Verse and Message (Week of March 23 – March 29, 2008) March 27, 2008

Matthew 7:20

Yes, the way to identify a tree or a person is by the kind of fruit that is produced.

  

1 Chronicles 29:17a

I know, my God, that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there.

This week I had the unique opportunity to participate in a sleep lab.  Since late 2006, I have been having trouble sleeping due to difficulties in breathing.  After eliminating many possibilities, my doctor decided that I needed to be studied in a sleep lab.

   

I arrived at St.Vincent’s East to be hooked up on machines with numerous tangling wires all over me to endure for the overnight study.  I don’t typically have trouble falling asleep, however, I do experience challenges staying asleep. 

There’s a camera in the room so that the tech can study your sleep patterns over the course of five to six hours.  It’s weird knowing that someone is watching you while you are trying to sleep. The awareness can be uncomfortable, but it’s the only way to figure out what the problem entails. 

  

The following day I began to think about my awareness of God watching me.  My awareness has increased as I have grown closer to Him, but sometimes, I do or say things that I know grieves the Holy Spirit.  Sometimes we all have done things in secret thinking that no one will know.  But…SOMEBODY does know, and it’s the ONE who counts!  Integrity is simply when our beliefs and our lifestyle align.  Are you the same person on Saturday night that you are on Sunday morning or Wednesday night in church?  Are you the same person on the golf course that you are in your small group? 

Check out this story I received in 2006 from one of my son’s former basketball coaches :

A man goes out to play a round of golf with his friend.  Upon arrival at the golf course he receives a phone call from his friend who says that something has come up, and he cannot play golf.  So he decides to play by himself.

  

The man is having a great game of golf and is hitting the ball extremely well.  By the time he reaches the 15th green he is shooting the best round of golf he has ever played.  He hit his ball within 6 feet of the hole and lines his putt up.  As he begins the putt, he miss hits the ball and runs the ball by the cup 4 feet.  He lines up the putt again and misses this putt also.  He finally makes the third putt for a double bogey.  He thinks to himself how he heard a duck in the background quack very loudly.  He thinks the distraction must have caused him to miss the first putt.  So he writes down a 4 on the scorecard instead of a 5.  After all, he is having the best round of golf ever.

*This character may be reflecting who we are at times when no one is looking.*

I felt it was a great example of how we blame others when things go wrong (the duck),   and how we sometimes do things in secret that we wouldn’t want others to know — a strong demonstration on understanding the value of integrity.

If we are the REAL DEAL…people will recognize it!

According to Pastor Chris Hodges of Church of the Highlands, “The real you is what you are like in a town where no one knows you.” 

Another opportunity to recognize the value of integrity occurred when my son was younger.  He thought about newspapers in the newspaper bin.  He asked what if someone took more than one newspaper? Someone present in the conversation indicated to Connor… that would be stealing if a person was took additional newspapers.  It’s based on the honor system.

  

As Christians, our fruit should reflect the LIGHT OF THE WORLD–OUR SAVIOR. JESUS CHRIST is not only WHO we represent, but WHO WE ARE because HE IS IN US.  We may be the only JESUS someone has the opportunity to see and experience.  

As we grow and mature in Christ, we will desire to reflect HIS CHARACTER when we interact with the world.  Pastor Chris spoke in his message last night that “We are not just Spirit-Born, but Spirit-Formed.”  When we are Born Again we are beginning the journey of Salvation…..the process we go through from that point forward is Sanctification.  When our Spirit Man overrides our Flesh Man, we are on the road to becoming Spirit-Formed.  When we act according to the Spirit, we won’t have to worry about who is watching….because we are reflecting HIS GLORY! 

DON’T JUST DRESS TO IMPRESS, WEAR THE WARDROBE OF THE KING!!

  

DEFINE THE DEITY WITHIN YOU……

THEN YOU WILL DEMONSTRATE THE REAL DEAL!

SUSIE MC

Verse and Message (Holy Week 2008) March 18, 2008

  

I received a remarkable message this week from Kelli Ryan, a dear sister in Christ who also has an online devotional ministry.  I edited and summarized her beautiful expression of God’s grace.  What a perfect message to share during this Holy Week. It’s a time to reflect on the unending Amazing Grace of our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ.  He hung on the Cross for us….and by that incredible act of His Grace, we can live in His presence for Eternity! 

Ephesians 2:8-10

For it is by GRACE you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God–not by works, so that no one can boast.  For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

  

GRACE as defined by Merriam-Webster online:

a: unmerited divine assistance given humans for their regeneration or sanctification.

b: a virtue coming from God.

c: a state of sanctification enjoyed through divine grace.

Duct Tape or A Nail (Author Unknown)

A man dies and goes to Heaven.  St. Peter meets him at the Pearly Gates and says, “Here’s how it works.  You need 100 points to make it into Heaven.  You tell me all the good things you have done, and I will give you a certain number of points for each item, depending on how good it was.  When you reach 100 points, you get in.”

“Okay,” the man says.  “I was married to the same woman for 50 years and never cheated on her, even in my heart.” “That’s wonderful,” says St. Peter.  “That’s worth two points!”

