Inspirations from the Funny Farm

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Today is election day in the United States of America. It truly is the most important election of all time. Some have stated that this is the most important election since Abraham Lincoln, our sixteenth president. The presidential candidate’s platforms are the most polar opposite of any time in history that I can remember. One is for sanctity of human life. One is for abortion up until the of delivery. One party is conservative, and the other is extremely liberal. I’ve never seen the candidates have such extremely different stances. There is talk on the news that we should prepare for rioting in the event that President Trump wins again. It is a scary time.

I have no idea who will win this presidential election, but I know the One who does. God has already pre-determined who the next president of the USA will be. He may allow the conservative candidate to win so that Christian values can continue to be honored and restored, but He very well may allow the liberal candidate to take the seat. This country has corporately turned its back on God and Christian values. God may decide to throw His hands up and say, “I’m done!” I don’t pretend to know the mind of God, but I’ve studied His Word, and one thing that is very apparent in the Word of God is that He will get the attention of His children when they have strayed from Him. He has used all kinds of tactics in the past…wars, famine, pestilence. I worry that God may be on the verge of shaking this country up a bit to turn our attention back to Him.

I’d be lying if I said I’m not a little bit worried about the outcome of the election. I am. But I know that no matter what happens, no matter who is elected, my God is still on the throne. God controls the kings and the presidents. He can easily change their direction and path. “The king’s heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases.” (Provers 21:1) God is still in control. His authority is not based on who wins any election. God is the King of kings and Lord of lords. We may be headed for some trials in the upcoming days. We can probably count on the fact that trials are coming our way. However, we didn’t get here by happen chance, and we won’t face the trials alone.

Just remember that God’s grace is all we need today and every day. We are made strong in our weakness because God’s power works best when we are weak. It is when we are at our weakest that we are made strong through the grace of God. He is our strength. He is our salvation. We can’t boast on our own skills and accomplishments. Those things are temporary, but our God is eternal. Let’s place our hope in Christ today! If you are reading this in the USA, I plead with you to go out and exercise your right to vote. Pray about the candidates. Look at what they stand for, and ask God to show you who He wants you to vote for.

Let’s all pray for this great nation today! “Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14) God can and will forgive and heal this land, if only we would seek Him! God’s grace is sufficient. Let’s look to Him today and every day!

Jeremiah 29:12-13 In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.

Isaiah 43:1-3 But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you.  O Israel, the one who formed you says, “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.  I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I gave Egypt as a ransom for your freedom;  I gave Ethiopia and Seba in your place.

How often do we take for granted the power of prayer, or how often do we ignore the most valuable weapon in our arsenal? Sadly, we all too often forget the awesome power that a simple prayer holds. When we look to Christ and wholeheartedly pray, He will hear us. And the most wonderful thing about that is that He will hear us every single time! Christ doesn’t screen our calls and decide which one He will listen to and act on. He hears every single cry no matter how big or how small it may seem in the scheme of things. Prayer changes things. Prayer changes hearts. Prayer changes lives.

Prayer will certainly change things, but we must go to God in prayer with His perspective in mind. Prayer won’t change the perspective of God, but prayer will change the action of God. We’ve seen so many examples in the Bible of times when God had plans to destroy a city because of their vile and evil ways, only to later see God change His action due to the prayer of a righteous person. Oh yes, prayer will definitely change things.

Currently, we are prayer for a change in our country, a change in the health of the nation, and changes in the heart of man. We are offering up some mighty big prayers, and I know that those prayers are being heard. I know that God has a plan, and no matter what He does, it will all work out for our good and His glory. Yes, I am sure of this.

But what about those personal level prayers? The ones we pray for those immediate family members, our spouses, our children, our friends and loved ones. Does God hear those prayers too? Oh yes, my friend, I know that He does. I’ve seen the direct answer to prayers so many times, In fact, I sit here before you today writing a daily devotional blog as the result of answered prayer. God listens. He hears. He acts. He only needs for us to come to Him in prayer, seek Him, praise Him, and ask Him.

