Running The Race

As the curtain comes down on the 2012 Olympic Games, there are many events that I, and I daresay, the world will remember for a long time to come. But the ones that stand out the most in my mind are the track and field events. Maybe it's because I grew up watching track and field competitions and sometimes taking part just for the fun of it, not minding at all bringing up the rear. Or maybe it's because so many of the winning athletes hail from the Caribbean where I am from. Whatever the reason, I thoroughly enjoyed the track and field events.

But as I watched in awe and delight as "Bolts of lightning" shot to the winning line and one runner with no legs made it into winners row, I was reminded that the Olympics were first held in Greece and the Bible has some comments on running races. Here's what it says in Hebrews 12 : 1 - 2. "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..."

And in 1 Corinthians 9: "Know ye not that they which run in a race run all , but one receiveth the prize? So run , that ye may obtain . And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things . Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run , not as uncertainly; so fight I , not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection : lest that by any means , when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway" ( 24 - 27).

The Olympics are over, but the lessons they taught us will live on forever.

Stay Up Chick Fil A

It's a sad day when a person is ostracized for voicing his opinion in America. No, I take that back. It's a dangerous day. Whatever happened to freedom of speech? This past week Dan Cathy, president of Chick-fil-A came under fire from gay rights groups for expressing his opinion on same-sex marriage. To counter this, anti-gay groups turned out in large numbers - 500, 000, according to one post - on Wednesday to eat at Chick-fil-A restaurants.

I support Mr. Cathy's statement that marriage, as instituted by God, is between one man and one woman. But even if I didn't, I think the man has a right to express his opinion without fear of reprisals from those who share opposing views. According to Mike Huckabee who whipped up support for Chick-fil-A via his radio show, "every American -- has a right to an opinion. You don't have to agree with it. You don't have to like it. But you ought to respect that people have that wonderful right. You don't have that in North Korea. You don't have it in Iran."

This morning I read part of the story of the Exodus where the children of Israel were made to suffer great hardship just because they said they wanted to go and worship God in the desert. Pharaoh piled on the pressure, ordering his foremen to require the slaves to gather their own straw and produce the same amount of bricks as they had previously. The enemy's tactic has always been to frustrate God's people to the point that they either forget about worshiping Him or they bow to the enemy.

The Israelites, to their discredit, became angry at Moses and Aaron and accused them of bringing trouble upon them. Moses, in turn, confronted God. Listen to him: "Ever since I went to Pharaoh to speak in your name, he has brought trouble upon this people, and you have not rescued your people at all" (Exodus 5 : 23). Sounds familiar? Blame God when the enemy persecutes us.

The Chick-fil-A president's troubles began the minute he declared his position for God. So far, government officials from Chicago and Boston have pledged to keep the fast-food chain out of their cities and one of their outlets was vandalized. As if that wasn't enough, gay activists decided to stage a kiss-in outside of Chick-fil-A restaurants. But Mr. Cathy has reacted to all of this in a Christlike manner. He told the LA Times, "...I feel God's going to be with us through this and he'll be with the opposer as well. He doesn't hate anybody."

The Bible says, "Blessed are ye , when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely , for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad : for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you" (Matthew 5 : 11-12). Mr. Cathy, you are in good company. Thousands have already demonstrated their support for you, but more importantly, God supports you. Stay up!

Anger And The Colorado Tragedy

I had planned to continue with the last contributing factor in my series on Anger, but instead I thought I should comment a little on the latest tragedy to shake our nation. As police begin to release the names of the victims of the Colorado shooting, the country is still trying to come to grips with what gave rise to this display of anger. Because the shooter had to be angry at someone or something to carry out such a callous deed.

As I said in my post, "Anger can be a destructive force that prevents you from enjoying God's best and also land you in a lot of trouble." Whether this young man's anger stemmed from fear, frustration, exhaustion, worry or his environment we may never know. All we know is that twelve innocent people are dead and many more wounded.

Can we as a nation do anything to prevent these random acts of violence from terrorizing our society? Our first response to this question might be "Of course not." But think again. In the Bible we see many instances where God's people were besieged by other nations or they suffered pestilence or famine. But the minute they repented of their sins and turned to God, a change came about.

