TerryLema

I received an email offer for 3 free printable charts showing 30 names of God. The charts were to have the original language, pronunciation, Scripture reference, meaning, etc. All I had to do was go to the website to download them. Well, first I had to input my email. I knew doing that would get me on another email address list and I’d start receiving more “offers” in my inbox. The idea of the charts was still interesting, so I input my email.  Then I needed to check a box indicating, “I’m not a robot.”

 I’ve been seeing these “I’m not a robot” boxes on all kinds of websites. I am sure it has something to do with viruses and filtering out things the website doesn’t want to acquire, but this morning I thought that box hilarious. I kept thinking about why a robot would want 3 free printable charts showing 30 names of God.  Not being a robot, I checked the box and received my free charts.

I am not a robot.  I am a child of God. I don’t think God is into robots. He created us with such variety in our appearance, talents, and abilities. We have different motivations and personalities. No two of us are alike., We are all unique – just like everyone else.

 He gave us free will. That free will allows us to choose even whether or not we will embrace Him as Creator God, Savior and LORD. He is willing to allow us to stand by our free-will choices, even if that means rejecting Him and choosing to spend eternity separated from Him.

 No, we are not robots. God made sure of that. But it is our choice if we will be a child of God. We are the only ones that can make sure of that. He’s provided Jesus, “The Way, the Truth, and the Life” … and gave us the free will to “come to the Father” through Him.  [John 14:6]

 I am not a robot. I used my free-will to choose to be a child of God.

One section of my daily worship walk is next to a drainage ditch. There is a path down both sides and lots of vegetation growing all around the ditch and the walkways. This seems to be a favorite place for quail, killdeer and little black birds with bright red on their wings. 

 When I walk there, the quail burst from their nests. The killdeer also spring from theirs and lead me away all the while wailing and pretending to be injured so that if I was a true predator, I would follow them instead of going after their babies. The blackbirds fly up to the heights and begin chattering and warning others.  I’ve even seen them go after a hawk that frequents the area.

 I usually softly sing, “it’s okay, I won’t hurt your babies, I promise,” but they don’t trust me, so we go through this routine every time I walk this area.  God has placed in these little mamas and papas such a strong instinct to protect their young. Strong enough that they would battle a hawk, and I think even me if needed.

 At The Way Church this morning we are going to begin the second half of our series, “Seek (More of God) & Shout (Stop Thief!).” The “Shout” part is the battle to keep the enemy of our soul from doing what he wants to do.  Jesus told us what the goal of the enemy is, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly.”  [John 10:10 NKJV]

 God gives life. Jesus said He came that we might have that life in abundance, in other words, that we might have “More of God.” But the enemy seeks to steal, kill and destroy that life. We need to be more like those little birds, ready to do battle with anything that seeks to destroy God’s best for each other.

My most memorable experience at the Boise Art Museum (BAM) was an exhibit of vases of all sizes and shapes. I’ve often shared about this experience because it became a living Scripture verse for me. The vases were blown into their various shapes and then covered with layer upon layer of different colors, one on top of another. Then the artist scored and scarred with a tool through the various layers of these colors and created woodland and forest scenes. BAM placed a light in many of them and the brilliance of that light on the inside made these vases and scenes come alive.

And as I watched a film of the process and looked at these amazing works of art, I was immediately reminded of 2 Corinthians 4:7:  “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”

 Paul had just reminded his readers that God “made his light shine in our hearts” by giving us “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.’ Now he tells them that this glorious, brilliant light (our treasure) is housed in jars of clay—that’s us.

 And just like the vases I saw at the BAM, created by that amazing artist, we too are scored and scarred by life, by trials, by difficulties. Our amazing God uses those things to reveal the treasure we received in Christ Jesus our LORD. What an amazing artist He is! And to think He’s in the business of transforming pots of clay into wondrous works of art to be displayed throughout eternity.  Oh, my.

Light. I love light. I open blinds early in the morning so that I might catch the first rays that come through my windows. I don’t care if it is summer or winter, the blinds are open and inviting the light into our home.  That changed when Bob went through this recent eye surgery. The light bothered him, so we kept the blinds and curtains shut to keep the room dark for his comfort. This went on for five days. He was comfortable in the dark; I was miserable.

