Grandparents

Posted on May 9, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

Every time I say your name in prayer—which is practically all the time—I thank God for you, the God I worship with my whole life in the tradition of my ancestors. I miss you a lot, especially when I remember that last tearful good-bye, and I look forward to a joy-packed reunion.

That precious memory triggers another: your honest faith—and what a rich faith it is, handed down from your grandmother Lois to your mother Eunice, and now to you! And the special gift of ministry you received when I laid hands on you and prayed—keep that ablaze! God doesn’t want us to be shy with his gifts, but bold and loving and sensible.     2 Timothy 1:3-7 (The Message)

Yesterday was Mother’s Day. My mother isn’t here for me to call or send a card to on this day. And so I have been thinking today about my role in the lives of my children. And grandchildren. I’d like to learn from my mistakes as a parent and do better as a grandparent.

On the surface, being a grandparent has all the benefits without the responsibilities. And, yes, parents are the ones responsible for the care and raising of their children. But grandparents have opportunities to sow seeds that may hit more fertile ground just because we aren’t their parents.

When the children are small there is an opportunity to build a relationship with the children that will be a foundation for when they are older. If they see me as not the disciplinarian but instead someone that expects good behavior and gives lots of positive reinforcement, my time with them will be a time of sharing. As they get older and I share events of my life and, occasionally, the life of their parents, I begin to be a needle that sows the tapestry of what God has done in our family. I believe I am helping the grandchildren to see where they fit and how they are not a ‘clone’ of their parents but in fact a piece or color of the tapestry themselves. The grandchildren have an opportunity to see me as a messenger without perceiving me as “preaching” to them. I have had some awesome moments of “truth” with my grandchildren and I know their parents have told them similar truths but I can see the “light bulb” blink on! It is a bit funny that the same truths come through even when they are the exact same words! That is a seed sown in the grandchild and the child, isn’t it? It could really impact their relationship and lives.

Faith isn’t for me to preach to my children and grandchildren but it is for me to walk out in front of them in clear truth. It is saying, “I don’t know” when I don’t. It is saying, “I don’t understand what God is doing” when I don’t. How can they know the victory of a life with Jesus if they do not also see the struggle? This is standing in testimony to the faith that has lived through the generations. I have a letter from the grandmother of my grandparents that described how important it was to her to begin every day reading her Bible. She came from the old country (Prussia) and made her life’s journey with the strength of God. My grandparents and my parents may not have been as verbal about their faith as I am but they did live their faith in my life. I am so very grateful to God and to all of them before me. May I also be found faithful.

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My Brother

Posted on May 6, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

How wonderful, how beautiful, when brothers and sisters get along!
It’s like costly anointing oil flowing down head and beard,
Flowing down Aaron’s beard, flowing down the collar of his priestly robes.
It’s like the dew on Mount Hermon flowing down the slopes of Zion.
Yes, that’s where God commands the blessing, ordains eternal life.          Psalm 133 (The Message)

As a nurse, I have met people at sometimes the worse seasons of their lives. I worked in critical care units at the hospital when people have been notified that family members were unexpectedly injured in horrific accidents. I have worked in hospice when family members are dying of incurable diseases. Unlike the movies, my experience tells me that people go through these times much the way they have traveled through the rest of their lives. Rarely do people have an “Aha moment” when they suddenly turn their life around, moving from a negative, critical person to a compassionate, kind person. And so I have been a witness to some family interactions that truly explain to me why we have so many reality shows now. There are some crazy families out there! I have wondered how they evolved into such dysfunction!

I did not come from a perfect family and did not have a perfect childhood. What I did have, and still do to this day, is an extraordinary relationship with my brother. He is celebrating a milestone birthday this weekend and I am thinking and praying for him. What brought us to this place where after all these years, we still have a great relationship?

Certainly our faith in God has been a foundation. Our parents did not talk about their faith but they did live their faith in front of us, especially our mother. She taught us how to pray as young children and showed us, by her example, that it is to God that you turn for every day needs and also in a crisis. Dad provided the ‘muscle’ that you faithfully kept the Sabbath unless you were falling down ill. You always gave to God the first fruits in your tithe even if you lost your job. God didn’t give up you – you do not hold out on God even if it is a “two penny” offering because that is all you have.

