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Devotions

So that you became examples…

by TerryLema

We finished a two-part message on choosing joy at The Way last Sunday. It was not a joy-filled experience for me, however. I had some difficult effects of my auto-immune disease Sunday morning that left me shivering and weak in my big lounge chair, huddled in a blanket, with no thoughts of standing behind a pulpit.  I called a board member and asked him to fill in, which he graciously agreed to even though he had no warning and no preparation time.

When it was almost time for song service to begin, I was feeling a bit better and decided to get dressed and head over to church. I walked in during song service and sat down to bring the second part of a joy-message. But first … first I had to address some church etiquette issues. There was nothing major, minor housekeeping types of things, but still not something on my favorites-list to do.

Finally, JOY!  One of the Scriptures in the message hit home for me.  It is from Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians.

“And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit…”  [1:6 HCSB]

Joy and Affliction – not necessarily words you find together. But for Christians, joy is found in all types of situations and circumstances. Joy and Success. Joy and Trials. Joy and Tribulations. Joy and Good Health. Joy and Chronic Disease.  You can put joy with anything we face because it is not based on anything we face … it is based on “Whose we are.” We belong to God Almighty through the work of Christ Jesus our LORD, and our joy is secure in that relationship.

But as I looked up that verse again this morning, I was reminded that there is more to it. The verse that directly follows is part of the same sentence.  “…so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Achaia who believe.” [1:7 HCSB]

Christian Joy amid affliction not only benefits us. When we exhibit joy during trials, we provide an example to others who believe, so that they might be strengthened with joy also in their trials. God never wastes anything! 

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Complete Boldness

by TerryLema

In Acts Chapter 3, Peter and John were going up to the temple complex to pray. They encountered a lame man who begged for money at that location every day. Instead of money, Peter and John told him to get up and walk in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, which is exactly what he did. [3:6-9]

Not only did he walk, but this former lame man also began to leap and shout and praise. That brought the attention of those around him and gave Peter and John an opportunity to give a salvation message.

That also brought some unwanted attention from the Jewish rulers, the same ones that had orchestrated the death of Jesus. They arrested Peter and John, and after commanding them to not speak again about Christ Jesus released them. Peter and John reported all this to the brethren with great joy.  Then they prayed, and it is a prayer that we might think about praying along with them.

 “And now, Lord, consider their threats, and grant that Your slaves may speak Your message with complete boldness, while You stretch out Your hand for healing, signs, and wonders to be performed through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”  [Acts 4:29 HCSB]

Is not that the best prayer!  Peter and John asked God to take note of the opposition aimed at them and give them complete boldness to respond. They also asked God to grant healing, signs and wonders in the name of Jesus.

Healing, signs, and wonders are a wonderful prelude to the preaching of truth. People take note of such things. When people see a lame man leaping and shouting and praising, they want to know how it happened, and that opens the door to preach salvation in the Name of Jesus.

God answered the other part of their prayer too – that part for complete boldness no matter the strength of the opposition.  “When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak God’s message with boldness.” [Acts 4:30-31 HCSB]

Maybe this should be the prayer for our generation … LORD, give us complete boldness, and grant healing, signs, and wonders that generate opportunities to speak salvation in the name of Jesus. Amen and Amen!

 

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Ready for Action!

by TerryLema

After reading in Peter’s first letter about our “imperishable uncorrupted, and unfading [inheritance], kept in heaven for [us]” and about God’s power protecting us, I read a little further and a couple words caught my attention.  They are words that we often do not see or think about in the same context.

Peter had already talked about the trials and tribulations his readers were currently encountering and now he urges them to have their minds ready for anything else that they might have to confront.

“Therefore, with your minds ready for action, be serious and set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” [1 Peter 1:13 HCSB]

Their hope, like our hope, is focused on the grace that Christ Jesus brings with Him when He returns. Grace, that marvelous gift of God that combined with mercy gives us what we do not deserve (salvation) and does not give us what we do deserve (punishment.)  The NT is clear that it is by our faith in God’s grace that we are saved and set apart for Him.

Then in the very next verse there is a word that seems at odds with grace.

  “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the desires of your former ignorance. But as the One who called you is holy, you also are to be holy in all your conduct.” [1 Peter 1:14-15 HCSB]

Obedience and grace are seldom seen together.  As Christians we often hold to the “just-as-I-am” principle of salvation. And while God does accept us just as we are, that does not mean we are to stay just as we were.

Upon being saved, we are to become “holy in all [our] conduct,” just as He is holy.  We are to become “obedient children.”

Let us never forget that our faith, while founded through faith in God’s grace, is to be an obedient faith.

