Praise Him With Your Whole Heart

Scripture Reference: Psalm 103

On Sunday when you go to church, how will you worship the Lord? Will you bring Him your best worship or will it be “half-hearted,” “doing-it-out-of-duty” worship? In the church today, I wonder how many times we truly worship the Lord with all our hearts. The Psalmist describes a worship that is with “my whole heart.” Jesus also discusses this type of worship when he said to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.” Worship, of course, is not just what we do at church over the weekend. Worship is something we do every day. We have lots of reasons to worship the Lord and the Psalmist here just names a few. This Sunday, when you go to church remember to worship the Lord with all your heart!

Prayer: Lord, help me to bring worship to you that is whole-hearted. Where I am guilty of half-hearted worship, may I be convicted in my heart and soul. Today, and every day, I long to worship you with all my heart.

Determined to See Jesus

Mark 2:1-12

When some people have a need and find themselves in a state of desperation, they will often go to great lengths to find help. The paralytic man in this passage was one such individual. No doubt he had been paralyzed for many years…maybe even his whole life. He had heard about Jesus and the healings he had performed. He was desperate. He had nowhere to turn. He had to see Jesus. With the help of his friends he arrived at the house where Jesus was and because of a huge crowd that was gathered there he was unable to reach Jesus. Not wanting to give up he had his friends lower him through the roof of the house to where Jesus was. Amazed at this man’s determination and desperation, Jesus forgave his sins and healed his paralysis. Where do we turn when we reach a point of desperation or despair in our lives? Do we give up? Do we “throw in the towel”? Or do we turn to Jesus? We must go to whatever lengths necessary to have Jesus meet our need, whether it is spiritual, physical, emotional, or any other need. He is willing and ready.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, in my times of despair and desperation help me to turn to you. Help me to face you with determination in my heart and mind. Amen.

Turn To Him

Scripture: Psalm 102

Where do you turn when you are trouble? To whom do you look? We all face trouble from time to time. We face distressing situations throughout life. Often times those circumstances are so distressing they make us “sick” to our stomach. They cause us to loose sleep at night. They make us loose our appetite. They bring us to tears. They make us feel deserted and alone. The Psalmist felt this way as he describes in detail the depths of his distress. But where does he turn? He turns to the Lord – the one who “sits on the throne forever.” In our times of deep distress we can look to God and know that He hears our prayers. He is the one to whom we can cry out. He is the one to whom we can turn. He is the one who created the universe and has the power to deliver us from our distress. He will bring peace in the midst of the storm. Turn to Him.

Prayer: Dear God, in my times of distress help me to always look to You. Though I may feel alone, afraid, depressed, or distraught, help me to remember that you have an immense love for me and you care about the circumstances that I face in life. Bring peace in my distress.

Be Careful What You Ask For!

Scripture: I Samuel 8:1-22

For generations the children of Israel had been ruled by judges…representatives of God before the people. But the time had come when the people no longer wanted to be under their rule. They wanted a king. They wanted to be like the other nations – the neighboring pagan kingdoms. God heard their request but warned them that what they asked for was not as grand as they thought. Through the prophet Samuel, He warned them that the king would demand the best of all their spoils. He would demand their sons to serve in the army. He would demand the best of their animals and harvests and they would be his subjects—his slaves. But despite the warning, the people still demanded a king because they wanted to “be like the nations around [them].” But what we don’t read in this passage is that God’s warning came true, and the peoples’ decision to have a king caused problems for many generations to come. We need to be careful what we ask God for. God knows best and won’t lead us astray. Sometimes we can want something so badly that we fail to heed the warning signs that are right in front of our face. Sometimes God will allow us to make bad decisions, in spite of the warning signs He has put in front of us. We, too, might regret our decision if we fail to heed His warning.

Prayer: God, help me to be in tune to the warnings you place in my life. Help me not to ignore your warnings when I am faced with a decision that could lead me astray. When I am tempted to do things that will make me like “the crowd,” help me to realize that I should desire to be like You! Help me to determine what your desire for my life is.

Sunday: A "Mini" Easter?

Scripture: Luke 22:14-23

Each week when the early church came together to worship, it essentially was a “mini” Easter celebration. What do I mean by that? They celebrated the resurrection of Jesus every week. It was the primary focus of their celebration. Not only did they celebrate his resurrection, but they also remembered his death as they celebrated the Lord’s Supper together. Also known as Eucharist or communion, the broke the bread and drank of the cup in memory of Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross. It wasn’t a sad time, but rather a joyful celebration with the knowledge of what came after: His resurrection. Do we look at our worship service each week as a “mini-Easter” celebration? Is it a joyful time or is our worship stale? In his last few hours, Jesus demonstrated to the disciples the need to remember Him by breaking bread and drinking the cup. The events that followed may have brought sorrow to His followers, but that sorrow was soon replaced with joy when they realized that he was no longer in the grave! Let’s be joyful as we celebrate the resurrection of Christ each week.

