I Corinthians 16:13-14

I Corinthians 16:13-14 “Be on guard. Stand true to what you believe. Be courageous. Be strong. And everything you do must be done with love.”

During my lunch hour at work, I blog. I write about politics, what’s going on in the news, strange science news, or my personal life. People who read my blog regularly know I’m a Christian, but that’s not the focus. Every now and then, though, world events spark religious discussions, and that’s what happened with my post about the fighting in Israel and Lebanon this week.

I got a comment from a man who said he’s not very religious, not very familiar with Armageddon, and he finds the events in Israel scary. He said, “Innocent people are dying. Can anyone see a purpose or some kind of master plan, that will tell us one day why this all happened. I've heard it said, there's a reason for everything. I struggle with that belief.”

My heart breaks for this man, for his grasping for answers and for the fear that comes with a lack of faith in Him who calms the storms. And this passage in I Corinthians describes perfectly the burden I felt as I wrestled with how to answer him. I needed to be strong and courageous, standing true to what I believe, while staying on my guard and also answering him in love. It can be hard to balance it all the right way, and I’m not even sure I did.

The master plan I described (in a lot more words than here) is that God wants our love, and He lets us choose to give it, through faith in His Son. And He allows the suffering to continue, because He wants to give as many people as possible as much time as possible to come to faith in Him.

I haven’t heard back from the commenter, so all I can do now is pray for him to find peace in his heart by coming to faith in Jesus. For myself, all I can do is thank God that He gave me the courage to answer this man, and pray that my words were close enough to the truth about the heart of God.

How about you? Are there questions you’re struggling to answer for someone? Are there principles you’re having a hard time putting into practice? Is there something in your personal life or in the world that looks scary to you? Be courageous. Be strong. The Lord your God will strengthen you. And then you will be able to do things in love.

May His peace fill your heart in the coming week.

Brenda

II Corinthians 1:23

II Corinthians 1:23 “Now I call upon God as my witness that I am telling the truth. The reason I didn’t return to Corinth was to spare you from a severe rebuke.”

The apostle Paul wrote this to the Corinthian church as a follow-up to the previous letter. In the earlier one, Paul took them to task for allowing one of their members to be involved in open immorality, and the church did nothing about it. In fact some of the church members were proud of how much they were able to tolerate.

Paul’s letter included strongly worded instructions for how to remove this man’s sin from the body of believers. He wrote to them, rather than visit them in person, so they wouldn’t have to endure the face-to-face rebuke they needed.

Reading this verse not too long ago made me wonder. How often does God, in His mercy, try to speak to me when I sin, using softer means in order to spare me from a severe rebuke? How many times has He reached me through His Word, or stirred my conscience, so that He doesn’t need to send a godly friend to tell me I’m doing wrong?

I lose sight sometimes--most of the time--of the endless number of ways that the Lord treats me with gentleness, with mercy, and with grace.

In what ways has the Lord spared you? Take some time to look at the way He has used His loving hand of correction, and to see how eagerly He’s waited to welcome you back again into His arms.

Brenda

II Timothy 1:3-4

II Timothy 1:3-4 “Timothy, I thank God for you. He is the God I serve with a clear conscience, just as my ancestors did. Night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. I long to see you again, for I remember your tears as we parted. And I will be filled with joy when we are together again.”

Titus 3:15 “Everybody here sends greetings. Please give my greetings to all of the believers who love us. May God’s grace be with you all.”

Psalm 46:10a “Be still, and know that I am God.”

One of the missions my church supports is a minister, Jerzy, in northeast Poland. Another couple from my church and I visited “our” Polish church in 1997 and felt right at home despite the language difference.

A few months ago we learned that Jerzy’s church will be celebrating its 60th anniversary this September 24th with a big event. When some of the leaders of our missions committee asked what we could give them for their anniversary, they said they didn’t want any gifts. What they longed for was for some of our church members to come and celebrate with them.

One of my fellow travelers from ’97 asked if I’d be able to go, but I couldn’t commit to anything. For a month I put her off, because I didn’t even know what state I’d be living in by September. I wrote a Bread last time about the turmoil I had been in and how the Lord finally got through to me that I needed to “Be still.”

