing, people, prayer, scripture, and a message. Through the church where I’m sure the enemy wants us to run from.

Lord, thank you for the blessings through Your power, Your word, Your people, Your church.

—Brian Rainey

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

A Grateful Reed

This little devotional by Max Lucado was for me this week. Maybe the ugliness bombarding us at every turn has you feeling pretty beaten up and black and blue these days too. Please read on.

Is there anything more frail than a bruised reed? Look at the bruised reed at the water’s edge. A once slender and tall stalk of sturdy river grass, it is now bowed and bent.

Are you a bruised reed? Was it so long ago that you stood so tall, so proud?

Then something happened. You were bruised…

By harsh words

By a friend’s anger

By a spouse’s betrayal…

The bruised reed. Society knows what to do with you. The world will break you off; the world will snuff you out.

But the artists of Scripture proclaim that God won’t. Painted on canvas after canvas is the tender touch of a Creator who has a special place for the bruised and weary of the world. A God who is the friend of the wounded heart.

An excerpt from a Desiring God article, A Bruised Reed He Will Not Break by Sam Allberry, continues this theme so well.

Only Jesus can demonstrate ultimate strength and then apply that same unique strength in the most tender ways. The same Jesus who has the power not only to throw down tables in the temple courtyard, or to expel demons from the possessed, or even to call a dead man out of a grave — this Jesus also has the capacity to show tenderness to those who are most delicate and fragile. We’re told in Matthew’s Gospel:

“He will not quarrel or cry aloud,
     nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets;
a bruised reed he will not break,
     and a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory;
     and in his name the Gentiles will hope.” (Matthew 12:19–21)

There was none stronger than Jesus. He was fearless before those who opposed him. He never once hesitated to say what needed to be said, even when he knew it would provoke violent opposition. He confronted those who needed to be called out. And he claimed victory over sin and death. This was no weak man.

And yet, in Jesus, enormous strength does not lead to insensitivity. The capacity to challenge and confront doesn’t lead to unnecessary conflict. He doesn’t stomp over people. He can crush a serpent, but he can also hold the most delicate in his care. We are reminded of what Isaiah said about the God who would be coming for his people:

Behold, the Lord God comes with might,
     and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
     and his recompense before him.
He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
     he will gather the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them in his bosom,
     and gently lead those that are with young. (Isaiah 40:10–11)

The arm with which this God effects his mighty rule is the same arm which gathers up the lambs. The God who can level mountain ranges and topple superpowers is the same God who carries the weakest and most tender close to his heart.

Isaiah’s prophecy looks forward to one who will not break a bruised reed (Isaiah 42:3). That is not because Jesus is a pushover. He is not soft. He knows how to apply strength to vulnerability. Think of all the things he could break and you begin to see the wonder of what he won’t break.

Part of the wonder is that Jesus is able to combine what we so easily separate. In our experience those who are gentlest tend to lack strength and force when it is called for, while those who are strongest tend to lack the capacity for gentleness and restraint. But Jesus exemplifies perfect gentleness and awesome strength. No one is crushed by mistake. There is never any friendly fire or collateral damage.

This combination is why he is such a good Savior to turn to. He is strong and mighty to save: he can take on the strongest of our foes and always be certain to prevail. No spiritual force arrayed against us stands a chance of surviving. And yet he is unspeakably delicate and careful with us. There is no wound or vulnerability he doesn’t understand or handle with the utmost care. He is someone we can trust with our most tender bruises and fragility. He will not be clumsy with us. He won’t steamroll us. He can apply his unimaginable strength to us with affection and sensitivity.

In a fallen world like this, all of us are people who have both sinned and been sinned against. Some of this will have left us with deep wounds that seem unfathomable even to us, let alone others. But Jesus knows us fully and understands us entirely. He loves us more than we love ourselves. He is even more committed to our ultimate joy than we are.

In our pain and confusion, in our weakness and mess, we come to him assured that he alone is trustworthy. He has the power and capacity to help us, and the tenderness and care to want to. We can trust him with our deepest pains and bruises. There is none more fearsome, but none gentler.

Our God is a friend of the wounded heart.

Doesn’t that give you incredible hope?

Doesn’t that compel you to cry out with humble gratitude to our compassionate and caring Father?

Isn’t this posture a fitting way to begin to this Thanksgiving season?

It is for me…

—Eileen Hill

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

Election Results We Can Count On

According to the mainstream media, the election is over and we have a new president-elect. Others would say we’re still in a grey zone, where some electoral intrigue might still occur. In this timeframe, during the month of December, deadlines have to be met:

·  The 8th: Resolve all election disputes at the state level.

·  The 14th: Electors (of the electoral college) vote by paper ballot in each state and the District of Columbia; the votes are certified.

·  The 23rd: Certificates are delivered.