Maybe it was the difference in our ages. My brother was eight-years-old when I was born. Maybe that cut down on the arguments and need to be “right” or “first” or “best”. Other people compared us but I never felt the competition between us. We were very different in personality and the direction that our lives took and we seem to like that in each other. I’ve met other siblings that seem to need to criticize each other for being different and need to try to convince each other that “their way” is “better”.

I really cannot come to some secret formula for why my brother and I are close despite age differences and geographic distances. So in my prayers I am just grateful to God for this gift that I really never asked for. God does that sometimes. He gives a gift just out of His great love. This gift is over 50 years old and just keeps blessing me.

One day, we will all live together with our LORD and Savior, Jesus. It will be an eternal life with God’s wonderful gifts of harmony and unity that will characterize all of our relationships. It will be brothers and sisters living together and getting along. Why? Because our Father planned it that way! I’ve gotten a glimpse and I am looking forward to the whole picture!

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The Limitation of My Love

Posted on May 5, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

A Pharisee invited Jesus to have dinner with him. So Jesus went to the Pharisee’s home and got ready to eat. When a sinful woman in that town found out that Jesus was there, she bought an expensive bottle of perfume. Then she came and stood behind Jesus. She cried and started washing his feet with her tears and drying them with her hair. The woman kissed his feet and poured the perfume on them.

The Pharisee who had invited Jesus saw this and said to himself, “If this man really were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him! He would know that she is a sinner.”

Jesus said to the Pharisee, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”

“Teacher, what is it?” Simon replied.

Jesus told him, “Two people were in debt to a moneylender. One of them owed him five hundred silver coins, and the other owed him fifty. Since neither of them could pay him back, the moneylender said that they didn’t have to pay him anything. Which one of them will like him more?”

Simon answered, “I suppose it would be the one who had owed more and didn’t have to pay it back.”

“You are right,” Jesus said.

He turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Have you noticed this woman? When I came into your home, you didn’t give me any water so I could wash my feet. But she has washed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. You didn’t even pour olive oil on my head, but she has poured expensive perfume on my feet. So I tell you that all her sins are forgiven, and that is why she has shown great love. But anyone who has been forgiven for only a little will show only a little love.”       Luke 7:36-47 (CEV)

Today was a time when God wanted me to read the whole story and I wanted you to have the same experience!

I have read this story many times. Besides Jesus there are two other main characters for me to learn some lessons.

Many believe the woman was a prostitute. Was she one of the women who later followed Jesus and then His disciples? Was she present on the day of Pentecost? We don’t know that on this side of heaven. We do know that she was forever changed. She was a sinner that was well known in this community. Simon was very clear that he knew the important gossip about her. She would not have been invited to this dinner party. She crashed the dinner. She carried an expensive jar of perfume. And then she just stood there, crying. She cried so much that her tears wet Jesus’ feet and she wiped the tears (along with dirt!) away with her hair. And kissed Jesus’ feet, then poured expensive perfume on them. Without saying a word. Just crying.

Simon, a Pharisee, had invited Jesus to dinner. Maybe he was part of a scheme to set Jesus up. Maybe he wanted to find out about Jesus for himself. He found out quickly that this Nazarene could read his mind and knew what was in his heart! If Simon was skilled in the Law like a ‘good Pharisee’, he found himself becoming the student. Jesus told him a parable about those who owe debts to the master. Notice when Jesus asks him who would be more grateful for the forgiveness of the debt that Simon speaks the obvious answer grudgingly. And then Jesus takes Simon to task for all the ways that he had disrespected Him by not extending to Him what were ‘common courtesies’ of that day.

Why would Simon treat Jesus that way? Maybe because he did not want to seem too friendly. If any of the other Pharisees were present or had some spies present, they would report that Simon was certainly not gracious to this rabble-rouser named, Jesus.

Jesus tells Simon and me that this woman loved much so she did not care what the Pharisees or anyone else thought. Her worship and thankfulness may have been untraditional and offensive to the church leadership of the day but her heart was focused on Jesus with thankfulness and praise. To Jesus, that was all that mattered! Whose opinion matters to me? Is my worship (Romans 12:1-2) reflective of my love and gratitude for all that Jesus is to me? Would my tears wash His feet and my lips kiss His feet?

