His Will is Better than My Wants

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Some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk. They begged Jesus just to touch him.  After Jesus had taken him aside from the crowd, he stuck his fingers in the man's ears. Then he spit and put it on the man's tongue.  Jesus looked up toward heaven, and with a groan he said, “Effatha!” which means “Open up!”  At once the man could hear, and he had no more trouble talking clearly.  Jesus told the people not to say anything about what he had done. But the more he told them, the more they talked about it.  They were completely amazed and said, “Everything he does is good! He even heals people who cannot hear or talk.”

Mark 7:32-37 - CEV

These verses tell the story of a man who could not hear and could barely talk when some people brought him to Jesus!  They only asked Jesus to touch the man!  Jesus did touch the man and he was healed!

In a real way every man and woman who is alive today on planet earth is both deaf and cannot speak!  Until Jesus touches you, you cannot hear the things of God and you certainly cannot talk about them!  But when the Lord Jesus puts His fingers in your ears and puts His own saliva on your tongue you can hear the things of God with perfect clarity and you can speak about them as well!

When you encounter Jesus in your life, it is better to simply ask that He touch you rather than asking for healing!  His "Will" is so much better than your "Wants."  Let Jesus have His way with you!  You will never regret it!

"Lord Jesus, I am in need of healing, but much more than that I need to be touched by You today! Everything You do Lord Jesus is Good! May Your Holy and righteous Name be praised now and forever.  Amen."

FEAR AND FAITH

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That evening, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let's cross to the east side.”  So they left the crowd, and his disciples started across the lake with him in the boat. Some other boats followed along.  Suddenly a storm struck the lake. Waves started splashing into the boat, and it was about to sink.  Jesus was in the back of the boat with his head on a pillow, and he was asleep. His disciples woke him and said, “Teacher, don't you care that we're about to drown?”  Jesus got up and ordered the wind and the waves to be quiet. The wind stopped, and everything was calm.  Jesus asked his disciples, “Why were you afraid? Don't you have any faith?”  Now they were more afraid than ever and said to each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

Mark 4:35-41 - CEV

The disciples of Jesus were afraid of the storm and then they were afraid of the Lord!  When Jesus commanded the storm to stop, His followers saw that Jesus had more power than the storm did!  That made them afraid of Him!

Even as followers of Jesus today, we are amazed that Jesus can heal the sick and intervene in life situations that concern and trouble us.  But, if we were to see the overwhelming power of God work in the world around us and even the heavens above us we too might fear as the disciples did!

God is "Almighty!"  That means that there is nothing too hard for Him to accomplish.  There is nothing too big for Him to move.   Everything in all the Cosmos is subject to His power and will!  

When I was a child I believed that my father could do anything!  A child with a loving father always believes that.  Now that I myself am a father and even a grandfather, I know that I was wrong about my earthly father.  He did love me, but he could not do anything he wanted to.  But, I am not wrong about my Heavenly Father!  God can do everything I thought my earthly father could do and so much more!  

The Devil tries to destroy earthly fathers so that their children will not know what Jesus is really like!  It is harder to love your Heavenly Father if you hate your earthly one!

"Lord Jesus, give me the Faith to believe that You can do anything and everything that needs to be done.  May I be at Peace in all the storms of life!  Praise Your Holy and Righteous Name, now and forever. Amen!"

Jesus With the Wild Animals

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About that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and John baptized him in the Jordan River.  As soon as Jesus came out of the water, he saw the sky open and the Holy Spirit coming down to him like a dove.  A voice from heaven said, “You are my own dear Son, and I am pleased with you.”  At once God's Spirit made Jesus go into the desert.  He stayed there for 40 days while Satan tested him. Jesus was with the wild animals, but angels took care of him. 

Mark 1:9-13 - CEV

Three things happened while Jesus was in the desert for 40 days.  Satan tempted Him, Jesus spent time with wild animals and angels took care of Him.  There is much written and taught about the temptation time of Jesus and much speculation about how angels took care of Him, but what about His time with the Wild Animals?  

Except when Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, I don't remember any mention of Jesus and an animal other than during these 40 days when He was with Wild Animals.

I wonder if Jesus talked with the animals.  My dog can understand much of what I say to her.  Surely, animals understand what Jesus says to them?  And  Jesus can understand what animals think and feel since He created them!

Today, some animal lovers think more highly of animals than they do humans.  Don't forget that animals were not created in the image of 
God.  Adam and Eve were created in God's imagine.  But animals were important enough that God saved them from the Flood in the Ark of Noah and while in the wilderness, Jesus spend time with them!

My friend, you are not an animal, but if you are in the wilderness, Jesus wants to spend time with you today!  If you already know Jesus, He wants to have a wonderful time of communion and fellowship with His follower.  If you don't know Jesus, He wants you to come to Him and meet Him today!  Jesus wants you to be with Him not for 40 days, or even 40 years.  Jesus wants to be with you forever!

