Category: Matthew

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Refresher Training

Are you or were you in one of those professions that offered or required continuing education?

You get away for a week and learn new techniques and brush up on established skills. That’s where my heart took my mind this morning as I was reading some of my oldest, favorite passages of Scriptures.

The re-reading and meditating on familiar verses will refresh us.

“ If you have ears, pay attention!” Matthew 11:15 CEV

When Jesus said this, He was speaking to a group of people who had seen Him do miracles and had been listening to His teachings, but they were criticizing His association with “sinful” people. Then He prayed this prayer.

“My Father has given me everything, and he is the only one who knows the Son. The only one who truly knows the Father is the Son. But the Son wants to tell others about the Father, so they can know him too. 28  If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, ‘come to me and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:27-28 CEV

It’s important that we realize the words we read from the Bible each day are the words of God for our lives. They are not to be taken for granted or brushed over with a “that was nice”. They are the words of life.

I’ve been asked how can you be so confident. It’s because I know that God’s word is true – it’s true because He says it is. So, if you have ears to hear – pay attention as I share some “refresher course” verses.

“13 Your kingdom will never end, and you will rule forever. Our Lord, you keep your word and do everything you say. 14 When someone stumbles or falls, you give a helping hand. 15 Everyone depends on you, and when the time is right, you provide them with food. 16 By your own hand you satisfy the desires of all who live.

17 Our Lord, everything you do is kind and thoughtful, 18 and you are near to everyone whose prayers are sincere. 19 You satisfy the desires of all your worshipers, and you come to save them when they ask for help. 20 You take care of everyone who loves you, but you destroy the wicked.” Psalm 145:10-20 CEV

And now for the next one…

“ I kneel in prayer to the Father. 15 All beings in heaven and on earth receive their life from him. 16 God is wonderful and glorious. I pray that his Spirit will make you become strong followers 17 and that Christ will live in your hearts because of your faith. Stand firm and be deeply rooted in his love. 18  I pray that you and all God’s people will understand what is called wide or long or high or deep. 19 I want you to know all about Christ’s love, although it is too wonderful to be measured. Then your lives will be filled with all that God is.

20-21 I pray that Christ Jesus and the church will forever bring praise to God. His power at work in us can do far more than we dare ask or imagine. Amen.” Ephesians 3:14-21 CEV

For over 40 years I have been reading these sections of Scripture nearly every day. I’m still learning to live totally in the goodness of God and the full expression of His love for me.

I pray these verses are a refresher course for you as well. Read them, again and again. Let them sink deep into your heart, become deeply rooted in God’s love for you.

“If you have ears to hear – pay attention”!

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The Debt of Love

This weekend commemorates those who for love of country and countrymen made the ultimate sacrifice. With grateful hearts we should say a prayer of thanksgiving for those who gave their all.

Add to that thankfulness for the One who died to redeem us from death and the destruction of sin.

It is a debt of love that we owe. Debt can be stifling, the cause of much worry and stress but the debt of love is freeing.

Jesus said we should love the Lord, our God, first and foremost and then love others as much as we love ourselves.

“ He said, “Teacher, which command in the law is the most important?”

37 Jesus answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and most important command. 39 And the second command is like the first: ‘Love your neighbor the same as you love yourself.’40 All of the law and the writings of the prophets take their meaning from these two commands.” Matthew 22:36-40 ERV

Working to be debt free is an admiral and honorable thing but there should always be one debt that stays, the debt to love.

Reading Romans this morning I came across the Apostle Paul’s command. He said we should be indebted to LOVE!

“You should owe nothing to anyone, except that you will always owe love to each other. The person who loves others has done all that the law commands. 9 The law says, “You must not commit adultery, you must not murder anyone, you must not steal, you must not want what belongs to someone else.” All these commands and all other commands are really only one rule: “Love your neighbor the same as you love yourself.” 10 Love doesn’t hurt others. So loving is the same as obeying all the law.” Romans 13:8-10 CEV

Love balances on both sides of the spread sheet. It is an asset of the highest order but it is also a debt, although, not a liability.

Who in your life needs your love today? Your spouse, your children, grandchildren, your parents, co-workers, friends, casual acquaintances or a stranger on the street?

