healing

Book of Acts, in Acts, as a Great Place to Start, Find and Use BOLDNESS from the Lord to SHARE the Lord

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Filled with the Holy Spirit – they spoke the word of God with boldness.

I have prayed for boldness – not “bull in a china shop” recklessness – but honest sharing with no fear of sharing – the right words at the right time. Perhaps many of us have desired this when we question why we get shy when sharing the Lord. It is a dilemma of the Great Commission – but Jesus always said – Don’t go it alone – wait and ask for the Holy Spirit.

In the basic acts in Acts (see chapters 2-4 below) is where Peter and the disciples were bold enough to go out and teach, preach, reach, and heal – and speak – and also not fear being caught, imprisoned, and killed. Jesus did tell them that they would have problems but to PERSEVERE. That even being in prisons, the rescues emboldened them more – to believe…

We fear embarrassment but they could have feared worst – and yet they DID get out there and share – they were filled with the Holy Spirit – and they “Acted”. We can read the Book of Acts for inspiration and see the call for perspiration in actual doing acts. Reading the book of Acts is a Great Place to Start. “GPS” again, to find and use BOLDNESS from the Lord – and FROM the Lord – none of it comes from ourselves – only our willingness to join in. use the GPS – Great Place to Start – to simply do that – START/

One “ACT” that is presented to us is our ability to give credit where credit is due – when something good happens to us – do we praise the Lord? This has become easier for me – to at least say “Thank God” in normal conversation…  If others (and we) can use “Jesus” as an exclamation, almost a swear word, in surprising situations, well then we could at least say it in KNOWN praise.

Another “ACT” would be to be available for opportunities out in the public where we are OK showing our faith – like church events for kids – church opportunities at fairs – sanctioned spaces.

And then another “ACT” is to be available for people to know that you are a “churchy” or “religious” or “spiritual” or “person of faith” – these are terms all used for me at some point and well, those people at least know where you stand – and especially if you say you stand with God, because of God – well, others may take notice… (and others may figure that you 

And even more – that people notice – the ultimate “ACT” of faith is to keep praying – keep praying because of belief not just of desperation. Pray KNOWING that God DOES listen – pray knowingly because God HAS answered. Tell people you are praying for them then actually do. Pray for those you don’t say anything to as well. And surely pray for enemies – wow tough one – but pray pray for enemies in all ways.

Where to find the boldness? Well – the Book of Acts distinctly states that Jesus said “the Holy Spirit” will get these jobs done for you – meaning our “ACTS” are acts FROM HIM – FROM GOD – and we have to be ready to take on the opportunities that He presents and the world needs. “Be the glove that the Holy Spirit will fill” is essentially how one friend explained it to me – be the glove and this means hands and feet filled by the Lord and His ability and influence and direction.

Even Peter in the book of Acts quotes another set of scriptures – that of Joel and of David – which means Peter can say ‘hey, this is what I am called to do and the Lord allowed me to do and gave gifts of prophecy and healing.’ – SO, WE CAN TOO – so if we want to be more bold and be in the ACTS of the Lord – we can rely upon the predicted and gifted purpose of what we do – what we can not help BUT do help – and that is to ACT – to find boldness IN the Lord, FROM the Lord – WITH the Lord – to SHARE the Lord.

Peter gave direction – to repent (ask forgiveness of the Lord), be baptized, receive the Holy Spirit, and be called by the Lord: Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”

Reading ACTS 2-4 is a great place to start to understand how the disciples started –  WITH the Lord… and to get inspired with BOLDNESS…

If nothing else – we plant the seeds that we have JOY in knowing the Lord – and we act in accordance to His Calling. If God provides the energy – we best put the energy in gear without fear.

Amen (and please read the chapters below for inspiration) 

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Acts 2-4  https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%202-4&version=NIV;NKJV is the link to these important chapters.

Here is New King James Version

Coming of the Holy Spirit
When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The Crowd’s Response
And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.” So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?” Others mocking said, “They are full of new wine.”

Peter’s Sermon
But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your young men shall see visions,
Your old men shall dream dreams.
And on My menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days;
And they shall prophesy.
I will show wonders in heaven above
And signs in the earth beneath:
Blood and fire and vapor of smoke.
The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.
And it shall come to pass
That whoever calls on the name of the Lord
Shall be saved.’

“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know— Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it. For David says concerning Him:

‘I foresaw the Lord always before my face,
For He is at my right hand, that I may not be shaken.
Therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad;
Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope.
For You will not leave my soul in Hades,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
You have made known to me the ways of life;
You will make me full of joy in Your presence.’

“Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear.

“For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself:‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” ’

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”

Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”

A Vital Church Grows
And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.

