Cornerstone

“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,

 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus

himself as the chief cornerstone.” Ephesians 2:19-20 (NIV)

Paul tells his readers quite a bit of information in this passage.

“. . . no longer foreigners and aliens. . . “All are welcome into God’s house. Sometimes we walk into a place and feel instantly at home. People shouldn't feel like an outcast or one who isn't acceptable when they enter God’s house.

“. . . fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household. . . ” Seven years ago, this past June the church we had been attending merged with another church in town to become a new church. Those of us who chose to enter this merger experience don’t refer to those who presently worship there as being from either church. We all worship and identify ourselves as people of the new organization. What Paul tells us here is that, once we align ourselves with Jesus, what we were is not important. What is important is that we belong to Him.

“. . . built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets . . .” Our scriptures, inspired by God, come to us through the apostles and the prophets sent by God. One who is striving to follow Jesus relies on the Scriptures to form his or her thought processes and lifestyle.

“. . . with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.” In architecture, the cornerstone of a building supports the building. In the construction process, this stone is important. In my town, a downtown church had a cornerstone dated January 1, 1900. That building was destroyed by fire in December, 1960. That church rebuilt on the same spot and today still has a ministry to those in the downtown area.

Graphic:www.purifiedbyfaith.com

Consider: Forgiveness RJD Sept. 2013

                                                                                                                 

Journal Entry January 18, 2004

“The Peter came to Jesus and asked, ‘Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.’” Matthew 18:21-22 (NIV)

The issue of forgiveness is a thorny one at best. People grow tired of being used and abused by their “friends” and “family.” They begin to build walls between themselves and those who cause the hurt. Sometimes the hurting ones feel they have to accept the stress and pain “because that’s the way they are!” Others who are hurt live with the circumstances because “he or she family.”

Jesus tells us through his reply to Peter that we have to forgive not once, not twice, not even three or four times, but as many times as it takes.

I can only forgive those who hurt me through Jesus. I say this because I cannot confront those people because 1.) They don’t believe they did anything wrong or anything to hurt me. Or 2.) They think they can do these things because “that’s who I am.”

Right now, I have to ask Jesus to forgive those persons who hurt me continually. I know they don’t even know their behavior causes me pain.

Father, please show me how I can do this forgiving when they don’t know  their part in hurting me. AMEN   

UPDATE: I have learned that it takes a lot of grace to forgive people continually. I believe I have made progress with this issue. I’m not perfect but I have found it easier to ask God to deal with the problematic thoughts of those around me. I learned this very well last month.


Linking up with:beneaththesurface-dawn.-day-link-up-september.html

Light of the World

                            

“When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said,

‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”

John 8:12 (NIV)

What does Jesus mean by calling himself ‘the Light of the World’? A light illumines the pathway. Jesus shows us the way through difficult times in our lives. I am considering purchasing some of those solar powered yard lights to set along our front walk. I believe they would bring comfort as we enter our home. We could also see better when we exit our car in the evenings.

He continues to say that those who follow him will not be in darkness. We have toured several caves-Marengo Caves in Indiana, Mammoth Cave in central Kentucky and a cave in eastern Kentucky. All these places have a common part of their tours. The guides allow the groups to experience total darkness.

When they turn out the lights, you can’t see your hand in front of your face. We have been on these tours with families that had small children. I can remember the screams of those children. The noise was deafening. They screamed because they were scared. When I remember these times, I think of the souls who, by their behavior, have been relegated to Hades. This is the reason it is important to bring Christ to the world.

Those who walk in spiritual darkness stumble and bring hurt to themselves. Those who choose to walk in the light of Christ walk in safety and protection of Jesus.

Dear Father God: I thank You for giving us You Son. I thank You for His being Light in our darkness and for His guidance through the dark times. I ask Your presence be with those who suffer for You. Encourage them with Your Word and protect them from harm. All praise belongs to You. In the name of Jesus, I pray. AMEN

Here I Am To Worship

Graphic: happycatholics.com

Lamb of God

“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said,

‘Look, the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.’”