“Two points?” the man says.  “Well, I attended church all of my life and supported its ministry with my tithe and service.”

“Terrific!” exclaims St. Peter.  “That’s certainly worth a point.”

“One point?!”  Weary, the man claims, “I started a soup kitchen in my city, and I worked in a shelter for homeless veterans.”

“Fantastic….that’s good for two more points,” St. Peter says.

“Two points!?!” Exasperated, the man cries, “At this rate the only way I’ll get to Heaven is by the grace of God.”

“Bingo!  Yahtzee!  100 points…come on in!” St. Peter exclaims.
 
We often try to fix problems with WD-40 and duct tape.  God fixed it through His Son Jesus Christ with a NAIL!  Amazing!
 
“Anyone can devise a plan by which good people go to Heaven.  Only God can devise a plan whereby sinners, which are His enemies, can go to Heaven.” (Lewis Sperry Chafer)
 

Christianity is separated from other religious faiths by this biblical truth: 

There is nothing man can do to earn the favor of God.  Salvation in other professed faith arenas depends on good works of man to please the deity.

Only Christianity sets man’s good works aside and maintains focus on salvation by the GRACE of God alone.  Even with this biblical clarity, believers and non-believers alike get the position of “good works” out of whack. 

Christians are not saved by good works, but they are saved for good works.  No one is saved by being baptized either.  Baptism represents a decision one has made in his heart regarding salvation.

We are saved by grace alone through faith in order to accomplish good works for which God saved us.  Our ongoing works, carried out by God, become a sign and testimony of the reality of our salvation.  A person saved by grace stops working for self and begins living for God. The Cross of Christ removed any necessity of our works to be saved.

When you love someone, you want to please that person.  If we truly fall in love with Jesus Christ, we desire to serve Him by serving others…..and we know that this pleases our Savior.  Just as a child wants to please his mom or dad, we will be inclined to please our Father when we are adopted by Him as His child.  

G - R – A - C - E

  

G – GOD’S LOVE (John 3:16)

  

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

R – ROYALTY (1 Peter 2:9)

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.”

C - CHILDREN (1 John 3:1)

“See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are.  For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.” A - ADAM (Romans 5:12)

–Death through Adam, Life through Christ–

“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man (Adam), and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned.”
 

C – CROSS (Colossians 2:14)

  
Having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross. E – ERASED (Isaiah 43:25)

“I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.”

HOSANNA!  THANK YOU FOR SAVING US!

HAVE A BEAUTIFUL EASTER EVERYONE!

  

SUSIE MC 

Verse and Message (Week of March 9-15, 2008) March 13, 2008

1 Thessalonians 5:13
Get along among yourselves, each of you doing your part. Our counsel is that you warn the freeloaders to get a move on. Gently encourage the stragglers, and reach out for the exhausted, pulling them to their feet. Be patient with each person, attentive to individual needs. And be careful that when you get on each other’s nerves you don’t snap at each other. Look for the best in each other, and always do your best to bring it out.

  

Merriam-Webster online defines inconvenient as to cause difficulty, discomfort, or annoyance.  Related words include bothersome, burdensome, troublesome, exasperating, and irritating.

Your alarm doesn’t go off.  For some reason, your hot water has strangely disappeared as you stand shivering in the shower. Your hair dryer gets so hot that it cuts off. You forgot to pick up your suit at the cleaners. The only thing you have to wear has 1,000 wrinkles.  You get in your car to realize you left the windows down after it rained the prior evening.  You are finally on the road after getting a towel for your soaked seat, but then you have to wait for twenty cars to obey the four-way stop sign on a residential road. You get on the highway and the car in front of you stops suddenly, you spill your coffee.  You child left his homework on the kitchen counter.  You drive twenty-five minutes to get your child to school, because the school system doesn’t have a school buses. You get to the school only to have to wait on the kid in the car in front of you drops his science project…..you sigh…..time is ticking.  You get to the drive thru and want a simple bacon, egg, and cheese biscuit and they just stopped serving breakfast.  You get a burger and pay for your meal, but you cannot get past the person in front of you, because they are waiting on a special order.  You make it to your appointment just in time, but didn’t have time to prepare for the presentation, because, well….the obvious.  You pray for words to make sense….you are rambling….and everyone is staring at you like you are an alien.  You finally make it out of the room, but have to make some copies, and the devil has jammed the copy machine.  Have you ever had a day like this? Calgon…please take me away!!

  

Actually, the scenario above is not exactly what has happened to me, but extremely close.  Now..rewind and ponder…your alarm didn’t go off, because someone died in a car collision at the point of a power line causing the power in your comfortable home to flicker.  There’s someone in this world who has never had the opportunity or resources to ever take clothes to get cleaned, because she has to wear what is given to her at the homeless shelter.  Down the street, a man is riding on his rusty bike to his minimum wage job…is he concerned about rain on the bike seat?  You hear on the news that a school bus turns over and several children are injured, one child is critical. The kid who dropped his project was up all night working and crying, because he couldn’t concentrate due to hearing his parents yell at each other at the top of their lungs.  There are dozens of people waiting in the unemployment line. 