Prayer pushes us to our purpose. Don’t you see? Without God, we are just wandering through each and every day, lost, unsure, misguided. But when we turn our lives over to God, and we spend time with Him daily in prayer, He will guide us. He lifts us up and places us on the path that He has designed specifically for each one of us. He gently picks us up out of the pit of despair, gathers us in His arms, and fills us with hope as we walk with Christ leading the way.

I didn’t stumble upon Christ on my own. My Daddy brought me to church the first week after I entered this world. He prayed for me from the time I was born, and still prays for me daily. My grandparents prayed for each one of their grandchildren. My mother prayed for me. My pastors through the years prayed for me. My friends prayed for me. I have been under the umbrella of prayer my entire life, and I am the person I am today because of those prayers. I am forever grateful that the people in my life loved me enough to pray for me. And I don’t take that gift of prayer lightly. I have spent many hours in prayer, crying out to the Lord on behalf of my children, my husband, my parents, my family, and my friends. I know in my heart of heart that prayer changes things, and even though the results are hardly ever immediate, I know that God will answer in His timing. I truly believe that He will.

What or who is on your heart today? Go to the Lord in prayer and share it with Him. You don’t have to pray with fancy words or hard biblical terminology. I guarantee you that God understands the language of your heart. He even understands this Mississippi girl’s redneck lingo. You don’t have to sit in a beautiful church in order to be heard. God will hear you wherever you are. You can pray in your car, your bed, at work, or while taking a nice quiet stroll. If you call on His name, He will hear. You don’t have to wait until Sunday morning to say your prayers. God’s line is open 24/7. I bet He’s waiting to hear from you right this minute. Maybe it has been a while, and you aren’t sure how to reconnect. Don’t fret. It is just like calling up an old friend. Just call on His name, and He will be there, ready to listen, just like the old days. You are never too far to come back home to Christ.

We need Christ now more than ever, and the awesome thing is that He is still right here with us. The same God that parted the Red Sea for the Israelites, the same God that shut the mouth of the lions in the den with Daniel, the same God that brought down Goliath with a sling shot and a young shepherd boy, is the very same God that hears our prayers. There is so much power in prayer. It truly is the greatest weapon we have. Won’t you spend some time with God in prayer today?

James 1:17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Psalm 118:21 I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation.

As we open our eyes this morning, we have arrived at the month of November. Although I am thankful every day, November has been deemed the month for thankfulness. Thankfulness is definitely in the air. There is a sirloin tip roast in the slow cooker surrounded by potatoes, carrots, onions, and mushrooms with a delicious gravy. Rice and a big pot of green beans from the summer garden will sit along side all of this yumminess today at lunch. After church, I’ll bake a pan of biscuits. The house smells like fall with a apple caramel dump cake sizzling in the oven. We get to freely attend our church for praise and worship, and then come home and enjoy lunch with ten full seats of people we dearly love at our family table. I can’t help but sit here and reflect on thankfulness this morning. We’ve so very much to be thankful for.

We were spared from a terrible hurricane earlier this week. Oh, she came for a visit, but she wasn’t severe. We lost electricity for less than 24 hours, and we sustained no major damage. For this we are thankful. We have pantries and freezers full of food that were not damaged by the storm. God has blessed us with much produce this year. For this we are thankful. We have great jobs, a very comfy home, working vehicles to get us where we need to go. For this we are thankful. God allowed us to raise four children, He gave us two beautiful daughters-in-law, and the best grandson ever. For this we are truly thankful. And the very best gift of all, He gave us the gift of salvation. For this, we are eternally thankful!

One of my favorite old hymns is “How Great Thou Art.” I can’t tell you how many times I have been sitting out in the great outdoors, waiting on a deer, and silently singing this song in my head. Read over the words and reflect on how great our God truly is.