"Lord Jesus, thank You for creating all the animals in the world!  But most of all thank You for creating mankind and showing us Your love by dying on the Cross for our sins.  May Your Name be praised now and forever.  Amen."  

   

Listen to Jesus

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As Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem, he took his twelve disciples aside and told them in private: We are now on our way to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses. They will sentence him to death, and then they will hand him over to foreigners who will make fun of him. They will beat him and nail him to a cross. But on the third day he will rise from death. 

Matthew 20:17-19 - CEV

Jesus told His disciples exactly what was going to happen in Jerusalem.  If these followers of Jesus had listened to what Jesus said, they would have known what was going to happen.   But they did not listen!  So they were confused and suffered as they watched Jesus nailed to a Cross and buried in the ground!

As you listen to Jesus speaking today through His Word, do you really hear what He is saying, or are you like the disciples who heard the Words and yet could not believe that Jesus meant what He said?

So as you open your Bible today ask the Lord to help you open your mind as well to actually hear what He is saying!  You may have read a verse many times over the years and yet never really listened to what the Lord is saying in it!  

"Lord Jesus, help me today to hear clearly what You are saying to me.  Open my ears and my heart to hear Your Word like never before.  May Your Holy and Righteous Name be praised now and forever.  Amen."

Jesus Gives You a Choice

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Then Jesus said to his disciples: If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross and follow me.  If you want to save your life, you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me, you will find it.

Matthew 16:24-25 - CEV

How does a man forget about himself and give up his life?  

At our local hospital there are a number of older men and women who volunteer every day to park cars for those who have come to see the doctor and find it hard to walk all the way from the parking lot.  There is another group of the elderly who push wheel chairs and serve as guides through the maze of hallways to help visitors find the person they want to see.

In the United States, at this time those who are part of the military are all volunteers.  No one is forced to "serve" as a soldier.  

Disciples of Jesus Christ are all volunteers!  No one is forced to follow Jesus and no one is compelled to walk in His steps!

Some who are not Christians often accuse followers of Jesus of "forcing" others to live by the standards of righteousness.  That is not true of Jesus.  Jesus wants you to come to Him of your own free will!  Jesus opened the door to Heaven for everyone who will walk through it by faith in Him.  But the door to Hell is also wide open for anyone who choses to go that way!

Jesus did not come to keep you from making the wrong choice.  Jesus came so that you would have the right choice available because of His Blood!  Jesus is the Way to Heaven, but you must choose Him in order to go!

"Lord Jesus, thank You for making it possible by Your own Blood for me to spend Eternity with You in Heaven!  May Your Holy and Righteous Name be praised now and forever.  Amen."

The First Miracle at a Wedding!

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This is how Jesus Christ was born. A young woman named Mary was engaged to Joseph from King David's family. But before they were married, she learned that she was going to have a baby by God's Holy Spirit.  Joseph was a good man and did not want to embarrass Mary in front of everyone. So he decided to quietly call off the wedding.  While Joseph was thinking about this, an angel from the Lord appeared to him in a dream. The angel said, “Joseph, the baby that Mary will have is from the Holy Spirit. Go ahead and marry her.  Then after her baby is born, name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”  So the Lord's promise came true, just as the prophet had said, “A virgin will have a baby boy, and he will be called Immanuel,” which means “God is with us.”

Matthew 1:18-23 - CEV

The Bible does not tell us anything about the Wedding of Joseph and Mary.  Joseph was going to call it off when he found out that Mary was pregnant.  Matthew tells us that Joseph did not want to embarrass Mary, so perhaps he was just going to call off the public celebration of their marriage.  But, an angel appeared to Joseph and told him to go ahead with the wedding!

Jesus was in His mother's womb when she married Joseph!  Jesus Himself was the first miracle at a wedding.  The "First Adam" did not come to earth as a baby.  He was formed from the dust of the ground and as far as we know was an adult when he took his first breath.  But Jesus didn't arrive on earth that way.  Jesus came as a baby and was born in a barn!  

The First Adam brought sin into the world and Jesus paid the price for all of it!  

The Christmas Story is only the first page of the final chapter of how Jesus bought you back from the control of Satan!  

Jesus is the best Christmas gift ever given!  Jesus gave you everything you will ever need for all of Eternity, if you will receive it!  All Jesus wants from you is your heart!  Lay your heart open before Jesus and let Him have control of your life, now and forever!

"Lord Jesus, You are the only Way to Heaven and the only Hope for all men!  May Your Holy Name be praised now and always!  Amen."

Leftovers From God

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When Jesus saw the large crowd coming toward him, he asked Philip, “Where will we get enough food to feed all these people?”  He said this to test Philip, since he already knew what he was going to do.  Philip answered, “Don't you know that it would take almost a year's wages just to buy only a little bread for each of these people?”  Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the disciples. He spoke up and said,  “There is a boy here who has five small loaves of barley bread and two fish. But what good is that with all these people?”  The ground was covered with grass, and Jesus told his disciples to tell everyone to sit down. About 5,000 men were in the crowd.  Jesus took the bread in his hands and gave thanks to God. Then he passed the bread to the people, and he did the same with the fish, until everyone had plenty to eat.  The people ate all they wanted, and Jesus told his disciples to gather up the leftovers, so that nothing would be wasted.  The disciples gathered them up and filled twelve large baskets with what was left over from the five barley loaves.  

