Joei & I have been talking a lot about what the meaning of Easter is, that it's much more than just a bunny rabbit. So we were talking about how amazing God is, that not even death could keep Him down; referencing the difference between when people here die and how that's it...but when Jesus died, that wasn't the way it stayed. Now mind you, Joei is extremely inquisitive. She asks questions that seriously make me have to think long and hard for the right answer. She is going to be a researcher before she dives into anything, that I can already tell. So she says to me, "I thought that when people die here they live in Heaven?" I explained that yes, that is true, she was concerned with the time frame of it all! So I talked about Joey's granny, whom recently passed, sharing about how once she died here, she immediately was alive in Heaven. And in the blink of an eye she left her adult body and returned to her 5 year old self and said, "but how did she pack her stuff?"
To Joei, the thought of Heaven without toys is boring, her words. Boring. Ah sweet Joei, it's anything but that. Granted I've never been so who knows, maybe there are toys there for kids. I'm going to bet that there is. And I'm also going to bet that Jesus rolls on the grass with all the kids and plays with their toys. Because the kind of Jesus that I love, the Jesus that saved me from the muck and mire of my life, that kind of Jesus would do something like that. He would get down and play with the kids. I'm just going to bet...
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
Shut up!
That's mean to say right? We teach our kids not to say the phrase, "Shut-up." We use, "hush," or "be quiet," or "shhhhhh." Sometimes though, we need to shut up. Shut the yapper, quit saying negative things about ourselves...quit saying negative things about others. And for sure, quit saying things that are not true. We just need to shut up!
I'm loving the Bible in such a new way these days, (hows that for a transition, "shut up" to "loving the Bible!") Really though, it's coming alive to me so much lately. The relevancy of the Bible amazes me, how it's living and active in my life today, just as much as it was living and active in the lives of those hundreds of years past. Amazing.
Anyway, this verse is so alive to me at the moment. Isaiah 54:17 " No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the LORD.
That is our heritage, simply for serving the Lord! We are made righteous through Jesus, therefore He gives us the authority to shut the mouths of our accuser(s.) In essence, we can tell them to "shut up." Rude? Maybe. Sometimes necessary? Absolutely.
I'm loving the Bible in such a new way these days, (hows that for a transition, "shut up" to "loving the Bible!") Really though, it's coming alive to me so much lately. The relevancy of the Bible amazes me, how it's living and active in my life today, just as much as it was living and active in the lives of those hundreds of years past. Amazing.
Anyway, this verse is so alive to me at the moment. Isaiah 54:17 " No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, And their righteousness is from Me,” Says the LORD.
That is our heritage, simply for serving the Lord! We are made righteous through Jesus, therefore He gives us the authority to shut the mouths of our accuser(s.) In essence, we can tell them to "shut up." Rude? Maybe. Sometimes necessary? Absolutely.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Win souls
The following verse jumped out at me today, ok not literally, because well, that would be plain freaky, but you know what I mean.
Proverbs 11:30 says, "The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise."
Isn't that the crux of the Christian faith? This verse could be the theme of any church, group or person. And yet, I think we get sidetracked on everything else. Yes, the "everything elses" of life are so important, but what about the good old fashioned basic Christian walk.
This verse may mean something totally different to me than to another person but how I take it is this: Our life is intended to produce fruit, fruit that will last. That is a great sign that we are doing something right! When the fruit of our life is multiplying, when it is ripe for the harvest, something is working right.
Galatians 5:22-23 says, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
When we operate by those guidelines in life, or if you are like me, we strive to operate by those guidelines, (because Lord knows I often am the exact opposite of that verse,) the fruit that we will reap is life! And by life, that means people will be drawn to the Lord through us and in turn, we win souls. Ah, I love that!
It really is so simple to be a Christian, I wish folks did not complicate it so. Jesus loves us. Simple. Living your life for the Lord is so much better than anything else out there, so much sweeter. Simple.
Matthew 22:37-39 says, "Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself."
Simple. Love God, love people. Win souls.
Proverbs 11:30 says, "The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise."
Isn't that the crux of the Christian faith? This verse could be the theme of any church, group or person. And yet, I think we get sidetracked on everything else. Yes, the "everything elses" of life are so important, but what about the good old fashioned basic Christian walk.
This verse may mean something totally different to me than to another person but how I take it is this: Our life is intended to produce fruit, fruit that will last. That is a great sign that we are doing something right! When the fruit of our life is multiplying, when it is ripe for the harvest, something is working right.
Galatians 5:22-23 says, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
When we operate by those guidelines in life, or if you are like me, we strive to operate by those guidelines, (because Lord knows I often am the exact opposite of that verse,) the fruit that we will reap is life! And by life, that means people will be drawn to the Lord through us and in turn, we win souls. Ah, I love that!
It really is so simple to be a Christian, I wish folks did not complicate it so. Jesus loves us. Simple. Living your life for the Lord is so much better than anything else out there, so much sweeter. Simple.
Matthew 22:37-39 says, "Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself."
Simple. Love God, love people. Win souls.
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