 When Paul told the Corinthians that the “god of this age” blinded eyes, and that it was the work of the believer to share Jesus Christ as Lord to all, he continued with a reminder that God has moved us from darkness to light. It’s a precious theme of Paul’s repeated to the Ephesians, Colossians, and Thessalonians.

  “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.” [2 Cor 4:6 NIV]

 The same God who created the natural light, also created a supernatural light in our hearts. Paul calls that supernatural light the “knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”

 When we look at Jesus the Christ, listen to His words, see the way He related to people, we see the glory of the Creator. And that glory is brilliant! 

My husband Bob needs to have cataracts removed. Speaking from experience that’s fairly easy surgery nowadays. He needed to have a growth removed on one eye, however, before the surgeon could do the cataracts. So last week I took him in for the surgery. It was supposed to be a 15-minute procedure. I started to worry after 90 minutes.  Finally, he came out of the eye surgeon’s office, grimacing, wearing a large eye patch. The growth was more complicated to remove than originally thought and he had a few stitches in his eye under a pressure bandage. Not a happy camper.

 He complained the next few days, and I can’t say I blame him. His good eye kept watering in sympathy and he didn’t like light. So, he sat in the dark. He said he wished he’d never decided to have the cataracts removed and started this process; he could see just fine the way he was. Then he asked me to get him that “white and brown” blanket. I would have, except we don’t have a “white and brown” blanket. We do have a “white and lavender” blanket.  I realized then just how bad his vision is. He won’t realize it until the cataracts are removed in a few weeks.

 I often have people ask me how others can be so blind to truth, how so many can believe the lies that are often propagated in our culture.  I remind them of what Paul wrote to the Corinthians so long ago – his words still hold true today.  “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” [2 Cor 4:4 NIV]

 Let’s remember, however, that even though the “god of this age” continually seeks to blind the eyes, God has a remedy, and His remedy involves believers. We are to share the Good News that we have received: “For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.” [2 Cor 4:5 NIV]

 We have been called to scatter the seed of the Gospel of Peace. We have been called to love people, to be humble servants of truth. We are called to kindness and compassion mixed with gentle courage.  In other words, we are called to present Jesus Christ as Lord by our actions and our words.

I woke up last Friday morning with two things that had replayed in my mind throughout the night. The first was from Scripture, the second a line from a song.  The verse that kept repeating was actually a combination of two found in Romans 8.  “There is, therefore, now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus … to those who are the called according to His purpose.”  

 Somehow in my sleep I combined part of verse 1 with part of verse 28.  I kept thinking (in my sleep) about how wonderful it was to be called according to God’s purpose. I wondered how much God’s purpose for me has directed my life.  I thought of all the times I was miserable when I fought God’s purpose, and how delighted I was when I finally surrendered to Him. I thought, “Why me, LORD? How can You love me so?”

 Then I was reminded that because I am in Christ Jesus through God’s calling, there is no condemnation.  None. I will never have to stand before the judgment of God condemned because in Christ Jesus I have been set free.  All these thoughts ran through my head while I slept.

 Then I began to sing (in my sleep) over and over the line from a song we’ve sung in church. “And the cry of my heart is to bring You praise.” *Hillsong’s “From the Inside Out”

 I love it when God speaks to me in the night. I love when my soul responds to His Words and His Love.

 *Hillsong (From the Inside Out):  https://www.bing.com/search?q=from+the+inside+out+hillsong&form=EDGSPH&mkt=en-us&httpsmsn=1&refig=758d34449d3d47d2864a70ed19e0979b&sp=2&qs=AS&pq=from+the+inside+out+&sk=LS1&sc=8-20&cvid=758d34449d3d47d2864a70ed19e0979b&cc=US&setlang=en-US

2019 has been a strange weather year here in Idaho, as well as across our nation. Where I live, January was warm, February, March and April were cold, and we had one of the wettest May’s we’ve ever had. June so far has been hot and has also produced thunderstorms.  Just the other night we sat in the quiet and listened to the thunder rumble across the skies. I love thunderstorms! 

I grew up in Western Pennsylvania and I remember the thunderstorms. I loved watching the lightning strikes on the banks of the Monongahela River. I loved listening to the loud thunderclaps that followed. I always missed those thunderstorms when we lived in Northern California, where they were rare. Now, in Idaho, they are one of my favorite things.

