His Thoughts Are Not Our Thoughts

Isaiah 55:8-9 KJV; His thoughts and ways are different than ours. We ought to seek his way. 

Mary And Martha

Reading from the Gospel of St. Luke 10:38-42 KJV Mary and Martha; practicing the presence of God with unceasing prayer no matter what you are doing.

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

Do What Is Right; Live In Peace

And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:

There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.

If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.

And when he was entered into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable.

And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him;

Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?

And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.

For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,

Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:

All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

                                                                                                                  (Mark 7:14-23 KJV)

These verses seem pretty cut and dried to me. It is not what you eat that defiles you although you absolutely should make sure that you're not eating something that will make you physically ill. It is who you have chosen to be that defiles you. What is in your heart manifests into what you think and say and do and that is what causes a person to be defiled; to be sinful causing harm to themselves and others.

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you. (Phil 4:8-9)

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Thoughts Of Peace For You

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. (Jer 29:11-13 KJV)

We want to be loved. We want a peaceful and good life. Unfortunately, there are way too many who do not get to experience the peaceful life. Many seek the good life in places that it cannot be found. Genuine peace; peace that encompasses us even in the times of trouble, is found only in one place. That place is in our Lord. 

The Lord who loves you has a plan for you. It is a plan of peace. No matter what assails you, know that God is with you and will remain with you. He longs for you to call upon Him for help in your time of need as well as in your times of plenty. Seek Him and you will know peace in the confidence that God will see you through these troubled times. Trust Him!

"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." (Rom 8:28)

God's Peace - Pr. J

The Servant Shall Be First

And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all. (Mark 9:35 KJV) 

If the first are going to end up last then why try so hard to put yourself above and before everyone else? So much of the word of God is contrary to how humans think. It all seems a bit backwards and upside down. And, it is! The thoughts and ways of humankind are not naturally the thoughts and ways of God. 

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord." (Isa 55:8)

After all; who would consider sacrificing their child so that others might live? But, God did. He first and only begotten Son humbled himself and became a servant to all. He put himself last so that we might live.

Those who lord it over others will in the end find themselves to be last and those who are willing to put the needs of others over their own desires will be first.

May God grant that we should all have heart like that of our servant and King, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

His Thoughts; His Ways

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

                                               Isaiah 55:8-9 KJV

It would be easy to give up and let the world have it's worldly way with you. But, the Word of the LORD reminds us to seek Him and His Way. God's ways are not our ways. His thoughts are not our thoughts. Following in the way our ego would have us go will only prove to be devastating to our lives and the world around us. And... it may also be a good thing to remember that no matter how bad things get, God is still in charge. He can turn the greatest tragedy into the most marvelous triumph. From the most troubled time, He will lead us out in joy and lead us forth in peace; the peace that only He can give.

Seek the LORD and come to the One who knows the way; who is The Way. 

God's Peace - Pr. J

A Good Plan

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. (Jer 29:11 KJV)

Life can be pretty rough. We all go through hard times. But, for some people it seems as though the rough times never end and nothing good will ever come to them. But, the Lord has better plans for you than you can even begin to imagine. It begins with His love for you. It continues with your faith that His promises are true.

Trust Him. Listen to Him. Follow in the way that He has shown you through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

His Thoughts; His Way

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. 

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. 

                                        (Isaiah 55:8-9 KJV) 

It would be easy to give up and let the world have it's way with you. But, the Word of the LORD reminds us to seek Him and His Way. God's ways are not our ways. His thoughts are not our thoughts. Following in the way our ego would have us go will only prove to be devastating to our lives and the world around us. 

And... it may also be a good thing to remember that no matter how bad things get, God is still in charge. He can turn the greatest tragedy into the most marvelous triumph. From the most troubled times, He will lead us out in joy and lead us forth in peace; the peace that only He can give. 

Seek the LORD and come to the One who knows the way; who is The Way. 

God's Peace - Pr. J

Unknown Sin

Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139:23-24 NRSV)

We confess our sins known and unknown at least every Sunday. Hopefully, as individuals, we recognize that it may be necessary more often than that.

