EXTREME MAKEOVER – Temporal vs Eternal

Last night the Sharrock Family of Rossville, Georgia was featured on the television program Extreme Makeover Home Edition.  I remember when that is all we watched on the news as they filmed here locally.  I have watched this program in the past and always enjoyed seeing the dilapidated and unfit homes become new and clean, ready for the family to shout “Move That Bus”. Then we would be taken on a virtual tour of each room that had been set up just to the family’s likes and needs. They were no longer burdened by the insufficiencies of the previous home. Friends, family and strangers became ambassadors of good will for one busy week to become the salvation for one family.

Second Corinthians 5:1- 5 says, “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.  For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life.  Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.”

If you continue reading chapter five of second Corinthians, Paul encourages the believers of the church in Corinth to always be of good courage. We prefer to be absent from the body and present with the Lord, but regardless of whether we are at home or absent we are to be pleasing to the Lord.

So when I put this into context concerning me and my earthly tent, dilapidated and unfit, I long for my dwelling in heaven. Instead of “Move That Bus” I want to cry out to the Lord “Take Me Home”.  But I am an ambassador of Christ and God is making an appeal through me on behalf of Christ for the salvation of others.

Tina Laubscher

Words of Love

Sunday morning--Mother's Day--on the way to church, Larry and I were listening to the radio. A man was talking about his mother---sweet words of appreciation about how she always got up early to make breakfast: bacon and eggs during the week and either pancakes or waffles on Saturday and Sunday. He said, "No one had to tell her to get up early. She did that because she loved her family."

Well, friends, I have to tell you something about me. I do not like getting up early to cook breakfast. I sure hope that's not the only measure of love for one's family! I am going to fail! I am grateful that my sweet husband likes cereal. When the kids were home, they knew that Mom would eventually get up on Saturday and cook breakfast (I actually specialized in muffins and eggs) but if they woke up hungry, they should just get a bowl of cereal and be patient.

Happily, there are other ways to show love. I was especially stirred by Michael Loftis' evening message when he was with us. He was talking about the influence of fathers, but it spoke right directly to the teacher as well as the mom in me. I took some notes. Here are the three things a dad/mom/teacher/friend can say to encourage:


1. It can be done. What wonderful words those are. When we feel like quitting,we all need to believe that our goals are possible.

2. You are not alone. This is a powerful truth. I am reminded of Ecclesiastes 4:9 & 10 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help him up.
3. I believe in you. We all need someone to believe in us, to tell us that we have value, that God can use us.

Don't you want to be that person for someone in your life? I do. I am asking God to show me who needs to hear these messages. I am so very grateful for those who have been there in my moments of disbelief and discouragement. Amy Wright, whose beautiful funeral service was on Tuesday, was that kind of encourager for friends and family. Several stood and gave eloquent testimony to her influence in their lives. I hope and pray that some day there will be folks to stand and say similar words about each of us.

--Sherry Poff

What the H_ _ _ is Going On?

DISCLAIMER: I hope you don't find my title offensive, but I find Hell offensive, and therefore, could not address the topic any other way. The Lord laid this on my heart this week, and I had to obey Him. Please know that my mother raised me well and has washed my mouth out with soap for words you'd laugh at! I hope you'll read on to see that it is a taste of Hell that has made me long even more for the feast of Heaven!

Death. Destruction. Devastation. Fear. Pain. Separation. Sorrow. Tears. Hell on Earth. These words are just a few that come to mind as I reflect over the events of the last couple of weeks. I have shared these feelings with my family members as we received news of the shocking murder of my father's sister, my Aunt Marcia. Within our church family we have all felt this burden in the last week even more heavily as many lives were shaken by the effects of record-breaking tornadoes. Many have experienced extreme loss. We are grieving with our sister and brothers, Kathy, Paul and Bradley at the homegoing of Amy. These events have stirred us deep within. We have tasted Hell, and it leaves us preferring the taste of soap.

The prophet, Joel says, "...Indeed, the Day of the LORD is terrible and dreadful who can endure it? (Joel 2:11b)" If you have felt the depths of despair, as I have, then you know in a small way what Hell will be like for eternity. Often, we talk about the blessings in life that leave us with a little taste of Heaven. But it is a call to repentance and urgency that we must also experience tastes of Hell.