Thunderstorms remind me of the opening verses of Psalm 19: “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge.” [v 1-2 NKJV]

 I can see David lying underneath the magnificent night sky looking at the stars and seeing in their vastness the glory of God. I can imagine him standing among the hills and looking out on the beauty of the earth. The heavens and the earth spoke to David the story of their Creator. And David realized that His revelation filled the entire cosmos. There was no place that “their voice is not heard.”  [v3]

God testifies to us in the magnificent earth and wondrous skies that there is a Creator. He testifies to us of His love for beauty and variety. He testifies to us of His power and His glory. Look around you and listen … He is speaking. And oh, how stunning His words.

Someone close to me once asked me what I would do if I ever found myself alone. Would I re-marry?  I said no; I am content when alone. They countered that I should not be so adamant about that. After a lot of back and forth conversation, I ended by saying, if God wants me to re-marry, He’ll have to write it on the wall!

 That reference, of course, comes from the Book of Daniel, chapter 5. King Belshazzar, a descendent of Nebuchadnezzar, threw a big party for a thousand of his nobles and their wives and concubines. As the party got going, they brought in the sacred vessels dedicated to the LORD that were stripped from Solomon’s Temple when Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians. While they drank from those vessels, they praised their idols. 

 Until God had enough … and suddenly a finger appeared and wrote on the wall.  Eventually, Daniel was brought in to interpret what the message (MENE, MENE, TEKEL PARSIN) meant. A portion of Daniel’s interpretation should warn and frighten us!

 This is the interpretation: “Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians.”

 “You have been weighed on [God’s] scales and found wanting.” I do not even want to imagine hearing those words applied to me or anyone I love. To be found wanting by God Himself would be unthinkable. That said, it’s prudent to “weigh” ourselves against God’s Word and against the lives of the people of faith God lovingly approves of in His Word.  If we find ourselves “wanting,” then we need to repent and rededicate before the handwriting is on the wall. 

Happy Father’s Day to my dad (in heaven), my husband Bob, to Mike my son-in-law, and to Adam my son. All good dads. Not perfect, but dads who were (and are) good to their families. They love their children and seek their best. We honor you today for your sacrifice and commitment.

 And may I say a Happy Father’s Day to all the single parents out there trying to do both jobs. Single parenting is difficult, tiring, and often lonely. Men who must be both father and mother, and women who have to be both mother and father need to be celebrated and honored also.

 As Christians, we need to help our single parents. There is a part of Psalm 68 which always reminds me of that fact. The psalmist declares God to be “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.” Then he adds, “God sets the lonely in families.”  [Ps 68:5-6]

 If we are to mirror the character of our Father God on this earth – and that really is not an “if” but a “when” – we need to take care the fatherless, the widows, and the lonely. The church is meant to be a family. That means we are to pick up the slack where needed.

 We don’t always do a very good job of helping single parents or caring for people living apart from any natural family. It’s time that changed. How about taking the children of single parents out for a treat, a movie, time in the park, and allowing parents to rest, or do something they’ve been wanting to do. How about we check on those living alone, take them out to lunch or visit.  It doesn’t take much money, just a little time, to be God’s hand extended.

I’ve entered two drawings. One for the HGTV 2019 Smart Home which I think is in Dallas, and one for the St. Jude’s Dream Home, which is in a neighboring city.  The HGTV home is a free entry, the St. Jude’s home is a raffle to benefit St. Jude Children’s Hospital. It is the one raffle I enter every year.

 I stand little chance of winning either one, but it’s fun to dream a bit of what I’d do if I did win. I doubt I’d actually live in either. They are gorgeous, but they are big. Really big in comparison to our little house we have here in Caldwell Idaho. As I’ve aged, the idea of cleaning and maintaining a “big” house grows less attractive with every year. Still, one never knows.

 Truthfully, I’ve set my sights on an even greater home.  One I won’t have to clean or maintain. It’s located in a place where nothing deteriorates or grows dirty. I won’t need Merry Maids or a handyman. And the best part, someone else paid for it and has handed the title over to me.

 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.  And where I go you know, and the way you know.”   [John 14:1-4 NKJV]

 Our LORD has purchased a place for us where He is. He has deeded that “mansion” to us. It is all prepared specifically for each one of us.  As much as I might enjoy the Smart Home or Dream Home here, I think I’ll be a lot happier with my abode over there.  One of my dad’s favorite songs was “Mansion Over the Hilltop.”  He would sing it whenever my mother played it on the piano.  Here’s a link

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfZ3qyYnzJ0