John 1:29 (NIV)

John the Baptist’s father was a priest. “He was familiar with all the ritual of the temple and its sacrifices.”¹ He must have seen the morning and evening offering of a lamb to God. The offering of a lamb brought atonement for the sins of the people. “The people performed this ritual even when they starved in war and in siege they never omitted to offer the lamb until A. D. 70 when the temple was destroyed.”²

Jesus freely gave himself to be the sacrifice “once for all.”(Hebrews 10:10) Because of His offering on Calvary, we don’t have to give sacrifice for our sins. He died for us that we might be deemed worthy to join Him and His Father in heaven at the time He calls us home.

 Jesus Paid It All

1.      1.The Daily Study Series, The Gospel of John Vol. 1 © 1985 p. 81

2.      Op. Cit.

Graphic: www. beulahumc.org

Some Summer Snapshots

Our side yard this summer. These Sunflowers didn't make it.

They were in a plastic pot. I had Hubby break them apart

and put them around the pump. He also chose to spry paint the 

pump AFTER the flowers were planted. Behind the pump and

 to the left are most of Hubby's tomato plants. 

These are the ones that made it. They are about 10-12 Feet tall.

We had to put chicken wire around the area to keep the rabbits from eating the

little sprouts.

Can you see the bee pollinating the bloom? This one had just 

opened up a day or so before. Can you see the green in the center?

Renewed Strength

                                           

                                                                                          

 "But those who hope in the Lord will renew
their strength. They will soar like eagles; 
they will run, they will walk and not be faint."
                    Isaiah 40:31

Hope, what do we mean by it? “In the Old Testament hope is expressed by several different words meaning ‘safety, security, trust.’”¹ In the King James version the passage says, ‘. . . those who wait . . . .’ As I see it we sometimes have to incorporate the act of waiting into our having hope.

Renew When we subscribe to a magazine for a period of time, as that time runs out we are asked to extend our subscription for another segment of time. We ask God to renew our strength when we find ourselves to be depleted of the ability to continue to move forward in a period of recovery.

Strength Sometimes strength can be defined as power^2. For some people, their strength wanes as they age. For the disciple of Christ the amount of strength we have can be based upon how close we are to Him. When we have an illness, our strength becomes sapped. Years ago, I had a sinus infection that reared its head. I stayed home from work a day or so and had to go back before I was actually ready. I felt like the salmon that swam upstream.

Soar to go through without effort. We marvel at birds floating through the air with wings spread. No prettier sight than to see an eagle move in the breeze with no apparent effort on his or her part. Isaiah tells us we can have this same experience—to soar through the issues that the world tosses at us, if we hope in the Lord.

Paul’s Prayer for His Readers

“’I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen

you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,

 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.’”

Eph. 3:16-17 a(NIV)

Paul beseeched the Father on behalf of the followers at Ephesus. Let’s study what he requested from God.

“. . . out of his glorious riches . . .” Paul asks God to reach into his treasure trove of riches and search for what the believers need to make their lives and their witness stronger. Our Father does this for us who follow Him in this 21st Century.

“. . . he may strengthen you . . .” Everything God brings into our lives strengthens us in time.      We find we understand issues that appear later in our lives because of what we have experienced in the past. We also can understand another person’s similar circumstances and can extend God’s grace to them.

“. . . with power . . .  We find we are stronger than we think because of God’s working in our lives. I have a greeting card to send to someone that is shaped with the word “BELIEVE” die-cut as the front. When I open it, the message is “You are stronger            than you think”

“. . . through his Spirit in your inner being . . .”  John Wesley once preached that when we                              give our hearts to the Lord, a little bit of God comes into our hearts. We have His  Holy Spirit living inside us. God works through us.

“. . . so that Christ may dwell in your hearts . . .” God places His Holy Spirit in us for a reason. He                creates in us a place for Jesus to live in us and through us.

“. . . through faith.” We have to believe that God works for us and through us. “Without faith, it is impossible to please God. (Heb. 11:6)

From time to time we need to return to the basics of our belief and concentrate on Who God is and thank Him for what He gives us and what He does for us..

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Graphic: Readfreshmanna.blogspot.com