Category Archives: Thoughts From Scripture

Book Review: The Heirloom

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The Heirloom by Colleen L. Reece and Julie Reece-DeMarco was a gift to me from my good friend, Carol, some time within the last year. It kept getting buried in my bookshelf and I kept rediscovering it. When I saw it this time, I determined to read it, and it was the perfect time of year for it as the book begins during the Thanksgiving/Christmas season. It could be enjoyed any time of the year, though.

Gorgeously illustrated, it is the story of one man’s sacrifice and the unexpected results of it. We’re not always privileged to know what the Lord does with the things He wants us to give up to Him, but this gives an imaginative journey of the kinds of things that could happen.

I have known some dear, well-meaning souls who take issue with the word “sacrifice,” thinking that whatever we can give to the Lord is our privilege and we should joyfully lay it at His feet. Though there is truth in that aspect, the Bible is honest enough to use the word “sacrifice” in the New Testament as well as the Old.

Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all. Philippians 2:17.

By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. Hebrews 13:15-16.

King David once said, “Neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing” (II Samuel 24:24). A sacrifice costs something. Yet God can give us the grace to offer it joyfully, and He promises, “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again” (Luke 6:38).

A fairly short 66 pages, this book is a pleasant read and would be a sweet gift to anyone on your list.

Notable quotes

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I’m home from church with tummy troubles today, but thought I’d share some words of others that have spoken to me.

The first link between my soul and Christ is not my goodness but my badness, not my merit but my misery, not my riches but my need.
— Spurgeon
(Seen at Strength For Today)

It is hard to enter the kingdom of God–not because an angel is set to keep us out, not because God would surround Himself with a highly selected elite, but because the condition for admittance is renunciation of all other kingdoms.
— Elisabeth Elliot, A Lamp For My Feet

Be hard on yourself and easy on others. Carry your own cross but never lay one on the back of another.
–A.W. Tozer

Seek to cultivate a buoyant, joyous sense of the crowded kindnesses of God in your daily life.
–Alexander MacLaren

If, thinking of your frailty, you hold yourselves cheap, value yourselves by the price that was paid for you.
— St. Augustine

When God permits His children to go through the furnace, He keeps His eye on the clock and His hand on the thermostat. His loving heart knows how much and how long.
— Warren Wiersbe
(Saw this one on someone’s blog but neglected to note whose.)

Happy Thanksgiving!

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It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most high: To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night. Psalm 92:1-2.

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.

For flowers that bloom at our feet,
For tender grass, so fresh, so sweet;
For song of bird, and hum of bee;
For all things fair we hear and see,
Father in Heaven, we thank thee!

~Ralph Waldo Emerson~

Microfiction Monday

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Welcome to Microfiction Monday,
where a picture only paints 140 characters.

microfictionmonday

Susan at Stony River has begun a Microfiction Monday wherein participants write a story in 140 characters based on a particular image that Susan has chosen for the day.  Design 215’s Character Counter helps keep track of the number of characters. It’s a fun exercise in creative conciseness…or concise creativity…

As the bright glory surrounding God’s throne, as the colorful, faceted arc after rain, so is God’s grace and protection surrounding His own.

For those who might not understand the references there, in Genesis 9:8-16 God established a covenant with Noah and his sons and future generations after the flood that He would never again destroy the world by a flood, and He set the rainbow as the token of His promise. Ezekiel 1:28 and Revelation 4:3 speak of a rainbow surrounding God’s throne. It wasn’t until thinking about what to write in regard to this photo that I caught the encircling — the parallel between the circle of the rainbow round His throne, the arc of the rainbow, and the encircling of His promise and protection around His people.

I guess if I have to write another paragraph explaining my thinking, that might mean I didn’t do the greatest job expressing myself with 140 characters!

If you’d like to read of another encounter I had with a rainbow, The Storm and the Rainbow was originally a blog post that was submitted and accepted as an article for Frontline Magazine.

And you can find other people’s takes on this photo at Susan‘s.

Face the Cross

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I first heard this beautiful hymn on the Wilds CD Creator, Redeemer, and King, and it literally stopped me in my tracks.

Upon the cross of Jesus my eye at times can see
The very dying form of One who suffered there for me.

Face the cross, He hangs there in your place.
See the Lamb upon the killing tree.
Stand and look into the Savior’s face
As on the cross, He dies for you and me.

