Treasure in Jars of Clay

2 Corinthians 4:7 "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all surpassing power is from God and not from us."  NIV

I'm reminded when I read this passage of the story of Aladin's lamp.  An all powerful genie resides in a dusty old oil lamp.  That's kind of what Paul is reminding us of here in Second Corinthians.
Our bodies here on Earth are just like "jars of clay."  They are imperfect, easily broken, earthly vessels that God chooses to use to bring glory to himself.  Up in verse 6 Paul reminds us God said "Let light shine out of darkness."  He made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
Imperfect as we are, God resides in us if we have accepted his Holy Spirit. Therein resides all the power in the universe. With that power we can move mountains; call on God Almighty to heal, to change situations, to work in someone's life. 
So remember this the next time you think of yourself as not worth much.  God chooses the imperfect things of this world to bring him Glory and Honor.

Perfect Peace

Do you have peace? Maybe you're not in a storm at the moment but we all are there at one time or another.
When we are in one of those storms we are not at peace are we?  We are tossed to and fro and feel out of control.  Sometimes we even feel that we will be drowned or destroyed by the storm.  I've been there more than once and I bet you have too.  Things such as divorce, loss of a job, accidents, and numerous other things cause us to not have peace.  But God wants us to have peace even in those "storms" of life.
Isaiah 26:3 says "You (meaning God) will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you." vs 4 "Trust in the Lord forever for the Lord, the Lord is the Rock eternal."  NIV
In Mark 4 we read of a time when the disciples and Jesus were in a boat on the sea of Gallilee.  Even though they had with them the creator of the world, the disciples were afraid they might drown.  The storm was raging all around them and Jesus was asleep! To them it seemed as if Jesus did not care.  Sometimes, when we are in the midst of life's "storms" we may also feel Jesus just doesn't care. Maybe he is asleep or dealing with some other catastrophe and doesn't notice we are about to go under.  At times we feel that we have to face these challenges all on our on.  "Where is God?, " we ask ourselves.  "Doesn't He care?"
The answer to that is YES!!!!  God does care.  Storms of life can serve to refocus our attention on God.
We are like gold being refined by fire, being made pure. 
There is an old hymn that says "be very sure, your anchor holds and grips the solid ROCK"..."this ROCK is Jesus, yes he's the one, this ROCK is Jesus, God's only Son."  If your life is not anchored to the ROCK, then you can be sure there will not be peace.  As Christians, we are not spared life's storms, but be very sure that God promises us we can have peace in the midst of those storms if our lives are in His hands.  Peace, that assurance; confidence if you will, that God has it under control, that He cares for you personally, and that no matter what happens He is there with you to give you peace; peace that passes all understanding.
If you are not experiencing peace then "turn your eyes upon Jesus.  Look full in his wonderful face.  And the things of life will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace."  Give him praise in the midst of the storm for God inhabits our praises.  Turn to him, cling to him, and anchor your life on the immovable ROCK!
Then you will have peace.
King David put it this way in Psalm 40
"I waited patiently for the Lord; He lifted me out of the slimy pit,out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.  He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.  many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord."
I don't know about you but I'm anything but patient.  When I'm going through difficulty I want out of the storm and NOW!  Here David reminds us that we have to wait patiently on God to act.  Do you trust Him?
Did you see what the result was after God had helped David through one of his storms of life?
It served to bring others to God so that they, too, put their trust in the Lord.
You may not realize it but others are watching how you do in the storm.  You will either inspire others to come to trust in God or else they will see that you don't really have anything special and they may turn away from God.  Your life is a witness for good or bad.  I love the imagery David gives here of being in the mud and mire.  Man, when I'm having a rough time it can seem as if I've lost my footing and am gettting pretty dirty and just falling back into the mire and muck.  David couldn't get himself out of it.  He had to rely on God to set his feet on a rock which gave him sure footing so he could stand firmly.  When we do come out of the storms of life, be sure to give praise to God.  Don't take credit for it as if you did it on your own.

