The disciples were alone in the storm for nine tempestuous hours. Long enough for more than one disciple to ask, "Where is Jesus? He knows we are in the boat. For heaven's sake, it was his idea. Is God anywhere near?"
And from within the storm comes an unmistakable voice: "Courage! I am! Don't be afraid!" (Matthew 14:27, literal translation).
From the center of the storm, the unwavering Jesus shouts, "I am." Tall in the Trade Tower wreckage. Bold against the Galilean waves. ICU, battlefield, boardroom, prison cell, or maternity ward--whatever your storm, "I am."
Christ comes astride the waves and declares the words engraved on every wise heart: "Courage! I am! Don't be afraid!"
Friday, September 25, 2009
Saturday, July 11, 2009
My Body is About Him
by Max Lucado
"Don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you?" (1 Corinthians 6:19 NLT). Paul wrote these words to counter the Corinthian sex obsession. "Run away from sexual sin!" reads the prior sentence. "No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body." (v.18 NLT).
What a salmon scripture! No message swims more up-stream than this one. You know the sexual anthem of our day: "I'll do what I want. It's my body." God's firm response? "No, it's not. It's mine."
Be quick to understand, God is not antisex. Dismiss any notion that God is antiaffection and anti-intercourse. After all, he developed the whole package. Sex was his idea. From his perspective, sex is nothing short of holy.
He views sexual intimacy the way I view our family Bible. Passed down from my father's side, the volume is one hundred years old and twelve inches thick. Replete with lithographs, scribblings, and a family tree, it is, in my estimation, beyond value. Hence, I use it carefully.
When I need a stepstool, I don't reach for the Bible. If the foot of my bed breaks, I don't use the family Bible as a prop. When we need old paper for wrapping, we don't rip a sheet out of this book. We reserve the heirloom for special times and keep it in a chosen place.
Regard sex the same way--as a holy gift to be opened in a special place at special times. The special place is marriage, and the time is with your spouse.
Casual sex, intimacy outside of marriage, pulls the Corinthian ploy. It pretends we can give the body and not affect the soul. We can't. We humans are so intricately psychosomatic that whatever touches the soma impacts the phyche as well. The me-centered phrase "as long as no one gets hurt" sounds noble, but the truth is, we don't know who gets hurt. God-centered thinking rescues us from the sex we thought would make us happy. You may think your dalliances are harmless, and years may pass before the x-rays reveal the internal damage, but don't be fooled. Casual sex is a diet of chocolate--it tastes good for a while, but the imbalance can ruin you. Sex apart from God's plan wounds the soul.
Your body, God's temple. Respect it.
"Don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you?" (1 Corinthians 6:19 NLT). Paul wrote these words to counter the Corinthian sex obsession. "Run away from sexual sin!" reads the prior sentence. "No other sin so clearly affects the body as this one does. For sexual immorality is a sin against your own body." (v.18 NLT).
What a salmon scripture! No message swims more up-stream than this one. You know the sexual anthem of our day: "I'll do what I want. It's my body." God's firm response? "No, it's not. It's mine."
Be quick to understand, God is not antisex. Dismiss any notion that God is antiaffection and anti-intercourse. After all, he developed the whole package. Sex was his idea. From his perspective, sex is nothing short of holy.
He views sexual intimacy the way I view our family Bible. Passed down from my father's side, the volume is one hundred years old and twelve inches thick. Replete with lithographs, scribblings, and a family tree, it is, in my estimation, beyond value. Hence, I use it carefully.
When I need a stepstool, I don't reach for the Bible. If the foot of my bed breaks, I don't use the family Bible as a prop. When we need old paper for wrapping, we don't rip a sheet out of this book. We reserve the heirloom for special times and keep it in a chosen place.
Regard sex the same way--as a holy gift to be opened in a special place at special times. The special place is marriage, and the time is with your spouse.
Casual sex, intimacy outside of marriage, pulls the Corinthian ploy. It pretends we can give the body and not affect the soul. We can't. We humans are so intricately psychosomatic that whatever touches the soma impacts the phyche as well. The me-centered phrase "as long as no one gets hurt" sounds noble, but the truth is, we don't know who gets hurt. God-centered thinking rescues us from the sex we thought would make us happy. You may think your dalliances are harmless, and years may pass before the x-rays reveal the internal damage, but don't be fooled. Casual sex is a diet of chocolate--it tastes good for a while, but the imbalance can ruin you. Sex apart from God's plan wounds the soul.
Your body, God's temple. Respect it.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Trusting God when there are no answers
after attending the funeral of a young woman, Gail, (Muriels daughter) who died from cancer, the 'UCB word for today' seemed appropriate.....