In 2 Corinthians 6 we see Solomon offering up sacrifices and inviting God's presence into the house he had built for Him and entreating God to hear from heaven and forgive the sins of the people. The whole of that chapter is taken up with Solomon's prayer. In the next chapter, fire comes down from heaven, burns up the sacrifices and the glory of the Lord fills the temple. Later in the chapter Gpd makes this promise to Solomon: "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray , and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land" (v 14).

It is still God's promise to us today. We can have an anger-free environment if we would invite God's promise into our homes, schools, workplaces and, yes, theaters. We don't have to live in fear, worry or frustration. We have turned away from God but there is still time to humble ourselves and pray and seek His face and turn from our wicked ways. There is still sand in our hour glass but it's running out fast. We must hurry, and pray.

How Your Words Contribute To An Angry Environment?

We have all seen news reports on television of people fighting in the streets, throwing rocks or hand grenades, aiming machine guns at each other. We may look at them and think that those displays of anger only happen in foreign lands. We may even think they are justified, given the conditions that exist in those places. We never place ourselves on the same footing with "those people." But if we examine our lives a little more closely, we would realize that we too sometimes throw rocks, hand grenades and even machine guns at our loved ones and the people we come into contact with on a daily basis.

Take this scenario: Jane comes in to work one October morning, spots her co-worker Jill wearing a pair of white pants. Jane turns to Mary, another co-worker, and says loud enough for everyone to hear, "I have learned never to wear white pants after Labor Day." Is that a rock or a hand grenade? Whoever said, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words may never hurt me," didn't know what they were talking about.

But throwing hurtful words are not the only forms of anger that we may come across in our environment. There is the body language type of anger. The frigid atmosphere that pervades at the dinner table because Dad doesn't want to be disturbed while he's reading the newspaper. Or, the person who keeps her back turned to you while you are speaking to her. Or the door-slamming, pot-banging, foot-stomping behavior that goes on.

“Words can break someone into a million pieces, but they can also put them back together. I hope you use yours for good, because the only words you'll regret more than the ones left unsaid are the ones you use to intentionally hurt someone.” - Taylor Swift. Do you want your words to bless others or curse them? Lift them up, or tear them down?

Read what James says about the way we use our words: "Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things . Behold , how great a matter a little fire kindleth ! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. 7 For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed , and hath been tamed of mankind : 8 But the tongue can no man tame ; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. 9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. 10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be" (v 5 - 9).

Are You Exhausted?

I'm back to the series on anger which I began a few weeks ago. So far, we have seen that anger is an emotion which, if properly channeled can be constructive. If improperly channeled, it can get us into a lot of trouble. We also saw that anger has underlying causes, and we have already touched on two of them: 1. Fear 2. Frustration. In this post I'll deal with the third cause on my list, which is Exhaustion.

We live in a world that is becoming increasingly tiring. Work, family and social activities leave us very little time for ourselves. We can organize as best we can, if we don't make time to rest, we will become frazzled and begin snapping at our children and those around us. This matter of rest is so important that God commands us to rest. "Six days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest : that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed" (Exodus 23: 12). Not only are we to rest, but even our animals and everyone who is in our house.

God takes it even further in the book of Leviticus when he declares rest for the land. "But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the LORD: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard" (25: 4). Fast forward to the New Testament and we see that even Jesus made time to rest and relax. "And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat( Mark 6: 31).

Long ago, before it became so common for doctors to give a pill for everything, we were ordered to rest: mentally and physically. Nowadays, when we take a vacation we cram it with daily and nightly activities and return home more exhausted than when we left. Can we learn to take some time off and do nothing? Sit or lie by a lake, close our eyes and let the world go away, as the old song said. Try it sometime. Your body and mind will thank you for it.

Do You Have The Courage?

Last night I watched one of the most courageous, hair-raising, death-defying stunts ever undertaken. Nik Wallenda walked his way on a tightrope over the Niagara Falls from the USA to Canada, in weather conditions that were less than perfect. Maybe you watched it too. What were your thoughts? Did you fear for his life? Did you think he was foolhardy to attempt such a feat? To put his wife and children through the anguish of wondering if he would make it alive?

Those and other thoughts must have run through your mind and the minds of the hundreds of thousands who viewed this history-making event. As this daring young man made his way on that wet, shaky rope, I was reminded of the story of Peter walking on the water. Peter was doing okay - until he looked down. Still, we commend him for having the courage to jump out of that boat on a dark and stormy night.

