Friday, January 25, 2013

Conversation with a Friend



Bing image



Today, I am being interviewed by Marja Meijers over a her blog   sacredsabbath

She asks me some neat questions. Feel free to go over and read.

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Grace Upon Us

Central Baptist Church, Little Rock Arkansas.


 
With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus and much grace was upon them all."
Acts 4:33 (NIV)
God lavished His grace upon the apostles. In doing this He gave them strength to tell others about His Kingdom. These men didn't stay in their own clique and talk to each other about Jesus. They went out places that hadn't heard of Him and taught the people of His love.

Churches send missionaries to people who need the Lord. Some of these groups send emissaries to foreign lands either for a lengthy period or for short terms-say a week or so. Our church has sent people on mission trips to areas of our nation ravaged by hurricanes. Some groups have gone to impoverished areas of Appalachia. More recently the missions committee has focused on people’s needs here in our community.

Whenever a denomination has an annual conference or even a general conference, the delegates spend time one day doing outreach to distressed areas in that community, painting, building a ramp, or working with children at a community center.

People who follow the LORD perform these tasks as a testimony of God in their lives. No matter where these deeds are done, the message is, ‘God loves you.’ They are able to do these acts because of their receiving God’s love in their lives.

Now, a lot of us may not be able to go to a distant land or to a distressed area of our nation. We may have some health issues that interfere with our ability to build a ramp or install a bathroom, or build a porch but we can support those who go either by financial donations or by committing to pray for them. We might want to find a way to assist children at-risk of continuing destructive behavior.

When I originally wrote this,I sat here in my living room two days after the tragedy that has us praying for families in Newtown, Connecticut. I wonder if the outcome for the young children and the adults at that school would have been better, had someone taken the time to share the love of Christ with the one who caused this disaster.

Listen to a modern song about grace. Your Grace is Enough

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Grace Poured Out

Grace being poured out on God''s people(Bing.com)

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“Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.”1 Timothy 1:13-14 (NIV)

We see the grace of God at work in Paul’s life as he reflects on his past. 

 “Even though . . .” In spite of the fact.

“ . . . I was once a blasphemer” blasphemy is “insulting, cursing, lacking reverence for God, claiming deity.”^ A perfect example of lacking reverence for God is the words John Lennon spoke when he compared the Beatles to Jesus Christ.

“. . . a persecutor . . . ” Saul went from town to town dragged people from their homes and imprisoned them or worse.  (Acts 8:3)

“. . . a violent man. . . ” Everywhere Saul went he arranged for believers in Christ to be either imprisoned or killed. In the beginning of his journeys to tell others about Jesus Christ, people feared him.

“I was shown mercy . . . “God did for Paul what He does for each of us—He extended mercy, forgiveness for Paul’s enmity to His followers.

The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly” Our Lord didn't give Paul grace sparingly. He lavished grace on Paul and he still inundates us with His unending love today.

“ . . .along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.” God instilled Paul with faith and His love. This passage magnifies the expression, “God empowers those He calls.” We have written evidence that God does this for those who invite Him into their hearts and lives.









God Alone

  Jesus and the children at our church's prayer walk.          I will both lie down in peace and sleep;  For You alone, O LORD make ...