The Foggy Morning

Let us be thankful for the day the Lord has given us and I pray we take advantage of the opportunities He sends our way! 

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A couple of mornings ago the fog was so thick it seemed as if one might be able to reach out and touch it.  The thickness of it made it feel as if a heavy curtain was draped around me.    I was surrounded by it. 

The fog also cut into my visibility.  I couldn’t see very far in front of me at all.  Naturally, I used my utmost caution as I drove to work.  I was amazed when a couple of cars zipped on past me.  They were going much faster than I was comfortable with.  Knowing they were taking such risks just made me thankful they were getting away from me!

At one point the fog got even worse.  I could barely see the front end of my vehicle!   I had no choice but to keep going.  I couldn’t see the shoulder of the road to know if it was safe to pull off and stop.  I also knew if a car was behind me, it wouldn’t be able to see me until it got too close to stop.  So I could just stop in the middle of the road. 

I had no choice but to keep going.  So I did my best to focus on the white line at the edge of the road.  It was the best I could do for those few moments.  I was thankful though when it wasn’t quite so thick and my visibility got better. 

Sometimes the devil puts a fog around us to keep us disoriented.  He doesn’t want us to see clearly.  We see those things that appear to be so appealing and attractive through a haze.  Oh, they seem bright enough to us; but the devil finds a way to cloud our vision and keep us from seeing the end result. 

The devil only gives us a hazy view of what we see about sin.  The glamourous “good time” is  so alluring.  Before we know it, we are caught “hook, line and sinker” and dragged into a sinful lifestyle.  We don’t see the disastrous consequences ahead of time. 

When things start looking a little foggy – if they are questionable in the least, we should focus on the white line so we can stay on the road to heaven.  We must keep going forward – it won’t be long before the view is clear again.  Then we see the beautiful abundant life Christ gives us.

Do not let the devil cloud your vision!  He uses so many tools to do that!  And he works hard at leading us astray.   But if we stay in the Son light then God will help us fight the fog. 

 ^“You shall be careful therefore to do as the Lord your God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.”  Deuteronomy 5:32

Christ above all things – Robin

 

With All Our Hearts

Isn’t it wonderful to wake up knowing God loves us?  We can show we love Him by serving Him today – by talking to someone about it – by showing grace and mercy to others because He has shown it to us – by speaking more kindly and praying for those who need it today (which would be all of us). 

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 I once told my nieces and nephews I loved all of them with all my heart.  The youngest, who was only about three at the time, asked me how I could possibly do that since I only had one heart.  The other children laughed, but it was a valid question. 

 It showed me how smart Will was to even think of that, especially at his young age.  At first I didn’t know how to explain it to him.  In his practical young mind, it didn’t add up. 

 I explained that love works like that because the more we love, the more our heart grows. We have more room in our hearts to care about more and more people.    Honestly, love knows no bounds!

That being said, we know Who we are should love above everyone else.  It is our Heavenly Father.  He should get our whole hearts.  We are supposed to love Him completely and totally. 

We must remember love is an action word.  Many people say it is not an emotion.  I understand they are trying to emphasize how important it is to show our love through our actions.  I do not deny that.  Still, I think it involves some emotion also. 

The Bible tells us we should love God with all our heart, mind, and soul.  The gospel of Mark also includes ‘with all our might.’   Two or three mornings ago, we talked about loving the Lord with all our soul – which is that spiritual part of us.  It is the essence of who we are. 

I think these terms heart, soul, mind and might are so closely intertwined  that it is difficult to speak about any of them separate from the others.  This seems to be especially so with our hearts and minds.  They are sometimes used synonymously  in the scriptures.

Love is an action word, but we often are not stirred to action until our emotions are involved.  I am reminded of Acts 2 when the people were “pricked in their hearts” by the preaching of the apostles.  It was their hearts that prompted them to act.  The action was their obedience to Christ. 

We might also remember the four friends who lowered a fifth man through a hole in the roof of a house.  They wanted to get him close enough to Jesus to be healed.  The four must have truly loved the one to do what they did!

In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul named some great things and said if he did these things and did not have love, it would profit him nothing.  I think it is important to remember this.

Loving God with all our heart involves both emotions and actions.  Our lives are richly rewarded when we do this!

 

Christ above all things - Robin

With All Our Soul

 

Let us be thankful for another day the One True God has given us.  May we joyfully walk hand in hand with Him today!

 With All Our Soul

I daresay most of us know God wants us to love Him with all our soul, heart, minds, and strength (or might).  We know this is called the greatest commandment and indeed it is! Everything else hinges on our love for the Heavenly Father. 

Our souls are the eternal part of us.  It is what sets us apart from the other earthly creatures God made.  Our souls are the essence of who we are.  As Lonnie Jones once said, “we are souls with bodies – not bodies with souls."   We must love God with all of who we are!

