THANKSGIVING SHOULD NEVER END

1 Thessalonians 5:18  In everything give thanks: 

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Yesterday was Thanksgiving and many gathered around the table with friends and family and spoke of being thankful.  On Face book, November is designated as “Thankfulness Month,” with many uplifting posts about being thankful and listing something each day, for which to be thankful.  But now Thanksgiving Day is over, the turkey will be consumed today as a “leftover,” family and friends have returned home, and “Black Friday” bargains are the order of the day; what happened to THANKFULNESS?

THANKFULNESS…It is not about things.  There are people who have lots of things, yet are unthankful.  There are many that have no material wealth, yet live everyday with a thankful heart.

THANKFULNESS…It is not about opportunity and achievement.  The hotel CEO may feel the pride in the pinnacle he has reached, yet hate every moment he lives, while the hotel maid may sing songs of praise as she cleans bathrooms she does not own.

THANKFULNESS…it isn’t even about the people who share your life.  You may be miserable, surrounded by love or you may be a single person with no one to share the holiday and still feel blessed.

THANKFULNESS is a DECISION that causes you to see people, things and situations in the proper perspective…

It is about HOPE; “God so loved the world.” 

It is CONFIDENCE that your “Steps are ordered by the Lord.” 

It is the PEACE in knowing that God can take any situations and create a positive outcome. 

It is about accepting that you are loved with an EVERLASTING LOVE. 

It Is TRUSTING that “this world is not my home” and there will be a better tomorrow because I have been redeemed.

Although a set aside holiday may come to an end, having a THANKFUL HEART should never cease.  Yes, THANKSGIVING really is not about a DAY it is about a CHANGE OF HEART and a STATE OF MIND and the WILL OF GOD!

CONTENTMENT IS A CONSCIOUS DECISION!

1 Timothy 6:6-7 Now godliness with contentment is great gain.

7 For we brought nothing into this world

 and it is certain we can carry nothing out.

I find the verses preceding the above passage to be quite interesting.  In them, Paul is talking to Timothy about the people professing Christ, with whom he will come in contact.  Not all are pure of heart...Many will be ENVIOUS, always have EVIL  SUSPICIONS, obsessed with disputes and arguments over words...Is it possible that Paul saw a vision of the 21st Century?  Social Media, Christians, upset over people saying Happy "Turkey" Day instead of Happy Thanksgiving or Happy Holidays instead of Merry Christmas or removing snowflakes from a disposable cup?

Paul goes even further, saying, these people will have CORRUPT MINDS, DESTITUTE OF TRUTH and will even suppose that GODLINESS is a MEANS OF GAIN!!!  Can you IMAGINE?  People choosing to follow Christ because of what they can get?  Then he admonishes Timothy to WITHDRAW himself from such people.  Next, Paul speaks the truth found in verses 6 and 7.

CONTENTMENT IS A CONSCIOUS DECISION!!! It is waking up every morning with a heart of THANKSGIVING and making the intentional decision to accept whatever blessings God provides for that day, even if they don't resemble the vision of blessing you had in mind.

I have had so many look at my life, which they know nothing about, and say, "Well it is easy to be CONTENT when you have been so BLESSED."  And I would answer, "Yes, it is and I have been abundantly blessed."

OR maybe it is easy to be CONTENT because you know you are "Loved with a great love."  AND, because you know "That all things work together for good to those who love God; to those who are called according to His purpose."  Perhaps CONTENTMENT comes because your heart of THANKFULNESS opens your eyes to see the BLESSINGS others do not recognize.

Today you can CHOOSE CONTENTMENT...

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

IT WILL MATTER TO YOUR KIDS

The sun peeked over the horizon and after a restless night, Eve rose to face the day.  Not since the dawn of creation had she been so happy to see another morning.  Had it really only been 24 hours since yesterday's sunrise?  It seemed a lifetime ago that she had risen as usual, splashed her face in the trickling brook, smelled the beautiful flowers, and set off to gather her and Adam’s meal for the day.  Why had she taken that stroll by the forbidden tree?  Why had she stopped to linger in its shade and admire its luscious ripe fruit?  Why had she listened to the Serpent?  And why oh why had she taken that first bite?

