hope

Kool & The Gang

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Jesus said, “Love one another, as I have loved you.” John 13:34

My wife and I took a trip down the memory lane of our youth and went to see Kool & The Gang in concert. Kool’s big brass sound chart topping hits of the 1970’s and 80’s were radio station staples when we were growing up. Their original lead singer may have passed away, but the current group with many of the original 1969 founding members were still on their game with their hits “Celebration” and “Joanna”. If you’re already humming those songs you’re showing your age my friends! If you don’t know about them, I have one word for you – “Youtube”. One of their songs that still gets to me is one of the best love songs of 1984 called, “Cherish”. The lyrics in part say,

Cherish The Love We Have, Cherish The Life We Live”

How deeply do we love those around us? Jesus asked that we love one another as he loved us. When you think about it that’s a tall order as Jesus loved us so much that he went to the cross to save us. Everyone in your life is a precious soul just waiting to be loved. Today, cherish the love we have with Jesus, and cherish the life we get to live with those around us.

Chocolate

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“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be filled.” Matthew 5:6

I was watching a commercial for a candy bar and their tag line came up, saying, ‘satisfy your hunger’. I thought for a minute and said, man that sure looks good but is that all its going to take to satisfy my hunger? The taste of chocolate and a brief sugar rush? Of course, I’m absolutely going to enjoy every bite, but I’m certainly under no illusion that I’m going to be satisfied for more than an hour. So many things in life are temporary fixes to our hunger of the moment: jobs, money, food, addictions, misguided relationships. As the old Johnny Lee country song says, we spend a lot of time “looking for love in all the wrong places”, then we spend the rest of our time complaining that life does not love us back. The real question we have to answer today is,

Where Do We Find Long Term Satisfaction?

Is it even possible to find something satisfying that will last? Something that won’t wear out or grow stale. Something that will build us up and won’t leave us out in the cold. For me, each day that I grow in faith, life becomes more satisfying than the day before. My daily walk with God fills me up. All of life’s struggles may not have melted away, but day by day they become more manageable because I view them differently. Jesus says, ‘Don’t worry’, so I make it a daily point to try and eliminate worry. Jesus says ‘Do not fear’, so I make it a daily point to eliminate fear in my life. Each new day I chose to trust in the One who gives us a beautiful promise in Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they shall be filled.” So many get hung up on the word “righteous” so re-read this verse one more time when a definition replaces that word. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for leading a life that is pleasing to God, for they shall be filled.” Wow! You mean I can be blessed and filled simply by hungering and thirsting to live a life that is pleasing to God? YES YOU CAN! Then what pleases God, you might ask? Its simple – Faith. Hebrews 11:6 holds the answer: “Without faith it is impossible to please God”. 

Pink Floyd’s “Wall”

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“The LORD said to Joshua: “See! I have given Jericho into your hand, its king, and the mighty men of valor” Joshua 6:2

As a teenager music seemed to speak truths that no other medium could really touch. I don’t think much has changed in the decades since. I remember wearing out Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” driving to and from high school. On some level at that age I believed, as the lyrics said, that I was “just another brick in the wall” of life. What difference can I really make? The system is what it is. After all, walls are unscalable, aren’t they? I’ve faced plenty of them in life. Walls that appears to have no end to the right or the left. Then there’s the book of Joshua, and a great story about

Tearing Down Walls In Life.

In the story, the children of Israel are facing the walls of Jericho. We are talking about one massive insurmountable wall. And yet, what does God have to say about this particular wall? “The LORD said to Joshua, ‘See! I have given Jericho into your hand, and its king, and the mighty men of valor.’“ Notice how God does not acknowledge the insurmountable wall that Joshua is facing. To God, the wall is inconvenient at best. To God, the battle has already been won! And what’s even more interesting, Joshua does not argue with God. So, does the wall fall? Of course the wall falls, for that’s what God does. He tears down our walls for us. I’ve watched Him do it over and over and over again in my own life. Give it a try. Simply give God your praise today and watch your walls come tumbling down.