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The Chihuahua called Cancer

Posted on May 4, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, “Your threat means nothing to us. If you throw us in the fire, the God we serve can rescue us from your roaring furnace and anything else you might cook up, O king. But even if he doesn’t, it wouldn’t make a bit of difference, O king. We still wouldn’t serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.”        Daniel 3:17-18

Chihuahuas are not my favorite breed of dogs. They are ankle-biting, incessantly yipping, little dogs. They think and act like they are Rottweilers, in their own minds. I have seen them keep policemen, mail carriers, and large breed dogs cowering behind fences. They do have sharp teeth so they aren’t all show! “Intimidation” is their game and middle name.

Cancer has the same effect on us. When the word “cancer” follows “diagnosis”, everything else seems to recede into the background and cancer becomes a giant. It’s not really a giant but it sounds like one because “fear” is its bark. Every story we have ever heard – every statistic – becomes a mantra in our heads. But here’s the truth: each one of us is given a race to run (1 Corinthians 9:24-27, Hebrews 12:1-3). No two people are given the same race. No two cancers are the same or will respond the same. There’s a reason that medicine is an art, not a science!

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego thought they had been given a race to run in exile that demanded leadership in the midst of their enemies. They could see how they were to conduct themselves as aliens in this land and remain true to Yahweh. Then it got to the real race. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had to stay in the race despite what appeared to be a foregone conclusion.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego understood God. He could save them. He was bigger than any king (or giant) they may face. But saving them might not be God’s plan. Oh, my friends, that is so hard to accept! Remember Indiana Jones and the step of faith we looked at yesterday? Am I willing to take the step of Faith where God tells me? Or am I going to stand there and argue that the step is in the wrong place so He couldn’t really want me to take the step!

Will I worship God from the middle of the fiery furnace? If my race is more about who I run with or encourage along the way, will I see the victory even in death? Or will I think healing is the only God-option?

My friends, I want you to know that our bodies of flesh and blood will decay. This means that they cannot share in God’s kingdom, which lasts forever. I will explain a mystery to you. Not every one of us will die, but we will all be changed. It will happen suddenly, quicker than the blink of an eye. At the sound of the last trumpet the dead will be raised. We will all be changed, so that we will never die again. Our dead and decaying bodies will be changed into bodies that won’t die or decay. The bodies we now have are weak and can die. But they will be changed into bodies that are eternal. Then the Scriptures will come true,

“Death has lost the battle! Where is its victory? Where is its sting?”

Sin is what gives death its sting, and the Law is the power behind sin. But thank God for letting our Lord Jesus Christ give us the victory!

My dear friends, stand firm and don’t be shaken. Always keep busy working for the Lord. You know that everything you do for him is worthwhile.             1 Corinthians 15:50-58 (CEV)

If cancer has raised itself to yip and bite in your family, point your finger at it and tell it to “Shut up!” and go back to hell where it belongs! No matter what tomorrow brings, we will worship and serve only Yahweh!

 

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Hate the Sin – Not the Sinner

Posted on May 3, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

You judge by appearances. If any of you think you are the only ones who belong to Christ, then think again. We belong to Christ as much as you do.                            2 Corinthians 10:7 (CEV)

The response re: yesterday’s devotion was visceral. Really stepped on our toes, didn’t He? He isn’t done with me yet.

Yes, I often just look at the obvious point of God’s Word. Too often it is the point that is directed at someone else. It is so easy to see the spot of dust in another person’s eye while the plank remains in my own (Luke 6:41-42).

Do I welcome all visitors and new members into the fellowship I attend? Do I extend my hand no matter their infirmity? Remember, Jesus said He came for the sick (Matthew 9:12). In that same passage, Jesus also said He desired mercy from me more than big, fancy sacrifices. Do I extend a merciful hand of greeting to the alcoholic, the homosexual, and the homeless? Or do I spend time trying to take God’s place in the Judgment Seat?

