To Be Reconciled

Romans 5: 10-11

For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom we have now received the reconciliation.

When I reconcile my checkbook to the bank statement, if there is any discrepancy, it's my checkbook I change, not the bank statement.

And when we are reconciled to God, it is we who are changed, to become more like our Lord God. 

God does not change. We do. We must adjust our thinking, our attitudes, our very lives, to conform to His ways. 

O my Father, You are so good to us to show us Yourself and Your ways. Your ways, Father, are not our ways. Our ways focus on ourselves, and are selfish and self-centered. Your ways, Father, show us that our focus needs to be redirected to be on others, not ourselves.

O Father, I know that my own flesh draws me away from loving others the way You have loved me. My own heart lies to me when I feel hurt, or lonely, or deprived in some way. Help me, Father, to take my focus off of my own circumstances and see the needs of others around me. 

You are so generous with me, Father, out of Your great riches in glory, and I thank You so much for Your tender care for me. Since You care for me, help me to care for others. 

Teach me how to trust You so much that I won't need to focus on my needs at all, knowing that You are caring for me. Free me, Father to care for others, and to show them by my life and attitudes how You care for them, too. 

Continue to reconcile my thinking processes and attitudes to conform to Your ways, Father, not the World around me. You began this good work in me, and You will continue to perform it until I am perfected on that Day our Lord and King returns to rule. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Favor In His Sight

Exodus 33: 13

Now therefore, I pray Thee, if I have found favor in Thy sight, let me know Thy ways, that I may know Thee, so that I may find favor in Thy sight.

Moses is saying that if God sees him favorably, then teach him Your ways so that Moses will get to know God; then he will be able to be a person God will find favor with. 

So it's an upward spiral.

O may I find favor with God, to learn of His ways, to get to know Him better, and find favor with Him. That I be continuously on that upward journey.

May all Your children, Father, continue to seek Your face, learn of Your ways, get to know You better every day, and find favor in Your eyes. And to recognize the favor and blessings You lavish on all of us every day.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Rahab The Harlot's Faith

James 2:25

And in the same way was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works, when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 

So what was her faith that was justified?

Joshua 2: 11

...The Lord your God, He is God in Heaven above and on Earth beneath. 

So Rahab knew and believed that the God of Israel was the real God, not any of the idols they worshipped in the land. Because she believed, that's why she protected the spies who came to her "hotel."

Thank You, Father, for the gift of faith to believe You. Thank you that You draw people to Yourself through Your Son, our Lord Christ Jesus, to give them this faith. Thank You that the faith You give us is strong, and that You use our testimony along with the Blood of the Lamb of God to gain the victory over the evil one. 

Thank You for giving us all the stories of those in Scripture who believed in You in opposition to the obstacles in their way, and trusted You over insurmountable barriers. 

And thank You for putting Rahab's story in the record so we can get to know her. And You even put her into the very genetic line of Your Messiah for us. Proof that You change us fundamentally when You save and redeem us.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Strife Or Cooperation?

Romans 13: 13

Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy.

We are to live our lives as in full daylight, not doing the kinds of things people do at night, like: 

"Carousing and drunkenness" is the kind of partying that is destructive; 

"Sexual promiscuity and sensuality" is all the sexual and sensual things people do to pleasure and please their bodies at the expense of their souls and characters; and 

"Strife and jealousy" is all the competitveness in our relationships instead of working together in concert with one another, focusing on their positive qualities to build them up and encourage them.

There's nothing wrong with partying, Jesus loved to go to parties. But He never did do anything at parties that would be unhealthy to His body, or injurious to anyone else. He used these festive occasions to invite people into relationship with Himself, to present His Kingdom. The Lord's table in His Kingdom will be the biggest party ever! 

And the sexual act, the "one flesh" of marriage, is a beautiful sharing between a husband and a wife. Our enemy has twisted the concept into unrecognizable forgeries and divorced it from marriage, which is very destructive deception. 

Neither strife nor jealousy has ever helped anyone in either their emotional life or their relationships. How much better is cooperation and recognizing the different ways God has gifted us with varied abilities and propensities, to admire in one another and encourage each other. 

Whenever someone is jealous of another's skill or ability, they are neglecting their own skill or ability with which to serve and bless someone else. And it's always more fun to give than to receive. 

God designed this World to work on the basis of our loving one another, as He has loved us. When we understand what real love is, we realize that it is a sacrificial wanting the very best for the one loved regardless of the cost to ourselves.  So when we love one another, we'll not think twice about doing for another what might be very costly to ourselves in time or energy or finances, because they have a need.

And we will be humble enough to allow others to also minister to us, in ways we are not able to do for ourselves. 

Jesus taught this to Peter when He washed his feet at the Last Supper. He ministered to him in a way only the lowliest servant was required to, and showed him to accept this service even from his Lord. 

O Father, help me to understand the balance of ministry that You desire of Your children. Show me how I can serve others, and give me the humility to accept their help with what I cannot do on my own. You never mean for any of us to be "on our own," You have put us into societies, organizations, neighborhoods. We all live together on this beautiful Earth, and we all have different personalities, different abilities, different interests; so that everything will get done. 

Please teach all of us how to help one another with all the things You want us to accomplish in this age. Especially to share Your love with one another, and find all the lost sheep that belong in Your fold. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Incline Our Hearts

I Kings 8: 58

"That He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His ordinances, which He commanded our fathers."

This is part of King Solomon's dedication of the Temple he built, following his father King David's blueprints. 

If only the people would have continued in God's ways!

But we all tend to follow our own ways, our natural instincts that lie to us and draw us away from God's good ways for us.

May God "incline our hearts to Himself," take the initiative to turn our hearts and attitudes toward His righteousness and love for one another. 

To draw us into that warm, intimate relationship with Himself that He wants us all to have. 

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Showing Us Off

Ephesians 2: 7

In order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Wow! "Ages to come" means that after this present "age," there will be multiple more "ages to come," after this one, one after another! 

We are "in school" in this age; we are children learning our lessons, taking tests, doing experiments, taking field trips. 

Then when we "graduate," and are glorified when Jesus returns, we will be ready to take our part in running Dad's business, His Kingdom rule. For "Ages to come," forever. 

Showing off the "surpassing riches" of His graciousness in all the kindnesses He is extending to us in Christ Jesus.

We are His trophies!

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

God And The Weather

Job 37: 13

Whether for discipline (correction), or for the good of His Earth (His land), or out of mercy (lovingkindness), He makes the storm appear. 

Elihu is talking to Job about the miracles of weather; how God brings the storms, the wind and rain, the lightning and thunder and snow. That God sends all this weather to correct us, to take care of this Earth He made, and to show His love for all of us.

God has set in place all the Natural Laws, the rules for the weather to obey, and it obeys Him and follows His direction.

O that we also would obey the rules He has determined for us in our relationships! 

All His Law for Mankind is based on the foundational two: to love God and to love our neighbor. God is Love, everything He does is in love for us.

Father, teach me how to love others as I love myself, as Jesus taught us; and may my love for You grow fuller and deeper every day.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!