Past Devotions

What Builds Altars in Our Minds …

by TerryLema

There was one other sentence in that monthly publication on encouragement that I told you about a couple days ago that also caught my eye.  “A negative mind will never give you a positive life.”

I tend to be a positive person. I was not always that way. I spent much of my teen years and early 20’s being depressed, uncertain and fearful.  “Woe is me” was my theme song. Then I met Jesus. Things changed; I changed. It did not happen overnight, but it did happen. My negative attitude, which was generated by fear was gradually replaced with a much more positive one. Joy, that had been driven out by shame and guilt, returned once the shame and guilt was taken away by Christ Jesus my Lord and Savior.

I realized along the way that I wanted to not only live my life in words and actions that honored Christ, I also wanted to focus my thoughts and attitudes on better things – in other words – to see things as He saw them. That is why Paul’s words in Philippians are so precious to me.

“Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things.” [Philippians 4:8]

What beautiful words … true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, morally excellence, praise. Those are the words that should build altars in our minds and attitudes. If we choose to see those good words in those around us, if we choose to seek those good words in our own will and ways, we will find that positive mind which will bless us even in the midst of negative situations and circumstances.

Yes, the world is in trouble. Yes, there is trouble in our own nation. Yes, we are surrounded by fear, wickedness, problems and more. But we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God who reminds us that our Savior is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, morally excellent, and praiseworthy. Amid the darkness, Jesus, LORD of Lords and KING of Kings shines brightly. Keep your eyes on Him, beloved.

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Dying is gain …

by TerryLema

I must admit that I am already tired of the politics and election drama. I have read the draft platform from one party (all 80 pages) and waiting to read the draft platform for the other one. I also must admit my soul is vexed by the rhetoric, it is sorrowed by the hatred spewed back and forth, and almost overwhelmed by the issues. The other day I stood in the kitchen and thought I understood, maybe for the first time, what Paul wrote in the beginning of his letter to the Philippians.

“For me, living is Christ and dying is gain. Now if I live on in the flesh, this means fruitful work for me; and I don’t know which one I should choose. I am pressured by both. I have the desire to depart and be with Christ—which is far better— but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you.” [Philippians 1:21-24 HCSB]

I know my life is Christ here now, and when I die I shall go to be with Him. That sounds so much better than staying where everything is such a mess in our world at present. Yet I also know, that as a pastor, I must complete my course; I must serve Christ now in the toughest times I have seen since I began.

I am not the only pastor who feels this way, many others are feeling the same. There are just times when pastoring is difficult and uncertain. We are not immune from discouragement, nor do we have all the wisdom and knowledge to confront every problem facing our country.

We do have “The Answer,” and that is Christ Jesus is Savior and LORD. How we communicate that answer to a dying world, how we encourage people to persevere, how we deal with overwhelming societal problems, that is the hard part.

So, a part of me yearns for that “dying is gain” that Paul wrote about – at the same time, I understand that at least for now, God is not yet ready for me. I must have some more fruitful work to complete. Ah, but deep within my soul is that desire to be with Him that yearns to be fulfilled.

Amen, LORD Jesus, come quickly. Amen.

 

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A Better Life …

by TerryLema

For years now I have received a monthly publication on encouragement. I began receiving it when I worked for a health system but made sure the publication had my new email address when I left that employment.  This past publication dealt with some of the frustration and difficulties of isolation around this fear-and-virus-pandemic. One sentence caught my eye.

“Finally, don’t expect others to make your life better.”

In one way that statement is false. We have been set free from sin, bondage, death, and punishment by the work of Christ Jesus on the cross. Romans 8:1 is clear, “Therefore, no condemnation now exists for those in Christ Jesus.” [HCSB]

That has definitely made life better. To live free from the guilt and shame and the fear that one day we might face judgment has certainly made my life better!

In another way that statement is true. When Joshua was preparing the people to leave the wilderness and go into the Promised Land, he reminded them that while God would do His part, they also had a part to do.

“Get provisions ready for yourselves, for within three days you will be crossing the Jordan to go in and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you to inherit.” [Joshua 1:10 HCSB]

They received instructions to get their provisions ready. Later they were told to prepare for battle, and they would need to face their enemies to possess what God had prepared for them.

If you want your life to be better, if you want to walk closer to the LORD who saved you, if you want to sense God’s presence with you every day of your life, you have to work with and cooperate with God’s Holy Spirit. Other people cannot do that for you.

God opened the pathway and gave you every provision and promise necessary for a better life, but, you must possess it! That is a daily work.

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A Bit of Wisdom …

by TerryLema

If I have learned anything over the last almost 74 years, it can probably be reduced to two things. One, life can change in a moment. Two, life can end in a moment. Knowing those two things is a foundation preparation truth for living. We must be prepared for change.