Most of us may never attempt anything close to what Nik Wallenda did last night, but maybe you are walking the tightrope of life and you feel like any moment you might fall off. The mist of uncertainty thickens around you so you can't see what lies ahead; the winds of adversity buffet you from all sides and you cannot trust the rope beneath your feet. We can all learn some lessons from Nik.





1. Trust God. Nik and his family prayed together before he climbed on to that rope, and while he was walking we could hear him saying, "Thank you, Jesus, thank you, Lord. I praise you, Father." As I prayed along with him, I felt assured that he would make it. Not only did he put his trust in God, but he acknowledged Him publicly. It is important to let others know where your confidence lies.

2. Garner support. Nik comes from a long line of daredevils, dating back to the 1700s. Only three Wallendas lost their lives during stunts, the latest being Nik's great-grandfather in 1978. Nik's family was behind him all the way, although Nik's eleven-year-old son caved in at the last moment as he listened to the media talk about the possible dangers. However, Nik's father, a retired wire-walker, spoke with Nik through a microphone for most of the walk, giving gentle reassurance and tips. Nik's uncle, an engineer, who worked on the wire was also present, as well as a host of government officials. When you are on a tightrope, it helps to have the support of your family, friends, your church and maybe even some community agencies. You cannot do it alone.

3. Don't give up. This was Nik's advice to the world once he'd landed safely on Canadian soil. He said that we should follow our dreams, despite the challenges that confront us. And again, he urged us to trust God to give us the courage and strength to fulfill those dreams. At one point when Nik's father asked him how he was doing, he replied, "My hands are getting numb and my feet feel weak," but like the apostle Paul, Nik kept his eyes on the prize.


4. Give God the glory. After we have got off the tightrope, some of us forget where we've been. But let's remember we couldn't do it without Him. Nik dropped to his knees just a few feet from the tower and blew a kiss to the crowd, then once he'd cleared immigration (yes, he had to do that!) Nik attributed his stunning success to God. He again urged viewers to trust God to provide whatever we need.

What Frustrates You?

This is the second post in the series dealing with anger. Anger, as we have seen before is a normal, healthy reaction. Even Jesus became angry, (See John 2 : 15), but the way we express that anger is what really matters. In our normal, everyday life we come across people and situations which, if we are not careful, will frustrate us and lead to anger. Psychologists say that people who have a low frustration tolerance are more likely to have difficulty dealing with their anger.

So, how can you handle frustration in a godly manner?

The first way, of course, would be to pray about it. "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God" (Philippians 4 : 6). Turn that frustrating situation over to God. It may be something at home, at work, or even at church. Whatever it is, God can teach you how to handle it.

The second thing you can do is look for alternatives. Let's say you are frustrated by your daily commute to and from work. I know a lot of people are. What can you do about it? Can you take a different route? Leave home earlier, or later? Use public transport or car pool?

In some situations, you may have to practice being assertive. If it is a relationship problem, you may have to learn to assert your feelings. This means not allowing yourself to be a doormat, but instead communicating your needs- or frustrations- to the other person without becoming angry. "But speaking the truth in love ..."(Ephesians 4 : 15).

Another thing that may help is regular exercise. This releases endorphins in the brain, which help you feel good and combat the stress and frustration. Just half an hour of walking daily can clear your mind and help you deal with your frustration in a constructive way.

If all of these don't work, you may need to seek counseling. Your frustration and anger may stem from a chemical imbalance in the brain. You may need medication and counseling to help you restructure the way you perceive situations.

What Are You Afraid Of?

Last week I began a series dealing with anger and its components. Today I continue with the first component, FEAR. Recently I played a board game called Scattegories with a group of my patients. One of the categories was "What are you afraid of". We had to write a word with a designated letter. We came up with all sorts of things including, jellyfish, jaguars, Jaws etc. That was easy to do because it was just a game. But in the game of life, can we state our fears so easily and simply?

The Bible has a lot to say about fear. It has its origin in anxiety, when a person feels afraid of something which has not yet taken place. I remember years ago when one of my teenaged sons was causing me a lot of anxiety. I don't think there's any fear that can equal that which a mother feels when she sees her child going  down the wrong path. I would wake up during the night wondering where he was and I couldn't go back to sleep until I heard the door open and knew he was home safe. If you've ever been there you know what I'm talking about.

