Tag Archives: help

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Obviously

Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV), “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

Matthew 7:20 (NLT), “ Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.”

What exactly is a “Silent Witness” or a “Closet Christian”? To some it is the opposite of a so-called follower of Christ who beats them over the head with the word, or who spouts off scripture when a hug or a helping hand is needed, or even worse, blasts them with a fire hose when a refreshing drink is all that is needed, the ones who are afraid as coming across as “one of those” people.

Honestly, in today’s world I can see the temptation to just keep your mouth shut and live right and hope someone asks you what is different about your life. However, if we are being honest, that isn’t what God has asked us to do at all. Yes, we live right. Yes, our life should be a living testimony of God’s love and forgiveness. Yet it is more than that. It has to be. Look at Matthew five again. We are to be a light that can’t be hidden. And in Matthew 7, Jesus tells us that a tree is identified by its fruit. If I am an apple tree, I should be bearing apples. If I am a light house, my light should be seen by every sinking and faltering ship out there in the perilous waters.

Sometimes, most of the time actually, that involves speaking. We have to tell them who’s we are. Just living right isn’t going to get a single soul saved. Living a hidden Christian life, so as not to offend anyone, isn’t going to help bring anyone out of the darkness and into the light. If we speak boldly as we ought, if we shine that light on some sinful behavior, if we live right in the midst of a world living so…wrong, won’t we face some opposition, maybe even persecution. Yep! In fact that is one way that we will know we are living for Him.

Who we are should be obvious. Again I know in today’s world that is a hard one. Today you can’t even use the once affective, “checking the body parts” to see if that seemingly genderless person is male or female. We can’t tell by the clothes, the makeup or lack of, we can’t tell by mannerisms, or really anything. We have become a world that wants no divisions at all, yet is so divided! So shouldn’t we live by a different standard? As Christians we want it to be obvious that we are male, or female. We want it to be obvious that we are hard workers, honest people, good parents, productive citizens, and fun people to be around. Shouldn’t it be just as obvious that we are His? I want people to know that Heaven is my home, that Jesus is my King, and that God is my Father. I want them to know that I am being led by The Holy Spirit, I have been washed by the blood, and that they can be too.

There is no such thing as a closet Christian. Shouldn’t it be obvious who’s we are. Obviously!

Be a shining star!

Philippians 2:12-15 (Berean Study Bible) “Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good pleasure. Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world.”

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Shut Up

I John 5:14-15 (KJB), “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.”

Psalms 55:17 (NIV), “Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and he hears my voice.”

Proverbs 15:29 (ISV), “The LORD is far away from the wicked, but he hears the prayers of the righteous.”

Who doesn’t love these scriptures? He hears us! That’s a big deal in my book. All throughout my life I have been not heard, sometimes outright ignored, and often misunderstood. But God hears me, never misunderstands, in fact He knows what I am thinking before I ever voice it, and never, hears me. That boosts my confidence just like John’s.

Prayer is an awesome thing. The more time you spend with Him, not begging, but in honest communication, and yes that includes some things we may need or want from Him, the better we know Him. The better we know Him, the easier prayer becomes and the more we desire to pray. Incidentally, the Father loves that alone time with us. Even though He does know what we need, what we want, what we thing, and what is best for us, He still tells us to “ask”, to be verbal about those things. Why? He loves you and He wants to be in fellowship with you. In our ever increasingly busy days, He wants some time set aside and while we are at our tasks, He wants us to still be speaking to Him in our hearts.

Prayer builds us up; it settles our hearts and settles some issues in our minds. The act of talking to our Creator humbles us and encourages us to keep at it, no matter the battles.

All these things are so wonderful, yet, there is an aspect of prayer even better than all of these things… listening to God during prayer time.