As of this writing—Tuesday, the Tenth of November—the legal team representing one of the candidates will be disputing the election results. They will use this time, possibly through that second deadline (December 14th), to challenge the vote tallies in a number of states, hoping to find the electoral votes that would send their candidate across the finish line, much as Al Gore had attempted to do, twenty years ago.

So, from a certain viewpoint, the election of one week ago is not exactly settled.

* * *

What is exactly, definitively, and forever settled are the elections result of the Kingdom of God. There, our heavenly Father has chosen who would be His. He has chosen who would fulfill His messianic purposes for all time and who would fulfill His Kingdom purposes in specific times and places.

When the Bible speaks of election, it does so in a sense very similar to what we the people had done on election day: it describes the free choice made by one person to appoint another to operate in a position not before held, or to enter something not before seen.

When we read of “the elect,” we’re reading of those chosen by God. When we read of “election,” we’re reading of the choice that God has made in those He wants, or has wanted, to become great people and to do great things for Him and His Kingdom.

God’s word mentions the elect (or election) twenty-seven times, four of which are in the Old Testament (all in Isaiah). The forerunner is, of course, Jesus, our Savior. The prophet says of Him:

Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. (42:1, KJV)

It says further on in Isaiah that Jesus would bring justice to the nations—not by shouting or crying out, or raising His voice in the streets. He would do so through faithfulness; He would be called in righteousness and be made a covenant and a light for the gentiles, opening blind eyes and setting captives free.

All of this would occur because Jesus was elected by God to hold messianic office for all time.

 Every remaining instance of the word elect—or a form of the word, in Hebrew (בָּחִיר / bâchîyr) or Greek (ἐκλεκτός / eklektos)—refers to the church. It refers to you and me as the chosen ones, the elect of God.

Also in Isaiah (45:4), we’re told that we, as Israel, are God’s elect (as Paul tells the Galatians, it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham, what he calls “the Israel of God.” See 3:7 and 6:16). The prophet says that we shall inherit God’s mountains (65:9) and shall, as His elect, enjoy the work of our hands (65:22) in that place.

When we get to the New Testament, staring with the gospels, Matthew and Mark tell us that His chosen, His elect, should expect rough days ahead. He says that “except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved” and “but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened” (Matthew 24: 22).

Mark quotes our Lord, saying that God’s chosen should be careful whom they follow, for “false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect” (13:22).

Paul mentions election five times in his letter to the Romans, alone. Since God is He who justifies, he says, “who can lay a charge against God’s elect?” (8:33). He says that God’s purposes stand—according to His choice, His election—not because of our works, but because of God’s calling (9:11).

Paul reminds us that, even as a remnant of Israel had remained faithful, we are among the remnant who stand, today, because of what he calls the election of grace—that is, God’s grace working in us so that we comprehend His election (His choice) to give up his Son as an intercessor, on our behalf (11:5).

Two verses later, he says that this election, this choice that God made, opens up avenues for us not open to Israel. And in chapter eleven, he says that we are beloved—as a result of God’s election to pursue us through the Son.

God leads by example. He demonstrates the nature of love, showing us that, above all else, it is a choice. This is the meaning of God’s election.

Paul also considers election when writing to the Colossian church, to the Thessalonian church, to Timothy and Titus, reminding them the elect are responsible to “put on holiness, mercy, kindness, humility, meekness, and longsuffering” (Col 3:12) and that he endures “all things for the sake of the elect” (2 Tim 2:10).

The Apostle Peter is just as sure to remind his readers of the election of God, the choice our Father made to pursue those who had been wayward and who are now His. He confirms Paul’s word to them, saying they were elect “according to the foreknowledge of God the Father” (1 Pet 1:2), that they were, as Jesus, “elect and precious” (1 Pet 2:6).

* * *

Much more could be said on the subject of election, to include such esoteric terms as the Calvinist Reformation’s view of Conditional Election, vis-à-vis Unconditional Election. This is a debate that has been raging since the death of John Calvin in 1564, one that I’ll leave for the theologians to discuss.

To me, the important point to remember is that God chose us to be a part of His Kingdom. God elected you, He elected me, to join him. And, according to John 3:16, we have a choice in the matter: whosoever would believe in Him can accept that offer of grace to join Him in His Kingdom.

For my part, I’d like to not only join Him, but to play as active a part as possible. Would anyone like to join me?

Who would like to be elected to this office of active citizenship in the Kingdom of God? The offer has already been made; it’s now up to you to either become a citizen or to decide you’ll focus all of your internal energy to the Kingdom’s purposes.

* * *

If you’re downcast, as a result of last week’s election results, take heart. God cast His ballot in your favor from before the foundation of the world, and His vote counts much more than that of any American voter.  

His election needs to be, and to always remain, the focus of our attention. His vote counts more than any earthly voter’s.

He chose you to receive grace upon grace, so that you would know that you are among the elect of God. Rejoice in this day, knowing that you are His.