One morning I woke up and fear overcame me in such a powerful way, even though my son was home. My heart pounded so hard I thought it would  jump out of my chest. I took up my devotional and read it without focusing on what I read. Then I opened my Bible to read the scripture that went with the devotion. Immediately, my eyes were drawn to Jesus' words in Mark 5 : 36: "Be not afraid, only believe." I stared at the words and they seemed to stare back at me. At that moment I felt the Spirit of God so strongly in the room, it was as if I could reach out and touch Him.

After that day, every time fear overtook me, I would recite those words, "Be not afraid, only believe." They have brought me comfort, peace and calmness as only the word of God can. As my fear diminished, so did my son's bad behavior. So I ask you today, what are you afraid of? Are you like I was, afraid your children will come to harm? Afraid of losing your job, your home, your spouse? Whatever it might be, Jesus says, "Be not afraid, only believe." Believe that He is in control. Believe that His eye is on the sparrow and He is watching over you. Believe the promises He set forth for you in His word. Study and memorize them.

The Bible says, "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind" (2 Timothy 1 : 7). Like anger, fear used wrongly can destroy you.  Jesus said, "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10 : 28).  As long as we fear - reverence, obey, follow - God, we'll have nothing to fear.

Why Are You So Angry?

Photo credit: lesterp4 from morguefile.com

It would seem that anger is everywhere - on the roads, in the home and in the workplace. Road rage has taken lives; in the home children and parents, husbands and wives scream at each other and violence often erupts in places of employment. Why is there so much anger? If you find yourself becoming angry very often, you may need to slow down and try to determine what are the underlying reasons for your anger.

Your anger may stem from one or more of the following:

1. Fear. Surprisingly enough, a person who is angry is usually afraid of something. This quote from a Star Wars episode states, "Fear is the path to the Dark Side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering."

2. Frustration. Are you frustrated by your attempts to succeed at something and always coming up short? If you are always frustrated, pretty soon you'll become angry.

3. Exhaustion. Have you found that you become irritable when you are tired? That irritation can turn into anger if you don't slow down and get some rest.

4. Environment. Anger can also be learned. If you live in an environment where everyone is angry all the time, you'll soon follow their example.

5. Worry. This often leads to fear, which, as we saw above can turn into anger.

Anger in itself is not always a bad thing. It's how that anger is channeled that will determine whether you overcome it or allow it to overcome you. Ecclesiastes 7 : 9 says, "Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry : for anger resteth in the bosom of fools." Ephesians 4 : 26 says, "Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:" However, there are many references to people in the Bible who became angry. Remember Moses? Great man of God, chosen to lead God's people out of the bondage of Egypt. But if Moses had a psychiatrist he would have ended up in anger management classes. Because he couldn't control his anger, he was not allowed to enter the promised land.

Is your anger preventing you from enjoying the promises that God has for you? If yes, you need to confess it before God and ask Him to remove it from you. Jesus warned, "whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say , Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire" (Matthew 5 : 22).

Anger can be a destructive force that prevents you from enjoying God's best and also land you in a lot of trouble. It can also be the catalyst that drives you to make positive changes in your life and the lives of others. In the coming weeks I will continue to explore other aspects of this emotion.

Like Father Like Sons

I've been reading from the book of Genesis about Jacob, son of Isaac and Rebekah. For those of you who have never heard of these people, Isaac was Abraham's promised son,who was born to him when he was a hundred years old and his wife Sarah was ninety. Isaac and Rebekah had twin sons, Jacob and Esau. Jacob tricked Esau into giving up his birthright, then later, on Rebekah's urging, tricked his father into blessing him instead of Esau, the firstborn.

Fast forward a few years and Jacob is now married with children. He has twelve sons who will become the twelve tribes of Israel. However, all those sons, except Joseph, the father's favorite, turned out to be tricksters as well. Look at their track record. A young man named Shechem fell in love with their sister Dinah and slept with her. The young man went to his father and told him he wanted to marry Dinah. But when Jacob's sons heard about it, they were furious. Instead of confronting the young man about what he had done, they agreed to the marriage, but on one condition: Shechem and all the men of his city must first be circumcised. The men agreed, and when they were weak and in pain from the circumcision, two of Jacob's sons went and killed all the men. When Jacob heard what they had done, he was afraid for his life, because he thought surely the Canaanites would kill them.