Storms in our lives

Holy, Holy, Holy

In the 1960's there was a TV show called "Batman." Batman's sidekick in crime fighting was named Robin.
Robin would often use the word "holy" to help describe their predicaments.  He might say something like "holy cow" or "holy jigsaw" or something else just as silly.  Well today I'm not discussing that use of the word.  Today I want us to think about God and what things are "Holy."  We sometimes have our "Holy Bibles" around the house.  Growing up we were taught to treat our Bibles with respect, with honor and with reverence.  When I got married the preacher stated at the beginning that we were coming before God in "Holy Matrimony."  And yet all too often we forget that marriage is a "Holy" union.  In Exodus 3:5 Moses has an encouter with God at the burning bush.  God tells Moses to take off his sandals for he is standing on holy ground.  The ground was not holy in and of itself.  No.  It was made holy by the divine presence of God.  The Bible says that Holy means Hallowed.  Jesus when teaching his disciples to pray says "Hallowed be thy name" when speaking to his heavenly Father.  Even Jesus is recognizing God the Father as Holy and He is His One and only Son! In Revelation 15 we see that God alone is Holy.  In fact, he is the most Holy, He is Holy, Holy, Holy (Revelation 4:8.)  Now for something to be Holy it has to be set apart, special, consecrated and used for worship.  It also must be flawless.  If God had any speck of sin, any fault of any kind, he would not be Holy.  Everything God touches must be holy or become holy.  When we are washed by the blood of Jesus, we become "white as snow."  We become holy.  It is the only way we can come before a holy God.  Jesus was the perfect lamb, the perfect sacrifice. He had to be without sin and that is why he was born of a virgin with the Holy Spirit impregnating Mary.  If Jesus is only a man, then he could not be the atoning sacrifice for our sin.  When we come before God in a marriage commitment we are coming before Him on Holy ground and asking Him to make our marriage holy, without blemish. That is why the bride wears white.  She is supposed to be spotless, a virgin, kept only for her husband and for him alone.
This is also why we are to keep the sabbath day Holy.  It is to be set apart for worship and rest from work.
So I challenge you today to be made Holy.  Set yourself apart for worship.  Be made spotless, cleansed from sin.  And treat your marriage as Holy as well.  Protect it from blemish.  Guard it with all you have.
Cherish your spouse and hold your spouse in special honor.  Most of all give to God what is due.
Come into the Holy of holies and worship Him.

Playing with Fire

When I was a kid I loved playing with fire.  Firecrackers that is.  I would light bottle rockets in my hand and throw them way up while the fuse was burning just to see how much higher I could make them go!!
I would light firecrackers and put them in a hollowed out place in a tree just to see the ants go nuts when it went off. But one day I had unraveled a lot of the duds and put the powder and fuses in a pile.  I lit them and all that hot fire went at the same time burning my hand.  OUCH!!  My fingers felt like they were on fire even after I soaked them in milk.  For a long time I was reminded how foolish I had been for doing something like that, for "playing with fire."
Proverbs 6:27-29 says it this way "Can a man scoop fire into his lap and his clothes ont be burned?  Can a man walk on hot coals without his feet being scorched?  So is he who sleeps with another man's wife; no one who touches her will go unpunished."  NIV
This particular verse warns against adultery, even when supposedly no one but the two people physically involved knows of it.  Sooner or later you reap what you sow.  Its the law of the harvest.  You plant a seed of unfaithfulness and you reap disease, divorce, discord,etc. 
But there are other ways of "playing with fire" too.  It may be playing the lottery or gambling in some other fashion.  It may be lying or being dishonest in other ways.  Whatever you are doing that you know is against what God would have you do is just asking for Divine discipline. Don't ever think you are getting away with something just because some bolt of lightning doesn't strike you down with immediate judgement.
One thing leads to another and then before you know it, you are in over your head.
Learn to listen to God's voice.  The Holy Spirit is there to guide you and to help you make the right choices, but He isn't going to force you to do what is right.  That is entirely up to you.
You might try to justify your actions before others but God is not to be mocked. You KNOW what is right.

Pray today that you will avoid temptations to do wrong. Don't play with fire, You will surely get burned in the end.

Bridges

Have you ever considered bridges? There's all kinds of bridges in the world.  Foot bridges, draw bridges, covered bridges, suspension bridges, wooden bridges, bridges of stone, etc.

What is the purpose of a bridge?
Basically its to make it possible for someone or some thing to get from one place to another.
A bridge usually connects two points where it would be difficult if not impossible to get from one place to the other.
Songs have been written about bridges such as Simon and Garfunkle's "Bridge over Troubled Waters."
Movies have had bridges as their theme such as "The Bridges of Madison County" and "A Bridge to Terabithia."

Did you ever stop to consider that Jesus is a bridge?  When He died on the cross for our sins he bridged the gap between God and man.  Before this, one needed a priest to intercede between man and God.
But now we have full access to God the Father because of what Jesus did on the cross.
In fact, the cross symbolizes a bridge.  Man on one side of a great chasm and God on the other.
Now joined together for fellowship because of the cross and Jesus' dying on it for our sins.
Jesus made a way where there seemed to be no way.

So next time you see a bridge, think of Jesus and what He accomplished for us on that cross. He has made it possible for us to get to God and to be with Him eternally in Heaven!

