What Does God Want from Believers?

Posted on August 2, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

[Jesus said,]“I came down from heaven to do what God wants me to do, not what I want to do. Here is what the One who sent me wants me to do: I must not lose even one whom God gave me, but I must raise them all on the last day. Those who see the Son and believe in him have eternal life, and I will raise them on the last day. This is what my Father wants.”      John 6:38-40 (NCV)

I want to look at three definitions before I share what God has been saying to me.

God’s children. Every human is a child of God, whether born or unborn into our time. By that I mean, that once the child is created or conceived by Him, whether they survive to breathe outside their mother does not define whether they are God’s child. Whether they even believe in Him or not does not determine if they are His child.

Body of Believers/Christians. Christians are believers in Jesus Christ, Jesus the Messiah. The specifics of how someone understands their state apart from God and their need for reconciliation is a HUGE spectrum but Christians believe that Jesus is God-in-the-flesh who came to earth to provide the perfect sacrifice which makes reconciliation with God possible. As a child of God, I was brought up in a home where prayers were said and Jesus was part of my culture. I was sent to a parochial school where I learned many stories about Jesus. I believed He was the Son of God because that’s what I was taught.

Jesus’ Disciples. It took 40+ years for me to accept that God loved me so much that Jesus came to reconcile me and the Father. I needed Jesus. I believe He is real and alive in my life today. Jesus moved from being a character in a story book (Bible) to being God-in-the-flesh who loved me so much that He came to “save” me from a life separate from the Father. (And then I realized that the Bible wasn’t a story book but His inspired Word.) I made the decision in 1995 to live my life following the example of Jesus. I made the decision to study and pray and give up my way of doing things and follow the radical “alien in this world” way of Jesus.

So having put those definitions out there: What Does God Want from Believers? or What Am I to be about in my daily life as a Christian? I think this is a vital question that every person who calls themselves a Christian, proclaims to others that they are Christian, must answer and live out every day.

The answer should bring “holy fear” as well as great peace that I know the “borders” of my life as God’s child, a Believer in Jesus and one of Jesus’ disciples.

My answer is three-fold:

  • Love God with all that I am
  • Love others as I love myself
  • Go and share/teach others about Jesus, wherever, to whomever and however God sends me

If I will do those three things every day of my life, I have a full-time, 24/7 job. I have no time to spend judging others and pointing out the sins of others.

Jesus said, “Why do you criticize and bash others for the “sawdust speck sin” in their eyes and ignore this HUGE “plank sin” (that is un-loving) in your own eye? How can you publicly tell others that you will be glad to point out how they can get clean when you ignore your own need for repentance? You hypocrite! Clean yourself first and then you will be able to see how to truly help another!” Matthew 7:3-5 (my paraphrase and emphasis)

May I seek Jesus every day and listen to His teaching and discipline for my life and then obey. May my life reflect Jesus, not me. I ask that the Holy Spirit pour out wisdom and grace and mercy on me. I am sorry, LORD, for trying to take over Your job and so criticizing others instead of loving them as You said.

Jesus, Lover of My Soul by Darlene Zschech, sung by Hillsong Worship Team

 

Posted in John, Matthew | Comments Off on What Does God Want from Believers?

Take It or Leave It

Posted on August 1, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

These are the wise words of Solomon son of David, king of Israel.
They teach wisdom and self-control; they will help you understand wise words.
They will teach you how to be wise and self-controlled
and will teach you to do what is honest and fair and right.
They make the uneducated wise and give knowledge and sense to the young.
Wise people can also listen and learn; even they can find good advice in these words.       Proverbs 1:1-5 (NCV)

Recently I have been reading my Scripture in the New Century Version which is written for about a 3rd-grade reading level. I like that as a study option because it brings the message to my basic level. I am a college-educated woman who has worked in a area that is considered a profession by every state and so they issue me a license to do what I do. Proverbs is a book that takes my relationship with God and brings it down to the basics. I believe God was really pleased when King Solomon asked for wisdom and then proceeded to write all that “good stuff” down so it would be passed along for generations to come. Makes me ask myself, “Why don’t you read this book more often? Why wouldn’t you want more wisdom?”

