Jonah 2 - Seven lessons from Pain

We are studying the book of Jonah.  Fascinating how this guy runs from God and God pursues him gently, powerfully, specifically so that Jonah would repent and re-connect with God.

In Jonah 2 Jonah calls out to God in distress.  I don't like to be distressed.  It doesn't seem right when believers find themselves in times of life that could be labeled "distress."  Here is James Dobson's recommendation for how to deal with those times When God Doesn't Make Sense:

Seven Lessons we can learn about PAIN     

Lesson 1:     

The Apostle Paul says . . .   1 Corinthians 13:12  “Now I know in part. “

We learn to ACCEPT partial understanding.

Lesson 2:                              Confusion is a natural result of pain.

Satan will use PAIN to make you FEEL victimized by God.

Lesson 3:      Expectations set us up for _DISSAPPOINTMENT.

Proverbs 3:5 “Lean not on your own understanding.”

Lesson 4:                  John 16:33 “You will have Trouble.”

1 Peter 4:12-13  Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering

Lesson 5:  Your FEEELINGS  don’t equal TRUTH.

Jeremiah 31:3 [God says,] “I have loved you with an everlasting love.”

Lesson 6:  Adversity and PAIN bring CHARACTER building.

James 1:2-3 “testing of your faith develops perseverance.”

Lesson 7:      You are ever in His VISION .

Mark 6:45-50  Jesus watched the storm and the disciples for seven hours.

Psalm 119 - Ten Commandments toppled in DC. Part Two!!!

PART TWO:

BUT, what about us as Christians – as Jesus followers, His disciples?  How are we to view this for our own personal application?

Above all we must remember that we too have “toppled” and “defaced” God’s laws, that we are not innocent of despising His words, His laws, His decrees.  In other words, Let’s get real – we are offenders and we need Jesus’ forgiveness for striking out against a holy God.  There is no other way to be saved than to cry out to Jesus for help.

v. 175 Let me live that I may praise you,
    and may your laws sustain me.
¹⁷⁶ I have strayed like a lost sheep.
    Seek your servant,
    for I have not forgotten your commands.

We have strayed.  How?  Examine the Ten Commandments and any commandment or law from God.  Examine Romans 13 (Obey the governing authorities) and realize that we can easily cross the line between not liking the political stance of the President, Mayor, Governor, etc. and end up breaking that command in thought, or word or deed.  How many of us have slurred the president – thinking this was right or OK because he is not godly?  We are just as guilty of sin.

God gives us the law in the same way a doctor issues tests, blood test, MRI, CAT scans, Exrays  – to reveal what is below the surface, to uncover sickness.  Breaking commands from a perfect God is a symptom of our imperfection, our brokenness.  When we wake up and smell the stench of our own filth, cry out to Jesus for cleansing, then we receive what we cannot earn – forgiveness and life and a place in God’s family.

1 John 1:5-10  ⁵ This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. ⁶ If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. ⁷ But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

⁸ If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. ¹⁰ If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

JESUS, i REALLY NEED YOU!  Sorry about my sin - cleanse me!

Psalm 119 - Ten Commandment monument toppled in DC . . . PART ONE

What is a Christian to think when this happens?  see this article:  Ten Commandments toppled in DC

Psalm 119

All the wicked hate and despise the laws, word and statutes of our God.  Psalm 119 speaks about that and the incident in DC points to a practical application of that.  It is normal for Christians to be outraged and angry when this happens.  In a sense, we feel attacked.  But it is God who is attacked and HE has established His laws to be eternal – they are not going away no matter how many rise up against them.  See verses 119, 139, and 152.  There is comfort!!!

¹¹⁹ All the wicked of the earth you discard like dross;
    therefore I love your statutes.
¹²⁰ My flesh trembles in fear of you;
    I stand in awe of your laws.

¹³⁹ My zeal wears me out,
    for my enemies ignore your words.

