Life Isn't Always Fair!

Isaiah 60:1-2 KJV; Life doesn't seem to always be fair. But, that doesn't mean we should sink deeper into the darkness. Life live in the light of Christ!

Live Life In The Light Of Christ!

Eph 5:14-21; Be wise and live life in the light; discerning what is good and evil according to the will of God.

Wait, Watch, and Pray

Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

For the Son of Man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.

Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch. 

                                                                     (Mark 13:33-37 KJV)

Today is the observance of Christ the King. The gospel according to Mark is a reminder that he will come again. This time not as a humble man; a man without even a home of his own, who is willing to sacrifice his all for us.  This time he will come as King of Kings will all authority and power. 

Next Sunday is the beginning of Advent. It is a season that we are also encouraged to watch and wait. It is reminisce of the years that God's people waited for their savior. We wait not only for the day of the celebration of his birth; but, are encouraged to pray, to wait, to watch for the day when he will come again in full glory.  We are encouraged to be prepared for that day.

Christ has come. Christ is here. Christ will come again. Pray that he not find us sleeping. 

Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. (Eph 5:14)

  

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Love Them And Show The Children The Way

"Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.." (Psalm 127:3 KJV)

For a few of generations now, I have witnessed children being neglected. Sure, most, but not all, have adequate food, shelter, clothing, etc.. Most of the children are physically provided for. But, not all of them. 

This morning, the neglect that I'm thinking of isn't due to lack of caring for physical needs. The neglect that I'm thinking of is when love is withheld. This neglect happens when these precious gifts from God are ignored by their parents. Some are even left to raise their parents because their parents put themselves before all others. They put themselves before God. They put themselves before their children. Sometimes, they have a lot of fun with their children. They horse around and play with them because that makes the parents feel good for the moment and then they are off to do their own thing.

There are some who say that many children raising children. Sadly, in many cases it has gone beyond that. The children are raising their parents and the children are not equipped. I am not saying that the whole world or all parents are being raised by their children. But, way too many are. It really is up to the parent to raise up a child in the way that they should go. It is not up to the child to take care of the parents' needs and desires.

"Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." (Eph 5:14)

Wake up, as they say, and smell the roses. Your children are a gift from God. Care for them, guide them, teach them, love them as God loves you. Love your children even as they love you.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Rise! Walk In The Light!

For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)

Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.

And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.

But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.

Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,

Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. (Eph 5:8-17 KJV)

The days can be both evil and very short. There really is no time to throw away. Every single minute is of value. Once it is gone it is gone for good. You cannot get that moment back. You do not get a retake so make the best of every moment. Live life and live it in Christ where the light shines on all things. 

Rise dear sleeper from the dead! Walk as a child of the light understanding the will of the Lord and then do the best you can to keep from turning away from his good will. Turn to him. Turn to the light and you will see the way out of the darkness that sinful desires would trap us in. 

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Get Up and Go Share The Light Of Christ

And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet,

And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.

And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.

While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue's house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further?

As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.

And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James.

"And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly.

And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.

And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying.

And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.

And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment."

                                                                                          (Mark 5:22-24, 35-42 KJV)

Arise!  The ruler's daughter was ill even to the point of death. Everyone around her thought she was dead. But, then Jesus took her by the hand and bid her to rise. Immediately, she rose and she walked.

Are you dead? Are you sleeping? Is your bed or your couch where you spend your days? Are you not fruitful that the Lord that the glory of the Lord might be seen by others?  Rise and go forth sharing the Good News of the Kingdom of God for all people through Jesus Christ.

"Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee." (Isaiah 60:1-2)

The light, who is Jesus the Christ, has come to all people. But, not everyone sees it.

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." (Matt 5:16)

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Life Isn't Always Fair; Do Not Despair

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.

For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 

                                (Isa 60:1-2 KJV)

Life is just not fair. After all; was it fair that Jesus would have to be tortured and die for our sins?