So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

A Lame Man Healed
Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms. And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, “Look at us.” So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God. Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Preaching in Solomon’s Portico
Now as the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch which is called Solomon’s, greatly amazed. So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses. And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.

“Yet now, brethren, I know that you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers. But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began. For Moses truly said to the fathers, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you. And it shall be that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’ Yes, and all the prophets, from Samuel and those who follow, as many as have spoken, have also foretold these days. You are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ To you first, God, having raised up His Servant Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”

Peter and John Arrested
Now as they spoke to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came upon them, being greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.

Addressing the Sanhedrin
And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes, as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem. And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?” 

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders of Israel: If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well, let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’ Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

The Name of Jesus Forbidden
Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus. And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it. But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves, saying, “What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.”

So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.” So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way of punishing them, because of the people, since they all glorified God for what had been done. For the man was over forty years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed.

Prayer for Boldness
And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, who by the mouth of Your servant David have said:

‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things? The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the Lord and against His Christ.’

“For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done. Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”

And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.

Sharing in All Things
Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need. And Joses, who was also named Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the country of Cyprus, having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

Power and Purpose and VBS prep day 3

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“Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” – that’s what Jesus said to his disciples who were afraid, not knowing Jesus was approaching them or what was happening with a ghostly-like figure walking on water. They probably felt powerless in the unknown or not sure even what was going on – I mean Jesus was walking across the water, who would be ready to understand that! WOW!

And even in “normal” situations – we often don’t know how to deal with them best  – let alone get ourselves out of a strange situation. And we find ourselves not knowing that Jesus is coming with an answer or even coming AS the answer. 

Vacation bible school prep – day three of “TRUE NORTH” – finds us finding Jesus telling us to not be afraid, and to know He is here, there, EVERYWHERE! We need to find courage and know God’s support is constant – He can move mountains and He can help in many ways. In the Bible lesson, Jesus is being approached by an officer of Roman soldiers, a Centurion, in Capernaum about a sick servant, and Jesus demonstrated His healing power expanded to anywhere.  The centurion asked for healing and showed faith in Jesus’s power to heal. The Centurion also saw what so many didn’t see – that Jesus had a calling and a power authority to answer to – namely His Father – and to stay true to His Direction of mercy – and to His Mission. The Centurion said “for I myself am a man under authority” – meaning that a calling is like a command – and asking Jesus to be Jesus works wonders in the asking – that is faith – always remaining in contact with God. It was a faith focused understanding – and Jesus was AMAZED at his faith when He knew so many could have seen this LIGHT – but these others were stuck in the darkness – and would be forever.

The Centurion, and hopefully we, know Jesus has POWER – at least the Centurion knew that Jesus held power and had the ear of the powerful One in God Almighty. Power that was not used for magic or wealth – but for an elusive issue of health…  Power over life and death means power over and for health.

This is an earth shattering issue – not knowing the power the Lord has and not tapping into it. The power is not for moving mountains for fun – but moving the mountains of stress away – moving the mountains of issues – moving the mountains of doubt.  And moving us back to peace. Jesus’s POWER is all about PEACE…

Let us keep focusing on faith – it is our way to power our days – and heal our way.

Amen

—

The Faith of the Centurion

When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.”

Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?” The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment. Matthew 8:5-13

THANKFULNESS for being THANKFUL

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Hope you (and whomever you gather, or whomever has gathered you), have a peaceful-filled day, a day of thanks, a sharing of knowledge and goodies, and a pie or two…

And if by yourself, remember that the Lord IS with you, ALWAYS. We remember to pray for those having tough times and loss. We have the gift of prayer as we are to know we are also prayed for. I’m thankful for that!

Last night, my night “Growth Group” gathered on ZOOM as usual, with talk of the thankfulness for the Lord’s daily reminders to TRUST HIM. An encouragement conversation that struck me so importantly was in LETTING THE LORD HAVE CONTROL over the healing of a particular situation, not to take control over it, but be willing to let Him work it out.

THAT’S LIKE LETTING SOMEONE ELSE COOK IN YOUR KITCHEN!

Oh, that’s tough!!! Someone else cooking in your kitchen, ugh, we feel like it’s too much until we get out of the way ourselves. Letting the Lord work, cook up healing and hearty hope, is like giving up the control but still eating the dinner, and truly it would be the BEST dinner for the Lord’s ways are above our ways. We participate but He directs. We can perhaps bring Him the pie dish and let Him fill it.

Maybe we want to have a piece of the “pie of satisfaction” today – but isn’t that less tasty than the whole pie of THANKFULNESS.

Adding the whipped cream onto the pie is the THANKFULNESS of the Lord in all situations. [Even finding ourselves giving up your kitchen for others to cook in. Even letting others make plans, even keeping the peace by taking the pie piece out to another room to enjoy quietly later]. May we all be finding that it is best to bite into THANKFULNESS…

May we be thankful for so many things.