Face the cross and see the dying Son.
See the Lamb upon the killing tree.
See His anguish and His tears of love.
Face the cross, He dies to set us free.

Turn not away, turn not away.
His nail-pierced hands are reaching out to you, to you.

Look upon the One without a sin,.
Spotless Lamb upon the killing tree.
Feel His pain and love from deep within,
So great a price, yet paid so willingly.

Turn not away, turn not away,
Face the cross, face the cross.

Face the One who suffers in your place,
See the Lamb, upon the killing tree.
Light of the world, now clothed in darkness grim
As on the cross, He hangs in agony.

Face the cross and turn not away, turn not away.
His nail-pierced hands are reaching out to you.

Turn not away, behold His wounded side.
Turn not away, behold the crucified.
Face the cross, He hangs there in your place.
Face the cross, and see the King of Grace.
Face the cross, face the cross.

— Words by Herb Fromach, music by David Lantz

Thoughts about…hell

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I don’t remember what train of thought led me to this destination, but I was thinking this morning about the fact that modern day Christians don’t like to talk about hell very much. It’s offensive. Yet the fear of and desire to avoid hell played a major part in my own salvation and that of many others I know. But without the love of God, I would have remained in that misery of fear: the fact that He did love me and did make a way that I could be cleansed and forgiven drew me. It is as Jude said in verses 22-23 of his letter: “And of some have compassion, making a difference: And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.” Some will respond more to a compassionate appeal; others will only be shaken from their complacency by fear of the fire.

I’ve heard it said that Jesus spoke more about hell than heaven. I haven’t counted up the verses to see if that is true, but it would only make sense that He would want to warn people about such an awful place. I think we do a disservice to our friends and loved ones when we avoid speaking of it.  There is a little tract titled “Hell: Suppose It’s True After All?” (full text here) which poses just that question. It is too big an issue to take a chance on. Another, titled “What To Do To Go To Hell,” opens up to a blank interior, meaning we don’t have to do anything to go there: we are already on our way and need to do something to avoid it.

Salvation isn’t just a “fire escape” from hell: it is so much more. It is by faith entering into a relationship with God as a Father, a relinquishing of our rule over our own lives to acknowledge and yield to His rule, a turning from and cleansing of sin, a beginning of learning to know Him in all the facets of His being, in all the ways He illustrates His love and relationship with us (Shepherd, Light, etc.).

Too often I want to present only the positive: His love, His care, His provision. But there is something blocking access to Him in that way: Isaiah 59:1-2: says, “Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear: But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” Sin is a barrier, a roadblock. The ultimate end of sin and self-will is hell. It’s not going to be a good ol’ party time with the buddies. It is awful.

But the good news is that God doesn’t want us to go there any more than we want go there ourselves. I urge you, as lovingly and kindly, and yet as urgently as I can, to consider these truths:

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.  He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God. John 3:16-21, NKJV.

You can read more here.

A living, bright reality

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O Jesus, make Thyself to me,
A living bright reality:
More present to faith’s vision keen,
Than any outward object seen:
More dear, more intimately rich,
Than e’en the sweetest earthly tie.

This little poem was written on the back of an envelope from a note someone sent me in college, and it has stayed with me all these years. I wasn’t sure of the author, but a quick search indicates this was from a hymn by Charlotte Elliott, the author of the more well-known hymn “Just As I Am.”

These words have been on my heart lately, for myself, my family, my church, and Christianity in general — that our Christianity would truly be not just doctrine, though that is vitally important; not just “what we believe” or “what we do” (or don’t do), but rather, as we so often say, a vital and living relationship with a real, living Christ. Not just praying before meals and during crises, but keeping in touch with Him through the whole day. Not just dragging ourselves to church and through some semblance of devotions, but gaining in His Word what we vitally need more than food. Not just a vague appreciation for an escape from hell, but an active, consuming love that energizes a life spent doing His will out of love rather than duty. A heart that longs after Him.

May it be so.

What He Is To Me

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This morning I was looking for the verse that says “He is precious” (I can remember a lot of verses memorized years ago, but, sadly, not the references). I don’t remember the exact thought process now, but somehow that triggered reminders of many verses saying directly that God is something. I decided to explore that a little further:

Unto you therefore which believe he is precious. I Peter 2:7.

But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us. Ephesians 2:13-14.

The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1.

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation. Isaiah 12:2.

For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God. Deuteronomy4:24.