Let brotherly love continue. Don’t neglect to show hospitality, for by doing this some have welcomed angels as guests without knowing it. Remember the prisoners, as though you were in prison with them, and the mistreated, as though you yourselves were suffering bodily.        Hebrews 13:1-3 (HCSB)

Know any strangers? Anyone in prison? Don’t be so literal! Let us ask the Holy Spirit to open our eyes to see people who are alone. It may be a single mom or dad. A college student away from home. Someone who doesn’t fit in because they aren’t trendy or social. Maybe they don’t come to week night services because of transportation or money. $3.50 for supper may not be in someone’s budget and if they are a family, even the church’s “family discount” may not be discounted enough.

Have you seen Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade? Indy is looking for the Holy Grail (the chalice of Christ) with his father. Near the end, his father is shot by the bad guys and so Indy must follow the clues to safely make it to the inner chamber where the Grail is located. He comes to a gorge. How can he cross it without a bridge or rope? The clue or riddle seems to indicate that he is to take a “step of faith”. Indy is standing above an abyss and he is visibly trembling. His father is dying. What else can he do but take the step!?!

I may not like this concept but the truth of Jesus Christ is that He is leading me to the place where I am to take that step of faith whether it is a step in prayer or a step in service or a step that I will make it through this day. Trembling? Yes. May seem crazy? Yes.

I believe our world is going to get worse before it eternally improves. We had better learn to hear and see with more than our physical senses. I want to see beyond the surface to what God sees. I want to live like I know this is the Last Crusade.

 

 


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9/11, Bin Laden, and the Fallen World

Posted on May 2, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

By the humility and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am “timid” when face to face with you, but “bold” toward you when away! I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.                             2 Corinthians 10:1-5 (NIV)

I do not write about political topics but the events of the last 24 hours have left me asking God to examine my heart about my reaction to the news of Osama bin Laden’s death.

I confess that in the days following September 11, 2001 I wanted President Bush to call out the troops and create parking lots in Iraq and Afghanistan. We had the power to exact ‘judgment’ for what had been done. We should do it. It was just and right. Now the man who (gleefully) took credit for the the terrorist attacks of September 2001 is dead. I am not sad about that. And that bothers me.

Jesus said He came to find and save what was lost (Luke 19:10). He said He came for sinners not those who already had a good relationship with God (Matthew 9:12-13). And I am to go and do as He did (Matthew 28:18-20). It is not for me to judge first and decide who I will share Jesus with. It is not for me to decide who is evil and unworthy.

“But he is evil!” Yes, Osama bin Laden did evil things. Yes, he was evil. But I believe that I still should have compassion that he made choices that put him in a terrible place. I should not be speaking from a place of fear or self-righteous judgment. My anger should be directed toward the spirit he was listening to and that led him down that eternally destructive path where he lived and walked.

Paul reminds me that it is the spiritual weapons that I possess that breaks down the power that directed what bin Laden did. God gives me the power to take capture every thought and put it under His control. And so despite bin Laden’s actions, I can make the distinction between the man and his actions. I can look with compassion and pray for other Muslims who need to meet Jesus. I may be the Jesus they meet. I want to represent Jesus truly. God has enough wisdom, mercy and grace for me to do this.

So as we go about our day today and the subject of Osama bin Laden comes up, may the Spirit of God speak to our hearts and cause us to fight our war on God’s battlefield and with weapons He provides. May God be glorified!

 

 

Posted in 2 Corinthians | 7 Comments

Be Pro-Active!

Posted on April 29, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

Remember your word to your servant, because you gave me hope. This is my comfort in my affliction, for your word has revived me. The arrogant mock me excessively, but I don’t swerve from your law. I remember your ordinances of old, Yahweh, and have comforted myself. Indignation has taken hold on me, because of the wicked who forsake your law. Your statutes have been my songs, in the house where I live. I have remembered your name, Yahweh, in the night, and I obey your law. This is my way, that I keep your precepts.          Psalm 119:49-56 (WEB)

The person who wrote this psalm gives me a couple of straightforward words to consider. First, the passage says that in the tough times (afflictions) that God’s comfort has been His promises. Do I know God’s promises? Do I read them and think about them? Do I read them enough to commit them to memory? When times are tough – wouldn’t it be good to have done some pro-active work? There are many books out there about God’s promises. Some of us have a Bible with a list of His promises in an appendix. Some of us have been wise and we have spent time with God’s Word, not just memorizing but taking His promises into our hearts.