And looking outside at the rain right now, as the cat and I are sitting in the quiet, may we remember that in time, sticky situations will pass, parades will strut, games will get under way, pie will be served – and peace, that PEACE WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING, gifted by the Lord, will PREVAIL.

May there be whipped cream on your pie (even for breakfast), THANKFULNESS in all, and especially LOVE in your heart.

Blessings to all…

Here are some acrostic poems in thankfulness.

THANKFULNESS

THANKFULNESS
Holds-off
Any
Negativity
Knowledge.
Forget-about-it.
Understand
Love.
Nourish,
Everyone’s
Soul
Spiritually.

…

THANKS GIVING

THANKSGIVING
Helps
All
Now
Know
Spiritual
Glory
In
Victory
Indeed
Now
Gifted

…
GIVING THANKS

Gratitude
Holds
Any
Negative
Knowledge
Surrendered.

God
Is
Victorious
In
Neverending
Glory

Spiritual Rift needs a Lift, Hosea 1

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It’s not that I wanted to find a “connection” (disconnection) between my doctor visit and the the rift of Israel from God in divided kingdom times of the old testament, but I did. 

As I stopped myself from falling last week, I caught myself, putting full force body weight upon my left leg, felt a small but real pop. It hurt and made it initially hard to bend or squat, yet it felt increasingly better over the weekend, it didn’t slow me down too much and I did take it “easier” plus massive ibuprofen.  When engaged in conversation or thought, I didn’t notice it at all.

When I arrived at the doctors office Monday, I purposefully had not taken any morning ibuprofen so that I might gauge my status. The orthopedic doctor was excellent in diagnosis even without a scan. Hamstring pull, attachment tendon small tear, not full, and completely heal-able with physical therapy.  It was when I rolled to my stomach on the table and tried to lift my left leg up in back, like a superman pose, that it wouldn’t lift. It was very telltale for the diagnosis, I could lift my right but could not engage my left leg to behave normal. No lift. A rift. (And somewhere in this adventure there is a gift, to be determined) …

Ah, Hosea, the prophet of Israel to teach via demonstration, God chose Him to talk about that RIFT between the long bickering non-listening people of the divided kingdoms and God. Ah Hosea… In what could have been a good life, this was the time of northern and southern kingdoms Israel and Judah knowing separation by rift – after Solomon’s son’s  line fractured communities – times of separation from God by rift of not worshipping Him. Like a wandering on the map like in Moses’s time, this was fully a Spiritual wandering that included bad kings who did not lead their people in devotion to the One true God. The RIFT was real. God knew He would have to heal and how. God bless the repair.

I was totally engaged with the doctor’s diagnosis for my RIFT, and grateful he was teaching an intern so I could also learn, and I heard the small talk of “hamstring” which I already knew I at least minimally strained with a pulled muscle, soreness down the back of my leg. Not my back, not my hip, but my leg attachment to my pelvic bones. A specific moment of rift, a missing part of completeness that WILL be repaired and needs strength and stretching. I will be fine, thank God, even going back to my favorite PT people. 

Rifts are to be dealt with. That’s another reason God sent the prophets, urging repairable reconnecting to God. Spiritual rifts require repair. God kept His line through King David alive for Jesus to come out of Bethlehem in the land of Judah. They and we needed/need Him.

Now we must know even with our injuries and illnesses and strife seemingly non-repairable-on-earth that there will be healing in Heaven as gifts of reconstruction. Like God calling us His, the children of God will come together. The people will rejoice again. Jesus our Savior saver. And like my leg will raise again, the spiritual rift needs a lift.

Come Jesus come.

Amen

—

Hosea 1

New King James Version

The word of the Lord that came to Hosea the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

The Family of Hosea

When the Lord began to speak by Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea: “Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry And children of harlotry, For the land has committed great [spiritual adultery] harlotry By departing from the Lord.”

So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son. Then the Lord said to him: “Call his name Jezreel, For in a little while I will avenge the bloodshed of Jezreel on the house of Jehu, And bring an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. It shall come to pass in that day that I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.”

And she conceived again and bore a daughter. Then God said to him: “Call her name Lo-Ruhamah, For I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel, But I will utterly take them away. Yet I will have mercy on the house of Judah, Will save them by the Lord their God, And will not save them by bow, nor by sword or battle, horses or horsemen.”

Now when she had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, she conceived and bore a son. Then God said: “Call his name Lo-Ammi, For you are not My people, And I will not be your God.

The Restoration of Israel

“Yet the number of the children of Israel Shall be as the sand of the sea, Which cannot be measured or numbered. And it shall come to pass In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not My people,’ There it shall be said to them, ‘You are sons of the living God.’ Then the children of Judah and the children of Israel Shall be gathered together, And appoint for themselves one head; And they shall come up out of the land, For great will be the day of Jezreel!