¹⁵¹ Yet you are near, Lord,
    and all your commands are true.
¹⁵² Long ago I learned from your statutes
    that you established them to last forever.

One: God fights for Himself – He’s big enough and tough enough to deal with vandals.  So that’s not a problem.

Two: God has made His word and laws eternal – they are not going away no matter how many vandals show up.

Three:  this is only indicative of a larger problem that is at the heart of Americans AND Christians also.  We don’t speak out and have not “discipled” the way we should.  We might have forced religion down peoples’ throats but that doesn’t make a disciple.  Relationship makes disciples by the Spirit and the Word and Experience and Application of Biblical principals.

*please see "part two" for  more on this topic.

:)  God is still at peace, in charge, not missing a beat and totally in love with you.  get to know Him!

Take every thought captive

God has directed us to take captive our thoughts so that we can live a non-toxic, healthy life.  2 Corinthians 10:5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

this video helps us to understand where this comes from and how to deal with toxic thoughts.

Psalm 105 and 106- Remember God's Deeds. Here's why:

Psalm 105 and Psalm 106
Always wondered what the big deal is with "remembering" all that God has done. Psalm 105 verse 2 and 4 says, "Sing to Him, Sing praise to Him; tell of all His wonderful acts. . . . Look to the LORD and His strength; seek His face always." Well I was reading Psalm 106 verse 13 and it answers the question "why should we remember His acts/deeds?" v.13 says "But they soon forgot what He had done and did not wait on His counsel, His good advice." Then in the verses that follow it shows the hurt that they brought on their own life by forgetting to tell of the great things God had done - they got lost; they shook their fists at God, they were subject to wasting diseases, they grew envious of others and lost their life, they turned from worshiping God and worshiped themselves, their prosperity, they started to do all kinds of hurtful things to their families and themselves.

My prayer, Lord Jesus help us to always remember what cool, amazing, love-inspired things you have done for us so that we don't end up hurting like they did.
Amen.

Compassion - Chew on that word for a moment

Psalm 103:13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;

Every once in a while I like to pop a word into the Merriam-Webster page to find out little details about that word.  I did that today with "compassion."  Here is what I found:

Compassion is a sympathetic awareness of another person's distress TOGETHER WITH a desire to alleviate it. 

So that means God is very sensitive to our emotions and our challenges, desires, hurts, needs, etc. The New Testament word often used for "compassion" reflects that Jesus actually felt the hurt of others (it hurt his innards) AND had a strong desire to release these people from their distress. Some He would touch and heal. Some he would provide a lunch. For others, Jesus would raise their son, daughter, brother from the dead to relieve that distress. Its good to know that God has real concern and desire to help us AND has unchecked strength to alleviate our pain or turn our pain into something good. Thank you, Jesus for your compassion!!!

truth

Truth - what if I am reluctant to tell myself the truth?  what if I actually downplay the truth or dismiss the truth?  Is this any big deal?

It is a big deal, not just because God says so, but because your brain, heart, cells and body are designed to react positively when you admit the truth about yourself (bad and good).  If you don't admit truth, it literally hurts you from the inside out.  Again, this and other helpful info on the brain and spiritual life can be found in the book . . . .

John 8:32 . . . then you will know the truth and the truth WILL SET YOU FREE.

Ephesians 6 talks about the armor of God and one of the pieces of armor is "truth."  When we don't tell the truth to ourselves or others, we are missing some of the armor of God and we become more vulnerable to Satan.

God Cares for you; Jesus knows every sin.  So why are we afraid to admit what He already knows?  guess that is a thought process also.

Peace to you - it really can be for you, In Christ,

bye for now.

The Brain that God Created in Us. . . . fascinating.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this book, Who Switched Off My Brain - Controlling toxic thoughts and emotions, because it points to the amazing design of our Creator to shape our brain and give it good health.  What is even more intriguing is that God's advice on how to think (thankful living, praise, avoid temptations, avoid negative thinking, dwell on the positives) actually affects our health.

