091323 Imitating Christ
1 Peter 3:8
Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude.

Sympathize with each other... Not everything is about me.

Love each other as brothers and sisters... Siblings have to get along. They quickly learn how to not be so touchy & get over offenses before they all get into trouble.

Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude... That is caring & sensitive; read the room, and do not be a know-it-all. 

...be of one mind... This is how we should be relating to one another–with Christ, not our own separate agendas, in common. It is HIS character we imitate =  sympathy, love, tenderheartedness & humility in order for unity to thrive.

Dear Lord Jesus,
Very simply, help me be sympathetic, loving, tenderhearted & humble today. I don’t need to be feisty, bull-headed, or nosey. Those things will not achieve your character I desire. Help me be like you & think like you & I pray in your name, amen.

090823 The Governor’s Custom
Matthew 10:16
Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves. 

There is some fascinating information about the governor’s custom at the time of Jesus death.
Now it was the governor’s custom each year during the Passover celebration to release one prisoner to the crowd—anyone they wanted. 16 This year there was a notorious prisoner, a man named Barabbas. 17 As the crowds gathered before Pilate’s house that morning, he asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you—Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Messiah?”  Matthew 27:15-17

Jewish Law suspends all court matters during Passover, and every year Pilate promotes fake compassion and fake mercy at a time when God has commanded his people to solely focus on HIM. It is no coincidence that this political figure has made a way for the center of attention to be on him during a time of year when MANY people are in his town. The “Governor’s Custom” is to disregard the One True Living God entirely.

This little nugget of insight is wisdom in how we relate to government. Politicians love attention and they love power. That will never change. When Jesus talks about us being “innocent” as well as “shrewd” it is the preamble to a conversation he has with his disciple about the government. 
You will stand trial before governors and kings because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell the rulers and other unbelievers about me.
Matthew 10:18

The politicians are not on the side of Believers. No candidate or office holder will ever truly share our convictions. Jesus has warned us ahead of time that we might not receive justice from them, but that the purpose of our interaction with them is to tell the unbelieving rulers about HIM! This isn’t disturbing news because... (keep reading)
When you are arrested, don’t worry about how to respond or what to say. God will give you the right words at the right time. v.19

This isn’t disturbing news because... the One who has warned us is also our DEFENDER!

Dear Jesus,
Thank you for preparing us in every way for how to live with you in this world that rejects you. Help me and my believing brothers and sister not worry about what will always be a corrupt system. Help us never fall into the trap of relying on human help, and thank you especially for your promise to be our defender. I love you and pray in your name, amen.

​090623 Think About Thinking
2 Corinthians 10:5
We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ.

Rob was teaching from Matthew 26 on Sunday, and had some interesting insight when he got to the part about Judas rebuking Mary for “wasting” expensive oil. And the John 12:6 clarifies that Judas wasn’t concerned for the poor; he loved money. Then, very next thing Judas does is to get money for giving up Jesus. He was focused on the money lost from the bottle of oil; all he was thinking about was money–what does he do when he learns that Jesus is sentenced to death? He tries to give the money back! And Rob said that Satan is more than happy to contribute to our delusions. 

That is so true! Judas is focused on money; he doesn’t consider these thoughts “proud obstacles” and he doesn’t “capture” these “rebellious thoughts.” He just keeps thinking about money. Then, he snaps out of it when he realizes a innocent man is going to die. Satan must have been adding thoughts assuring him they were just going to make Jesus be quiet or leave town. And when the religious leaders don’t undo anything when he gives the money back, Judas is hopeless to the point of taking his own life.

There are 2 lessons in this. First, there are some sins you should just never ever commit. And second, don’t let your thoughts capture you, capture them instead. Compare my thoughts to scripture. Surely, Judas heard Jesus teach about money, surely, Judas knew the Rich Young Ruler’s problem. Instead, Judas go so far up into thinking about and loving money he was even susceptible to the Enemy making his delusions even more delusional.

Romans 12:2 ...Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Oh, Lord,
Don’t let me go off on thoughts that I should not be dwelling on. Help me think about what I’m thinking and compare it to what your Word says about it. Help me replace rebellious thoughts with your truth and wisdom & please change the way I think. I love your help, I love you & pray in your Name, Amen.

090523 Another First Day of School
Matthew 28:19-20
Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Today is the first day of a new school year again. It seems like there are a lot of them, but there really aren’t. 

As parents, my husband and I decided that we want our kids to be disciples of Jesus and to be fascinating people. Some parents goals are for their kids to go to Law School or be Doctors, musical virtuosos, or technological geniuses, and they set a course for it early and keep them on it. For the Believer, Discipleship is the course we set for our kids and let God determine where that leads later–where they will serve Him best.

Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you... Jesus’ command, not suggestion, to make & teach disciples starts in my own home. So a successful day isn’t determined by how much fun we have, how many places we go, how many experiences we acquire or how many activities we log. Did we talk about Jesus? Did we take time to study His Word and pray? Did we happen upon a question or discussion and talk about what the Bible says about it? Did we discuss the godly or ungodly characteristics of someone from a book, movie or news article and weigh the consequences of their actions or inaction? Are we infusing Jesus in our lives and conversations more than just prayers before meals and bedtime? 

These daily activities make for Disciples and fascinating humans because they have been trained by Scripture. Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come. 1 Timothy 4:8

Dear God,
Thank you for our kids. Thank you for 18 years of being able to nurture, raise, encourage, AND DISCIPLE them. May these be fruitful years for us and for our loved ones who are moms and dads who desire to raise godly young men and women who will go out into the world and do the same. I love you, Jesus, and pray in your Name, Amen.