Precious Death

One of my friends died last week. Even in her 80s, she was vivacious, as energetic as her weakening body would allow, and ferociously faithful in her trust of God. In events 30 years apart, she had lost both husband and son in missionary endeavors. Her trust never wavered. In very recent years, she had suffered significant injuries when her neck was broken in a car accident, when she was attacked by a house cat (!) and after a fall down a hill. In her pain, her trust never wavered.

Sometimes we think it is so sad when a lively and loved person dies. What does God’s Word say about that? The Psalmist tells us, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants.” Ps. 116:15.  We do not often think of death as “precious.” Maybe we should, since God does. Maybe we are short-sighted, seeing only this side of death--the deterioration of age, the end of talent or service or potential, our loss. God must see something else, for Him to call that “precious.” He tells us, knowing we will not understand the significance or the details.

There are also heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one, and the glory of the earthly is another. So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory, it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.  I Cor 15: 40-44.

For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 Cor 5:1.

He paid for that transition. Everyone who responds to His offer gives Him joy. The change of the dying body to the forever living body is precious.

---Lynda Shenefield

Changing Your Prayer Life

Recently, I've been thinking about when and how I pray.  Having grown up in Christian school and in church every time the doors were open, I'm especially familiar with not only the Lord's Prayer, but also the ACTS of Prayer(Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication).  I now understand both the Lord's Prayer and the idea of ACTS were meant to be examples to help us and NOT formulas. But, as a teenager, I internalized there must be a right way and wrong way to pray. A simple "Help!" prayer must have a spirit of Adoration, Confession and Thanksgiving surrounding it in order to be heard. A prayer of just supplication would be frowned upon before the throne of God above.  There was a right and wrong way to pray in my mind...no one ever taught me that.  But, in the black-white way I viewed the world, I took away that unless I did it right, my prayers would not be heard and therefore would not be effective.

And honestly, I think I gave up on it for awhile. If I didn't have time to use all the right language and insert scripture into my prayers, were they even worth anything?  Was God up there grading my prayers and only listening to the ones that followed the formula? I knew I needed to pray, but I didn't.  I wanted to pray.  I wanted to speak to Jesus like he was a friend.  I wanted to converse with God in the intimate way I could hear in other people's voices, but I felt like every word I uttered needed to pass the editorial board before it could be heard.  

My dad has always said that having children will "change your prayer life," and I believe it has definitely been in the last several years that I have begun to glimpse the power of prayer for which I had longed.  First of all, I am already holy. When I asked Jesus to be my Savior and received the Spirit, that was it. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.  I am no longer a slave striving out of fear, I am an heir with Christ.  Therefore, I should live as a daughter of the King, walking in confidence and not in fear. 

For ye received not the spirit of bondage again unto fear; but ye received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified with him.  Romans 8:15-17

So, when I speak to my Father, I can cry "Abba...Daddy" the same way I can with my own Father.  I have not only the Spirit to bear witness with me, but I have a High Priest in Christ who understands each and every prayer I pray. 

Having then a great high priest, who hath passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we have not a high priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but one that hath been in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.  Let us therefore draw near with boldness unto the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy, and may find grace to help us in time of need. Heb 4: 14-16

And my dad doesn't insist that I follow a formula for speaking with him.  He doesn't ask that I only speak to him at certain times of the day.  He loves me.  He wants to talk to me whenever I call. If my earthly father loves me like that, how much more does my heavenly father? Prayer is an important part of our faith. It's something we GET to do.  I get to talk directly with the God of the Universe whenever and wherever I want.  I need to pray in the same way I want to tell my daddy about big news in my life, or ask his advice on what I should do in a situation.  

Prayers do not have to be perfect. I do not have to strive to be perfect. In my Father's eyes, I am covered with the blood of Jesus and I am already made holy.  The process of sanctification is not to work "for" my salvation, but as Paul says "work out [my] salvation" in the process of fixing my eyes on Jesus and becoming more like him in the everyday mundane.  There is nothing I can do or not do to make God love me any more or any less.  Prayer is the working out of our salvation as we learn to rely on Him instead of a formula we try to do ourselves.

"I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn't change God. It changes me." -C.S. Lewis

--Gabrielle Haston

Anticipating

Did you get to see the sunflowers?  I enjoyed them on Friday with one of my daughters and a three-year-old granddaughter who was more interested in running around under the large leaves and digging in the dirt than she was in looking at the stunning display of color and large blooms raising their eyes to the sun.

That's ok. We had a good time and took the obligatory pictures. But the golden memory of those forty acres still glows in my mind, and it makes me wonder about the glory and majesty of heaven. I've seen other pictures of fields of color--tulips, daisies, lavender--just magnificent!