(For the LORD thy God is a merciful God😉 he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them. Deuteronomy 4:21.

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD. Deuteronomy 6:4.

For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you. Deuteronomy 20:4.

The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms Deuteronomy 33:27.

God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect. II Samuel 22:33.

For if ye turn again unto the LORD, your brethren and your children shall find compassion before them that lead them captive, so that they shall come again into this land: for the LORD your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn away his face from you, if ye return unto him. II Chronicles 30:9.

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Psalm 46:1.

For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding. Psalm 47:7.

And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is judge himself. Psalm 50:6.

Behold, God is mine helper: the Lord is with them that uphold my soul. Psalm 54:4.

When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me. Psalm 56:9.

Because of his strength will I wait upon thee: for God is my defence. Psalm 59:9.

My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. Psalm 73:26.

For God is my King of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth. Psalm 74:12.

For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. Psalm 84:11.

Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy. Psalm 99:9.

Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful. Psalm 116:5.

He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true. John 3:33.

God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. John 4:24.

God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. I Corinthians 1:9.

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. I Corinthians 1:30.

He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. I John 4:8.

The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer. II Samuel 22:2.

That all the people of the earth may know that the LORD is God, and that there is none else. I Kings 8:60.

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. Psalm 23:1.

The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Psalm 34:18.

To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him. Psalm 92:15.

For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations. Psalm 100:5.

So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me. Hebrews 13:6.

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. I Peter 3:9

And that is just scratching the surface.

If it is a blessing just to run our eyes down the list of underlined attributes, how much greater would it be to study them further and in context, and the reactions we should have to them.

Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done,
and thy thoughts which are to us-ward:
they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee:
if I would declare and speak of them,
they are more than can be numbered. Psalm 40:5.

Bow the Knee

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There are moments on our journey following the Lord
Where God illumines ev’ry step we take.
There are times when circumstances make perfect sense to us,
As we try to understand each move He makes.
When the path grows dim and our questions have no answers, turn to Him.

Bow the knee;
Trust the heart of your Father when the answer goes beyond what you can see.
Bow the knee;
Lift your eyes toward heaven and believe the One who holds eternity.
And when you don’t understand the purpose of His plan,
In the presence of the King, bow the knee.

There are days when clouds surround us, and the rain begins to fall,
The cold and lonely winds won’t cease to blow.
And there seems to be no reason for the suffering we feel;
We are tempted to believe God does not know.
When the storms arise, don’t forget we live by faith and not by sight.

Bow the knee;
Trust the heart of your Father when the answer goes beyond what you can see.
Bow the knee;
Lift your eyes toward heaven and believe the One who holds eternity.
And when you don’t understand the purpose of His plan,
In the presence of the King, bow the knee.

~ Lyrics by Chris Machen and Mike Harland

Why hear a missionary presentation?

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What do you think when you hear that a missionary will be speaking at your church? Are you disappointed that you won’t hear the pastor? Or excited about a change of pace? Are you tempted to stay home because it is “just a missionary” after all? Or looking forward to dozing off during the video?

A few weeks ago a young lady spoke at our women’s meeting about her summer on a mission field, and I was blessed in so many ways even beyond just hearing what the Lord did that summer that I made a list of some of the blessings we can glean as missionaries present their work. Our church is having a Missions Conference this week, so it seemed like a good time to revisit these thoughts and post them.

1. Jesus told His disciples to “Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields” (John 4:35b), and hearing a missionary presentation is one good way to obey that command.

2. We can see more fields than we could possibly visit in person.

3. Our hearts are stirred for the lost.

4. We are stirred to contribute both by prayer and giving.

5. We’re stirred to come alongside and help the missionary in his or her ministry.

6. It’s educational: we learn of other cultures from those who have actually experienced them.

7. We’re stirred up to serve the Lord in our own areas of ministry.

8. Our faith is encouraged as we see God’s hand at work in the lives of ordinary people who have stepped out in faith and yielded themselves to Him, and we are encouraged to do likewise.

9. Our faith is encouraged as we see God’s provision for funds, supplies, abilities.

10. Our hearts are knit together with brethren we might never meet in this life. We get to know our spiritual relatives whom we will meet some day in heaven.

11. We’re called to be willing to be used in whatever way God might see fit in the mission field He has for each of us, possibly even an overseas one.

How about you? How do you feel about missionary presentations?