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:13 – “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”  What a wonderful verse this is!!  I read this verse with a totally different mind set last night. 

I found something while I was studying which made me really stop and think. I wish I could remember where I saw it but I can’t at the moment.  Although it makes perfect sense, it was something I had never thought of before. 

The article mentioned that loving God with all our soul means we will love Him eternally.  Once we get to heaven, our faith becomes sight.  We will actually be in the presence of Christ – the Savior we’ve had faith in.  Faith will be evident – it becomes intimate knowledge.  Love will outlast faith. 

In that same line of thinking, if heaven is where our faith becomes sight, it is also where our hope is realized.  That sure and steadfast confidence that God will keep His promises is rewarded with the actuality of it all.  There is no longer a need for hope, because the promises have been kept. 

Our love for God is eternal.  We will still love Him long after our faith becomes sight and our hope is realized. 

To me, loving God with all our soul means we have the spirit of humility.  We realize that we are nothing without our Heavenly Father.  We depend on His grace and mercy for our salvation.  We become like the poor in spirit that Christ mentioned in Matthew 5:3.

We realize we are utterly dependent on Him and we long for Him.  We are driven by a strong desire to be with Him.   I am reminded of Psalm 42:1-2 “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.  ² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.  When shall I come and appear before God?”

 I pray we can all learn to love God with that spiritual part of ourselves that will last throughout eternity. 

 Christ above all things – Robin

 

Who Brings the Water Now?

 Kind deeds do make a difference.  We never know who is watching us and using us for an example in their own lives. 

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This is a story about four men who were good friends.  Part of it is made-up, part of it is true.  It is a story of what good men do. 

These men worked together for several years.  They had many common interests and concerns.  All of them loved God and put Him first in their lives.  Their bond grew deeper the longer they worked together. 

From time to time they met to share information, to voice concerns and make decisions together.  They often prayed together, too.

Every time they met, one of the men brought bottles of water for all of them to have during the meeting.  Four bottles of water.  It was one small thing that one good man did for three other good men.  But it was his way of showing them he cared about them.  A way of telling them they were important to him. 

I think the feeling was mutual.  All of the men respected each other.  They encouraged and helped one another.  They were all thankful for their friendship. 

One day, the man who brought the water went home to be with the Lord.  He finished his course and won his race.  Now there are three men left.  They still meet from time to time. 

There is a question in my mind.  “Who brings the water now?”  We will probably never know.  That’s OK.  It was never about the water anyway. 

It was always about what the water symbolized.  Love – respect – consideration – trust – the value of each individual. 

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.  Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”  Philippians 2:3-4

"Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God."  Hebrews 13:16

 Christ above all things - Robin

"I Need Help"

 Good morning!  Let’s keep our eyes open for opportunities to serve others today! 

 Years ago when I taught the 2’s and 3’s, we had a semicircular table.  The children sat in wooden highchairs like the ones we see in restaurants.  They can be pushed right up to the table.  The little ones learn to climb up into them fairly quickly.  Getting down however, is usually a different story as one of my students found out one Wednesday night. 

 She climbed up into her chair "all by herself" at the beginning of class and had no problem whatsoever.  When class time was over, I began helping everyone out of their chairs.  But this little lady insisted on getting down herself.  

She stood up in the chair and put her right leg over it trying to reach the rail and use it for a step. It was too much of a stretch for her, she couldn't reach it.  She tried the same thing on the other side of the chair.  Still no luck.  She stood up again - straight up in the chair and looked down at the floor and then up at me. 

      "Mrs. Robin I can't get down." 
      "I see that," I said.
      "I think I might fall, so I think I need help." 
       As I started toward her she said, "I think you better hurry!"
   

Of course, I got her down with no mishaps.  She seemed quite happy someone was there for her.  This young girl sized up her situation,  realized it was too big for her to handle on her own and then asked for help -- and asked for it to come quickly!

How many times do we do just the opposite of my little friend?  How many times do we keep trying to handle all our problems on our own without asking anyone for help?  How much better off would we be if we sized up our situation and then reached out for support?  If we simply looked at one of our sisters and said, "I'm struggling with this.  Can you help me?"

What is it that keeps us from asking for help when we need it in our spiritual lives?  We all have struggles and trials. We should be kind and tenderhearted to one another.  Jesus knew we would need each other.  I think it is one reason He built the church. 

Sometimes we need help with practical earthly things.  We should be able to lean on each other in these times too.  We should love and trust one another so much that we aren’t afraid to ask others for help.  

We need to know it is OK to ask for help – but we also need to be ready and willing to help whenever someone needs us.  Our church family should be able to depend on us.

 Colossians 3:14 is a great verse.  While it doesn’t speak specifically about giving or receiving help and support, it is fitting we use it here.  “And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.”

Christ above all things - Robin