Oh Lord my God
When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds
Thy hands have made
I see the stars
I hear the rolling thunder
Thy power throughout
The universe displayed

Then sings my soul
My Savior, God, to Thee
How great thou art
How great thou art

And when I think of God,
His son not sparing,
Sent Him to die,
I scarce can take it in;
That on the cross, my burden
gladly bearing He bled and died
to take away my sin

When Christ shall come
With shout of acclamation
And take me home
What joy shall fill my heart
Then I shall bow
With humble adoration
And then proclaim My God
How great Thou art

We have a terrible habit of busying ourselves to the point that we forget or rather we don’t make time to reflect on all of the many blessings which our Lord has so graciously given us. We can’t continue to do this. Every single blessing, every single gift, every single material and non-material thing in our life was gifted to us by our Lord and Savior. It is so important to take time each and every day to count our many blessings and praise God for all that He is doing in our lives. He is so very good to us. Take a little time today to really recognize all that God has given you and spend some time simply being thankful today! I pray that your day is full of faith, family, and blessings!

Ephesians 2:8-9 God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

2 Corinthians 5:21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.

Romans 3:21-24 But now God has shown us a way to be made right with him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.  For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. 

Revelation 3:20 “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.

On this day , in 1517, 503 years ago, a little known (at the time) German priest and professor named Martin Luther came knocking on the Wittenberg door of the Roman Catholic Church. Sin and corruption had escalated within the Roman Catholic Church spreading to many of the leaders, and unfortunately, it had spread into the church practices and doctrines. The church had grown very prosperous, but did not realize how blind to the Word of God they had become. The church practiced selling indulgences to absolve sin. Martin Luther loved the Word of God, and he loved the church, the bride of Christ, and he followed the will of God. On this very day, all those years ago, he took a hammer and a few nails, and nailed a 95 page thesis to the door of the church. This thesis outlined indictments against the Roman Catholic Church. It was a call to repentance.

Back in A.D. 95, Jesus came metaphorically knocking on the door of the church of Laodicea. We all remember them as the lukewarm church. ““Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” (Revelation 3:20) We can picture Jesus standing at the door knocking and inviting the lost to come to Him. Just as we envision Jesus knocking on the church door of Laodicea, we can envision Jesus knocking on the door of that church in Wittenberg 503 years ago. With each pound of the hammer of Martin Luther, Jesus was knocking, and that knocking set off a major chain reaction that we now know as the Protestant Reformation. As a result of reformation, hundreds of millions of Christians all over the world have submitted to the Word of God as their highest authority (Sola Scriptura), to His teaching that salvation is the gift given by God’s grace alone (Sola Gratia), and through faith alone (Sola Fide) in the death and resurrection of their one savior and mediator, Jesus Christ (Solo Christus), so that all glory would always be found to the Triune God alone (Sola Deo Gloria).

The church opened the door to Jesus and repentance and reformation was the spiritual cure for the ongoing corruption and sinfulness. The Good News and spiritual health spread through much of Europe, the New World, Asia, and Africa. A massive evangelism movement was spurred. The Bible was translated into languages for all to read, and a great awakening of the church occurred. Jesus knocked, and many doors were opened.

Today, is considered Halloween. The kids will dress up in costumes and go out for Trick or Treating. Families will join together for family fun as children go door to door knocking. Rather than celebrate this day as Halloween, we should be celebrating a day of thanksgiving! We must remember that great day when Martin Luther pounded on the door of the church as Jesus came knocking for both you and I. How do we celebrate this wonderful day in history? The best way we can observe Reformation Day is by doing some serious prayerful soul searching. Are we allowing a Laodicean lifestyle to seep into the church today? Are we lukewarm? Are we living by the Word of God, or are we living for the world? Are the standards we hold true for our church Biblical or worldly? Is Jesus knocking on the doors of our homes and churches asking to come in? Have we shut Him out?

If Jesus is knocking on our doors, let us please welcome Him in! Now, more than ever, Christians must stand firm in our faith. We need to listen for the gentle knocking of our Lord and heed to his calling. Happy Reformation Day, Peeps!

Isaiah 41:10 Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

Palm 118:14-16 The Lord is my strength and my song; he has given me victory. Songs of joy and victory are sung in the camp of the godly. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things!