Once I was still and not looking for another job, I was able to say, “Yes, I’ll go to Poland.” And then two other ladies decided to join me, so I won’t have to travel alone. Then I learned that some of the Christians we had met the last time, in Warsaw and in eastern Poland, will be helping us get around in September.

I’m so excited about seeing my Christian brothers and sisters again, and about introducing them to my new traveling companions. I’ll be filled with joy when we’re together again. And the three of us California ladies will be bringing greetings to the Polish church from our own, and no doubt we’ll bring greetings back with us.

And it’s all because the Lord finally got through this thick skull of mine and told me to be still. To seek Him. To wait for His leading. And when I did, He poured out His blessings. He is so good!
What message is the Lord trying to get through to you? What other Christians might He want you to greet or lift up or encourage? Are you keeping so busy that nothing can get through the whirlwind of your life? Take some time to be still and seek out His will. Let Him use you to be a blessing to someone else, and see how He fills you with joy as you do.

Brenda

Luke 24:50-53

Luke 24:50-53 “Then Jesus led them to Bethany, and lifting his hands to heaven, he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up to heaven. They worshiped him and then returned to Jerusalem filled with great joy. And they spent all of their time in the Temple, praising God.”

At my church during communion, they have a photo or a silent video on the screens in the front of the sanctuary. Lately it’s been a picture of a table out in a field, and it has a silver goblet and a plate with a round loaf of bread on it. This week, though, they had a picture of three empty crosses on a low hill, with the sun setting behind them. In the foreground, tall grass waved from a soft breeze.

I looked at the picture and thought about the message those crosses were giving. “It is finished.” The work of Jesus was completed, and He was no longer on the cross. The two thieves who flanked Him were gone from their crosses, and all the witnesses to the crucifixion had left the scene.

The disciples had moved on, discovering in the risen Christ hope and salvation and new life. They witnessed Him, ate with Him, and watched Him ascend into heaven. And then, filled with the Holy Spirit, they preached about Him.

They spent their time in the Temple. They spent some time in prison. They spent time in prayer and fellowship. But they didn’t go back to the place of the crucifixion.

Each day’s sunrise, each day’s sunset, each day’s breeze on that hill testifies to the emptiness of the cross. Jesus has gone away. But His departure didn’t leave us forsaken. It filled the disciples with great joy and made them praise God.

Their joy is our joy. Their praise is our praise. Their faith in the Christ who dwells on high is our faith.

What do you see when you look at the empty cross? Do you stop at the vision of His death? Or do you see the glory His death brought about for Him and also for those who believe? Look again and see the message that the empty cross tells.

Brenda

Romans 12:12-13

Romans 12:12-13 “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.”

I Peter 4:9 “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.”

The Bible uses “hospitality” as a command, but it just doesn’t come easily to me. When I read these verses, I wince and hope the Lord doesn’t really mean it, at least not right away. But I know He does.

It’s just that it doesn’t occur to me to invite people over to my house. I work late so much, there’s hardly ever any food because I don’t have time to get to the grocery store.

But the Lord knows what He’s doing, because He gave me my daughter, and since she graduated from high school a year ago, she’s been inviting people to our house. I get phone calls at work, or at home when she’s out. “Mom, can I have some friends come and watch Pride and Prejudice?” “Mom, can this friend spend the night?” We even have one of her friends living with us now in the spare bedroom.

My first inclination when she asks is to say no. The house isn’t tidy by a long shot. There aren’t any snacks. There’s nothing to drink but tap water. What on earth would these kids think? Really, though, none of that matters, and I almost always end up saying yes.

God told me, “Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” It does take practice, but I see their need. These kids need a place to go where there isn’t a lot of emotional turmoil, where they can hang out and not get yelled at. And sometimes the girls ask me for advice about men or about difficult friendships, and I try to do my best to give the answers the Lord would have me give.

I’ve learned (again) through this practice of hospitality that God’s commands are for our benefit. The blessings I’ve received by sharing my home with my daughter’s friends are beyond measure. I just wish it hadn’t taken me so long to learn this lesson.

How about you? Do you need to practice hospitality a little more? Or is there some other command the Lord has been trying to get you to obey? Take a chance and let Him show you the joy that comes from doing His will.

Brenda