Don't Give It Up - Pour It Out

By definition, Lent  is "the 40 weekdays from Ash Wednesday (Feb. 22 this year) until Easter observed by Christians as a season of fasting and penitence in preparation for Easter."  Often people choose to "give up" something of significance or that would be a sacrifice for this period, in order to draw nearer to God.  So what are you setting aside for the next 40 days?  At the prodding of some of my co-workers, I have chosen to withdraw myself from the great southern thirst quencher, sweet tea!  For this I will surely need God's strength.

As His appointment with the death drew near, Christ made sure that His followers saw the cross as the focal point of His love. Scripture resounds with the reality of His sacrifice.  His love is almost always given in direct correlation to the cross.  Romans 5:8, Ephesians 5:2,  I John 3:16, Revelation 1:5 and many other references demonstrate that Jesus not only gave up His life, but He also poured out His love. Even from the cross His words overflowed with love.

Let's do the same for the next 40 days.  Since bragging about our lenten "sacrifice" is certainly inappropriate,  let us instead do all we can to pour out the love of God to everyone we meet. The handshake, smile, kind word or deed may be just the refreshment someone needs.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.    John 3:16

Lord, Help Me !!

The disciples of Jesus were eager to learn from Him.  In Luke 11:1 their request was "Lord, teach us to pray..."  They were aware of their weaknesses and they saw the results of the prayers of John's disciples.  When we call out to God for this kind of help, we must be prepared to receive from Him and be willing to use what we receive to benefit ourselves and others. There are several areas of help from God that we should consistently desire.

1.  Help me to be teachable  -  the disciples had a desire to learn and listened intently.

2.  Help me to be thoughtful  -  In Luke 10, Mary was putting first things first.  Martha was thinking only of herself.  Jesus approved of Mary's consideration of others, but not of the things that troubled Martha.

3.  Help me to be tactful  -  Proverbs 25:11 says "A word fitly spoken is like apple of gold in pictures of silver."  We should seek the wisdom to know when, how, and what to say, when to keep quiet and how to control the "tone" of our voices.

4.  Help me to be timely  -  Jesus called for a "daily" following in Luke 9:23.  We should learn to be available when needed, to have the right attitude and to do our very best as we serve others.

Lord, help me to work hard as your child to represent you when I am needed.  May I work diligently with other Christians to carry on the work of your Kingdom here on earth.  Amen.

The Big L

Candy and flowers, cards and kisses...yep, it's Valentine's Week. The men are on their best behavior and the ladies are anxiously waiting for that special night out. Or maybe you are shipping the kids away for an evening and spending some special quality time together at home with a nice candlelight supper and some soft music. No matter how we express it, this week is all about what McLean Stephenson on an episode of M.A.S.H. called "The Big L".

Who supplies our love?  I John 4:7-8 says the the source of love is God and that His entire being consists of love.  We cannot love others without God loving us, and God's love for us is displayed in our love for others.  Confusing?  Not really.  Just remember that the special love you feel for someone else is a result of the eternal make-up of God.  He loves you, you love Him, you love others, others love you.

Display your love for God, not with a card but with a life of praise.  Show you love for others, including that special someone, by allowing God's love to flow from you...kinda like a warm brownie covered with hot chocolate sauce over a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a cherry on top!  Ooooo!  Have a wonderful Valentine's week.

The God Blog!

Ever thought about blogging God?  It's more likely than you think.  Our problem is that the interaction is often one-sided.  We do all the blogging and never give God a chance to blog back.  He hears it all and we hear very little of the blessings, peace, mercy, love and forgiveness waiting on His side of the blog.

Okay...you get it by now.  "Our God blog" our prayer time.  So often our prayers consist of questions, complaints, requests, more questions...and very little "Be still and know that I am God." (Psalm 46:10).  God wants to speak to us and has so much to share.  But we often "hog the blog" with our self-serving desires so that He finds little opportunity to respond.  Remember, prayer, like blogging is a two-way conversation.  Give God a chance to speak...through His Word, through music, through meditation, through the words of caring friends.

 U may even begin to look 4ward to your daily interactions.

Hey, God...ILY!  Ttyl8ter!