Prayer: Lord, help me to understand the significance of communion in worship. Help me to view worship as a time of celebration each week. Please help my worship to be vibrant and exciting, rather than stale and stoic. I thank you for your sacrifice for my sins and that you are alive today and in control of our world. I love you, Jesus!

Redemption in a Genealogy

I don't really care for reading the genealogies in scripture. I suppose history "buffs" might get a kick out of it, but not me. I mean, really, should I care who begot whom? I know there is a reason to include genealogies, so I am not questioning why God would include them in scripture. I am just saying that I don't care for reading them.

However, in our small group last night, I realized something about a genealogy that I had never realized before. Matthew 1:1-6 says, "The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham: Abraham begot Isaac, Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers. Judah begot Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez begot Hezron, and Hezron begot Ram. Ram begot Amminadab, Amminadab begot Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salmon. Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king."

Check out the portion that is in bold. David's great-great grandmother was Rahab - prostitute! And of course, Jesus was a legal descendant of David through his adoptive father, Joseph. Why did Matthew point this out? He could have continued the pattern saying, "Salmon begot Boaz, Boaz begot Obed," etc. The first introduction we have to Rahab in scripture is the account of her hiding the Hebrew spies found in Joshua 2:1-7. It is there that we first learn she was a prostitute.

As I reflect on this account and her inclusion in the genealogy of Christ, I can't help but realize that perhaps God is trying to point out his redemptive nature, even in something as seemingly "meaningless" as a genealogy. (And, no, I don't think the genealogies are meaningless! There obviously are some great truths to be find with a little background knowledge!)

Christ's legal ancestors were not always upright citizens. Look at some of the others. Tamar, who deceived her father-in-law, Judah, into thinking she was a harlot, gave birth to his twins. David had Solomon by his wife Bathsheba, the woman with whom he committed adultery. Rehoboam was a wicked and ruthless king who condoned idol worship. The list could go on.

Christ came to "seek and to save" those who are lost. He came to redeem all mankind to Himself...including you and me. It doesn't matter what is in our past...whether we were a prostitute, an adulterer, an idolater, or someone who for the most part has believed in God their whole lives and lived a morally upright life (such as David's father Jesse). We all stand in need of redemption. Isaiah 59:2 says, " But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear." So, like Rahab, we all were separated from God because of our sin. But here is the key: "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace..." (Ephesians 1:7). Through the incarnation of Christ and His subsequent death and resurrection, we can experience His redemption!

This Christmas, even if for a few moments, read through the Matthew 1 genealogy of Jesus. When you do, think about Rahab and the other characters who many of us wouldn't think should "belong" in the genealogy of Christ. Remember this: redemption is found in that genealogy!

Are You Crazy?

I thought I would pass along something that came to me through e-mail. I thought it was on target, and a little humorous, so...here it is:

To the Congress:

The U.S.. Postal Service was established in 1775 - you have had 234 years to get it right; it is broke.

Social Security was established in 1935 - you have had 74 years to get it right; it is broke.

Fannie Mae was established in 1938 - you have had 71 years to get it right; it is broke.

The "War on Poverty" started in 1964 - you have had 45 years to get it right; $1 trillion of our money is confiscated each year and transferred to "the poor"; it hasn't worked and our entire country is broke.

Medicare and Medicaid were established in 1965 - you've had 44 years to get it right; they are broke.

Freddie Mac was established in 1970 - you have had 39 years to get it right; it is broke.

Trillions of dollars were spent in the massive political payoffs called TARP, the "Stimulus", the Omnibus Appropriations Act of 2009... none show any signs of working, although ACORN appears to have found a new source: the American taxpayer.

And finally, to set a new record:

"Cash for Clunkers" was established in 2009 and went broke in 2009! It took cars (that were the best some people could afford) and replaced them with high-priced and less-affordable cars, mostly Japanese. A good percentage of the profits went out of the country. And the American taxpayers take the hit for Congress' generosity in burning three billion more of our dollars on failed experiments.

So with a perfect 100% failure rate and a record that proves that "services" you shove down our throats are failing faster and faster, you want Americans to believe you can be trusted with a government-run health care system?

20% of our entire economy?

With all due respect,

Are you crazy?