Heavenly Healing Repair

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When one pulls a muscle, it’s like every cell, every muscle strand has to get fixed. One wouldn’t replace to repair the whole thing without complete surgery, it’s not like putting in a modular component like a new light bulb. Big swaths of tissue are interconnected, so even for the small repairs, it’s a gradual process as the body yields, repairs, reworks all while still in motion. Muscles working together help immensely and immediately the swelling prevents more injuries. Just like fevers fight for you in an immune system, so does everything. It’s good to take time to stop, reduce the spasms, and allow time to start deep healing. But don’t freeze in inactivity if working the system helps.

Praise be to God for healing.

When we come to realize we need Jesus in our life, it’s just like every mini moment has to get readjusted on the maximum scale and vice versa as every max issue is in Him, resolving like a miracle. First the spasms need to be reduced (Be Still), and then the problem has to be more visible (I am fearfully and wonderfully made), and then the peace comes to us (Immanuel, God with us). Jesus knows the intricate fixes or the whole replacement. He also will restore to even better when we are revived heavenly. Soulfully, now, we are new creations in Jesus. Restoration of the soul. Later, restoration of the flesh.

God will remake us, the Potter He is, into a “good enough” and then some, … Repairs by bandages, by coveralls, by blood overlay, by heavenly healing. And it’s not just us for us, it’s together all for His Bride, as the combined fellowship of believers, collectively called to work together.

You know when we fall in a trip of the footing, sometimes we catch ourselves but pull muscles. They say to stay limber and roll into a fall, be like you chose to roll… We aren’t gentle to ourselves like that, our minds worry about the things we carry and don’t want to spill over saving ourselves. Sometimes we do fall and face bruises. Emotions are bruised in embarrassment more than the muscles. But we must look at our lives in the Lord so MUCH MORE from His perspective than ours. When we as a human race fell from the faltering of Adam and Eve, God knew. God knew before time. God Who walked with them felt the pull away and the sorrow, Jesus from before times took on the pain, and the Holy Spirit swung into repair mode. If the pain and sacrifice (the lamb was slain) was in motion before we stepped onto the earth, who are we to not melt into His Healing now.Heavenly Healing Repair is awaiting, and so is today’s rest. Not idleness but movement within boundaries of us, and blessed continued repair to the people through Him.

Be Well, Be Willing, Be Strong.

Be believing in Him.

Amen

Luke 4:16-20

So Jesus came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah.

And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.

Smile and Collect God Direct

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How do celebrities make money by just being celebrities? Showing up, smiling, talking maybe, collecting the checks. Nice life huh? The only expense is for security people.

Snoop Dogg and other famous celebrities are making 50 million at the Olympics. Snoop Dogg is earning $500,000 per day plus expenses. Wow, and I’m sure there are others thinking of the TV scenes – getting paid separately for their ideas FOR TV-play of Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart. Anyone paying someone to look out of place might seem cruel – but not at $500,000 per day. Wow. That is laughing all the way to the bank. Even Steven Spielberg getting $20 million a movie has to produce a film himself and hire people to make his money, but Snoop Dogg? He is the celebrity of the moment (only NBC) now to Smile and Smile and Smile all the way to the bank…

I woke up with a novel idea mishmoshed into my head (novel to me) and it came as soon as it could organically synthesize in the most creative brain time that God gives. So – it is not from me but me in the right place – collecting the credit for ideas but God provided. It’s for work, and a Saturday 4 AM wake up is fine for an idea that is this helpful to me. It’s a gift from God to be helped, and we know all good things are from God. And maybe this idea won’t pan out, but the inspiration that He provided and can provide – giving something without asking, in a healing way for me, is like just showing up and collecting the paycheck. So imagine the blessing when we DO ask for help and then when we DO ask “what can I do for You today, Lord?”

Now, this also mean that we can ask when we DO need help, an idea, a way forward, out of a jam or just a fresh start. We can simply ask God for help and He can bring something normal or something novel, from the left field or the right field or His field, in inspiration to bring hope. Yes, and this builds a reliance upon Him. His ways are above our ways. “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9

My catch phrase these days is “creativity over cynicism”… and I believe that God provides that as a healing distraction until I can move forward.

As inspired writer Isaiah says, knowing that the Lord provides: “Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters” – He means come to Abundant Life… Smile and Collect God DIRECT!

Jesus Joy will always employ … 

Amen 

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Isaiah 55

New King James Version

An Invitation to Abundant Life

“Ho! Everyone who thirsts, Come to the waters;

And you who have no money, Come, buy and eat.

Yes, come, buy wine and milk Without money and without price.

Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy?

Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance.

Incline your ear, and come to Me.

Hear, and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting covenant with you—

The sure mercies of David. Indeed I have given him as a witness to the people,

A leader and commander for the people.

Surely you shall call a nation you do not know,

And nations who do not know you shall run to you,

Because of the Lord your God, And the Holy One of Israel;

For He has glorified you.”

Seek the Lord while He may be found,

Call upon Him while He is near.

Let the wicked forsake his way,

And the unrighteous man his thoughts;

Let him return to the Lord,

And He will have mercy on him;

And to our God,

For He will abundantly pardon.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.

“For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways,

And My thoughts than your thoughts.

“For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,

And do not return there,

But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud,

That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater,

So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;

It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please,

And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

“For you shall go out with joy,

And be led out with peace;

The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you,

And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree,

And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree;

And it shall be to the Lord for a name,

For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

HEALING FAITH – A SERMON

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SCRIPTURE: Luke 8:40-56

Now when Jesus returned, a crowd welcomed him, for they were all expecting him. Then a man named Jairus, a synagogue leader, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading with him to come to his house because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve, was dying.

As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.

“Who touched me?” Jesus asked.

When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.”

But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.”

Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”

While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” he said. “Don’t bother the teacher anymore.”

Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.”

When he arrived at the house of Jairus, he did not let anyone go in with him except Peter, John and James, and the child’s father and mother. Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her. “Stop wailing,” Jesus said. “She is not dead but asleep.”

They laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. But he took her by the hand and said, “My child, get up!” Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat. Her parents were astonished, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.

Sermon:

KNEE-D PRAYERS

My friend said her 2nd knee replacement surgery recovery seemed to have gone much better than the first. She told me she really believed it was the increased and incredible high number of prayers that she knew she had gotten. In addition to her family and regular friends, she felt more prayers (and heard of them) from her church community and our faith based community, especially with the increased communication and connections through our Facebook groups, etc.

Well wishes work.

Prayers petition God’s power.

And I’ve heard something like one prayer is a violin solo, but collective prayer, all together, is a symphony. 

Don’t you love that saying: those who sing, pray twice. That double of praise!

Prayers are golden to God’s ears. It is both that we believe in God and that we believe God CAN intervene, bless a situation, and that He can fix some bad ones and move mountains, or smooth transitions that aren’t so easily understood, to bring peace and acceptance to a situation. God hears the prayers for Him to be present.

I heard the flip side of our role in prayer – sometimes when we aren’t hearing God – to remember that the teacher is silent during the test…  Somehow I don’t always believe that one…  because I do believe that God does remind us – He is here – and He does want us to excel in our own progress. He WILL give us the cheat lines – cheating sin and death.

One of the funniest memes/facebook images that I ever saw was: “God can move mountains but sometimes He hands you the shovel”… yeah get moving… I hear that one all the time. But we should know that when we go through something – and we are motivated to move – God is there. Jesus will always be with us.

HEALING FAITH

We just heard about Jesus in the flesh on His way to see someone very sick – so sick… (WELL that was Jesus’s whole SPIRITUAL mission for the sickness of being lost – us all to be found)  and the person coming to Jesus, the leader of the synagogue had the faith and knew that Jesus was the One to make a difference – to heal his daughter.

TOUCH the Fabric – the make up of Jesus

THEN…………….. Jesus got “interrupted” by the sensation that someone in the crowd had just gotten healed in response to their faith – that we learned that a woman who was very sick found the hem of Jesus’s robe.

She had faith that if she just touched that fabric – not even him – that she would be healed… She had faith.

This woman was “unclean” from her illness –yet she KNEW what she had to do.  She had pre-knowledge of His Power –  faith in His Power – even before she met Him. What did Jesus do? He found her – not just so that He could meet her (Jesus knows everyone already) – Jesus found her so that she could know Him completely – not just the hem of his robe.  Instead of just Jesus’s robe being what she touched – He wanted her to know the feeling of Jesus touching her heart.

Do we feel like our problems are that worth giving it to Jesus? Really am I worth it? Well Jesus says we are… Are things worth “interrupting Jesus” – ?  Well – is it really an interruption? NO – Jesus came to serve  – to have that face to face experience – that trust –that love and forgiveness and hope.. “I went to Jesus to just see what was possible and Jesus turned around and said I AM Possible.”

An EARTHLY INTERUPTION  

Now – what about that first person who was bringing Jesus to the sick person – was he interrupted too! Yes – an interruption in earthly terms… The synagogue leader had to wait until Jesus was talking to the woman on the ground – Yes – that father had to wait however long to get Jesus back to HIS mission – to the original hope he had… that took COURAGE

Then when they were on the way, a messenger said oh no, your daughter has died. “Don’t bother the teacher anymore” – ugh – The man was upset but Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”  Don’t be afraid; just believe.” – isn’t that the best trust we can give to Jesus – that we believe.

