Even There

 "Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into the heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me." Psalm 139:7-10

Our theme for our Bible Study this month was, "Never Alone."  The verses we read each and every day, reminded us that God is always with us; He will never leave us, nor will He forsake us.  I take comfort in His promise to always be near.

It seemed like our Pastor was preaching along the same theme these past few weeks.  I love that when that happens.  

Psalm 139 is a beautiful reminder of God's Omnipresence.  Here, David keeps imagining extreme places and situations to answer his hypothetical questions.

You know, sometimes fear and doubt will cause us to think that we are left alone, so we tend to pray, "Are you still there, God?"

And God answers, "Yes.  Even there."

I love those two words:  "Even there."

In verse 9, 'take the wings of the morning,' means 'to take flight.'  Another commentary expounded that if one would take flight as the speed of light.

Friend, we cannot outrun God.  We will never get to a place before God gets there.

He is already there.

And in comparison, to the skies, He knows that even in the utter-most, deepest, darkest parts of the sea, God is there.

Even there.

I love that!

I picture a little child in my mind, looking up into the face of their parent and asking the most serious question that is stemmed from the fear in their heart, and then the parent answering back with full assurance to give that child peace.  That is how those two words affected my heart.  I too, can look to my Heavenly Father and ask Him if he is here in the midst of my:

    battle with poor health-

    loneliness-

    heartache-

    doubts-

    fears-

You fill in the blank.  What are you struggling with today?  Ask God if He is there?

He will always answer, "Yes!  Even there!"

And not only will He be there with us, He is leading us in the way we should go and holding us with His right hand.

What a promise!

Thank you, God, for always going behind and before me...

    Thank You for leading and guiding me...

        For holding me with your right hand...

            And for always being, Even There!

                But that's just me!

"For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."  Romans 8:38-39

The Jesus Way

I love listening to Christian Radio. When I get into my car to drive the 30 miles to town, I turn the dial to my favorite station.  As I listen to the music, at times my heart is so full it wants to burst.  Other times, crocodile tears fill my eyes as I meditate on the verses that are being sung.  And then I sneak a peek at the person in the car next to me sitting at the red light and I just keep on singing with a smile on my face!

The other day I heard a song for the first time, and it pointed me to Matthew 5:44 45a, it says:

"But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven:" words of Jesus.

It's not always easy is it?  Someone stabs you in the back, or speaks cruel words to your face, Often times you want to retaliate, maybe give what you get.  But that's not the Jesus way.

Lord, when someone hurts me...

    May the Holy Spirit lead me to respond...

        just like Jesus...

            But that's just me!

The Jesus Way

2003

Jonathan Smith/Phil Wickham

(Verses)

If you curse me, then I will bless you,

If you hurt me, I will forgive,

And if you hate me, then I will love you,

I choose the Jesus way.

If you're helpless, I will defend you,

And if you're burdened, I'll share the weight,

And if you're hopeless, then let me show you,

There's hope in the Jesus way.

If you strike me, I will embrace you,

And if you chain me, I'll sing His praise,

And if you kill me, my home is heaven,

For I choose the Jesus way.

(chorus)

I follow Jesus,

I follow Jesus,

He wore my sin, I'll gladly wear His Name,

He is the treasure, He is the answer,

Oh, I choose the Jesus way.

And I choose surrender,

I choose to love,

Oh, God my Saviour, You'll always be enough,

I choose forgiveness,

I choose grace,

I choose to worship, no matter what I face,

I choose the Jesus way.

Victory in the Battle

"Ye shall not fear them: for the LORD your God he shall fight for you." 

Deuteronomy 3:22

Friend, are you in a battle right now?  Are you facing an enemy face to face, one on one, or have enemies completely surrounded you, coming at you from all sides?  Are you just now entering into your personal war, or have you been in the battle long?

Perhaps your battle is with a friend, family, work, finances, or even your health.

You've been fighting for days, weeks, months, maybe even years?  Are you tired?  Weary?  Has your strength depleted, worn you down, left you feeling defeated? Do you want to quit, or do you realize that the battle has already been won?

Look at your battle through eyes of victory instead of defeat.

Remember that at your weakest moment the Lord will send an Angel before you.

"Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared."  Exodus 23:20

Remember that you are MORE than conquerors through Christ!

"Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us." Romans 8:37

No matter what you may be going through, right this very moment...

    Remember, that because of Jesus Christ...

        The battle is already won...

            But that's just me!

"When I see a battle, You see the victory."  Phil Wickham

You've already Won

Shane & Shane

Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs 2023

Chorus:

"And I'm fighting a battle,

You've already won,

No matter what comes my way,

I will overcome,

Don't know what You're doing,

But I know what You've done,

And I'm fighting a battle,

You've already won!

Missed Miracles

Charles Spurgeon once said, "A Believer must watch for God in the events of life, that one must wait on God with an expectation of His answers.  One could not collect the water if no jars were put outside when it rained."

It's been said that "among the debris that washes up on the beach are bits of sea glass and remnants of grand things...watch for them."

I grew up not far from the Oregon Coast.  After storms we would walk along the beach just between the waves and the wet sand looking for agates.  I used to pick up a lot of rocks, diligently looked them over, and either tossed them back into the water, dropped them back onto the sand, or gently placed them in the bucket I used to carry for such treasures. Sometimes the sea glass was so beautiful, I couldn't tell if it was an agate or just glass, I only knew that if I didn't look for the treasures, they would be over-looked; missed.