John 6:5-13 - CEV

Every day, all over the world, God multiplies grain after it is planted in the ground and watered.  The barley seeds that made the five loaves could have been planted in the ground and produced many more seeds.  Then, when those seeds were planted in the ground, there would be even more. Repeating this process a few times would produce more than enough grain to feed 5000 people, and even have the 12 baskets full of leftovers!  The same was true with the two fish.  If they had not been caught and one had been a male and the other one female, in time they would have produced plenty of fish for the crowd!  

Why did Jesus tell His followers to gather the leftover bread?  The Bible says so that nothing would be wasted.  One of the best things about a large family dinner is the "leftovers."  At our house we usually send most of them home with our children, but there almost always are enough for a few meals at our house too!

When you see the power of God making miraculous provision for those who are hungry for God, don't forget to gather the baskets of leftovers!  Don't waste the spiritual food that can still feed you for days and even beyond!

When Jesus feeds the crowd around you, don't forget to gather the leftovers and be sustained by them.  Sometimes those leftovers can give you strength for all the days of your life to come here on earth!

"Lord Jesus, thank You for always providing enough of Your Word to feed the crowd and satisfy Your Children now and forever.  Praise Your Holy and Righteous Name always!  Amen."

HOW SNAKES LOST THEIR LEGS

The Lord God then asked the woman, “What have you done?” “The snake tricked me,” she answered, “and I ate some of that fruit.”  So the Lord God said to the snake: “Because of what you have done, you will be the only animal to suffer this curse— For as long as you live, you will crawl on your stomach and eat dirt. 

Genesis 3:13-14 - CEV

In the January 2018 edition of the magazine called "Scientific American" there is an article titled:

How Snakes Lost Their Legs

This well respected journal claims that there is now fossil record of snakes with legs.  I don't want to be an "I told you so," but I learned that when I was not much more than three years old and went to Sunday school each week!

Here is the dilemma.  Do you believe what the Bible says because science can confirm it to be true?  Or do you believe what the Bible says even if science has not yet be able to establish God's Word as true!  Science is not the standard of truth!  The Word of God is the standard of truth!  

Scientists are sometimes able to discover that the Bible is actually true!  When they do, it may bring some closer to a point of faith in God!  But if you only believe what the Bible says if science is able to confirm it, you will miss most of the message God has for you!

Don't build your faith on the findings of science.  Let your faith provide science with many wonderful things to investigate!

"Lord Jesus, may my Faith be built on what You have said and not just on what science can prove.  Thank you Lord for telling us thousands of years ago that snakes had legs!  Praise Your Holy Name, now and forever.  Amen."

Your Damascus Road

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About noon I saw a light brighter than the sun. It flashed from heaven on me and on everyone traveling with me.  We all fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice say to me in Aramaic, “Saul, Saul, why are you so cruel to me? It's foolish to fight against me!”  “Who are you?” I asked. Then the Lord answered, “I am Jesus! I am the one you are so cruel to.  Now stand up. I have appeared to you, because I have chosen you to be my servant. You are to tell others what you have learned about me and what I will show you later.”  The Lord also said, “I will protect you from the Jews and from the Gentiles that I am sending you to.  I want you to open their eyes, so they will turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Then their sins will be forgiven, and by faith in me they will become part of God's holy people.” 

Acts 26:13-18 - CEV

When Jesus appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus, the light was so bright that Saul became blind to the world around him.  

After Jesus rose from the grave He appeared only to those who would tell others about Him! (Acts 10:38-41)  When a man or woman sees the resurrected Christ, he or she has a story to tell!  And what a story it is!  It is the story of light overcoming the darkness!  It is the story of life doing away with death!  The story of Jesus on earth began in Bethlehem the night that He was born, and it will not end until He returns and takes His people home!  

When Jesus shows Himself to you, you will be blinded by the Light!  Like Saul whose name was changed to Paul, the purpose of your life will change!  Instead of running after the things that "light up your life," you will seek to reflect the light of Jesus to everyone you meet.  

The story of Charlie is real.  Charlie mentioned Jesus to everyone he met.  I heard his grandson tell me that once Charlie saw a man high up on a ladder as the man worked.  Charlie called out to the man and asked "Do you know Jesus?"  The man said "yes" and Charlie shouted a word of approval and walked away! Charlie is now with Jesus in Eternity after spending more than 90 years on this earth telling others about the Light of Christ!

In a sense, all Christians have a "Road to Damascus Moment" when Jesus shows Himself to them and calls them to tell others about Him!  If you have not yet seen Jesus, ask Him to show Himself to you today!

"Lord Jesus, give me the courage to tell everyone I meet today about You!  May Your Holy and Righteous Name be praised now and forever.  Amen."