Following that, Reuben, his oldest son, slept with Bilhah, his father's concubine. All the Bible says about that is that Jacob heard of it. Jacob's sons again brought grief to their father when they sold their younger brother, Joseph, whom their father loved, to some slave traders. They took the coat that Jacob had made for Joseph, dipped it in blood and told their father that a wild beast must have killed the boy. Jacob pledged to mourn for Joseph until he died. And even though they witnessed their father's grief, they never confessed what they had done until years later.

As parents we must be careful how we live our lives, because our children learn by example, and our wrong deeds can come back to haunt us. God blessed Jacob exceedingly, changing his name to Israel and promising to make his descendants like the sand of the sea, but that didn't stop him from suffering grief at the hands of his children. (Read Genesis 34, 35 and 37).

There's No Charge For Being A Mother

Mothers Day Graphics

Happy Mother's Day to all you wonderful mothers out there. Whether you are married, single, an adoptive mother, godmother, grandmother, wherever you fall on the spectrum of motherhood, I salute you today. My own mother is long gone, but I still wish she were here so I could tell her how much she meant to me. If you are fortunate enough to still have your mother, take some time off today to tell her how special she is.

As I wrote in my book Women For All Seasons, God could have chosen a different way for His Son to come to this earth, but He chose that He should enter the womb of a woman and be born as a little baby. What an honor! What a privilege! So mothers, take some time to celebrate yourselves for the great distinction God has bestowed on you - the means to bring another human being into this world. I'm not writing a lot today, but I'm posting two videos by Shirley Cesar that I'm sure will bless your heart as they have blessed mine. The first one is I Love You Mama and the other is the perennial favorite No Charge. Enjoy!

What Do You Want From God?

If God were to ask you that question, how would you reply? Would you say, Lord, I want you to bless me indeed. Or would you ask for perfect health, a perfect mate, a better job, a bigger house? God asked King Solomon that question and Solomon replied, "...give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?” (1 Kings 3 : 9).

And what was God's response?  ^"I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be.  Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor —so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings.  And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life” ( v 12 - 14).

Don't you just love it when God gives you more than you ask for? But you must ask with the right motive. James says that we lust after things and expect God to bless us with these things.  He says, "When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures" (James 4 : 3).

So what should we ask for and how should we ask? There's nothing wrong with asking God for health, a mate (there's no perfect mate), a better job or a bigger house, but when those things are asked for out of covetousness and discontent, then we have a problem. James says, " Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.   Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up" (v 8 - 10) . 1 Timothy 6 : 6 says, "Godliness with contentment is great gain."

So when we come to God, our motives must be pure and we must be content, whether God answers our prayers the way we want Him to or not. That may be difficult, but God requires humility and contentment.

Do You Need A Revision?

A friend and fellow blogger wrote a post about writing yesterday, and titled it "The End or The Finish." In her post, Glenda Mathes said, in essence, that when a writer has finished writing a story, novel or whatever, she still has to go back and revise it to make it the best it can be. I couldn't agree with her more, but as I reflected on the post, it occurred to me that her concept could very well apply to the Christian walk as well.

How many of us have found ourselves at the end of  the rope, so to speak, before we decided that something must be done. How many of us have ignored the signals sent to us by the Holy Spirit to turn around and revise our ways and now we are hanging by a thread, wondering when would it end? In the Old Testament God sent prophets to the people to tell them when they were doing wrong. But in most cases, they ignored the prophets and suffered greatly for it. Read about Eli the priest and his sons (1 Samuel 2 : 33 - 35); Nathan and David (2 Samuel 12 : 1 - 19); the prophets and King Jehoiakim (2 Kings 24 : 1 - 2) ; the prophet Daniel and King Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 4 : 25; 28 - 33) and many others.

After Daniel had interpreted King Nebuchadnezzar's dream to him, he ended with these words:  "Therefore, O king, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue" (v 27). This story has a happy ending. After the prophecy was fulfilled, and the king lost all he had, including his sanity, he looked up to heaven and acknowledged God (v 34 - 37). 

Maybe you are in need of some revision before you reach your end. Maybe you feel the nudging of the Holy Spirit, but don't know where or how to begin. You cannot do it on your own. Ask Jesus Christ to come into your life and make you a new creature. The minute you do that, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of you and begins the revision process. He'll remove everything that is keeping you from being a worthwhile servant of God. Don't put it off. The end may be near. Are you ready?

