Inspirations from the Funny Farm

Exodus 4:10-12 But Moses pleaded with the Lord, “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.”  Then the Lord asked Moses, “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the Lord?  Now go! I will be with you as you speak, and I will instruct you in what to say.”

If you didn’t know me in my early days, you wouldn’t believe that I was the shyest girl in my class. I was deathly afraid to speak in public. I would prefer to dig a hole and crawl inside rather than open my mouth and speak in front of other people. I didn’t just have a little fear of public speaking. I was downright terrified of it. In fact, I had such a fear that I put off going to college for a few years after graduation because I didn’t want to take speech class. That sounds crazy to me now, but at the time, when I weighed my fear of public speaking in one hand and my future career in the other, the fear of public speaking won by leaps and bounds. Fast forward to present day, and I think it is safe to say that I finally found my voice. Yes, God has blessed me with the gift of gab. I have a lot of things to say, and I really need to say them. In fact, I get teased because when I’m trying to say all the stuff that I need to say, I talk rather fast causing people to doubt my southern roots.

Although I’ve been given the gift of gab (and I utilize this gift fervently), I still actually prefer writing my thoughts down to share as opposed to public speaking. It is easier to take pen and paper and let the thoughts pour out. Afterwards, I can read over the words and make corrections and make sure that what I am saying is what I mean to say, whereas once the spoken word is out there, it is there to stay. I had a wonderful teacher in high school named Mr. Jackson who always told us, “Say what you mean and mean what you say.” It’s been a few decades since I sat in his class, and those words still run through my mind when I’m preparing to speak.

Moses was chosen by God to deliver His people from captivity in Egypt. God spoke directly to Moses and explained what He wanted Him to do. God said what He meant, and He meant what He said, but how did Moses respond? “O Lord, I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.” We have all probably responded this way at one time or another. “Not me, Lord. Anyone but me! You know there is someone out there who is better qualified that I am to do what you want.” Moses was human. He had natural fears, and he voiced those fears to the Lord. But isn’t it interesting how God responded? “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go! I will be with you as you speak, and I will instruct you in what to say.” These words bring this wordy girl confidence and courage.

I love the Lord, and I love to tell others about the Lord, yet there are many times when I feel ill equipped to share. I am afraid that the words will come out wrong. I’m afraid that although I mean what I am saying, I may not say what I mean. But I must confess that it is in those times that God always shows up and shows out. When I am invited to speak at different engagements, I pray that God will give me the words and the boldness to proclaim His Word, He has never failed. When I’m speaking to patients, offering words of encouragement through scripture and prayer, or when I’m not sure what to say, God always provides the words. He never fails. If you want to share the gospel, and let’s face it, that is what we are all called to do, you MUST SHARE THE GOSPEL! You aren’t good with words? That’s okay. God will give you the words. Do you get tongue-tied? Have no fear. God will untie the tightest tongue. Do your words get tangled? God specializes in untangling the tangled webs we weave. It’s okay to express your fears to God. In fact, He wants you to, but it is not okay to let those fears keep you from sharing the gospel.

Whether you have the gift of gab or terror of talking, if you are following the will of our Lord and Savior, He will equip you with the words. God doesn’t call the equipped. He equips the called. I am living proof of this. You can rest assured that if God tells us to do something, He will make a way for us to do it. He will give you the words. You only have to open your mouth! And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. (Mark 16:15)

1 John 1:9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

Psalm 51:10-12 Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and make me willing to obey you.

As I write these words today, I am riding along side my ride or die partner–my sweet husband, Jeff. We have taken some amazing rides together over the past few years, but today isn’t an exciting, fun filled journey. We are actually en route to the dermatology clinic to have a basal cell carcinoma removed from Jeff’s face just below his nose. This isn’t a new thing for him. Jeff is a fair skinned, red head who has worked outdoors farming and in the oil field most of his life. That Mississippi, Gulf of Mexico, and Middle East sun is no friend to a fair skinned, red head! Because of this, my dear, sweet hubby gets to see a dermatologist every six months to eliminate the sun damaged areas. Every once in a while, the spot turns out to be a cancer, and it has to be excised. The doctor told him to expect to be in surgery for two hours today. They will excise the cancer, take the specimen to the pathologist to examine to see if they cleared all the margins (got all of the cancer out). If not, they will excise a little more, examine the specimen, and repeat until the cancer is totally excised. In a couple of weeks, we will return to have a second cancer removed from his temple.