Psalm 27:14 Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

Discouragement. It’s a feeling that we all try to avoid, but one that seems to creep into our daily lives without invitation. Discouragement can even be seen in over and over again in biblical times. Old Moses had to feel discouraged multiple times while wandering through the wilderness for 40 years with all the complaining of those he was leading away from Egypt. They complained about lack of food, and God sent manna from heaven. They complained about lack of meat, and God covered the ground with quail. They complained about lack of water, and God caused water to spew out of a rock. God met their every need, yet they complained and complained. They even built and worshipped a golden calf instead of the one true God. Yes, Moses had his hands full with this motley crew! I can’t even imagine how discouraged he must have been, but he continued to follow the will of God. There are so many other examples of discouragement in the Bible, but each time, we see encouragement that can only be offered by our Lord and Savior.

We too live in discouraging times. If things don’t work out the way that we think they should, we get discouraged. If we don’t get that raise, the job we are hoping for, or even when we are having relationship struggles, we can easily get discouraged. It is easy to let those seeds of doubt overwhelm us, and we allow discouragement to take root within us. Soon we fall into Satan’s trap. Discouragement is the exact opposite of faith, and Satan loves to use any tool and tactic to make us doubt and fear and lose faith. If our minds are overwhelmed with doubt and fear and anxiety, we lose our focus on God. When we lose our focus on God, Satan begins to win. We get so caught up in the fears that we can’t see the grace and mercy that our Lord and Savior so willingly offers.

I’ll be honest, I have been guilty of letting discouragement creep into my life much more often than I desire. However, I have learned to not let it take root. I have found that when I stay rooted in the Word of God, discouragement can’t take root within me. Life gets hard. There are days that I come home from work, and I think, “I’m done. I’m spent.” I feel like I can’t even take one more step. The weight of the world is upon me. But then there’s God. Oh, but God! He gently reminds me that I am not going through life alone. I don’t have to save the world. That’s His job. I only have to be His servant and share His Word. When I feel that I am at my weakest, I only have to remember His promises and His Word. “Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.”

I know that life is hard, Peeps, but please don’t let the difficulties of today bring you down. The Lord has promised good to His children, and He will see you through. He will meet the needs of His children just as a loving father cares for his family. He will not only bring you through, He will do it in such a way that you know that only God could have done so. He always works it all out for our good and His glory. Don’t be discouraged today. Seek the face of God, and you will find encouragement every time. Talk to the Savior. Tell Him your worries and concerns, and then just leave them right there at the foot of the throne, and wait. “Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.” The weight of the wait is heavy, but the Lord will make your burden light. It will all work out in His timing. Don’t be discouraged. Just wait on the Lord!

Psalm 107:28-31 “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble,  and he saved them from their distress. He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves. What a blessing was that stillness as he brought them safely into harbor!
Let them praise the Lord for his great love  and for the wonderful things he has done for them.

(I’m a little late posting today….no electicity = no wifi and very little 4G makes it hard to post a blog, but the good Lord helped me through as always. God prevails!)

Hurricane Zeta arrived late yesterday evening. She made landfall a couple of hours to our west in Grand Isle, LA, and she came right over the city of New Orleans, Slidell, and eventually over our little town in Mississippi around 8:30 pm. The rain came down hard and fast. The winds raged. She passed through quickly, and by 9:30, she was gone. Our little creek behind the house was swelling way out of its banks, and the waters approached the corner post of our back deck. Our half mile long driveway was flooded. A large pine tree fell across the driveway. Leaves, small limbs, and debris littered the ground. The electricity went out, and it is still out, but that’s it. The winds raged. The flooding rain fell, but our home, our lives, and our animals are all safe and sound.

This morning we awoke to a cool, gentle breeze. The sun is shining down on us. There is peace and calmness and stillness. There is nothing to fear. The lack of electricity is only a tiny little hiccup in our giddy up. We have a generator running to keep our freezers going, and I can even make coffee. All is well. Praise the Lord!