Sounds simple really. Isn’t that what a conversation is all about, taking turns talking and listening? Honestly though, how often do we forget that crucial part of our time with God. At the beginning of the day we read our bible, devote our day to Him, then hurry through our “bless us, and keep us” prayers, then get on with our day. We take time to ask God to bless our food, strengthen and nourish our bodies, and to pray for special needs. Before we drift off to bed, we again ask for peace and sweet sleep, for angels to guard us, and maybe remember some things we should ask for or thank Him for. Where in all of that do we just shut up!

I know some of you hate those words. You think they are blunt and maybe rude. Yet isn’t a one sided conversation, where we do all the talking and never give the other person a chance to get a word just as rude? Of course. So, when we pray, when we are talking to Him (please remember prayer is just asking for things, but also just visiting and sharing some love), remember to be quiet. If you have asked a question such as, “What should I do in this situation” or “How much do you love me?” Give Him some time to answer.

I love how He speaks to me in His word, through others, and in nature; however, the best dialogue I can have with Him is when He is speaking right into my spirit. Nothing better in fact.

John 10:2-5 (ASV), “But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. When he hath put forth all his own, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.”

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Be Thankful

Every person still living on this earth has something to be thankful for, if only the fact that you are alive. Ok, I know there will be some that say, “If you knew what my life was like, you’d wish you were dead.” I know, I’ve been there. However, if the alternative is hell, then thank God you’re alive. If your final destination is Heaven be thankful that God isn’t done with you yet, because if your work here was done, God would have taken you home. Be honest, most of us have a myriad of things to be thankful for. If you are a born again Christian, just think for a minute what your life was like before you were saved, and then thank God for where you are now!

If we really know who God is we will not have to hunt for something to be thankful for. When we fall so in love with God our hearts will be so full of gratitude that we can’t help but sing and shout His praises! We won’t even care if we can carry a tune or not, it won’t matter what anyone else thinks. We won’t be able to help ourselves.

Excerpt from my book “Further In”

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Steadfast Love

Isaiah 63:7 (ESV), “I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD, the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD has granted us, and the great goodness to the house of Israel that he has granted them according to his compassion, according to the abundance of his steadfast love.”

Other versions uses the words “lovingkindnesses,” “the deeds for which He is to be praised,” “unfailing love,” and “mercy and grace.”

In today’s world we don’t use the word “steadfast” often, partly because we live in a throwaway society. Cars, appliances, clothing, relationships just aren’t built to last. No one wants to take the extra effort, or they are too selfish and greedy and only want to heap to their own lusts. They have the technology to build things to last virtually forever, but then they would only sell one. So they make them to fall apart in a few years so that a new purchase will be made. We have the grace and strength from the Lord to make relationships work, however very few people want to stick it out.

Steadfast. It means faithful, committed, devoted, and according to Webster’s it means, “firm in belief, determination, or adherence, and firmly fixed.” His love is steadfast. It doesn’t change. Ever. You can’t earn more and He can’t love you any less. His love doesn’t depend on performance, there is no strings attached. He is determined to love you. His love for you is devoted and faithful and fixed.

Because of that great, steadfast love, we can be confident of His faithfulness. He cares and because He cares He works things out for us. His love has no strings attached; however the benefits of His love are conditional. We have to accept His love. We have to build a relationship with Him. We can’t use the worlds view or our natural experiences to try and figure out His love. We have all been hurt and disappointed in someone we loved but who used and abused us, or maybe was indifferent. A relationship with God isn’t an unhealthy attachment, or a one sided love affair. He isn’t a leach who wants to drain us dry. He wants us in relationship with Him so that we never miss out on a blessing, so that we are sure to hear His voice when He speaks to us. He wants us to spend time with Him and communicate with Him because He enjoys us.

Exodus 20:6 (NLT), “But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.”

Feeling like a failure? God loves you! Checkbook is on the light side? God loves you. Fighting some bug, or disease? God loves you. Family issues? God loves you. Identity issues? God loves you.

I can keep going.

Seems over simplified? Nope.

Because He loves you, He is working in you to perfect that which He began. (If you will let Him)

Philippians 1:6 (KJB), “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:”

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Tom’s Mom and Christmas

One day Thomas Edison came home and gave a paper to his mother. He told her, “My teacher gave this paper to me and told me to only give it to my mother.”

