MONDAY MORNING

"... for I am with you ..."

"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. --- For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you." --- Is. 41:10 & 13

Sometimes, in certain given situations and circumstances, we may be tempted to think that God has forgotten about us. That He is nowhere to be found. Believe me -- things could be a lot worse if He were not around. But, sometimes I still think my situation or circumstances are at the absolute lowest. Then -- then I remember. YES! The tomb is empty and Jesus is still on His throne. Ephesians 1:20 tells us that God has "seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, for above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in this present age but also in the one to come." And, Romans 8:34 tells us that Jesus, "... is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us."

And! And! Get a hold of this one down in your inmost being: "And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus," -- Ephesians 2:6.

Listen very carefully. We are not ever below or under our circumstances or situations. We are above them. Above them! We are the head not the tail (Deuteronomy 28:13). Yes, I may be or you may be struggling financially, or spiritually, or physically, emotionally or some other area. But listen up! The victory is already His and ours because we are His! And, we are seated with Him!

Bottom Line: May we not fear, may we not be dismayed. May we know He is with us and that we are with Him.  And, may we know that He will strengthen and help us in all situations and circumstances. Amen? Amen.

MONDAY MORNING
God Delivers

"From the LORD comes deliverance." -- Psalm 3:8
"The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;" -- Psalm 18:2
"A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save." -- Ps. 33:17
"...He delivered me from all my fears." -- Psalm 34:4
 "O Sovereign LORD, my strong deliverer, ..." -- Psalm 140:7

The Lord Jesus Christ is our deliverer, if we choose to let Him be so. That's why we call Him, Savior.
He is able to deliver us from bondage, from sickness, from demons, from troubles, from hurts, from sin that entangles us and from an eternity of damnation. As a matter of fact, that and so much more was all done for us and for all mankind when Jesus said, "It is finished." All of our deliverance was delivered to us at that moment. We just need to call upon His name and believe and know it has been done. 

Bottom Line: May our hope and trust always be in the One who paid it all for us and finished it all for us and delivered it all for us. Amen? Amen.

  

MONDAY MORNING

"Be Still"

"Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." -- Psalm 46:10

 As a kid, one of the hardest things for me to do was to "be still".  When my dad or mom gave those instructions to me -- "sit down and be still," it was like I had been lock up in jail. However, they knew there was a time to "be still."

Even now for us there is a time to "be still" -- to know God. On May 19, 2010 I received a voice mail on my cell phone from my daughter, Aimee. I still have it saved. Here is the written transcript:

Hey, Dad. It's Aimee. It is Wednesday at 3:10 in the afternoon and I usually spend the time in my car praying and today is the nineteenth and I felt like the Lord said to tell you, "Be still and know that I am God." And then I started like really thinking about each word because its like we hear that all the time and --- I don't know --- it was just pretty powerful to me --- that you've got to know. You need to say it and know in your knower and then again in your knower and your knower and your knower. To be still and know that He is God. --- All powerful. --- Love you."

Yes, we need to be still and know Him. Really know Him.

To know and reflect on who He is.

To know and reflect on His love.

To know and reflect on His mercy and grace over us.

To know and reflect on how mighty and powerful He is.

To know and reflect on the salvation he brought to us through His Son, Jesus Christ.

To know --- To know --- To know --- To know.

Bottom Line: We all need to find time to be still and know in our knower that He is God. Amen? Amen.

  

MONDAY MORNING

"Let your gentleness be evident..."

"A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." -- Proverbs 15:1

"Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." -- Matthew 11:29

"What do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a whip, or in love and with a gentle spirit?" -- I Corinthians 4:21

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. Against such things there is no law." -- Galatians 5:22-23

"Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near." -- Philippians 4:5 

When I was much, much younger, my mother once wrote Proverbs 15:1 on a piece of cardboard and nailed it to a wall in the bedroom I shared with my younger brother.  It stayed there for years! With all these verse on gentleness or being gentle I am not saying to be a "push-over". My brother and I were not easily pushed over by each other. But, I grew wiser as he grew bigger and stronger.  Our last wrestling match (all in fun -- kinda) was when I was a sophomore in college. After a few minutes of rough housing I was on top and then slapped him in the face. It was then that I realized his strength -- he flipped me and pinned me to the floor in about 3 seconds! The next thing I knew I was being folded up like an accordion. And, it was after that wrestling match that I grew wiser. We both laugh about it to this day.

The prophecy in Zachariah 9:9 of Jesus coming "gentle and riding on a donkey" was fulfilled in Matthew 21:1-11. But, at verse 12 of the same chapter Jesus entered the temple, overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.  The Gospels of Mark and Luke state that Jesus began to drive them out. Wow! Jesus was no push-over. There is a time for righteous anger.  There is a time to uphold the Word of God and His standards of righteousness. There is a time to stand up and defend the fatherless, widow, the poor. Yet, yet --- there is a time that your gentleness is to be evident to all.

 So again, I am not saying be a "push-over". To be someone who is taken advantage of. No. There is a way in Christ to be gentle and yet stand firm. A gentle answer can help avoid a needless confrontation. A gentle answer can be the difference in making a friend or an enemy. There is a place for the Spirit of gentleness.

Bottom Line: May we learn to know when to be strong in the Lord and uphold His Word and may we learn to how to let our gentleness be evident to all because --- "The Lord is near." Amen? Amen.
 

MONDAY MORNING

"...be made new..."

"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." -- Ephesians 4:22-24

We are talking about new beginnings. So, we bid farewell to 2016 and look forward with expectation to 2017. And, more than ever let us embrace the  new year and desire to be made new in the attitude of our minds.  Make sure we put on the new self --- everyday.

The old life will try to creep back in. Don't give it room. Old attitudes will try to prevail. Don't give in to them.

BOTTOM LINE: May we -- "... be made new in the attitude of [our] minds;" May we -- " ... put on the new self...". May we make it a point to remind ourselves of these scriptures everyday of 2017. May we realize and know that we are a new creation -- "... created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."  Amen? Amen.

 

MONDAY MORNING

"... mutually encouraged by each other's faith."

"I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong --- that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith." -- Romans 1:11-12

Whether we intend to or not we affect the lives of the individuals we come in contact with. We may  have a positive affect or a negative affect, but we will have an affect upon the lives we touch.

The Apostle Paul had already had an affect upon the Galatians, the Ephesians, the Philippians, the Colossians, and the Thessalonians. A positive affect! And, he longed to have a positive affect upon the Romans in Rome. With Paul it was all about relationships. His letter to the Romans was to prepare the way of his coming to them, to present the salvation message and to explain the relationship between Jew and Gentile as it related to God's complete plan of redemption.

May I ask a few questions of us? --- What kind of affect do we have upon the people we encounter? Do we enter relationships only for what we can get out of them? Or, do we go into a relationship seeking what good gift we can leave? Are we leaving lasting gifts of faith, hope, love, joy, thankfulness, gentleness, kindness, etc? We all leave something behind with each person we encounter, each person we come in contact with -- even if it is just a very brief encounter. People notice. Yes, they do. I know I do. I notice.

Bottom Line: May we be mutually encouraged by each other's faith. May we be more intent to leave a good gift behind no matter how brief the encounter. And, may we realize that people notice.  Amen? Amen.

MONDAY MORNING

What Child is This?

Written by William Chatterton Dix (1837-1898)

What Child is this who, laid to rest,
On Mary's lap is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet
While shepherds watch are keeping?
This, this is Christ the King,
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing;
Haste, haste, to bring Him laud,
The babe, the son of Mary!

Why lies He in such mean estate
Where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christian, fear, for sinners here
The silent Word is pleading.
Nails, spear shall pierce him through,
The Cross be borne for me, for you;
Hail, hail the Word made flesh,
The babe, the son of Mary!

So bring Him incense, gold and myrrh;
Come peasant, king to own Him.
The King of kings salvation brings;
Let loving hearts enthrone Him.
Raise, raise, the song on high,
The virgin sings her lullaby,
Joy, joy, for Christ is born,
The babe, the son of Mary!

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. – Isaiah 9:6-7a

Bottom Line: May we remember the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ of Nazareth, not only in this seasonal time of the year but every day of the year. Amen? Amen.