Category: I Peter

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Why Worry?

There’s a whole lot of life that needs to be lived and the Father wants it to be free from worry!

Years back, many years ago, I read a book written by a very successful and innovative American businessman, Jon Huntsman. He wrote a book, “Winners Never Cheat”. I still have it in my library of influential books.

Anyway, Mr. Huntsman, had challenges in his business, like all successful businesses, and opportunities for worry. He said he had a box, a worry box on his desk, and anytime he was presented with one of those opportunities he wrote down and put it in the box and released the pressure of worry. He opened the box once a week and amazingly many of the notes were no longer an issue. They had resolved without his worry or stress. The ones that were still a concern, he left in the box.

Such a simplistic approach to problem solving. But Biblical! Mr. Huntsman was a man who trusted God.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. 6 Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” Proverbs 3:5-6 NLV

“Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.” Proverbs 16:3 NLV

“ Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.” I Peter 5:7 NLV

“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? 27 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?…30 And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? 31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” Matthew 6:25-33 NLV

Maybe, just maybe, we should follow Mr. Huntsman’s example and make a worry box. Write down our concerns, large and small, open the lid, put the “worry” to rest and close the lid.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 NLV

God has a much better capacity for handling challenges successfully than we ever will. Afterall, He knows all our needs before we do and He has promised to never leave us or abandon us.

Why worry?

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Shine Jesus, Shine

For years I used to work to be “good enough” for God’s love. I, like a lot of people, wanted people and God to like me and I would work to that end. Leading Bible Studies, singing in the choir, baking cookies, doing all sorts of good works to get people to like me.

I would serve on committees and every place that a volunteer was needed to show the Lord and others my dedication to others to get them to “see” that I had a good heart and was a good Christian.

But one day the Lord instructed me from these verses in I Corinthians 3.

“And you are a house that belongs to God. 10 Like an expert builder I built the foundation of that house. I used the gift that God gave me to do this. Other people are building on that foundation. But everyone should be careful how they build. 11 The foundation that has already been built is Jesus Christ, and no one can build any other foundation. 12 People can build on that foundation using gold, silver, jewels, wood, grass, or straw. 13 But the work that each person does will be clearly seen, because the Day will make it plain. That Day will appear with fire, and the fire will test everyone’s work. 14 If the building they put on the foundation still stands, they will get their reward. 15 But if their building is burned up, they will suffer loss. They will be saved, but it will be like someone escaping from a fire.” I Corinthians 3:9b-15 ERV

I realized I was building with wood, grass and straw. My efforts were exactly that – my efforts. I wasn’t serving people for God’s glory and benefit but for my own. And it never seemed that I was doing enough…

The Father began to reveal to me how much He loved me. He loved me – not my works. It was ok to say “no” to some of the needs and let others fill them. The Father didn’t want me working “for Him” but serving “with Him”.

I didn’t have to earn His love! He loves me unconditionally and in that love I am free to serve because I want to and not because I have too.

It’s when we do that, serving and living life to glorify Him, that we begin to build with gold, silver and precious jewels. When we serve for us we will grow weary and discouraged. We get jealous and judgmental. (Remember Martha being upset because Mary wasn’t “serving”.)

So occasionally I have to inspect my building materials and ask the Lord to build a fire in my soul and burn off what isn’t acceptable. The good thing about gold is that the fire only purifies it – makes it more valuable. It isn’t consumed.

“Your faith will be like gold that has been tested in a fire. And these trials will prove that your faith is worth much more than gold that can be destroyed. They will show that you will be given praise and honor and glory when Jesus Christ returns.” I Peter 1:7 CEV

As I finished writing this, a song we sang in the 1980’s came to mind: Shine Jesus, Shine

“Lord, I come to Your awesome presence
From the shadows into Your radiance
By the blood, I may enter Your brightness
Search me, try me, consume all my darkness
Shine on me, shine on me

[Chorus]
Shine, Jesus, shine, fill this land with the Father’s glory
Blaze, Spirit, blaze, set our hearts on fire…”

My desire is to shine for Him!