It had been so delicious and even Adam couldn’t resist but now God was angry, he had removed the covering of His glory from around them and clothed them with skins from an innocent lamb.  Now they would be forced to leave their beautiful home, the only place they had ever known but at least they were still alive.  God had said sin would bring death but Eve’s heart was still beating and Adam’s even breathing assured her that she was not all alone.  Perhaps God wouldn’t kill them after all and life would go on as wonderful as ever.

The years passed and Eve embraced the “new normal,” her former life in the Garden fading into a distant memory.  Time continued on…until it was time to deliver her first born…OH THE PAIN, and she remembered.

Genesis 3:16 To the woman He said:

“I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception;
In pain you shall bring forth children;
Your desire shall be for your husband and he shall rule over you.”

The pain of childbirth slowly faded as she nurtured her children.  Sure Adam came in from the field every day, tired and dirty from fighting the weeds and brambles, the boys were constantly involved in minor skirmishes over the silliest disagreements and it seemed their demands for food and attention was never ending.  She had to worry about clothing for her family now but every year there were new lamb skins from the sin offering to make the new garments.  Eve had settled into life until that ONE FATEFUL DAY.  Suddenly, it all came flooding back, her sin slapped her in the face and she bowed beneath the weight of guilt and regret.

Adam returned from the yearly Sin Offering and reported that God was displeased with their oldest son, Cain.  Cain had offered the “fruit of the ground,” the ground God had cursed, instead of a blood offering and it had been rejected by God.  Cain stomped into the house, bloody and alone, collected some food and water and took off without explanation.  What had happened now?  Adam went to investigate and came back with the devastating news…Abel was dead, apparently killed by his brother and Cain had fled out of fear…Yes, it all became clear, SIN HAD RESULTED IN DEATH!!!!  The sin she and Adam had committed in the Garden had been passed down to their precious children.  God had spoken truth…

Genesis 2:17 but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

Thousands of years have passed since that day in the garden that would change the world and the plight of mankind forever.  God provided Himself a Lamb for the atonement and restoration of man’s relationship with Him and we have the privilege of receiving His Holy Spirit to live within us.  God’s pronouncement to Adam and Eve in Genesis 2, however, has still not changed, UNREPENTED SIN BRINGS DEATH.

As you make choices that take you away from the Presence of God and taste the sweetness of sin’s fruit, it may seem that God has changed his mind…Surely you won’t die.  Life continues; life is good…you still have a job, a beautiful home, and precious children that have brought you unbelievable joy.  WHAT ABOUT YOUR PRECIOUS CHILDREN?

DO NOT FOOL YOURSELF FOR ONE MINUTE…those precious children are watching every choice you make and not only learning from you but modeling their choices after your example.  You may not think your choices have consequence; after all you are NOT HURTING ANYONE.  But decisions do have consequence and IT WILL MATTER TO YOUR KIDS.

I know wonderful people who were kind, responsible, good citizens and loving parents, yet did not make the decision to repent and follow God until their children were grown.  Sadly, not one of their children have followed the “late-in-life” example to change their ways.  In fact, most of the sins they have indulged in have far surpassed anything their parents would have dared…IT WILL MATTER TO YOUR KIDS.

Your kids will grow up and make their own choices and the foundation under those choices will be determined by the examples you have set in their younger years.  The chance that they will make Godly choices is greatly increased if you have taught them the ways of God and led the way by example.  If your choices have been selfish and determined by your own fleshly lusts, your children will not only follow your example but quite possibly exceed your life of sin…IT WILL MATTER TO YOUR KIDS.

Romans 5:19 
For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners,

So also by one Man’s obedience many will be made righteous.

IT ISN’T TOO LATE!!  God made a promise to Adam and Eve the PROMISE OF REDEMPTION and he kept His Word.  

There is still time to “turn things around.”  Through the power of the Holy Spirit you can begin to make the right choices; choices that lead you toward God.  Though your children may be grown, your choices can still affect them and perhaps influence them to make Godly choices for their own life.  BEGIN RIGHT NOW, make your choice for God…IT WILL MATTER TO YOUR KIDS.

IS IT SIN IF NOBODY SEES IT?

Psalms 139:23-24 Search me, O God, and know my heart;

Try me, and know my anxieties;

24 And see if there is any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting.

IF WE SIN AND NO ONE SEES, IS IT STILL A SIN?