The Testimony of Easter

Easter Sunday, or Resurrection Sunday, is the pivotal event of the Christian faith. It commemorates the day when Jesus slapped death in the face, snatched the keys of death, hell and the grave from Satan and rose triumphantly from the tomb. Jesus did exactly what He said He would:  "And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock , and to scourge , and to crucify him: and the third day he shall rise again " (Matthew 20: 19). Read also Luke 24: 7, 46; John 3: 16; 10 : 17. 

Jesus made many references to his impending death, burial and resurrection before they occurred, yet His disciples paid little heed to His word. Just as many of us still pay little heed to the hundreds of preachers, teachers and literature that proclaim His death and the fact that He is coming again. No wonder there are so many atheists and lukewarm Christians among us. This Easter Sunday and in the days to come, let us examine the testimony of Easter and see the truth that lies therein. Let us read the account of the empty tomb in Jerusalem, the discovery made by Mary Magdalene and the report of hundreds of eyewitnesses and we'll see that the gospel of Jesus Christ is true. And as He died, we too must die - to self, to our stubborn will, to our selfish desires, and rise to a new life with Jesus Christ. Can we do it? The video below by Dr. S. M. Lockridge says it much better than I ever can. Watch and enjoy!

Everybody Ought To Know

Behold the Lamb of God (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today Christians all over the world are  celebrating Palm Sunday, the commemoration of Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem, just a few days before He was crucified. Every year my church puts on an Easter Cantata to portray this historic event. This year the theme  was "Everybody ought to know" based on the chorus by that name. And as I watched the old, familiar events played out before me, I thought what a wonderful way to present the Savior to those who know, as well as, those who don't know Him.


So, let me ask you, do you know who Jesus is? In case you don't know, Jesus is:


1. The Savior of the world. 


He came to this earth as a little babe, born to a virgin named Mary, who was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph. However, Jesus was not conceived through the union of Mary and Joseph. The Bible says, "Behold , a virgin shall be with child , and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is , God with us. Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:  And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS." ( Matthew 1 : 23 - 25).  Isaiah 33: 22 says,  "For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; it is he who will save us."


2. The spotless lamb of God.


"The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith , Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1 : 29).  In the Old Testament, God commanded the children of Israel to sacrifice a lamb as an atonement for their sins. But the lamb always had to be without spot or blemish.  "Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats" ( Exodus 12 : 5). After the children of Israel were delivered out of Egypt, God instructed them to keep a passover feast in celebration of this event. This was held on the fourteenth day of the first month. Fast forward to the New Testament and we see Jesus prophesying to His disciples that He would be betrayed around the time of the passover. And while the disciples prepared for the passover, the scribes and pharisees were plotting to kill Jesus. Only Jesus, because He was born without sin and lived a sinless life, was worthy to became the passover lamb.


He is seated at the right hand of God the Father 


"The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool (Matthew 22:44). After Jesus died and was buried, He rose on the third day and later ascended into heaven. "And it came to pass , while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven" ( Luke 24 : 51). And how do we know He is seated on God's right hand. First, David prophesied it in the quote from Matthew and Jesus stated it boldly when He was being tried by the high priest. "Jesus said , I am : and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven" (Mark 14: 62). " So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right handof God" (Mark 16: 19).


He is coming again


Jesus told His disciples, "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am , there ye may be also" (John 14 : 3). "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn , and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory" (Matthew 24 : 30). "Behold , he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen" (Revelations 1 : 7). When Jesus came the first time He came as a helpless little baby lying in a manger. When He comes the next time, He is coming as ruler and judge.


Yes, everybody ought to know what Jesus means to us as believers. We do not boast idly about Him or our relationship with Him. Everything we know of Jesus is authenticated in Scripture, and this is why the pageant we put on at our church each year, the Scriptures we read, the hymns we sing never grow stale to me, because they solidify my knowledge of my Savior and the hope I have in Him. 

Oh Say, Can You See?

No, I'm not trying to sing the American national anthem. I'm simply asking, "Can you see?" Most people may answer this question, "Of course, I can." But I remember when I got my first pair of eyeglasses  I felt like singing, "I once was blind, but now I see." When my little granddaughter, Tyler, just ten years old, got her first pair of glasses two years ago, she said to me, "Grandma, I didn't know my teacher has freckles." Well, now she can see. Of all our senses, I believe we treasure our sight the most. I mean, if you're deaf you can always read someone's lips, or learn sign language, but if you can't see, your whole world is in darkness.

I believe this is why Our Lord  had a lot of compassion for the blind, and during his earthly ministry, he healed all that were brought to him. Some of those recorded are the blind lepers, Matthew 9: 28-29; a blind and dumb demon-possessed man (12 : 22);  two blind men sitting by the wayside ( 20 : 30) ;other blind people who were brought to him ( 15 : 30 - 31; 21 : 14, Luke 7 : 21)  There are three specially recorded instances where Jesus healed the blind that I want to focus on.

Carry Your Candle

Photo credit: MarcoMaru from morguefile.com    I don't know what prompted me to start singing this song this past week, but the words have been going round and round in my mind every day. I can only attribute this to the work of  the blessed Holy Spirit.  This song  deals with the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.  Part of the first verse goes like this: There is a spirit who brings the fire, Ignites the candle and makes its home. You see, when the Holy Spirit comes to live in us, He lights our candle, empowers us to be the best we can be, so we can shine, not for ourselves, but for Him. On our own, we may just be carrying a candle "without a flame." What good is that?


In  Matthew 5: 14 - 16, Jesus says, " Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid . Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."


As Christians, we are called upon to be the light of the world. In other words, to carry our candle, to show the world we are proud to be followers of Jesus Christ, to make a difference whenever and wherever we can. This week I came across a great example of someone who is carrying his candle for Jesus Christ. He is Ramiro Garcia, worship leader, who was born without ears, and was not expected to hear or speak. Ramiro recently auditioned for American Idol, sang Amazing Grace and was included to go on to the next level. Check out the video on You Tube: 





This is black history month, and you may be hearing stories you've heard before of courageous African Americans such as Rosa Parks, Frederick Douglas and Harriet Tubman, just to name a few. Their acts of  bravery and courage may make many of us feel inadequate by comparison. You may never be featured on You Tube or in the daily newspaper, but you can carry your candle by helping someone in need, or by telling them about Jesus Christ. The good that we do is for God's glory, not ours. Think about it, then ask the Holy Spirit to ignite your flame and let your light shine - for Him.  

Related articles

• The Holy Spirit (God's reprover) that deals with the negative side of life (ptl2010.com)
• Question of the day, what is a Christian? Sometimes it's good to look at the basics. (pastormikesays.wordpress.com)

Do You Trust Him?

After months of house hunting, I finally closed on a condo a week ago. It was a very stressful time, but God was on my side, and even though many times I felt like giving up, I finally succeeded. If nothing else, this experience taught me two things:

1. Never give up.

Have you ever felt so discouraged, so overwhelmed that you wanted to give up? Does your illness seem unconquerable, your bills uncontrollable, your burdens unbearable? You feel like you cannot make it through another day, another sleepless night. David must have felt that way when he penned this Psalm. "Judge me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation: O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man.  For thou art the God of my strength: why dost thou cast me off ? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy ?   (Psalm 43: 1 - 3)

Are You A Witness?

Here in Florida, one of the most frequent announcements on the television comes from Crimestoppers. The police are always appealing for people who have witnessed a crime to come forward and testify. If you are ever involved in  an accident or some other situation that would warrant a court appearance, you would need a witness. To me, these things sound very unpleasant, and I thank God that I've never been a witness or needed a witness to testify on my behalf. However, the Bible does call on us as Christians to be witnesses.

My New Year Wishes

As 2011 rushes to get out of here to make room for 2012, my thoughts turn to what God has done in my life this year. While I have not had any earth-shaking success or changes in my life, God continues to show me that it is He who is watching over me and my family from day to day, providing for us and guiding us. I was able to continue working at my day job as an occupational therapist and while I'm beginning to focus on retirement, I still thank God that  I do have a job and am able to meet my financial commitments. That's a lot more than many people can say these days.