The spot is a tiny little spot, and it seems that it would be easy to excise looking at it from the outside. But we don’t yet know what lies beneath the surface. That is the way sin looks to us sometimes. On the surface, something doesn’t look so bad. We decide it’s okay to let the sin into our lives because it isn’t really going to hurt us. It’s just a tiny little thing that can’t do too much damage. It may even be something that no one else can see. No one else knows about this sin that we’ve allowed to creep into our lives…but God knows.

That is how sin consumes us. We give it an inch, and it takes a mile. For the most part, we don’t intentionally set out to fall into the trap of sin. We don’t wake up one morning and decide that this is the day we are going to fall into this great big sin. No, we are all born sinners, and we unfortunately have ongoing sin in our lives. Some examples of chronic, intentional or perhaps unintentional sins, include refusing to forgive someone, being a chronic complainer or “pot stirrer”, disobedience in tithing, using foul language, or even substance abuse. We may be indulging in those “little” sins, but we aren’t participating in “big” sins like murder, theft, or adultery so we feel like we are doing good. We tend to put our sins on the scales and weigh them out. We get rid of the big sins, but the little ones won’t hurt us, right? Wrong! Sin, all sin, separates us from a relationship with the Father. Christ didn’t bear our sins on the cross so that we could keep on sinning, but He did do this so that He could intercede for us with the Father.

Christ wants us to cut sin out of our lives. He doesn’t want us to just shave it off at the surface. No, Christ wants to excise those sins from our hearts and minds with the precision of the greatest surgeon. How do we cut sin out? First and foremost, we must repent. We must recognize the sin, ask for forgiveness, and turn away from it. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. (1 John 1:9)

After repentance, we must ask God to help us to see the sin as a sin. For, “Who can know the Lord’s thoughts?  Who knows enough to teach him?” But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:16) Next, we need to ask God to give us a desire of the heart and mind to remove that sin from our lives and keep it out. Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. Do not banish me from your presence,  and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation,  and make me willing to obey you. (Psalm 51:10-12) Finally, confess that sin to God and grab a hold of the forgiveness which the Father is ready to deliver.

It’s time to cut it out, y’all! If we want that loving relationship with our Lord that we crave, we have to cut sin out of our lives!

(And if you don’t mind, say a prayer for my husband today! I know he’s in the hands of the Great Physician.)

Proverbs 18:24 There are “friends” who destroy each other, but a real friend sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 17:17 A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.

God has truly blessed me with wonderful friends in this life. Friends have come and gone through the years but not without leaving an imprint forever on my heart. One of my dearest friends has COVID 19 currently, and because this virus is crazy and doesn’t read any of the textbooks and causes a different physiologic response in everyone, I have been spending a lot of time in prayer for my friend and in quiet reflection. Friendship is just one of the many gifts that God bestows upon us, and it is a gift that should be treasured over gold, fortune, or fame.

Friendships bring joy and laughter into our lives. I recall the many good times with friends in which we’ve laughed until we literally cried. We’ve shared our good times, joys in life, births, adoptions, marriages, and so much more. But friendship isn’t just about sharing the good times. True friendships are important for maintaining our physical, emotional, and spiritual well being. Yes, it is quite true. We all need a good friend or two to walk through life’s journeys as we travel through the hills and valleys.

We have friends, but do we all have truly close friends? Is there a person or persons whom you have allowed into the innermost part of your life? For you see, a true friend is one that shares deeply with you and is not there just for the good times, but remains close through the bad times. What makes a friend a good friend? A good friend has many qualities. A good friend is someone whom you can be honest with, rely on, talk to, and someone who also listens to you. It is someone who knows the most intimate parts of your life and loves you in spite of yourself.

