The old has gone

2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!

This was today's verse-of-the-day from BibleGateway.com, a site I use frequently for checking different translations and to research general Bible questions.

Definitely a verse that applies to today, Jan. 1, 2016, agreed? WOW, I really cannot believe it is 2016 already.

Seems 2015 flew by and with it came visits from family – all the way from Yuma, Arizona, as well as some great summer weather with just the right amount of rain to keep my garden going and my water bill lower than normal.

There was tragedy as well. I lost my daddy on April 1, a void that will never be refilled. Also lost another, very young member of our extended family, Taylor, to a car crash. Then there was Pepper, my African gray parrot who shared my life for 24 wonderful years. When there was no one else, there was always Pep Buddy Bird.

After Taylor’s death, I had a serious crisis of faith, and still do to some extent, which is why my blog posts have been few and far between in the last several months.

I am thinking that this verse may be just the inspiration I need to get back on track and back to my faith.

The question posed about this verse in the Quest study bible is, “What is new when someone is in Christ?” The answer, “Everything. A sinner is changed radically – turned inside out and upside down.”

The text goes on to explain that life in Christ should have a new direction and purpose. A life in Jesus should be one in which we focus on our Lord and Savior, and not on ourselves.

Perhaps in my grief, I have found it difficult, if not impossible, to direct my focus to the Jesus I profess to follow. Perhaps the pain of the losses of 2015 have created in me a hardened heart that finds it challenging to reorient, not only my heart, but my mind and soul as well to God’s only Son.

This situation makes me think back to the revivals of my youth at Patterson Park Brethren Church in Dayton, Ohio.

At those revivals folks were invited to accept Jesus as their savior by walking down the aisle and praying with the pastor. There was also an invitation to recommit one’s life to Jesus. While the majority of those who made the walk were new converts, many were reaffirming their faith after life tragedies that sidetracked them and their faith in the Almighty.

Perhaps that is what I need, a recommitment to the Savior of the Bible; you know the One, the One who, in Luke 9:23 said, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.”

Maybe I need a personal revival of faith. Maybe I need to walk that aisle. Maybe I need to take up my cross. Maybe I need to recommit my life to Him. Maybe, just maybe I…

As I ponder this, I would pray –

May God guide and protect each and every one of us every day in every way.

Amen.

It's been a while...

...Over two months to be exact, but I am now back at my computer with yet another attempt to share the goodness that is faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Today I came across a verse I had not thought of in quite a while. Psalm 46:1 (NIV) reads, God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.

So very true, agreed?

God is there when everyone else fails you. God is there through the good times. God is there through the bad times.

Bottom line, God is always with those who profess Him. God is always there for those who accept His one and only Son as their savior.

There have been times when I have doubted his presence, which is the reason I stopped blogging for a while. When a seven-year-old is taken from this earth as the result of a senseless accident, it gave me a jolt that I am still feeling.

In fact, as a result of Taylor’s death and my father’s untimely passing, I stopped attending church.

Even though I read my devotional and the associated scriptures every single night without fail, I did not feel like I absorbed anything from this ritual. It was more a habit than anything. It really was not the spiritual experience I had found in the past through Our Daily Bread.

I also continued to play with the Joy Bells at Newberry United Methodist Church, but the “joy” was missing from my participation. I was having a hard time feeling any joy at all, much less any spiritual uplift from my faith in Jesus and my commitment to sharing his message in song or through this blog or through the associated faith-based Facebook pages - Retreat to Belief and Good News Beacon.

I goes without saying, I was in a rut - a big, deep, muddy rut.

Then one day it hit me – by excluding my faith in God from my life I was inviting a joyless life. I was disengaging myself from the one thing that mattered most to me – Jesus and his message of salvation.

I have since returned to church and today, started blogging again about what really matters – love of Jesus and faith in Him and the Father.

