by | Faith Lived Out
And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:19
God never ceases to amaze me. He is constantly teaching me something. We are in constant dialogue about how He is going to take care of me.
Recently we had a conversation as I was driving down the road. It went something like this:
Me: “Okay God, you know I’ve got some bills due soon. What would you like me to do about that?
God: “It will work out. Remember, I will supply ALL of your needs.”
I continued the drive through the winding hills of the Ozarks smiling in the comforts of His promises.
When I got to church this past Sunday, Denise, the administrator, handed me an envelope. “I’ve been meaning to give this to you for a while,” she said. “Someone left it at the office for you.”
I opened the white envelope, and after about 30 seconds of staring, and the reminder of the beating in my chest that I had forgotten to breath, I pulled the crisp $100 bill out. My smile could have stretched a thousand miles. Instantly I flashed back to the drive in the car where He said He would take care of me.
He never ceases to amaze me, and He always shows up just in time. Thank You Jesus for Benjamin Franklin!
What has God blessed you with at just the right time?
by | Faith Lived Out, Life Application
Change is consistent. It’s the one thing you can always count on. As Country singer Tracy Lawrence sings, “The only thing that stays the same is everything changes.” Change is all around us. Starbucks changed their logo. Facebook changed their new profile. Your latest and most up-to-date technology changes in an instant.
What does that do you for you? For me, it rocks my security boat. It takes me out of the control of my own situation and I start to get nervous. It rocked Peter’s security boat too. As the disciples stared at Jesus walking on the water their immediate reaction was “It’s a ghost!”
But Jesus said, “Take courage. It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
Peter followed Jesus’ instruction and got out of the boat with faith. But, when the wind came Peter got scared.
Don’t we all do that? We’re fine as long as the wind isn’t blowing. But, when the breeze comes in and the change starts to happen, we freak out. I tend to anyway. I must learn, however, to embrace that change and trust that God is in the driver’s seat.
Let the wind blow and go with it, not toward it.
How are you dealing with change?
by | Faith Lived Out
Jesus beams off of my friend Becky. She always has a smile. She’s always willing to pray for you. She always grabs a hug the moment she sees you. Her love for God is very apparent. What I love about Becky is that she’s like that behind closed doors as well. It’s not just a Sunday morning act she portrays at church, then changes masks when she leaves. She’s the real deal.
Recently, she has inspired me even more. She gave me permission to share. Here is a recent email I received.
“On Sunday, Dec. 19, I was overjoyed to see 5 young girls baptized, after giving their lives to Christ a few weeks earlier. I had the priviledge of discipling them in a class, prior to this.
On Tuesday, Dec. 28, my mom passed away. Her health had been declining and she was soooo ready to go and be with the Lord. Emotions of mixed joy and sorrow.
A few hours after Mom’s funeral service on New Year’s Eve, our beloved pet of almost 15 years also passed away. His nickname was “Bub”. Bub had become sick and diagnosed with diabetes. He passed away 20 minutes after we arrived home from the funeral.
My heart feels very heavy at times, but I just keep lifting everything up to the Lord. His grace and mercy carry us through every day and everything.”
Of course I did my best to give encouraging words, but what do you really say in a situation like that? Here’s what she said:
Why am I destined to suffer a second heartbreaking loss on the heels of my mother’s passing? I don’t know. I can only trust that God has a plan through it all; and His plan is always the best plan. God is truly amazing!!
What inspires me about Becky’s story? She doesn’t understand, but she still knows God is in charge. Her heart doesn’t hurt any less, but her faith doesn’t get lesser either. I want that!
C.S. Lewis said,
The deeper the love, the greater the grief. The stronger the faith, the more savagely Satan attacks the fortress.
Oh how this rings true!
Are you prepared for the savage attacks the stronger your faith gets?
by | Faith Lived Out, Life Application
With all the coverage and exciting things happening regarding Ted Williams, the former homeless man with a “God-given gift of voice,” I didn’t feel it necessary to blog about it. Until now.
I saw a comment on the wall of a Facebook friend that started out innocent enough. It simply read, “It is so good to know that homeless radio announcers are in demand.”
Then came the follow-up comments. “Bet you could not get hired if you had that many felonies…(OR ONE) He is a freaking criminal drug addict. Who cares if he has a remarkable voice?”
Wow!
After reading that I was reminded of the word grace. I was thanking God for forgiveness and being the God of second chances. I was praying for this person with the bitterness in their words.
God specifically tells us not to judge. He also tells us to pull the ginormous log of wood out of our eye before we tell our brother to do the same, according to Matthew 7:1-5.
Just a reminder, and to myself as well, I better clean out the skeletons in my closet before I point out the bones in another man’s closet.
What second chance are you grateful for?
by | Faith Lived Out
That answer would be yes!
Kumari ventured out to end her sweet tooth in search for a scoop of ice cream. She got more than she expected.
This is a great story of the power of Jesus Christ. I just had to share it. View the rest of the article here…
by | Faith Lived Out
In Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus does two things – separates the sheep from the goats. He places the sheep(righteous) on the right and the goats(unrighteous) on the left.
After commending the sheep for providing food and drink, shelter and clothing, they ask, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?”
Jesus, The King, replied “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”
Then there were the goats. Jesus’ first words to those on his left were not “Thanks for trying,” or “Did you just not see me?” No, his words were direct and to the point. “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.”
There are two very different outcomes: eternal life and eternal punishment. Eternal, that’s a powerful word.
As I was reading this text on YouVersion, they asked some great questions that had me thinking.
- How would you treat people differently if you really saw Jesus in their face?
- What are some changes you could make in your lifestyle that would fall into the sheep category?
I am sure that we can all think of at least one person that could possibly be falling under the “least of these category”. What can we do to change that? Perhaps get to know their story. Invite them to dinner. Most importantly, pray for them. Ask God to show you what you can do for them. How would your life be different if you were purposeful about spending time with those who are struggling?
Excited to see what God shows us.
Where are you right now? On the right or the left?
