Let's Approach!

TGIF Greetings :)

Mark 10:49 "Jesus stopped..."

Remember all the ruckus? Blind Bartimaeus heard Jesus was passing by. He shouted out for mercy. The ones with Jesus rebuked him, but Bartimaeus shouted all the more?

What was Christ's reaction? He stopped.

He put everything else aside and stopped. He was on His way to Jerusalem where soon all the events leading up to the crucifixion would unfold, but He interrupted His busy schedule and brought all His love, mercy, and attention on the one who was shouting for Him.

Amen and glory!

Let us never ever think that Jesus is uninterested, too busy, too tired, or unmerciful and/or aloof. If we call, He will stop - each and every time.

In fact, when we read the New Testament we learn that Jesus never ever turned anyone away. Anyone who approached Him was welcome, and everyone is still welcome. The key is that we need to make approach.

What are we waiting for? Let's approach!

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You that You have stopped right now and are listening to me. All Your focus is on me, and I am grateful. You asked Bartimaeus what he wanted You to do for him; this is what I want You to do for me: __________________. In Your precious name I pray, Amen~

Shout all the More!

I hope you're all having a terrific Tuesday :)

Mark 10:47-48 "When Bartimaeus heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

"...but he shouted all the more..."

Kudos to Bartimaeus for not letting others detract him. He knew what he needed to do, and he wasn't going to let anyone silence his voice. The louder others get--speaking all negatively and/or rudely--the more we need to shout.

And you can be sure there will be times when we stand alone against popular opinion, but that's when we have to shout all the more.

Bartimaeus did not let anyone stop him from calling on Jesus and neither should we.

 

Truth is not everyone will respect or agree with our decision to keep on trusting and praying and believing for our answers. Job's wife is a perfect example.

 

Job 2:9 "His wife said to him, “Are you still trying to be godly when God has done all this to you? Curse Him and die.”

 

Job's name has become synonymous with suffering because of all the tragedy in his life. He lost it all - money, health, family - and it bothered his wife to no end that he was still trusting the Lord. Still reaching out--clinging to hope. She finally exploded and said, "Curse God and die."

 

Lord, have mercy! Job hung in there, and the Bible says in Job 42:20 that, "The Lord blessed Job at the end of his life more than at the beginning."

 

What if Bartimaeus had allowed the others to silence him? His tombstone would have read: Here lies the blind beggar Bartimaeus.

 

I prefer this one: Here lies the formally blind Bartimaeus whose sight was restored because he shouted all the more!

 

AMEN!

 

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Today we shout shout shout for healing and restoration in our lives. We will not allow others to detract us from reaching out to You. In Jesus' name, AMEN!

Get out of the Way~

Happy Monday :)

Back to the story of the Bartimaeus, the man who was formally blind.

Mark 10:47-48 "When Bartimaeus heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Here was Bartimaeus, blind and begging by the side of the road, clearly in need of help, and Jesus walks by. Bartimaeus has heard a thing or two about Jesus being a miracle worker because he starts shouting for help. And what is the reaction of the folks who are closest to Jesus? The ones who are walking with Him? They rebuke Bartimaeus.

Dictionary.com--REBUKE: to express sharp, stern disapproval of; reprove; reprimand.

The irony in all of this makes me want to cry.

How can I, someone who walks with Jesus every day, get in the way of someone else who wants to get closer to Him? How could I ever actually scold someone because they called out to Christ? Are you kidding me? I spend half my waking moments praying that my children will call out to Him more and more everyday, and yet these folks told Bartimaeus to be quiet.

First lesson of the week: Let's not get in anyone's way when they are trying to get closer to Jesus. Let's actually try to help. Let's offer to pray with someone. Listen to someone's heartache. Help them get up and bring them closer to Christ.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Make us sensitive to those around us who are seeking You. There are so many blessings for those who help others. In Jesus' name, AMEN~

What Do You Want Me To Do?

TGIF Greetings~

Someone wants to ask you a question today, and His name is JESUS!

Mark 10:51 ““What do you want Me to do for you?”
Jesus was directing His question at a blind man named Bartimaeus.
Bartimaeus responded, “Lord, I want to see!”

Excuse me while I take a moment to relish this scene in my mind…

When we read a few verses before this one, we learn that blind Bartimaeus was sitting by the roadside begging.  Jesus, the disciples, and a large crowd were leaving the city, and Bartimaeus somehow heard it was none other than Christ Himself Who was walking by.  He started to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

That’s when Jesus asked the famous question, “What do you want Me to do for you?”

Bartimaeus knew the answer and didn’t hesitate to ask for a healing miracle. “Lord, I want to see.”
Mark 10:52 “…Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.”

Connect the dots time.
·       Bartimaeus is blind.
·       He has heard of Jesus before because when Christ was on that road he called out for his miracle. 
·       Jesus stopped what He was doing and paid attention to Bartimaeus.
·       Jesus asked Bartimaeus a compelling question.
·       Bartimaeus was specific, non-hesitant, blunt and to the point.
·       Bartimaeus received his sight and became a follower of Christ.

We will break this all down a la Macarena style next week, but look at the order.

There’s a need, Jesus is the miracle-worker, we must call out to Him and tell Him what we want.  We will always get the best answer for our situation.

Amen Amen Amen!!! I pray that Bartimaeus has inspired us all today.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, I take You up on Your Word, and this is what I want You do to for Me today: ___________________.  By faith I receive the answer.  In Your name I pray, Amen!  

Ask the Blind Man~

Good afternoon~

Would you like me to make fun of you?  Last week I made fun of my father-in-law, Chini, because he has had a suitcase packed and ready for over a year waiting to get the call to go on a free cruise.  And on Saturday he finally got the call and promptly left for a week to the sunny Caribbean.  When I make fun of people, good things happen!

 

I am passionate about a lot of things, like cows, for example.  I have cow pillows, cow mugs, cow planters, a cow coffee pot, cow espresso demitasse cups, and even a cow sleeping mask.

But if you were to ask me what I am the most passionate about I would not hesitate to answer, “PRAYER!”

There’s a Southern Gospel group called The Booth Brothers, and they have a song entitled He Saw it All.  It refers to Jesus’ miracles of healing a paralyzed man, a deaf girl, a mute man, and a blind man.

Part of the lyrics go like this:

I was trying to catch the crippled man,

Did he run past this way?
He was rushing home to tell everyone
What Jesus did today
And the mute man was telling me and the deaf girl

He's leaving to answer God's call
It's hard to believe but if you don't trust me

Ask the blind man, he saw it all
Ask the blind man, he saw it all

I love this song (YouTube link at the end of this DEVO), and I very respectfully and humbly identify with the blind man; this is why I am passionate about prayer.  This is why I want you to find a Bible verse and grab it by the horns until God answers you.

No one on the planet could have ever convinced the blind man that Jesus wasn’t a miracle worker; he had first-hand knowledge of His might and power.

Likewise, Jesus has done so much for me through prayer that no one can tell me otherwise.  And I want all of us to be encouraged greatly today that Jesus is still in the prayer-answering business. 

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Answer us when we call upon You and we will testify of Your goodness and greatness.  In Jesus' name, AMEN!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGHFC2t3deE

There's a Verse for That~

Happy Saint Patrick's Day~

He was born in Scotland, and as a teenager he was kidnapped by slave traders and taken to Ireland. This unthinkable circumstance turned Saint Patrick to God and he once said, " The love of God grew in me more and more, as did the faith, and my soul was roused, so that, in a single day, I have said as many as a hundred prayers and in the night, nearly the same."

Amen to that! Some days we just have to pray without ceasing!

So many of you commented about the verse I wrote about on Thursday, and I lovingly reminded everyone that, "Likewise, it does not matter what your struggle or concern is. There is a verse or more you can hold close to your heart and ask God to do what it says for you. But first you must be hungry for what God has to say."

Then I had a conversation with someone whose adult child is making some seriously foolish decisions, and she feels utterly helpless. And then God whispered to my heart, "Yenisita, there's a verse for that; help her find it."