If you spend a little time in scripture, you will see that the Bible has a lot to say about friendship. Abraham was called a friend of God. He was the only one in the entire Old Testament who was given the honor of being called a friend of God. Jesus had a close group of friends that we know as the twelve disciples. During the three years before the crucifixion, they had become very close friends. They walked together, talked together, fished together, ate together, sailed together, and just hung out together. Jesus wasn’t merely their teacher and master, He was their very good friend. During the last supper, Jesus spoke these words to his treasured friends, “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me. You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name. This is my command: Love each other.” (John 15:13-17)

Jesus shared what it means to be a friend, and He called the disciples His friends. He laid down His life for them, but guess what? He laid down His life for you and me also! Jesus knows what true friendship is, and He demonstrated it in the greatest act of friendship ever when He took on the cross for each and every one of us. We didn’t choose Him, He chose us! Christ is the best friend you will ever have. He wants us to talk to Him. He wants us to share the vivid details of our lives, the good, the bad, and the ugly. Christ knows us inside and out, better than we even know ourselves, but just like our best friends here on earth, He not only likes us warts and all, He loves us! Enjoy your friendships today. Pray for your friends, and pray to the very best friend you will ever have. Today, I thank God for friendships!

Colossians 4:2-6 Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should.  Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.

Cell phones have become indispensable it seems. We carry our phones with us wherever we go throughout the day. We don’t want to miss an important phone call or a text. But every now and then, our cell phone fails us. We may be in an area with a poor signal and our phone doesn’t work. It drops our calls, and we can not even make or receive a simple phone call from these areas. I call this the “dead zone”. Our house has a big metal roof, and pretty much the entire house is a dead zone when it comes to cell phone reception. There are certain areas near doors or windows in which the phone will work properly, but a lot of times, we have to make and receive our calls outdoors. (We don’t even want to talk about internet reception.) On my drive to and from work, there is one area on the highway that is an absolute dead zone. I always catch myself telling my friends or family on the other end of the line, “I’m going to lose you. I’m about to drive through my dead zone.” I don’t know about you, but I don’t really like being in a dead zone.

I was thinking about those dead zones this morning, and this made me ponder the thought of other dead zones in our lives. I can’t help but think of those spiritual dead zones that I’ve encountered through the years. I can recall times that I have been pleasantly involved in conversation and interaction with the Father, and other times in which I seemed to have entered the spiritual dead zone. The problem at those times, however, was not that of a poor cell phone signal. It was a problem of a poor Christian signal. Yes, I confess, that those dead zone periods were due to my own signal growing weak. I wasn’t spending time reaching out to God. I wasn’t calling on Him, sharing the praises in my life, sharing my despairs, sharing my hopes and dreams, and sharing everything that was going on in my life. God had not turned off the signal. He had not failed to answer the call, but rather I wasn’t attempting to even make an effort to place the phone call.

As I said previously, I don’t really like being in a dead zone. I don’t like having my phone calls dropped or having to stand on one foot with one arm in the air trying to reach a cellular signal, but more so than that, I really, truly dislike being in a spiritual dead zone. I think that may be the loneliest place in the world. So how then do we keep a strong signal? How do we stay out of the spiritual dead zone? We simply must make an effort to stay connected. For you see, God keeps an open line for each and everyone of us 24/7. The reception is always great, and He is always there. It is us who produce a lapse in reception or signal. To prevent ourselves from entering the spiritual dead zone, we must stay connected.

First and foremost, we must build a daily practice of prayer. In order to stay connected spiritually, we have to talk to God on a regular basis. Set aside some quiet time each day to really spend time talking to the Savior. Yes, He already knows what is going on in our lives, but He wants us to share those details with Him. He wants a personal relationship with each of us. We have to get down on our knees and share ourselves with Him. How can we connect with someone if we never spend time in their presence, if we never talk to them, or if we never share ourselves with them? We can’t. Make prayer a priority in your life. Work prayer into your daily schedule. You may have a quiet time first thing in the morning or late at night, or you may even find that you do as I do and have a continual prayer that begins when I wake up in the morning and continues throughout my day and even through the night if I awaken during my sleep. We must connect through prayer. It is imperative!