His mother’s eyes were tearful as she read the letter out loud to her child: Your son is a genius. This school is too small for him and doesn’t have enough good teachers for training him. Please teach him yourself.

After many, many years, after Edison’s mother died and he was now one of the greatest inventors of the century, one day he was looking through old family things. Suddenly he saw a folded paper in the corner of a drawer in a desk. He took it and opened it up. On the paper was written: Your son is addled [mentally ill]. We won’t let him come to school any more.

Edison cried for hours and then he wrote in his diary: “Thomas Alva Edison was an addled child that, by a hero mother, became the genius of the century.”

True story. What does this have to do with Christmas?

Christmas is a time that we give gifts and we remember the gift of Jesus to the world. To me Thomas Edison’s mother is like Jesus, and his teacher like the devil. No pun intended (only because it’s not funny). The devil wants us to think of ourselves as unworthy, un-usable, un-wanted, and all of those other ugly “uns”. But there is our parent, Father God, who tells us just the opposite. You see, like Edison’s mother, God see’s our potential! What a lovely gift.

Edison was a genius. He invented so many things that helped others, many that we still depend on today. The gift his mother gave that one little boy, ended up being a gift to the whole world. We have to think about this. If we choose not to believe God’s version of who we are, we are stopping the gift from flowing. No telling how many people will be affected. His love, His approval, His opinion is all that matters. Everything else is just irrelevant.

Mrs. Edison recognized the importance of what we say to our children. She chose to only encourage and love. That is our Daddy God.

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I Am Loved

We have been singing a new song in Church and it has literally been going through my head nonstop. I wake up with it in my noggin, I hear it when I am doing dishes, I am singing it at the sewing machine, and humming it while reading!

I don’t have anything memorized except the chorus, and this is it: “You’re a good, good Father. That’s who you are, that’s who You are. And I am loved by You, that’s who I am, that’s who I am.”

This is a great improvement on the toddler songs that normally run through my head (I keep my two year old grandson Mon-Fri).

I didn’t sleep well last night. I stayed up too late to finish a good book, then Hubby was snoring, not a normal thing for him. Finally sometime after 11:30 I drifted off, only to wake up at 3:30. Sometimes God wakes me up to pray, this wasn’t one of those times, but I figured I didn’t have anything else to do, so I prayed. I prayed for some situations in my life that needed changing, but mostly I prayed for others. After a bit, God brought to mind some of my students from years ago and I lifted them in prayer. I prayed for some family members that are struggling, and I prayed for my children (and theirs). In fact I fell asleep praying.

The alarm was way too early at 5:30. I’ll give you three guesses as to what was going through my head… Yep, “You’re a good, good Father. That’s who you are, that’s who You are. And I am loved by You, that’s who I am, that’s who I am.”

My usual morning routine consists of reading my bible, while Eddie gets up and gets ready for work. Then we pray together, and he leaves. After my morning devotions, I head down for a cup of coffee and wait on my boy. This morning, Eddie got up, and I laid in the bed, not moving and half asleep. Before I could even wake up enough to think about reading my Bible, my sleepy mind contained this thought, “There is only two things I need to know. One, He’s a good, good Daddy, and two, He loves me.”

I woke up then and thought about the simple, profound truth in that. That’s the answer to everything!

“Now, Jodi, that’s overly simplifying things,” I hear you say.

However, I am sticking to it. Do you need healing? He’s a good Father and He loves you. Do need a financial breakthrough? He’s a good Father and He loves you. Do you need help in your marriage, or another relationship? He’s a good Father and He loves you. Are you broken and hurt? Grieving? Depressed? He’s a good Father and He loves you.

A loving Father wants to see His children healed and whole, lacking nothing, happy and at peace. Here is the good news, listen, HE HAS THE POWER TO GIVE YOU THOSE THINGS!

Ephesians 3:19-20 (NLT), “May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.”