The second word that the psalm writer says is that he practices what he has read – he obeys God’s commands, His will, His way of doing things. He says he walks the talk. How do I know what God’s will is? How do I know His way of doing things? I find out the answers to those questions through study, prayer, and fellowship with fellow believers. Then when a question comes up and I am not sure what to do – I keep asking and looking closer at God.

Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. A second likewise is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”                     Matthew 22:37-40 (WEB)

Jesus is my example. He says that all Law and His words to the prophets come from His first two commands: Love God totally and love my neighbor as myself. God’s answer and direction to any situation is going to be able to be ‘hung’ off these first two commands. If I can’t hang the answer that I believe I am hearing on those two laws then I need to rethink the solution. God is consistent and faithful. If answers seems out of focus or unclear, maybe there is a ‘wait’ involved. More often than not, I am ready to jump ahead of God’s timing!

God is there all the time ready to guide and direct me every day and in every thing. He is my comforter and teacher. Reading all of Psalm 119 would be a good way to spend some good time this weekend and learn something new.

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Do You REALLY Believe?

Posted on April 28, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

In the crowd was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years. She had gone to many doctors, and they had not done anything except cause her a lot of pain. She had paid them all the money she had. But instead of getting better, she only got worse.

The woman had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him in the crowd and barely touched his clothes. She had said to herself, “If I can just touch his clothes, I will get well.” As soon as she touched them, her bleeding stopped, and she knew she was well.  Mark 5:25-29 (CEV)

I love this story. It is one that no matter how many times I read it, I get tears in my eyes and, unconsciously, bow my head.

Here is a woman, that alone in her society makes her ‘less than’, who has been ill, very ill, for 12 years. She has been ill in such a way that has isolated her from her family, friends, and neighbors. She is like a leper but she doesn’t even have a ‘colony’ of like-people with whom she can associate. No one can be around her because she is unclean. If that wasn’t bad enough, she has spent all her money on every powder, incantation, prayer, and quack that might help her. She is destitute, maybe even suicidal at this point.

In those days, the homes did not have windows. Maybe she heard people outside her home talking about this Jesus who had “healed many” (Mark 3:10), set a demon-possessed man free(and killed some pigs!), and calmed storms on the Sea of Galilee. And she is desperate. She has no other options. Going out into a crowd like she did was inciting the crowd to stone her for contaminating them. But she takes the chance.

I believe it is desperation that is the perfect catalyst for faith that Jesus will respond. Do I really believe? Am I desperate? It is not the beauty of my prayer that brings a response from Jesus. It is not the perfection of my life that makes me worthy of His response. It is the cry of my heart. It is my weakness; my inability to do anything that brings Jesus’ response of compassion and extravagant love.

Not all of us who have cried out to God received the answer that we desperately wanted. Only God can answer my “Why” questions. Only God can judge my heart; my prayers.

God’s answers are in His plan and in His timing. As I spend time with Him, our lives come closer together and I hear His voice and see His heart. My spirit grows in His Spirit. My spiritual sight begins to become sharper. The ‘dark mirror’ that Paul spoke (1 Corinthians 13:12) becomes lighter as I accept and bring the Light of Jesus closer.

Don’t punish me, LORD,or even correct me when you are angry!

Have pity on me and heal my feeble body.

My bones tremble with fear, and I am in deep distress. How long will it be?

Turn and come to my rescue. Show your wonderful love and save me, LORD.

If I die, I cannot praise you or even remember you.

My groaning has worn me out. At night my bed and pillow are soaked with tears.

Sorrow has made my eyes dim, and my sight has failed because of my enemies.             Psalm 6:1-7 (CEV)

Cry out to God today. As Jesus told Thomas, “Stop doubting and believe!” Jesus’ hands will be there waiting for your hand. His ears are already tuned to your voice. His heart already sees and hears your heart. Allow Him to dry your tears and pick you up when you are too tired and weak to do it for yourself. Do not listen to anyone but listen to the One.

Posted in Mark, Psalms | Comments Off on Do You REALLY Believe?