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In God’s Opinion

There’s an old country song and the lyrics go something like this. “I’m just an old chunk of coal but I’m gonna be a diamond some day”.

God sees the diamond in all of us. He saw that we were valuable, priceless and worth the ultimate sacrifice. God’s opinion of us is so much greater than our opinion of ourselves.

He loved us enough to send His Son to die for us so that we could live in Him!

Now that alone should drive out any feelings of low self-esteem or worthlessness!

” Brothers and sisters, God chose you to be his. Think about that! Not many of you were wise in the way the world judges wisdom. Not many of you had great influence, and not many of you came from important families. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. He chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 And God chose what the world thinks is not important—what the world hates and thinks is nothing. He chose these to destroy what the world thinks is important. 29 God did this so that no one can stand before him and boast about anything. 30 It is God who has made you part of Christ Jesus. And Christ has become for us wisdom from God. He is the reason we are right with God and pure enough to be in his presence. Christ is the one who set us free from sin. 31 So, as the Scriptures say, “Whoever boasts should boast only about the Lord.” I Corinthians 1:26-31 ERV

” But you are God’s chosen and special people. You are a group of royal priests and a holy nation. God has brought you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” I Peter 2:9 CEV

“ God our Father loves us. He treats us with undeserved grace and has given us eternal comfort and a wonderful hope. We pray that our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father 17 will encourage you and help you always to do and say the right thing.” II Thessalonians 2:16-17 CEV

And that’s the way He feels about those that we don’t think are too valuable either. His love for all of us is the same and so we need to reflect that when we are dealing with others!

This weekend, make it a time to value those who God finds valuable and start with yourself!

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It Is Finished

When I went to bed last night the words of this song came to mind:

It is finished, the battle is over
It is finished, there’ll be no more war
It is finished, the end of the conflict
It is finished and Jesus is Lord

Yet in my heart, the battle was still raging
Not all prisoners of war had come home

These were battlefields of my own making
I didn’t know that the war had been won

Oh, but then I heard the king of the ages
He had fought all the battles for me
And the victory, victory is mine for the claiming
And now praise His name, I am free

It is finished, the battle is over
It is finished, there’ll be no more war
It is finished, the end of the conflict
It is finished and Jesus is Lord,

When Jesus said those very words on the cross all the angels in heaven and demons in hell knew what He was saying:

“A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it up to his lips. 30 When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” John 19:29-30 NLT

Jesus was talking about the work He had been sent to do, reconciling God and man, paying the price for sin, bringing salvation to all. He was talking about sin’s authority in our lives. It is finished – our lives being subject to fear, sin, sickness and separation.

“ He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.” I John 2:2 NLT

“The fact is, it was our suffering he took on himself; he bore our pain. But we thought that God was punishing him, that God was beating him for something he did. 5 But he was being punished for what we did. He was crushed because of our guilt. He took the punishment we deserved, and this brought us peace. We were healed because of his pain. 6 We had all wandered away like sheep. We had gone our own way. And yet the Lord put all our guilt on him.” Isaiah 53:4-6 ERV

It is finished – the condemnation and shame.

“ So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1 NLT

“‘Don’t be afraid. I saved you. I named you. You are mine. 2 When you have troubles, I am with you. When you cross rivers, you will not be hurt. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not hurt you. 3 That’s because I, the Lord, am your God. I, the Holy One of Israel, am your Savior. ‘” Isaiah 43:1-3 ERV

I want to assure you, I want you to have confidence in what Christ did for each of us on the cross.

“ So be humble under God’s powerful hand. Then he will lift you up when the right time comes. 7 Give all your worries to him, because he cares for you.” I Peter 5:6-7 ERV

God has provided all we need to live victoriously in this life. The enemy’s power has been broken.

It is finished!