Education. We in the 21st century have elevated education and the number of letters that we post behind our names to a distorted level. It is certainly not easy in our modern society to “get your foot in the door” in many job opportunities without a college education. However, I think it is also true that it is impossible to go through that door to personal success without wisdom. Education does not equal wisdom. It is God’s desire that I desire wisdom above all else. He made me and knows the needs of this one He created.

Energize. As I spend time learning wisdom from my Teacher, Jesus, I see the reason for my existence. I become more alert and aware of opportunities that open in my life. I tell young people all the time that if you have a passion for something and have talents for something – there’s a God-given reason for that! Pursue it! Don’t let people tell you to “get a real job”. By who’s standard and definition do you want to live your life? People who are trying to find their own way through life or the One who made this life and knows all the roads through this life? Let me stay plugged into the wisdom that will keep me energized through this marathon that I am running!

Empowerment. Wisdom is the power in people who are living in victory in God’s Kingdom. They are moving at God’s command. They seek Him every day, asking for His wisdom in all things. They receive the love that God expresses through His involvement in their life.

Jesus showed me in His life what victory looks like whether in a miracle or in suffering. He set the example for me to spend time in quiet with the Father, learning and receiving His wisdom.

No matter how the world judges my education level; no matter how old I am and how many experiences I have accumulated, God has some new wisdom to freely give to me every day. It’s a gift to receive every day.

“For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the Lord.
They rejected my advice and paid no attention when I corrected them.
Therefore, they must eat the bitter fruit of living their own way, choking on their own schemes.
For simpletons turn away from me—to death.
Fools are destroyed by their own complacency.
But all who listen to me will live in peace, untroubled by fear of harm.”       Proverbs 1:29-33 (NLT)

Caught Up In The Middle, written and sung by MercyMe (2005)

 

Posted in Proverbs | Comments Off on Take It or Leave It

Beautiful Feet

Posted on July 31, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

[reprinted from October 14, 2010]

How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who brings good news,
the good news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns!
The watchmen shout and sing with joy, for before their very eyes
they see the Lord returning to Jerusalem.              Isaiah 52:7-8 (WEB)

When I think of a messenger in Isaiah’s time I think of a person who walks barefoot, or at best in sandals, over dusty or muddy roads.  He/she has calluses and hasn’t seen a pedicure in their life! “beautiful feet”?

There are ‘watchpersons’ in my life who truly do have “beautiful feet”.  Some have young smooth feet. There are many young people who speak such wisdom to me! They see the world and God’s children with passion and a fearlessness that I do not want to lose. Some have feet with arthritic joints. These feet have traveled many, many roads. I am awed at the precious nuggets of wisdom and experience that these messengers have brought to me. Some have feet of color, bringing essential and diverse news to me that I would otherwise be without.  They are all beautiful because they bring me God’s Good News just when I need it.  Some are leaders, teachers, but more importantly they are brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ.  They are the ones who come when I am at the end of my rope.  Many times they don’t know my need but they are obedient to the message they have been given and obedient to deliver it!

I was thinking of a particular incident this morning when God’s Good News came to me at just the moment I needed to hear it.  I ran the scenario of what might have happened or the road I might have walked if that Good News had not come to me because the messenger was ‘afraid’ to deliver it or was too ‘tired’ or the hundred other excuses that I have heard in my head from my flesh or the enemy when I have been given a message to give.

I lift up these messengers of God who have been faithful and I ask the Lord to return to them a thousand fold for what they have brought to me.  I also lift up those who have struggled in the message and the delivery and ask our merciful Father to strength their feeble limbs as He has strengthened mine.

