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About Jill Richard

My name is Jill Richard. I'm a life long Christian. Trying to live my life for my Lord everyday. I've been working in internet marketing since 2003. I want people to look at me and think - What an amazing God she believes in! I want all of my actions to point back to my Lord. They don't always, and for that I am grateful for the Grace of my Lord Jesus Christ.

My God is…Hated John 15:18-27

20 Sep

John 15:18-27 – 

 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. Whoever hates me hates my Father also. If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin, but now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. But the word that is written in their Law must be fulfilled: ‘They hated me without a cause.’

“But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning.

If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you.

Have you ever felt hated? I would guess that most of us have at one point or another felt hated. Most of us have had someone treat us so badly that we cried. They may have even beaten us, swore at us and ruined our self-esteem. Have you ever been hated for your faith? Have you ever had anyone dislike you because of your beliefs. To be honest, I haven’t felt that much. I have mostly surrounded myself with other Christians, not even necessarily by choice, but because of circumstances, my free time has mostly been used up at the church. My family is made up mostly of believers, or at least they’re closely related to believers, so they seem to have a higher tolerance then the rest of the world.

Is this supposed to be comforting?

I have spent most of my life trying to get people to like me. I try to get along with pretty much everyone I meet, and I would even go so far as to say I’m quite tolerant. I don’t want people to hate me. I want people to like me. Jesus saying, “know that it has hated me before it hated you.” doesn’t bring me that much comfort. To be honest, it would be a lot easier for me if people liked Him more too. I don’t want to have debates with people about their faith. I want to be able to enjoy who they are as a person. I want to have them be able to not be offended by my God so we can all “get along”. I wish my beliefs were not offensive, but they are offensive.

If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own

So here’s my dilemma – I want to be liked, but if I’m being liked by everyone, does that mean I haven’t been stating my faith clearly enough? Do I have to be confrontational to be clearly Christian? Do I have to make people uncomfortable? I don’t want to. I want to get a long with everyone. I want to be diplomatic and non controversial. I want people to like me. It is more important to me to be true to my Lord. I want to be able to be bold for my faith. I know that’s not going to make some people happy, but I do want to be able to stand up for what I believe.

But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you

That’s it then, I’m hated. The world hates me. They can’t tolerate my beliefs. They can’t tolerate that I want to serve a Lord who doesn’t let those who don’t believe in Him into heaven. People want to say that God excludes people, but He doesn’t He loves each of us the same. No matter what our background, sin of choice or eye color, Jesus loves them. He laid down His life for everyone. Christianity is actually the most inclusive faith around. Jesus says if you believe in Him you will be saved. That’s it. He sends His Holy Spirit to work faith in our hearts, and if we don’t turn away from Him, denouncing Him, but instead believe what He says is true, you will have eternal life. The world still doesn’t want to hear that God is tolerant. They don’t want to change how they’re living, and when you start to believe in the Lord, He changes your heart. Not always in drastic ways, but change is usually uncomfortable. People don’t like it. They want to continue on the way they have always been with their focus on their own wants, not on what God wants for them. So instead of giving into the change and having the Lord work in their hearts, they reject Him and tell lies about Him.

But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me.

So as Christians we’re bound to have haters, or at least those who, like me avoid the subject. Sometimes it will be your extended family who will not be open to the changes that are happening in your life. They may not be able to accept your new-found faith. Your life may now make them uncomfortable as they feel the need to make a stand of disbelief. I think most people avoid talking about their spiritual beliefs, because they don’t want to look silly, because they feel they don’t know how to defend their faith, and because others feel conflicted and defensive when the topic arises. People will argue with you, people will want to change your mind and yes people might hate you, but we Christians are not of this world. Heaven is our home. We need to be able to defend our faith and stand up for what we believe. I don’t like that much. I want life to be easy, and I want everyone to like me. But it is more important to me that I stay true to my Lord than have friends here on earth.

