Making Room~

Luke 2:7 "And she gave birth to her firstborn son, Jesus; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn."

Christmas is right around the corner, and if you are like me, you are already in the hustle and bustle of all the preparations.  There are gifts to wrap, cards to be sent, Christmas carols to be practiced, decorations to be put up, and food to order.  I get so busy that sometimes I have to remind myself to make room for Jesus.  How ironic considering that He is the reason for the season!

The innkeeper missed out on having the Savior of mankind being born at his establishment because there was no room.  Maybe he could have made an exception. Maybe he just didn’t realize the magnitude of the situation.  Maybe he didn’t care.  Regardless, there was no room and no room was made; Jesus was born somewhere else.

We all know better.  When we open our hearts and homes to Him, He shows up and the blessings flow.  

It all starts with prayer.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You for answering prayer! Every time we gather here to pray, we are making room for Christ. We invite Him into every area of our lives and ask that He fill us up with blessings of hope, faith, provision, peace, joy, and health. In His holy name we pray, AMEN!

He Does Good Things For Us~

Christmas-is-two-weeks-from-today greetings!

“Prepare for God’s arrival! [clear away the obstacles]; Make the road straight and smooth.” Isaiah 40:3

I am going to a wedding the weekend after Christmas, and I am bringing a gift with me to give to the happy couple.  I received the invitation a couple of months ago, I RSVP’d that Jorge and I would attend, and then I bought a gift.  I think it’s fair to assume this couple is expecting us to attend the ceremony as well as receive a gift from us and from others at their wedding.

Likewise, if God is encouraging us to prepare for His arrival, it’s because He fully intends to come!  And when He comes, is He bringing a gift with Him?  No, He is not bringing a gift.  He is bringing several gifts! 

Here’s a partial list:

Do-overs, forgiveness, goodness, grace, guidance, healing, health, hope, joy, justice, laughter, light, love, mercy, opportunity, peace, protection, provision, redemption, wisdom…

Psalm 103:1 “Let all that I am praise the LORD; may I never forget the good things He does for me.”

He does good things for us, and the way “does” is used in this verse means it’s  ongoing.

Every single day that we breathe, amazing blessings can be ours.  But, and yes, there is a “but,” because relationships are a two-way street.  

We must do our part and prepare, and then He arrives.  We prepare by praying, by declaring our total dependence on Him.  By asking for forgiveness of our sins.  Look at that list above one more time.  Can we honestly attain any of those things without Him?

When we let Him know that we need Him, He shows up.  God will always come, without hesitation, to those who are ready for Him.    

PRAYER: Dear Lord, We are ready.  We are ready for all the good things You want to do for us.  We open our hearts and our lives to receive You. Forgive us of our sins so that we can make room for all the beauty You are bringing with You. In Jesus’ name, AMEN~  

God's Way~

Greetings~

The great Fernandez purge of 2014 is still ongoing, and I found something over the weekend while I was cleaning out a box. It was Rayray’s Christmas wish list from 1999. It’s a small list of only 83 items, one of which is a “Persian cat for mom.” This list is cute or maybe it's troubling. I’m not sure, but I do know there are some gifts that are better than all the stuff on that paper.  

Galatians 5:22-23 “What happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.”

We get ourselves on the gift list by living life God’s way, and believe it or not, it can all be summed up in one sentence: Love others as you love yourself.  

Six words – that’s it! The antidote for everything we read about yesterday – loneliness, joylessness, dissatisfaction, emotional garbage, a brutal temper etc…is to love others as you love yourself. 

I saw an article on-line yesterday entitled: The Secret of Being Happy. One of the keys to feeling bright and full of sunshine is to serve others.

That’s really no secret at all. The Bible encourages us over and over again to take care of others, put others first, and to love others with the same energy as we put into our own self-preservation. 

When we do this we can expect everything it says in those verses above. I especially love the phrase “exuberance about life.” It’s actually so much more than being happy. It’s excitement, fervor, vitality, zest, eagerness, exhilaration, cheerfulness, AND happiness all rolled up in one!

That sounds so appealing to me. And that’s the kind of life I want for those I love as well.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Thank You for encouraging us to think about others and reach out to others. Somehow, by blessing others, we walk away being blessed with the kind of life that’s worth living. In Jesus’name, AMEN~

 

 

God's Way~

Good afternoon all you lovely saints. This past weekend one of you celebrated one of the greatest highs of life—your child got married! Your exact words to me were, “It is a tremendous blessing that my daughter married such a godly young man from such a fine Christian family!”

 

Amen to that!

 

Maybe getting from point A to point B wasn’t perfect or problem free, but a final assessment of how it all went down reminds me of a great Bible passage.

 

Galatians 5:22-23 (The Message version)

 

“But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.”

 

What is “God’s way?”

 

God’s way is primarily about seeking Him and loving one another. It means we include Him in all our decisions and then exercise patience and forgiveness with others. It means we put Him and others first and put ourselves second. It means we pour out our troubles and complaints to Him and keep our traps shut in front of others for the greater blessing of keeping the peace. It means we practice simple kindness. It means we make sacrifices. You all know exactly what I mean.

 

Our efforts are rewarded with gifts. Go back to the verse and look at all the things we receive when we get on board with His way. Exuberance about life? Sounds awesome! Serenity? I sure could use more of that! Able to marshal and direct our energies wisely? You mean there are unwise ways in which we direct our energies?

 

All this week we will dissect this passage, but today let’s thank God that He is a giver of gifts to all those who are willing to live His way.

 

PRAYER: Dear Lord, We all desire to receive the gifts You are willing to bring into our lives. Help us to embrace Your way of living. We all desire to have orchards filled with delicious and satisfying fruit. In Jesus name, AMEN~