Look for opportunities to go into debt today, it will make your life richer!

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In God We Trust

This morning, I was unable to access my website. Not the most pleasant experience but after some research and following the correct prompts, I was able to recover everything.

Because of that, this morning’s blog is a re-share from several years back.

I often hear folks say, “I wish I had more faith or I wish my faith was bigger or stronger”. This morning I would like to share a couple of thoughts on “Faith” and “Unbelief”. Imagine you are holding a coin in your hand right now. One side of the coin is faith and one side is unbelief. The outcome in the situations of your life are directly affected by the side of the coin that you are looking at.

There are many Scriptures when Jesus addressed “Unbelief” in the hearts and minds of those that he was ministering too.

In Matthew 13 it says that Jesus couldn’t do any mighty works in his own hometown because of their unbelief. In Mark 9 the man who had a demon possessed son brought him to Jesus for healing. Jesus answered if thou canst believe all things are possible to him that believeth and the father responded Lord, I believe – help thou my unbelief. After Jesus set the boy free his disciples came and asked:

“Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?

20 And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

21 Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.” Matthew 17:19-21

Jesus didn’t say that it was because of their “little” faith or even lack of faith but because of unbelief. He then goes on to say that with faith as little as a mustard seed, nothing would be impossible to them. And as a side note when Jesus said “this kind” goes not out but by prayer and fasting, He was talking about the unbelief not the demon.

Faith simply put is our belief that God not only can do but will do those things that He has promised. Abraham is our walking example of this. He had a lifetime of evidence to support his unbelief. Barrenness for both he and Sarah. If they had gone to the fertility clinic, everyone would have laughed at them and sent them home. But thank God, Abraham didn’t listen to all the unbelief (his own or that of others) he was strong in faith.

“And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah’s womb:

20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.” Romans 4:19-21

When we give our life to Christ and are born again, we are given faith as a part of our new nature. Romans 12 says that God has given ll of us “the” measure of faith and then in Galatians 5, Paul tells us again that faith is a fruit of the Spirit.

We can all agree it takes faith to get saved. “For by grace are ye saved through faith”. Faith, believing that God will do what He says He will do, and grace, God giving us what we don’t deserve and can’t earn on our own. This was the time in our life that our faith in God was the smallest and yet it was enough to create the greatest miracle – our salvation.

What situation has you focused on unbelief. Go to God’s word, find His answer, feed your faith (Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God) and it will cause your unbelief to shrink.

“Mustard Seed” faith is more than enough to move mountains once unbelief is removed and we place our trust in God.

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Joy Every Morning

Listening to the birds singing this morning – it’s a beautiful song. The sparrows, the finches, the dove and the quail; they are all singing praises!

They know that their Creator has supplied their needs. Dave and I do our part in scattering seed every morning and evening. They rejoice as they meet the day.

“I tell you not to worry about your life. Don’t worry about having something to eat, drink, or wear. Isn’t life more than food or clothing? 26 Look at the birds in the sky! They don’t plant or harvest. They don’t even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren’t you worth more than birds?

27 Can worry make you live longer? 28 Why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow. They don’t work hard to make their clothes. 29 But I tell you that Solomon with all his wealth[b] wasn’t as well clothed as one of them. 30 God gives such beauty to everything that grows in the fields, even though it is here today and thrown into a fire tomorrow. He will surely do even more for you! Why do you have such little faith?

31 Don’t worry and ask yourselves, “Will we have anything to eat? Will we have anything to drink? Will we have any clothes to wear?” 32 Only people who don’t know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows that you need all of these. 33 But more than anything else, put God’s work first and do what he wants. Then the other things will be yours as well.” Matthew 6:25-31 CEV

Not one of the birds woke on the tree branch this morning and said “I’m just going to stay in bed, I can’t face the day! I don’t know what I’m going to do about the mortgage on this nest, these eggs are going to hatch soon and it’s another mouth to feed and there just might not be enough bugs or seeds. I’m just going to pull a twig or a leaf over my head and stay here. I don’t have the energy or the courage to face another day.”