God wants us to have good health AND those who read and follow His Word as laid out in the Bible get the benefits.  Thank you Jesus!  That is so cool.

Here are some passages that really touch on the topic of the book:

2 Corinthians 10:5

New International Version (NIV)

5 We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

Deuteronomy 30:19-20

New International Version (NIV)

19 This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live 20 and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Salt

Matthew 5 has this section about Salt:

13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

How many of you have heard sermons and Bible studies on being the Salt of the earth – and then, of course, the purpose and use of salt and how to relate that to being Christians.  Well, I couldn’t help but add one more thought to your pile of theological knowledge.  So here goes. 

When you use salt with pickles or other vegetables that have bitter properties (such as eggplant) the salt is used not just to flavor the cucumbers but also to remove some of the bitterness.  So the presence of salt in your August relishes is done in part to remove bitterness.  Thinly slice your cucumbers, pour on an ample amount of salt and in a matter of minutes the salt has done its trick.  You will know by the amount of liquid that the cucumbers are sitting in.  Some of that liquid is bitter because the salt helps to pull out the bitterness along with the liquid.  Rinse them off, drain the excess water, add a little apple cider vinegar and you have a great summer pickle relish.

So, now let’s apply this to our life as Jesus followers.  We exist in a bitter world and that bitterness often rubs off on us.  When we focus on Jesus and all His blessings for us, we lose that bitterness.  It is part of being a Christian AND applying Jesus’ teachings to our life.  So we become less bitter by focusing on the blessings of being a child of God.  That makes us salt.  The goal is that anyone we come in contact with is affected by our “salt” and they, in turn, can lose some of their bitterness.

Go be what God has made you to be; and go enjoy some cucumber salad while you are at it.  J

Blessings to you in Jesus.

 Al

Covet vs. Contentment

we studied the 9th and 10th Commandments this last Sunday - Do not Covet.  What I found interesting about this commandment, is how natural it is for us to covet and how marketing in America promotes covet.  How?  We, as Americans, are better off than 90% of the globe - FACT!  We also are less happy and more depressed.  Americans (somewhere close to 100 million) consume more depression meds - it is our highest purchased prescription drug!  Crazy!  So even though we have tons of stuff, we are not happy.

Therefore, the possession of stuff will not necessarily make you happy.

Psalm 62: 5 says, "My soul, Find rest in God; my hope comes from Him."
rest and contentment and happiness are available but not from the possession of stuff.  Some studies actually point to the idea that the more we accumulate the more we worry about losing that stuff.  So if happiness can't come from Stuff alone (or is short-lived) AND we worry about losing that stuff AND advertising is luring us into more purchases, IS THERE AN ANSWER?

of course - God is our rest, our refuge, our joy.

Here is the quick approach:
1. count your blessings.  Count out all the things you can be thankful for and say thanks to God for them.  Thanksgiving is one of the most powerful emotions - it triggers the release of endorphins (happy drugs) in the brain.
2. give to someone who needs.  Wouldn't you know it, this also triggers the release of endorphins.  Both of these are promoted by God and we get to experience them and be blessed by them.
3. Find your true rest, happy, joy in KNOWING Jesus.  How?  Ask the question, "Jesus, what are you REALLY like?" just before reading a chapter from Matthew, Mark, Luke or John.  The more you get to know the Real Jesus, the more you realize that you are UNconditionally loved, you are precious to Him, you are forgiven, He gave Himself for you, He is preparing a place for you in Heaven.

Be blessed.

Words are like the Fruit of a tree

Heard this great sermon that really hit the connection between words and the heart.  Matthew 12 tells about Jesus blasting the Pharisees on their words.

in the Matt. 12:33-37 account, the tree is the heart and the fruit is the collection of words that come out of the heart.