The secret things belong to the Lord... Deuteronomy 29:29
Life's losses leave us hurting and wondering. Cancer takes a young mother or father. Divorce strikes your happy home. Financial ruin devastates your retirement plans. A child goes to jail, is killed or commits suicide. Such times raise questions which are difficult, if not impossible to answer. We examine the circumstances again and again. We speculate about the details, searching for clues that might make some sense and make it easier for us to bear. We turn the spotlight on ourselves, others, even God, wondering what could or should have been done differently that might have prevented this. We turn to friends, fellow believers and pastors only to hear what sounds like religious platitudes and inadequate attempts to minimise our pain. When answers don't seem forthcoming and the heavens are silent, what should you do? Here are two Scriptures to help you in such times: 1) 'The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us' (Deuteronomy 29:29 NKJV). When it comes to understanding things, we have our territory, God has His. And ours is limited to what He decides to reveal. At that point you must 'Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding' (Proverbs 3:5 NKJV) 2) 'And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God...' (Romans 8:28). God may explain it to you, or He may not. But He's 'the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End' (Revelation 22:13 NKJV), which means, He has a plan and He's working it out for our good and His glory. So trust Him!
The secret things belong to the Lord... Deuteronomy 29:29
Life's losses leave us hurting and wondering. Cancer takes a young mother or father. Divorce strikes your happy home. Financial ruin devastates your retirement plans. A child goes to jail, is killed or commits suicide. Such times raise questions which are difficult, if not impossible to answer. We examine the circumstances again and again. We speculate about the details, searching for clues that might make some sense and make it easier for us to bear. We turn the spotlight on ourselves, others, even God, wondering what could or should have been done differently that might have prevented this. We turn to friends, fellow believers and pastors only to hear what sounds like religious platitudes and inadequate attempts to minimise our pain. When answers don't seem forthcoming and the heavens are silent, what should you do? Here are two Scriptures to help you in such times: 1) 'The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us' (Deuteronomy 29:29 NKJV). When it comes to understanding things, we have our territory, God has His. And ours is limited to what He decides to reveal. At that point you must 'Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding' (Proverbs 3:5 NKJV) 2) 'And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God...' (Romans 8:28). God may explain it to you, or He may not. But He's 'the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End' (Revelation 22:13 NKJV), which means, He has a plan and He's working it out for our good and His glory. So trust Him!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
'Are you a second miler?'
If someone forces you to go one mile, go...two... Matthew 5:41
In Roman times soldiers could make Jewish citizens carry their gear for a mile. But Jesus says: '"If someone forces you to go one mile, go...two."'
Max Lucado writes: 'We've a second-mile servant in our church. By profession he's an architect; by passion, a servant. Prior to each worship service he does his rounds through the men's restrooms...wipes sinks, cleans mirrors, checks toilets and picks up paper. He tells no one and requests nothing in return...Let me tell you how to spot [second-milers]. They don't wear badges or uniforms; they wear smiles. They've discovered ...joy in the extra effort...satisfaction in helping others...that the real reward rests at the base of the second mile-post... Why? Liberation! They've passed from slave to volunteer. When Mary anointed Jesus' feet, one-milers like Judas criticised the deed as wasteful. Not Jesus. He received the gesture as a demonstration of love, a friend surrendering her most treasured gift. There's an elderly man in your community who just lost his wife. An hour of your time would mean the world to him. Some kids in your city have no dad to take them to the cinema or football games. Maybe you can. They can't pay you back but they'll smile like a cheshire cat at your kindness. How about this one? Down the landing is a person who shares your last name. Shock them with kindness...your homework done with no complaints...coffee served when they awake...a love letter written for no special reason. Alabaster poured out 'just because.' Jesus chose the servants' quarters. Can't we?' John Gardner said, 'When people are serving, life is no longer meaningless.' You're not called to 'get by,' you're called to go 'above and beyond.'
In Roman times soldiers could make Jewish citizens carry their gear for a mile. But Jesus says: '"If someone forces you to go one mile, go...two."'