In our daily walk as Christians, we encounter multiple storms in life, but we must remember, just like a hurricane, the storms of life never last. They rage on for a little while, but sooner or later they pass, and when they pass, there is the stillness and peace and calm that our Lord and Savior freely gives. If you are in the middle of one of life’s storms right now, don’t fret. Seek shelter in the arms of Christ, pray, and seek the Lord. He will protect you and guide you through any and every storm.

“For the Lord is the one who shaped the mountains, stirs up the winds, and reveals his thoughts to mankind. He turns the light of dawn into darkness and treads on the heights of the earth. The Lord God of Heaven’s Armies is his name!” Amos 4:13. Our God shaped mountains. He stirs up and controls the winds. He turns light into darkness. Don’t you think He can handle any storm that you are facing? He can, and He will, if only you place your faith in Him. And oh what joy you will have when the storm passes, and you get to rest in the beauty of the calm after the storm. Let go, and let God have control today! Praise His name for the calm after the storm!

2 Chronicles 7:14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.

The United States of America will hold probably the most serious presidential election ever on November 3, 2020. I say that because I feel that there is so much at stake. I have heard the worried comments and concerns. I’ve seen friends part ways because of their differences of opinion over who should be president and why. How does one choose who to vote for? You must use godly wisdom and discernment.

I’m an avid listener to American Family Radio, and before each election, they share the iVoterGuide. You can look it up at ivoterguide.com. They ask the tough questions, and look for the candidates’ biblical stance and beliefs. I also follow the American Family Association Action Alerts. At AFA.net, they have posted a party platform comparison which is very helpful. I look for helpful resources like these to help me choose. I don’t know about you, but I want to vote for a candidate whose beliefs line up most closely with mine. But even more important than that, I want to vote for a candidate whose beliefs line up most closely to God and His Word. How will we know if the candidate’s platform is in line with God’s platform? Well, we have to have a good understanding of God’s platform, and to gain this understanding, we must read the Bible.

In 1776, the United States of America was formed as one nation under God. Our pledge of allegiance to the American flag says that we are indivisible. These words were written in 1892. I bet our forefathers would be sorely disappointed if they could see us now. One nation under God? Indivisible? Sadly, I think not. As a country, we have strayed so far from the teachings of our Savior. The words of scripture are twisted to benefit the situations. Bits and pieces of the Bible are held in high esteem, while other parts and pieces are simply ignored because the words don’t follow what popular culture recognizes as okay. We are calling evil good and good evil. This country has strayed so far from Christ, and with the impending election, depending on the selected candidate, I fear that our nation will no longer be “one nation under God,” but rather we will be “one divided nation without God.”

My scripture reading this morning comes from 2 Chronicles 7:14, and it reads, “and My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.” We read this verse all of the time as a stand alone verse, and we take it out of context. When reading the Bible it is always important to understand the context. After Solomon dedicated the temple, the Lord appeared to him and gave him some warnings and reassurances. “The Lord appeared to him at night and said: ‘I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.’ When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” God was talking to Solomon, but we to can gain knowledge and insight from these words. We know that we serve a loving and gracious God, and we know that He hears our prayers. We also know that He rewards and punishes, yet no matter what, He will forgive if we turn from our wicked ways, humble ourselves, and seek Him!

As November 3, 2020 approaches, please study the very best voter guide ever written: The Holy Bible, God’s Word. Look at the candidates, review their platform, and by all means pray! Pray earnestly for God’s guidance in your candidate selection. Review the platforms. Make a checklist. Which candidate’s platform is closest to biblical principles that we as Christians hold dear? After you have prayed, studied the candidates, and studied God’s word for wisdom and insight, go out and vote! Vote like lives depend on it. Vote like our freedom depends on it. Vote! Because quite frankly, there is so much on the line this year, every single Christian vote needs to be cast and counted.

“and My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.” He will hear us. He will forgive us. He will heal our land!

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

Hebrews 4:16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Jeremiah 17:7 But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him.

