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Who has a Christmas to-do list? Decorate. Host parties. Get gifts, wrap gifts, give gifts. Bake grandma's fruitcake. Living with eternity in mind is easy to say. But in the busy minutia of life, tiny trials take up all our energy. We're late. The cookies burned. The kids are whiny. We forgot Uncle Tim's gift or lost our keys or (God-forbid) our phone. These things humanly take first priority. Even around Christmas -- and sometimes directly because of Christmas -- Christ and His ways and kingdom are left in the dust, behind gingerbread houses and fudge. What if this Christmas our stress pushes us to our Savior (Who doesn't need parties or pastries)? What if every time we feel annoyed that the cat broke another ornament, we sing a song of worship to the One who the season is really about? What if each time a tear falls as we realize we can't possibly get everything done, we prayed and praise our Deliverer Who has gotten everything done for us? What if this Christmas was about Christ? Messiah, this Christmas season please focus our hearts and minds on You and Your priorities which last for eternity. Amen. Ps. December 1-25 we are posting family devotions based on some favorite Christmas carols to help you (and your family) can engage in the wonder of Christ's coming! Merry Christmas!  It is good to give thanks to the Lord, and to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, and Your faithfulness every night. -- Psalm 92:1-2 When we give thanks, we are declaring God's faithfulness, testifying that He is good and keeps His promises. This declaration is our gift and sacrifice to God (Psalm 107:22). May your Thanksgiving be full of thanks giving! "We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks! For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near." -- Psalm 75:1  We cracked an oil pan the first time we went out to Chaco Canyon because our Ford Focus was willing to do anything we asked of it -- it didn't have the aptitude for it. We needed something with: * four wheel or all wheel drive, * at least eight inches of clearance -- the Ford has six, and * no sense of self-preservation. People choose to drive different vehicles for different reasons. Not infrequently you will see something a VW bug trying to navigate ice or a racer attempting to traverse a curb or a tiny Ford on washboard roads. And we all laugh -- don't you know your car isn't made for that? But it's no laughing matter when someone's life "car" -- which could also be called faith or worldview -- can't handle the huge ruts and harsh weather of life. In life, we need faith that is: * steadfast and immovable as we know and obey our Savior, * always abounding in the work of Lord -- as James says, faith without works is dead, and * confident in the promises of Jesus Christ. In other words, we need a hardened desert-ready car for life. 
 Two barrels are outside a local coffee shop.
Same design. Same place. Same purpose. But one is green and thriving and the other is dead and brown. The barrel that holds the dead plants is cracked and dried. It can't keep in the water because the soil inside this barrel was also cracked and dried. And the soil can't retain the water because the barrel is cracked and dried. It is a self-perpetuating cycle. The opposite was true of the happy, lush barrel. As Christ taught: "For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him." -- Matthew 13:12 Those who soak in the truth of His word are spiritually nourished and prepared for more truth. Thus, they grow and flourish -- like the living barrel. But those who reject God's truth become spiritually dry and ill-prepared for the truth. They become increasingly calloused to Christ and cannot respond to the living water they are receiving. Every person who turns to God in repentance receives salvation through Christ is a walking, breathing miracle because we all used to be brown and it takes a miracle to make us green. The brown happens naturally -- the green only supernaturally. This is one of the reasons the writer of Hebrews tells us so strongly that we must be in physical fellowship with Christ's church. If we aren't, we are in danger of becoming unbelieving, hardened and deceived by sin (i.e. brown), and unable to respond to the presence and the voice of the Lord (Hebrews 3:12-15).  Jane is never entitled...but she easily could be :0) It wasn't going to fit...obviously. Carry on suitcases simply don't fit in certain planes.
"We can gate check that for you." The stewardess offered. "Well, they said it was my choice." The entitled traveler responded by cramming her suitcase under the seat in front of her -- taking both her leg space and her seatmate's. "That's not going to work." The seatmate gestured at the lack of space. Eventually the stewardess reassigned the woman with suitcase-separation anxiety to the back of the commuter flight where she could freely monopolize an entire row (i.e. 2 seats). At 6 am, the whole situation really irritated me...until I realized I am just like her. We all think we are entitled and more specifically, live entitled. IF I didn't, I wouldn't get angry when the line moves slowly, or a service project takes longer than expected. IF I didn't, I wouldn't complain that I am hungry or tired. IF I didn't, I wouldn't pray whiny prayers when I get sick or can't get life to go my way. IF I wasn't entitled, I would always be patient and gentle. But instead, I am like my annoying fellow traveler: I deserve what I want, now. Dear Savior, You know everything. You know what I deserve, I do not want. I deserve death and punishment and separation from You forever. Please teach my heart that every good thing I have and experience is from You and for You glory. In Christ's name, Amen |
The AuthorCome with me as we grow in fellowship with each other and our Savior to whom belongs the Amazing Escape from sin and death and the Amazing Journey into glorious life. Archives
February 2025
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