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Protected!

by TerryLema

I was able to make an appointment last Friday morning for my husband for his COVID-19 vaccine. Our local health system notified him through our online chart that he was now eligible to make his appointment. He wants the vaccine, so I scheduled it.  (Tried to schedule mine but for some reason I was not yet eligible to do so.)

Science is promising us that the vaccine is 95 percent effective in protecting us from this virus. I hope so, especially since we are in the most vulnerable category for getting the virus and having severe side effects from it.

Even if the vaccine cannot protect us from the virus or its side effects, I am still protected! I am protected from much more devastating events and by a much greater power.

After Peter told the readers of his first letter that the Father of our LORD Jesus Christ had given them “a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable uncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven for [them],” Peter also reminded them of an especially important caveat. [1 Peter 1:3-4 HCSB]

 “You are being protected by God’s power through faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” [I Peter 3:5 HCSB]

We are protected by God’s power for salvation. We will not experience the devastation of condemnation and punishment. We will never hear God say, “Depart from me….” We will never fall victim to a power greater than the power of God because such power does not exist.

We entered that divine protection through faith. As Christians, we embraced God’s way and the full outcome of God’s way combined with our faith will be revealed to us when we enter His Eternal Presence.

 

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Pleasant Places …

by TerryLema

It is the last day of the first month of the new year.  The new year is not so new anymore.  There are already cracks in the “unity” promised by politicians. There are new strains of the virus invading the US. Science is unsure whether the vaccines will be effective against these new more contagious strains. Schools are trying to reopen in many places where they have been closed all year. People still are not back to work. The shine on the new year is dulling rapidly.

It would be nice to know what the future holds for the remainder of this year and for the next year and the next. Unfortunately, we do not have a crystal ball to read the future, but, then, I am not sure I want to know what the future holds. Living one day at a time is a much better option.

While we do not know the future here on earth, we do know who holds our future.  David reminds us of two important things in Psalm 16.

“Lord, You are my portion and my cup of blessing; You hold my future. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.” [Psalm 16:5-6 HCSB]

We are reminded first that the LORD God Almighty is our portion and our cup of blessing. We may not have much here, but oh the glory that we have in knowing God!

Then David assures us that God holds our future, and that future is one of eternal beauty.  The “boundary lines” of our inheritance are eternally secure.

Peter, in his first letter further defines the “boundary lines” of our inheritance.

“Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to His great mercy, He has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable uncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven for you.” [1 Peter 1:3-4 HCSB]

Our inheritance is one of living hope. Imperishable. Uncorrupted. Unfading. Kept in Heaven just for us!  Glory!

 

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Sweet Mercy!

by TerryLema

Matthew 5:7: The merciful are blessed, for they will be shown mercy.  [HCSB]

 That Scripture verse from the Sermon on the Mount came as a Verse of the Day to my inbox the other day.  It started me thinking about mercy and being merciful.

The word for mercy is “eleémón” and it means full of pity, merciful, compassionate. One of the word studies I checked said it is “acting consistently with the revelation of God’s covenant.”

We are shown mercy by our Father God who loved His creation so much that He sent His beloved Son to die to save it. We now, having experienced that covenant of God’s mercy are to be merciful to others.

Unfortunately, being merciful is not overflowing in modern society. We have little patience with anyone or anything that goes against our “opinions.”  We seldom give people the benefit of the doubt. The media is intent upon finding anything wrong they can dig up in the lives of others. Even our 30-minute national news outline is 29 minutes of all that is wrong everywhere, ending with 1 minutes of an “uplifting” story.

God’s people are to be different from this “present age.” We are to be merciful to others. This is also one of those “back at ya” rules in that the more merciful we are to others, the more mercy we will receive in return.

Mercy is to influence our attitudes toward all people—family, friends, enemies … and yes even politicians and broadcasters and freeway drivers! It should also drive our actions. When we are merciful, we pray, we give, we spend our time and money on others, we help, we support, we love.

Oh, Father, let us be a channel of the mercy you gave us … let it flow from Your heart to ours and then to those we meet every day. Amen.

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It’s About Relationship!

by TerryLema

I was asked the other day to review my medical information, update my insurance for the new year, and make sure all my “choices” were current, such as emergency numbers, religious affiliation, etc.  Everything was correct except there were changes to my insurance regarding my co-pays. Thankfully, those changes benefited me.

I smile whenever I must choose my “religious” affiliation. I know it is just a standard form that needs to be completed, but I always want to say that I do not have a “religious” affiliation, I have a “relationship with a person” affiliation.