Secondly, we must build a practice of daily scripture reading. I have often heard people say that God doesn’t speak to them. Well, personally, I’ve never heard the audible voice of God, but I have heard Him speak. Sometimes it is that still small voice within me urging me in a certain direction, but other times, it is through His Word. When we read the Bible, the living Word of God comes to life. It tells us how we should live out life, and it teaches us what is right and what is wrong. The scripture shows us how to love like Jesus loves, and it convicts us when we are walking outside of God’s plan for our lives. Yes, we must stay connected through scripture.

Finally, we must stay connected with fellow believers. This is very important. Can you be a Christian and not go to church? I suppose you can, but I can’t even imagine life without my faith family. We need others to walk alongside us on our faith journeys. For one, our Christian brothers and sisters help to keep us accountable in our actions and our walk with Christ. Also, our faith family will lift us up when we are feeling weak, down, or discouraged. Faith filled friends help us to grow in our faith and knowledge in Christ, and they help keep us grounded and rooted in Christ. We need relationships with fellow believers. Christ set the example for us as He surrounded Himself with disciples and friends. We were created to be relational people. I absolutely believe that connection with a church family is necessary in helping us to remain connected to Christ.

My friends, if you are in a spiritual dead zone, today is the day to get out of that zone. Call out to Christ. I promise you that there won’t be any static on the line. He is willing and able to take your call, and I know He is ready to hear from you! Won’t you connect today?

Daniel 6:10 But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God.

Yesterday morning at church, I was reminded of the story of Daniel and the lions’ den. Oh I know that this is an old familiar story, but it is still one that should be revisited from time to time. Our pastor pointed out three positives to remember during times of persecution, which included the reason, the reaction, and the result of persecution. You may or may not be feeling the weight of persecution at this moment, but if you are serving God faithfully, sooner or later you will. If we live for Christ, and we long to follow Christ more than the world, we will be persecuted. The thing we have to remember is when we remain in Christ, He remains in us, and nothing or no one can snatch us away from Him.

How should we react when we are being persecuted? Let us take a few moments to look at Daniel so that we may glean some knowledge from his actions. The administrators and officials didn’t like Daniel. They didn’t like that he held a position of authority in the kingdom. They had tried to find fault in him and were constantly looking for evidence to give to the king that would bring Daniel down a notch or two, but they found Daniel faultless. They soon realized that the only way they would be able to get Daniel into trouble would be using his worship for his God against him. So these guys hatched up a plot, and they brought it to King Darius. They told him to give orders that for the next thirty days any person who prays to anyone, divine or human—except to you, Your Majesty—will be thrown into the den of lions. (Daniel 6:7) The king agreed, and signed this into law. Daniel knew about the new law, but what did he do? He kept on doing what he always did. But when Daniel learned that the law had been signed, he went home and knelt down as usual in his upstairs room, with its windows open toward Jerusalem. He prayed three times a day, just as he had always done, giving thanks to his God. He kept on praying, y’all! The result of Daniel’s persecution was courage and commitment. Daniel’s courage to continue to pray caught the attention of many, and his commitment to prayer caused many to praise God.

God opens our eyes to different things every time we open His Word. The Bible is definitely active and alive. My biggest take away this time was the fact that no matter what we are going through, the situation doesn’t change who we are in Christ. We must keep on praying. Keep on getting down on those knees and worshipping and praising our Savior. Daniel didn’t sway from his normal routine. It was his routine to go to his room, kneel by the window facing Jerusalem, and pray three times a day. When he was told that he could no longer do this, he didn’t go hide in a closet. He didn’t scream and shout in rebellion. He didn’t cause a scene and pick a fight on social media. He simply continued doing what he always did. He prayed.