  

We obsess over all the inconveniences in life, when, my friends…..we are so much better off than most!  Do you realize the luxuries we have?  We must learn to give the benefit of the doubt to the person who cut us off.  We must learn to be more compassionate with the edgy car parking deck attendant, because she has another job to go to after this shift and has homework at home for her class the next day.  If we spent enough time allowing our narrow minds to walk in someone else’s shoes for 10 minutes, we might appreciate all the blessings that envelope us! 

  

Now…..check out this incredible video link which was the source of my verse and message today.  Thank you to Rusty Mitchell a brother in Christ who shared it with me yesterday.  It makes ya think.  God is good….and oh my….WE ARE SO BLESSED! Count them ….it will take an Eternity!

Soooo to recap…..

Sometimes the little annoyances of life add up to the point where we just want to scream.  No one seems to understand that we have places to go, and people to see.  Now….see what happens: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LfeXxkbgCVE

Need I say more?….REMEMBER, we are much better than most!

Be blessed, and smile when you are challenged in the world today…

your patience is a beautiful reflection of Jesus!

  

SUSIE MC

Verse and Message (Week of March 2-8, 2008) March 6, 2008

Psalm 145:18-19

The Lord is close to all who call on Him, yes, to all who call on Him sincerely. He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him; He hears their cries for help and rescues them.

I decided after an overwhelming response to my previous verse and message that I would follow-up this week with what I will call:

 ”PART 2 - YES, NO, or WAIT.”

Apparently, God was speaking loud and clear to more folks than just myself.  I love when He does stuff like that.

 

It’s difficult to accept God’s will when His answer is “No!” or “Wait.” However, we must NOT interpret these responses as unanswered prayer.  If we are living in God’s will, and we are consistent in our communication with the Ultimate Provider, we are insulting Him if we ignore His “NO!” or if we try to manipulate the timing of an outcome by speeding up the process! (thinking we are just helping God..ha) The Lord says “No” at times, because His “Yes” is better for our lives.  The Lord says “Wait” when He has to work all things together….it’s not just about us!!

He may not allow what we are yearning for to come to pass, but it’s a true miracle how He is able to conform our desires to fit HIS BEST for our life (if we let Him)!  If you feel He hasn’t answered your prayer, then continue to pray for His will until His “WAIT” translates to ”YES” or “NO.” He likes when we are persistent in prayer! 

He knows what we need, but it may not always be what we want!  Furthermore, He knows when we need it!  Prayer is not an act to convince God to orchestrate something our way. Bargaining and negotiating are not in the equation! The purpose of prayer is to adjust our hearts to His perfect perspective. 

God is never caught off guard…..no surprises interrupt His day!  Therefore, we must let God be God….He never comes up short.  We must not get discouraged when we feel He isn’t giving us His undivided attention to the matter at hand (But then who’s calling the kettle black? How often is our undivided attention on His agenda?)…When we place His matters #1, it’s amazing how He responds. 

At this time, I would like to share a portion of a message that one of my dear sisters in Christ, Lauren Doyle, sent to a group of people in response to my message last week.  Her insight is amazing, and I couldn’t resist sharing what God put on her heart in relation to the challenges we face when we have no choice but to WAIT for God’s divine answers.

Lauren’s words:

Here’s what I do… Be still, know that He is God (Psalm 46:10), and ask him to blow the curtains of heaven back — to give you vision for what it is that you are waiting on Him for.  Prepare your hearts and minds for God’s best.  Then, as always, respect and love Him as his timing comes into perfect place.

God is a God of Order; everything He does is by appointment.

  

An appointment is simply a meeting or event that has already been set up.  God has a scheduled time for bringing to pass two things in your life: His promises and His purposes.  You can count on that.  Whatever you’re going through TODAY, there’s peace in knowing that NOTHING the enemy does will preempt these two things.

  

The problem arises when we try to rush God’s timing.  When the Lord gives you a promise, it’s like a seed; it needs time to take root and bear fruit.  Every mother knows the order — first the seed, then the pregnancy, then the development within the womb, and finally the day of delivery.  And what does she do during this time? Prepare!  She gets ready for the joys and responsibilities of parenthood for when her due date arrives, and that little one announces, “Ready or not, here I come!”  The Psalmist writes: “Don’t be impatient for the Lord to act!  Keep traveling steadily along his pathway and in due season he will honor you with every blessing” (Psalm 37:34).

  

We must learn the difference between what WE can do and what GOD can do.  Fools rush in.  If we don’t want to risk delaying the fulfillment of God’s plan for our lives, then we need to learn to wait.  The prophet said, “The vision is… for an appointed time…though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come.”  (Habakkuk 2:3)

Thank you Lauren for your wisdom…..

So in conclusion, we must be patient and faithful, as well as, comprehend that our Creator knows how to fit all the pieces of our puzzled lives together!

  

Pray to accept the LORD’s YES for your life today!

SUSIE MC