Life isn't always fair. Yet, those who live in the light of the Lord have hope because they know that the darkness has been overcome.

Do not despair. The light who is Jesus the Christ has come into the world. Rise up and live life in the light of Christ!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Dry Bones Wake Up!

The hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.

                                                                                       (Ezek 37:1-10 KJV)

Live life! 

Are you going through life like you have no life? Are you walking around like the walking dead; putting one foot in front of the other simply because you must?

Christ came that we might have life and have it abundantly. God's will is not for us to go around walking as though we are dead. We are to live in the light of Christ so that we might have life. By the very breath of God we have been given life. 

Hear the word of the Lord. Listen to him! 

"Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." (Eph 5:14)

It is time to wake up and rise from the dead! Be filled with the Spirit of Christ! Rise up and live life!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Spending Time With The Light!

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. (Isaiah 60:1 KJV)

Since retirement, I have not found a lot of reasons to encourage me to get up and out of bed early in the morning. I do, though. I don't want to fall into the habit of sleeping my days away.

Depression can lead to a lot of excess sleeping and sleeping our days away can lead to depression as when we spend all of our time sleeping we do not get to live life. We do not get to enjoy life. And, life is for living! Sleep is for resting and rejuvenating our bodies and minds so that we can get up and live the next day.

Over time, I have developed and committed myself to some coping skills that help me to get up without regrets and to live a bit. I rise early before my husband is up so I can spend some quiet time with the Lord; for devotions and to write this daily blog. I began writing this daily blog, at least in part, to discipline myself to get up and spend time in the word and with the Word before the world comes crashing in. I usually wake up before the alarm goes off. But, there have been more than a few times when the alarm has gone off, that I've thought that maybe I should skip my morning routine and go back to sleep. 

Lately, though I have been waking up with a smile. I realized that the blasting of the alarm clock is like a mother or grandmother hollering at a teenager to get out of bed. So, I found an alarm on my phone that sounds like a wind-chime. Wind-chimes, of course, remind me of the wind. The wind reminds me of the Holy Spirit. When I wake up now to the sound of wind-chimes, I wake up smiling ready to face the day and live life, knowing that the light, who is Jesus the Christ, is with me in that moment. 

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. (Isa 60:1)

What better way is there to start the day than to spend some intentional time with the light, who is our Lord, Jesus the Christ!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Get Up! Live Life!

"Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee."  (Isaiah 60:1 KJV)

There are some days when the day is over and I feel as though nothing was accomplished; like an entire day has been wasted. I may be up and about; but, I feel like I may as well have been sleeping the day away. This doing nothing is a bad habit to get in to. Before we know it our days on earth will have come to an end and we will have spent them as though we were asleep.

Get up! Live life! Let the light of Christ shine on, in, and through you. Live the fleeting moments that God has given us here on earth. He gave them for a purpose and living in the darkness was not it.

Have a blessed day!

God's Peace - Pr. J

He is Risen! Have you?

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” Matthew 28:5-7 NIV

Hallelujah! He is risen! What good news for us this morning and every morning. Jesus lives! I can hardly imagine what joy the women at the tomb felt to hear that Jesus had risen from the dead. 

Jesus has risen from the dead! Have we? Jesus has told his followers before his death:  Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. (John 14:19) Because he lives so shall we. Well, the new life, that resurrected life does not begin only after we die physical deaths. Because he lives we can live fuller lives today in him. But, alas, so often we choose to live in darkness rather than the light of Christ. So often we seek the passing pleasures of this world rather than the most awesome life lived in the presence of Almighty God now and forever. Forever does not begin after death. Forever includes today. Because Jesus lives so shall all who believe in him!

Now, is the time. Today is the day. He is risen. It is time.

  “Arise, shine, for your light has come,

  and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
  See, darkness covers the earth

  and thick darkness is over the peoples,
  but the Lord rises upon you

  and his glory appears over you." 
                                         (Isaiah 60:1-2)

He Is Risen! Because he lives so shall we. Arise and shine!