It is pure vanity to say that we know and have confessed our sins when in reality Christians, like everyone, tend to get so caught up in the ways of the world that it is very likely that we do things every day that are not pleasing to God. We might not consider them sins because "everybody does it." But, does God consider them sins? How many things that we do out of habit actually turn us away from God? 

May God grant that our eyes be opened to see the things that we may be doing or saying that are leading us away from God instead of closer to him.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Seek The Lord

Seek the Lord while He may be found,

Call upon Him while He is near.
                             Isaiah 55:6 NKJV

It would be easy to give up and let the world have it's worldly way with you. But, the Word of the LORD reminds us to seek Him and His Way. God's ways are not our ways. His thoughts are not our thoughts.

We must trust in the good will of God our Father and the good works of our Lord Jesus Christ and not in our own power or strength. We must always remember that no matter how bad things get, God is still in charge. He can turn the greatest tragedy into the most marvelous triumph. From the most troubled time, He can lead us out in joy and lead us forth in peace; the peace that only He can give.

Seek the LORD and call upon Him.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Seek The Lord

Seek the Lord while he may be found,
    call upon him while he is near;

let the wicked forsake their way,
    and the unrighteous their thoughts;
let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them,
    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.

Isaiah 55:6-8

 

God's Peace be with you all. Pr. J

His Way Is The Right Way; Whether We Comprehend That Or Not

Street in front of our home after Hurricane Irma.

Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,
    and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge,
    or showed him the path of understanding?
                                 (Isaiah 40:13-15 NIV)

Who can comprehend anything that the Lord has done. The question is often asked why God would let bad things happen to good people. Maybe, the question should be why does God allow good things to happen to bad people. In truth, none of us are good. Without the righteousness of Christ to cover us we are all sinful beings and deserve nothing. But, because he loves us enough to make sure that his righteousness will cover us we love him and strive to love and care for our neighbors as even God loves them.

Hurricane Irma has come and gone. My household has been truly blessed. We lost power for only a very short time. Most of my neighbors still do not have power. We still do not have water due to the very high water in the creek. Spectrum has not yet fixed the television or the internet so I have not been able to write any blogs for quite a few days. But, yesterday my granddaughter was over to clean my house and she mentioned that she didn't think Verizon was giving out hotspots to hurricane victims like they did when Matthew was around last fall. After she had gone, with nothing better to do, I checked if just maybe Verizon had gifted us with hotspots. They have. So I am back to it on my computer this morning. "Thank you, Verizon!"

Thank you, Lord! We cannot fathom His ways; but, we can be confident that He is quite aware of everything that goes on in the world; both the good and the bad, and He is with us working things out for the good. We may not be able to comprehend or know it. But, we trust that this is true. 

It is most difficult to keep up with everything that goes on in the world; let alone what God has in store for us. We know that God's thoughts or ways really are not our ways. His path is not our path. Our path would lead us to destruction. His will lead us to eternal life. 

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.

                                          (Isaiah 55:8-9)

It will continue to be difficult (impossible) for us mere mortals to understand why God would allow bad things happen to good people until we can more fully grasp the idea that we are not such good people. 

May we be the righteousness of Christ cover us. May God help us to follow in the right path; in the path that Jesus has set before us: loving him and loving and serving our neighbors in time of need.

Gods Peace - Pr. J

His Way; His Thoughts

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."  Isaiah 55:8-9 NIV

It would be easy to give up and let the world have it's way with us. But, the Word of the LORD reminds us to seek Him and His Way. God's ways are not our ways. His thoughts are not our thoughts. Following in the way our ego would tell us go will only prove to be devastating to our lives and the world around us.  Our way would put ourselves before God. Our way would put ourselves before others. Our way would have us take advantage of others in order to gain what we want. That is not God's Way.

Our thoughts and our ways are not always what is best for us or anyone else. They often bring devastation to the world around us. But remember, that no matter how bad things may seem to get, God is still in charge. He can turn the greatest tragedy into the most marvelous triumph. From the most troubled time, He will lead us out in joy and lead us forth in peace, if only we would follow in His Way.

Seek the LORD and come to the One who knows the Way; to the One who is The Way. 

God's Peace - Pr. J