Sunshine

On January 13, 2020   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 84: 11 – 12

For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. O LORD of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in You!

Let’s start off this week with some good news. Which sentence or phrase above holds the best news for you? It’s all good. May I share the God’s Word version with you as well, “The Lord God is a sun and shield. The Lord grants favor and honor. He does not hold back any blessing from those who live innocently. O Lord of Armies, blessed is the person who trusts you.” I hope just reading these words blesses you.

I was immediately captured by the declaration that he withholds no good blessing from us. Our Father is not stingy or recalcitrant. He wants to be a blessing to us and to give us good things. That is a comforting thought. All goodness is in Him and a part of Him and no part of Him does He withhold from us.

Knowing that God is good and has good to bestow upon us gives one a sense of peace. Meditating on our Lord being our sun and shield captivated me though. As I thought about the sun, I could almost feel what is like when it shines its beams on one’s face. Remember a spring or fall day when the air was crisp with the edge of coolness in it. How great were those days which were sunny? Despite the cool temperature, when you turn your face to the sun, the rays warm your face and that warmth seems to reach all the way to your soul. Recalling one of those days which I experienced recently, I remember how nice it felt and I remember the “Ahhh” which escaped my lips. It’s like being kissed by God. Don’t we automatically turn our faces toward those warming rays? The sun feels good on your back but if you watch people, they often turn their faces towards the sun and let it warm and soothe their faces. You can watch the stress disipate to be replaced by a visage of peace.

As I think of that picture and bask in my own memories of the glowing warmth, I think how wise we are if we turn our faces towards God and let Him shine upon us daily. Even when the sky is dark and foreboding, His light is a radiant face lift bringing peace and relaxation to our faces which then sinks down into our spirits. It is even more empowering when I think that even as we stand, eyes closed, face turned towards the light that He is also providing a shield. We needn’t be concerned about a foe who may attack while we are off guard because He is always “en garde.” He is our sun which relaxes us and our shield so that we may enjoy that peace.

Thanks to our Father, we need never have a day without sun. Metaphorically, everyone experiences gray days. Clouds fill the horizon and the overcast sky falls heavily upon your shoulders. But . . . if you will turn your face towards the sun, our God, in those gloomy times, He will shine on you the bright light of His love and peace. There is, therefore, no need for us to sag under the oppression of a dank fog, no need to for the withering depression of grey skies. Let your face seek the light and allow the warming rays to chase the clouds from your life.

The next time you feel the weight of a cloudy day, remember this psalm. Remember your sun and shield and that He, your sunshine, withholds no good thing from you.

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Glory to God

On December 18, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Luke 2: 14             1599 Geneva Bible

Glory be to God in the high heavens, and peace in earth, and toward men good will.

Before we jump into verse 14, let us recall what happened in verses one through thirteen. Shepherds were near the town of Bethlehem keeping the night watch over their flocks. An angel of the Lord appeared to them and the Sh’khinah glory of the Lord shone all about the angel and the shepherds. The angel’s purpose was to announce the birth of the Lord. Immediately upon telling the shepherds the good news of the Messianic coming, a multitude of heavenly beings appeared with the angel and began singing and praising God. Verse 14 is what they sang.

Glory be to God in the highest! So, the angels’ song first describes the condition in heaven since the Savior is born. This is the angels’ declaration of how things are now that the holy birth has occurred. In heaven, angels sing praises to God. Glory is to be shouted unto the Lord and praises lifted up into the highest reaches of heaven. It sounds lovely.

On earth, a different result was realized. The Lord, our God, sent the Prince of Peace to earth, to us. Therefore, peace had finally come to the earth. The Tree of Life Version rings with Jewish revelation, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth shalom to men of good will.” Shalom was sent to earth. Shalom is wholeness. It is perfect peace. It means that everything that was broken, is now repaired. Every shortage or lack has been filled. Nothing is missing, nothing broken. It does not mean “lack of wars” although that is what some people read into this verse. War is a man-made conflict. God sent His peace, His Shalom, but people do not have to receive it and they certainly do not have to reflect that love and acceptance to other humans. It does mean, though, that God has accepted us, that He loves us and that He has provided everything we need to heal, first, our own hearts, then our relationships, and even eventually our land. If we let God’s peace and love, which has been shed abroad in our hearts, multiply then there could be peace among men. Father God sent restoration, wholeness. The word Shalom brings to our understanding that in the baby’s birth God sent His peace to us on earth. He has given us the ability to be whole in every aspect of life and to be at peace in our hearts; no lack, no unrepaired emotions or bodies, just perfect, quiet completeness in all things.