Investments

Posted on April 27, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

[1]Charge those who are rich in this present world that they not be haughty, nor have their hope set on the uncertainty of riches, but on the living God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy; [2]that they do good, that they be rich in good works, that they be ready to distribute, willing to communicate; laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold of eternal life.                                     1 Timothy 6:17-19 (WEB, my numbers)

I wonder what the definition of ‘rich’ is. The Mirriam-Webster Dictionary says it is “having or controlling great wealth”. So then I would ask the definition of ‘great’. But enough of that! I imagine each of us has a judgment of whether we are rich or not. If we are not sure, we could always ask God!

It is a wonderful blessing to have some specific ‘commands’ given if you are in the ‘rich’ group. As I read the first sentence, I remember all the stories I’ve read and movies I’ve seen where there is a terribly rich person who falls in love with a poor person and they live happily ever after (like Cinderella). In every story the poor person teaches the rich one about all the wonderful things that are important that money cannot buy and has no effect upon. God does provide everything I need if I am willing to work the land. If I want my groceries to come packaged from a store – then I need some money. This first command has more to do with my heart.

The second ‘command’ is more about what I do with what I know is true. It is ‘walking the talk’. A rich person may come to be known as a philanthropist. Generosity can show a compassionate heart that God will see as generous and willing to respond when He calls to help one of His children who are in need. This part must absolutely be connected to wisdom and obedience. It is just as disobedient to give when God has not asked or said, “No!” as it is to not give when God says, “Yes!” In this command, the rich person really finds treasure from God and becomes familiar with what life is truly about.

But we have this treasure in clay vessels, that the exceeding greatness of the power may be of God, and not from ourselves. We are pressed on every side, yet not crushed; perplexed, yet not to despair; 4:9 pursued, yet not forsaken; struck down, yet not destroyed;… Therefore we don’t faint, but though our outward man is decaying, yet our inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is for the moment, works for us more and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory; while we don’t look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.                 2 Corinthians 4:7-9, 16-18 (WEB)

Investments can be very good things. And investing in Jesus is a sure thing. I am always going to get a bigger return on any time, talent/gift, even myself, when I ‘bet’ on Jesus and decide to trust in Him. Let’s put it to the test and invest an extra 10 minutes today with Jesus. Do it for a week and let me know what ‘return’ you receive!

 

 

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More than…

Posted on April 26, 2011 by Jody Neufeld

Preserve me, God, for in you do I take refuge. My soul, you have said to Yahweh, “You are my Lord. Apart from you I have no good thing.”        Psalm 16:1-2 (WEB)

This week there will be many sermons spoken from John 20 regarding Jesus’ appearances to the disciples, including Thomas’ doubts. It was another “layer of learning” for me this week as I read the passage again. Just when I think I already know what God was saying through the gospel writer, I get another layer in my learning from the Master. Take a moment and read John 20:19-29.

Jesus meets Thomas’ need for something tangible. He exposes Himself and gives Thomas a look at His hands and side. Jesus doesn’t just tell Thomas to have faith. The Creator knows the limitations of His creation. The Creator knows what Thomas needs to take that next faith step, if he chooses to take that step.

Then Jesus gives Thomas that nudge (or shove!) and tells him what to do next – Stop doubting and believe! (verse 27) It is a choice to just do it. Period. Oh, how our flesh rebels against that step out into the unknown! Thomas, by his answer, proclaims why he decides to take the step.

“My Lord and my God!” (v. 28)

Something in his experience with Jesus, something that he saw or something that he remembers that Jesus said, or a combination over the three years, gave Thomas that lift in his heart and spirit to speak what he knew. That was more powerful than his doubts and fears.

Doubt, uncertainty, and fear can cloud my search for wisdom and knowledge for the next step in my day, in my life. When my relationship with Jesus is current, alive, and growing I have a Light that can clear the cloud from my sight. And sometimes, Jesus gives me His hand to lead me through the cloud. I must walk in faith first, trusting Jesus to bring me, remind me by the power of His Spirit, to the place where I remember my Lord and my God and the many acts of love He has extended to me.

God is my refuge whether it is in the bright sun of a new season of hope in my life or in the middle of a storm when circumstances seem overwhelming, too heavy to bear. In God I will find all that is good. In the darkest ‘unknown moments’ of my life, it is God that is the Light that will direct my ways and bring to me that peace that is beyond my understanding.

“My Lord and my God!”

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