JESUS SPEAKING

                “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on […] Consider the lilies, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?  And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind.  For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things.  But seek the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added to you” (Luke 12: 22, 27-32.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

                Fear causes people to become anxious and worried.  Fear is produced when a person perceives that a present or future need may not be met.  Through great effort, the fearful heart strives to meet those needs.  Jesus pointed to the lily; one of the most beautiful flowers in all creation.  God intricately forged its soft slender pedals and painted them in a variety of vibrant colors.  He has clothed and provided for the needs of every lily.  God also took great care in designing the human body; molding it in to His own fearful and glorious image (unlike the lily which blooms for an instant before withering away, God’s children live eternally (those who have faith in Christ.))  His sons and daughters are far more important than a perishing flower.  God has always known and provided for the needs of humanity (He clothes the naked and feeds the hungry.)  Still, many are filled with fear and lack faith in God’s provision.  In the hopes of conquering their fears, many strive to possess large excesses; they become their own God’s, but the peace they had hoped to find in their possessions escapes them.  Numerous people have spent whole lifetimes putting everything and everyone ahead of God; many have sought money, relationships, careers, and possessions, but have gained nothing, because they failed to seek God first.  Had they looked to God, He would have given them all that their hearts desired.

                Just recently I picked up my friend James for bible study.  I could tell his heart was troubled; his phone had stopped working for some time, and he was unable to receive calls.  We drove by the phone store to get it checked out; he was told that their network was down and it could be a while before the problem was fixed.  We continued to the bible study, where it was obvious, he was still worried about his phone not operating correctly.  Near the end of our study, we took prayer requests.  James wanted us to pray for his phone situation.  Knowing that God is concerned with even our smallest needs, I told him a story about a pastor whose car wouldn’t start and whose wife suggested they pray about it; the pastor replied, “Honey I don’t think it works like that.”  Humoring his wife, they prayed for the car to start; sure enough, just after praying he turned the ignition over and the engine roared.  I told James to go and try his phone after we were finished praying.  Sure enough, immediately after praying his phone was working perfectly.  He was overwhelmed and excited.  His worries had slipped away.  He spent much time worrying and trying to fix his phone, when all he needed to do was to turn to God for his solution.  His anxieties and fears were the result of not seeking God’s provision first.  [We see the same thing in a recorded healing in the gospels.  A woman had a serious medical condition and had been hemorrhaging for nearly twelve years.  Filled with fear and a longing to be cured, she sought physician after physician; she used up an entire fortune seeking help from those who could do nothing to help her.  She needed a miracle, and after a lifetime of anxious fear and disappointment, she finally turned to God.  One day as Jesus was walking down a road, the woman sought him.  She thought, “If only I can touch the hem of his garment, I will be healed.”  She pushed her way through the crowds that thronged Jesus, and was able to touch his cloak.  Instantly her bleeding stopped, her fears were relieved, and her needs were met.

                What fears and worries fill your heart?  Do you turn to God for His provision, or do you seek to provide for yourself?  Do you have peace today?  Many do not, because they trust in themselves; they strive for gain, believing if they can amass enough wealth they no longer have to fear going without (in so doing God has no place in their lives.)  To the faithless, fear is a constant companion and no amount of planning, saving, or striving will bring them peace.  Do you believe that God is your provider?  Do you have faith in His abilities?  Turn to God, and rely on Him.  Put your trust and faith in your Eternal Father; allow Him to be your provider; and fear will be a stranger to you, and you will know and understand true peace; unending peace; the peace of God “that surpasses all understanding.”

                “Lord Heavenly Father we desire Your peace; we are tired of striving to provide for ourselves and we look to You now for Your provision.  Remove our fears, our worries, and our anxiousness, and replace them with a faith and trust in You.  May we seek You first in all matters, and may You grant us wisdom, guidance and direction.  May we never lose hope and trust in You Father.  Clothe us, feed us, provide for all of our needs.  We love You Father, we praise You, we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things in Jesus Christ’s name, Amen.”  God bless all of you.  

JESUS SPEAKING

“And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses.  But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses” (Mark 11: 25-26.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

A ‘trespass’ is a harmful voluntary action taken against another person.  In a world filled with human beings, trespasses abound; accompanying those trespasses are resentments; a ‘resentment’ is ‘any feeling of hostility, anger, or hatred toward another person as the result of a real or imagined harm.’  Trespasses against God are also abundant, and very easily remedied; one need only ask God for forgiveness, and He is willing to forgive completely.  The Lord harbors no hidden resentment as human beings often do (even after professing true forgiveness.)  God’s mercy is great but not without condition.  Lack of forgiveness for others is the one circumstance in which God withholds His forgiveness.  A person cannot receive the benefits of God’s forgiveness, if they refuse to extend that same forgiveness to others.

Jesus used a parable to illustrate how God deals with those who are unwilling to forgive others.  He said, “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him.  In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt…But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’  Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt…But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment…His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded.  But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full…When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened.  Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me.  Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’  Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt…That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sistersfrom your heart.”