Are you hated?

 

 
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Posted by on September 20, 2012 in John, My God is Hated

 

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My God is…Calming Matthew 8:25-27

18 Sep

Matthew 8:25-27 And they went and woke him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.”  And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.  And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”

Save us Lord; we are perishing

Everybody dies. It’s a concept most people on this earth agree on. It’s what happens after death that gets people pretty wound up. Of course when the disciples said this, it wasn’t their time to die, and Jesus was with them, but they didn’t have faith that he would take care of it. They were freaking out. Some of us might say “I’m gonna die” or “I thought I was gonna die”, but no matter how you say or think it, most of us at times have had little faith. We’ve relied on ourselves or other people to handle the stuff that seemed out of our control. We freak out. Some of us hold on tighter and try to fix it ourselves without ever asking for help. Others of us don’t trust in the gifts God has given us to handle the situation and abandon ship before there is even really a problem.

Then he rebuked the winds and the sea

Sometimes things do go wrong around us. Things we really have no control over. But we can rest assured that Jesus has got our back and can change things on a dime. He can change things in ways we didn’t even think could happen. Do you see how the disciples react to the way Jesus changed things? They were shocked. They said, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?” They just didn’t get it, and they were among the one’s who got it best. So even if we normally have strong faith, sometimes the devil finds just the right thing to push our buttons and make us freak out. He knows just what we’ll be irrational about, which things will make us panic, and he hopes he can make us not trust God. And then he’ll do it again, because the devils not satisfied with us being “of little faith”. The devil wants us to be of no faith. We have to ask the Lord to help us not to give in to the temptation to freak out and not trust in the Lord.

And there was a great calm

It’s as if Jesus woke up and said, “I got this”. He just came up and showed us all who He is and what He has power over. He has power over everything, even nature. I should have remembered all of this last night at three when I was freaking out. Over the past few days, I have gotten strange bug bites. Most of them different from each other, but at 3am, I felt like bugs were crawling up and down my legs (not unusual with MS), but with all of my recent bug bites, it made me freak out. My husband and I just spent a weekend in Idaho for his niece’s wedding (which was amazing), and he’s staying behind to visit for a few more days. In my freak out state, I called my father, convincing him my bites were so dire I needed to go to the Doctor. I sent a text to my husband at what was 5:50 his time, then one at 7 am his time to talk him into my panic. He wasn’t having any of it. He talked me down from the cliff. He said I had some bites from being at the farm where the wedding was held, to calm down and go back to sleep. There was nothing to be worried about.

So I just woke up from a two-hour nap of blissful sleep after a complete freak out. And there was nothing actually wrong. This is a small version, some of us have even bigger freak outs about real problems (not imagined like mine). But in each freak out we need to look at reality and who is really in control. Is God telling you “I got this” while you continue to freak out running around the boat trying to wake someone up to help you?

Are you freaking out?

 
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Posted by on September 18, 2012 in Matthew, My God is Calming

 

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My God is…the Truth John 14:6

13 Sep

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Are you Askew?

Are you truthful? 

When we’re being truthful, we don’t use any falsehoods. I’m pretty sure I can hardly tell the truth. I know that’s shocking to my friends and family who probably consider me pretty honest, and by most measurements, that’s probably correct. But Truth is so much more than just being correct. It’s being the only way. The actual way. The perfect way. When I speak about myself, my family or others, everything I say is tainted by my own experience. Earlier in my life I thought that my mom considered my sister smarter than me. Now I know I’m smarter. (Hee Hee – couldn’t help it). Actually the truth lies somewhere in between. My sister and I are both smart, and sometimes we’re both not so smart (Sorry Gail).

The truth lies somewhere in between

For most of us our perception of life is tainted by our perspective. We think one thing, while someone else thinks something completely different, but we both think we’re telling the truth. You see it a lot during election time. People say things they’ve heard and swear it is the truth, but in all honesty the facts aren’t always so clear.

