Psalm 103 KJV

 Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:

Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;

Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;

Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.

The Lord executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.

He made known his ways unto Moses, his acts unto the children of Israel.

The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.

He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever.

He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.

As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him.

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What a magnificent and powerful bird! I have been most blessed to have lived where eagles fly quite regularly. I see them now and then in Florida as well. But, I see a whole lot more vultures here. They too are pretty magnificent when they are flying; not so awesome when you have to stop your vehicle because they are busing eating road kill in the middle of the road. Eagles usually have the good sense to fly away when a car approaches.

Whenever, I see a bald eagle flying or sitting in a tree watching me, my heart just leaps. These birds, our national birds, give me a sense of both peace and security. The sight of them refreshes me. They take my breath away if but for a moment. These beautiful creations of God are marvelous to behold.

To watch the majestic flight of the eagle is a reminder how magnificent and powerful God is. It is a reminder to me that in his infinite wisdom God is in charge of things. He made man to walk upon the earth, the fish to swim, and the eagle to fly. How wonderful is that? Who will not bow in humility when one realizes the power and authority that God has. All these things.... and so much more....

He blesses our souls, heals us, reconciles us to Him and to one another. He forgives us our iniquities, though we are far from worthy. He crowns us with loving kindness and tender mercies. All that is are His. We are His. That should bring a sense of peace and security to all people. It will, once we realize that He is God and there is no other.

"Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits." (vs 1,2)

May God refresh you today and every day!

God's Peace - Pr. J

No Discriminating For Any Reason

My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons.

For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment;

And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool:

Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?

Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?

But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? 

                                                                                  (James 2:1-6 KJV)

To show favoritism to one means to discriminate against another. James warns against showing favoritism. Sadly, we see this way too often. People are discriminated against for their race, their sex, age, where they work or if they don't, how they dress. The list goes on and on.

I admit that there have been times in the past when I have purposely dressed down just to see if security would follow me around in particular stores. They usually did. In fact, I have been followed around even when I thought I was clothed all right. Not sure why; but, every now and then someone thinks that I might look suspect. On the other hand, if I wear my clergy collar, I almost always get a lot of friendly greetings no matter where I am.

Years ago, when kayaking the shores of Lake Superior, I pulled up on the shore of a town that I had visited often in the past. They had known me as a pastor and had been very friendly toward me when they had welcomed me in that capacity. This time; however, they apparently did not recognize me. I had been on the water for about a month and was wearing an old pair of Marine fatigues over my swimsuit. My hair was a ratted mess hanging out from under a baseball cap (the ratted hair is actually normal for me). I looked pretty forlorn. I needed to use a phone as there was no cell connection. I was not welcomed well. It took forever to find a pay phone as no one apparently had a phone that I could use to let my family know where I was.

When encountering others, it would do us all well to heed the words written by St. James, "If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?" (vs 3-4 NIV)

None of us like to be discriminated against. "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets" (Matt 7:12 KJV)

"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen." (2 Cor 13:14 KJV)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Pray For Peace That We Might Live In Peace

Psalm 122

(NIV)

I rejoiced with those who said to me,

“Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

Our feet are standing

in your gates, Jerusalem.

Jerusalem is built like a city

that is closely compacted together.

That is where the tribes go up—

the tribes of the Lord—

to praise the name of the Lord

according to the statute given to Israel.

There stand the thrones for judgment,

the thrones of the house of David

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

“May those who love you be secure.

May there be peace within your walls

and security within your citadels.”

For the sake of my family and friends,

I will say, “Peace be within you.”

For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,

I will seek your prosperity.

For the sake of family, friends, community, world, the Church; let us pray for peace. Let us pray for peace that their might be rejoicing instead of sorrow. Let us pray for others to know peace that in their knowing and living in peace; we also will live in peace. Let us pray for peace that we might be reconciled to one another. Let us pray for peace so that together we might praise the name of the Lord!

Let us pray: May the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ( Philippians 4:7 NIV)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Where Does My Help Come From?

I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. Psalm 121:1-2

Today is one of those historical days that will not be forgotten. The tragedy of 9-11 shook this country. It was a day when many of us realized how vulnerable we actually are. There were changes in security protocol every where we went. Security was analyzed and assessed in all parts of our government. Those changes probably helped avert more attacks like this one. But, we must confess that no matter what we do, we cannot stop the evil that threatens. We can try and we must try because the evil one will keep on trying, as well. We must all be diligent and we must be able to trust our governing officials to also be diligent in their desire to safeguard the security of the people of this county. 

Even as we wondered how such a thing could happen; how no one in the government could foresee the events of that tragic day; many turned to the only One who can bring about real peace. Churches saw an increase in attendance following this horrific day as they recognized the need to trust God for help. He and only He can ultimately save us.

And.. then, with time, those visitors began to withdraw, once again, from worship. The reality is: we face evil every single day. Where will our help come from? It comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. Let us rejoice and give Him all honor and praise.

May our heavenly Father guide our leaders to put the interests and safety of all the people before their own interests and may all of the people of God put their trust in Him for He alone can save us.

God's Peace - Pr. J