Journey into Forever

         I hear it on the news, and I know it is coming.  The end of an era, with the seriously weak condition and possible impending death of Billy Graham at 95.  What person who is informed at all does not know of what he has contributed to the cause of Christ?  Thousands of times he has stood before large groups of people, and with a gift given only by God has told the salvation story in a mesmerizing way.  Hundreds of people came to the altar each time he spoke.  With the annointing of God, Billy Graham never failed to inspire, convict, and lead people to our amazing Lord.  I told a friend yesterday that I wished I was a mouse to be able to view the first time Mr. Graham sees Jesus face to face.  Wow.  Can you imagine?       Many people have left a permanent footprint on this earth by professing and exalting Christ every moment of every day.  Today I'd like to share a story about a man you may not be so familiar with.  His name was Peter Marshall.  He was born in 1902 in Coatb

  He says, "Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."       -  Psalm  46:10     I guess the Christmas season already is trying to stress me out.  Or I am already letting it.  So much to do.  So many things to take care of.  Sometimes my mind gets completely befuddled during times like this.  I get so caught up in my " to do" list that I have little room left in my mind for anything else.  This blog may reflect that " muddled" thinking, but I hope not.      I recently read a column by someone I am not really very fond of.  I always read it, though, just to see what he has to say.....to see if I can find something else to disagree with him on I guess.  This time, however, he was spot on in my mind.  He spoke of stress and how it is effecting us in life changing ways.  How our plates are so full because we keep adding to them without taking anything off.  How days pass before we know it, and no

" Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise;  give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations."          -Psalm 100:45      I did a lesson for children's church Sunday on Thanksgiving.  Some of it was fun stuff, coloring and painting.  The lesson used the above scripture.  It also told the story of four children who didn't have some of the things the children in church have.  Things like a family, a school, a church, food, health care.  One child in the story had cancer which I could tell really spoke to the children.  I think they got it.  At least they did for the moment.  We have so much to be thankful for.      Listening to the radio, I heard a story about a Chinese and American missionary meeting in an airport I think it was.  They were discussing their individual ministries, when the American missionary thought he'd be sure and let the other m

  "I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.  I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.  I have learned the secret to being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry,  whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do all this through him who gives me strength."          - Philippians 4:11-13                  I am weird.  I think if you know you are weird, it makes it ok.  At least I hope that is the case....At any rate, the reason I am weird is because I don't like many of the things others do, and I'm really enthralled by things others have no interest in whatsoever.  For example, I love books about the aristocracy of England.  Not those in power now, but from centuries ago. I'm crazy about the music and movies of the 40's. I love to study (got that one from my dad).  I'm not crazy about any other music except Praise and Worship.  

"For by the grace given me I say to everyone of you:  Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought but rather think of yourself with sober judgment in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you."           -Romans 12:3      This is the last post, for now, on the subject of holiness.  And yet, it may be the most important one.  As always, I don't believe in coincidences.  Today when I was studying some of Precept's materials (thanks Mary), I came across the above scripture in Romans.  I knew it had to be the focus scripture for this post.  Our discussion is going to be about the last two points of the title together because they are so closely related (in an opposite sort of way....).  Love and Legalism.  Two conflicting terms.  Two ways to go with holiness.  Yet one is the way to life and the other......well the other is the more familiar, and it leads in a completely different direction.       Most of us who have been Christians for any p

  Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.                                                             Galatians 1:10           She loses 10 pounds because her husband mentioned her weight.  She gains it back within a month.  He works instead of attending his son's soccer game because he knows his boss will notice and approve.  Resentment builds.  She goes to the movie all her friends are wanting to see .  The language and sexual content bother her, but her friends are happy she is with them. She feels guilty. He lies to his football buddies about his relationship with his girlfriend because he knows the other guys will think he's cool.  His lies weigh heavily on his mind.      How many times have we done things in our lives to gain approval of others?  Personally, I can't count the times I have done this.  I do it now, maybe in diffe

      Whew!  I guess maybe I didn't realize exactly what I was getting into with this holiness thing.  It sounds easy on the surface....just do what the Word tells you to do.  But there is so much more to it than that.  This will no doubt be a lifelong journey.       I want to share some of the scriptures that are there to help us understand God's expectations of holiness.  I am also delving into the application part of those scriptures, but this is obviously something I need more time for before I share it with anyone.  So for the time being, look at some of these scriptures, not just the individual reference, but in context with the rest of the chapter.  Give some thought and devote some prayer time to the understanding of what God is teaching us through each passage.  And I will study and learn and share more with you next time.  Anyway, what better post could I write than simply pointing our thoughts to God's Word?   Leviticus 11:45     I am the L ORD , who brough

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."                                      -Matthew 5:8      I began a journey with a teacher/singer named Gwen Smith this summer.  She challenged us to read through the Psalms in 30 days....5 psalms a day.  Well, I didn't even remotely make it in 30 days....here it is October and I just finished Psalm 115.  I have learned a lot by doing this though.  Much about praise, about remembering our history with God, about seeking Him first.  David wrote many of them as you know, and he was a lot like us.  Heading in the right direction, getting distracted and veering off of the path God makes for us, returning and starting again.  When I first started reading them, I was not excited about it.  The Psalms always seemed somewhat redundant to me. Ah.....but they're not.  I don't think we can consider praising our God redundant when He deserves it every moment. And there is so much more here than just praise.  So much mor

"Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known.  But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is."                                            - 1John 3:2 "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit."                                          - Proverbs 18:21  This journey I'm taking on holiness is turning out to be many faceted.  There are bumps, turns, twists in the road that I never even considered.  But it's a fascinating road to be on, and I have so much to learn.      I'm discovering that holiness means so much more than I thought it did.  I, too,had this vision of someone pious, who never had any fun, looking down her nose at others who struggled. I am finding that those who are honest about a search for holiness know all too well their own inability to sustain it.  My greatest attempts at holiness are piteously ina

        Reading Psalm 106 this morning.  If this Psalm doesn't say it all....I'll eat your hat!  It recounts how, time and time again, God's people forgot His works, disobeyed Him, walked on His mercy.  And yet, every time, He returned to them at their first hint of repentance.      Read it.  If you can't plug yourself into every verse, then you are a much better person than I .  I see my life throughout every verse in this Psalm.  A mind forgetful of what He's done .  A heart deceitful and cold.  A selfish desire to live my life for me rather than for Him.  And yet......      Time after time after time, He turns His mighty head back toward me at the slightest evidence of  return to Him.  I would have stopped the senseless bouncing back and forth long ago......but not Him. He loves and wants us so much, He keeps thinking " This time will be different.  This time she will be steadfast.  She will get it right this time."      And yet He already knows.  He

  " Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ."                 -Philippians 1:27     It's been quite a week. As many of you know, we said goodbye to a friend of over 45 years this week. Right after his funeral, we left for a small vacation to see friends in western Kansas.  Riding in a car for 6+ hours gives you a lot of time to think.  Of course, losing a friend makes one think a lot about eternity.  And, as promised, I have been thinking a great deal about holiness.  I wonder how closely the two are related.  I suspect they are very close.      Even 45 years ago life was very different .  Families spent a lot more time together.  Church wasn't an option, or even a "sometimes " thing.  You went every week , as did all of your friends. And, being normal kids, we were all curious about the  forbidden stuff... things like sex, nudity, alternative lifestyles, all that.  We couldn't just watch primetime television

My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline, and do not resent his rebuke because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in. - Proverbs 3:11-12 I will not look with approval on anything that is vile. I hate what faithless people do; I will have no part in it. -Psalm 101:3 Ouch! When I was a child, my parents didn't know a thing about time out, positive reinforcement, or behavior modification. They usually modified my behavior with a fly swatter applied to my behind. Worked pretty well, and was a pretty good deterrent for the same poor behavior later. And guess what......I still loved them anyway. I knew they loved me, and that was the reason for their correction. They wanted me to grow up and be a productive, polite citizen. A person that people could stand to be in the same room with. And, for the most part, it worked ( although some might disagree). Our Heavenly Father has the same desires for us. If our earthly paren

Well, for everyone who reads this blog, I just finished a new one for today...came in to preview it, touched one button and it all went away. I'm going to take that as God's doing, since I had just prayed about it before I posted. When I asked Him to change what needed to be changed, I guess He did. So I am going to pray for a day or two about what He would have me do. This much I know. I know God has called me to this. I know I am supposed to continue. He has left no doubt in that. Right now,the old instinct of running for the hills has kicked in. But I know better. Please pray with me and for me that God will give me clear direction as to what He would have me do. For some reason, I need to post just these scriptures today. I hope they speak to you. It is always best to simply read what God tells us directly, rather than someone else's intrepretation of that Word. "Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but

Psalm 42:5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. Many years ago, there was a show called "Hee Haw". Those of you who are younger, and perhaps those older readers who are more sophisticated than I will not remember this show. I certainly do. The humor was slaptstick, silly, and every member of the family could listen to it. One section of the show regarded the "woes" of the characters, and it was begun by a song that went something like this: "Gloom, despair, and agony on me Deep, dark depression, excessive misery If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all Gloom, despair, and agony on me" This song was followed by a period where the characters told of their various personal " tragedies", always funny. In reality, however, experiencing life's difficult moments doesn't often end with a laugh. Reading the Psalms have led

I am uncertain today as I write, and yet that is why I write. I think I am probably not alone when I express a quandary in regard to this Christian life. It seems I'm frequently puzzled about the whys and wherefores, the truths and feelings, the vitally important things and those less important. At first this post was going to be about politics. As I stated before I am reading " The Harbinger", by Rabbi Jonathan Cahn, who explains 911 as a warning from God. Then I see on the news today a piece about candidates already beginning their quests for the next presidential election. Finally, there was the rodeo clown at the state fair in Missouri....the one who wore an Obama mask as he teased the bulls during the show. Any and all of these events could spark a conversation about God's plan for the USA, a comparison of Israel and our situation in America, and how the lamentations in the Psalms could apply now. But those subjects were just not what I felt Go