Goliath

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“David said, “the Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” 1 Samuel 17:37

David was a young man and small of stature who literally swam inside the armor upon his shoulders. Goliath was a towering man among men. I can easily picture the scene, with the ultimate warrior standing at the top the hill daring the Israelites to send anyone to meet him. David was a most unlikely choice. He was not trained in combat and certainly not muscle bound to fight hand to hand. Yet David knew something. More importantly, he HAD something. David had faith. In the New Testament Jesus described such a faith, saying in Mark 11:24, “Whatever you ask in prayer, believe you have received it and it will be yours.” David had a call upon his life from God, and he believed it! 

You Have This Same Call

Don’t believe me? Then read Jeremiah 29:11, a verse l look too often and one that we should pay great attention to. “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you a future and a hope”. Today every one of us faces a Goliath our lives: It may be illness, bankruptcy, relationships, joblessness, financial hardship and many more. Of this list, or any other list you could possibly ever dream up, there is absolutely nothing that compares with the Power of God! The Almighty, All Powerful, Omnipotent God is your heavenly Father. He is saying to you that He has a plan for your life! A plan to prosper you and not to harm you. A plan to give you a future and a hope. Step forward in faith today no matter what you face! God will deliver you from the hand of your Goliath! 

See The Colors

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“Though the fig tree may not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines…yet I will rejoice in the Lord.” Habakkuk 3:17-18

Gina lost her husband to a three year battle with cancer. Michael lost his wife just 17 days after being diagnosed with a brain tumor. Through the horror of these two incredibly painful experiences, God brought Michael and Gina Spehn together. They captured their story in a book called, “The Color Of Rain”. When I met this amazing couple I remember them telling me how easy it is for us to get caught up in the gray skies and seemingly gray color of rain. When tragedy hits our lives, all we see are shades of gray. Yet, if we allow the clouds to part ever so slightly and the sun to touch those rain drops, you will soon see 

Every Color Of The Rainbow.

Yes there are days when it is hard to spot the miracles in the circumstances of our lives. Those times when it would be so easy to crawl back into bed and pull the covers of depression over our face. Or, we can choose faith. Habakkuk makes such a choice. “Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Through the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls – Yet I will rejoice in the Lord.” There is a rainbow of color lingering in the midst of your tragedy.

Ferris Bueller

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“Judge not, that you be not judged” Matthew 7:1

In the beloved 80’s film, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”, a fun-loving Ferris had to match wits with his nemesis, Principle Ed Rooney. I still laugh at the scenes in the film because I remember well my version of Ed Rooney roaming our school hallways. I can still picture this teacher on patrol looking for violators. His nickname was, “the judge”, and there was no mistaking who was in charge. Just one whisper “here comes the judge” had the very real effect of instantly scattering students. 

No One Wants To Be Judged

We scatter like mice at the thought of being judged! And yet, why is it that we are so good at doing something that we hate others doing to us? Think of all the judgments we make during the day. “Not surprised they’re getting divorced”, or, “they belong to that political party?” or, “they could do a better job raising their kids”, or, “who taught you how to drive?” or, “you really walked out of the house wearing that?” Judgment, it appears, comes naturally. That’s why Jesus words to us in Matthew 7:1 should literally stop us in our tracks and make us think. “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” We can all do better at loving our neighbors. Care to join me in giving it a try?  

Come As You Are

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“Come boldly to the throne of grace” Hebrews 4:16

Perhaps you can relate to a conversation I’ve had with myself more than I care to admit: “Wow, I really messed up. I can’t believe I messed up. Come on Jim, that was a rookie mistake if I ever saw one! I expect more from you. Get it together turn it around already. Haven’t you learned anything?”

Sound All Too Familiar?