Last year my robust, walk-3-miles-a-day life changed in the span of a couple weeks. One minute I gave scarcely a care to how I felt. In the next moment I could barely walk ¼ mile at a time and my body was fatigued, stiff and in pain constantly. Then because that diagnosis was mismanaged over the next nine months, I developed another auto-immune disease, this one with the potential of blindness or an aneurism that can end life. Then, if you throw in 2020 … well, truly, life is both unpredictable and fragile.

Almost 50 years ago I learned another bit of wisdom, a truth that makes what I just wrote not all that important. God called my name and I answered. When that happened, everything changed. I learned to live (and am still learning to live) in the promises of God. One vitally important one is found in Romans 14. “If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” [vs8 HCSB]

Oh, beloved, what a promise!  We belong to the LORD!

This LORD we belong to is Almighty Father, Savior, King of Kings and LORD of Lords. He is our Protector, our Provider, our Refuge and Stronghold. He is Holy, All-Knowing, Loving, All-Powerful, and Everywhere Present. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He is our Good Shepherd, our Gentle Shepherd. He is the Holy Spirit of God who has taken up eternal dwelling within us. He is the Great I AM, our Healer and Deliverer. He is Interceding for us right now!

Jesus promised us that “No one will snatch [you] out of My hand. My Father, who has given [you] to Me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch [you] out of the Father’s hand.” [John 10:28-29 HCSB]

So, whether we live or die, we are safely in His Hands!  Rejoice!

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Who Claims You …?

by TerryLema

It has been awhile since I was in college, but I still remember an English professor from my creative writing class. We were given many writing assignments in that class and I often wrote mine from a Christian perspective. She liked my writing, she did not like my Christianity. I got “A’s” but often delivered with a frown.

One day I was the last to leave the class and she invited me to spend a few minutes with her. She openly acknowledged she did not respond well to Christians. When I asked her why, she gave me the “lumped together” reason. I am sure you have also heard similar reasoning—those misguided souls who will get in your face and “remind” you that the KKK was Christians, Hitler was a Christian, etc.

I told her that it is not what I “claim to be” that matters – I can claim to be Chinese, but I am not by birth, ethnicity, or citizenship. That reasoning holds truth for Christianity. It is not what we “claim,” it is Who “claims” us.

“So the one who boasts must boast in the Lord. For it is not the one commending himself who is approved, but the one the Lord commends.”  [2 Corinthians 10:17-18 HCSB]

My Christianity is true only and if the LORD, who alone can read hearts, says it is true. I can apply the title, but if I do not walk as worthy of Christ Jesus my LORD, then I will not be approved, nor commended by Him. (Which He would not do for the KKK or Hitler!) In fact, I will be judged by Him!

My life, in action as well as words must reflect the life of my Savior. Will I fail at that sometimes? Of course. But then my life must reflect godly sorrow and repentance and the obtaining of His forgiveness.

No one likes to be lumped together with those who falsely claim to be what they are not. We must remember always, it is not those who call themselves Christian yet act anything but, who truly are Christian. Christians are those who speak, act, honor and reflect the attitudes and actions of Christ Jesus, Savior and LORD. Only then will our LORD and Master commend us! Amen.

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Hello, my name is …

by TerryLema

Relevant. Merriam-Webster defines that words as “having significant and demonstrable bearing on the matter at hand.”  Irrelevant means, “not relevant.”

As I age, I have grown to hate that word “irrelevant.” As I look at our culture that places so much value on youth and has dismissed the “elderly” as irrelevant, it annoys my soul. Instead of seeing wisdom in wrinkled faces, we see insignificance. Instead of learning from the life experiences of those with years in the rearview mirror, we reject that historical knowledge outright.  In part because we have done that, our culture is not just fraying at the edges, it is disintegrating from its very core.

Take heart, beloved, because in God’s Kingdom things are done differently. God has created us for good works, and He determined not just what those good works are, He prepared them ahead of time for us to realize.

“For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.” [Ephesians 2:10 HCSB]

The good works we are assigned are ours to accomplish. We have good works as a corporate body of believers, but we also have good works as individuals. We need not fear that God will ever see us as “irrelevant” as we age, or because of struggles and trials we might have had in the past. We are not going to be set aside for a younger or more successful version!

God loves us and knows our hearts. He knows that we need to be “relevant” until we meet Him face-to-face and give that accounting of our lives.  In those green pastures beside those still waters, He strengthens us, restores us, renews us so that we can venture out into our world and do what He created us to do.

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Coffee & Conversation

by TerryLema

A Boise church recently posted a question on Facebook.  “If you could have coffee with one person from the Bible, of course other than Jesus, who would you choose and why?

There were some great answers along with some great reasons for choices.  It took me about a half minute to make my choice, Mary of Bethany.

“Mary (of Bethany) was the one who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair.” [John 11:2 HCSB]

I have always wanted to talk to her. I want to know how long the fragrant oil remained in her hair after she dried the feet of Jesus with her hair. I want to know what it was like to sit at His feet, how she felt about the things He was teaching, what was it like to be the “woman” in that room among all those men He called His disciples. What was it like during those three days when all thought He was gone forever?