Witnesses sometimes disagree

Maybe you have been to a retreat, class or a camp where they have done an activity to show the reality of truth. They’ll stage a robbery in front of you, and have you write down what you saw. They may ask you to put down as much detail as possible. When all of the “witness” statements are collected, you’ll find all sorts of inconsistencies. Was he wearing shoes? What color was his shirt? How tall was he? Oh, wait…he is a she? She was wearing flip-flops? I thought she was barefoot. She had on a tank top? I thought she was wearing a t-shirt. Sometimes when we’re excited or something unexpected happens, we can get our facts turned around. But when they bring the “perpetrator” back into the room we can see the truth.

Christian witnesses sometimes disagree

Sometimes we hear and see things from Christians that make us wonder about what they believe. Sometimes they even do evil in the name of the Lord. But we don’t worship Christians, we worship Christ. He is our truth even when Christians get it wrong. We don’t live our life by what Christians say, but what our Lord says to us through His Word, Jesus Christ.

We can see the Truth

Jesus is the Truth. When we see Him represented in scripture, we see the Truth about our Lord. We see what He wants from us and for us. He has given us a perfect example of how to live, serve the Father in heaven and each other.

When builders build, they work hard to make sure the lines of the building are true. That they are not askew. That they will stand up straight, not falter and be strong. Our God is true. He is the line against which all of the other pieces of our lives must line up. If we do not align our lives with our God who is true, we will find ourselves askew. And anyone who has built something knows if you don’t start in line and true, you will be all out of whack when you get further on.

Being Rebuilt

Sometimes we do get askew. We lose our focus and start to take our eyes off of what is True. We take our focus off our Lord, and our priorities get rearranged. We get confused, distracted and manipulated by things that want to draw us away from Christian living. We think about our want for fun, money, sex, pleasure and lose sight of the only true way to have satisfaction forever. We must believe in God and trust in the Truth so that we might live forever with Him in paradise. John 14 is an amazing book of comfort. Reading it you’ll find a lot of amazing promises from our Lord. Truths that you can count on. Truths that come from the Truth – Jesus Christ. Lets start rebuilding our lives based on the Truth, so our lives may not go askew.

Is your life built on Truth?

 
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Posted by on September 13, 2012 in John, My God is the Truth

 

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My God is…Renewing a Right Spirit Within Me Psalm 51:9-11

11 Sep

Psalm 51:9-11 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart O God

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

Renew a Right Spirit within me

My church often used this verse as an Offertory hymn. After 40 years of attending church, I can hardly read this verse without hearing that music. I’m humming it right now.

Definition of RENEW

1: to make like new : restore to freshness, vigor, or perfection<as we renew our strength in sleep>
2: to make new spiritually : regenerate
3a : to restore to existence : revive
 b : to make extensive changes in : rebuild
4: to do again : repeat
5: to begin again : resume
6: replace, replenish <renew water in a tank>
7a :
<renew a license>
 b : to grant or obtain an extension on the loan of <renew a library book>
Why do we need God to Renew a Right Spirit within us? 
There are a lot of opinions on what was meant when these words were written. The Psalmist asked for God to create in him a clean heart and to renew a right spirit within him. This is my prayer as well. We don’t need God to create a new heart from scratch, we already have a heart, but I think what the Psalmist is trying to say here is that we can’t make our heart clean apart from God. Creating is an action that only God can do. He is the only one who can truly make something out of nothing.
Renewal
Looking at the definitions of renew above, I am again blessed at the depth of the words chosen in scripture.
  • I want God to make me like new : restore me to freshness, vigor, or perfection
  • I want God to make me new spiritually
  • I want God to restore me to existence
  • I want God to make extensive changes in me
  • I want God to do again or begin again a good work in me
  • I want God to replenish a steadfast spirit within me