My heart is heavy, as many of yours, and as the people to whom Joel prophesied. I encourage you to read the book of Joel today. It's only three chapters tucked in between Hosea and Amos. The people had experienced great loss. Joel pointed out to them that their devastation was just a glimpse of what the day of the Lord would be like. He calls them to repentance, and then he tells them about God's great desire to restore, heal and shower with blessings. You will LOVE chapter 2 especially!

I like what one teenager wrote on his Facebook wall this week: "We might not have electricity, but we still have Power." Oh that we might grasp, as this young man did, that though we grieve, we still have hope in the One whom even the wind and waves obey (Luke 8:25).

I hope now you see that the only way to understand what is going on around us, is to acknowledge that it is, indeed, a taste of Hell. May these events draw you to your Maker, urge you to tell others and stir within a deeper longing to be with Him in Heaven!


~Rebecca Phillips

HE IS RISEN!

            I love Easter!  My grandfather wrote a book called I Love Christmas, but I love Easter.  It is not just that I love this time of year with the warmer weather, sunshine (though I know we need the rain, I will be glad when it does not rain quite as much!), the return of the hummingbirds, the flowers (I spend way too much money at the garden center!), the opportunity to sit on my front porch without being either too hot or too cold.  But I really love Easter because it is the crux, the center of my faith, of my life.

            I have heard others say that even if the resurrection were not true, even if Christ had never risen from the dead, even if there were no life after death, they would still be glad they had lived their lives as Christians.  I totally disagree.  I would not want to have lived my life based on a lie.  I would not want to live deceived.

            The apostle Paul agreed with me.  In I Corinthians 15:14-19 he says,

            “And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.  Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ:  whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.  For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised:  And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.  Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.  If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.”

            “Of all men most miserable”—does that sound as if Paul would be glad even if he had lived his life based on a lie?  If that were the end of Paul’s reflection, then I would be most miserable.  But that is not the end.  The very next verse says, “But now is Christ risen from the dead!”

            In John 11 is the story of the death of Lazarus.  When he first saw Martha, before he went to the tomb of Lazarus, Jesus spoke words that make me both want to cry and to shout.  He said, “I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:  and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.  Believest thou this?”  (John 11:25-26)

             I want to shout, “YES, I BELIEVE!  YOU ARE THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE!”

            Many years ago I found a poem that expresses my feelings so well, If Easter Be Not True by Henry H. Barstow

If Easter be not true, Then all the lilies low must lie; The Flanders poppies fade and die; The spring must lose her fairest bloom For Christ were still within the tomb If Easter be not true. If Easter be not true, Then faith must mount on broken wing; Then hope no more immortal spring; Then love must lose her mighty urge; Life prove a phantom, death a dirge If Easter be not true.   If Easter be not true, 'Twere foolishness the cross to bear; He died in vain Who suffered there; What matter though we laugh or cry, Be good or evil, live or die, If Easter be not true?   If Easter be not true But it  is  true, and Christ is risen! And mortal spirit from its prison Of sin and death with Him may rise! Worthwhile the struggle, sure the prize, Since Easter, aye, is true!                      Hallelujah!  He is risen!

                                                                           

                                                                            ~Faith Lamb

Daily Proverb  

Thirty days hath September, April, June and November; February has twenty eight alone, and all the rest have thirty-one except in Leap Year, that's the time when February's days are twenty-nine.

I find myself using this sixteenth century poem any time I need to know how many days there are in a month. Being in God’s word each day of each month is so important for our daily journey.

Solomon spoke 3,000 proverbs and we have 31 chapters full of a portion of those proverbs included in the canon of scripture. That gives us a dose each day of each month to gain some insight on life and human behavior. I Kings 4:29-32 tells us that God gave Solomon wisdom and great discernment and breadth of mind.  Solomon spoke this wisdom in proverbs and songs. It is important to note that a proverb is a wise saying – not a promise, but the wisdom found in each proverb is just as pertinent today as it was when Solomon spoke long ago.

Each day a verse or group of verses in the proverb for the day jumps out and touches my heart.  For example, the jump out verse in the proverb for me today, Monday, April 18, 2011 is verse 10 – “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe.” I did some research in Strong’s Concordance and a commentary by Matthew Henry.  The verse is comforting as it speaks to God’s sufficiency and security for His children. We can depend on Him day by day as a place of refuge, and a sanctuary when we are weary.

