Extreme Beauty!

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Everything in the heavens has a body, and so does everything on earth. But each one is very different from all the others. The sun isn’t like the moon, the moon isn’t like the stars, and each star is different.

That’s how it will be when our bodies are raised to life. These bodies will die, but the bodies that are raised will live forever. These ugly and weak bodies will become beautiful and strong. As surely as there are physical bodies, there are spiritual bodies. And our physical bodies will be changed into spiritual bodies.
 
1 Corinthians 15:40-44

How much time, money and energy do you spend trying to make your body beautiful?

The desire to be beautiful or handsome in this world is common to man and can consume all of your resources. Just watch an hour of commercials on television and count the number that claim to make you more attractive to other people. The list includes losing weight, getting rid of your wrinkles, making your "abs" thinner without losing weight, and dozens of other self improvement products
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If you are frustrated and discouraged just thinking about it, take heart. God has a body building and beautification program like no other. If you are a follower of Jesus Christ your body will become beautiful and strong when it is raised to life to live with Jesus forever.

Even if you spend hours a day at the gym the body you have now will grow older and weaker until the day you leave this earth. But when Jesus comes and changes your body at the resurrection of the dead you will become beautiful and strong beyond your wildest imagination.

Remember the ugly duckling who became the beautiful swan? Those who follow Jesus will explode that story into eternity as they are changed into the likeness of Jesus Himself. When that happens you will be given Extreme Beauty, Unlimited!

Crucified With Christ!

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I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20

Who demanded the crucifixion of Jesus? It was not the murderers, thieves, adulterers and the like. It was the very religious people who were highly offended by Jesus. They could not stand His honesty and His words were bold and convicting.

Here is a difficult truth. If you are living like Jesus in this world you will offend the religious people more than anyone else. Jesus didn't condemn sinners, but He did lash out at the "Scribes and Pharisees." He called them hypocrites.

So here is a word of encouragement. If your accusers themselves claim to be religious, then you may be really walking in the steps of Jesus.

Jesus went to the Cross for the Joy that was to come, and it did. If you are hanging on the Cross remember it is the only path to truly share in the Joy of Jesus!

When you are crucified with Christ, the miracle of the Cross touches your life in a way that it never could when you are simply standing by at the foot of the Cross.

The pinnacle of fellowship with Jesus is on the Cross!

Alarm of God!

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Light shows up everything, just as the Scriptures say,
“Wake up from your sleep
and rise from death.
Then Christ will shine on you.”
Act like people with good sense and not like fools. These are evil times, so make every minute count. Don’t be stupid. Instead, find out what the Lord wants you to do.

Ephesians 5:14-17

Do you have trouble waking up in the morning? If you do, then you probably are not getting enough sleep. Your body is begging for more. Enter the Snooze Alarm! The Snooze Alarm postpones the pain of waking up for usually another five minutes. And then another and another.

I have found that if I am having trouble getting up when the alarm goes off I should put it across the room so I have to get out of bed to shut it off. A louder alarm can also help. At one point I had an alarm clock that had the sound of a herd of elephants to wake me up. Frankly, it was pretty effective.

Has God been trying to wake you up from your spiritual sleep? It is so easy to hear the alarm of God and hit the snooze button. "Lord, just give me a little longer to sleep, and then I will wake up!" Over and over the wakeup call comes and our response is to go back to sleep.

It is easy to pretend that you are ignorant and don't know why God is waking you from sleep. You can even become so calloused that you don't hear the alarm anymore, much less bother with the snooze button.

OK, before you doze off and stop reading or listening to what I am saying consider one thing.

Why would God love you so much that He wants to wake you from sleep and as these verses say, raise you from death? Truthfully, no one but God Himself can answer that question, but the next time you hear the alarm of God think about how very much God loves you, wake up and don't hit the snooze button!

I Saw the Light!

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Jesus told us that God is light and doesn’t have any darkness in him. Now we are telling you.
If we say that we share in life with God and keep on living in the dark, we are lying and are not living by the truth. But if we live in the light, as God does, we share in life with each other. And the blood of his Son Jesus washes all our sins away.
1 John 1:5-7

When a blind man turns on the lights in his house, he is doing it for other people, not for himself. I suppose he can enjoy the warmth of a light bulb, but as far as the light is concerned, it does him no good at all.

Because of the decision Adam and Eve made to disobey God and sin, everyone born since has been born blind to the light of God! Our other senses perceive things about God, but since we are spiritually blind we grope about in the dark sometimes not even knowing that Jesus can touch our spiritual eyes and heal our vision!