Unforgivable

There are many times in my life where I have felt very separated from God. Where I felt there was no coming back from the sins that I had committed. I felt that no matter how much God loved and forgave others, I could not imagine how He might begin to get past the evil I had committed. I had turned from what I knew was right. I recklessly abandoned my beliefs to satisfy my own desires. I was selfish and self-seeking. Sure I hadn’t done what some of those in jail had done, but I felt that those who came to know Christ after sin were more likely to be forgiven. I had known Him since childhood. I knew what I was supposed to do. I knew that the things I chose were contrary to how my Lord wanted me to live, but I did it anyway. I couldn’t forgive myself, and couldn’t see how God could either.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me

This section of scripture really puts into words what I was feeling. Lord, fix my heart. I am doing what I don’t want to do and not doing what I do want to do. Lord I need a clean heart, a fresh start. I need to be renewed, and only You can make that happen. I want to be right with you again. I want to be able to make decisions that are pleasing to you and help me to spread your word. I don’t want people to look at me and think, that’s why I hate Christians, they’re all hypocrites. I want my actions to match my beliefs. I want to live my life for you, Lord.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.

The verse right after our reading above, Psalm 51:12 “Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.”  brings me hope. Those years when I felt I could never be forgiven for the things that I had done, left me craving the joy of God’s salvation. I didn’t feel like I could hold myself up anymore, and became dependent on my Lord for my joy. He upholds me and He strengthens me. I know now that I am forgiven, not because of anything I have done, but because of His love for me, in sending Jesus Christ to die for my sins. He restored my soul. He renewed a right spirit within me and now I am being equipped to do what the following verse in scripture says, “Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness. O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.”

 

 
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Posted by on September 11, 2012 in My God is My Restorer, My God is Renewing, Psalm

 

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My God is…the Cornerstone Ephesians 2:19-22

06 Sep

Ephesians 2:19-22 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saintsChrist is the Cornerstone and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

The cornerstone determines how the building will be built.

It was the tradition during Bible times, that a cornerstone would be laid when construction began to help give the building stability. The shape and makeup of the cornerstone would determine how the building would turn out. So naturally the builders would try to find a cornerstone that was straight, solid and could take the pressure.

All of the other stones lean on the cornerstone

All of the other stones lean on the main cornerstone as support. If that cornerstone isn’t strong and resistant to the pressure, the building likely won’t stand for long.

Jesus is our cornerstone

Jesus is what we lean on. He is our strength and our foundation. We need to rely on Him for our salvation. We need to lean on Him for our strength. He takes the pressure for us and helps us to build on what the believers before us have built on Him. Our faith is strong only when it relies on the Lord. He is sound. He is unmovable. He is reliable. He is Strong. So when we’re not, we don’t fall apart. He supports us. He holds us up. He strengthens us so we too can take the pressure.

In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

As a church, when we lean on the cornerstone, Christ, we grow together in our faith and are continually filled with the presence of the Holy Spirit. We must lean on Him, our cornerstone, and encourage those in our church, our families and our workplace to lean on Him too. Sometimes we’re able to do that by letting them lean on us. We know our strength doesn’t come from ourselves. We have a strong cornerstone that keeps us upright and pointed in the right direction, Jesus Christ.

What are you building your life on?

 
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Posted by on September 6, 2012 in Ephesians, My God is The Cornerstone

 

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My God is Gracious and Merciful Psalm 86:15

04 Sep

Psalm 86:15 – But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.

What’s the difference? 

God is gracious and merciful. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I use these terms interchangeably. I don’t know if I even usually think about the difference between them. I was thinking, if there wasn’t a difference, why would the Psalmist use both words? To be poetic? Possibly, but I think the words were chosen more deliberately.

Merciful – Full of Mercy

So what does mercy mean?

mer·cy

1. compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or other person in one’s power;compassion, pity, or benevolence: Have mercy on the poor sinner.

2. the disposition to be compassionate or forbearing: an adversary wholly without mercy.