We tend to get caught up in the lions’ den part of the story, and we tend to overlook the praying by the window part. Daniel gave us a great example of what to do whether we are enjoying good times or bad, peace or persecution. His daily routine was to pray to God three times a day every day, and even when he was told that he could not do this any longer, he prayed. We have to have faith in the Father in all situations. In Sunday School yesterday these words struck me: “Faith guarantees nothing but what is beyond this life…the hereafter.” We are going to have trials. We may even suffer persecution. Having great faith doesn’t mean that we will escape any of these things, but folks, we aren’t living for the here and now. We are living for eternity. This is not our home. We are just passing through. If you want to make a difference in this world, your employment, your school, your church, and your family, then you must keep on praying!

John 9:25 “I don’t know whether he is a sinner,” the man replied. “But I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!”

Luke 18:35-42 As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind beggar was sitting beside the road. When he heard the noise of a crowd going past, he asked what was happening. They told him that Jesus the Nazarene was going by. So he began shouting, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” “Be quiet!” the people in front yelled at him. But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” When Jesus heard him, he stopped and ordered that the man be brought to him. As the man came near, Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord,” he said, “I want to see!” And Jesus said, “All right, receive your sight! Your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus, praising God. And all who saw it praised God, too.

Thursday morning, my husband and I had an eye doctor’s appointment. I regretfully inform you that I am a terrible patient. I haven’t had an eye exam in at least 10 years. Oh, I used to go to the eye doctor a least once a year. That was when I was practically legally blind. I had the absolute worse vision. I couldn’t even read the big E on the Snellen’s Eye Chart. I guess I had had poor vision for years, but I didn’t get my first pair of glasses until I was in the tenth grade. I dreaded getting those glasses so bad. I was a skinny little thing, not much more than 89 lbs. I had a terrible overbite, and now I was going to be cursed with glasses. I thought I would hate those glasses, but on the ride home the day my new glasses arrived, I vividly remember looking out the window and seeing that the trees actually had individual leaves. Prior to that, the trees appeared to be covered with a green blur, but I couldn’t discern the individual leaves. I had not even realized that I couldn’t see the leaves until that moment. I was amazed! I battled with contacts for a while. We never got along very well. Finally in the late 1990’s, I had Lasik surgery. During the procedure, the doctor told me that everything was going to go black for a second, but then my sight would return. I was not prepared for the absolute darkness that came upon me. It seemed to last an eternity, but suddenly, I could see again. Not only could I see, but after the procedure I could see the clock on the wall all the way across the room and I could read the numbers…without glasses or contacts!

The eye appointment Thursday reminded me briefly of how it feels to have poor vision. The doctor dilated my eyes, and I strained to see clearly for the next few hours. This doctor visit helped me to remember to be thankful for my eyesight. It is one of those very important things that we just seem to take for granted. Consider the beggar mentioned in scripture. There was already a loss of pride and dignity in living the life of a beggar, but can you just imagine the stigma of a blind beggar. He wasn’t able to work. He wasn’t able to provide for a family or for himself. He merely had to rely on the goodness of strangers to care for his needs. Then along comes Jesus. The blind man couldn’t see Him, but he could feel his presence and power. Although he was being told to be silent by those around him, he persisted and insisted on pleading for Jesus’ attention and mercy. He did not presume that Jesus would come, but he knew who He really was. Jesus loved his faith and restored his sight and life to him.

Because of my extremely brief period of blindness, I have an a tiny inkling of the feeling that this blind beggar felt when his sight was restored. I can remember almost holding my breath as panic washed over me for those few seconds of blindness, and I remember the great relief when my sight returned. I was praying the whole time, and I was definitely praising God when my sight came back to me. Now, just imagine this man, possibly blind since birth, who had faith that he could be healed by Christ. Christ healed him, restored his sight, and scripture tells us that he not only praised Christ, he began following Him, and because of his praises, others joined in and praised Christ too.