Silly question isn’t it? Of course, God sees everything!!! But before you totally dismiss this post, one of the biggest caches of “Secret Sin” resides in our pocket. We keep it close to our heart, mind and eyes, check it several times an hour and panic when we forget to charge it or think it is lost. You guessed it…our dearly beloved SMART PHONE! Your first thought of course is I am talking about pornography. It is true not only do we have every ungodly viewing opportunity at our fingertips but we have placed a potential lifetime of struggles right in the hands of our precious children.

You may say but I don’t have an issue with pornography…that is wonderful but what about GOSSIP? After all that smart phone can be used to make phone calls or send texts, too. 

What about PRIDE? Check your pictures, how many are selfies, taken in the bathroom mirror. 

CYBER AFFAIRS? Intimate discourse between 2 people, when one or both are married to another IS STILL an affair. 

INAPROPRIATE USE OF TIME? That sounds more like a penalty in a football game but be honest, are you really checking your Bible App in church? Face book time stamps every post, so does twitter and even your texts tell whether you were focused on God or your dear electronic device.

PASTORS, would you be embarrassed if one of your congregants picked up your smart phone, checked your Google, read your texts and viewed your pictures?

CHURCH MEMBERS, how red would your face turn if you knew your pastor had your smart phone in his office and its content was an open book?

What about your HUSBAND, WIFE, PARENTS, or CHILDREN?

Just because it is on your PRIVATE smart phone, doesn’t change what God has called SIN!

NEVERTHELESS MOMENTS

It all started in The Garden.   God had commanded Adam who instructed Eve that the tree in the middle of the garden was off limits.  Eve approached the tree, looked longingly at the forbidden fruit and wondered “what if?”  Satan, who never misses an opportunity, begin to persuade Eve that God hadn’t really meant what He had said.  And surely a God who loved them so much to create such a beautiful garden would never be so cruel to sentence them to death for doing something that would make them so happy.  This was Eve’s “Nevertheless moment.”  What a different world we would enjoy if only Eve and replied, “It does look wonderful and I would love to be wise as God, but NEVERTHELESS we have been commanded to leave it alone.” 

Every one of us will experience a “Nevertheless Moment,”

Your answer at that moment will determine the rest of your life.

Abraham’s actions during his “nevertheless moment” earned him a place in Heaven’s Hall of Fame.  God had promised Abraham that he would make him a father; that his seed would be as the stars in the heavens and the sand of the sea, yet Abraham was approaching 100 and still didn’t have a son.  What joy he and Sarah experienced as they held Isaac, the son of promise, in their arms.  A few short years later, God would ask Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac; Abraham’s “Nevertheless Moment!”  The bible doesn’t go into all the detail of Abraham’s conversation with God but we know he got to the “nevertheless” because Hebrews 11:17 says

“By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 18of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: 19Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.”

  I can imagine that Abraham saying “God I love this boy more than I ever imagined, please don’t ask me to sacrifice him, it is almost more than I can bear but NEVERTHELESS, you gave him to me the first time and I know that you are able give him to me the second time.”  Because of Abraham’s faithfulness to God in a “Nevertheless Moment” a blessing was passed down through the generations and even we can be partakers of Abraham’s Blessing.

Most of us have been encouraged by Job’s trials and restoration during times of loss and desperation in our own lives.  We hold to the promise that we will be restored twice as much as we have lost but have we answered God as Job did during his “Nevertheless Moment?” 

The Bible tells us that Job was blameless and upright, feared God and shunned evil.  He was living his life and doing what was right when God decided to brag on him.  Satan challenged God with, “I hear what you are saying God, but let me present him with a “Nevertheless Moment,” that will tone down the confidence you’ve placed in Job.”  God allowed Satan to take Job’s cattle, children, wealth and ultimately his health.  Job experienced a “Nevertheless Moment” that would have broken the strongest of us.  Job cursed the day he was born and questioned why God would allow such things to happen in his life, but NEVERTHELESS,

“Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him,” Job 13:15.

The ultimate “Nevertheless Moment” again occurs in a garden.  The hour had come when Jesus would face betrayal and death.  Although He was God and this was the plan from the beginning, His flesh cried out against His destiny.  The will of His fleshly body rebelled against the pain, disgrace and death that lay ahead.  Jesus went into the garden to pray a prayer that would bring His flesh into submission.  Jesus, the Son of God, experienced his “Nevertheless Moment.”  Matthew, Mark and Luke all record the same event. 