3. the discretionary power of a judge to pardon someone or to mitigate punishment, especially to send to prison rather than invoke the death penalty.
4. an act of kindness, compassion, or favor: She has performed countless small mercies for her friends and neighbors.
5. something that gives evidence of divine favor; blessing: It was just a mercy we had our seat belts on when it happened.
God is Merciful 
Again, I love the study of words. It is amazing how full the word mercy is when you look at all its meanings. Having a merciful God means that he has compassion on me. He is compassionate without me deserving it. I may deserve death, but God is merciful to me and changes my sentence from death to life with Him in heaven. He performed His biggest act of mercy or compassion on me when He saved me from my sins by sending His son Jesus to die for me. I deserved to go to hell, because of my sins that turned me away from Him, but instead he was merciful and provided me a way out so that I might not end up in hell, but in heaven with Him.
God is Gracious
So we know that gracious and merciful often go together, so what can be added by including gracious to the list of who God is? Well let’s see if the definition of gracious helps us figure that out at all.
gra·cious 

1. Characterized by kindness and warm courtesy.
2. Characterized by tact and propriety: responded to the insult with gracious humor.
3. Of a merciful or compassionate nature.
4. Condescendingly courteous; indulgent.
5. Characterized by charm or beauty; graceful.
6. Characterized by elegance and good taste: gracious living.
7. Archaic Enjoying favor or grace; acceptable or pleasing.
We see by the third definition that, yes, grace is closely related to mercy. Grace is to have that merciful nature, or should I say you can’t be gracious without having a merciful nature. I like the first definition of God being described as having kindness and a warm courtesy. Today I’m going to see my Great Aunt and Uncle. They have that gift. That kindness and warm courtesy. Maybe you know someone who has that too. How does it feel to enter their home. Are you uncomfortable? NO! They make you feel good and welcomed. God wants that for us as well. He’s not trying to make us feel bad, but instead he wants us to shed our old ways so we can have nothing standing in our own way from enjoying Him to the fullest.
It’s funny, while the other definitions may not seem like they are directly related to who God is, they too make a fuller, richer picture of what it means to be gracious, and all of those things are true about our Lord.
Merciful and Gracious
God is not only going to give us another chance at life, but He’s going to be gracious in the way He does it. Because of His mercy we are able to enjoy His favor and grace as He makes us acceptable and pleasing to Him. May we grow in grace and mercy for those around us as a reflection of the grace and mercy we have received.
 
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Posted by on September 4, 2012 in My God is Compassionate, My God is Gracious, My God is Merciful, Psalm

 

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My God is…Glorified Psalm 86:11-13

30 Aug

Psalm 86:11-13 Teach me your way, O Lord,
that I may walk in your truth;
unite my heart to fear your name.
I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart,
and I will glorify your name forever.
For great is your steadfast love toward me;
you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

I will glorify your name forever.

My women’s Bible Study is currently studying John (yes still). The study is amazing and takes a nice walk through John, looking at each verse. It’s taking a while to get through it, but every Tuesday I’m awed by how each lesson builds on the last. One of the things that stood out to me this week was actually what was taught the week before (perhaps I’m a slow learner). The woman leading this video series (Karen Lippert) said that there were only two reasons someone goes through a trial. Can you guess what they are?

To strengthen our faith

The first reason she gave for us going through trials is that when we get to the other side, our faith can be strengthened. How often has it happened that the worst time in our lives actually lead to some of the best times. Even if we can’t point to a good time that resulted, we can see how that time in pain and struggle helped shape us into who we are and that we grew from that experience. I think this is the answer most Christians would probably point to if they were trying to encourage fellow believers going through a trial. My friend in Bible study likes to say, “Got to go through the trial to see the triumph” (probably not an exact quote – but you get the gist).

