Beautiful but Deadly

"And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat."  Genesis 3:6

I woke up this morning to clear blue skies and bright sunshine!  It looked beautiful outside, and then I looked at my weather App.  It revealed that what I perceived was totally different from reality.  It was -22 with a wind chill of -36.  FRIGID!

Living up North, the Winter temperatures can be brutal!  Frostbite can occur in 15 minutes or less when the wind chill values are 18 below zero or lower.  Hypothermia comes on just as sudden.  If we are not careful of the elements, we can quickly suffer from the effects of the elements.

I often will tell my husband, "Today is beautiful but deadly."

Sin works the same way.  Satan likes to pretty up sin, so it doesn't look like it's sin.  He wants to make sure you are suffering from the effects of sin before you even realize what is happening.

Christian, Eve saw that the fruit was pleasant to her eyes and so she forgot everything that God had told her.  

When you choose rather to look on the physical, instead of the Spiritual, you have a greater risk of being deceived by beauty, the lust of the eye and the lust of the flesh.

The effects of sin can be instant, like when the eyes of Adam and Eve were opened, or the effects can be a slow death.

Beautiful or not, sin is deadly.

    Don't let Satan deceive you by appearances, Let God's Word identify sin's true colors-

        But that's just me!

"What would you expect?  Sin will not come to you, saying, "I am sin."  It would do little harm if it did.  Sin always seems "good, and pleasant, and desirable," at the time of commission."

J.C. Ryle

It Will Be Alright

"Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;

Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God." 2 Corinthians 1:3,4

"Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God." Isaiah 40:1

I had an older sister who lived with chronic health problems; and you would never know it.  She always had a smile on her face and was one of the most joyous, happiest persons I have ever known.  Often, when I had a health concern, I knew I could call her or text her and ask her a million questions about whatever it was that I was going through, and she would comfort me.  At the end of every conversation, she would say these words, "It will be alright."

The bible tells us that sometimes we will go through specific situations so that we can comfort others who will go through those same situations.  

I will tell you; I am most comforted by someone who went through what I am currently going through.

Isn't it interesting that we will try to comfort those who are going through a situation that we ourselves have never experienced?  We mean well, but honestly, can we really offer comfort and encouragement to someone when we do not know what they are truly dealing with on a day-to-day basis?

I experienced something beautiful a few weeks ago.  I went over to a friend to comfort him, and I ended up being the one comforted.

What a beautiful picture of the comfort of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Bill Bright once said, "The sermon of your life in tough times ministers to people more powerfully than the most eloquent speaker."

We have a Comforter Who comforts us in our most difficult times-

    He shows us how we can comfort those who are going through their most difficult times-

        But more often than not, it's those who need the comforting, who offer great comfort to                 others- "It will be alright."

                    But that's just me!

Isaiah 51:12a "I, even I, am he that comforteth you:"

Well Done

"His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of the lord." words of Jesus.

Matthew 25:23

When I was in Elementary School, every time I was handed back an assignment, I held my breath.  Would there be red marks all over my paper, or would there be words written on top with my teacher's cursive saying, "Good Job?"  "Great!'"  "Super!"

Sometimes there was even a gold or silver star adhered next to those words!

I was so excited, I mean, who doesn't like to hear "good job!?"

It made my whole day knowing that my schoolwork pleased my teacher, but riding the school bus home, I knew my day was going to be even better!  I was going home to show my mom and dad my good paper!  If I knew my teacher was pleased, I couldn't wait to hear "that's great!"  or "we are so proud of you!" from my mom and dad!  Pleasing my parents gave me greater reward than pleasing my teacher.

Do you remember those days?

Christian, Faithful Servant, there is a greater day coming!

There is a greater day coming when at last our faith will become sight!  A day when we will get to stand before our Saviour and hear words spoken by Him, just for us:

"Well done, good and faithful servant; ... enter into the joy of the lord!"

Daniel Webster once said, "The most important thought that ever occupied my mind is that of my individual responsibility to God."

God's Word says it better in Colossians 1:10:  "That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;"

As a child, I did my best to please my parents and my teacher.

    As a child of God, I do my best to please my Saviour...

        "Well Done!"

            But that's just me!

