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Fractured Fairy Tale

2/23/2016

Once upon a time
Happily ever after
It all sounds so pretty
But real life is another matter

We are born into a broken world
Filled with hurting people
So many seek help and are disappointed
At the building with a steeple

The church, it cannot fix us
It is God who came as man
The only One who could redeem us
That was His great plan

He died that we might live
He rose to assure that we would
His love is everlasting
His Word our daily food

This is what we are told
That after salvation we will find
Life to be a fairy tale
Won’t that make up your mind

The truth is somewhat different
There are troubles and bad health
There are trials and tribulations
And often lack of wealth

There is sadness and depression
There is still death and grief
But look up, look up
One thing is not stolen by that thief

Joy comes in the morning
Our strength He promised to be
If only we will trust Him
His glorious light we shall see

His light that shines in the darkness
His love that overcomes
Every sin and sorrow
Because as His chosen, we are the ones

The ones who will reign victorious
Not just in that distant day
But living here in victory
In the Truth, the Life and the Way

So thank you Jesus for loving us
For choosing us as your own
And for going before us
To make us an eternal home

Yes there is sadness and sorrow
But as we give our cares to you
You lift us higher than it all
And our cares they become few

We see in the light of eternity
That all that is here will fade
And our joy will become complete
When that final journey home is made

So keep us in your hands
Help us to overcome
All that this life may throw at us
Because that is not the total and sum

Help us to remember
That we find our joy in You
As we seek You we will find You
And our hearts You will renew

Our faith will grow
The sadness fade
Our peace, it will increase
Because of that one decision made

To know You and be known
That is our heart’s desire
You gave us new life
As you pulled us out of the mire

So we choose today
In faith to rise above
All that would beset us
And to rest, just rest in Your love

6 Comments

Filing For Bankruptcy

2/20/2016

2 Comments

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all his mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, "Jump," and it jumps, but I don't love, I'm nothing. If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love. (1 Corinthians 13:1-7, The Message)
I had noticed the past couple of weeks that I felt more tired than normal. True, I had a touch of the flu to deal with. True, I had the death of a close friend that was incredibly painful. True, there is always something going on that can steal my joy and rob my strength if I let it. That is the key...if I let it.
I found myself feeling more stressed. More frustrated. My patience was at an all time low. I had little tolerance for others; especially those people who drive like idiots...right, you know what I mean. I found myself lacking in love for my family, for my community, for myself. I felt at an all time low and realized that I was bankrupt. I was spiritually bankrupt. What was coming in was much less that what was going out and it was wearing me down.
Bankruptcy is a last resort when you owe more than you can pay back. You are in the red and see no way back into the black. For some it is the result of foolish spending habits. For some it is because of an unforeseen illness or debt that comes out of nowhere. Regardless of the cause, you come to realize that the inflow is never going to match the outflow unless changes are made.
I had come to the point of being so influenced by the events going on around me that I was not influencing what was going on inside of me. I was in a tizzy from all the external pressures and wasn't caring for the internal part of me.
Just as I said above about financial bankruptcy, there are many reasons we become spiritually bankrupt. It can be because we become so overwhelmed by all the stresses of day to day living. It can be due to grief or illness. It can be due to relational problems.
There are many causes, but there is only one relief.
In financial bankruptcy you file and then it takes a long time to build yourself back up again. It takes a minimum of 7 years for you to even be able to start to build your credit up again and that is a hard battle. You deal with the fact that businesses don't want to give you credit. You deal with the shame and frustration regardless of the cause.
When you feel spiritually bankrupt it is different. You have help and relief at hand immediately. You don't have to go before a God who stands there in a black robe with a gavel in His hand. You don't have to feel embarrassment and mortification. You don't have to squirm as you wait on a decision. The moment you cry out to Father God, He is there. He is there to bring comfort and strength and refreshment. He is there to gather you into His arms and provide all you need. There is no waiting 7 years for alleviation of what has been taxing you. You don't have to prove that you are capable of handling this fresh influx of love. You don't have to slowly build up to having the capacity to be filled again. Your reprieve is immediate and instantaneous.
So how do you keep from coming to the point of spiritual bankruptcy? Every morning you wake up grateful for who God is and what He desires to do in your life. You spend time in prayer, not just asking for things, but thanking Him for all He has already done. You take time to study His word and find wisdom and guidance that you cannot get anywhere else. You set time aside for worship and praise. Listen to music that will lift you up and edify you. Cultivate relationships that bring you closer to the Lord. Put aside those things that hinder you and seek His peace and joy.
"So, what do you think? With God on our side like this, how can we lose? If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us? And who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of God’s chosen? Who would dare even to point a finger? The One who died for us—who was raised to life for us!—is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us. Do you think anyone is going to be able to drive a wedge between us and Christ’s love for us? There is no way! Not trouble, not hard times, not hatred, not hunger, not homelessness, not bullying threats, not backstabbing, not even the worst sins listed in Scripture:
They kill us in cold blood because they hate you.
We’re sitting ducks; they pick us off one by one.
None of this fazes us because Jesus loves us. I’m absolutely convinced that nothing—nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable—absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us." (Romans 8:31-39, The Message)
There is nothing that can take us out of God's hands. There is nothing that can steal His love for us. There is nothing too hard for Him. If He could watch His own Son die for us, do you think He cannot look on our weaknesses and our sins and our mistakes? All forgiveness was provided on the cross; once, for all.
Truly nothing can foreclose on His love. Nothing can deprive us from His tenderness towards us. Nothing can prevent us from running to His arms. We are the only ones who can bring any distance between ourselves and God. And even then I believe He lines things up to bring us back to that fellowship with Him.
We get caught up in the cares of this world and as we do that it is like a hose that is kinked. The flow slowly dwindles and then can slow to just a dribble. We get caught up in the stress. We get entrenched in our frustrations and anger. We get sucked into depression and sadness. We feel as though we are in a pit of quicksand. We feel there is no way out. But there is One.
We are weak in and of ourselves. We will be bankrupt of love and joy and peace without Him. But He gave all that we would have all; all joy, all peace, all love, all fulfillment, all comfort, all strength. How, you ask?
Instead of filing for spiritual bankruptcy, stake your claim on the One who loves you with an everlasting love.
Instead of filing chapter 7, 11 or 13, file these chapters and verses away in your heart.
Jeremiah 31:3, "God told them, “I’ve never quit loving you and never will. Expect love, love, and more love!" (The Message)
John 3:16, "This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life." (The Message)
2 Thessalonians 2:16, 17a, "Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace comfort your hearts." (ASV)
Bank on these promises and you will be in the black by the red of His blood.