To Bring Glory to God

The other reason Karen gave was that those trials would in some way bring glory to God. And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. Luke 18:43 Throughout the Bible you’ll find a lot of examples of how this works. The Lord does something and the people glorify Him. The things the Lord does are always intended to draw someone closer to Him. Sometimes it’s the people He healed, but sometimes it was someone in the crowd. The way we react to hardships, to disease, to frustration, these are the biggest opportunities for us to glorify God.

You’ve seen it happen. Almost all of us have been amazed by someone’s great attitude during a fight with cancer, the death of a loved one or the pain of divorce. Every struggle and pain we endure is an opportunity to bring Glory to God. I don’t know about you, but this wasn’t something that really registered to me as a reason I might be put through a trial. I think I knew I might have the opportunity to witness through a trial, but I don’t think I thought about it being the cause of the trial. I think that helps me to look at each trial as an opportunity rather than a burden. A chance to show in a clear way where I’m putting my faith. Let’s see if I can actually do it the next time something hard comes along. But with friends and Bible Study Buddies, I know that they will help me to hold myself accountable and take each opportunity to praise and glorify God.

Why do you think we go through trials?

 
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Posted by on August 30, 2012 in My God is Glorified, Psalm

 

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My God is My Guide Psalm 73:24

28 Aug

Psalm 73:24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory.

Why is everyone else better off than me? 

Does it ever seem that way to you? It does to me, and it did the writer of the Psalms too. In Psalm 73, you’ll hear the Psalm writer going off on those who don’t believe in God. Why do they get to have all the good stuff? They don’t know God and yet it looks like they get all the rewards.

Here’s how it reads in Psalm 73:3-12 “For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
For they have no pangs until death; their bodies are fat and sleek.
They are not in trouble as others are; they are not stricken like the rest of mankind.
Therefore pride is their necklace; violence covers them as a garment.
Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies.
They scoff and speak with malice;  loftily they threaten oppression.
They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongue struts through the earth.
Therefore his people turn back to them, and find no fault in them. 
And they say, “How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?”
Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches.”

They get away with everything

It seems like the rich, the worldly, self-seeking people get what they expect; riches, fame and fortune. And that may be true. They get those things here on earth, but if you don’t put your faith and trust in God, you wont have that for long. “For they have no pangs until death”. 

Until death

They have no pangs until death. But when death comes, those who do not believe in God as their savior will not know about the riches and blessings those of us who do believe will receive. Death is the final say. You know, “you can’t take it with you”!

But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task,
 until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end.

I think this is really interesting. The Psalm writer says it’s hard to understand why the unbeliever, the spiteful towards God get to have it so well here on earth. Where did he go to figure it out? He went to the sanctuary of God. Then it was revealed to him their ultimate end. We too need to go to the sanctuary of God to help us discern the things that are spiritually weighing on us. We need to meet Him in His house and talk with Him. We can talk to our pastors or priests, pray and worship God. In His sanctuary we will have His truths revealed to us so that we too might be reminded of our end – in heaven. We can walk away knowing where we’ll end up when we put our faith and trust in our Lord.

You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory.

Fortunately when we are still and when we are in His sanctuary, God guides us with His counsel. He tells us through His words and sacraments what we need to know so that we might have a full, rich life in heaven with Him. As we remain in God’s counsel, we can rest assured that we will be received by Him in glory. We may not always have it easy here on earth, but this is not our home – Heaven is our home.

That reminds me of an old Hymn – I am but a stranger here – I especially like the last verse where it says, “Whatever my earthly lot, Heaven is my home;”. 

I’m But a Stranger Here
By: Thomas R. Taylor

I’m but a stranger here, 
Heaven is my home;
Earth is a desert drear, 
Heaven is my home;
Danger and sorrow stand
Round me on every hand;
Heaven is my fatherland,
Heaven is my home.

What though the tempest rage,
Heaven is my home;
Short is my pilgrimage,
Heaven is my home;
And time’s wintry blast 
Soon shall be over past;
I shall reach home at last,
Heaven is my home.