Revelation describes heaven as a place filled with color and light. Check out the twenty-first chapter. I confess to not longing for heaven as much as I perhaps ought to. But I've been to three funerals in the last two weeks, and a common theme of all three was the feeling that heaven is more real and precious with loved ones there. 

Certainly, each saint who goes on before us adds to our anticipation. Still, I don't think we can possibly grasp the splendor of the place itself.  God's beauty and creativity will be on display unspoiled and without blemish. If God made such gorgeousness as I saw on Friday for this passing world, what must He have prepared for our eternal home?

Most glorious, Jesus, the Light, will be there before our very eyes. We will need or desire nothing else. Until then, I love the hints and tiny previews we get in fields of flowers.

--Sherry Poff

Lessons From the Blueberry Farm

There is something I REALLY like to do every summer. I like to visit the BLUEBERRY FARM in Lafayette, GA. My husband Brant likes to pick but I need to weigh him before we leave. J

1. At the blueberry farm, I am reminded that BLESSINGS FROM GOD ARE THERE FOR THE PICKING. Sometimes picking berries is very hot and hard…then God sends a wonderful breeze or He gives me a tree that has berries hidden under the shade.

 Look around - family, friends, creation, God's Word, music... I Timothy 6:17 says “God gives us RICHLY all things to enjoy.”  Many times the tiny berries are very sweet surprises, but we might have to look for them. That is life very often!

2. At the blueberry patch, I have learned that OTHERS HAVE PREPARED THE WAY FOR ME. Someone planted bushes…maybe even birds helpedJ. The owners have provided a bucket to put on my belt, water, a clean outdoor “facility,” clear paths to get to the “trees.”   

BE ENCOURAGERS...  The word “ENCOURAGE” means to “give support, confidence or hope to someone.”  

Paul said in Philemon 1:7, that “the saints were REFRESHED” by Philemon. How wonderful to have your name in the Bible, which was inspired by the Holy Spirit, that you had refreshed others!! You can be someone’s CEO - CHIEF ENCOURAGING OFFICER.

Life's problems go down a bit better with the "blueberries with milk and sugar" of encouragement.  

3. At the blueberry farm, I have learned THAT CIRCUMSTANCES WILL TRY TO KEEP ME AWAY FROM PICKING BERRIES. We must watch for circumstances that would keep us from our goals. Sometimes bees, mosquitoes, even a busy schedule will try to deter a berry picker. Also SOMETIMES THE BEST BERRIES ARE HIDDEN A BIT.  We rush to our Bibles on a busy morning and "pick the berries right up front" so to speak...familiar verses... but we also need to have times of really digging into God's Word  Lack of self-discipline and organization will keep us from being the people we should be in our spiritual lives, our homes, and jobs. We must FOCUS on what is important. Hebrews 12 is very familiar: “Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus,”

4.  I can share the fruit with others – fresh or preserved,

Some berries I share with people who would never go picking. Some I like to give just because I love them and want them to enjoy the berries. OH THE SWEETNESS of pulling out those berries a few a day and putting them on a bowl of cereal, or using frozen berries for waffles!

This reminds me of meditations written in my journal so I will remember later...

Like meditating on a blessing God has given me before,

Or a phrase from my devotions that helps me and I can share with another...

Or writing a note to encourage a friend...emails, texts, messaging...all good...BUT NOTHING like a proper card in the mail.

 Or setting aside time to take care of a need, or giving a witness to someone I have befriended.

Blueberries...those little, round blue things...I hope they remind you of God’s blessings and encourage you to share those gifts from God with others today!

--Maylou Holladay

Glorious Pomegranates!

Is your favorite portion of Scripture where God gives Moses instructions for building the Tabernacle and designing the priests' garments? I bet it’s not. I force myself to read that tedious stretch of Scripture. But yet, God gave it to us for a reason, right? I’m sure there is much symbolism found in the specifics, but today I focus on pomegranates. God told Moses to have pomegranates stitched to the trim of the priests’ garments. You may also remember that when the spies scoped out the land, they returned with a single cluster of grapes that took two men to carry and samples of figs and pomegranates. Later, God would decorate His Temple with pomegranates. They are mentioned several times in Song of Solomon – luscious and inviting. In the book of Joel, with God's judgement, they dry up along with the grapes, figs, and the people’s joy.

Intriqued by these references to pomegranates, I researched the health benefits of eating them. They help the cardiovascular system which impacts the heart and blood pressure. They improve memory and reduce inflammation and fight cancer; they’re rich in anti-oxidants. In the Bible, pomegranates seem to symbolize health, well-being, and bounty (Shalom). After learning these things, I bought some pomegranate powder and add it to my Greek yogurt and smoothies. I want a little Shalom in my life, don’t you?

“Thank You, Lord, for the hidden treasures within your Word. I appreciate Your desire to give us good things. May we never take it for granted.”

joyce hague