Pray Without Ceasing

P ositive
R eassuring
A ction
Y ielding
E ternal
R esults

Do you ever wish you could have a heart to heart talk with God about things?  If you are like me you've wanted to ask God about certain things. 
"Why did you have to create fire ants?"  might be one such question
"What good is cudzu?"  might be another
or perhaps your questions would go a bit deeper than that?
"Why is there so much suffering and why do good people (people who try to live for you) have illness such as cancer, etc.?

Well this could go on all day I suppose but I just wanted to get you to think about it for a minute or two.
The fact is that we don't have all the answers.  Even the most knowledgable theologians can't figure God out and have questions of their own. 

In the book of Job, Job is suffering and longs to meet face to face with God to get some understanding.
When God does speak, Job can't bring an answer to God's questions of him.  He realizes that God's ways are "too wonderful for me to know." (Job 42:3 NIV)

I want you to know its ok to ask God questions.  Its ok to not understand everything or why certain things happen.  God wants us to come to Him and talk things over.   Jesus even took time to pray to His Heavenly Father.  He agonized about going through with the crucifixion. (Luke 22:42)
We are to pray without ceasing.  When we rise, thank God for a new day filled with new opportunities.
We are to thank God for our food.  We are to ask God for safe travels as we go on our way.  We are to pray for boldness to witness and for opportunities to do so.  We are to pray for our leaders to make the right decisions.  We are to pray for those who have needs.  We are to pray for people who do not know Christ as their Savior to come to Christ.  Pray for our children to grow in their faith and to do their best in school.  We are to pray for our children to make good choices in their future mate. 
John 14:13,14 "I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it." NIV

Sometimes the answer to our prayers may be "not now", "no", or "YES!"  God knows what is best for us and we are to align our prayers to what brings glory to God.  Our prayers can be of confession of sin too.
We should ask God for forgiveness with a repentant heart.  One such prayer is in the book of Daniel chapter 9 where Daniel and his friends are in exile in the pagan land of Babylon.  Daniel already had a good relationship with God but here he prays in confession and in repentance for the whole of Israel.
In Chapter 10 an angel comes to Daniel and explains that he has come in response to Daniel's prayers but was detained from coming sooner because of a battle with a "prince of the Persian kingdom."  We can assume here that no mortal man was detaining the angel but a powerful demonic force.

Take time today to talk to God.  He longs to spend time with you. Read His Word, tell him all about your needs, wants, desires, failures, hopes, and dreams.  He longs to be involved in all of your life.  Then take time to be still and listen.  Wait on God to respond.  Be alert enough to know when God is speaking to you.  It may be in a song or in a radio program or through the advice and encouragement of a friend.

Remember that prayer changes things.  God is waiting patiently on you today. Come berfore the presence of the King with praise, thanksgiving, confession, humbleness, boldness, petitions, and in worship. Converse with Him often.  Get to know His voice.  Then when He speaks, you will know without doubt it is God talking.

Reflecting His Glory

Have you looked at the moon lately?  When we are apart my wife will call me on the phone and tell me to go and look at the moon because its a certain color or is so full and bright, etc.  Funny though how she can see things from her vantage point while traveling to Tennessee that I can't see from my home in South Carolina.  Sometimes I can't even see the moon while she can which was the case the other night.
Full moons are especially nice since they show so much detail of the moon surface.  Its almost as if you could reach out and touch it sometimes.  Sometimes the moon as a halo around it.  Then we know rain is coming.
If there are two full moons in a month then there is what is known as a "blue" moon.  And then there are times we have a lunar eclipse.  I've actually photographed one lunar eclipse.  Usually the sky ends up being so overcast that I can't see the eclipse, but occasionally I'm able to view one.

In Genesis 1:14  "And God said, 'Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.'"  NIV

God cared for us so much that even before man had been formed from the dust He provided the sun, moon, and stars to give light and to mark seasons, days and years.  God did not want us to be in the dark!  How lonely and cold the Earth would have been without these lights.

Did you know that the moon doesn't give off its own light? No!  It only reflects the light of the sun.  But, oh, how we love that moon!  It spurs romance, affects the tides, gives us a bright light when full, and gives great excuses for crazy behavior at times!!!  But the light of the moon is just a reflection of a much greater, much more powerful source, the sun. 

Do you want to be like the moon?  Then be a reflection of God's Glory, of His Light.  May others see Jesus in you and be attracted to Jesus on account of how you live. Like the moon, there may be times that others only see a sliver of the light (like in a crescent moon.)  But keep on shining, keep on reflecting, keep on beaming God's love to others to light their way.

Lunar Eclipse

Lunar Eclipse (almost complete)



Eclipse at its fullness



Moon as seen through a telescope




Mercury and its moons

Full Moon