Matthew 12:33-37

The Voice (VOICE)

33 Good trees produce good fruits; bad trees produce bad fruits. You can always tell a tree by its fruits. 34 You children of snakes, you who are evil—how could you possibly say anything good? For the mouth simply shapes the heart’s impulses into words. 

The only way to deal with hurtful words is repentance.

And if you have received some hurt from other people's words, the way to assuage your own hurt is to forgive.

Here is that link to the sermon on words:

Robert Morris sermon on Words

blessings to you all, In Jesus!

Luke 9 - Feeding a Ginormous Crowd

This text from Luke 9 really got me thinking today:

Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand

¹⁰ When the apostles returned, they reported to Jesus what they had done. Then he took them with him and they withdrew by themselves to a town called Bethsaida, ¹¹ but the crowds learned about it and followed him. He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing.

¹² Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to him and said, “Send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging, because we are in a remote place here.”

¹³ He replied, “You give them something to eat.”

so here are those thoughts of mine:

·         Applying logic to the events: if they are going to be fed and cared for the five thousand have to go away and find food for themselves.  Who could argue with that logic?

·         Jesus advises them to do what is illogical: "You give them something to eat."

o   Now they are challenged with a task that will surely fail IF only human means are employed.  Its pretty obvious Jesus understands this too.

o   This is where I find myself in this ministry – I feel like our human means are so lacking that we surely can’t provide “food” for the community.  Maybe what I need to do is trust God who placed me here, trust that He does have a plan and trust that He knows how to place resources here, trust also that with His intervention the right things will happen and He will be glorified through our little church.

More later . . . 

Genesis 24 - Marriage then and today

A couple of notes from the sermon for tomorrow:

Genesis 24:1

Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in every way.

How old was Abraham?

· This takes place three years after Sarah’s death (Genesis 23) and Abraham is now 140 years old.

· That would make Isaac 40 years old.

Genesis 24:2

He said to the senior servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh.

Why “under the thigh?” 

· This practice is a type of covenant or promise made with physical contact – much like we would shake hands.  So why the thigh?  Some say that this is because it is close to the area of procreation and Abraham was asking Eliezer to help his son in the area of picking a wife and in turn, creating a family (furthering the line toward the Savior).

Genesis 24 - The Sixth Commandment. Honoring God's gift of sex

In our series on the Ten Commandments we are at the sixth (thou shalt not commit adultery - or to put it in more modern day parlance: "sex is a big deal to God, He invented it and He can help you use it correctly so that you don't get burned and leave a trail of brokenness in your life.")

The passage we are using for the main message is from Genesis 24 where Abraham has his Property Manager take a 500 mile trip to find a wife for his son Isaac.

here is one clip from the text:

Genesis 24:¹⁹ After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels too, until they have had enough to drink.” ²⁰ So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels. ²¹ Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the Lord had made his journey successful.
²² When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a beka^[c] and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels.

So my question to you is, "What is a beka?  How much gold would that be and roughly what would it be worth?

Here's a hint:  at that time they weighed out silver and gold on scales with small round stones as the counterweight.

Psalm 31

Starting the day with God thoughts - here are two very positive ones from Psalm 31:

verse 7  I will be glad and rejoice in your love,
    for you saw my affliction
    and knew the anguish of my soul.

to be "glad" in the Love that flows from Heaven's King to me, to you, to all.

If we are not "glad" and able to rejoice, then our focus is often more on the negative events that encircle our life.  We can be glad and rejoice because God's love is at the center of our existence and troubles float in the periphery.  If we are glum, sad, despairing, then we have left God's love somewhere on the periphery of our minds and let troubles take center stage.

Lord, Bless us to see your love as constant and enticing and intriguing and fulfilling.  Let us strive to see you better and better.  Kneel down to us so we can see you face to face in your Word - Your Holy Word.

Verses 23-24  

Love the Lord, all his faithful people!