The last phrase may be the greatest news of all for it tells us that the Messiah’s insertion into the earth carried with it God’s good will towards humanity. The Messiah came to restore us to God. We were estranged with no way to reach God and no way for God to live with us. We were separated, but He sent Jesus so that we could be restored to Him, so that He could have His kids back. The birth of the baby savior heralded God’s good will towards humanity. Because of Jesus, God was able to reunite with people. He was restored to us; His good will and good intentions having come to reside on the earth.

That is what the angelic host sang. Hallelujah in the heavens! All praise and Glory to the Great One. And, on earth – peace, Shalom, and God’s good will, love and good plans for all humanity.

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A Child is Born

On December 10, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Isaiah 9: 6

For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.

I find this a heart-warming passage as it brings to mind images of the baby Jesus and Christmas. It is also fascinating to me. In this one passage is so much explanation of the once foretold, now realized Messiah. Remembering that this is an Old Testament passage creates an understanding of pre-Christ expectations. Yet, I suspect most people who lived before Christ and even those who experienced Jesus didn’t fully appreciate what this passage reveals. I wonder how much I fail to see in it.

The book of Isaiah is my favorite Old Testament book and you can see why. The revelation God gave Isaiah of the Messiah was very detailed and complete. It was also imbued with the passion of Christ which, amazingly, Isaiah was able to transmit to us through his writing. We feel the enthusiasm of the coming Messiah even as Isaiah revealed that this Savior would come as a baby. That had to have rocked a few people off their feet. I am sure they were expecting a powerful, glorious being to descend from heaven to right all the wrongs and restore the nation of Israel. Instead, they got a baby, but hey, they shouldn’t have been so surprised. Isaiah told them a baby would be born and that this baby would be the son who is given to us from God; a gift of love.

People did grab a hold of the part about the government resting upon the savior’s shoulders but they didn’t understand. They thought he would come as a usurper, a military leader and that he would take over the government which ruled the nation of Israel. Of course, at the time of Jesus’ life on earth, Rome ruled over Israel. The Jews expected, therefore, a conquering hero. I don’t believe that is the vision Isaiah saw. The government spoke of was the government of the whole earth. This government truly is about the laws which govern the earth. Those laws go far beyond political institutions to include gravity, hydraulics, and all the physical laws as well as all of the spiritual laws, most of which we don’t even have names for. These spiritual laws are a bit reflected in the close of this verse where Jesus’ titles are given.

How is the babe, who is revealed as the son of God, also known as the Eternal Father? Spiritual conundrum # 1. He is the Mighty God and the Prince of Peace. How do those harmonize? In God’s kingdom, there is not tension between those two roles. Jesus is God the Father and the son, who is a prince. He is the God of might and yet the prince of peace. These two roles sound like they are in conflict, but it takes a God of gentle yet formidable power to bring about peace. His power is not a threat but rather a comfort. His power actually brings peace when we soak ourselves in it. It is His ability to cause all things to work together which ultimately eliminates conflict. There is no need to strive or try to best one another because in Him, all needs are met.

I hope you find comfort and peace in this passage today. Some prayers will make better sense now as you embrace God as Father and Son. In one breath, we speak to the Father, who is the son. The son has come. He was given to us; a child and a king. He is our Lord and yet our best friend, and even our father.

Let me leave you with one thing more to ponder, if Jesus is Father and Son, what does that make the Holy Spirit?

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Peace

On August 14, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

John 14: 27           TPT

“I leave the gift of peace with you – my peace. Not the kind of fragile peace given by the world, but my perfect peace. Don’t yield to fear or be troubled in your hearts – instead, be courageous!”