Therefore I murmur not,
Heaven is my home;
Whatever my earthly lot,
Heaven is my home;
And I shall surely stand 
There at my Lord’s right hand.
Heaven is my fatherland, 
Heaven is my home.

Actually – After reading these lyrics again and singing it to myself, I think I want this played at my funeral. I love it! And I want everyone to sing really loudly and with conviction! Praise God for the promise and hope of a future in heaven!

Where is your home?

 
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Posted by on August 28, 2012 in My God is a Leader, My God is my Guide, Psalm

 

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My God is…Forgiving Mark 2:1-12

24 Aug

Mark 2:1-12 – Jesus Heals a Paralytic 

And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 6 Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

Hope for healing

The story of the healing of the Paralytic is really interesting. Obviously by this time the word had gotten out that Jesus was a great healer, and those with chronic conditions like being paralyzed now had hope of a different sort of life. The Paralytic’s family and friends were likely his caregivers, and they too had the new hope that they would no longer have to care for their friend or family member. Yes they likely loved the man they brought to Jesus, but there was something in it for them too. They had a hope that their life was going to change for the better when Jesus healed the paralytic.

“Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Great – thanks a lot Jesus! Do you think the paralytic was going to be satisfied with being forgiven? What he wanted (and his friends) was that he would walk out of that place on his own. Little did they know that Jesus was less concerned with the paralytic’s physical condition than with the condition of his soul. Jesus knew that this man’s body was temporary, but with faith and forgiveness from the Lord, this mans life would continue for eternity. That’s what mattered to Jesus.

But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins

Jesus didn’t heal the man for the man’s sake. He healed him so that the scribes sitting there calling Jesus a blasphemer would be able to see that Jesus had the authority to forgive sins. Jesus was showing them that He had the full authority of God the Father behind Him and that He could rule over sins, health and anything else.

Jesus, a Man with all this authority chooses to forgive first

What a blessing! Our sins are often more debilitating than our diseases. Often the worry and stress we gain by our sins are contributing to our bad health. God is less concerned about our comfort than the condition of our heart. He wants us to be forgiven so that we might be drawn closer to Him. Often when we feel we’ve battled and won against one sin, we fall for another sin. Sins get our focus off our Lord and puts it back on ourselves.

Healing or Forgiveness?

Often people ask for prayers of healing for our friends and family members, but how often do we, like Jesus, focus on what’s more important, their forgiveness. Have you ever asked for prayers of forgiveness? Have you ever prayed that someone would repent of their ways and seek God’s forgiveness? Not often, I bet. As modern Americans we don’t really like people sticking their noses in our business and we don’t want to stick our noses in theirs. We don’t want to judge, lest we be judged. But I think we may want to take a page out of Jesus book and focus on what’s really hurting that person. Not that we need to judge them per-say, but that we can pray for forgiveness for those who are struggling. That they might find the freedom to live for God that only comes after we’ve been healed from our sins. After we’ve been freed from the paralyzing nature of sin. Sin that keeps us from moving forward, closer to God and our families. Sin gets in the way.

At least you have your health

I find this to be an annoying phrase. A lot of people don’t have their health. I don’t. I know I have a disease that could eventually rob me of my mobility and make me very dependent on the people around me. That burden that is created on those around you is saddening and frustrating. I’m sure I’ll be ever pleasant and easy to work with if I ever need that kind of care (I’m never cranky or bossy now – so nothing will change). But one of the things I felt I learned by finding out I had Multiple Sclerosis is what do you do when you can’t say “at least I have my health”. I can say – “At least I have Eternal Life”. My hope doesn’t rest in the years my body works, but in the work Jesus did for me on the cross. His death that worked the forgiveness of sins is more important to me than whether or not my legs work right, if I have pain in my feet, back or head. I have a hope that surpasses human understanding that would have us focus on the physical realities of this world. God is good, even when my legs don’t work. He’s more concerned about the condition of my heart than the condition of my body.