We started our search and found this doozy: Luke 15:17 “When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!'"

Luke 15 tells the story of the prodigal son. He left the comfort and love of his home and made one catastrophic decision after another until he finally came to his senses and returned home.

My friend and I honed in on the very beginning of that verse, "When he came to his senses..."

"Lord, we cried, let so-and-so come to his senses. Let him realize that there is a loving home that awaits his return. Open his eyes so he can see the foolishness of his behavior."

There is just something so exhilirating and awe-inspiring about praying a verse that you know had a beautiful outcome.

Let's not allow any difficulty we face to freak us out. Rather, let's find our verse and pray it through--up to 100 times a day if necessary.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You for the completeness of Your Word. There is something in there for everyone, and we are grateful. In Jesus' name we pray, AMEN~

Hunger for God~

Thursday greetings~

One final thought on desiring God's Word like a baby desires milk.

The Bible has sold more copies than any other book in the history of the world; yet it is hated as much as it is loved. Earlier this week there was news of an Air Force cadet whose Bible verse was erased because the white board he had written it on was in a common area, and the verse offended some folks. But check out this headline from the Daily News: Rickey Wagoner, 49, was ambushed by three goons early Monday morning after he stopped his bus on the side of the road. Wagoner was shot three times, but the two bullets meant for his chest became lodged in the Bible he was carrying.
I am certain Mr. Wagoner loves his Bible more than ever, and I'm with him. God's living Word continues to inspire me, comfort me, and help me day after day. Sometimes the truths contained therein have also provided a lifeline when I desperately needed something to hold onto.

I never gave much thought to Genesis 24:50 which says, "Laban and Bethuel answered, "'This is from the LORD...'"

And then Hormone started dating someone who rubbed me the wrong way. I did not know how to act or react. On the one hand, every person deserves dignity and respect because they are God's child. On the other hand, that doesn't mean just anyone is qualified to marry my child. So I dug in my heels and started reading everything the Bible has to say about relationships. And this verse right at the beginning of the Bible changed the way I prayed and changed my life.

Laban and Bethuel were the parents of a young woman named Rebecca who was just chosen to marry Isaac, the son of Abraham. As her parents they gave their blessing saying it was a God thing. I grabbed ahold of that verse and told Jesus that just like Laban and his wife, Jorge and I wanted to freely give our blessing because we actually loved Hormone's choice and not because we had no other choice. For a long long time I woke up every morning saying, "This relationship is not of You, dear Lord, no way. If it were, I would be enthusiastic and excited and happy. Please bring that young lady you have for Hormone. I long to say that he is dating someone who came from You."

That verse kept me alive, people, because there were many many days when I feared where my child was headed.

Likewise, it does not matter what your struggle or concern is. There is a verse or more you can hold close to your heart and ask God to do what it says for you. But first you must be hungry for what God has to say.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, There are so many sources of information and advice out there. Keep us focused primarily on You. Lead us in truth and teach us how to pray. Thank You for your life-changing Word, in Jesus' name, AMEN~

* For those of you who are wondering, Jorge and I were finally able to say "This is of the Lord," within five minutes of meeting Lis, who is now our beautiful daughter-in-love. Amen, Glory, & Praises!

It's Never Been Easier~

Good afternoon~

Now that we all know the benefits from ingesting God's Word, we turn to how to get it into our systems.

The day after Chini's birthday party, I went to my brother-in-law's, Setsero's party. Naturally, since I had feasted away at Chini's bash, I didn't eat at Setsero's celebration. NOT!!!!!!! None of us thinks it's acceptable, normal, or even healthy to skip a meal just because we recently ate. Likewise, God invites us to taste His goodness on a daily basis.

Matthew 6:11 "Give us this day our daily bread."