In yesterday’s devotion, I mentioned that “religion” can be anything we want it to be. We can change it anyway we want. We can ignore some parts, embellish others. We can interpret it according to when it was written or according to the norms of the society in which we live. Religion is uncertain.

Now a faith based on a relationship with a person is different. When Jesus invited us to come, He did not invite us to come to a set of rules and regulations, not even to principles or doctrines. He invited us to come to Him.

“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.” [Matthew 11:28-29 HCSB]

When we come to God through Christ Jesus, we enter a relationship with someone who does not – cannot change.

“Every generous act and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights; with Him there is no variation or shadow cast by turning.” [James 1:7 HCSB]

When we are in a relationship with the Holy, Living God, He does not change. We do. We conform to His image; He does not conform to ours.

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Ask! Please!

by TerryLema

You are going to be hearing about “Ascendant Liberal Christianity” in the media. Apparently the NYTimes wrote an article declaring that President Joe Biden may “perhaps” be “the most religiously observant commander in chief in half a century.”

They go on to declare the new President as a champion of a better Christianity. They declare that “a different, more liberal Christianity grounds his life and his policies.”

As one man tweeted in response to this article … “There’s no such thing as ‘liberal Christianity’ there’s just Christianity.”

I do not doubt that President Joe Biden is a religious man. But the problem with that is Christianity is about relationship with the One True and Holy God who will not compromise His nature or attributes for anyone.

Religions can be anything we want them to be, ascendant, liberal, conservative, progressive, post-, etc. But when you enter a relationship with JEHOVAH God, you enter on His terms not yours. You agree to His way, not yours. You follow His will, not your own.

We need to be wise about many things in life – our relationship with our God is one area where knowledge and wisdom is vital. And as James reminds us, God wants us to be wise in our relationship with Him and with others. He will give us all the wisdom we need; we just need to ask.

“Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him.”  [James 1:5 HCSB]

We must pray for our President. We are commanded to pray for all those in authority over us. We need to also pray for wisdom that we might see things as they truly are!

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On a Hill!

by TerryLema

A lot of people are contemplating a change in the social media platforms they use. They are talking of abandoning Facebook, Instagram and others and their reasoning is the censoring of posts that may contain ideas, thoughts, words, that are not considered socially acceptable to some.

I have received a few invitations to join other social media sites and have had to prayfully consider what my response should be.

I have decided to stay where I am – at least for the time being. Do I like censorship?  No, I do not. But I am staying put on Facebook for one specific reason, that is, if all who speak the truth of God’s Word leave, there will be no one left to shine a little light where it is needed most.

Jesus, in His Sermon on the Mount, said that “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house.” [Matthew 6:14-15]

I strive to bring the light of God’s Word, not just to those who already have that light, but to those in darkness. I seek to encourage Christians in the midst of troubling times, but I am also seeking those lost souls who are looking for hope and do not know where to find it.

Will I get censored. Probably. I already was blocked from posting something, and I am sure there are those who have either “unfriended me” or at the least, “snoozed” me for 30 days because they do not like what I share. Still, I will hang around Facebook for a while until God tells me I can no longer do any good there.

We not only need to make sure our lamps are lit, but we also need to make sure we have put them where others who need the light can see them.

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Reaping!

by TerryLema

I do not think I have ever experienced a time like this. I know my parents did during WWII when they experienced fear, rationing, and a world gone mad. My lifetime, however, has been fairly mild. The roughest time was the View Nam era with the protesters in the streets of our cities and the venom aimed at our returning military.

Now we have multiple calamities. We have the political unrest, the virus-and-fear pandemic, the economic downturn, unemployment, closed schools, masks, vaccines and conflicting data from science and medicine.  It has made me weary.

I know I should hold my head up and face it head on, but all I really want to do at times is give up.  That is a natural reaction to the circumstances of our present age.  As Christians, however, we are not to respond to life with “natural reactions.” Instead, we are to see these challenges as opportunities to do good.

Following Paul’s reminder in Galatians 6 that God will not permit Himself to be mocked and that we will reap what we sow, he urged his readers to not quit but to keep working for good.

“So we must not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, we must work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.” [Galatians 6:9-10 HCSB]

Beloved, no matter how difficult the political climate gets, or how virulent the virus, or how devastating the health and welfare of our nation, or how strong the opposition, we do not quit. We do not give up. We do not go silent.

We keep doing good, speaking truth, reaching out to others. The world is growing darker and darker—which should not take us by surprise. That means we need to grow brighter and brighter with the light of Christ. Our brightness shines best when we are meeting each challenge with good.

If we do not give up, we will reap a reward that is out of this world! Amen!

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