Mary and Martha

Luke 10: 38 - 42 (NIV): As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself ? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."

Often life presents choices not between good and evil, but between what is good and what is best. It is best, Jesus said, to spend time with him. To sit at his feet and get to know him. There is nothing more important than this. We were created to fellowship with God and sitting at his feet is how we fulfill our purpose.

Martha was fussing to make everything just right and, because of it, missing out on the time she could have spent with him. “Only one thing is needed” may mean something like, “I don't need anything too fancy, just find some bread and come visit with me.”
Jesus understood the cultural need for a hostess to provide for her guests. He understood that Martha felt compelled to feed him. Jesus simply used this situation to teach us that working for him is not the best thing, our relationship with him is. Our faith is not about rules, regulations and work, it is about having a loving friendship with Almighty God.
Ours is the only faith that teaches that the Creator desires fellowship with his creation and paid dearly to have it. That is amazing to think about. How do we sit at his feet today? By reading his Word, praying, and attending church.
One of the devil's favorite tools is to keep us so busy, we neglect our time with God. Sometimes we are so busy, even doing good things, that we neglect just sitting quietly at God's feet. As we fall in love with Him, we will serve him more and more, but it will be from an outflowing of our love for him. That's the best service of all.

You Must Be Born Again

John 3: 1-3,14-17 (NIV) Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him." In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. " ... "Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."

    Nicodemus knew that Jesus was from God because of the miracles he had performed. Jesus had proven who he was by healing people and raising the dead. Nicodemus had a faith based on the evidence, not just wishful thinking. We base our faith on this same evidence, especially the evidence that he rose from the dead. 

    Jesus told him he must be born again. When Nicodemus expressed that he did not understand, Jesus explained that we are born once naturally, but we must be born spiritually too, to enter into heaven. Something must happen. That something is we must believe that Jesus is who he claimed to be and put our trust in him. In other words, we must believe in him. This is not just head knowledge, it is real faith that changes us. A real faith that causes us to call on him to save us and to surrender our lives to him.

    Jesus referred to the snake in the desert. The people had to look at the bronze snake for healing. We look to Jesus for our spiritual healing. Jesus was also prophesying that he would be lifted up on a cross to pay for our sins.

    God wants everyone to be saved, but we each must believe in him. When we reach the point where we understand, it is up to us to choose to believe. God allows us to make that choice and offers eternal life for all who do. 

Zacchaeus and the Sycamore

Luke 19: 1-10 (NIV): Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today." So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and began to mutter, "He has gone to be the guest of a 'sinner.' " But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount." Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."

    Jesus was passing through Jericho to go to Jerusalem where he would be crucified. This, then, was the last time he would pass that way. We never know when it is the last time we have a chance to encounter him. We never know what day may be our last or when he is coming back.
Zacchaeus didn't let the crowd keep him from seeing Jesus. He was short so he had to take an extra measure to see him. It is interesting that because he was short and climbed the tree, he caught Jesus' attention. If he had been just another face in the crowd, standing by the road, Jesus may not have noticed him. God has a reason for everything he does. He never makes mistakes. If you feel you are too short, God has a reason for it. Whatever your circumstance, God has a reason for it even though you may never understand it this side of heaven.
The good news of this story is that Jesus is a friend of sinners. He called Zacchaeus by name and told him he wanted to fellowship with him. Zacchaeus was saved because he obeyed and welcomed him. When he met Jesus, he believed in him. His actions (giving half his wealth to the poor) didn't save him, but it proved that he had been saved. Our actions prove our salvation in the same way.
Do whatever it takes to see Jesus. And when he calls your name, welcome him and discover that eternal life with Christ is far greater than riches.

His Love Endures Forever

Psalm 136: 1 - 9 (NIV): Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. "His love endures forever." Give thanks to the God of gods. "His love endures forever." Give thanks to the Lord of lords: "His love endures forever." to him who alone does great wonders, "His love endures forever." who by his understanding made the heavens, "His love endures forever." who spread out the earth upon the waters, "His love endures forever." who made the great lights-- "His love endures forever." the sun to govern the day, "His love endures forever." the moon and stars to govern the night; "His love endures forever."  

    This Psalm was apparently written so that the leader would sing a line and then the audience would sing, "His love endures forever." It served to remind everyone that God loves us all the time without fail

Hebrews 13: 5 says, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." (The writer of Hebrews is quoting from Deuteronomy 31:6.) God will never leave us or forsake us. He will never fail us or let us down. He will never sleep on the job and allow something to happen to us without his permission. God never makes mistakes. He knows exactly what he's doing.
And God is a big God. It would be one thing if a small god was watching over us, but this is the creator of the whole universe watching over us, loving us, caring for us, hearing our cries, concerned about us.
Give thanks to God alone who has done great things. He is good now and forever. He spoke the universe into existence and did, frankly, an outstanding job. He understood how to put everything together so that it would work properly. He's the master of the laws of physics, chemistry, biology, plate tectonics, geology, zoology and every other ology we can think of. He is the master designer. Life on earth couldn't exist without the sun, everyone knows this, but it can't exist without the moon either. Scientists are just now coming to this understanding.
Yes, he is a big God. He is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, and amazingly, he loves us unconditionally now and forever. His love endures forever. Praise his name.

Your Body is a Temple

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV): Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
    Paul was talking specifically about sexual immorality in this passage, but it reminds us that our bodies are not our own – they belong to God. He purchased them with a high price. Since the Holy Spirit lives in our bodies once we become believers, we are obligated to take care of these bodies. Paul says our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit.
I want to share with you the journey I have been on with my temple.
I had always been fairly active. As a journalist and then youth minister, I never sat much. But then I got a desk job and sat all day. Worse, I enjoyed candy bars and sweet tea. I was a disaster waiting to happen. My doctor, Dr. Wayne Brown, spotted this. My blood sugar was high and my blood pressure was even higher.
I grew more and more tired and sluggish. I couldn't walk through the buildings I worked in without getting winded.
Then Dr. Brown told me I was diabetic. He put me on blood pressure medicine, which made me dizzy at times when I stood up. I knew I had to do something. God knew it too. He gave me a new job. Now, I'm on my feet all day. I lift computers and carry them here and there. I get in the floor and set them up. I'm much more active. Sometimes I complain about it, but it may have saved my life.
I also went to work on my diet. I cut out the sweet tea and candy bars and watch other sugar and carbs. I do give myself a treat of mini dark-chocolate bites, but in moderation. I only drink diet cola. Mostly, I drink water. I snack on raw almonds and unflavored pork rinds.
I had blood work done this week to see how I was doing. Dr. Brown called my wife and said my numbers were "wonderful". He told me to keep doing what I'm doing. My blood pressure is down, I can take a smaller dose of medicine, I've lost 16 pounds, and I'm no longer diabetic. The best part is I feel better than I have in a long time. I tell you this to encourage you to cut out the sugar, get active, and take care of your temple too. After all, the Holy Spirit needs a good place to call home.