Worthy Words

When I'm feeling sad and lowly, I need to be reminded that I'm special in God's eyes. When I'm playing the "What if I" game, wishing that things were different, I need to be reminded that I am a poem created to work perfectly in God’s plan and there is no other poem like me. The Bible says in, Ephesians 2:10; “We are God's masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” The Greek word translated for "workmanship" or "masterpiece" (depending on your translation) is poiema , from which we get our English word "poem." It means, "that which is made, a manufactured product." Based on the context of the second chapter of Ephesians, our conversion is not the end; it is the beginning. Too many believers think salvation is the only important experience and nothing else matters. At great expense to Himself, God worked for us on the cross. And today, on the basis of that pri...

My wife loves campfires. Every time she goes camping there has to be a campfire regardless of the conditions. The smoky smell that permeates your clothes is not for me, but she is drawn to it and the crackling sound of the wood burning, and the amber light that reflects off the faces of those gathered around make the campfire experience complete. So it was no surprise when she purchased an outdoor fire pit for the backyard. One night after a day of heavy rain she decided to roast some marshmallows over the fire. The problem she faced became apparent when every piece of wood dripped with water from the previous days’ rain. But, because she had an insatiable need for S’mores, she hunted relentlessly for the driest pieces of wood she could find. With a great deal of persistence and effort she was rewarded with a sustainable enough fire to roast a few marshmallows.  While it seemed like a small miracle to get the wet wood to light, it reminded me of the experience of Elijah and...

If you’ve been a parent one thing that you never forget, no matter how old your children are now, were those 5:00a.m., getting up with the rooster, feedings. Those little babies have a built-in alarm clock to let you know they are hungry. We pull them from their crib and sit down in a rocker and with one eye half way open give them what they want—their first meal of the day. Now, at the end of the meal, you lift your child up and place him or her over your shoulder and gently rub or pat their back so they can burp and get all those air bubbles out of their little stomachs. Depending on how aggressive an eater your child was there tends to be a lot of air-swallowing taking place during those feedings. Sometimes they push off our shoulder looking intently into our eyes making us well-up with love for them only to be greeted with a good portion of the morning meal spit-up all over the two of you.   Sometimes, I feel like I do the same thing to God. He has given me the greates...

Sometimes we get too comfortable in our lifestyle. What are some real-world ways you can fully surrender your life to God? Here’s a gentle reminder from the Apostle Paul in Romans 12:1-2; I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Surrender starts with our minds and how we think. Here is an example of a typical mindset held by many who claim to know Jesus. It is taken from pastor and author Charles Swindoll in his book, Improving Your Serve where he gives this illustration on page 86; “I would love to buy $3 worth of God, please, not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I want ecstasy, not trans...

We conclude our study on understanding of the meaning of Sabbath; let’s examine the seventh and final fact of this important biblical word based on Genesis 2:1-3. FACT #7: Hebrews 4:11 says, “Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.” Why do we have to work at resting? Some folks come alive in their Christian life learning early on how to flourish in rest. Still others try it and it doesn’t work for them. Why? The answer lies in what our Lord and Savior said in Matthew 11:28-30. Jesus says: “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Looking closely at the text you will notice the word “rest” is used twice. The first “rest” is given—meaning that it is experienced when you first come to Christ by bei...

Hope this information is helping you to have a correct understanding of the meaning of Sabbath, let’s examine the sixth fact of this significant biblical word. Let’s refresh our memory of the verses we have been using as our source text for our study, Genesis 2:1-3 from the English Standard Version: Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation. FACT #6: Genesis 2:3 makes known to us that God blessed and made the Sabbath holy. Remember that blessing is connected with fruitfulness and dominion. God told man in Genesis 1:28 to “Be fruitful and multiply and have dominion over all the earth.” Blessing is fruitfulness and dominion. God also made holy or “sanctified” the Sabbath. He assigned it a specific function...

We march on in our effort to have a correct understanding of the meaning of Sabbath, let’s examine the fifth fact of this remarkable biblical word. Let’s refresh our memory of the verses we have been using as our source text for our study, Genesis 2:1-3 from the English Standard Version: Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.  FACT #5: Though the Saturday observance of Sabbath ended at the cross the true Sabbath rest of God in which He ceases from His creative efforts, continues to this day. The specific application for this is described in verses nine and ten of Hebrews chapter four: So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested...