Don't Hurt Yourself

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is a gift of God, not of good works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them" Ephesians 2: 8-10.

Ever get caught up thinking you haven't done enough. That God expects you to always be doing something, helping, praying, witnessing, giving, etc? Do ever you think you have to be moving, always striving for positive results?

If yes, you're on a futile treadmill.

Get off before you fall off!

Take a deep breath. Step to the side (metaphorically) and do an inventory of your service.

Ask yourself:

• Am I perspiring without satisfactory pleasure?
• Am I easily hurt by anything anyone says about 'my' ministry?
• Does my ministry for God captivate me?
• At the end of the day, am I happily tired from working, or just plain tired?

It can be scary but an honest assessment can help improve your service.

If your serving has turned into drudgery on a Treadmill you can only do harm to yourself physically and spiritually. The physical harm is burnout, overwork, and exhaustion. Spiritual harm is when you no longer let God empower the ministry. That is what God criticized in the Ephesian church of Revelation 2.

Anything done in Jesus name needs to be empowered by Him.

After an enthusiastic witnessing episode, Jesus told His disciples to come away and rest awhile. (Mark 6:31) So if those men needed to get away from the work once in awhile, who are we to think we don't need to step off and rest?

You need to enjoy ministry--Don't hurt yourself.

Besides, God can handle it while you're not there.

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Commissioned to Give Jesus

Jesus came to the lost, unrepentant world, to save us to repentance. "For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and give His life a ransom for many." Mark 10: 35

Jesus hates sin. Sin came into the world through Adam's willful rebellion in the Garden of Eden. Because of sin, no one can be in God's presence. 'For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.' Romans 3:23

Jesus loves sinners. "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.' Romans 5: 8

• Christmas celebrates the gift God gave---His Son.

The gift we don't deserve. 'As it is written: 'There is none righteous, no not one; there is none who understands; there is none who seeks after God. They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; there is none who does good, no, not one.' Romans 3: 10, 11, 12

But the Greatest Gift is: 'For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not die but have eternal life.' John 3: 16

Jesus, God, came to earth, was born of a virgin, died on the cross for the sin of the world, buried in a tomb, rose again the third day from the grave because His sacrifice, in the place of everyone, fulfilled the death penalty required. He ascended back to heaven to sit beside the Father, and He will return one day to take believers to live with Him forever and to judge the unbelievers to separation forever. Without Jesus, there is no hope of salvation. That is the Gospel taught in the Bible from Genesis 1: 1 to Revelation 22: 21

That is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He does not want anyone to die and be eternally separate from God in the 'outer darkness, where there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth'. He came and died so no one would have to be lost forever. 'In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and gave His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.' 1 John 4: 10 

• That is the reason for everyone to celebrate Christmas.

May it be every believing, born again, Christian's desire that no one be eternally separate from God in the 'outer darkness, where there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.' May we give Jesus this Christmas.

We attend church services, perform good works, and pray. We sing, fellowship and worship but He desires mercy for the lost from us, not the performance done in His name. He commands that we let others know about the wonderful miracle He gives to the whole world; eternal Salvation. Let us have mercy on the lost and dying world and tell them about the gospel of Jesus.

"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Matthew 28:19

• Remember to wrap all your gifts with loving prayers for salvation of everyone you know.

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God's Gift of Love

"Now abide these three, faith, hope,

and love but the greatest of these is love" 

1 Corinthians 13:13.

Amazing!

Ever really thought about LOVE? The greatest emotion, empathy, sympathy, action, or reaction we can have for anything or anyone is love. Love never fails.

Are you giving away love this Christmas or just gifts you bought with money? Is anyone expecting love from you or just materiel gifts? Are you just giving cash?

I'm not in favor of Gift Cards, either giving them or receiving them. As a donation for someone in need, yes, but it's a poor gift in my estimation. To me they say, "You're not worth the effort to learn more about you. I don't want to know your likes and dislikes. Here's money, go buy something you want, I don't want the relationship". If Gift cards are what someone asks for from me, it says to me. "You don't know me and I don't want you to. I don't want what you might buy me."

Neither am I fond of the excuse "I bought my own gift this year because my spouse wouldn't have bought it for me."

Is there something wrong with this picture or is it just me? Is there a disconnect in there somewhere? If you've been married for any length of time, your spouse should be able to buy you anything and you'd love it.

One year my husband gave me a flour sifter, measuring cups and baking dishes. Wonderful! I love them! I love to cook. He actually thought of something I liked and could use. Absolutely wonderful gift.

Love comes in many different packages, big, small, lumpy, soft, hard, smooth, and jiggly. Some make noise, some don't.

Try wrapping love this year, no matter what it is. Make it a surprise!

The greatest love you can give this year is to give Christ Jesus to your unsaved relatives and friends. Pray for them. When you are with them, ask if you may pray for them. Ask them if you can talk about Jesus. Make the Christmas story the main feature in your festivities.
My husband and I send a lot of cards and everyone of them had a handwritten Bible verse and signature. It is something we do every year. We take our time, beginning just after Thanksgiving and do small lots several days a week. Most of the people we send to do not know Jesus in a personal way. It's one way we send love each Christmas.

God's love for us came wrapped in rags on a bed of hay. The greatest gift in a simple package. How will you wrap Jesus to give Him away this year?

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Strange Occurances

Philippians 2: 4; And look out for each other's interests, and not for your own interests.

In today's public and social areas, kindness seems a strange occurrence. When it does show itself, sometimes the recipient is surprised and may not know how to respond correctly. There are times when unselfishness is rudely degraded and the giver scorned, as a letting another driver coming from an on-ramp onto the busy street or highway. The recipient of your yielding can return a rude gesture or never acknowledge your sacrifice at all. 

This failure of courtesy on another's part should never deter a Christian from being kind to others. It is the easiest form of blessing and the simplest form of imitation of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. There is special feeling you can get from expressing kindness to people who do not expect it.

• Pick up something someone has dropped. (Servant) 
• Hand someone pocket change. (Giving) 
• Open doors. (Courtesy) 
• Move out of the way, or leave space for them in a crowded area.            (Unselfishness) 
• Smile on a rainy day. (Encouragement)
• Surprise with respect those who expecting rudeness, selfishness, greed, or coldness. (Christ-likeness)

Because all born again Christians have the Holy Spirit indwelling them, (John 14:16), manifesting God's love should come naturally. The fruit of the Spirit, (Gal 5:22,23), is a single product of God's changing an old flesh to a new creature,(2 Cor 5:17). 

As much as possible, try to walk through your day as Jesus walked through Israel in His days on earth. He blessed the unloved and ignored. He was kind to those never thanked Him, and many who treated Him dishonorably. 

• Look for ways to bless with simple kindness. 
• Look for ways to imitate Christ.

Jesus was the greatest example of humbly blessing the ones who didn't love Him in return. 

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were 

yet sinners, Christ died for us" Romans 5:8.

Hosting Parties is Biblical

"...Prepare a guest room for me, for I trust, 

through your prayers I shall be granted to you" 

Philemon 22

Even before Mother gave the responsibility to me in my early twenties, I had hosted many of the holiday cooking at her house and sometimes at my sibling’s houses. Since I liked it so much, Mother finally gave the family holidays to me.

Today, my home is a large farmhouse, built in the 1820s. It’s nice but it needs much help. It has odd smells, stains, and is very static in the arrangement of furniture. While many people have visited, entertaining has limits.

In the winter, with the woodstove cranking out the heat, guests are elbow to elbow on the opposite side of the room, far enough so as not to be charred. To watch the sports on the television causes a major shift and someone inevitably, from the next room, looks through or over the semi-circle of the fortunate facing the screen. In the summer, the decay of the fallen down barn invades through the open windows.

 

Without a proper dining room, it takes imaginative rearranging. To accommodate more than six, a sheet of plywood lays atop my table. This means shifting the refrigerator against the cupboards by the kitchen sink, thus rendering four useless and causing a shortened counter top. While the stove is in use, no one can sit on that side of the table until all the cooking is complete.

 For all of this, hosting is wonderful and I would do it more often.

My hosting imagination has designed a specific Dream House. It has the normal master bedroom with full bath, kitchen, guestroom, home office, and household bath with washer and dryer.

However, my fantasy has yards of floor space, set with easily rearranged furniture. To accommodate crowds, there’s a custom kitchen with at least two ovens, a six-burner range, a grill, separate freezer and refrigerator, an island with food-prep sink, and long reaches of counter space. There’s casual serving dining bar with stools but the capstone is comfortable dinner seating for a dozen with addition to serve more. To have such a venue sounds wonderful.

I love cooking. I love hosting. I love the gathering of all the hundreds of paraphernalia my guests may never notice. I like searching for new and exciting recipes. I love giving gifts and trinkets. I love the table settings and centerpieces. I love doing the little things and arranging the surprises.

Hospitality, and kind, friendly behavior 

should be a trait highly visible in Christians

My largest entertaining accomplishment to date is organizing a Harvest/Hunter’s Supper at my home church. While I didn’t do all the cooking or necessary gathering, I was the go-to person. Even so, credit goes to our small congregations’ involvement and the praise was all to God’s blessing the event.

"It was awesome!"

The turnout was fantastic and we fed almost hundred people, many who had never been in a church before. I couldn’t stop praising God.

Another ministry opportunity came as my Husband and I hosted a Thanksgiving Day meal at our church for the people in our congregation who had no place to go. That was very satisfying knowing they weren’t sitting alone on this day of giving of Thanks.

Anyone who enjoys cooking enjoys watching their guests eat what they’ve prepared. When the only sound is rattling silverware, you know you succeeded. Like when a stranger buys one of my paintings without ever meeting me. My work has spoken for itself and my presence is unnecessary for their approval.

“(be) hospitable, a lover of what is good, 

sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled” Titus 1:8

My Dream House is an inviting place where people want to be. It is open to Missionaries, pastors and their wives, and other traveling guests. I imagine holidays, ceremonies, Bible study groups, children’s Bible groups. Best of all, I imagine inviting unsaved people for good food and fun. In my open home, I’d introduce them to my Jesus and His free salvation. I would tell them of heaven and its awesome splendor that outshines my temporary house on earth.

“Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth” 

Colossians 3:2

Looking to Heaven and describing my Dream House? It’s a slimy, water-slogged, decaying, moldy mud hut compared to my Heavenly Father’s house.

"But while I’m on earth, I would like to host parties, 

especially where Christ is always welcome

 and gets to meet with people at my table"

"Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, 

sweetness to the soul and health to the bones"

Proverbs 16:24

A Woman's Giving Hand

  “But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” Matthew 6: 3.

 

  Have you ever done something for someone who wasn’t expecting it, and you did it just for the joy of giving? Offered to do someone's laundry? Look after their children for an hour? Baked cookies for your neighbor?

 In creating man and woman, God gave the male and female of His attributes that He desired in which sex. (male and female created He them" cf Genesis 1:27.) Our emotional personalities are for God's purposes. While God made men to be subtly appreciative, God made woman with the capacity of giving and receiving with more emotion.

 Visually emotional actions are part of woman: love, joy, anger, sympathy, empathy, and motherly. Women utilize their God given specialty as wonderful givers, doers, motivators, counselors, and those who encourage. Women can and should use their emotions for God's glory.

Is there anyone you can help without thinking of any return for your effort?

Is there anyone you really want to help in any way?

Giving to others, or time, treasures or talents can be a subtle or visible ministry to God.

And very simple.

Today, do that deed you've been thinking about. Enjoy God's smile.

Body Parts

"For in fact the body is not one member but many" 1 Corinthians 12:14.

There's a popluar trite saying "Grow where you're planted." Good advice---for a plant.

God calls the Church a Body. Because we can learn what the physical body does, we should be learning what the Body of Christ can do.

God says His church is a body, with many parts. The human body can preform many things. Physically we can do things with our hands. We walk with our feet. We talk with our mouths. We see with our eyes. We hear with our ears. We think with our brains. We love with our inner heart. We feel pain through nerves. We breath with our lungs. We pump blood through veins with the physical heart. We exert pressure with muscles. We digest with our internal organs.

There are atoms, cells, DNA, RNA, vessels, bones, minerals, water, air, and more that God made into the form that is us. God's design does millions of things, because God wanted it to do all those things. Everything that the body does brings God glory.

Praise the LORD!

It stands to reason, if God's physical design does that for which it was made, then the Body of Christ--His Church--should also do everything He designed it to do for His glory.

We Have Access to Almighty God to Accomplish All He Wants To Do

Because we have the Bible in our hands, we know, understand and have this promise from Jesus.

 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever---The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you" John 14:12-17"

The same Almighty God that placed the universe in place and all it contains, is the same God that dwells in His people. All people that have been born-again into God through accepting the death of Jesus as their atonement, have God--the God, the Very God with them.

The same Almighty God that parted the Red Sea for the Israelites lives within His people today. The same God that spoke to the prophets is the same God that we have with us in the Holy Spirit. The Bible is a book written by God for His people to know Him, trust Him and see what access they have to Him.

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" 2 Timothy 3:16, 17.

Because the early church had those men that lived with Jesus with them, they grew from their teaching. They believed because Peter, James, Thomas, Matthew, Mark and the rest were all there in the early church. They also had understanding from the Old Testament, which was their Bible, of who God is and that Jesus is God.

When Jesus was gone back to Heaven, He gave some men to write the New Testament, so that we, the church the world over, could have all the descriptions of what Jesus did and said. We have it in our hands today. We have access to the the knowledge of all that the early church had because God had the New Testament added to His book.

Because the church has grown innumerably from that first small body, and gone over the whole world, God provided a way for knowledge of Himself to go with it--the Bible, His Written Word.

We have the same Almighty God that Peter and John believed when they were instruments to heal the lame man at the Temple gate. God has left us with all the knowledge of who He is and what He can do in and through His people.

Peter walked on water in trust of God. While Stephen knew he was to be murdered, he preached to his murderers and even prayed for them because he knew who his God is. Paul was used to heal many to show that God is still the same God of the Old Testament. Jesus is the same God of the Old Testament.

• The Holy Spirit is the same Almighty God of the Old Testament

• He lives within His people

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" Philippians 4:13.

This is not just a nice saying we have on plaques--this is power available to His church--all things!

You want to see people changed? Start praying to Almighty God--believing His will is to see people saved. (Acts, 1 John, the four Gospels)

You want to see miracles? Start praying to Almighty God--believing He is the God of miracles. (Hebrews 11)

You want a change? Start praying to Almighty God--believing He will do something. (Exodus 14, Habakkuk, Hebrews 11:6)

This is not a name it claim it doctrine--we cannot make God do anything. God is not a magic wand we wave to make things happen on our account. You must fear to know Him--(Proverbs 1:7)--reverence Him in faith, this is knowledge of God and faith that He is the One and Only God. God is the same always. There is no diminishing of His power. There is no diminishing of His love. There is no diminishing of His grace.

What the Bible describes as gifts given to His church are just ways He shows His power in accomplishing His work. The 'gifts' aren't anything 'new' for the church, they are just God's way of doing things today that He did as described in the Old testament, and what He did through the early believers after Jesus ascended. We read the Bible to understand we need all the power of God that He had in the beginning. "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" Genesis 1:1. That power!

That power is still the same. All believers of Christ belong to God. The church has that power because the church is God's. The 'gifts' described in the Bible are what we are to understand can happen if we are willing to let God do what He wants to do through His church.

Jesus explained that to the first church Himself just before He ascended back to heaven.

"But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and to the end of the earth" Acts 1:8.

"Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever" Hebrews 13:8

"I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing" John 15:5.

We're humans, we have no power. Be not proud you have a 'gift'. It isn't your power. Instead be available to be powered by God to do any work for Him by the power He has. Be attached to the head so God can do something with you for His glory.


Question:  Do you believe God has removed some of the titled "gifts" He gave to the early church from today's church body? In your comment, please give reference verses to either your Yes or No answer.

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 Squished! Why God Seemingly Destroys Our Fruit

Your Price Tag

When you get gifts, do you want the giver to leave the price tag on?
Does price have significance?
Is the expense of a gift your measurement to the value someone places on you?
What does it mean to have someone place a price tag on you?

Satan owns many slaves.

"Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave to sin" John 7:34
"Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves to obey, you are that one's slaves to whom you obey..." Romans 6:16a.

Satan parades his slaves everywhere, leading them around by their sin. He leads them through daily, public life the world over. Unnumbered crimes, hatred, lawbreaking, anger, stealing, murder, addictions, rape, extortion, bribery, corruption, violence, and more. The 'marketplace' is full of them.

But one day, God came through the market and said, "I'll buy them and set them free." Satan couldn't counter the cost with a higher bid and he lost hold of many his slaves.

Jesus came to earth, lived a sinless life, died on the cross at Calvary, was buried three days, rose from the grave and returned to heaven to sit down at the right hand of the Father.

The theme of the Bible, (Scriptures), from cover to cover, is all about His act of purchasing the slaves of Satan and freeing them. The slaves of Satan had no money with which to purchase themselves. They had no way to escape their slavery. One Greater then Satan came and paid the price for them. He gave them the gift of freedom. It's a gift from God, given to a helpless slave of Satan without thought of the expense.

So, is the expense of a gift your measurement to the value someone places on you?

"For the wages of sin is death..." Romans 6:23a. The slaves of Satan are working very hard for to die at his pleasure.


"...but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" Romans 6:23b. Through spending His own life on the cross, Jesus' gift is life for all. The price of death that sin costs, Jesus paid to free many slaves.

"Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, ... but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot" cf 1 Peter 1:18, 19.

"You were bought at a price;...cf 1 Corinthians 7:23

If you consider yourself of great value, follow the loving Master, (1 John 4: 19), leaving the cruel master who is a murderer from the beginning. (cf John 8:44)

The Joy of Handmade Christmas Ornaments

There are millions of selections of decorations for your Christmas tree and surrounding décor but what about making your ornaments for next year. By simple internet search, you can find simple or elaborate patterns for many items with which to decorate. or go to a craft store for instruction books. Or just get creative and have fun! The possibilities are endless!

• Tinfoil stars twinkling in the light.

•   Shiny foil snowflakes gently turning sending myriads of sparklers around the room.
• Colorful paper or felt crafts dangling merrily from branches.
• Pipe cleaners, empty paper rolls, scraps of Christmas wrap and glitter all fashioned into Holiday Happiness by yours, and the hands of your children.
• Popcorn, Cranberries, Apple slices, twists of Holly leaves, and Beads, all strung into festive garlands to wrap around a tree hung with homemade Reindeer, Santas, Nutcrackers, Bulbs, Hats, Mittens, Sleighs, Globes, Animals, Doodads, Doohickeys and Thing-a-ma-jigs, Nativities, Magi, and Baby Jesus, all with love and care.

Among the reasons for homemade decor is the wealth of quality family strength, emotion and togetherness. The tree is usually the central focus of Christmas. It is where the most fun happens. The cameras come out to record the moments as paper flies in all directions. Faces light up and laughter peels throughout the house. Children of any age get involved with the joy of giving and receiving. It’s the best family gathering for anyone.

There is another Family involved in Christmas: God the Father sending His Son Jesus into the world as His gift. The first Family and the First Gift.

There is another Christmas Tree: the Cross. Jesus came for only that purpose. Jesus came only to that destiny.

        He did not come to be a Good Teacher.