No, they get up singing! The break of day tells them this is another day to sing. A day to see God’s provision, a day of promise!

When I was a little girl we sang a chorus in Sunday School:

The birds upon the tree top sing their song,

The angels chant their chorus all day long.

The flowers in the garden blend their hue

So why shouldn’t I, why shouldn’t you Praise Him too?

This morning – get up with a song in your heart and praise on your lips – the Father loves you and He will provide!

Now get out there and find some seeds. 🙂

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Bountiful Harvest

Last night a friend and I sat and talked about how much we love God’s word. We can read a chapter, or a few verses and God touches our hearts with His words and our lives are changed.

The Word of God is incorruptible seed. It brings a harvest of God’s goodness into our lives.

“ You have been given a new birth. It was from a seed that cannot die. This new life is from the Word of God which lives forever. ” I Peter 1:23 NLV

I heard tell, truth or myth I do not know, that seeds were discovered in the tombs of the pyramids and when they were planted, they grew. Now, that’s a seed that didn’t die.

Farmers and home gardeners know that to have a successful garden you protect the seed. Many home gardeners have gone to starting seedlings inside so that the plants grow strong before they face the elements. Farmers aren’t afforded that opportunity but they do research which seeds produce the best yield and are well suited for their climate and soil.

Jesus was using these principles when he spoke to his followers about seed.

” Now listen to the meaning of the story about the farmer: 19 The seeds that fell along the road are the people who hear the message about the kingdom, but don’t understand it. Then the evil one comes and snatches the message from their hearts. 20 The seeds that fell on rocky ground are the people who gladly hear the message and accept it right away. 21 But they don’t have deep roots, and they don’t last very long. As soon as life gets hard or the message gets them in trouble, they give up.

22 The seeds that fell among the thornbushes are also people who hear the message. But they start worrying about the needs of this life and are fooled by the desire to get rich. So the message gets choked out, and they never produce anything. 23 The seeds that fell on good ground are the people who hear and understand the message. They produce as much as a hundred or sixty or thirty times what was planted.” Matthew 13:18-23 CEV

Although the seeds of God’s word may lie dormant for a while they will produce a crop. When watered by prayer, tended by the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the weeds of worry and doubt removed we will gather a harvest.

The first crop that is produced is salvation and then forgiveness, peace, love, joy, faith and other fruits grow.

Our heart is the soil, God’s word is the seed. Happy Harvest.

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Jesus Cares

Mother’s Day for some is not a happy day.

There are those of you who have recently experienced the death of a child either as an unborn (stillborn, miscarriage), infant or even an adult. You’re not having a good day but instead you want to stay in bed with your head under the covers and avoid all who are celebrating today.

And some of you have been told you will never have children and your heart is screaming “I’m broken…I ache…I may never recover and I can’t go on pretending everything’s ok.”

Then ladies, some of you may be dealing with abortion or giving a child up for adoption. While others may be facing life as a single parent because you’ve been abandoned. Some have a special needs child that you don’t feel you know how to adequately care for.

The last group of ladies I want to include here are those of you who are estranged from your children, those whose children have left, and you have no idea where they are or they are living a lifestyle that is far from you and even farther from the Lord. They may be in an addictive lifestyle, or they may be in prison.

Today is not a good day for you to say the least. You hurt and the thought of facing the day, a day filled with cards and flowers, cheery greetings and gifts is just unbearable.

Because I’m writing this too you, you can know that your Heavenly Father knows your heart, He knows your pain. There are two verses that immediately came to mind

” If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. 29 Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest.” Matthew 11:28-29 CEV

“for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] 6 So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5b-6 AMP

Your Father knows your heart and how it’s breaking, He is here to heal it and to give you comfort. You are not alone!

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Don’t Be Uprooted

The other night Dave and I were sitting in the house and we heard a crash out on the porch. We both jumped up and went to the sliding glass door.

There at the bottom of the steps one of my flowerpots had been knocked over and the flowers were uprooted. The culprit who had inflicted this damage stood just a few feet away. A javelina!

It had eaten some of the blooms and must have tugged at the plant, pulling the pot off the step and onto the concrete. The pot wasn’t broken but potting soil was scattered about with pieces of half-eaten petunia in the mix.