[Jesus said,] “I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.”    John 13:15-17 (NLT)

Keep Singing by MercyMe

 

 

Posted in Isaiah, John | Comments Off on Beautiful Feet

My Heart Song

Posted on July 27, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

Do not be drunk with wine, which will ruin you, but be filled with the Spirit. Speak to each other with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music in your hearts to the Lord. Always give thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.              Ephesians 5:18-20 (NCV, my emphasis)

What kind of songs does my heart sing to God? Now that brings several “Top Hits” to my mind! I love music! I am one of those people who has a CD playing in the car, through my computer, or my iPhone is playing my faves. Music has been a vehicle to lift my spirit, to sift my emotions, and to soothe my pain for as long as I can remember. I seem to be able to express myself better with a song than just words. Here are some of the Heart Songs that God has heard from me:

Gloom, Despair, and Agony on Me. 

The theme song to my pity parties makes about as much sense as this old Hee Haw bit that I used to laugh at when I was a kid. I’ve had two moments when the despair was very great and I truly felt the battle for my faith and commitment to God. It wasn’t about my salvation. When I accepted and made the commitment to Jesus on that July 1995 night, that was it for me. No turning back. But these two moments that I remember were about trust. I would still believe my need for a savior and that Jesus was the One who saved me but I would be living that belief from a distance. I would no longer allow Him to be LORD of all of me.

Spinning Wheel (Blood, Sweat & Tears). 

Just let me try to “figure out” in my own strength and the spinning wheel begins to turn! And that is what happened in those two moments I spoke about before. I wrestled and struggled to figure out “Why God” and how I was going to live with God at a distance and I was spinning and spinning through my own reason and through Scripture and through what God had been doing in my life – and both times it just got to the point where I said “I surrender”. Living with God at a distance is what I had done for the first 40 years of my life and that hadn’t gone well so why would I want to go back to that?

Love You So Much (Hillsongs). 

And when I surrendered to God – my LORD came with His extravagant love and just held me. It was just the best of hugs! So complete and covered me with healing all over my bruised body, mind, and spirit. And then the love song began. I can’t sing this song without the tears, humbled by the love of my Father.

Homesick (MercyMe). 

Sadness is as much a part of life as the joy. There has been times of profound sadness in my life. This song takes me from that sadness to the acknowledgment that I am homesick for that place where there will be only love and all tears will be wiped away forever. I will not be sad to leave this world. There is so much expectation in my heart for what is waiting for me when I get home.

And so I ask myself, what song is playing in my heart today for my LORD? This “commercial” was sent to me by my friend, Nelda. It got me to thinking about listening to my Heart Song to God.

Stethescope

 

Posted in Ephesians | Comments Off on My Heart Song

Life Filled With Light

Posted on July 26, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

In the past you were full of darkness, but now you are full of light in the Lord. So live like children who belong to the light. Light brings every kind of goodness, right living, and truth. Try to learn what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the things done in darkness, which are not worth anything. But show that they are wrong. It is shameful even to talk about what those people do in secret. But the light makes all things easy to see, and everything that is made easy to see can become light. This is why it is said: 

“Wake up, sleeper!
Rise from death, and Christ will shine on you.”

So be very careful how you live. Do not live like those who are not wise, but live wisely. Use every chance you have for doing good, because these are evil times. So do not be foolish but learn what the Lord wants you to do. Do not be drunk with wine, which will ruin you, but be filled with the Spirit. Speak to each other with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music in your hearts to the Lord. Always give thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.    Ephesians 5:8-20 (NCV)

Light and darkness. Vivid opposites that put this passage of Scripture in the “I get it but sometimes I wish I didn’t” column of my Bible study. It is a passage that I haven’t heard anyone preach about but it would be good for me to hear. So maybe that is why God is “preaching” to me today.