RIGHT TIME – RIGHT PLACE

If we aren’t in the time to grab Jesus out of the crowd for a miracle – we DO have Him to grab onto in our hearts – the hem the whole the live and the love – what about those right place right time prayers? You can apply prayer first and foremost and then others might be praying for you to do something. Remembering that acronym from our friend – actually his neighbor –  P.U.S.H. Pray until something happens…   Sometimes you are the what happens… This happened to me Friday – I was leaving vacation bible school where we learned about Zacchaeus and Jesus as his friend – and that Jesus always loves us – Jesus is our friend. I had just taught about the Holy Spirit pushing Zacchaeus to do something in response to Jesus coming to him – and Zacchaeus decided to pay back those he cheated in taxes.

Zacchaeus was like the grinch whose heart grew three times that day. He realized he could and should do something.

So I was walking into the grocery store and this woman was conked out on the chair in front – like I was envious of a good power nap just then – but she was still there – same position – when I got out – and others had taken notice and the store people too. It was other people who mutually chatted with me included about doing something – and often we do walk away – and I first looked and wondered if she was dead – no – her color was great and she was breathing…  but the people told me and others – store people too – that she would not awake. It was not anything but living in the moment and I capped her Gatorade bottle as that was held on her lap. The other woman next to me said: “I wouldn’t leave my mother like this” – and the ambulance came just in a little bit. THANK GOD for paramedics and fire and police people – they are the answers to prayers that we have.

It was weird but in the moment that The woman on the chair snapped awake – it was the result of a seizure she said – but she was out over 20 minutes – and the woman next to me who said: “my God would not let me not do something” said she got Holy Spirit goosebumps… I didn’t get the goosebumps but I was aware and believing that that woman did – urging us to join in the concern – it was a combination of prayer and action.

This is when life interrupts your “regularly scheduled program” – and the Lord calls you to action.

Isn’t that what we are supposed to be doing – a combination of prayer and action. Opportunities abound – like at the store or home – at work and at moments where we hear bad news…  These “opportunities” seep into our life callings and making less barriers and more common spaces between situations… I remember being with a few scared kids on a girl scout camping trip – down at a revolutionary war fort by the airport – where we were staying overnight- and they did not want to go on the ghost tour – I ended up telling them that I did not believe in ghosts but I certainly believed in angels watching over them and us.    AMEN TO THAT!!!!

CRUSHING

The 12 disciples that day when Jesus was in the crowd, were like ‘we got lots of people crushing and touching you Master – how can you even try to single out one – but He did and the woman herself came forward. Jesus wanted to have that woman meet Him!

That crush of people also probably one of the reasons He retreated to teach a close core of disciples who would then teach everyone. The disciples would have done that: “don’t cause the crowd to crush you because we have a mission – like Taylor Swift travels in a rolling case thru the backstages of her show, they say…  Well Jesus did get out in a boat or top of a mountain – but rarely did He hide. Jesus had so many interactions with people, so many miracles that John tells us not enough pages in books could hold that info…  

Jesus knew that the miracles were almost distracting from teaching – an important reason He came – to teach about how to get closer to God – how to recognize that the time was in the present to be with God on earth. Some saw the miracles and thought of an earthly king that God had ordained like David.  And as some saw or heard of the miracles and thought of Jesus as evil – a magic man against God. 

And yet, these miracles were always pointing back to the glory of God – of “knowing God’s Plan and Will for us:” – knowing we NEED Jesus – like that woman touching the hem of Him – Healing – And Jarius – knowing to bring Jesus to his daughter. Jesus wanted people to KNOW Him deep in the core and they became the witnesses to others. They both knew Him and knew they had been changed – and knew it was something the Lord needed them to tell others.

But what about that “don’t tell others” – is that more of a “don’t bring commotion because it distracts people from listening” – “don’t cause yourselves to create waves for yourself – just let yourself stand as a testament to faith. Imagine those laughing mourners who must have later saw the girl alive” – wow…   Isn’t that us too –  “Let your actions show you are a changed person”… “Live a risen life – and acknowledge that you had nothing to do with it – but your faith in Jesus did, does and will do …  

There is a VBS video – of two twin young girls full of faith who learned their uncle did not believe in Jesus… They prayed and prayed and a year later – he came to Jesus – was baptized and how could he have known their impact – but God did…

Perhaps God is ‘Waiting on a prayer’ – as we are living on a prayer – it includes the Lord waiting to hear someone say: ‘I trust you Lord” –

AMEN and let us pray….

