Both And

Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. Luke 24:27 (NLT)

Can you imagine it? Walking along the road, discussing the day’s events and Jesus walks up and starts a conversation with you? Can you imagine how that would feel? As they discussed the latest news and how heavy their hearts were, Jesus engages. Later they said that their hearts were on fire as he talked to them.

What I find really interesting is that he doesn’t just say “Here I am! It’s me, there is nothing to fear.” Instead he takes them through Scripture. He goes back and shows them all the foundational things said by God through humans. He grounds them in truth.

Later in this chapter, he does the same thing with the disciples. He shows up and blows them away with his presence. They are dumb-founded and amazed. But instead of saying “Well, now you’ve seen me you are good to go”, he points them to Scripture. Again taking them through the things that pointed to him. He cemented their experience with the Scripture.

Just like then, we often get to encounter Jesus in our lives and our walks. We have experiences where we understand that he is revealing himself to us. It’s exciting and motivating and profound. As awesome as that is, we can’t stop there. We have to be grounded in Scripture.

Our walk has to be a balance of heart and head. If we have only an experiential knowledge of Christ or only an intellectual knowledge of Christ, we will be off balance. We need to have both. We need to experience him and understand him through Scriptures.

Jesus set this example for us long ago with the early disciples. Now, we as his disciples need to continue the practice. How are you experiencing Jesus today? How are you grounding yourself in his Word?

Dead Wrong

But as for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and he will stand upon the earth at last. Job 19:25 (NLT)

Last night I got together with some ladies and the conversation turned to a funeral that one had recently attended. She shared that the person who gave the service talked about how everyone should straighten up their life and get it together because they were all going to die.

I am sure those were not the exact words but that is what most people came walked away hearing. Do you think that is what people think of God? That he’s up there, looking for ways to punish us for our mistakes? Ready to pounce at the first flub up?

Job’s friends thought that. When he was going through some really tough life situations, they sat around and said things like:

You must have done something wrong and you get what you deserve.
Think about it….you messed up somewhere. Why else would this be happening to you?
God punishes people through bad circumstances.
This is always how it’s been Job, why do you think you are any different?

There is a lot of back and forth with Job’s friends saying these things and Job, although he is frustrated and is asking God for answers, keeps saying “No, no, no! This is not the God I know. He says that his Redeemer is alive and well and he will overcome.”

Satan has painted a picture of this kind of God. The God who is sitting in Heaven looking down and trying to catch us at something bad so he can swiftly exact punishment to teach us a lesson. This is not the God the Bible represents.

How precious is your unfailing love, O God! Psalm 36:7

But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. Psalm 86:15

The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17

God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. 1 John 4:9-10

This is the God we serve. He gave His Son so that we could come and live with him forever. When God looks at you, he sees Jesus.  When he looks at you, he is overcome with love. Where did this idea that God is only out to punish us come from?  Ask yourself. Who would benefit from your belief that God is bad?  There is only one.  And he’s wrong. Dead wrong.

For A Limited Time Only - Not!

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 9 So do not be attracted by strange, new ideas. Your strength comes from God’s grace.  Hebrews 13:8-9a (NLT)

Ever hear these statements?

For a limited time only
Call today for the best offer (does this mean if I call tomorrow you won't give me your best offer?)
Can be finished in as little as one day (it probably won't be but it could be)
Change your apartment change the world (Really? If this were true I would have changed the world many times!)
Up to 70% off (and there is only one thing in the store that is 70% off - the rest are not on sale)

The other day I was cooking and I had the TV on in the background. I heard the line "Call today for the best offer" and I started thinking about how we are duped by all of the media, commercials, and twist on words that we hear. We are bombarded with information and with images that trick our souls. I started wondering why we never see a car commercial with a mom wearing no make-up driving the child who is screaming in the car seat because he wants to get out. And I wondered why we don't see a man sitting in his car who is covered with drywall dust because he was in the middle of a home project and the pipe burst and he doesn't have the right part to fix it or a woman who overslept and is putting her make-up on in the parking lot of a building because she's late for her meeting.

We look at the things we see on TV and we are subconsciously told that if you buy/own this particular thing your life will be all put together. And somewhere deep in our recesses, we believe it. But, it is a lie. Very good lies that Satan spins so we spend too much money and are always living in discontent. 