Life can be like that.

An unexpected intruder, fear, comes in to uproot our faith.

“The seeds that fell on rocky ground are the people who gladly hear the message and accept it at once. 21 But they don’t have deep roots, and they don’t last very long. As soon as life gets hard or the message gets them in trouble, they give up.

22 The seeds that fell among the thornbushes are also people who hear the message. But they start worrying about the needs of this life and are fooled by the desire to get rich. So the message gets choked out, and they never produce anything.” Matthew 13:20-22 CEV

Jesus gave this teaching on the Word of God being planted in our lives. It’s like seed that grows and brings a harvest of God’s truth. But we must be on guard to keep from being uprooted.

“ God is wonderful and glorious. I pray that his Spirit will make you become strong followers 17 and that Christ will live in your hearts because of your faith. Stand firm and be deeply rooted in his love.” Ephesians 3:16-17 CEV

The deeper a plant’s roots go down into the earth, the harder it is to uproot it. These verses in Ephesians go on to say:

” I pray that you and all God’s people will understand what is called wide or long or high or deep.19 I want you to know all about Christ’s love, although it is too wonderful to be measured. Then your lives will be filled with all that God is.” Ephesians 3:18-19 CEV

God wants us to know the depth of His love. He wants us filled with all that He is! Our confidence comes from being rooted in Him and knowing that He will never lie to us. He will never break His word.

“ You used to be far from God. Your thoughts made you his enemies, and you did evil things. 22 But his Son became a human and died. So God made peace with you, and now he lets you stand in his presence as people who are holy and faultless and innocent. 23 But you must stay deeply rooted and firm in your faith. You must not give up the hope you received when you heard the good news. It was preached to everyone on earth, and I myself have become a servant of this message.” Colossians 1:21-23 CEV

Maybe you feel that you’ve been knocked off the step and you’ve been uprooted. Take heart. I know a Master Gardner that will pick you up, tend to your leaves and repot you in the soil of His love so that you can be deeply rooted and firmly planted in Him!

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Be Prepared

For a few days now a couple of verses have been held in my heart. God has a specific plan and purpose for our lives and while the message is the same, give glory to God and testify of His goodness and forgiveness, we are different in our delivery of that message.

“ God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:8-9 NLT

None of us can work hard enough, be good enough or excel high enough to be worthy of God’s grace. Grace is a gift. It is given to us by Almighty God. It’s a costly gift – it was bought with the blood of His Son, Jesus, but the Father gives it freely to those of us who believe.

God wants the world to know about and receive this gift of grace. He planned from time past the good things we can do.

The message of going into all the world and preaching the gospel, the good news of Christ, wasn’t just for the apostles and early disciples of Jesus. It’s for all of us who follow Christ and love Him.

We aren’t left to go on our own authority and in our own power. Never.

“ Jesus came and told his disciples, ‘I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 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.’” Matthew 28:18-20 NLT

Jesus has commissioned us to go as His ambassadors in the authority given to Him by God, the Father.

Some are sent to the classroom, others to a hospital or corporate suite, and still others go into the world of finance, first-responders, restaurants or retirement. In every walk of life God has sent out His ambassadors. But He doesn’t send us out unprepared. We are to teach the commands that He has already given us.

Be prepared.

“You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.” II Timothy 3:15-17 NLT

God has planned for us to do good works from the beginning, and He has also prepared and equipped us for the task. One of the definitions of the word inspired means “breathed in”. All Scripture is God-breathed – it teaches us right from wrong, directs our steps and corrects us.

God created us to do good things and then He gave us His word to equip us for those good works. Let’s use what we’ve been given and get going. The world is waiting!

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Broken Bread

Very shortly Dave and I will be leaving for “Sonrise” Service. It’s going to be a beautiful crisp morning as we join with friends to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.

But that first morning wasn’t a time of celebration for the apostles and Jesus’ followers. It was a time of mourning, a time to say a proper good-bye, a time of preparing His body for a proper burial.

How startling and frightening it was for Mary and the other women to arrive at the tomb and find it empty!