I will admit that I am not at the level of faith I enjoyed when I began the Retreat to Belief blog and its associated website, www.retreattobelief.com, but I am on the road to restoring my faith to heretofore unheard of levels.

Good Lord willing, I’ll be there soon.

In the meantime, I offer this Psalm of praise for your consideration and absorption.

Psalm 46 (NIV)
For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. According to alamoth. A song.

1 God is our refuge and strength,
    an ever-present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
    and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
    and the mountains quake with their surging.
4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
    the holy place where the Most High dwells.
5 God is within her, she will not fall;
    God will help her at break of day.
6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
    he lifts his voice, the earth melts.
7 The LORD Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress.
8 Come and see what the LORD has done,
    the desolations he has brought on the earth.
9 He makes wars cease
    to the ends of the earth.
He breaks the bow and shatters the spear;
    he burns the shields with fire.
10 He says, “Be still, and know that I am God;
    I will be exalted among the nations,
    I will be exalted in the earth.”
11 The LORD Almighty is with us;
    the God of Jacob is our fortress.

Is there faith without works?

James, brother of Jesus

James 2:14-17 (NIV) What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say that you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

As I have learned in my walk as a follower of Jesus, it is mandated that we believe in Him to receive salvation. There are no other requirements as evidenced by the apostle Paul’s testament in Romans 1:16-17 (NIV) 16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” (Habakkuk 2:4)

But, is belief/faith enough? According to James, no.

Let’s qualify that, shall we?

Jesus talked about serving others, and how, when we do, we serve Him. Remember the parable from Matthew 25:37-40 (NIV)? 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

Don’t you think this is what James is saying? Basically, if you have a true believer’s heart, you will take care of your fellow man. You will feed him when he’s hungry; you will offer clothing when his is tattered and torn; you will give him water when he is thirsty.

You will do whatever it takes, AND, you’ll do it in His name to glorify Him. I sincerely believe this is what faith with works is all about.

A true believer, a true follower of Jesus will do good works. In my opinion, that’s the proverbial no-brainer!

Bottom line – accept Jesus as you savior. Then – follow Him daily.

After all, the Lamb of God requires it, Then [Jesus] said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." (Luke 9:23 NIV)

You can read more about faith and what it entails by turning in your Bible to the 11th chapter of Hebrews. If you do not have a Bible, click here to read the entire chapter in the text of the New International Version. You can also choose to read the chapter in the translation of your choice. Bible Gateway offers many; just choose and read.

As the weekend approaches, consider your journey with Jesus. Consider your faith. Consider your works in His name. And, as you do, May God bless you and keep you near Him every day in every way. Amen.

Just who can be against you?

Paul, the apostle of Jesus

The apostle Paul wrote in his epistle, Romans 8:31-39 (NIV)

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written:

“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

I ask you, "If God is for you, who can be against you?"

 

Good question to ponder over the weekend...

 

My God bless you every day in every way. Amen!

Pray for victims of terrorist actions

Blank. That’s my canvas today.

S-o-o-o-o, I would ask that all of you say a prayer for the people around the globe who have lost loved ones to terrorist actions. Today, I think specifically of those in Paris. We all know the Lord will comfort them and I pray they all know that He is with them, even in these dark times.

One of my favorite comfort passages in Scripture is Jesus’s introduction to the Sermon on the Mount – The Beatitudes.  I find myself turning to them more and more as I grow in the faith. Perhaps you would like to take a moment immersing your heart, mind and soul in this humble exhortation?

If so, here are The Beatitudes for your spiritual enjoyment –

Matthew 5:1-12 (NIV)
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.
The Beatitudes
He said:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
    for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

May God bless each and every one of you every day in every way. Amen.

Jesus saves!

Yes, He does, in so many ways.

Beginning Jan. 1, and each weekday thereafter, I'll list one way my Faith in the Almighty has impacted my life.

You are welcome to comment your story for all to see His marvelous work in your life.

May God bless each and every one of you every day in every way and may He grant you the peace that passes all understanding. Amen.