As I read this I remember a night when I was about 16-years-old that was not one of my finest hours. I did a “sneak” out of the house about 2 a.m. to meet a boy. And got caught coming back in about 5 a.m. when I couldn’t get back in the window – the guy ran off! I was doing something in the dark – lying, deliberately disobeying my parents, meeting a boy who was older that my parents wouldn’t approve, – stuff that I would never do in the day and in public. Needless to say, my parents were angry and lowered a stiff 30-day punishment on me, but the more I know now is that they were shook that I would do something so devious. Trust was broken.

Sin is so much “easier” when I think I am “sneaking by”. Logic would tell me that there is nothing that I can sneak past God, but reason and truth and sin have little to do with each other, do they? I can live a “double life” of sinning every day and attending church if my relationship with God and fellow Believers is so superficial that I neither know little about God nor do fellow Believers know little about me. If I make a decision to know God more intimately, then I am also making a decision to learn what pleases God more. His Spirit is a flashlight that illuminates all those places in my life that I might want to ignore. Psalm 90:8 says that God’s presence shines a light on my “secret sins”. The testimony or witness of others also brings light into my life. And remember Paul’s Tips:

  • Begin each day by asking God for His wisdom so that I live wisely
  • Don’t miss an opportunity to do good – it pushes the evil out of my day
  • Doing what God wants me to do keeps me from being foolish
  • Don’t get drunk on man-made spirits but overindulge with God’s Spirit(btw, it doesn’t say not to drink – just don’t slip and get drunk. Paul actually thought a little wine was good for your health – 1 Timothy 5:23. Unless you hear God tell you as He did me – don’t drink. I decided to take Him at His word!)
  • Communicate with words that come from my heart that has been healed and filled with the beauty that is God. My words can become “sweet music” in another’s ears so that they give thanks to God for His work in my life.
  • And thank God every day for what He has done for me and through me.

Here I Am To Worship by Tim Hughes (1999), sung by Michael W. Smith

 

 

 

 

Posted in Ephesians | Comments Off on Life Filled With Light

A Sigh

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

[reprinted from December 1, 2010]

Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns. A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him.

Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the man’s tongue. Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened!” Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!        Mark 7:31-35 (NLT)

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had arrived, they came and started to argue with him. Testing him, they demanded that he show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove his authority.

When he heard this, he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, “Why do these people keep demanding a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, I will not give this generation any such sign.” So he got back into the boat and left them, and he crossed to the other side of the lake.

This is one of many passages in the gospels that should warn all of us that when Jesus is a part of our lives, our lives may not be seen as ‘normal’ by society’s standards. A deaf man who also has problems speaking, is brought to Jesus by people who believe He can heal the man. Unlike some other passages, I can see that there is a measure of faith exhibited by those who come to Jesus. And how does Jesus respond? Does He lay hands on the man, speak a blessing, and the man is healed? No, Jesus spits on His own hand and then sticks them in the man’s mouth! We have no record of how the crowd reacted to that but I bet it was not what they expected!

It’s also interesting to me that Mark uses the word sigh in recalling these two stories. Maybe Jesus sighed because 5,000 people had just witnessed an extraordinary miracle (are there “ordinary” ones?) and had their bellies filled in the process. They still wanted a sign! What was an indigent, nomadic teacher feeding them from a few fish and loaves of bread??!! (It is so easy to be a Monday Morning Quarterback, isn’t it?)

Maybe Jesus was displaying a very human characteristic of frustration. That’s when I sigh! Certainly in the second story that seems true. No ‘sign’ was given to the close-hearted Pharisees and Jesus turns on His heel and gets back in the boat.

Frustration can be a good thing. It can spur me on to put forth more effort and not just sit back on my heels waiting for something to be handed to me. It can also be an indication that I have missed an important something. It can be a signal to seek God’s understanding of the situation.

When I become stagnant by the complacency of where I am in Jesus and decide that I have arrived, my spiritual life begins to decay. God desires that I continue to move forward toward Him and so He does allow obstacles or difficult paths that will frustrate me into moving forward, reaching out for Him.