There is no version of this verse which is not excellent. I chose the Passion Translation because it makes clear that Jesus gave us the gift of peace, his own peace he gave to us. Not only is it superior to the peace the world has to offer, it is perfect. Imagine that – perfect peace. See yourself in perfect peace.

Now, if Jesus has given us this perfect peace why would we let anyone steal it from us. That is the point I want to make today. Don’t let anything or anyone steal your peace. It is Jesus’ gift to you.

I have known people who aren’t happy unless they are upset. I know that sounds like an oxymoron but you probably know someone like that too. No matter how things are in their lives, they find a reason to be upset – either angry, hurt, sad, etc. That’s craziness if you ask me. Why does anyone want to live that way?

Here is the reality. Being angry, worried, injured, offended; all these things steal our lives from us. Peace is where we find health and wholeness. Every minute we spend in turmoil is hazardous to our bodies. Why should we let some goofball steal minutes of life and health from us?

Sometimes you need to change your associations. I like my friends at the YMCA I attend because they are uplifting, positive people. They are intentional about edifying others, not tearing them down. So, it is a good group to be associated with. There are other people you can’t get away from easily, such as co-workers or family. You may sometimes need to, kindly, let people know what you will accept and what you will not. I don’t like to be a party to gossip. It is an insidious habit that can easily suck me in, so, I try to break off conversations that head in that direction and I will just tell the person I am with that I don’t like to get into that. It is a sin after all and one that I know would be all too easy for me.

The greatest tool for maintaining your peace, though, is the quiet time you share with Jesus. That time seems to reinforce the gift of peace he gave us. It is easy to get upset with someone but if you value Jesus’ peace it makes it much easier to hang on to it in the crunch. And remember, one of the reasons we should hang on to peace is for our health. None of us wants our heart affected by someone else’s junk invading our peace. There is no health issue that is desirous, yet so many of them begin in the stress that we allow other people to create in our emotions.

Make the peace of Jesus a sacred part of your soul. Be jealous of it and don’t let anyone steal it from you.

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Breathe, Meditate (Part 2)

On August 1, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Psalm 46: 10             TPT

Surrender your anxiety! Be silent and stop your striving and you will see that I am God.

Let’s continue our look at meditation today. I hope you have concluded that meditation is a vital part of the Christian walk. If you have not, then you might want to conduct a search on the word meditate. Secondly, I hope you have decided to make it part of your walk with Christ.

The first step in effective meditation comes from Psalm 46: 10. The NLT reads, “Be still, and know that I am God!” In order to know God, we must first find stillness in our being. For me that took two forms. First, I had to learn to relax my body. Ultimately that ended up being the easiest. However, Pat Richards from Impact Ministry brought up a good point yesterday. Although I was talking about a virtual cup of coffee in yesterday’s Word of the Day, she pointed out that drinking coffee before trying to meditate or during can sabotage your success because of the caffeine.

The second was learning how to get my mind to be still. This was a great deal more challenging for me. One of the techniques I learned from Dr. Jim Richards was to take all those ideas that were bombarding my mind and tie a balloon to them and release them. The first time I tried that it caused me increased stress because I didn’t want to lose those thoughts. So, I imagined God above me raking in each balloon I released. That worked for me. I also put a note pad and pen beside me when I was learning to quiet my mind. All those “to do’s” and ideas that came to me got written down on that pad so that my mind could relax.

We’ve talked about this stillness in relationship to worry this week. The God’s Word translation told us to let go of our concerns. Okay, what does that have to do with being still so we can know Yahweh as God? If you are worried and agitated, then your inner person is anything but still. You need to release those concerns to the Father so that your heart can be calm. You can receive God’s peace when you feel He has all your concerns in hand. Look at today’s version of this same scripture. It too is coaxing us into releasing all of our worries and concerns so that we can be silent and still and watch God show His divinity in our lives.

We spoke about breath this week too. I find that slow, deep breaths help both my physiology and my psychology. If you count as you breathe, maybe inhaling to a count of five and doing the same as you exhale, you will likely find that your body and your mind ease. Also, think thoughts like, “With every exhalation, I relax a bit more.” You can even breathe, exhale, relax your legs; breathe, exhale, relax your arms; and so on. Don’t forget to relax your face. You would be surprised how much tension you may hold in your face.