Take a moment to ponder the worst trespasses you have ever committed (trespasses that perhaps you have never revealed to anyone.)  […………………………….]  Has God forgiven you for your evils?  […]  Now take a moment to search your heart for any anger or resentment; is there anyone you have refused to forgive?  […………………………..]  If there is anyone at all, forgive them completely; let go of any lingering pieces of anger; let go of the hurt and the pain; allow God to replace your contempt with love, and your hatred with understanding and compassion; knowing that the God of mercy has fully forgiven you, and requires that you extend that same mercy and forgiveness to others.

“Lord Heavenly Father, please reveal any hatred or resentment we hold within our hearts.  By the power of Your Holy Spirit, give us the ability to forgive all those who have sinned against us.  May we forgive completely, and may our hearts and minds be cleansed of any lingering anger.  May we feel love for those who have trespassed against us.  Father we thank You for Your forgiveness; for Your mercy; and for Your patience and love.  We love You and praise You; and we ask and pray all of these things in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.”  God bless all of you.

JESUS SPEAKING

                Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me.  And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band.  His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength.  And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead.  But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.  I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.  Amen.  And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.  Writethe things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this.  The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches” (Revelation 1: 12-20.)

INSPIRED THOUGHTS

                The Apostle John was the author of the book of Revelation.  When the Lord visited him, he was an old man, living in exile on the Aegean Island of Patmos.  John was the last living Apostle; imprisoned for his faith in Jesus Christ (it is generally accepted that John recorded this revelation around 95 A.D.; some sixty years after the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.)  John heard the voice of the Lord and turned and saw Jesus in his Heavenly throne room (in his glorified state.)  His eyes were aflame; his hair was a brilliant white; his feet were like shining brass.  He was bathed in radiance like the shining of the sun.  John was filled with fear and fell face down at Jesus’ feet.  The Lord commanded John to record all that he was about to see and hear.  Jesus verbally expressed four distinct characteristics of his Godly nature; He is eternal and the creator of all things; He cannot die; He can grant eternal life to whomever he desires; and he stands outside of time (to God, the past, present and future are one in the same.)  Jesus also revealed the mysteries of the seven stars and seven Golden lampstands.  The seven golden lampstands were representative of the seven churches of John’s day.  There were large churches in Ephisus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.  The seven stars Jesus held were the seven angels, or spirits that inhabited the churches (Jesus later addressed each individual church, and discussed matters of sin and obedience.)  These churches also stand outside of time (they still exist today.)  Over the course of nearly 2000 years, all seven churches, have grown to circle the earth.  Every true believer is a member of one of God’s churches.  Anyone who does not believe in the God of the bible has no church; they are lost and headed for death and destruction.  Jesus Christ rose from the dead and is seated in heaven as the ‘head of the church.’  The church is ‘the house of God’ and no one in God’s house will ever die.

                Jesus said, “I have the keys of hades and death.”  Only the one true and living God can grant eternal life.  ‘There is an ancient story of a woman who had lost a son; distraught, she sought a way to bring him back to life.  She heard that Buddha had a potion that could bring people back from the dead.  She sought him, and he agreed that he did have such a potion.  Anxious, she asked to help collect herbs to aide him in making the tonic.  Buddha sent her out with one simple requirement; he told her that the herbs had to come from a house that had never been touched by death.  She set out to collect the herbs, but every door she knocked on had (in one way or another) experienced death; (a brother, a cousin, an uncle, a grandparent, a son or daughter.)  The woman came to realize that death afflicts everyone.  She lost hope in the resurrection of her son, and allowed him to be buried.  The woman returned to Buddha to thank him for helping her to come to terms with the death of her child.’  Buddha had no magic potion; he was unable to bring the dead to life.  He was only successful in replacing the woman’s hope with acceptance.  Unlike Buddha, Jesus Christ has replaced the acceptance of death with the hope of resurrection.  Believers understand that there will be a day when they will mourn no more.  Lost loved ones will live again.  For those who love Jesus, death holds no power; all those who have died, will rise to live forever.

                Will you live again?  Are you aware that Jesus is seated on his throne in heaven?  Do you understand that for those who believe, there is no death?  Those who confess that Jesus Christ is their master, and live to please him, are eternal; there is no death, only life.  Don’t lose faith; don’t lose hope; keep your heart and mind focused on that day; the day you and I will see Jesus Christ face to face (just as John saw him); and we will know complete peace; unending peace; eternal peace; in the presence of a loving God.

                “Lord Heavenly Father, we come before You and we recognize Your power and glory.  Jesus we look forward to the day we will see You face to face.  You are the only God, the one true and living God, and we put our faith and trust completely in You.  We trust that we will live forever with You, in Your eternal Kingdom.  Give us the courage and strength to reach out to others who may not know You, that they might come to accept You and receive unending life for themselves.  We love You Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things in Jesus Christ’s name.  Amen.”  God bless all of you.