As we ask God to bring “neighbors” into our life, we may find ourselves in a position to minister to them in their day to day life challenges. Through daily readings and the study of God’s word, we will be equipped to love them and minister to them in whatever way they need. Reading through the proverbs each month is one way to supply some quick precious nuggets of wisdom. As Faith Lamb put it so well in her blog – we have chances for holiness all around us. Let’s equip ourselves!

So….. thirty days hath September, April……. Start with Proverbs 18 and let me know how you like it!

Tina Laubscher 

Like Kisses in the Dark

I've had this poem by Elizabeth Barrett Browning on my mind all day. The beauty of this week--this first week in April, when every year the dogwood and wisteria, the azaleas and lots of tulips are in full bloom--fills me with cheer and courage.

Still, hard things are happening all around us. People get sick, crime abounds, stories of disaster fill the news. Sometimes it seems that God is not watching or that He doesn't care. This morning in Sunday School, we read the account of Jesus driving the money changers out of the temple and of his telling the Jewish leaders that he would raise the temple in three days. He was speaking of his body, but no one understood that at the time. Then the scripture says that after his resurrection, "his disciples remembered" (John 2:22).

It gives me hope to think that some day, after trials and struggles are over, I will look back and understand. In the mean time, we have the beauty of the natural world to remind us of God's presence. Here is the lovely poem I first learned many years ago:

A Child's Thought of God They say that God lives very high;
But if you look above the pines
You cannot see our God; and why?

And if you dig down in the mines,
You never see Him in the gold,
Though from Him all that’s glory shines.

God is so good, He wears a fold
Of heaven and earth across His face,
Like secrets kept, for love, untold.

But still I feel that His embrace
Slides down by thrills, through all things made,
Through sight and sound of every place;

As if my tender mother laid
On my shut lids her kisses’ pressure,
Half waking me at night, and said,
“Who kissed you through the dark, dear guesser?”

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

--Sherry Poff

A Double Portion

I love being an aunt! I would give my niece and nephews just about anything they asked for. At Christmas time, my niece, Maggie asked me over and over to play ponies with her. HOW CAN ONE RESIST? It didn't matter that we'd already played ponies, if she asked again...you can be sure I didn't turn her down. I'm not a mother, but I can only imagine that my sister wants to give her daughter the things she desires, even more than Aunt Bec Bec does!
Our Heavenly Father feels the same way. But for some reason, I don't think to ask him, or I have the misconception that I shouldn't ask for things that seem self-centered or insignificant. On the contrary, our Father wants to give us the desires of our hearts. He did it for  me this past week with a new desk at work, something I'm pretty sure came out as more of a "Wholly Whine" than a request of the Lord. And yet, He gave me exactly what I wanted!
2 Kings 2 tells the story of Elijah's departure from this world on a chariot of fire. As if this weren't miraculous enough, a second miracle is formulating. Elisha is with Elijah, even though several times Elijah asked him to stay behind. In verse 9, Elijah asks Elisha if there is anything he can do for him before he goes. Elisha asks for a "...double portion of [Elijah's] spirit." Elisha had just witnessed (in verse 8) the "spirit" of Elijah when he crossed the Jordan river on dry ground because of God's power and Elijah's faith. Elisha wanted that kind of faith. Reading further we see that his request is granted as he calls upon the Lord to part the water for him to go back across. WOW!! God's power coupled with Elisha's faith resulted in yet another miraculous event. Studying Elisha's life further allows us to see that his faith superseded even his death!
He got that double portion, didn't he?
Do you have anything in your life today that requires faith? Maybe you're in financial trouble. Maybe you have situations at work that need resolution. Maybe you have family members for whom you've been praying for years to be saved. Why not ask, as Elisha did, for a double portion of faith that God will answer! God game him exactly what he asked for! I bet He wants to answer your prayers, too!
I don't know about you, but I want faith for the big things and boldness to ask for it! I mean, if God can answer my requests/grumblings for a new desk, why wouldn't He answer my prayers for faith?

Can't wait to hear what YOU ask for this week, and how God answers! Please share here or on Facebook!

~Rebecca Phillips