Matthew 26:39 tells us, “And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: NEVERTHELESS not as I will, but as you will.” 

Mark 14:36 records it as, “And he said, Abba, Father, all thing   are possible for you; take away this cup from me: NEVERTHELESS not what I will, but what you will.”

The final account is Luke 22:4, “Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: NEVERTHELESS not my will, but thine, be done.”

 By giving over the will of His flesh, Jesus could now take on the sins of the whole world and change the destiny of all mankind.

Hebrews 12:11 Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; NEVERTHELESS, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

The most difficult thing you will ever let go of is YOUR WILL but God will put a “Nevertheless Moment” in your life to give you the opportunity.  Embracing rather than resisting the moment will usher you into God’s plan for you from the beginning.  If you are facing your personal “Nevertheless Moment,” turn from Satan’s lies and be an Abraham with the faith that God has a greater promise for you or a Job that says, “The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the Name of the Lord.  As Hebrews 12 tells us,

Your NEVERTHELESS may seem painful for the moment

But it will yield a fruit of righteousness that will sustain you for eternity.

STINKY SHEEP LIVES MATTER

SUNDAY MORNING!!!!  I climbed out of bed, hopped in the shower, rolled on the deodorant, and spritzed on the perfume…now what to wear? Cool morning = cozy sweater, nice skirt, blow dry my hair, take the shine off my nose, don a decorative scarf, and black heels, grab favorite purse and “VOILA,” ready for church…well the outside is at least!

We walk into church, smile perfunctory, shake a few hands and take a seat…not the front row but near enough to the front to avoid distractions and concentrate on the songs and sermons. People are still filing in and finding their seats, so I sit piously, eyes closed in quiet meditation…Oh how good God is to me.

Suddenly my eyes began to water and my nose began to run as an acrid scent wafted right back my way.  Jarred from my comfortable, spiritual posture, my eyes flew open…SERIOUSLY???  Who comes to church smelling and looking like that?  The still, small voice whispered… “They are sheep; sheep that I love and sometimes sheep stink.”  To the Good Shepherd, STINKY SHEEP LIVES MATTER!!!

To the Shepherd, all the sheep are precious…the obedient, the properly sheared, and the well-fed; from the smallest lamb to the oldest ram.  When we are safe in the sheepfold, we like to end the narrative right here, but for the Shepherd there are sheep that are injured and lame, sheep that are not satisfied with the offered pasture and stream, and sheep that have wandered away and his heart yearns to gather them in his arms and bring them safely home, because STINKY SHEEP LIVES MATTER!!!

Luke 15:4-6 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, "Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!"

Luke 15 gives us the “Parable of the Lost Sheep.”  In this parable, the Shepherd leaves the 99 sheep safe in the sheepfold to search for the one that has wandered away.  Though his body begins to tire, he continues to search; though the night settles in and he may be cold and hungry, he continues to search; though hope wears thin, the Shepherd continues, as we read in verse 4, “Until he finds it.” 

Suddenly, the Shepherd hears a faint bleating, a rustle of leaves and there caught in the brambles is the precious lost sheep.  Its fleece may be matted with blood and tangled with thorns, the  smells of unsavory substances offend his nostrils but doesn’t stop the Shepherd.  Gently he cuts through the imprisoning brambles, pours oil in the wounds, binding them to stop the bleeding and tenderly “lays it on his shoulder.”  With no thought to soiling his robe or the transfer of aromas from the sheep to his person, the Shepherd makes his way home, rejoicing because, STINKY SHEEP LIVES MATTER!!

SUNDAY MORNING….the Holy Spirit moves in our midst.  Not because of my spotless garments or sweet smelling perfume but because the Good Shepherd is seeking for some lost sheep.  His Spirit began to sense their feeble bleating and moved into their situation.  Chains were broken and lives set free, wounds were soothed with tenderness and the aroma of God’s love overshadowed the stench of sin as hands were raised in surrender and praise.

My eyes are still watering and my nose is still running but this time in sorrow for my thoughts and thanksgiving for God’s Grace.  I am so thankful that to God, STINKY SHEEP LIVES MATTER, because sometimes the STINK goes far beyond SKIN DEEP…God has a remedy for us self-righteous sheep, too!