God Never Makes Junk

Photo credit: alvimann from morguefile.com
I was listening to a radio program the other day where the guest spoke of an experience she had in Rawanda. She said she looked out her window and saw a house that was surrounded by what seemed to be junk. Later that morning, a woman came out of the house and began to use every item that was in the yard. To her, everything was useful, none of it was junk. Someone said what impresses him when he enters a house is not how spotless it is or how artistic the decor, but the little things that may appear useless: a fading portrait, a chipped jar, a baby's first shoes. All these things which may appear to be junk are priceless to the owner. And that's how we are to God. We may be old and frail, young and addicted to drugs or alcohol, living a life of sin, but we are still precious to God.

 Some people may look at others and see them as junk. They may even treat them that way. Worse, some people may look at themselves as junk, good for nothing, fit to be dumped. Have you ever felt that way about yourself? Has your self-esteem sunk to the level that you see yourself as good for nothing? Someone, maybe a parent, a sibling or even a friend may have told you that you are no good and you'll never amount to anything. And you believed them. Well, I've got news for you. God does not see you that way.

There was an Israelite by the name of Gideon who felt very sorry for himself because Israel was being oppressed by the Midianites and Gideon and his family had fallen on hard times. One day, while "Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress to hide it from the Midianites, the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour."  But Gideon replied, "Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us ..."(Judges 6 : 12).


Gideon felt unworthy of the angel's greeting. In Gideon's mind, he was a nobody. Later on in the chapter, he said to the angel, "Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house" (v 15). Have you felt that you are too poor, too old, too young, too whatever to be of use to God or even to yourself? God doesn't think so. He made you in His own image and likeness (Genesis 1 : 27). So then, how can you be junk? If you think of yourself as junk, then God has to be junk also, and you know that can never be true.


So, this Christmas season, if you are going through a difficult time, remember the reason Jesus came. He came because you are precious to Him and He wanted to lift you up out of the dump of sin and shame and give you a brand new life. You are not a piece of junk. You are God's special creation and He loves you very, very much.


Here's a lovely video by Scottish superstar Susan Boyle to put you in the Christmas spirit. Enjoy!

Grab A Copy Of My Book

I never ever post twice in one week, let alone twice in one day, but I wanted to inform you of a great opportunity to get a copy of a book that will enrich your life and/or that of someone else. 
From now until Dec. 20, I'm making copies of my book Women For All Seasons available at a reduced cost. Women For All Seasons is a Christian non-fiction book, targeted to women of all ages and stages of life. It is based on stories of women from the Bible, and I’ve featured women who are young, single, married and widowed. In other words, women who reflect the different seasons of a woman’s life.

Are you a young woman, wondering what is your purpose in life or whether you should trust God and risk losing everything you cherish, maybe even your life? Read about Mary and Esther. Are you a married woman struggling with issues such as parenting, or step-parenting, and keeping your marriage going? Read Rachel and Hannah. Are you an older woman who thinks that maybe your useful days are over and you should take a back seat in your church or community? Read Naomi and Sarah. Are you a young woman in search of Mr. Right? Read Ruth. Are you a woman who has been ridiculed and ostracized as a result of your past? Read Mary Magdalene.

These are just some of the issues you will encounter in this book, but I guarantee you that every woman will see herself in the pages of this book. My goal in writing it is to first of all encourage you to read the Bible and to make it easier for you to digest its content. I have used a light and engaging style, like you would find in a novel or magazine and each story is written from the point of view of the main character, making her seem like a true flesh and blood person.  The selection of Bible stories in the book demonstrates the importance of trusting God when we go through the seasons of life. Women For All Seasons will make a wonderful addition to your library, or if you belong to a women’s Bible study group you may find this book helpful.

So, take advantage of this wonderful opportunity to get a copy of this book in time for Christmas by clicking on the link below.

Should We Cease To Celebrate Christmas?

This week I came across an article on the origin of Christmas. According to this article, Jesus was not born on December 25th and the Christmas celebration has nothing to do with His birth, but has its origin in pagan worship of the god Saturn. The article also mentions the Christmas tree, wreath, mistletoe and Santa Claus as icons of pagan origin. According to the article, the festival was a time of revelry and debauchery, to say the least. After reading the article, I felt very discouraged. Why did Christian leaders choose December 25th, the date which, according to the article, marked the end of the Saturnalia festival, to celebrate the birth of Christ? The reason given is that they were able to convert many pagans to Christianity by promising that they could continue to celebrate the festival as Christians. Puritans later banned all Christmas festivities in Massachusets and the early colonies.

So, where does this leave us as Christians who look forward to celebrating Christmas every year?