The Miriam Webster definition of confidence is “a feeling or consciousness of one’s powers or of reliance on one’s circumstances, and faith or belief that one will act in a right, proper, or effective way.” We try to survive day by day with confidence that we place in our own selves and abilities, but we find ourselves coming up short. We can’t do it on our own. We must have confidence in God to get through each and every day. That type of confidence is defined a “God-fi-dence.” I saw this terminology on the internet. The definition for the word “God-fi-dence” is “knowing I can’t, but knowing He will.” I loved it, and I loved it so much that I decided to make a T-shirt with that exact saying on it.

We lose confidence in ourselves on a daily basis. It’s hard to stay confident in our own abilities, especially when there are so many outside forces trying to steal our confidence away. This has been a tough year. It seems that each passing day gets harder, and the roads we are traveling get rougher and tougher. There are bumps and potholes that keep us bouncing to and froe. We struggle. We become weaker. We may even sometimes think that it’s time to give up. Our confidence in ourselves has disappeared along the wayside.

We CAN’T give up! God designed us to be strong in Him. We must realize that we truly can’t do anything without Him, but with Him we can accomplish anything and everything that God wills for us to do. We can have God-fi-dence every single day of our lives. We must train ourselves to be different from the world. The world says, “me, me, me.” But the Word says, “God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit.” We are merely weak shells of a being, empty, and hollow until we receive the richness of grace and mercy offered by our loving Father. When we accept Christ as our Savior, and we receive the comfort of the Holy Spirit, we are never alone again. We are not fighting life’s battles on our own. We don’t have to tackle the crazy chaos of the day by ourselves. We don’t have to be confident in our own abilities. We can be confident in God with God-fi-dence. That is the God’s design for us: confidence in Him, not ourselves.

Don’t give up, my friends. When the going gets tough, the tough go to God. He is still right there with you, and even though you feel you can’t do it anymore, just remember that God can. When you finally know that you can’t, but realize that God WILL, you will find your God-fi-dence. We truly can do all things through Christ. He will accomplish much through you. You only need God-fi-dence!

2 Chronicles 7:14 Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.

Proverbs 21:1 The king’s heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases.

Yesterday, we had a phenomenal morning worship service at church. Oh, we always have great worship, but we did things a little differently yesterday. We had a praise and prayer service. Our praise team lead us with praise and worship songs, and several of our members lead us in guided prayer using the acronym PRAYER for Praise, Repentance, Ask, Yield, Encourage, and Remember. First, we praised God in song. Then we were reminded of our need for repentance with scripture from Psalm 66:17-19 and I John 1. Then it got even better. Under the ask portion, different leaders lead us through guided prayer for God to move in our families, in our churches, in our community and state, and in our nation. We prayed corporately for the things that have been troubling so many of our hearts. As we reached the yield portion, tears were shed as one of my beloved sisters in Christ shared how she was yielding to God’s will during her husband’s terminal illness. We were encouraged with more scripture from Joshua 1:9 and James 5:16, and a congregational prayer was help. The service was completed with remembrance and thanksgiving. the scripture reading was from John 14:1-3, and we closed with the song “Jesus is Coming Soon.” What a powerful service! (You can watch the service on Facebook at Oak Hill Baptist Chruch, Poplarville.)

We left the service singing “Jesus is Coming Soon,” and I told m husband that this song has to be the song for 2020. He said, “I feel a devotional coming.” LOL. I said, “maybe so.” Well, my friends, that song has been stuck in my head since. It’s an old southern gospel song that was written in 1942 by R.E. Winsett, but it was made famous by the Oak Ridge Boys around 1969. In case you’ve never heard the song, let me share the lyrics here:

“Troublesome times are here, filling men’s hearts with fear. Freedom we all hold dear now is at stake. Humbling your hearts to God saves from the chastening rod. Seek the way pilgrims trod, Christians awake. Jesus is coming soon, morning or night or noon. Many will meet their doom, trumpets will sound. All of the dead shall rise, righteous meet in the skies going where no one dies, heavenward bound. Troubles will soon be o’er, happy forevermore
when we meet on that shore, free from all care. Rising up in the sky, telling this world goodbye, homeward we then shall fly, glory to share. Oh, Jesus is coming soon, morning or night or noon. Many will meet their doom, trumpets will sound. All of the dead shall rise, righteous meet in the skies going where no one dies, heavenward bound.”