God's Peace - Pr. J 

Arise and Shine!

"Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you."

Isaiah 60:1

There are some days when the day is over and I feel as though nothing was accomplished; like an entire day has been wasted. I may be up and about; but, I feel like I may as well have been sleeping the day away. This not doing much is a bad habit to get in to. Before we know it our days on earth will have come to an end and we will have spent them as though we were asleep.

Get up! Live life! Let the light of Christ shine on, in, and through you. Live the fleeting moments that God has given us here on earth. He gave them for a purpose and living in the darkness was not it.

Have a blessed day!

God's Peace - Pr. J

The Light Has Come!

“Arise, shine, for your light has come,    and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
See, darkness covers the earth
    and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
    and his glory appears over you."
                               (Isaiah 60:1-3 NIV)

Well... last I looked the sky is not falling. The sun shines most of the time; at least it does here in Florida. Yet, doom and gloom abound. Yes, I agree. The world is not a perfect place. We are a part of that darkness. Sometimes we might even be responsible for inviting the darkness into our lives as we bury ourselves in the ways of this world. There are a lot of evils that must be combatted. Darkness does cover the earth. But, it doesn't have to cover you. 

It is time to shed the darkness that covers the hearts and minds sending God's beloved one's spiraling into depths of depression and despair.. Life here on earth is way too short to spend it in darkness waiting for the light to come. The light has come! Open your eyes to see it. Open your heart to receive him! Live life in the light! Live life in the presence of Christ!

Today is the day to arise and shine. Move forward with the life that God has given you here on earth. Arise and shine for the glory of the Lord shines over you and for you. Imagine, for a moment, what it would be like if the world or at least the people around you would live in the light of Christ. How would it change them? How would it change you? The world could use the light of Christ. Step out of the darkness and let the light of Christ shine through you.

May the light of Christ shine upon and through you that others might see the glory of God!

God's Peace - Pr. J

The Word Is The Light To Guide Our Way

"Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." Psalm 119:105  NIV

I often hear that the Bible doesn't answer all of our questions. Well, maybe it doesn't tell us how to dress for the next party. Then again, maybe again it does. "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight." (1 Pet 3:3-4)

God's word, as found in the Holy Scriptures, doesn't tell us when to go to sleep or when to wake up. But, then again, maybe it does. "How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep?" (Prov 6:9) Scripture warns us that nothing good will come to those who spend their lives resting. At times, depression will come over most people and they will find themselves hiding out under the covers in even more darkness. This does not help depression. It does not help our lot in life to retreat even further into the darkness. Scripture reminds us: “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you." (Isa 60:1) 

St. Paul wrote to the Ephesians (5:13-15)

"But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. This is why it is said:

“Wake up, sleeper,
    rise from the dead,
    and Christ will shine on you.”

Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise

The word found in the Holy Scriptures can indeed be a guide for us on how we are to live. The word points us to the Living Word, who is Jesus the Christ. In him we have real life. In him is the one true light.

Read and hear and study the word so that your life might be illuminated by the Word, the true light that in came into the world as John the Baptist foretold. He will guide you through this dark world in The Way that you should go.

Send us your light, dear Lord, and your faithful care, let them lead us; let them bring us to your holy mountain, to the place where you dwell.  (Psalm 43:3)

God's Peace - Pr. J

The Light Has Dawned

My son's family at sunrise on Flagler Beach, FL

"Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,
    the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan,
    Galilee of the Gentiles—

the people living in darkness
    have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death
    a light has dawned."

 Matt 4:15-16

What better way to start a new day than by celebrating the light of the sun as it comes up over the horizon? Maybe, to celebrate the light of Christ that has dawned upon the whole world?

All around us is darkness. Step out and into the light! "Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you." Isaiah 60:1

Have a blessed day.

God's Peace - Pr. J