I see Jesus’ sighs as a human manifestation of His heart’s desire that I continue to move forward in Him. As I do, I will learn more about His mind and His heart and His power. I will become more like Him. A disciple of Jesus.

The Potter’s Hand by Darlene Zschech

 

Posted in Mark | Comments Off on A Sigh

Reach Out and Touch

Posted on July 24, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

Anyone who sets himself up as “religious” by talking a good game is self-deceived. This kind of religion is hot air and only hot air. Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world.       James 1:26-28 (The Message)

Do not try to “wiggle” out of the meaning of this passage. Put in “Godly relationship” in the place of “religion” and hear that with your spirit. From Exodus 22 to James 1, God tells us to care for the “widows and orphans”. Why is that? I asked my husband for some cultural history and read some in a couple of study Bibles.

Widows and orphans were the ones in the Biblical society who could be homeless and starving on the street. It was a very man-driven society and if you had no husband or father to protect you and provide for you – you were cast-off. The “least” in the society were the ones that God was saying, “Take care of them. Pay attention to their needs.”

Who are the “least” in our society?

  • The orphans – We still have children who have been abandoned by parents who are drug addicts or criminals. Children who have tremendous medical needs because they were born with profound disabilities and have no parents or parents unable to cope. Mixed race children still carry the stigma of not “fitting” with a group or culture.
  • Widows and widowers – loneliness is an unflattering result when you lose a spouse. I see older singles struggle to find their way in a world that is constructed for couples. I see young singles who are left alone when their military spouse is killed in action and they may not have the military support that they had as a couple.
  • Homeless individuals and families – how very judgmental we are when we see a person standing or sitting on the side of the road or parking lot. “Get a job!” The old Indian wisdom that tells us to first walk a mile in someone’s moccasins before you judge them – is well said.
  • The poor – those who work at a job or even two or three and still cannot make the basic of bills. Maybe they did make some unwise choices along the way but they are trying to provide for their family but they never seem to be able to get ahead of the financial curve that threatens to totally derail them.
  • The mentally ill – I am seeing the person with chronic, debilitating depression or bi-polar with huge mood swings that destroy jobs and relationships. Who will care about them and their family?

And what is our response to these people? Create more government agencies to give them handouts or teach them skills? Is that what God said to do? I do not doubt the need for some expertise in some of these situations. However, it isn’t a lack of skills that keeps me from being involved but a lack of caring and God-given love that makes me turn my head and not volunteer my time and talents. (I hope you are thinking “Ouch!” and I am not the only one with my toes throbbing right now!) Having an intimate relationship with my LORD isn’t just about what I say and believe but also what I do with what I believe.

May I open my ears to hear God’s urgings and open my eyes to opportunities He puts in my path to serve others. Maybe it’s just a smile, an acknowledgment of their existence. Maybe it’s volunteering to rock crack babies at a local hospital or serve at a soup kitchen or special needs day care. Oh, LORD, may my heart never become hard but a compassionate heart just like Yours. “Here I am, LORD. Send me.” (Isaiah 6:8)

You Raise Me Up by Rolf Levland and Brendan Graham, sung by Samuel Afi

 

Posted in James | Comments Off on Reach Out and Touch

Let God’s Love Take You In

Posted on July 23, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

So I bow in prayer before the Father from whom every family in heaven and on earth gets its true name. I ask the Father in his great glory to give you the power to be strong inwardly through his Spirit. I pray that Christ will live in your hearts by faith and that your life will be strong in love and be built on love. And I pray that you and all God’s holy people will have the power to understand the greatness of Christ’s love—how wide and how long and how high and how deep that love is. Christ’s love is greater than anyone can ever know, but I pray that you will be able to know that love. Then you can be filled with the fullness of God.

