Author

TerryLema

Be Quiet!

by TerryLema

Recently God told me to be quiet. I was fussing about something out of my control. I was trying to figure out ways to “fix it.” That is when God told me to stop, take a step back, and be quiet. (FYI, I am not very good at being quiet—about anything!)

Of course, the verse that immediately came to mind was Psalm 46:10a: “Be still and know that I am God.”

 The second half of that verse continues: “I [God] will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” [vs 10b NKJV]

As I considered what God was saying through the Psalmist, I realized that God would not be “exalted” by my fussing and scheming trying to “fix” anything. He will be exalted when I stand still and patiently wait to see what He will do.

Moses said the same thing to the Nation of Israel when they were facing the Red Sea with Pharoah’s army closing in behind them. 

 “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today…. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.” [Exodus 14:13:14 HCSB]

God is not exalted by our fussing. He is exalted when we allow Him to have His will in our lives. He is exalted when we quiet our soul and relinquish everything to Him.

I am still learning that! PTL

 

0 comment
FacebookEmail

The Brokenhearted

by TerryLema

I saw a meme on Facebook that resonated with my soul.  “How we walk with the broken speaks louder than how we sit with the great.”

It also made me think about my mentor Pastor Jim. He had a medic’s heart. He used to say that he wasn’t interested in leading a mighty congregation first through the gates of glory. He was interested in being the last one through, gathering up all the wounded and broken along the way.

I think he instilled that passion in me. I feel far more comfortable with the brokenhearted than I do with the mighty. I feel closer to the LORD with my arms around the shattered and grieving.

I think Psalm 34:18 explains why that is. “The Lord is near the brokenhearted; He saves those crushed in spirit.” [HCSB]

When we gather near the brokenhearted, we gather near the LORD who is near to them. We gather near the One who saves those crushed in spirit.

Most of us at some point in life will experience brokenness. Something in life, a loss, a struggle, an illness, will crush us. It is during those times that we need others to come alongside us. It is during those times that we will find the LORD is very near to us. We just need to reach out to Him.

0 comment
FacebookEmail

Grief

by TerryLema

Recently I learned of the passing of two people. The first was a sweet 14-year-old. The second was an old saint of God, 101 years old. Family and friends are grieving their loss.

Succinctly, grief is the price we pay for loving someone. When we love someone, we become vulnerable to loss and to grief. Yet, to me, not loving at all would be a far worse way to live.

The Scriptures remind us that as Christians we do grieve but we grieve differently from the world. We grieve with hope.  “And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope.” [1Thessalonians 4:13 NLT]

That does not mean we hurt less. It means we have something incorporated into our mourning that those do not have who live apart from the LORD – HOPE.

We have the hope that this life is not all there is … in fact, this life is a brief burst that will take on eternity when we enter the presence of the LORD we love. There we will gather around the throne with the saints of all the ages. There we will be reunited with loved ones who have entered that eternity before us. There our hope will be fulfilled.

And still, I remember that short little verse in John 11:35, “Jesus wept.”

The very LORD who is our Living Hope stood outside the tomb of His friend, Lazarus, and His Heart broke for all those affected by death—even while He knew that in the next few moments, He would raise Lazarus from the grave.

Loss hurts. We grieve.

0 comment
FacebookEmail

Never Apologize

by TerryLema

Last Sunday, Pastor Paul brought a message out of Psalm 119:9-16. At one point in the message about the Word of God, Pastor Paul said, “never apologize for the Word of God.”

That reminded me of a time when I did just that.

I was in Bible College and going to a church affiliated with the college. There was one professor, a pastor, that I did not like very well. I really did not like his style of preaching. Sometimes I did not agree with his teaching either. My philosophy for taking exams in that class was, “you may not agree with everything, just give him what he wants on the tests.”

One Sunday I invited a friend to church and as it would happen, that pastor was the one bringing the message. I cringed as he spoke and wondered what my friend was thinking. Then came the end of service and the altar call. I was ready to apology for this pastor and the message when my friend brushed me aside and literally ran down to the altar.

In that moment I heard God say, “never apologize for my word or the vessel I use to bring it.”

Had I been able to block my friend and apologize for the message and the messenger, my friend would not have surrendered her life to Jesus that day.

God was gracious to me. Stopped me in my tracks. God was gracious to her. Set her on the right track. Praise His Holy Name!

0 comment
FacebookEmail

As Examples for Us

by TerryLema

There is a quote many of us have seen about serving as an example. “Everyone in life has a purpose, even if it’s to serve as a bad example.” (Carroll Bryant)

My mother often served as an example. She had emotional and mental insecurities and was often unstable in her relationships with family. She gave me some wonderful things – a love for music, reading, writing. But she also gave me an example of the type of mother I did NOT want to be to my children.

I used her example and tried to do things in a better way than she did. Did I always succeed? (You’ll have to ask my children.)

Twice in 1 Corinthians 10, Paul reminds us not to follow the things done by the nation of Israel in the wilderness.

Vs6: “Now these things became examples for us, so that we will not desire evil things as they did.” [HCSB]

Vs11: “Now these things happened to them as examples, and they were written as a warning to us.” [HCSB]

Paul discloses “these things” as desiring evil, becoming idolatrous, committing sexual immorality, testing God, and complaining.

We are to allow the bad examples of the Nation of Israel to warn us not to do the same things that brought death and destruction to them.

 

0 comment
FacebookEmail

The Eyes of the LORD Roam

by TerryLema

One of my favorite assurances in Scriptures is found in 2Chronicles 16. That chapter speaks of an incident in the life of Asa, King of Judah. During his reign, Baasha, King of Israel, started a war effectively isolating King Asa.

King Asa had a choice. He could call out to God for rescue, or he could look to man. Asa made the choice of looking to man and enlisted the help of Ben-Hadad, King of Syria.