I read something similar to that in Mark 6:52. It says, "For they considered not the miracle of the loaves: for their heart was hardened."  The disciples missed a miracle because of their hard hearts.  I found that amazing and couldn't stop thinking about it.  Here are 12 men who forsook family and friends, left their nets on the beaches, and followed Christ, and yet after witnessing so many miracles at the Hand of Jesus, still missed miracles because of hard hearts.

Was it because they had grown used to seeing miracles?

Had it all just been mechanics to them?

Or did they just stop seeing them for what they were?

It made me think of another verse; a verse that actually hindered the work of Christ:  "And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief."  Matthew 13:58

I find that tragic.  

Psalm 68:19 tells us, 'Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation.  Selah."

"These are little daily special touches from God that let us know that He is still there and that He cares.  The every day miracles that reflect God's sovereignty, His Supreme Power and Authority over every detail of our lives."  (Grace Notes: Mornings with Jesus.  Guideposts)

Am I seeing the daily miracles God gives me, or have I stopped looking?

Can I still recognize them for what they are?

Or has my heart grown hard?

So, how do we recognize daily miracles?

    By looking for them and recognizing them for what they are...

        and then, by recognizing Who they are from...

            It's as simple as that!

                But that's just me!

A Nation Disgraced

"And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory."  Isaiah 6:3

"Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created."

The Opening Ceremonies to the 2024 Olympics put The United States of America to shame.  I was embarrassed and ashamed of our Country.  I was embarrassed for our Athletes representing our Country.  To have the Lord's Supper mocked and blasphemed by men wearing rouge, lipstick and women's apparel should have our entire Nation outraged!

Our Athletes train and work 24/7 for 4 years to go and compete in a World-Wide event, to represent our Nation with honor and dignity, and this is how our Nation and Athletes are represented?

How did this happen?

How did One Nation Under God fall so far?

There is no fear of God.

But such mockery will not last forever.

"And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands.  Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory and blessing.  And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.  And the four beasts said, Amen."  Revelation 5:11-14a

God will have the last word...

    But that's just me!

"That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."  Philippians 2:10-11

Scan For Viruses

I was on my computer this morning when all of a sudden, my Norton Antivirus Program popped up on the screen:  "SCAN FOR VIRUSES."

I was thinking how wonderful technology is to be able to tell me when something is infecting my computer in a negative way, that will hinder its performance.  Wouldn't it be great if we had something like that to pop up to warn us that we are about to sin, or that we are harboring sin?  Wouldn't it be great if something would flash before our eyes that would say, "SCAN FOR SIN!"

Oh, wait.  We do.

"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."  Psalm 139:23,24

And it's not 'something,' it's 'Someone.'  We have the indwelling Holy Spirit of God that will send out red flags when we are about to do something that would hinder our performance, that would cause us to sin, that would reflect a poor testimony on our Lord and Saviour.  We have a still, small voice that whispers to us, (1 Kings 19:12b) a voice that says, " This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left." (Isaiah 30:21)

The Indwelling Holy Spirit of God will reprove us, and convict us when we sin.  He will guide us, comfort us and show us things to come.  (John 16:7-15)

I heeded the warning from Norton this morning and scanned my computer and cleaned my files.

Did I heed the warning from the Holy Spirit when He told me my heart had some needed cleaning as well?

Or did I grieve the Holy Spirit of God by disregarding His Voice?

My actions will reflect what path I choose.  If I neglect His warning, I will soon crash and not be useable.

If I choose to read my bible, pray and ask God to reveal the sin in my heart that is hindering my Christian performance, He will forgive me of my sin and cleanse me so that I can go on glorifying my Lord.  (1 John 1:9)

What about you?

Have you scanned for any heart viruses lately?  Or have you crashed in your Christian walk?

Ask God to scan your heart...

    He will...

        But that's just me!

 

The Stranger

My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; and ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say until him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?  Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?  James 2:1-5

My sister wrote to me yesterday from Arizona about something she witnessed in her church Sunday morning. This is what she wrote: 

"We went to church yesterday, and just as the band started the worship music, what appeared to be a homeless man came in and just stood at the front of the sanctuary next to the wall.  Security was close because they just didn't know what he would do.  The music went on fine, then he moved to the front wall on the other side, so one of the security guys went to sit in the front row.  The guy just hunkered down to the floor.  The sermon was about how suffering brings us closer to God.  We may not understand it, but it happens for the good.  Our Associate Pastor, who was preaching today, lost a daughter a little over a year ago, and he had lost another daughter prior to that.  He talked about how he felt like he stepped away from God a little, but he stayed in the Word, and he knows that God carried him and brought him closer to Him. 

At the end, our Associate Pastor had us all close our eyes and bow our heads and he began to pray.  He said that if anyone wanted to pray and accept Jesus, they didn't have to pray out loud, but the man on the floor did. Then the Pastor said another prayer, and the man repeated it aloud, then started crying.  When he first came in, I prayed he would be fine to remain in the service and that God would open his heart.  That is exactly what happened.  After the service, the staff went up and spoke to him.  He may have just wanted to get out of the heat, and who knows if he is homeless or not, but whatever happened was a blessing."

How differently this all would have turned out if this stranger had been asked to leave.  Instead, this assembly of Believers witnessed a miracle in the life of a man from the street who, perhaps, only walked in to escape the heat of the day.

He walked in homeless...

    he walked out with a home in Heaven...

            Isn't God good?

                But that's just me!