In 2009, I had a Lasik “tune-up”, and by the grace of God, my distance vision has been 20/20 since then. I require reading glasses to read the small stuff, but praise God, I can see. Today, I recognize that my eyesight is 20/20, but what about my spiritual sight? My eyes required a “tune-up” a few years after my first surgery, and I think that we could all use a tune-up for our spiritual vision. Only this tune-up can’t occur once every few years. It is one that must occur daily. We take our eyesight for granted until we witness a beautiful sunrise or sunset, a beautiful flower covered field, snow on a mountain peak, or any other glorious creation of our God. Likewise, we tend to take our relationship with God for granted until we see Him move big in our lives. Shame on us! God is at work all around us, everyday. He is attentive to the little things just as He attends those big things. If we don’t see Him, it’s probably because we aren’t looking, or we have developed spiritual blindness. Thankfully, to see Him clearly, all we have to do is open our hearts and our eyes. Are you seeing clearly this morning?

I leave you today with words from a song written by Bob Cull, Open Our Eyes Lord. Open our eyes Lord. We want to see Jesus, to reach out and touch Him, and say that we love Him. Open our ears Lord and help us to listen. Open our eyes Lord. We want to see Jesus.

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

Jeff and I just finished teaching a series called The Bible for Grown-ups by Andy Stanley. It was a short, but quite interesting study in which Andy explained how this great Word of God came together. It is really quite amazing when you realize that although the Bible is one book, it is actually a combination of 66 books that where written over a 1500 year period of time and penned by about forty different men of very diverse backgrounds. Isaiah was a prophet. Ezra was a priest. Matthew was a tax-collector. John was a fisherman. Paul was a tentmaker. Moses was a shepherd. Luke was a physician. And the list goes on. Although it was penned by more than forty men over fifteen centuries, there is one startling fact about the Bible that no other book can claim. It was penned by many authors over a very long period of time, but the Bible does not contradict itself, and it does not contain any errors. All of the writers proclaim the same simple truth: there is only one true God, and there is only one way to salvation — Jesus Christ. I challenge you to find any other book like that. I think that would be an impossible feat. How then did such a book ever come about, and how has this book survived for centuries? Because the Word of God is alive.

Jesus Christ is the living Word of God, and although penned by man, the Bible is the written Word of God. The Bible is alive because our God is a living God. He breathes life into us, and His Holy Word is eternal and shows us the way to eternal life. Our scripture today reminds us that The Word of God is sharper than any two-edged sword. It is able to cut into our hearts and our minds and divide up the things which are godly and those things which are not. The Word of God has a way of reaching into the depths of our thoughts and lives and expose the things that needs exposing. The Word also brings us to the alter. All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. (2Timothy 3:16) Yet it also brings us healing, restoration, comfort, and hope like nothing else in the world.

The Bible is active and alive, and it truly is an amazing book. The Word of God is a fire to refine and a hammer to convict (Jeremiah 23:29) It is a mirror to reflect (James 1:22-25), a seed to multiply (I Peter 1:23-25), and rain and snow to grow (Isaiah 55:10-11). The Word of God is a sword to cut (Hebrews 4:12) and gold to enrich (Psalm 19:7-11). It is food to nourish (Matthew 4:4), a lamp to guide us (Psalm 119:105), and water to cleanse us (Ephesians 5:26-27). And the Word of God endures forever (I Peter 1:25)!

Today and everyday as you are putting on the full armor of God, please don’t forget to keep your sword sharpened and ready. If we arm ourselves with the sword of the Spirit, we will be ready for whatever challenge the day may bring!

Matthew 6:25-34 “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Oh my goodness, there is too much fearmongering going on in this world! I can hardly bear to turn the news on, and don’t even look at the internet. Yes, this world is a scary place, but we really have nothing to fear but fear itself. When I was a little girl, I knew about God. I knew who He was, but I didn’t really know Him. I knew Him to be the epic “I am.” In my youth, I really couldn’t begin to comprehend who He was and is. As I grew up, I realized that He was more that just an unimaginable entity. I began to think of Him as a force. He became someone to me that I could reach out to and someone who listened and acted on my whispers. But now I know, God isn’t merely a pronoun or noun. God isn’t just a verb or an action word. God is alive, and He is everything and everywhere that there is goodness and light because He is goodness and light!