No matter how young or how old we are, we seem intent on beating ourselves up over our miscues in life. For everything from outright sin to simply having hurt a neighbor, friend or loved one, we wallow endlessly in an internal self-defeating conversation. Then we come to Hebrews 4:16 which says, “Come boldly to the throne of grace that we might obtain mercy!” Amazingly that’s actually possible because of the preceding verse “For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weakness, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin”. In other words, Jesus knows what we are going through as human beings every minute of every day. He knows our mistakes, our temptation, our pain, our sorrow, our suffering, and yes our joy. The great hope we have is that because Jesus knows us so well, and knows what we are like even at our worst, yet He still chose to go to the cross to forgive each and every one of us. Let today be your liberation day from a never ending cycle of internal self-defeating conversations. Bring your screw ups to Jesus, no matter how big or how small. Complete restoration is only a prayer away.      

Lego’s

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“Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine (Jesus), and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Matthew 7:24

Sit me down on the floor with a big box a Lego’s next to a four year old and I’ll be happy as a clam for hours. Invariably the tall tower comes first in the middle of the living room carpet, with a tall stack of colorful legos reaching skyward. Yet with each successive block, and the softness of the carpet, that tower begins to sway and eventually comes crashing to the ground. Next, a new approach of a few blocks spread around the base before the tower goes skyward. This always results in a bit more height but not by much before we yell “timber” and everything comes crashing down around us. True success is not achieved until all the blocks are picked up and moved onto the front entry tile floor, and the surrounding base is widened, with successive layers leading upwards like a staircase. Only then can a respectable tower be built! Even a four year old soon learns that,

A Strong Base Builds Skyscrapers

Yet many times this same lesson never makes its way into the foundations of our personal lives. We wonder why we struggle, and fret, and fear in life when in Matthew 7:24 Jesus tells us, “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Ready for a firm foundation in your life? Try Jesus, the master builder.

Vision In The Night

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“For the bread of God is He who comes down form heaven and gives life to the world.” John 6:33

A simple, dust covered van winds its way down a deserted road in Iran. For the driver and the passenger one wrong move would prompt their death. For not only are they in hostile territory, they carry a precious cargo of bibles, which, if discovered, would surely mean the loss of their lives. Suddenly, their steering wheel locks up and their engine dies. Just as they roll to a halt there is pounding on the drivers side window. Filled with fear the driver, Mark Sheehan, rolls down his window not knowing what to expect. The nearly breathless man standing next to him says, “are you the man with the books? I saw a vision last night that a man was bringing a book that I was supposed to read. I was even told to be on this road at this very hour. Then I woke up and found that everyone in my village had the same vision. With wide eyes, he asked again,

Do You Have The Books?

Amazed, the two missionaries handed over their car load of bibles. I’m still amazed when I think back at Mark telling me his story, but I should not be. God is an amazing God, and His wonders He will perform. The question is, are you seeing miracles in your own life? Are you looking for them? Are you even trying? Think about it this way; if God is willing to go to the ends of the earth to draw people who don’t even know they need Him, closer to Himself, how much farther will He go for those who willingly call out His name! Look up!       

Eyesight

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“Jesus said, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” John 14:9

I love one line of scripture in the Old Testament book of Exodus 33:11 where Moses goes alone to meet with God. Verse 11 says that “the Lord speaks to Moses as one would speak to a friend”. To have such intimacy with the Creator of the heavens and the earth is truly priceless. Yet, in that moment, Moses craves more. He actually wants to look upon the face of his Creator and not just hear His voice and feel His presence. In that moment, God responds to Moses, saying, “no man can look upon me and live”. For Man, with his sinful nature, is not able to look upon Pure Holiness. And yet, we find that this answer is not enough for God. God Himself wanted more. God wanted to have a relationship with us, His children, on an entirely new level of closeness. His perfect response was to send His Son Jesus. Jesus, the bridge to atone and forever repair the separation between God and man. Jesus, who said in John 14:9,

“If You Have Seen Me, You Have Seen The Father”

And yet, we find that for God, and for Jesus, seeing them could go to an even closer level. Jesus promised to give us His Holy Spirit to dwell within us. And the very moment He makes that promise Jesus follows it by saying, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.” In other words you-are-never-alone! Jesus will never, ever, let you down. Relationship, like you never thought possible, is only a prayer away.