They ran back to the place where they were all gathered and told Peter, John and the others that Jesus was gone and the angels said He was alive. Peter and John ran to the tomb and found it empty. They went back to the others and reported that it was as the women had said. (John 20, Matthew 28)

It was in the garden where Mary saw Jesus and knew the Lord was alive, He spoke to her. He called her by name.

Next to see Jesus were two disciples walking on the road. (Luke 24) They were talking about everything that had happened in Jerusalem – the trial, the beating, and the crucifixion. Jesus joined them on the road and asked what they were talking about. They thought He was the only one in Jerusalem who didn’t know what had happened. When they got to their destination, they invited Jesus to eat with them, still they didn’t recognize Him but when Jesus took the bread and blessed it, they knew! Instantly, Jesus was gone from their midst.

“Joining them at the supper table, Jesus took some bread and gave thanks. Then he broke some off and gave it to them. 31 Just then the men were allowed to recognize him. But when they saw who he was, he disappeared. 32 They said to each other, ‘When he talked to us on the road, it felt like a fire burning in us. How exciting it was when he explained to us the true meaning of the Scriptures!’”Luke 24:20-32 ERV

The two ran back, seven miles to Jerusalem, to tell the others what had happened. They were behind locked doors because they feared the soldiers would come for them. It was the evening of that same day and Jesus appeared in their midst.

The breaking of the bread and blessing it was something they had probably seen Jesus do many times. It was familiar to them and they recognized this gesture.

“While the two men were saying these things to the other followers, Jesus himself came and stood among them. He said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’

37 This surprised the followers. They were afraid. They thought they were seeing a ghost. 38 But Jesus said, ‘Why are you troubled? Why do you doubt what you see? 39 Look at my hands and my feet. It’s really me. Touch me. You can see that I have a living body; a ghost does not have a body like this.’” Luke 24:36-39 ERV

Maybe some of you are troubled today, wondering if God has forgotten you. He hasn’t! God takes the ordinary things in life and makes them extraordinary. He gladly reveals Himself and His power to us in personal ways.

Welcome Him to your table and break bread with the risen Savior!

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In Everything

I saw this picture and it immediately brought a smile to my face. But what has that got to do with our teaching this morning?

Everything. Yes, everything. God wants us to have thankful, joyful hearts.

“In everything give thanks. This is what God wants you to do because of Christ Jesus.” I Thessalonians 5:18 NLV

There’s a big difference between giving thanks IN everything and FOR everything.

We can give thanks IN every situation and circumstance because our eyes are on the Lord, and we can trust Him to be an EVER-PRESENT HELP in times of trouble.

“Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. 7 Then, because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel.” Philippians 4:6-7 CEV

More qualifiers for our conduct in every situation.

Don’t worry about ANYTHING!

Pray about EVERYTHING!

BELONG to Christ, be blessed with PEACE

Kind of sounds like Jesus’ own words in the boat that was storm-tossed at sea.

“But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ 39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, ‘Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?’” Mark 4:38-40 ESV

We will have storms and trials. We will face situations and circumstances beyond our control but instead of being weighted down with worry and fear we are admonished to place them in the control of the One who brings peace. We place our faith in Him!

“Give all your worries to him, because he cares for you.” I Peter 5:7 ERV

“So I tell you, don’t worry about the things you need to live—what you will eat, drink, or wear. Life is more important than food, and the body is more important than what you put on it. 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant, harvest, or save food in barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. Don’t you know you are worth much more than they are?” Matthew 6:25-26 ERV

At this Easter season, with our attention focused on the horrible way Jesus was treated leading up to the crucifixion, we wonder how He could experience such a horrible death. How was He able to go through it all without lashing out?

“We must never stop looking to Jesus. He is the leader of our faith, and he is the one who makes our faith complete. He suffered death on a cross. But he accepted the shame of the cross as if it were nothing because of the joy he could see waiting for him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God’s throne. 3 Think about Jesus. He patiently endured the angry insults that sinful people were shouting at him. Think about him so that you won’t get discouraged and stop trying.” Hebrews 12:2-3 ERV

Think about Jesus! Don’t worry – put a smile on your face and know that God loves you and will bring you through anything and in everything He will give you peace!

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