Special Days

Special Days 

^” This is the day the LORD has made;

let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

(Psalm 118v 24) 

            There are 365 days every year. Our goal and challenge are to enjoy every day. We can not allow our finances, a boss, or other outside influences to steal pleasure from any day. God put us here to be happy, and we need to do that for Him. 

OK, let’s get real. Some days are just a drag, and things go wrong. God rains on our parade, our back goes out again, etc. When negative things get in the way, we have a hard choice to make. We can choose to have a bad day or trust our faith and give thanks for what went right. Some days it seems that the only thing to give thanks for is that it is over. Well, that’s enough to make it a good day. 

We all have problems and challenges that will take longer than one day to resolve. Many issues seem unsolvable. We need to remember two important things. When we live one day at a time, we simplify our solutions. If we do not get it today, we can work on it tomorrow. When we believe an issue is unsolvable, we need to remember that the Lord is with us, and He can change the rules. We need to pray and turn unsolvable matters over to the Lord. 

Allowing God to be with us every day guarantees that we will have a good day. 

Thought for the Day: This will be a wonderful week for all of us. We will walk through the challenges and bless the Lord for the experiences and lessons that we learn one day at a time. 

Prayer for the Week: Dear Lord and father, we are often confused by our world. There are problems that we want to fix now and can not. This week we give thanks for the many things that go well and the blessings that we have. We give thanks and pray that we may cheerfully contribute to your plan. 

 

Brotherly Love

 

 Brotherly Love 

“Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.

 Honor one another above yourselves.”

(Romans 12vs 10) 

            Paul is saying that the person closest to or standing next to you deserves dignity and honor at any moment in time. In many cases, that is not how it works. We are an overloaded society and rarely give the person near us enough of our thoughts. We care about thinking too far ahead rather than in the present, and we need to slow down.             

            My point is that we should not forget to consider or care for everyone, even when we do not have time. Christ served everyone; He made time for lepers, prostitutes, tax collectors, and all of the “unclean” and needy as well as his disciples. We are often called or approached by a friend or acquaintance for advice or help at an inconvenient time. When that happens, we often look at our watch while they talk, space out and not listen, and then brush them off as quickly as possible- Wow, WWJD on that one. 

            The above is a real problem faced by all of us almost daily. We have deadlines in our lives and people that matter long term; our families and career colleagues. With that in mind, how do we deal with others who come for help when we do not have time. We need to pray about that, about how we can be considerate and tolerant.   

Thought for Today: Let’s focus on being caring when we are interrupted by a friend. We always need to find ways to share our Christian love. Let us ask how Jesus would deal with the telemarketer. 

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, today I will meet someone in need, and I won’t have time to listen. Today when that happens, I pray and hear in your name, as Jesus would.

Amen

 

Gods Love and Grace

“Know therefore that the LORD your God is God;

He is the faithful God,”

(Deuteronomy 7 v 9)

June and I are close to people of varied faiths. Through our association with each, we have come to a strong belief that we all worship the same God in different ways, and we all experience God’s grace.

Several years ago, we became good friends with the family of an executive from Pakistan, and it was our first real close relationship with a Muslim family. We were close to them in 2001 and observed the frustration that a true Muslim felt regarding September 11.

Recently a Jewish friend that I have known and liked for years shared with me that he does bible studies to learn about the Christian perspective. His strong family values, general upbeat personality, and strong ethical standards make him someone I am glad to know.

We have spent many Sundays with my family in Unitarian Meeting Houses when we return to Massachusetts. We are learning more about my mom’s grandparents, who were Unitarian ministers.

To avoid making this a 10,000-word essay, let me summarize some of our other relationships: A son in law who is a Southern Baptist, a brother in law who is a Catholic priest in the UK, a Buddhist sister in law, a Mormon best friend who lost touch with his faith, a Native American friend who has involved us in some spiritual activities, and the list goes on.

In each instance mentioned, June and I have experienced good friendships and observed solid, godly values in our friends. We have observed God working in our friends’ lives in most instances and see God’s grace at work in many ways. Most importantly, we have experienced God’s grace through our friends.

Thought for the Day: Recognize those around us that are different and try to befriend someone new. Seek out someone that looks at God differently. The Lord blesses them also.

Prayer for the Day: Dear faithful Lord and Father, the world is an incredible and wonderful creation. There are many peoples of all colors and beliefs. There are generation gaps, social differences, and economic separations. Often the differences get in the way of social graces. Today we pray for the ability to bring unity to the world.

Amen

23rd Psalm

 

School Days

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters..."
Psalms 23:1-2).

            In my grammar school years, the school day started by reading the 23^rd Psalm, Lord's prayer, and saluting the flag. Wow, by today's standards, that is powerful stuff. Let us take a look at this and see if we can apply it to our lives today.

        The first two lines above lead us to tranquility. Faith will take care of our wants, lead us to the inner peace we desire, and lead us to the restful place beside still waters.

 

"He refreshes and restores my life;
He leads in the paths of righteousness
for His namesake."
(Psalm23:3).

There are always periods when things in our lives need rebuilding. Thereare temptations to take the easy way. These verses point out that the way to get out of the "dumps" is to follow Him.