Grow, as He gives you the opportunity, in the knowledge of His grace and the assurance of His having chosen you to be among His very own—for He has a very specific Kingdom purpose for you in this very place and in this time. No one else can accomplish that purpose but you!

You are chosen by God to hold this office. Specifically, you have been elected by God to hold the office of ambassador, or representative, of the Kingdom of God; you are called to be a minister of reconciliation, “as though God were making his appeal through [you]” (2 Corinthians 5:20).

You are uniquely qualified. If you make your party platform that of the Kingdom of God, you will never be disappointed. You will succeed.

“Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails” (Proverbs 19:21).

 —Kevin Hutchins

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational

Serve, Celebrate and Kiss!

This blog may not be what you are thinking of. I could not resist to pick three verbs that as humans we are all well familiar with—serve, celebrate, and kiss. And can you believe these are three verbs one king used in the past to advise other kings?

Psalm 2 is a perfect passage to read and meditate on when it comes to election time and after leaders have been elected. 

Even though the author of Psalm 2 is not identified, the Psalm is attributed to King David in Acts 4:24-26. This is the advice King David has to offer other Kings (verses 10-12):

Therefore, you kings, be wise;

    be warned, you rulers of the earth. 

Serve the Lord with fear

    and celebrate his rule with trembling.

Kiss his son, or he will be angry

    and your way will lead to your destruction,

for his wrath can flare up in a moment.

    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

King David exhorts other kings to serve the Lord with fear, celebrate the fact that God is sovereign, and to kiss the Son of God because He, the Son, has the power to execute judgements. King David wraps up his exhortation with the affirmation that anyone who takes refuge in the Lord is a blessed person.

What is the alternative highlighted here for a king—leader—of any nation? Very simply: any king who does not serve in this way will be left to his own “ways” which will lead him to destruction.

So in our day, our president, congress, senate, supreme court, governors, mayors, freeholders, and any other leader in between, would be exhorted by King David to do their work with this perspective in mind. Whatever you do, serve the Lord with fear (this will keep you from relying on your understanding). Whatever you do, celebrate the fact that God rules (this will keep you humble as you regard the authority God has over everything). Whatever you do, kiss the Son of God (this will position you to receive every blessing Jesus secured at the Cross on your behalf). This too will attest to the fact that your affections and honor are directed toward the Son of God.

We can pray before, during and after the election for our leaders. That they will be given grace to serve the Lord with fear, celebrate God’s sovereignty, and kiss the Son of God!

May God help them. May God help us to pray for them.

—Diego Cuartas

*Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.

The Year Twenty Twenty, So Far!

And such a year, which began early with a gift from China: a very contagious plague! No thank-you note for this one! I live with my daughter Joyce, who is a NICU nurse at Inspira. NICU nurses do not only take care of babies in the NICU. They also go to deliveries, interact with parents, doctors and other nurses and are very exposed to whatever is going around. So she was of course concerned with what she might bring home to me, because I check every box in the list of who is most susceptible; I’m over-weight; I have a pace-maker; I have COPD with 24/7 oxygen (a real pain in the neck). And I am 89. My kids decided that I would be safer if I went out to Ohio to stay with my single son for at least a few weeks. So I did, and was there from early March until late May. I dearly love all my kids, and I loved being with him, but I really missed my life here in Pittsgrove, and all my friends at church. And I found that being quarantined became depressing.

In the Our Daily Bread devotional book, Great Is Thy Faithfulness, author Dennis J. Dehaan wrote of an old legend that tells of an angel who was sent by God to inform Satan that all his methods to defeat Christians would be taken from him. The devil pleaded to keep just one. “Let me retain depression,” he begged. The angel, thinking this a small request, agreed. “Good!” Satan exclaimed. He laughed and said, “In that one gift, I have secured all.”

So he got me, and I surely struggled with this destructive emotion. I found so many things I wanted to do, that I couldn’t do. I saw things that others did, but because of my quarantine status, they were closed to me. I was not happy.  I certainly agreed that as far as Covid-19 was concerned, the cure very truly could be worse than the disease.

But God (two of my favorite words in the Bible) didn’t leave me there. I asked Him to make me, and others in my condition, too, strongly feel His love and guidance for us all. And His Spirit kept reminding me to stop feeling sorry for myself and to think of and pray for others who might well be in a far worse state than mine!

I am still mostly quarantined. But I’ve laid it all at Jesus’ feet, as He told me to do. I trust my Savior. I only want His plan for me.  And that does not include being captured by depression. That is not my natural disposition at all! But I found that even Pollyanna types like me may sometimes need an attitude adjustment. I did, and I got one!

— Norma Stockton

 *Please be advised that this blog represents the views, opinions and beliefs of the writer and does not necessarily reflect those of our church leadership or denominational affiliation.