Max Lucado writes: 'We've a second-mile servant in our church. By profession he's an architect; by passion, a servant. Prior to each worship service he does his rounds through the men's restrooms...wipes sinks, cleans mirrors, checks toilets and picks up paper. He tells no one and requests nothing in return...Let me tell you how to spot [second-milers]. They don't wear badges or uniforms; they wear smiles. They've discovered ...joy in the extra effort...satisfaction in helping others...that the real reward rests at the base of the second mile-post... Why? Liberation! They've passed from slave to volunteer. When Mary anointed Jesus' feet, one-milers like Judas criticised the deed as wasteful. Not Jesus. He received the gesture as a demonstration of love, a friend surrendering her most treasured gift. There's an elderly man in your community who just lost his wife. An hour of your time would mean the world to him. Some kids in your city have no dad to take them to the cinema or football games. Maybe you can. They can't pay you back but they'll smile like a cheshire cat at your kindness. How about this one? Down the landing is a person who shares your last name. Shock them with kindness...your homework done with no complaints...coffee served when they awake...a love letter written for no special reason. Alabaster poured out 'just because.' Jesus chose the servants' quarters. Can't we?' John Gardner said, 'When people are serving, life is no longer meaningless.' You're not called to 'get by,' you're called to go 'above and beyond.'
Friday, June 05, 2009
The Cure for Disappointment
Don't ask God to do what you want. Ask God to do what is right.
When God doesn't do what we want, it's not easy. Never has been. Never will be. But faith is the conviction that God knows more than we do about this life and he will get us through it.
Disappointment is cured by revamped expectations.
I like that story about the fellow who went to the pet store in search of a singing parakeet. Seems he was a bachelor and his house was too quiet. The store owner had just the bird for him, so the man bought it. The next day the bachelor came home from work to a house full of music. He went to the cage to feed the bird and noticed for the first time that the parakeet had only one leg.
He felt cheated that he'd been sold a one-legged bird, so he called and complained.
"What do you want," the store owner responded, "a bird who can sing or a bird who can dance?"
Good question for times of disappointment.
When God doesn't do what we want, it's not easy. Never has been. Never will be. But faith is the conviction that God knows more than we do about this life and he will get us through it.
Disappointment is cured by revamped expectations.
I like that story about the fellow who went to the pet store in search of a singing parakeet. Seems he was a bachelor and his house was too quiet. The store owner had just the bird for him, so the man bought it. The next day the bachelor came home from work to a house full of music. He went to the cage to feed the bird and noticed for the first time that the parakeet had only one leg.
He felt cheated that he'd been sold a one-legged bird, so he called and complained.
"What do you want," the store owner responded, "a bird who can sing or a bird who can dance?"
Good question for times of disappointment.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
He chose to save you!
He saved others; himself he cannot save... Matthew 27:42
When the pastor introduced the visiting speaker, an elderly preacher walked to the pulpit and told this story: 'A father, his son, and his son's friend were sailing off the Pacific coast when a storm overturned their boat sweeping all of them into the ocean. Grabbing a rescue line, in a split second the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life - which boy to throw the other end to and which one to sacrifice. He knew his son had accepted Christ and his friend hadn't. Anguished, the father yelled, 'I love you son,' and threw the rope to his son's friend. By the time he'd pulled the boy back to the capsized boat his son had disappeared beneath the waves. His body was never recovered. The father knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus and couldn't bear the thought of his friend facing eternity without Christ.' At the end of the service a teenage boy approached the old man and said, 'That's a nice story, but what father in his right mind would sacrifice his son's life in hopes that the other boy would become a Christian?' 'You've got the point,' the old preacher replied, 'It's not realistic. But I'm standing here today to tell you that story gives me a glimpse into what it must have been like for God to sacrifice His only Son for us. You see...I was that father, and your pastor was my son's friend.' The Pharisees who watched Christ die said, 'He saved others; himself he cannot save.' And they were right; He couldn't do both, so He chose to save you. Today will you accept His offer of salvation?
When the pastor introduced the visiting speaker, an elderly preacher walked to the pulpit and told this story: 'A father, his son, and his son's friend were sailing off the Pacific coast when a storm overturned their boat sweeping all of them into the ocean. Grabbing a rescue line, in a split second the father had to make the most excruciating decision of his life - which boy to throw the other end to and which one to sacrifice. He knew his son had accepted Christ and his friend hadn't. Anguished, the father yelled, 'I love you son,' and threw the rope to his son's friend. By the time he'd pulled the boy back to the capsized boat his son had disappeared beneath the waves. His body was never recovered. The father knew his son would step into eternity with Jesus and couldn't bear the thought of his friend facing eternity without Christ.' At the end of the service a teenage boy approached the old man and said, 'That's a nice story, but what father in his right mind would sacrifice his son's life in hopes that the other boy would become a Christian?' 'You've got the point,' the old preacher replied, 'It's not realistic. But I'm standing here today to tell you that story gives me a glimpse into what it must have been like for God to sacrifice His only Son for us. You see...I was that father, and your pastor was my son's friend.' The Pharisees who watched Christ die said, 'He saved others; himself he cannot save.' And they were right; He couldn't do both, so He chose to save you. Today will you accept His offer of salvation?
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