“But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.” I Thessalonians 4:13-14 Last night I turned my light off at 10:30 and apparently went right to sleep. When I woke up and looked at my clock it was 7:00 AM. I remember that I did have some dreams, but I had a perfect night of rest. It did not seem like…
“Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.” Ecclesiastes 12:7 We all have questions about what happens to us after we die. Where is Heaven? What is it like? Who will go there? Will we know our loved ones? Can they look down on earth and see us? We often wish there was a book in the Bible that spelled out exactly what the future holds for us, but that is not so. The Scriptures give us some insights, but there are many things that we do not fully understand. One thing we know for sure, God has a plan and in the fullness of time He will bring it all to pass. I certainly do not have all the answers but have been asking the Lord to reveal His Word to me and open my spiritual eyes to eternity, and what He has in store for us. When God created man, He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living soul. When Adam and Eve sinned, the flesh began to die, but the soul lived on forever. When we die, our…
“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 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. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.” John 14:1-4 We live in a troubled world. When we turn on our radios in the morning or look at the News sites on our computers, we are bombarded with stories of wars, uprisings, mass shootings, trouble, and strife. The Bible tells us that this is what we can expect as we near the time of the return of Jesus for His bride. I am so thankful for the hope we have of His coming. We do not let these things that are happening deprive us of the joy and peace we have in knowing Christ. He has told us not to fear, but to look up because our redemption draws nigh. What do you think of when you hear the word,…
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Psalm 91:1-2 I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved. Psalm 121:1-2. My husband loves action movies. Like, loves them. And, he loves any movie with a spy or members of the secret service. In fact,…
Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6, NIV. Our lives are comprised of moments and experiences. If I cataloged your life through puzzle pieces, what would some of those portions of time represent? What if you took one of my life’s puzzle pieces and tried to replace it with parts of your story? You may think, “That would be great! I’ll take all of your happy memories and I will replace them with the fragments of time I would like to forget.” While that sounds tempting, but my experiences would never fit your story. And vice versa. The complexity of your experiences could never be an adequate substitute in my life. And, yet, I have longed for other people’s lives; their families, talents, ministries, and even their wardrobe – far too many times. CRUMPLED Paper As a child, I was extremely meticulous. I remember making a mistake with my homework and instead of crossing a line through the error (like my friends or normal people did) I would crumple up the paper and start all over again. Some nights I would…
“And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you: for the LORD is a God of judgment: blessed are all they that wait for him.” Isaiah 30:18 I had an “aha” moment while reading the Bible this week. I have only heard and have said, “wait on the LORD.” We say, “Wait on the LORD,” and for good reason, there is a multiplicity of scriptures saying to wait on God. However, I have never heard anyone tell me that the LORD will “wait on me.” This scripture says that God will wait on us so he can be gracious to us. Incredible. God has moments when He will wait for us. God will stay true to His word; He will reign with judgment, but will also extend mercy to us who deserve penalty. Our loving Savior wants to give us a reason to be gracious and merciful; He wants to give us time to repent. He is patient, longsuffering, and kind. He is ready to meet us with graciousness and love. It is up to us to turn our hearts toward Him today. The latter end of this scripture is what we all know so well, “blessed are all they that wait…