Forgiveness or Healing – which is more important to you?

 

 

 
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Posted by on August 24, 2012 in My God is Forgiving

 

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My God is…Answering Jeremiah 33:3

21 Aug

Jeremiah 33:3 – Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not  known.

While he was still shut up in the court of the guard

Jeremiah had the words proclaimed as a revelation to him from God. What a blessing. To hear directly from the Lord. I don’t know that I can say that I have had that experience exactly. Wouldn’t it be great to get clear answers to our prayers? Let’s look at a couple of verses before this passage.

The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was still shut up in the court of the guard: “Thus says the Lord who made the earth, the Lord who formed it to establish it— the Lord is his name: Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. Jeremiah 33:1-3

One thing I noticed is that there is a side note just before he tells us the revelation, “while he was still shut up in the court of the guard”. He got the revelation while he was alone and was shut up. Now I know that the scripture probably doesn’t mean he wasn’t allowed to talk, but I think both are needed if we really want to start discerning God’s answers for our lives.

Shut up!

When I was working full-time, I used to get really frustrated. I got tired, irritable and didn’t really want anyone else telling me how to do anything. I never stopped. I would wake up worrying, like my brain had never turned off. When my work situation changed, I found myself with a lot more time on my hands. I could stop and think. I hadn’t done much of that over the past 8 years. I felt rushed from one thing to another, not really doing any of them as well as I could have. God talks to us about stopping what you’re doing. In Psalm 46:10 He says, “Be still and know that I am God.” He tells us clearly that we are to be still, like Jeremiah we need to be shut up and  shut up! Do you want to know God? Be still. That’s it!

Call to me and I will answer you

You may here people say this regularly, “It was an answer to prayer.” And isn’t it wonderful when we have unexpected blessings. Sometimes we have been very prayerful, like when we’re praying for the family of someone who has passed or for the healing of someone who is sick, but sometimes we haven’t been prayerful. Sometimes, “It was an answer to prayer” is a lie. Sometimes it’s just a blessing. We didn’t actually call out to God about that problem.

I’m Hungry

My boys have this same problem with me. They say things around me like, “I’m hungry” or “I wish I could play video games.” Do you notice something about these phrases? They’re not jeopardy worthy, that’s for sure. My boys don’t often put things in the form of a question. It’s like their pontificating, not asking for anything. If they asked me, I would surely answer, “have a banana” or “have you already used up your video game time?”, but in general, they don’t ask unless I push them to put it in the form of a question.

I’m lonely

Ok, I like to be around my husband. Sometimes work gets really busy for him or he gets über focused on a hobby and I get lonely. I want some of his attention. Instead of saying, “would you come sit with me?” I say something much more passive aggressive like, “I wish you wanted to sit with me more.” (You have no idea how embarrassing that is to admit. What a brat!). While my husband was in school, he was required to attend counseling so he would know what it was like. We decided to do marriage counseling. After a few meetings, the counselor (a male) said – “Why don’t you just ask him for what you want?” My response, I want him to know what I want before I ask. But that’s not how it works with my husband or God. God wants to be in communication with us. When I talk to my husband and ask him for what I need, when he does it, I know he is showing how much he cares about me. When God answers our prayers, I think we feel the same way.

I will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known.

If you don’t ask, you’ll never know. I have had a problem I have been wondering how to solve. I have talked about it with friends, my parents, my husband and my boys. I have asked them their opinions and they’ve all had one. Not all of them matching. Truth be told in this situation there are many appropriate options. Guess who I haven’t talked to about it. That’s right, God. In the verse above, God not only promises to answer us, but He goes on to say that He will tell us great and hidden things you haven’t known. That’s amazing. Well since I still don’t know what to do, I’m going to have to ask Him!

 

 

 
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Posted by on August 21, 2012 in My God is Answering

 

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