"Yes, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil; for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff to comfort me."
(Psalm 23:4).

The Psalm points out that the Lord is with us and will guide and support us throughout our lives.

    Yes, today, our lives get filled with stress. As Christians, we have excellent tools to work within our daily lives. The more we let God lead us, the more we will be at peace.

Thought for Today: Let us reflect on our pandemic experiences. Read the 23rd Psalm and accept the help that God has available to us as we move forward. It will be a big help in locating those still waters we all seek.

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, often stress builds up in our lives. It is a combination of hurts, anger, and resentments kept hidden inside of ourselves. When this occurs, I pray that I find a way to let you help and accept the guidance, protection, and support promised through our Christian faith. 

 

Our newspaper reported yesterday that Minneapolis is on track to have 10,000 gun shots fired this calendar year. We as citizens need to do what we can to bring peace to our world.

 

 Peace Together 

“Remain in me, as I also remain in you.”

(John 15 vs. 4) 

            Often people say they are no longer interested in organized religion The ritual, rules, money, and hard work did not do it for them; shame on them and shame on their church. There are others that change churches often searching for something they never quite find. We need to pray that they locate it.  

In general, those described above are less than happy in their lives. 

            Jesus message is clear, He is with us always. When we are searching and restless the ball is in our court; we are the problem. These are the times that we are out of touch with the Holy Spirit; not taking the time to open our hearts. When we are spiritually down and out, we need to look at ourselves first. 

            In 1954, Stuart Hamblen published the song “Open UpYour Heart” (and let the sunshine in.). Google shows that it was a big hit by the Maguire Sisters that year. It has since been used hundreds of times in cartoons, children's messages, and TV shows.  Jesus is our Lord and sunshine; we the people need to allow the sunshine in so that we may find peace together. 

Thought for Today: Today let us open our hearts to the Lord. Let’s find peace with Him. 

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, today we thank you for being with us; on our walks, at work, in our cars, and all phases of our day. Today we pray that we may stay in touch with you under all conditions.

 

 

To survive last weeks hurricane Ida, a tree needed strong roots. As Christians living in 2021 we also need strong roots and the courage to stand on our principles.

  Courageous  

“Be strong and very courageous.

 Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you;

 do not turn from it to the right or the left,

 that you may be successful wherever you go.

 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips;

 meditate on it day and night,

 so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.

 Then you will be prosperous and successful.”

(Joshua 1 vs. 7&8) 

            The passage above is one that we need to apply in our daily lives. Our society is a distraction and getting through each day without drifting from our Christian standards seems to be more difficult than ever. We have over complicated our lives in developing our post-pandemic lifestyle. 

            Our Friday Bible study group has several guys who grew up on farms here in the mid-west. They talk about caring for the livestock in the morning; attending school for the day, (often a long mile walk) and the prize was getting home to help on the farm before doing the homework! That was not my life in Boston, my children’s lifestyle, and is certainly not my grandchildren’s today. 

            Even as a retiree with good calendar control we get waylaid and off-target. The easy path is not always the Godly path. It takes a certain amount of courage to say no to a distraction and even more to do what needs to be done. It is important to recognize when our control is slipping away. Then we need to slow down, meditate and pray for guidance. The correct path will always be clear and the courage to take it is available. God is with us but we need to let Him into our day. 

Thought for Today:  Today let us slow down, smell the roses, and exhibit our good side. Let this be a relaxing and productive day. 

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, as COVID changes our world, we pray for peace, love, and enjoyment. We pray that we can contribute to each of those things by doing your will here on earth.

Amen

Hitch Hiking

 

"No Servant can serve two masters.

Either he will hate the one and love the other,

or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

You cannot serve both God and money."

(Luke 16 vs. 13 and Matthew 6 vs. 24)

 

            In the 1950s, as teenagers, hitchhiking was one of our primary means of transportation. We hitched to the ball field, to the next town, the beach; wherever busses did not go we hitched. When mom would give me a nickel for the bus,  we would stand there with my thumb out hoping to save the nickel to buy candy! There were a lot of fond memories generated by the people met and the rides shared. 

            H. Norman Wright in his book All My Strength writes about hitchhikers. Below are his thoughts:

“But consider the hitchhiker for a moment. He wants a free ride. He has no responsibility at all for the vehicle. He doesn't have to buy a car, pay insurance, upkeep or gas. Have you ever had a hitchhiker who volunteered to pay for gas? Not likely. He wants a free ride, a comfortable ride, a safe ride, and sometimes imposes upon you to take him out of your way. It's as though he expects you to do this for him.  

There are a lot of spiritual hitchhikers today. They know the Lord, but they want a free ride. They want all the benefits of being a Christian but none of the responsibilities or the costs. No accountability, no commitment, no willingness to serve, and if it begins to cost, they bailout. 

    The decision to serve God or serve ONES self is a big one. We can't serve both. We can hitchhike in our faith or we can serve our God. The ride is better with Him. 

Thought for Today: Let us think about the hitchhiker and the driver. The driver is a willing giver. The hitchhiker has a need and thus is a taker. That describes Christians very well and it is OK to be a taker. We do need to decide which we are, which we will be rather than what we want to be. This season let us take a step forward and up. Let us pursue a better ride.