I have three good longtime friends. We have been friends since the 80’s. We all lived in California, now one is in Utah and the other in Montana, while I am in Idaho. I miss talking with them. We connect by phone, but it is not the same as sitting for hours together over coffee talking about the LORD and all His wonders. (And sometimes even singing songs of praise and worship together.)

I know that one day the three of us will gather around God’s heavenly throne and we will see Jesus together. We will sing and praise His Holy Name throughout eternity. Maybe Mary of Bethany will join us! In the meantime, I still miss the coffee and conversation and long to spend time with them at the Feet of Jesus here and now.

Ever wonder how you would answer that question?

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Waiting on the LORD’s promises …

by TerryLema

One of the important things about the two auto-immune diseases currently trying to make their home in my body is that there is the possibility that they will go into remission or even simply go away in 1-5 years. That is something I have been working towards, because as bad as they are, the side effects of the medication needed to keep the symptoms at bay are almost as bad. So, I take the medications and do the infusions praying for remission and healing.

I had a setback recently. After reducing the medication dosage following my infusion, my right temporal artery became inflamed again with throbbing eye and head pain, with the risk of losing the sight in that eye or suffering an aneurism. So, the medication dosage was raised again to a level that might be described as uncomfortable. It was disappointing.

Of course, that happened right between two Sunday messages on “waiting on the LORD’s promises,” as illustrated by the life of Abraham. What do I always say? “You have to live it before you can give it!” Okay, LORD, I am back to waiting again.

Psalm 27 is a song by David about the LORD our Stronghold. It begins, “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom should I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—of whom should I be afraid?” [HCSB]

 After David describes the wonders of the LORD as his stronghold and refuge and prays for God’s intervention in his life. He ends the psalm on both a certain assurance and a command to his own spirit. “I am certain that I will see the LORD’s goodness in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and courageous. Wait for the Lord.” [vs 13-14 HCSB]

So, I am back to waiting on my remission or healing. Like Abraham, and David, and so many before them, I am certain that I will see (and I do see) the goodness of my Savior and LORD, Christ Jesus now, and have the promise that there is so much more of that coming. And waiting in a green pasture by still waters is not all that bad!

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A Way in the Wilderness …

by TerryLema

Recently, I was drawn back to an old song. It is a simple song and one that God brought to my mind a decade ago when I was seeking a name for our church, which became “The Way.”

The song was written by Don Moen. It is called, “God Will Make a Way.” It was written during a very difficult time following an auto accident in which his sister-in-law’s entire family was seriously injured and his 9-year-old nephew killed. Don gave this song to his sister-in-law because, as he says in his own words, “I knew that when all of the people had gone, and everything was said and done, there would be days when she needed to hear that God was working in ways that she couldn’t see.”

 The song was based on the Scripture found in Isaiah 43:19. “Look, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.” [HCSB]

There are times in life when we are immobilized because our grief is so deep, and it seems God is so far away. He is not, but during those seasons of life we are often unable to perceive His nearness. We feel as in a wilderness, a desert where there are no refreshing green pastures or still waters. We feel abandoned, lost, alone.

At those times we must rest in the faith that even though we cannot see what God is doing, He is carrying us through that wilderness. He will make a way for us. His way always leads to green pastures and still waters.

You can hear the song and read the story behind it in Moen’s own words at https://www.songfacts.com/facts/don-moen/god-will-make-a-way

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Know Moe …?

by TerryLema

“Aren’t five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. Indeed, the hairs of your head are all counted. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows!” [Luke 12:6-7 HCSB]

My hair was thin because of genetics and age. It got thinner when I started a medication for a couple auto-immune diseases. Then there was this miscommunication with the hairdresser the last time I visited a salon. So now I have this “Moe” thing going for me. Remember Moe, of Larry, Curly and Moe fame, one of the Three Stooges. He was the one with the buzz cut who always was rubbing his head with his hands.

Well, that is me right now. I have this buzz cut, only my hair is pure white, meaning I just look bald. And I keep rubbing my head with my hands, I guess just to make sure there is still a little left up there.

When I got up this morning and looked in the mirror, I thought about the reassurance in Luke 12 that God has all the hairs on my head counted. I started to laugh. I laughed thinking that I have made God’s job of counting my hairs so much easier!  Sometimes you just must laugh out loud at life!

So, I laugh about God counting my hair, but I also rest in that thought. Hair is so inconsequential considering the deep things of our hearts and minds. Yet, God knows not just those deep things about us (and cares about them), He knows even what we might call the small inconsequential things … still nothing about us is insignificant to Him. Everything is important.

We may not always be aware of God’s care, but that does not change the eternal fact that His care for us never wavers, never fades, never stops. We are His beloved children. He sacrificed His Only Son for us. As Romans 8:32 reminds us … “how will He not also with [Christ Jesus] grant us everything we need?”

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