        

Bouquets for the Living

"I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers,

Hearing of thy love and faith, which thou hast toward the Lord Jesus, and towards all saints;

That the communications of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

For we have great joy and consolation in thy love, because the bowels of the saints are refreshed by thee, brother."  Philemon 4-7

Years ago, our church began a tradition where we would meet once a year for a Friendship Banquet.  After a fine meal and fun fellowship, we were given an opportunity to write out Bouquets for the Living on slips of paper to thank a person for blessing our lives during the past year.  Sometimes the notes were passed to the person privately, or sometimes a person would stand and read out loud what they had written on their slip of paper, and then give that note to the person they just thanked.  It was an opportunity given to us to publicly or privately express our love for a special person in our lives.

Telling someone thank you for how they have blessed our lives has become a dying art.  Somewhere along the way in the hustle and bustle of our busy lives, we have forgotten how to tell someone how much they mean to us, what a blessing they are to us.

We see our friends and family at church when the doors are open, speak a few kind words, and then we walk out the door to head home, not realizing that it may be the last time we speak to someone here on earth.

I want to encourage you this week to send a note, card, text, or email to someone who has made a difference in your life.

    For the person who has been an example of our Lord, treat them to lunch or out for coffee.

        Tell that person how thankful you are that they are part of your life and that you love them...

            Before it's too late...

                But that's just me!

I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.  Philippians 1:3

"Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless."  Mother Teresa

        

Untitled

"Grace grows best in the Winter."  C.H. Spurgeon

My mind is racing.  My thoughts are going in a hundred different directions; and so, this Post will remain untitled.

I heard news I was not expecting today.  My thoughts immediately turned to God's Word:

    "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD." Isa 55:8

    "And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:8

I began to quote Scripture, list the Promises of God.

I found verses of joy and cheerfulness linked hand in hand with trials and tribulation.  How does that work?

I found words of Jesus that promised rest in troubled seas, promises of peace in the waiting.

Hard answers to desperate prayers.

Relinquishing my Will for His.

And it is enough.

"Sometimes God actually blesses His children through the absence of the very things they pray for."

    Laura Story

I believe that with all of my heart.  

The Apostle Paul learned that his strength was only made perfect in His weakness. 

1 Corinthians 12:9

My husband and I have a dear friend who has cancer.

He is the model of perfect peace.  He lives 2 Corinthians 7:4b "...I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation."  He is living his faith, his peace and his hope!

His favorite word, "Glory!"

He knows Jesus is enough.

"I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.

Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore."

Psalm 16: 8,9,11

Oswald Chambers once said, "God uses every cloud which comes in our physical life, in our moral or spiritual life, or in our circumstances, to bring us nearer to him until we come to the place where our Lord Jesus Christ lived, and we do not allow our hearts to be troubled."

It's where our faith finds a resting place-

    But that's just me!

Blessings

by Laura Story

Chorus:

'Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops?

What if your healing comes through tears?

What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know you're near?

What if trials of this life are your mercies in disguise?

What if my greatest disappointments, 

or the aching of this life,

is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can't satisfy,

What if trials of this life,

the rain, the storms, the hardest nights,

are your mercies in disguise?

  

    

    

The Groundhog

My husband and I have a running joke about Meteorologists; it's the only Career where you can constantly be wrong and still get paid.

Today is Groundhog Day.  The observance of Groundhog Day in the United States was first mentioned in the diary of James L. Morrison on February 2, 1840.  The first reported news of Groundhog Day was by the Punxsutawney Spirit Newspaper in 1886, however, it was made "official" in 1887.  (Wikipedia) 

Honestly, when I did research on Groundhog Day, I was amazed by the amount of information, traditions, and folklore that has been gathered over the years.

Today, crowds as large as 40,000 people gather in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, to watch a varmint emerge from his hibernated state for the sole purpose to predict a longer Winter or an early Spring based on whether or not he sees his shadow. 

I understand it's all in good fun, but it pointed out the fact that man will turn to anyone or anything except God for answers.

Thousands of people showed up to watch a rodent predict the weather, but those same thousands couldn't get out of bed on Sunday morning to worship God.

"The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun.

  Thou hast set all the borders of the earth: thou hast made summer and winter."  

  Psalm 74:16-17

Friend, if you need direction,

    Answers to the questions you face every day,

        Turn your back on the world's philosophies and turn to Jesus.

            Jesus is the answer...

                But that's just me!

"In whatsoever manner it be, let me turn to God and become fruitful in good works.  Nothing higher exists than to approach God more than other people and from that to extend His glory among humanity!"  Ludwig Van Beethoven