I’ve shared with you before that I used to be a chronic worrier. I had a PhD in worrying! I wasn’t just good at it. I was the best. It took a whole lot of prayer and a whole lot of time, but I have finally overcome my intense passion for worrying. Oh, those seeds of worry still pop up from time to time, but I’ve learned how to shut them down. Turns out, all I need to do is look around! Today’s scripture became my sword for fighting the battle of worry. I have read these verses multiple times through the years and they still bring me great comfort. If we focus on worry and things of this world, we will soon become consumed by it. However, if we look around looking for God, we will see Him. Look at the birds in the sky and the trees. Are they starving to death? Nope! God makes sure they have food to eat and survive. They don’t have to plant a crop and harvest and store up food in a barn. God takes care of them. What about the flowers in the field? They are here today and gone tomorrow, but just look at them! Pick a flower and really look at the beautiful intricate design of it. God took a lot of time out of His busy schedule to create those beautiful flowers, and they only last a short season.

What does this tell us? God cares about the details, y’all. He cares about little birds. He cares about beautiful flowers. And you better bet that if He cares enough to take care of birds and flowers, He is really going to take care of us! He created man in His image. He created us to have a relationship with Him. If that doesn’t speak to you about God’s passion for man, then let me remind you of one more thing. He gave us His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross and rise again so that we may have eternal life with Him! Oh yea, buddy, I believe He cares about us. He cares a lot!

So no matter what circumstance you are facing today, no matter what challenge is coming your way, just remember to look around. God is very near. He may not change your circumstance, but we can definitely trust His plan. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Hebrews 11:5-6 It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—“he disappeared, because God took him.” For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God. And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

Over my vast years of practicing as a family nurse practitioner, I have encountered death more times than I would like. It seems that I am encountering it much more frequently these days. Lives are being lost due to COVID-19, accidents, and even suicides. It seems that every week brings news of another person who has lost their life. I’ve spent a lot of time counseling with families who have lost their loved ones recently. That is never an easy thing to do, but there is one thing that gets me through: FAITH. Faith in Christ gives me the words and strength to face these challenging times. I couldn’t do anything without Him.

Hebrews 11 is a great chapter to remind us about faith, and it gives examples of a few great men of faith. Enoch is mentioned briefly in verses 5 and 6, but his faith walk wasn’t a brief one. Enoch was Adam’s great-great-great-great grandson, the great grandfather of Noah, and the father of Methuselah, the longest living man in the Bible. Enoch lived 365 years on earth, and God just took him away. (Genesis 5:24) He didn’t die. God literally snatched him away to be with Him. Yes, God took Enoch straight to heaven, and he never had to experience death. He was spared from death. Why? The scripture tells us that Enoch pleased God, He was a man of integrity. He walked in obedience to God and complied with God’s laws for all of his 365 years on earth. He was so closely engaged with the heavenly Father that the Father simply transferred his presence from this life on earth to God’s presence in heaven in a heartbeat. Apparently, he really, really pleased God! The Bible only speaks of one other that was “taken away”: Elijah the prophet.

When we look at the life of Enoch, we must remember that he too lived in a tumultuous time. He was here on earth prior to the flood, and if you recall, the flood was God’s wrath on the earth because of the sinful living of man at the time. I look around at this world today, and I’m thankful when I see a rainbow because I remember God’s promise that He would never flood the earth again. Yet, I know that a cleansing is coming. The people have strayed so far from God, and it is hard to live a life pleasing to the Father when there is so much turmoil surrounding us. Although the situation for Enoch was much different, we see from scripture that he lived a righteous life that was pleasing to God despite his surroundings.