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Draw Close to the Father

What’s the first thing on your mind this morning?

The kids, your job, health, finances, a relationship, the world crisis – whatever it is, the Lord has a solution.

God cares for you, so turn all your worries over to him.

“God cares for you, so turn all your worries over to him.” I Peter 5:7 CEV

His lap is cozy enough to have room for you to cuddle up and draw strength from Him. Last weekend we had our three youngest grandkids come for sleepovers. Each morning when they came down the stairs they wanted to cuddle. They love to snuggle in and we love it too!

The Father wants us to snuggle up close when we are worried and life seems heavy.

“But he gives us more grace. This is why it says, God stands against the proud, but favors the humble. 7 Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will run away from you. 8 Come near to God, and he will come near to you…” James 4:6-8 CEB

His Word is powerful enough to change the course of rivers and set the boundaries in the sky; so at His word your world can change from disorder to order.

“Jesus, our high priest, is able to understand our weaknesses. When Jesus lived on earth, he was tempted in every way. He was tempted in the same ways we are tempted, but he never sinned. 16 With Jesus as our high priest, we can feel free to come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we receive mercy and kindness to help us when we need it.” Hebrews 4:15-16 ERV

Don’t let anything hold you back from enjoying the Father’s presence, His power and His word.

“You will teach me the right way to live. Just being with you will bring complete happiness.
 Being at your right side will make me happy forever.” Psalm 16:11 ERV

God’s instruction and direction for our lives isn’t hard. When we learn to follow Him, it brings us to a place of peace and rest.

“The rules you have given me to follow will be mine forever. They give me great joy. 112 More than anything I want to obey your laws always, until the end of my life.” Psalm 119:11-112 ERV

Draw close to the Father. His arms are open wide!

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Do You Remember

trading stamps?

When I was a girl I spent many a Saturday morning pasting Gold Bond, Blue Chip and S&H Green stamps into redemption books.

Each time we went to the gas station, the attendant would give my folks green stamps and they would bring them home and put them in a book. We had a green stamp catalog and we would save our books until we had enough to go to the redemption center and get what we had been saving for. That was so much fun, we walked out with something we really wanted and also had an new item that we would start saving for next.

Do you know that we have been “redeemed”? The word redeemed means to rescue or to ransom. Our lives have been redeemed; not by collecting our good works and sticking them in a book for all to see but by the precious blood of Jesus.

“You were rescued (redeemed) from the useless way of life that you learned from your ancestors. But you know that you were not rescued by such things as silver or gold that don’t last forever. 19 You were rescued by the precious blood of Christ, that spotless and innocent lamb.” I Peter 1:18-19

All our good deeds cannot begin to measure up to the price Jesus paid for our redemption. Can’t you see it now, Jesus walking into the redemption center and God the Father asking “what would you like to take home today”?

Jesus says, “I would like Kristi for my own”.

And the Father says, “Well, are you sure you wouldn’t like something better? She has done some pretty foolish things.”

“No,” Jesus says, “I would like her.”

“And what will you give for her redemption? It has to be something very valuable.” says the Father. And he shows Jesus all the charges of my shortcomings and sins.

Jesus stretches forth His hands revealing the nail prints and says, “I think this should cover it.”

“Having cancelled and blotted out and wiped away the handwriting of the note (bond) with its legal decrees and demands which was in force and stood against us (hostile to us). This [note with its regulations, decrees, and demands] He set aside and cleared completely out of our way by nailing it to [His] cross.” Colossians 2:14 Amplified Version

Hallelujah! I have been redeemed. I have been bought with a price, the precious blood of Jesus.

He’s done the same for you. Be blessed today.

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No Worries

I really spend very little time worrying about anything. You see, through the years I’ve gone from worrying about many things to where, most days, I am completely comfortable with rolling all my cares over on the Lord and letting Him control the outcome.

