A few words of love from our Father to you:
I comprehend you in all your complexity, no detail of your life is hidden from Me, your Savior. I view you through eyes of grace, so do not be afraid of My intimate awareness. Let Me describe what I see...you look regal, for I have clothed you in My royal righteousness. You also look radiant, especially when you are gazing at Me. In fact, you delight Me so much that I rejoice over you with shouts of joy! This is how you appear to Me through My vision of grace. (Dear Jesus--Devotions with the Lord, by Sarah Young)
"The Lord your God is in your midst...He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing." (Zephaniah 3:17)
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Monday, February 1, 2010
The Lemonade Stand
Do you ever feel like your going through something strange in your life? Is there a certain situation that your dealing with right now that is affecting your peace? Well, if there is, then you are not the only one. We all get blindsided by things we just can't make sense of from time to time. These bad omens, for lack of a better term, are inherent to the world we live in. But only if we are striving to do things God's way.
In the days of the Apostles, Peter encouraged his brethren with, "Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may be also glad with exceeding joy." (1 Peter 4:12-13) I must admit that this is a hard saying. Of course, it is not hard to understand, but hard to do. The first thing I noticed while reading this passage was that Peter is talking to Christians. He is talking about a fiery trial which is happening to them which will lead to the glory of God. These trials are always a result of wanting to please God. If we weren't looking to genuinely live out our faith then we wouldn't be facing any strange trials. We could continue on living the low-life of ease and comfort without any thought of becoming better testimonies to the power of God. But that is not what I want, and I'll bet you don't want that, either. Who wants to stay a toddler all of their lives? No, we need to grow up, and going through fiery trials seems to be the means by which that happens.
The glory of God should be the highest aim for all that we do in this life. But let's face it, it's definitely not going to be the easiest thing we do here. Peter does afford us a great encouragement when he reminds us that anything we go through as a result of following the Lord in obedience, will result in heavenly reward. I am reminded that Jesus most certainly did not feel like going to the Cross that dark day, on a hill outside of Jerusalem. As a matter of fact, I'm sure if there was any other way to accomplish His mission of rescuing us from our sins, He would have welcomed any suggestions. But the truth is, there was no other way, and so He carried on his assignment right through all that pain and suffering. The Bible teaches us elsewhere, that Jesus pressed on through the Cross despising the shame because of the joy that was set before Him. (paraphrase)
We too, need to press on through whatever fiery trial that God has allowed in our lives because of the joy that overcoming it will result in. I have found that when I am going through something that seems strange and uncomfortable, as a result of doing what is right, that it is always a good idea to take my mind off myself and put it onto others. Reaching out to others while you are hurting is a great way to soothe the suffering, and reveal the glory of Christ in your life. I mean it, if we would remember how much God loves us, there is nothing we couldn't trust Him to help us through. It is His joy to see us press into Him by suffering for Christ, as Jesus suffered for us. There needs to be a family resemblance at some point in our lives, and we never look more like our Father than when we suffer strange things for doing what is right.
So next time you find yourself holding a bunch of lemons, why don't you just decide to take a "lemonade stand," and not give up, or give in. But instead, ask your loving Father to help you turn those lemons into lemonade. And do what Jesus would do, which is press on through, by bringing joy to others and God.
God bless you this weeek and remember, "If you don't stand for anything, you will fall for everything."
In the days of the Apostles, Peter encouraged his brethren with, "Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may be also glad with exceeding joy." (1 Peter 4:12-13) I must admit that this is a hard saying. Of course, it is not hard to understand, but hard to do. The first thing I noticed while reading this passage was that Peter is talking to Christians. He is talking about a fiery trial which is happening to them which will lead to the glory of God. These trials are always a result of wanting to please God. If we weren't looking to genuinely live out our faith then we wouldn't be facing any strange trials. We could continue on living the low-life of ease and comfort without any thought of becoming better testimonies to the power of God. But that is not what I want, and I'll bet you don't want that, either. Who wants to stay a toddler all of their lives? No, we need to grow up, and going through fiery trials seems to be the means by which that happens.
The glory of God should be the highest aim for all that we do in this life. But let's face it, it's definitely not going to be the easiest thing we do here. Peter does afford us a great encouragement when he reminds us that anything we go through as a result of following the Lord in obedience, will result in heavenly reward. I am reminded that Jesus most certainly did not feel like going to the Cross that dark day, on a hill outside of Jerusalem. As a matter of fact, I'm sure if there was any other way to accomplish His mission of rescuing us from our sins, He would have welcomed any suggestions. But the truth is, there was no other way, and so He carried on his assignment right through all that pain and suffering. The Bible teaches us elsewhere, that Jesus pressed on through the Cross despising the shame because of the joy that was set before Him. (paraphrase)
We too, need to press on through whatever fiery trial that God has allowed in our lives because of the joy that overcoming it will result in. I have found that when I am going through something that seems strange and uncomfortable, as a result of doing what is right, that it is always a good idea to take my mind off myself and put it onto others. Reaching out to others while you are hurting is a great way to soothe the suffering, and reveal the glory of Christ in your life. I mean it, if we would remember how much God loves us, there is nothing we couldn't trust Him to help us through. It is His joy to see us press into Him by suffering for Christ, as Jesus suffered for us. There needs to be a family resemblance at some point in our lives, and we never look more like our Father than when we suffer strange things for doing what is right.
So next time you find yourself holding a bunch of lemons, why don't you just decide to take a "lemonade stand," and not give up, or give in. But instead, ask your loving Father to help you turn those lemons into lemonade. And do what Jesus would do, which is press on through, by bringing joy to others and God.
God bless you this weeek and remember, "If you don't stand for anything, you will fall for everything."
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