Ahhhh, but all is not doom and gloom. There are promises that are kept and statements that are made that are 100% true. They are found in the Word of God. No matter what, he does not change. Our verse today tells us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. When he says something, it holds. You don't have to call on the right day, it is not a limited time offer and there is not a bait and switch. 

Will you still have days when your child is screaming in the back seat as you are driving somewhere? Yes. Will you still break pipes during home improvement projects and not have what you need to fix it? Yes. Will you still oversleep and feel out of sorts as you try to catch up?  Definitely. But deep inside you will also have a peace that you are not in this alone and that there is something better waiting. That, is a statement you can take to the bank. 

A Minute In It - How Well Do You See?

A minute in God's word will change your life. Take a minute to read the passage below. Then, ask yourself the questions at the bottom of the post. 

In John 9, Jesus healed a blind man on the Sabbath. The Pharisees got wind of it and started interegating the blind man and his family. They kept asking the same questions over and over trying to find out who did this. The people were afraid of the Pharisees so they gave generic answers trying to get out of the whole ordeal. The blind man just kept repeating the same story and finally the Pharisees threw him and his family out of the synagogue. Jesus heard about is and when and found the man. The rest of the story is below.

When Jesus heard what had happened, he found the man and asked, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” The man answered, “Who is he, sir? I want to believe in him.” “You have seen him,” Jesus said, “and he is speaking to you! Yes, Lord, I believe!” the man said. And he worshiped Jesus. Then Jesus told him, “I entered this world to render judgment—to give sight to the blind and to show those who think they see that they are blind.” John 9:36-39 (NLT)

Are there things in your life that are sacred?
If Jesus showed up and performed a miracle that was contrary to what you thought was sacred, would you question if it was God?
How do you treat people that believe different things than you?
Is it possible that we are the ones who think we can see when in fact we are blind?

A Minute In It - Thinking It Through

A little time in the Word every day changes you. Take a few minutes, read these verses and ponder the questions at the bottom of the post.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Philippians 4:8 (NIV)

Think through your life. Think about the negative things and then apply this text to that circumstance.

In your trials, or if you are blessed enough to not have any right now, in your life:

What do you know that is true (genuine, authentic)?

What do you know that is noble (high morale qualities)?

What is right?

What is pure?

What is lovely?

What is admirable?

What is excellent or praiseworthy?

As you ponder your life today, remember these things. They are your blessings.

It's a No Good - Nothing Is Working Kind of Day

There are some days when no matter what I try, I can't seem to get over myself. Everything seems so hard. I want to curl up in a ball and give up. I can't get past the feeling that it's a nogood - nothing is working kind of day. And what's worse is that on these days I am tempted to believe God is not there. I question Him, His love and His plan. What do you do when you can't get it straight? Go to the Word.

If today is one of those days for you, here are some Bible texts that offer encouragement. Pick one that hits home. Write it down/put it on your phone. Carry it around with you. Even better, memorize it. And when that really negative, down-right depressing, thought pops into your head, read/recite/remember the text. It'll get you through the day.

The Lord will perfect that which concerns me;
Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever;
Do not forsake the works of Your hands.
Psalms 138:8 (NKJV)

We do not know what to do but our eyes are on you. 2 Chronicles 20:12 (NIV)

The battle is not your battle, it is God’s. 2 Chronicles 20:15 (NCV)

No weapon forged against you will prevail. Isaiah 54:17 (NIV)

Nothing I plan to accomplish in your life can be stopped. Job 42:2

And this small and temporary trouble we suffer will bring us a tremendous and eternal glory, much greater than the trouble. For we fix our attention, not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. What can be seen lasts only for a time, but what cannot be seen lasts forever. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (GNT)

If God is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31 (NIV)

But blessed are those who trust in the Lord
    and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.
8 They are like trees planted along a riverbank,
    with roots that reach deep into the water.
Such trees are not bothered by the heat
    or worried by long months of drought.
Their leaves stay green,
    and they never stop producing fruit. Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NLT)

Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness
    while I am here in the land of the living.
Wait patiently for the Lord.
    Be brave and courageous.
    Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.
Psalm 27:13-14 (NLT)

Carry on! God's got this!