    The Lord preserves those who are true [trust] to him,
    but the proud he pays back in full.
24 Be strong and take heart,
    all you who hope in the Lord.

The Lord is at work preserving those who know they can't make it without Him.

Preserve us, Lord!

thank you for being our strength.  Thank you for giving us a stronghold in which to hide.

Amen.

Where is the treasure?

What is your precious possession?  How long can you hold onto it?  Is it a family member, a job, a jewel, a gold or silver coin from your Uncle?  Jesus makes no bones about holding onto a good and lasting treasure:

Matthew 6:21

New International Version (NIV)

21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Lord let me find my treasure in the beauty of you.
Amen.

Body . . . How is yours?

Gary Player has some great comments on Americans and our obesity issue.  So does God.  1 Corinthians 3 and 6 encourages us to look at our bodies as a special place: the place where God lives.

1 Corinthians 3:16-17
Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple? God’s Spirit lives in you. 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. God’s temple is holy. And you are that temple.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20
19 Don’t you know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit? The Spirit is in you. You have received him from God. You do not belong to yourselves. 20 Christ has paid the price for you. So use your bodies in a way that honors God.



Here is the link to Gary's article on health and fitness:
Gary Player blasts American physical health

Rest - Sabbath . . . and Psalm 23

Morning to you all.  when i started writing this today it was morning (11:59) but it may be afternoon before I finish.  Yesterday was a glum start but things picked up.  I can attribute that to several things:  God's Word, giving thanks (raises endorphins - natural high), seeing God's purpose for me - why He created me and the uniqueness of me, exercise always has a way of chasing away stress, and my dear wife to come home to.

Today's study is on Psalm 23 - but I'm also trying to put together a sermon on REST, the SAbbath day commandment.  So the following might fit that theme also.  Let's see where we ramble.

Psalm 23 - The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.

• The LORD - that's God's name.  Some pronounce is "Jehovah,"  some say "Yahweh"
• My - personal and connected.  He is not Only someone else's God and Lord and Shepherd; He is MINE!  He has committed to that - and I love it.
• SHepherd - taking me, His rather ignorant and arrogant and obnoxious sheep, and gently leading me.
• I shall not want - so why do I find myself "wanting"?  do I forget that He is shepherding me and leading me and do I rather, want to lead myself and assume that I know what is better for myself?  Probably.

Lord Jesus, the human and divine embodiment of YAHWEH, don't let me escape your shepherding.  I know looking back how much I neeeeeeeeed you.  Help me on these good days to not take your peace and satisfaction for granted.  Give me a steadfast heart that searches your Word and gets closer to you.

AMEN.

the Prodigal _________ Luke 15:11

This is a very interesting article that makes me, a life-long Christian, think.  In the prodigal story, I'm the oldest son (or sometimes the straying younger son) who is indignant about having "done all the right things."  Maybe I'm the real hang-up when it comes to the younger sons coming back to Jesus.

Bread for Beggars blog

here is the book that the article/blog refers to:  The Prodigal God.  by Tim Keller

well worth checking out.

blessings,

Al

PSALM 100 verses 4 and 5 . . . one other thought.

another thought on the commandment about the name of the Lord . . .

to take up God's name for "nothingness" would be like taking a stick of dynamite and sticking it in your back pocket or carelessly tossing it around your living room, letting your kids play with it, setting it next to the stove, tossing it in a campfire.  You miss out on the amazing potential and power of that stick of dynamite and it could literally hurt or kill you.

we wouldn't do that with dynamite - why would we do that with the Name of the LORD which has the power, REAL Dynamite power, to save?!?