Lord – we know one soul already saved helps save another. You remind us that Iron sharpens iron – so prayers help praying.   Saving Grace is to be embraced.  “He who does the will of God abides forever.”  – may we always abide and know Your LOVE.

AMEN AMEN

God in the Love of Mothers

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Here is my more serious devotion about God’s love – even in a broken world… Keep sharing the love my friends!!!

I passed a church sign this week and even heard somebody else say this recently: ‘there is no greater gift than that of our mother’ hmmm…. And although I appreciate the sentiment, I cringed at the church’s rephrase of a scripture so crucial – the scripture actually is: “there’s no better gift than to lay down One’s Life for One’s friends”,  Jesus speaking about His role as Jesus, a mission in God’s Plan… this really was Jesus speaking, recorded in the gospel of John 15:12 and 13 “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.”

Mother’s love is immense – and yet God is even Bigger… Imagine that – wow…

So Jesus commands us to LOVE and accept LOVE and be LOVE and give LOVE. Love is sacrificial and a whole, given as love willing to be sliced into pieces to spread out… Love is a whole delivered in pieces. 

Well love, being God, never changes, so it becomes shared or not. God shared it to the max. We decide how much to give. Jesus wants us to give love until it hurts. Mothers do understand this. And we can never give as much love back as our mothers gave us, so instead we all should pay it forward, love it forward…

I feel this love and hurt too as a mom, blessed by my kids for sure and by my mom too – and in this life, don’t we also always feel the brokenness of human love, the human-stretched cracked broken chunks of love separated and scattered in this world? Knowing brokenness too well, we long for the gamut of wondering for our own children’s expressions of love back towards us, but perhaps we could instead just know our love was never wasted. Perhaps we are people who wanted to mother but never had the opportunity, or we are mothers who have had hard times showing the love because something broke in relationships somewhere.  There are children growing in love but unable to bridge the original gap of a parenting relationships, either on purpose for good-enough reasons or things not under their control. Best to let it rest…. With brokenness, the hurt is there. The hurt we collectively could ache for those going through the hurt. Imagine new losses, Imagine old.

But Imagine healing in our forever hopeful futures. 

The love of God is always there, God loves for restoration with restorative love.  Jesus loves and His Holy Spirit allows us new mercies each morning to love more, better, well, whole. And to accept His love too.

Perhaps today if we cultivate love in whomever we meet, whether with our kids or mother or not, and cultivate love and share love to share God’s Love, we can create the healing over any hate. If anything a mother could give, it would be to give into love.

God is in the love of mothers whose love is great, let us remembering GREATER WHOLENESS in the love of God, for us, for everyone, for bearing fruit, for healing of the people and nations, for ever. 

Love forever is seeing in a Mother’s love for her children and in God’s love for ALL HIS CHILDREN – a love willing to share…

Amen 

Happy Mother’s Day, today.

Happy God Love Day, everyday !!!

“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you. These things I command you, that you love one another.” Jesus speaking to apostles and to us, in John 15:11-18

By Faith

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By Faith,

Let me take a moment to explain Christian faith – which I know ‘By Faith’. So, I will not be able to explain all of Christianity religions, as there are hundreds of denominations – yet I can speak to the understanding that our Christian faith is to be understood as a relationship over a ritualistic religion. A defining of deity for Christians would certainly be that we follow Christ, Jesus Christ, and that we respect and understand a Divine Trinity of God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and Holy Spirit, three in One. The Holy Spirit in the world today and inside each Christian who is ‘moved by the Spirit’ always is to point back to Jesus as our Lord and our Savior. Jesus came into the world 2000 years ago in the flesh (Emmanuel – God with us). Jesus Himself walked the earth for approximately 33 years and is recorded in the New Testament for His teachings and also for His miracles and His mercy. The New Testament also includes the Acts of the Apostles (those who followed Jesus closely in Jesus’s time), the early church, the spreading of the teachings to make disciples of Jesus, and the revelation of Jesus coming again. One of the understandings of Christianity is that Jesus did miracles to point back to ‘the Word’ – which means that Jesus wanted to show that He came to do His Father’s Will – and to fulfill the prophesies of His coming – of His death and resurrection – and of Him coming again. Jesus ALWAYS pointed back to God the Father as the ultimate One in control – Jesus spoke of His short time on earth – but also of His sending the Holy Spirit to help each of us in the world.