I have a friend who is blind and sometimes jokes about wanting me to let him drive the car. Of course that would be truly a "wreck waiting to happen." When a man or woman who is spiritually blind tries to navigate through this life without being able to see the end is certain as well.

Jesus not only came to tell us that God is light and in Him there isn't any darkness at all, but He also came to heal our blindness so that we can see the light.

There is an old country song written and recorded by Hank Williams in 1948 which says "I wandered so aimless, life filled with sin. I wouldn't let my dear Savior in. Then Jesus came like a stranger in the night. Praise the Lord, I saw the light."

Remember, you will not see the light unless Jesus heals your blindness!

Prepare for the Storm!

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“You disgraceful nation, gather around, before it’s too late. The Lord has set a time when his fierce anger will strike like a storm and sweep you away. If you humbly obey the Lord , then come and worship him. If you do right and are humble, perhaps you will be safe on that day when the Lord turns loose his anger.”

Zephaniah 2:1-3

There comes a time when it is too late to prepare for the storm. When a hurricane is born in the Atlantic Ocean it doesn't even have a name. The storm is "way out there" in the ocean and may or may not affect anyone on shore, so most people pay no attention at all. Some prepare just in case this storm is the "big one" that everyone believes will come some day.

As the storm grows it is given a name and warnings begin to go out to the areas of possible impact. Finally, the hurricane is imminent and will strike land with full force in only hours! Those who have prepared begin to work their plans and those who have not run away, panic or simply pretend that they are not afraid.

When a full blown category three hurricane hits the shore it is accurate to say that "all Hell breaks loose."

There is a storm that has been gathering for a long time and is without a doubt about to come ashore in this world. That storm is building because men have refused to obey God. That storm is the "fierce anger" anger of God and will sweep you away if you are not a follower of Jesus.

You may say, "You are just trying to scare me!" Actually, that is right. If you continue to reject God in your life you should be afraid, very afraid. The storm that is coming will not be pretty and there is only one shelter where you can make it through the storm. You will only be safe in the arms of Jesus.

Don't wait because soon it will be too late!

Coming With the Clouds!

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The high priest stood up in the council and asked Jesus, “Why don’t you say something in your own defense? Don’t you hear the charges they are making against you?” But Jesus kept quiet and did not say a word. The high priest asked him another question, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the glorious God?”
“Yes, I am!” Jesus answered.
“Soon you will see
the Son of Man
sitting at the right side
of God All-Powerful,
and coming with the clouds
of heaven.”
 
Mark 14:60-62

What kind of clouds will be in the sky when Jesus returns? Will they be white and puffy and look like cotton balls against the bright blue sky, or will they be dark and threatening and speak of the ominous and imminent return of Jesus? Clouds are beautiful and relaxing but clouds are the visible part of the most destructive hurricane. Clouds, all clouds remind me that Jesus is coming and clouds will be with Him when He returns.

I am fascinated with sunrises. Without clouds a sunrise is beautiful, but clouds give it character and perspective that a cloudless day can never provide.

When I see the sun rise with clouds I am reminded of the Son of Man coming with clouds. He is so bright that you can't look at Him long without hurting your eyes. He brings eternal hope of the New Day to come! He warms my heart and gives me new strength.

So when you see a sunrise let yourself be reminded of that soon coming day when Jesus will come with the clouds. When we see Jesus coming, it will be like seeing the beauty of every sunrise that has ever been in one Glorious moment.

Remember, they say the night is the darkest just before the sunrise!

God Bless You!

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“God blesses those people
who depend only on him.
They belong to the kingdom
of heaven!”
Matthew 5:3

Saying "God bless you" when someone sneezes is a very old practice and one for which the origin is not certain. It may have started when sneezing was an early symptom of the Bubonic plague and the blessing of God was invoked to ward it off.

In what is now call the "Beatitudes" Jesus mentions nine instances of people who are blessed by God. The top of the list is someone who depends only on God.

Life's highest goal is to depend only on God for everything. A simple definition of sin would be when we let go of our dependence on God and hold on to something or someone else for our needs! God is willing to give me wisdom, a path for my walk, food and clothing, even as He does the Lilies of the field. God answers all my prayers and lovingly corrects me when I need it. God is my savings account, my retirement, my health insurance, and my doctor. There is nothing in this life that I need that cannot come from the hand of God!

As you walk through this day, look for even small ways in which you are not depending only on God and then repent. God will bless you even more!