“God cares for you, so turn all your worries over to him.” I Peter 5:7 CEV

When I was a girl I grew up hearing Mahlia Jackson and Ethel Waters sing “His Eye is on the Sparrow” and it became a theme song of sorts for me. I would walk around the house, when no one could hear me, singing it at the top of my voice. “His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me”.

What’s your focus when you wake up in the morning? Is it the project before you – the diagnosis you recently received from your doctor – the financial challenge that seems overwhelming? Maybe it’s physical pain in your body – a relationship that is fractured and fragile – possibly, physical danger and unrest?

If those things remain in the forefront of your mind your day will wrap itself in worry, distress and eventually lead to despair and depression.

However, if your focus is on God’s goodness and His provision you will find hope, joy and peace. That’s why I love starting my mornings in the Psalms – it is good to begin each day celebrating the faithfulness of the Lord.

“Sing a new song to the Lord! Let the whole world sing to the Lord!

2 Sing to the Lord and praise his name! Tell the good news every day about how he saves us! 3 Tell all the nations how wonderful he is! Tell people everywhere about the amazing things he does. 4 The Lord is great and worthy of praise. He is more awesome than any of the “gods.” 5 All the “gods” in other nations are nothing but statues, but the Lord made the heavens.

6 He lives in the presence of glory and honor. His Temple is a place of power and beauty.

7 Praise the Lord, all people of every nation; praise the Lord’s glory and power. 8 Give the Lord praise worthy of his glory! Come, bring your offerings into his courtyard. 9 Worship the Lord in all his holy beauty. Everyone on earth should tremble before him. 10 Tell the nations that the Lord is King! The world stands firm and cannot be moved. He will judge all people fairly. 11 Let the heavens rejoice and the earth be happy! Let the sea and everything in it shout for joy!

12 Let the fields and everything in them be happy! Let the trees in the forest sing for joy

13 when they see the Lord coming! He is coming to rule the world. He will rule all the nations of the world with justice and fairness.” Psalm 96 ERV

Let the Lord rule over the circumstances in your life today and receive the peace that floods in when you let go and trust God.

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My Heart is Full

Those were the only words I had in mind when I sat down to write this morning. My heart is full of gratitude, joy, peace and contentment. I have all I need and all I desire because of the love of God.

Opening my Bible I began to read:

“ God the Father decided to choose you as his people, and his Spirit has made you holy. You have obeyed Jesus Christ and are sprinkled with his blood. I pray that God will be kind to you and will keep on giving you peace! 3 Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is so good, and by raising Jesus from death, he has given us new life and a hope that lives on. 4  God has something stored up for you in heaven, where it will never decay or be ruined or disappear.

5 You have faith in God, whose power will protect you until the last day. Then he will save you, just as he has always planned to do. 6 On that day you will be glad, even if you have to go through many hard trials for a while. 7  Your faith will be like gold that has been tested in a fire. And these trials will prove that your faith is worth much more than gold that can be destroyed. They will show that you will be given praise and honor and glory when Jesus Christ returns.

8 You have never seen Jesus, and you don’t see him now. But still you love him and have faith in him, and no words can tell how glad and happy 9 you are to be saved. This is why you have faith…” I Peter 1:2-9 CEV

Faith, tried in the fire of adversity, disappointment, betrayal or physical struggle, is refined. James says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” James 1:2-3 ESV

The “testing” referred to here is a comparison to the refiner’s fire for purifying gold. The process destroys what is useless and invaluable and at the same time increases the value and quality of the gold.

The same is true in our lives. Trials test us. In the process selfishness, bitterness, anger, envy, and greed are removed and pure faith and love remain.

“ Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. 5 Love is not rude, it is not selfish, and it cannot be made angry easily. Love does not remember wrongs done against it. 6 Love is never happy when others do wrong, but it is always happy with the truth. 7 Love never gives up on people. It never stops trusting, never loses hope, and never quits. 8 Love will never end.” I Corinthians 13:4-8 ERV

It is Christ who is the example of this kind of love. He paid our ransom, not with silver and gold, but with His life. He never gives up on us and His love will never end.