We are learning how to relax so we can learn to meditate but releasing the tension from your body and from your mind will improve your health and your mood too. God knew what He was doing when He told us to meditate. He was instructing us for our good.

Walk through these relaxation steps today. Find out how many breaths it takes you to calm yourself down on the inside and the outside. Within a short time, you will reduce that number significantly. After you have calmed yourself down, endeavor to hold onto that peace and have a good relaxed day, all day.

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Breathe, Meditate

On July 31, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Joshua 1: 8

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

This is one of those “stand out” verses in the Bible. Some Christian circles use it a lot while others don’t teach it quite as much. Even fewer teach what it means to meditate or how to do it. I am going to use it today as a practicum.

This week I have sent you two emails that encourage quiet, contemplative time with God. In other words, meditation. God told Joshua that this was the key to success. The problem is, most of us were not taught how to meditate. As for slowing ourselves down so that we can hear God’s voice, well, that’s just not a strength either, though that is what Psalm 46: 10, our verse from yesterday, directs us to do.

The Holy Spirit is the breath of God, so I find the easiest way for me to relax and quiet my inner self is to take a couple of slow, deep breaths. When you breathe deeply and slowly, you signal your body that you are safe. It does not have to keep itself primed for fight or flight. This is a super powerful tool! Breathe. Anytime you feel anxious, angry, worried or any other energy emotion, just breathe deeply and slowly. Focus on exhaling out every last bit of air in your lungs. This is actually healthy for your lungs too because many of us breathe in the middle volume of our lungs which means we never empty it of the stale, used up air. If you, at the same time, imagine yourself meeting the Father in a safe place of your own choice you will likely feel yourself connecting with Him.

Picture a place you like. For some people it is their own kitchen table with cups of coffee steaming nearby. Others like to walk on the beach, sit in the woods or wade in a creek. Better still, sit by a creek, in the woods, in the mountains with a cup of coffee and your Father. Now that sounds heavenly to me. Wherever you choose, make it a place of supreme safety and comfort. When you meet your Father in that place you will notice that many of the barriers which block good communication are automatically lowered. Don’t go to His throne room where He looms gloriously in His majesty because you may find it hard to approach Him. Go there when you want to see His glory and worship Him. Instead, sit down in your own living room with Him.

Now, here is another secret. Once you are connected with the Father, you don’t actually have to speak with Him. You can actually think of other things, do other things. See, the big objective is to live with Him day and night. Well, you certainly wouldn’t talk non-stop with a person you were with all of the time. Healthy relationships do not depend on non-stop chatter. Sometimes it is nice to just be with Yahweh in the quiet of your mind and soul. Having said that, still we need those very still, quiet times. Then they swell into the ever present “now” with the Father.

So for today we have learned two things to help us in our meditation or restated, our quiet time with the Lord. First, breathe. Second, visualize yourself in a tranquil, peaceful place with your Father at your side.

Tomorrow, we will explore a bit further into this idea of reflective time with the Lord.

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Peace

On July 11, 2019   /   Word of the Day   /   Leave a comment

Micah 5: 2, 5

But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. And this one will be our peace.

Here is a foretelling of the coming of Jesus. He was expected and the Jews were looking for Him. It is just like Father God to use some small town, one of insignificance to bring His son into the earth. From the small and weak He is able to do great and mighty things.

When God sent Jesus into the earth, He also sent our peace. In other words, He sent peace to us and for us. Just before Jesus left the earth, he told us that he was going to leave his peace here with us (John 14: 27). The Father and Jesus are always in unity. God promised to send Jesus into the world to be our peace and Jesus promised to leave his peace with us. It is a godly anointed peace which is with you at all times. He left it here for you so that you could live free of the turmoil of the world. Though you may encounter troubles you don’t have to be tortured by them because you have the peace of God.

This peace must be very important since both the Father and the son have worked to get it to you. Treasure it and don’t let go of it lightly. And don’t let anyone steal it from you; not your brother-in-law, not that jerk at work. Preserve peace; especially your own. It is a gift from God.

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