By Faith, a known of Christianity is that we are ‘not of this world’ but of Heaven. Jesus came to allow us to gain access back to heaven and to eternity with God our Father, but covering all our sins – by ‘covering us with His blood’ to be white as snow and forgiven of sin. The key aspect of Christianity is that we are to understand that with man it is impossible but with God, all things are possible. And thus Jesus came to earth to fulfill both those prophesies of His coming and of His journey – as well as be the ‘fulfillment of the Law’ which means that the Old Testament requirement for adherence to the laws handed down by God to Moses in the 10 commandments. Because we refer to the lack of adherence to the 10 Commandments as the brokenness of the people, God put in a system of sacrificial rituals, in Old Testament times. Because of this broken system – with broken people ever since Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden broke the original sin – ate of the tree that was forbidden for them to eat from – thus distancing themselves from God’s closest companionship – a system of sacrifice was allowed and required to repair the rift. The Plan from the beginning (we say even before the beginning of time) is that God was planning this ‘New Covenant’ – defined and achieved as ‘redemption’ by Jesus entering the world and then being sacrificed as the ultimate sacrificial lamb – a ransom for all sins of all people. Jesus as fulfilment of now both the laws and the prophesies. What does Jesus ask and require of people to receive this redemption? That we love God and that we love one another. The redemption is from Him, the response is the request of forgiveness of sins (old and current), and the relationship is restored between God and us.

Where do we learn this? We are asked to read the Holy Bible – both Old and New Testaments – and we are asked to look for the relationship – as Jesus lives now in our hearts. God is love – and we love because He first loved us.

By Faith – we believe and experience that when Jesus calls to us as our Shepherd, we hear and understand His Voice – because we all know that the world has so many conflicting noisy distractions clamoring for our attention. By faith we also know in Christianity that the evil in the world is created and fostered by the opposite of the Love of God – by a fallen angel named Satan. By faith, we know from the first readings in the book of Genesis, that Jesus as Messiah would come to crush the head and the power of the devil, and the win over sin and death is already accomplished by the ransom of Jesus for our sins. We also know that Jesus will come again into the world, at any time, to complete the purpose of silencing the devil in all ways. We await that day now, just as the devoted in the old testament times awaited the first coming of Christ. We await that second coming.

By Faith – we are in this world and we make the best of this world and we bring God’s best to it by sharing His Love. “Love Wins” may be a catchy phrase – and it is scriptural: ‘Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.’

By faith – they are to know we are Christians by our Love.

Amen

Unroll Sweet Jesus!

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Sweet Jesus. 

I didn’t unroll the Smarties – the candy – but I unrolled my SMILE – how adorable – it’s a Torah scroll from a girl scout event, Thinking Day, and an older troop representing Israel as their country to study and present, made up these mini Torah from the sweet Smarties wrapped in a paper showing the Ten Commandments as two tablets. I quickly paid my quarter and thought so deeply of both the meaning but also that a church faith item was shown and shared at a secular event. Good to open an opportunity to think at “Thinking day”.

This was no sugar rush, this is God-gifted goodness in thought, and I pondered the deepest of meanings here:: Jesus IS the sweet core of the tablets and the fulfillment of the LAW AND THE PROPHETS. Good God!

Then the next day a church window caught my attention, what beautiful light shone through the stained glass window of the tablets portrayed. The windows so beautiful in the church building and isn’t that so appropriate of our beautiful LIGHT of the world, Jesus, illuminating His Plan to satisfy what man can not achieve, total coherence and coverage with all the laws. Jesus is our Light to elucidate our wrongs and fill the spaces of darkness with LIGHT, a LIGHT that eliminates the sting of death and illuminates a forgiveness which brings LIFE. 

This is probably easy for us to now see, but be ever so closer to the events of Jesus’s day and Jesus, in His hometown, was shunned, shocking the people who remained sure He was being blasphemous in self by speaking eloquently from the Torah scroll, from Isaiah, that He Himself was filled with the Spirit of the Lord to proclaim freedom and healing. That He was the Healer. That they needed Him.

We need Him too – and pray we know it. And that we feel it. And that we follow Him. And we love Jesus even more for Him gifting Hope. And thank God for we can’t make this journey by ourselves. Jesus must fulfill our lives with forgiveness to bring us to the everlasting life. Like the man who puzzled at the keeping of the laws of Moses, Jesus looks at us and loves us and knows we are in need of His completion to make us from part to whole. 

And while He already accomplished this, we know that this is unrolled to each of us in a journey that takes our whole lives – it takes one sweet candy at a time – it takes one step in front of the other – and sometimes we are simply carried. We know that we must wait and watch the unveiling of Jesus in our lives, just as the spring unveils itself – like the first flowers and the progression further into later flowers and then fruits. Let us savor the spring that comes from the winter.

Unroll Sweet Jesus into your life. 

And start smiling. 

Amen 

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Luke 4:14-30

Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. He was teaching in their synagogues, and everyone praised him.

He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” they asked.

Jesus said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself!’ And you will tell me, ‘Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.’”

“Truly I tell you,” he continued, “no prophet is accepted in his hometown. I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.”

All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff. But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.

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Mark 10:17-31  The Rich and the Kingdom of God
As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”

“Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!”

“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”