“For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. 19 It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God…” I Peter 1:18-19 NLT

Because of Him, my heart is full!

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Up for a Chariot Ride?

Are you looking to be set-up by God today? You know, those “chance” meetings, wondering about people you used to be close with, just being in the right place at the right time.

God’s set-ups!

Philip was open to God using him. When Saul started persecuting the Chrisitans in Jerusalem, Philip went to Samaria to preach there. Then one day the Lord told him to go south of Jerusalem on the road to Gaza. Philip obeyed.

There he met a high official in Egypt’s political system. The man was reading the book of Isaiah but didn’t really understand what he was reading.

“The Spirit said to Philip, ‘Go to that chariot and stay near it.’ 30 So he went toward the chariot, and he heard the man reading from Isaiah the prophet. Philip asked him, ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’

31 The man answered, ‘How can I understand? I need someone to explain it to me.’ Then he invited Philip to climb in and sit with him… The official said to Philip, ‘Please, tell me, who is the prophet talking about? Is he talking about himself or about someone else?’ 35 Philip began to speak. He started with this same Scripture and told the man the Good News about Jesus.” Acts 8:29-35 ERV

There are people all around us waiting for someone to be their Philip. We need to slow down from our own demanding schedules and allow the Lord to direct us to them.

It might be as simple as giving someone a smile and a God bless you. It might be asking someone how they are doing and really listening to their answer. Philip was listening, he heard the man and then he asked a question.

It’s the Father’s job to prepare hearts but it’s our job to be prepared to be obedient when He calls on us.

“Honor Christ and let him be the Lord of your life. Always be ready to give an answer when someone asks you about your hope.” I Peter 3:15 CEV

” I pray God will make you ready to obey him and that you will always be eager to do right. May Jesus help you do what pleases God. To Jesus Christ be glory forever and ever! Amen.” Hebrews 13:21 CEV

Are any of you praying for the Lord to send someone to minister to your children or a dear friend? What if that person is too busy? Maybe we are the answer to someone’s prayer? Are we ready?

When we take time to listen to the Father, we will be the answer to someone’s prayer! It may involve a ride in a chariot.

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Praying or Complaining

I hate to admit it but some days it’s more of the second than the first. Let me explain.

Several years back I heard a teaching on prayer. The minister made a comment that I think I will always remember.

“If you go to the Father in prayer about something that is bothering you and you come away still worried about it, you weren’t praying you were just complaining.”

Some mornings I find myself complaining! Ugh!!

I think I am casting the care of the situation over on the Lord. But, when it keeps coming up and I am worried that the situation won’t change, I realize that all I have been doing is complaining about it.

Now I know none of you ever do this, telling the Lord you are rolling all of the care over on Him, He can handle it and then proceed to worry. Yep, I’m the only one so, this is for me this morning.

These are such great verses – resist the devil and he will flee. So, one more time I am handing my care over to the Lord and I will resist the enemy by praising God and not worrying. Every time a thought of worry comes up, I will replace it with praise, thanking the Lord that He is in control and the enemy will have to flee.

“So be humble under God’s powerful hand. Then he will lift you up when the right time comes. 7 Give all your worries to him, because he cares for you.

8 Control yourselves and be careful! The devil is your enemy, and he goes around like a roaring lion looking for someone to attack and eat. 9 Refuse to follow the devil. Stand strong in your faith. You know that your brothers and sisters all over the world are having the same sufferings that you have.” I Peter 5:6-9 ERV

Be humble – admit that “God I can’t handle this so I’m giving it over to You! You are the One who has my best interest at heart, You are the One who can bring change that I can’t even imagine.

I will keep my emotions in check; I will refuse the devil’s invitation to fear. I will stand strong with my faith firmly placed in You and Your provision. I won’t complain. I will pray and thank You for being in control. In Jesus name.”

Here’s to a praise filled, worry free day!

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