Harmony

Harmony

 

“I urge Euodia, and I urge Syntyche to live in harmony in the Lord.”

(Philippians 4:2)

 

            Recently, in our neighborhood, we watched as a family fell apart. There were court orders, police escorts, and all the ungodly things that go with a broken home. Respect, love, and spirituality had left the relationship. It was sad.

Let me confess that our family did not always go to church. (Sunday was a long training run and cleaning the pool.) Also, when the kids were small, church on Sunday was our only “quiet time.” Somehow, there was always trust and a spiritual presence within our family that held us together. 

Consider this analogy. If your car battery was dead this morning, you could put it on a charger and be able to get going. However, if your alternator was weak, your car would quit running in a few hours. Many of us use Sunday’s service as our time to charge our spiritual batteries. 

Families and individuals with solid spirituality tend to survive. They grow while meeting life’s challenges, develop deeper friendships and learn the value of love. Somehow we all need to carry Sunday’s charge throughout the week. I pray that my messages help.

“ And I pray that Christ will make his home in your hearts through faith. I pray that you have your roots and foundation in love.” (Ephesians 3:17). 

Thought for Today: Somehow, we need to ensure that the weekly calendar does not overwhelm our spirituality. We cannot be too busy to love each other. We all know that is a formula for tragedy. Today and always, let us focus on positive interactions with friends and families. 

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord and Father, our lives are full of distractions. Somehow, we don’t have time. Children’s activities, work projects, and many other issues get in the way of peace and love. Today we pray for the presence of mind to focus on your love and include it in our daily lives.

Amen

 

Perseverance

Perseverance

 "Therefore, since you have been justified through faith, we have peace with God...

we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our

sufferings. Suffering produces perseverance; perseverance brings character, and

character brings hope. And hope does not disappoint us."

(Romans 5:1-5) 

             The keyword this week is perseverance. Our lives are a constant search for serenity or peace. Where does it hide, or do we hide it on ourselves? Indeed, we all go through phases when we are not at peace. Careers get in the way, illness occurs, and our lifestyle's general business disturbs tranquility. 

            When we are not at peace, which is in control? Years ago, during stressful times, my daughter gave me a daily meditation book and suggested I pay attention to it. Not reading the morning newspaper and replacing the news with meditation resulted in a more positive start to the day. I no longer knew the baseball scores, how Tiger did, or how many negative things occurred in the world yesterday. Meditating gave me a level of peace at the start of the day. 

            So, where does persistence fit? Well, peace is elusive and hard to grasp or even define. The search may be everlasting. Paul's message to the Romans is reasonably straightforward. Throughout our lives' ups, downs, and general activities, we must be persistent in our faith and keep God in our lives. Through the grace of God, we will find the hope, peace, and tranquility we desire. 

Thought for Today: Today, let us review our long-standing frustrations. The demanding boss, the developing teenager, the morning commute, whatever is in our lives. Let us pray for God's guidance on how we should help Him deal with the frustration. If He is involved, we will be less frustrated. 

Prayer for the Week:  Dear Lord, I give thanks for the many blessings in my life; the good friends, the lifestyle, the rain, and flowers. There still are many issues that need attention. I pray for your guidance to work through these everyday issues.

Amen 

 

Endless Love

"See what great love the Father has lavished on us,

that we should be called children of God!

And that is what we are!"

(1 John 3 vs. 1) 

            Are we made in His image? Are we the children of God? It is hard to think of ourselves like either when trudging along through life. We are taught to be humble. Being a child of God is easier to swallow than being in His image. 

 When my first child was born, it amazed me how much love I felt in my heart. Karen meant more to me than anything I had ever experienced. It was unbelievably good.           

When my wife was pregnant with my second child, I was anxious and feared that there would not be enough love in my heart, certainly not to the same extreme. I couldn't believe that I could feel the same way.           

Back to the two questions- the answer is yes. There was plenty there, and for the third and the fourth child, the first grandchild, and through the ninth grandchild. God's never-ending capacity to love, and we have the same power in that sense.           

The word is "Love your neighbor as yourself," and we have the God-given capacity to do it! 

Thought for Today: Today, let us recognize our capacity to love, care, and respect everyone we meet.

 Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, we have love in our hearts that you have shared with us and pray that everyone can find this love and that we can take a step forward to world peace.

Amen                                      

 

Call Him

 

"The Lord said, 'Call to me, and I will answer you.'"

 (Jeremiah 33:3) 

            It is easy to go through a busy day without acknowledging the presence of God in our lives. Sometimes when we get to the end of a day and look back, the day seems un-Godly. We have not done the best job of caring for ourselves when that happens. That is our fault.           

Confusion and stress seem to find their way into our lives. We will have busy and stressful days, and bad things will happen to us. It is advisable to put ourselves first for a part of each day, which requires a bit of selfishness. Alone time shared with God will make us better workers, parents, and people. There is nothing selfish about that.           

Henri Nouwen called it a still place "…This still place is where God can dwell and speak to us. It also is the place from which we can speak in a healing way to all the people we meet in our busy days." We all need to think about that. 

Thought for Today: Let us remember to be selfish, take a break, and allow God to support us. 

Prayer for Today: Let us pray that God will be present in our lives as we pursue the opportunities before us. Amen

 

Try Harder

 Pray for world peace.

We need to share Christian love with joy. When we do, we all benefit and live better lives

 

Pray for world peace. I pray that you may find personal peace and joy in life. 

Young at Heart 

"Be happy, young person, while you are young,

and let your heart give you joy in the days of your youth.

Follow the ways of your heart..."

(Ecclesiastes 11:9)           

            Some people seem at peace. They avoided the rat race of life and found the happiness most were seeking. The interesting fact is they cross all socioeconomic boundaries. The common thread is always their faith. They believe things will work out. 

            The strong message here is that the things that bring peace, serenity, and happiness to our lives are found in spiritual growth, and they can be found in yours. 

Thought for Today: Today, avoid the rat race by praying for serenity and doing what we need to obtain peace. 

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, thank you for the opportunities before us. We pray for serenity and love and the chance to promote peace in our community.

Amen

 

Pride and Humility

 

Pride and Humility 

“Before his downfall, a man’s heart is proud,

but humility comes before honor."

(Proverbs 18:12) 

            My mom used to use some interesting terms and expressions when describing humanity. One of her favorites was “foolhardy” when someone did something out of line. Another was that “It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.” Somehow, when we are proud in the context of today’s text, we are not paying attention. When we exhibit false pride, it helps us grow to appreciate the realities of life. 

            We are often overconfident, especially when we are young. Somehow, that is God’s way of teaching us. We constantly have to monitor our pride and confidence. The elders of society have knowledge and experience but are not always correct. Technology and society are changing faster than fifty years ago. Therefore many of the rules of life have changed. 

In our spiritual lives, the rules have not and will not change. The ethics, love, and traditions taught to us by Christ will endure regardless of technology changes and cash flows. We need to take inventory of our pride and be honest. We need to hold up our values to serve the Lord in an ever-changing world. 

Thought for Today: Every day is the first day of the rest of our lives. The mistakes and experiences of our past are nothing more than learning experiences and enable us to move forward with confidence. Today, let us focus on being humble and dealing with the realities of our worlds. 

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, today we give thanks for the lessons we have learned and our loves. Thank you for putting it before us through all that Jesus taught us and what we learned from the past.

Amen