With God’s power working in us, God can do much, much more than anything we can ask or imagine. To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus for all time, forever and ever. Amen.    Ephesians 3:14-21 (NCV)

Lectionary texts: 2 Samuel 11:1-15, Psalm 14, Ephesians 3:14-21, John 6:1-21

This Scripture is inscribed in our wedding rings. I am a blessed woman that I can say that I have learned more about God’s love through my husband. That’s what marriage should be about. It should be another reflection of God’s love. It should give husband and wife another look into a facet of God’s love for them as individuals and as a couple of His choosing.

2 Samuel 11 tells us the story of David’s lust for Bathsheba and his murder of her husband. That isn’t love. Wanting to “possess” someone, no matter the consequences, is not the love that God puts in our hearts. There is no place for such a selfish love in God’s plan. And so there is no place for jealousy.

Psalm 14 has the well-known verse “The fool says in his heart that there is no God”. How quick we are to apply the verse to atheists and “sinners”. May we all be warned! Is God the LORD of my life? Do I worship Him above everyone and everything in my life? Do I ask God first about where I should work and who should be my friends and who I should marry? Do I ask God if I should take a vacation or do a “staycation” and give money to someone He has laid on my heart? I am a fool when I attempt to define or limit God to a place that is “comfortable” for me.

John 6 takes me to Jesus feeding the 5,000 and walking on water. While familiar and extraordinary stories of Jesus’ time here on earth, it would be easy to slip those stories easily into a mental file much I do Cinderella or 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Great stories but what do they have to do with my own life? Jesus is alive! Jesus is in my life now. He is here. He is walking right across the waters of every storm in my life. He is the hand that I can grab before I begin my own walk through the storms. Jesus is the provider of all that I need to feed and water my spirit. But it is my choice to sit down and take the time to eat and drink.

God’s love is so far beyond what I can imagine or understand. What I know now about God is very different than what I discovered 17 years ago this month. God has so much that He wants to show me and teach me. I believe I will be discovering aspects and facets of His love for all eternity. That is beyond my comprehension – but I am filled with expectation about “what’s next?”.

Let us take time on this Monday and instead of allowing the busy-ness of the day be the focus, let’s make a choice to turn our hearts and our ears to God’s love. Turn on the CD or MP3 player. Turn to Ephesians 3 and let the words cover us.

When Love Takes You In by Steven Curtis Chapman

 

Posted in Ephesians | Comments Off on Let God’s Love Take You In

Finding the Good

Posted on July 20, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

Therefore, since we have been declared righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. We have also obtained access through Him by faith into this grace in which we stand,and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also rejoice in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope. This hope will not disappoint us,because God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.               Romans 5:1-5 (HCSB)

Summertime along the Gulf Coast means almost daily showers. The Chamber of Commerce likes to call it “Liquid Sunshine”. I call it pain. For those of us with arthritis, we could be employed as local barometers because we know when the rain is coming! And when it is coming every day – well, it isn’t sunshine that comes to my mind!

And then my mother-in-law sends me these beautiful verses. Oh, they aren’t really poetic but they are a balm, a soothing ointment, to my aches. And Paul isn’t speaking just of physical afflictions. No, he knows well that afflictions are often tormenting to the mind and spirit. “Why is this happening?”

My friends, brothers and sisters because of Jesus Christ, we who are so weak, took a tiny, stumbling step and said “Yes” to our need for Jesus’ sacrifice. And so we have peace. In the midst of whatever causes us pain, we have Jesus, our peace.

Not only that but as I look back on the road that I have traveled, I see that I have come through times of great suffering and yet still believe in the Hope that is Jesus. He showed me how to exercise my spiritual muscles and – there is endurance.

I remember driving down Davis Highway, a main thoroughfare in our city, after learning that my son had cancer, a cancer that statistically did not respond well to treatment. I remember crying out to God. And then it was like feeling strong hands lift my head and straighten my shoulders and I raised my tear-filled eyes and I began to explain to the enemy, the accuser, that he had “crossed over the line and all bets were off! I’m coming after you and will proclaim the goodness of my LORD with my last breath! You have made a serious mistake by attacking my child!” Oh, I have had many moments of weakness since then but Jesus has always been right there to hold and restore me to fighting form!