Lift up Jesus' real powerful name in thanks, praise and conversation with Him.  . . . and be real about what you are going through: the temptations, the frustrations, the hurts, the worries, the joys and pleasures.

be blessed,

Al

Travelling closer to God, to Jesus. . . . . . . . . . PSALM 100: 4-5

This weekend I got to speak on the second commandment, "do not lift up the name of the LORD your God for nothingness."  That is the Hebrew translation.  It means that we are not to misuse the name of the Lord, "use it or lift it up for nothingness."  Nothingness would be to curse, swear, take the name of the LORD lightly, to just say it without meaning it, etc.

So to use the Name of the LORD - Jesus - for "somethingness" would be to call on Him in trouble, talk to Him in confession, ask Him for blessings in our life, or to simply talk to Him as a friend, a Savior, a Redeemer.  They there is the aspect of calling on the name of the LORD for Thanks and Praise.  

I confess that these have often caused me to be squeemish because they seemed so . . . innocuous, harmless, without energy, etc.  But Psalm 100 and some other truths about thanksgiving and praise have turned my understanding around.

Psalm 100:4-5

New International Version (NIV)

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
    and his courts with praise;
    give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
    his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Thanks and praise DO something to us.  Thanksgiving actually activates endorphins to be released into your brain - a sort of natural high.  Praise may have similar changes.  Here is what the Psalm speaks about.  When you give thanks, it brings you to the gate, the entryway of God's presence.  When you give praise (applause, celebrating all that God is) it brings you into His actual presence.  

That definitely has the power to change our mindset.  If we are grumpy, tense, worrying - we have the opportunity to turn our mood around because in His presence, all things can take on a different flavor.

I like this new insight on verses 4 and 5 of Psalm 100 because He is forever Good - He can't help it.  that is His nature.

Blessings,
Al

Luke 5. Forgiveness

Luke 5:20-26

When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

²¹ The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

²² Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts?²³ Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? ²⁴ But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” ²⁵ Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. ²⁶ Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God.They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”

• Ø  To the Jews, forgiving sins and healing were on the same par.  What if we looked at our own forgiveness with such awe?  Is it possible that forgiving sins really heals us, others?  If we forgave more, how many lives could be healed?  If we believed and accepted God’s forgiveness of us, how many of us would be healed of darkness, guilt, frustration, ?

Luke 7:41-43

• “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,^[a] and the other fifty. ⁴² Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
  ⁴³ Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”
  “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
  
  Ø  A denarius was the usual daily wage of a day laborer (see Matt. 20:2).  Let’s say that is about $200 for sake of illustration.  The one was forgiven $100,000 and the other $10,000.  Which one would appreciate the debt cancelling process more?  It immediately makes me think of where student loans are today.  I left college in 1989 with $10,000 in debt.  If they would have cancelled that, I would have been very happy and appreciative.  But to have the debt for my house cancelled, might have the potential to create even more excitement and appreciation.  
  So do we really realize how much Jesus took away from our Debt to God?  I want to rethink that today.

WHO DO YOU MEET ALONG THE WAY? Matthew 25:40

We had our church picnic yesterday - complete with worship service and potluck, lots of grilled foods to follow.  Many good things came from the day.  We were made aware of several challenges for two of our sisters in the faith - that gives us something to pray for.  We had clear blue skies, so warm and not a hint of rain; WOW!  That was a welcome gift after the last months of almost solid rain and cold.  Also lots of visitors, great conversations over perfectly grilled Turkey (nice job, Fran and Joel)!

What I never expected to see was a middle aged woman timidly approaching the shelter with her very full wire push cart, stuffed with bags of . . . stuff.  She was looking for a meal:  "Is this a private picnic or is it open to the public?"  She wasn't 'badly' dressed but would stand out as a little rough compared to most of those gathered.  But I know the congregation and better still, I know the heart of Jesus for a lady like this - out on the street, collecting all she can to survive and probably really hungry about this time of day.  He loves her and wants to care for her.  We got to be one of the ways Jesus cared for her yesterday.

On top of that it gave several members an opportunity to talk to her as well.  Lord Jesus, please bless Marie and thank you for blessing us with her presence yesterday.

Matthew 25:40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’