That verse speaks about the physical food we need, like the portabella stuffed chicken with parmesan and garlic I ate Sunday, but it's also referring to the spiritual fuel we need that the Bible provides. A daily portion works best. This makes perfect sense to me. If I were to eat today for all the strength I will need for the weekend, I wouldn't make it past Thursday. The same can be said about Bible reading. A steady stream of scripture works best. Today I might need a verse about joy, but by Saturday it might be a passage about faith.

And receiving the benefits we spoke of yesterday--revival, renewal, preservation, new life--can be found on any page anywhere in the Bible. It's called the "Living Word" because God breathed His very breath into every word, every sentence, every paragraph, every last one of the over 30,000 chapters; It's being alive means It actively ministers, comforts, and provides wisdom to us. It's being alive also means you never get bored reading it over and over again. I love to read, but with the exception of To Kill a Mockingbird, I have never read the same book twice; I already know what's going to happen, and I find that unappealing. Yet how many times have we said The Lord's Prayer? And those words still bring fresh blessings every single time.

And finally, to answer the question of how we get It into our systems--we simply pick up a Bible, open up a Bible-reading app, search on the internet for the verse of the day--you can even get a daily verse emailed to you--or, and forgive me if this sounds self-serving, read a DEVO! It's never been easier, Amen!

PRAYER: Dear Lord, The Christian life is not about being forced to do anything, but rather us coming to the realization that Your way works best and is worth our effort. We need You each and every day, and we know it. In Jesus' name, AMEN~

A Steady Diet of Jesus~

Monday greetings~

I hope you all had a lovely weekend!

Friday's DEVO ended with an exhortation to think about why we should desire God's Word and how to go about getting it into our systems.

Today we answer why.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Saturday we celebrated, Chini's, my father-in-law's birthday, and I praise God for his life. He is truly the easy going and fun-loving patriarch of our family and is famous for all the billions of pictures he takes for everything and about anything.

Right before we sat down to feast ourselves on chicken, churrasco, grilled peppers and salad, I (because I am a little pushy) escorted him to the center of our family circle. I made fun of him like I always do (he's had a suitcase packed for over a year as he waits on stand-by to go on a free cruise), and then we all laid hands on him and agreed with Jorge as he prayed a beautiful prayer of health, long life, and blessings for Chini. Jorge also thanked God for the food we were about to gorge ourselves on. It was almost 8PM, and we were all hungry. It was so good, and we topped it all off with coconut and vanilla cake.

Just like our bodies have a way of letting us know when it's time to eat, our souls have a way of letting us know when it's time to nourish ourselves from a heavenly source.

Have you been cranky lately, rude, sad, pessimistic, hateful, inpatient, downright mean and/or nasty? How about frustrated, fearful, fatigued, and feeling like a failure? The answer might be to eat a little more from the Bread of Life.

The Bible teaches us in Psalm 119 that a steady diet of Jesus revives us, protects us, preserves us, redeems us, gives us our life back, gives us new life, helps us come to life, and rescues us. Amen amen amen!!!

When God tells us to be hungry for Him with the same zeal that a baby is hungry for momma, it's because He knows it's good for us. It's the best way to live a great life!

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Sometimes we feel low. How good to know that You offer so much to us when we nourish our souls with You. Revive us today. Gives us new life today. Preserve and protect us and those we love. We thank You in Jesus' rescuing name, Amen!

Feed Your Soul~

TGIF Greetings; May you all be violently overtaken with a spirit of joy!!!!!

We will go through all kinds of stuff to satisfy our desire for food. There’s an ice cream parlor inDavie called Jaxson’s, and my family and I once waited over two hours for a seat.

When I was preggers with Hormone, I woke up suddenly in the middle of the night with an intense desire to eat grape jelly and cream cheese on a bagel. Groggy Jorge stumbled out to get it, but that’s not even a gross craving compared to one I heard of: Banana sandwiches with mayonnaise and onions.

Food is yummy, it nourishes the body, and can even put you in a good mood. Chocolate anyone?

And haven't we have all said, “I’m starving!” Our gullets rumble or we feel faint, and we know it’s time to fuel our bodies. Let’s face it: If we stop eating altogether, we will, you know, expire.

As critical to life as eating is, the Lord reminds us in Matthew 4:4 “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."

Another version says it like this: “It takes more than bread to stay alive. It takes a steady stream of words from God’s mouth.”

In other words, when God says in 1 Peter 2:2 to “desire God’s pure word as babies desire milk,” He is essentially saying that to stay alive we must feed our body AND soul, and we must be as enthusiastic about eating up His truths from the Bible as we are about eating up a hot fudge sundae with two scoops of chocolate chip mint ice cream, sprinkled with butterfingers and whipped cream on top.

The questions are why and how?

Let’s chew on this over the weekend.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, We all have a favorite food, and we are grateful for the blessings of being able enjoy several good meals a day. We also desire the beauty, peace, protection, hope, faith, wisdom, and guidance in our lives that comes from living on Your Word. But please give us a hunger for You that we might grow even bigger and stronger in our faith. In Jesus’ name, AMEN~

Be a Baby~

Greetings, dear people ~

 

1 Peter 2:1-3 So get rid of every kind of evil, every kind of deception, hypocrisy, jealousy, and every kind of slander. Desire God’s pure word as newborn babies desire milk. Then you will grow in your salvation. Certainly you have tasted that the Lord is good!

Yesterday we learned that because we have tasted that the Lord is good, we should feel a longing and a desire for more of Him. And the Lord compares that desire to that of a newborn who desires milk.

One of my favorite TV shows is Too Cute! Puppies, and watching those little doggies wobbling over to momma for milk is just beyond precious. Those itty bitty canines are so eager for nourishment, and they will crawl and claw their way to the source.

But newborn human babies are even more adorable and will instinctively shake their little faces as they are nuzzled up against their mom until they find the "spigot" so to speak. And every couple of hours this scenario has to be repeated, or everyone within a two-block radius will know baby is hungry.

God wants us to be just as eager in our desire for Him; He wants us to nourish our souls daily and sometimes more than once.

 

Ironically, our tendencies are just the opposite. Often times when we get our fill of Him, when we get our answer to prayer, when everything is running smoothly, when the weather is nice outside, when there's money in the bank, when our kids have triumphed over their latest challenge...we pull back on our church attendance, our Bible reading, and GASP! even our prayers.

PRAYERS: Dear Lord, We do desire You. Help us be as enthusiastic about You as You are about us. In Jesus' name, AMEN~

On the Grounds of That First Taste~

Greetings, dear people ~

1 Peter 2:1-3 So get rid of every kind of evil, every kind of deception, hypocrisy, jealousy, and every kind of slander. Desire God’s pure word as newborn babies desire milk. Then you will grow in your salvation. Certainly you have tasted that the Lord is good!

Decades ago when I first met Jorge he and I would go out to eat, and I would always order my steak well done. Hockey puck style. This, of course, was highly offensive to Jorge who was once labeled a protein pig, and rightly so, by a professor in a college nutrition class. The assignment was to submit everything you ate for a week and analyze the nutritional content. Jorge was proud of his massive meat consumption, and thus highly scandalized that I wasn't eating my steaks rare or medium rare.

Over and over again he would say, "Babe, trust me, you are eating that all wrong. You have to try it charred on the outside and pink in the middle. It will change your life."

He was so dramatic, almost offended that I wouldn't eat steak his way, until one day, I succumbed. And I will admit Jorge was right!

What a difference. The meat was melt-in-your-mouth soft, yet crunchy on the outside. I have never looked back, and on the grounds of that first taste, I long for more.

And when I met Jesus and discovered He loves me, gives me peace, fills me with joy and answers prayers and absolutely knows the best way for me to live my life and love my family--on the grounds of that first taste...I LONG FOR MORE...of HIM.

What is the motivation for purging the bad, reading the Bible, and growing up? Because I have already sampled for myself over and over and over again that God knows what He is doing. And I can not live without Him.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Glory to Your name. We have all tasted Your goodness. We have all seen answers to prayers. Therefore, we do desire to get rid of evil and to get to know You better. In Jesus' name, AMEN~