It is difficult (that word doesn’t really cover it!) to find the “good” during a time of affliction. I’ve often said that we need 400 times more encouragers in the Church than we do prophets! My mother-in-law, at the age of 94 years young, encourages my husband and I every evening when she sends us a Scripture. She doesn’t know what is happening in our day to day lives, but she knows her own life and what Jesus has done for her. She grew up with candles for light and a wagon for transportation and now she uses the Internet to send God’s Word across the country to encourage her children. His children. She is a disciple of Jesus Christ.

God’s hope will not disappoint no matter what our circumstance. Let us reach out our hands. Jesus is right there to take our hands and lead us ‘home’. It may not be time for our eternal home but He will lead us to that place of peace where we are strengthened and restored and come closer to Him. That is the best place to be this weekend. Don’t you think?

Precious LORD, Take My Hand by Rev. Thomas A. Dorsey & George Nelson Allen, sung by Sherman Andrus

 

Posted in Romans | Comments Off on Finding the Good

Why Did I Do That?

Posted on July 19, 2012 by Jody Neufeld

Those who get wisdom do themselves a favor, and those who love learning will succeed.    Proverbs 19:8 (NCV)

Fear of the Lord leads to life, bringing security and protection from harm.      Proverbs 19:23 (NLT)

Is there anyone reading this who has not ever asked this question? Any time I have looked back on my life and saw the “mistakes” that I made the reason I made the mistake has been obvious – lack of wisdom. That’s why looking back or “Monday morning quarterbacking” is so “DUH!” when I have the wisdom of hindsight. Solomon surely knew what he was doing when he chose to ask for wisdom from God above all else (1 Kings 5:3-12).

Whether it is a change in job or a change in where I live or both, life can be so very scary as I try to decide which way to go. I may try to apply sound reasoning as I make lists of the “pros and cons” of each option. And I don’t think God wants me to not use the brains He gave me but the step that I too often skip is asking God to give me His wisdom. Stop. Take the situation to God first. And then be open to all answers that He may give.

One of the hardest times to reach out to God for wisdom is in the midst of a health scare. When receiving the news of cancer or any of the many other life-threatening diseases, fear and panic often override all thoughts of wisdom. And then the anger that is a very real thread that runs through asking God “Why? What did I do to deserve Your curse?” It is so hard to know what to do in regards to treatments and many times it truly is the wisdom of God to know the best path to take. Oh, my friends, let me testify to you that Jesus will be there to hear it all! He will allow the fits of anger and sorrow and hold you in His strong, gentle arms while you let loose! And when you are exhausted, He will lift you and carry you through whatever is next.

Sometimes it is the simplest, every day moments when God’s wisdom is most needed. Knowing how to set priorities with my time and talents is so important and rarely taught in schools. And as I became an adult and moved out on my own, I struggled to know how to set and communicate the parameters of my life to my parents and others. Who but God knows my heart, my weaknesses, and the hearts of those around me so that I make the best decisions?

Solomon received the wisdom of God because he asked. God seemed very happy to give it! The apostle James said that God will give us all the wisdom we need (James 1:2-5). But while I first need to ask – I also need to take the time to LISTEN! Just like I tune in my radio to get a clear reception, so I need to tune in my ears to hear God and tune out the world’s way and even my way (Has it been working for me?). Solomon’s downfall came when he stopped listening to God and began to chase the approval of others and trying to win battles in his own wisdom and strength. When I am weakest, God is strongest (2 Corinthians 12:10). That is a word of wisdom.

Proverbs is all about wisdom. There may be something to the idea of reading the 19th Proverb today on the 19th day of the month. Take time. Read them slowly and with an open heart to hear God’s voice. Soak up what He is so freely giving – His wisdom, His knowledge.

In the Secret by Andy Park

 

Posted in Proverbs | Comments Off on Why Did I Do That?