Enoch was gone in a heartbeat, but he was not forgotten. He was remembered in scripture, and his legacy lives on. He leaves behind a legacy of faithfulness to God. When I think of those who have lost their lives in recent days, I think of the legacy that each one left behind. I can’t help but ponder what kind of legacy I am leaving. What will people say about me after I am gone? Will I be remembered as a child of God? Will I be remembered for my faith or will my friends and family remember all of those times that my faith was weak? Friends, we have choices to make in life, but the most important choice we make is whether or not we are going to place complete faith in Christ or not. I take time every now and then to look back at my past to see how far I’ve grown, and each year, I see that I have grown a little closer in m walk with God. Each year, my faith is strengthened. Each year, I walk a little more uprightly. But I’m no Enoch. I know that there are still areas in my life that need a whole lot of improvement, but thankfully, God isn’t finished with me yet. I’m going to keep striving to live a faith filled life with prayers that when I’m gone, though I may be forgotten, my faith in Christ will not be.

Let us continually walk in faith sharing the gospel so that when we are gone, Christ will not be forgotten! May others see Christ in us.

Matthew 6:19-21 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Colossians 3:2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 

1 Timothy 6:6-8 But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.

Last night as we were reading our nightly devotional, I was reminded of old videos of monkeys with their hands trapped in holes. Do you know what I am talking about? If a hole is cut into an object such as a coconut or a log, and then some sort of bait is placed inside. The monkey will put his hand in the hole, grasp the bait in his fist, and then find that he can not remove his hand because he refuses to release the treasure that is within his fist. His fist will not fit through the hole, and he refuses to let go of the goods that are keeping him from obtaining desired freedom. I’ve laughed at the monkeys over the years, but I had never really reflected on it biblically. After some thought on the subject, I’ve come to the conclusion that we all practice a little bit of monkey business.

No, we aren’t dumb enough to get our hands trapped in a hole because we refuse to open our hand up. We have more God given sense than that, but what things of this world are we grasping hold of that are keeping us from freedom in Christ? Hmmm. That is a very deep subject. It is with great misfortune that we are a part of a society that thinks more is better. We are always seeking the new and improved version of this gadget or that. We want the newest, shiniest car. We want a bigger and better house. We want a better job. We want, we want, and we want. But what happens when we finally get that new gadget, that bigger house, or that better job? Are we completely satisfied? Did it fulfill all of our hearts desire? Are we finished searching for the next big thing? Unfortunately, the answer to all of those questions is usually no.

Why then do we keep searching? This simple minded monkey lover thinks that the reason we are not feeling fulfilled is because we aren’t filling our lives with the right treasure. We search and search and try to find the thing that fills that empty void within us. When we obtain one thing, we find out that wasn’t what we needed, and we go on to the next thing. It is a never ending cycle in which we always feel less than satisfied. The void remains no matter what lovely gift we obtain.

For you see, my friends, the treasure in which we are searching can not be found in earthly possessions or material objects. Those things may bring brief satisfaction, but it is a satisfaction that will not last. The treasure of our heart’s desire is eternal. The treasure is a relationship with Christ our King. Our treasure is found only in the One who died on the cross for our sins and rose again. Nothing or no one will satisfy the yearning within you but Christ. God made each and every one of us. We were all designed in His image, but we are each unique individuals. We have different likes and dislikes, talents and skills, but there is one thing that we all share in common. God designed each of us with a void, and emptiness, a little sense of incompleteness. Why would He do such a thing? He left room inside of each of us for us to invite Him in. The problem with mankind is that we don’t recognize that only One can fill that void, and we waste entirely too much time trying to fill it with things of this earth. However, those things of earth leave us trapped in debt and disappointment, but when we let go and let God, we are finally free…free eternally in Christ!

I do love monkeys, y’all. We have owned several lemurs through the years, and those little guys are characters indeed. It is fun to watch them as they get themselves into trouble and can’t seem to find their way out. We’ve had to help them out of a few sticky situations from time to time. Thank God, we are NOT monkeys, y’all, and thank God that we have One who is always willing and able to help us out of all of the sticky situations of life. We only have to be willing to let go and let God! Where is your treasure?