2 Comments

Entering Care free

2/9/2016

4 Comments

This last week I lost a dear friend. More than a friend, he had become family to us. His name was Sonny Cameron and he was the dearest, most cantankerous man I have ever known. We met him through our business and built some beautiful cars for him. He had wonderful taste in automobiles.
We had come to know and love him over the years and saw him through many an illness. His family lived out of state, so we tried to help any way we could when he needed to go to doctors or was in the hospital. We spent many hours in prayer for him; we were selfish and did not want to let him go. We had the privilege of sharing Jesus with him and know that he is now in heaven.
He suffered quite a lot, especially the last year. He was a trooper though. We were blessed to be able to take two of his cars to a Good Guys car show in Scottsdale and his family brought him to enjoy the limelight. What a wonderful weekend that was. But even in the joy of that time, he was in pain. He had trouble breathing, walking any distance and generally just getting around. But he sure enjoyed his time there with his daughters.
About a week or two ago we knew that his time was coming to an end here on this earth. I was praying for him and for his family. As I prayed I thought of my parents who have already gone on to heaven. I thought about what it must be like for them now. No suffering. No pain. No fear or anger. The phrase the Lord gave me was 'care free'.
I pondered on that and realized that I had never seen my parents care free. From my earliest memories I could not remember them ever completely happy. There was always something going on. My dad as a homicide detective saw horrific things and that affected him deeply. My mom had problems that I never realized until later in life. They tried to counteract that by drinking; that was their 'care free'. They were never totally at peace, filled with joy and probably never felt completely and unconditionally loved.
That is they weren't until the day they passed from this life into eternal life with Jesus. I know for a fact that both my parents when they died had a relationship with Jesus. My mom's was such a quiet gracious faith. She was such a dear woman in the later years. Kind, giving, goofy. She loved God, loved her church family. My dad never expressed his faith, but I received the assurance of the Holy Spirit when my dad died that he was indeed on his way to heaven. I cannot express the joy I felt and still feel knowing that they are indeed at peace now, that they are truly care free.
What is amazing to me is that there are no time constraints on receiving Jesus as Lord and Saviour. You don't have to be a wide eyed child or someone totally innocent and sin free. You can be a jaded reprobate for all the difference it makes to the Lord; He just wants you to say 'Yes'. Yes to His offer of salvation that He bought for us on the cross. By dying for our sins, He gave us the beautiful gift of salvation that we only have to say yes to. He wants us to believe in Him and receive that gift and then walk in the faith that comes with it.
That is what my mom did. What my dad did. What my friend Sonny did. They chose to accept that free gift and with that gift came the promise of eternity with Him in heaven after life here on earth ends.
I try to picture what they are doing now. My mom is probably sitting under a tree on a big patch of grass, filled with wonder at all the beauty that is surrounding her. My dad is probably playing golf, or gardening up there. He tried so hard to grow in that hard Lake Havasu soil all those years and I can imagine he is amazed at what is growing now. And Sonny, he is pain free. He is happy and probably singing his own song. I heard the song his daughter recorded that he sang about one more ride on his Harley! Now he is singing with the angels.
I am so grateful for having had those three amazing people in my life. And I am grateful that because of my relationship with Jesus, I will see them again. I am so thankful to my parents for bringing me into this world and loving me to the best of their ability. I am grateful for having known Sonny; he was a generous loving man who told it like it is. Or should I say, he said, "It is what it is"! That was his favorite saying.
Yes, Sonny, it is what it is. Now it is an eternity of peace, joy and the presence of our Lord. Now it is a time of endless thanks for all He has done for you. It is a continuous time of laughter and delight at all that is around you. Now it is a time for you to enjoy every good and perfect thing that God has surrounded you with. All this is yours Sonny because you accepted that free gift of salvation.
A free gift to take you to a care free home...
Oh I miss you! But I will see you again soon! And I know you joyfully await the time when you are reunited with all those you love too. When we will spend a care free eternity with you and Jesus.