Ben-Hadad did rescue King Asa, but it was the wrong choice. God sent the prophet Hanani to Asa and announced the consequences of his foolishness. “In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars.” [16:9b NKJV]

Isn’t it interesting that even though King Asa had a successful outcome to his problem, in God’s eyes it was a failure.

 God also reminded Asa of something vital for all of us to remember … this is the assurance I love! “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.”  [16:9a NKJV]

We have the assurance that God is eager to show Himself strong on our behalf. No matter where we go in this world, no matter what we experience in this life, God is looking for ways to prove His care for us. We just need to make sure that we make the right choice – to look to Him instead of to man.

0 comment
FacebookEmail

A Great Teacher

by TerryLema

Matt 11:28-30: “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” [HCSB]

There are many in the world who do not see Jesus as divine, as Savior or Redeemer.  They will not acknowledge that He always was, is, and forever will be God’s Eternal Son.  They will, however, acknowledge that He was a great teacher.

Down through the church age, the church has battled that perception of Him as ONLY a great teacher.  We have emphasized (rightly so) His deity and eternal nature since our salvation hinges on that.  But by doing that, we may have lost sight of the fact that He really was a great teacher.

He, in fact, commands us to LEARN from Him. What are we to learn from Him?  I think He tells us immediately what it is we are to learn … His character.

He calls to the weary and burdened to come.  He promises that in Him they will find rest for their souls.  He reminds them of His nature, gentle and humble in heart, or as some translations say, meek and lowly.  He tells us that He has a work for us, that we will be yoked with Him, but in contrast to the weariness and burdens we try to carry on our own – His will be easy and light.

Jesus has much to teach us about who He is and just how He relates to others.  I know we are to study our doctrine, to know the concepts and principles of our faith. But’s let’s never forget to learn from Jesus.

We can know our doctrine and still not know our Savior. Both are needed.

0 comment
FacebookEmail

Obedience Brings Knowledge

by TerryLema

I went to bed last night thinking about obedience and as I was reading in My Upmost for His Highest this morning apparently Oswald Chambers thought about it too.

He wrote, “The golden rule for understanding spiritually is not intellect, but obedience.  If a man wants scientific knowledge, intellectual curiosity is his guide; but if he wants insight into what Jesus Christ teaches, he can only get it by obedience.”

 Peter begins his first letter with a thought about obedience also “… [you] have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ…” [1 Peter 1:2 NIV]

Wow.  The Triune God … the Almighty God of the Universe who is above all … far above all … chose us, works to mature us, and gives us purpose in life. That purpose is obedience to Christ Jesus.  How important is our obedience if it mentioned in the same breath as God’s choosing and the Spirit’s sanctification?

I want to know God.  I want to see the world through His understanding and love people through His grace.  I want to live in the light.  I want insight into His purposes and thoughts … as much as I can understand the infinite with a finite mind.

Apparently, my obedience is key to seeing the fulfillment of this desire.  Oswald also said, “If things are dark to me, then I may be sure there is something I will not do.”

0 comment
FacebookEmail

Itchy Ears

by TerryLema

A while back I lost one of my good hearing aids. Finances were a bit tight, so I bought a set advertised in a magazine. Unfortunately, they aren’t very good. They do amplify sound, but I still am unclear at times on the words spoken.  They also do not fit as well as the old ones and make my ears “itchy” after a few hours wearing them. I take them off early in the evening when I can, and Bob and I just shout “What?” at each other a lot.

That had me thinking about Paul’s admonition in 2 Timothy 4. “Proclaim the message; persist in it whether convenient or not; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching. For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear something new. They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths.” [2 Timothy 4:2-4 HCSB]

2 Timothy 4 is an interesting chapter to read.  From what we know, these may be the final written words of Paul to not just Timothy, but to the church.  Often the final thoughts of a great person’s life hold wonderful truth and meaning.

Paul warned the church that a time was coming (and has certainly arrived) when people would not want to hear sound doctrine.  Instead, they will want religious novelties and things that neither challenge nor offend.

Sound doctrine often offends.  It offends our old fallen-flesh nature.  The old fallen-flesh nature neither wants to be convicted of sin, nor does it want to repent. It wants to gather around preachers who tell it what it wants to hear.

I read an article titled, “How We Moved from Theological to Therapeutic Preaching.”  Just the title got me thinking!

And yes, there are some churches that do not teach sound doctrine – theological peaching. Instead, they give people what their itching ears desire. Therapeutic preaching that makes them feel good and never offends. Paul’s warning could not be more relevant for today.

Let’s make sure we are in a church that teaches and preaches sound doctrine.

0 comment
FacebookEmail

The Hope We Have

by TerryLema

“And who will harm you if you are deeply committed to what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear or be disturbed, but honor the Messiah as Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. However, do this with gentleness and respect, keeping your conscience clear, so that when you are accused, those who denounce your Christian life will be put to shame.” [1 Peter 3:13-16 HCSB]

I looked at the first part of this verse yesterday.  Today the second part is my focus.  This admonition has always made me think.  There are so many parts “… always be prepared … give an answer … the hope you have … do it with gentleness and respect … keep a clear conscience.”

I know so often we talk about being prepared to answer when people question us, but I think the toughest part … and what may get even tougher now … is that part about the hope that we have.  As the world gets darker leading into the return of Christ Jesus, having hope and making that hope noticeable to others is going to get a lot tougher.

We can’t be running around frightened by the changes we see. That is what many people want to see – Christians on the run!

We can’t be depressed, the world already knows all about that.

We must be hopeful amid all this hopelessness.  That is the only thing that will stand out enough for people to ask … “how can you be so hopeful?” Then Peter reminds us that our responses must be gentle and respectful.

0 comment
FacebookEmail