4 Comments

White Tie Invitation

2/2/2016

3 Comments

...Come As You Are

I never knew the etiquette involved in a black tie event. It traces back to Victorian times when the tuxedo replaced the tailcoat at fancy evening events. There was a specific dress code, but that has changed over the decades, now you don't have to have certain lapels on your jacket and pants cut a certain way. Now black tie is for semi-formal events, still fancy but not as detailed and defined as it used to be.
But there is a stricter dress code for the white tie invitation. It specifically calls for a tailcoat, starched white shirt, white waistcoat and white bow tie. There is not much call for white tie anymore. I read that just two years ago when the Costume Institute was holding it's gala that many contacted them and told them that it was just too costly and inconvenient to try to put this ensemble together. Very expensive, very exclusive. Now white tie is usually called for at events like the Nobel Prize presentation and at royal events and state dinners, where heads of governments or countries have invited other dignitaries to meet with them.
I doubt I will ever be invited to a black tie event. Although it would be nice to get all dressed up and be fancy for awhile. I know for certain that I will never be invited to a white tie event. I am not on a first name basis with any presidents, kings or ambassadors.
But I am on a first name basis with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. I do know the great I AM and the Alpha and Omega. I am closely acquainted with Jesus, the Lamb who was slain for us.
In Luke 14 Jesus tells of going to a leader of the Pharisees home to eat. And how everyone there was jockeying for position so as to look more important. He tells them that they should not just invite friends and family and the rich. They should invite the blind, the lame, the poor, the maimed. Don't invite only those who can repay in kind; invite those who can only repay in gratitude. He then goes on to tell of a man who is going to have a dinner party. Everyone he invites comes up with an excuse not to go. So he tells his servant to go out and invite the poor, the lame, the maimed and the blind. And when that still did not fill up the house, he said go farther and invite anyone who will come, that the home may be full. So what started out as an exclusive white tie event became a great celebration for all. Those who came were in rags, but they were treated as honored guests. They had probably never seen such a fancy celebration. Never eaten such delectable food, never imagined such a dazzling array of finery. But they were welcomed in, regardless of their status or station.
Jesus is planning a white tie event. He is planning an event so extraordinary, so amazing that we cannot even imagine it. He is planning the wedding feast of the Lamb. The feast where all who are called by Him, and answer that call will enter into a celebration to end all others. And Jesus is not just calling the rich, the influential, the famous. He is calling you and me. He said in Matthew 11:28 for the weary and burdened to come to Him. That doesn't sound like tux and tails to me. That is rags and dirty garments. Jesus doesn't call the filled, He calls the hungry. He doesn't call the strong, He calls the weak. He doesn't call the one who is cleaned up ahead of time; He calls the sinner. He calls the one in filthy dirty rags and then He gives us new attire. He calls the ones who want and need Him and He gives them new life. He doesn't expect us to be clean and neat and pure as the driven snow; He takes us while we are messy and dirty and broken. He calls and when we answer, "Yes Lord", He comes and makes us new. He takes what the world would throw away, those of us who have been lost, shattered, abused. He takes those who have been destroyed by addiction and bound by sin and welcomes them as honored guests. He takes all who will accept His invitation, regardless of who we are, what we have done, or what we have to offer. He takes those who know they need Him and He ushers them in to a gala that has no rival. He is opening His doors to you and to me...the weary, the burdened, the lost, the poor, the dirty, the broken, the messy.
He is giving out a white tie invitation...come as you are.

3 Comments

Fractured Fairy Tale

Filing For Bankruptcy

Entering Care free

White Tie Invitation

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