Reflect on those words for just a moment. The first line is what catches my attention: “troublesome times are here, filling men’s hearts with fear. Freedom we all hold dear now is at stake.” The song was written in 1942, and if you remember history correctly, World War II was ongoing. Oh yea, that would be a troublesome time. Here we sit, many years later, and the words still apply. We are not at war, but boy oh boy, are troublesome times here. I speak to a lot of people on a daily basis, and I can tell you, people’s hearts are full of fear. We don’t know what lies on the other side of all of this trouble, but that is okay. God does. We don’t know what tomorrow holds, but we definitely know who holds tomorrow. We need not fear the unknown because although we don’t know what is coming, God does!

In the USA, we have a very important election upcoming in just a little over a week. It is scary. The two candidates are sitting on extreme polar opposite sides in their platforms, beliefs, and plans for this nation. It’s easy to become fearful of the unknown. It’s easy to be fearful if the man we are supporting who shares our belief system doesn’t get elected. But we shouldn’t fear. We should get out and vote based on our beliefs and the candidate that most closely stands for the things that we stand for, and we should pray. We need to pray for this election like never before.

2 Chronicles 7:14 tells us, “Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” If we will humble ourselves, and pray, and seek the face of the Lord, and turn away from the wickedness, God will hear us. He will forgive us. He will restore us. We need to pray, yes, pray earnestely and fervently.

But no matter the outcome, God is still in control. Our pastor reminded us of scripture from Proverbs chapter 21, verse 1, “The king’s heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases.” We aren’t electing a king, but we are electing a president, and God’s word tells us that his heart is like a stream of water directed by God. GOD can guide that stream wherever HE pleases! Just study God’s Word, y’all. There are so many examples of God changing the hearts of kings and leaders. If we continue to be fervent in prayer, God will hear us. He will heal our land. But regardless of all of that, we can rest assured that Jesus is coming soon! There is no reason for the saved in Christ to fear. I’m ready, are you? If you aren’t sure, how about making today the day that you choose to follow Christ? Today is the perfect day for salvation!

Mark 14:3-9 Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy. While he was eating, a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard. She broke open the jar and poured the perfume over his head.  Some of those at the table were indignant. “Why waste such expensive perfume?” they asked. “It could have been sold for a year’s wages and the money given to the poor!” So they scolded her harshly. But Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. Why criticize her for doing such a good thing to me? You will always have the poor among you, and you can help them whenever you want to. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could and has anointed my body for burial ahead of time. I tell you the truth, wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman’s deed will be remembered and discussed.”

This morning, I read the following quote by Arthur Ashe, Jr, “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.” He was a famous tennis player who retired in 1980. I’m sure he wasn’t referring to the scripture that I have quoted above when he made that statement, but it is quite fitting. Jesus was in Bethany in the home a leper. The timing was just prior to Judas making a contract for the life of Christ and just two days prior to Christ’s crucifixion. While Jesus was eating in this home, a woman walked over and poured a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume onto the head of Christ. She was immediately scolded. It was pointed out by some at the table that the perfume could have been sold for a year’s wages and the money given to the poor. The people had no idea of the coming events, but Jesus did, and perhaps this woman had the sense of urgency to do something right then and there.

The people at the table saw the value in the perfume, but they did not recognize the value of the act that was performed. Christ did, and in fact, He noted five significant things about this act. First of all, Christ saw it as an extremely beautiful extravagant act. The beauty was in the extravagance of the act, and not in the extravagance of the perfume. The people at the table saw the act as one of waste. In their eyes, she had wasted an enormous amount of money. It was an extremely lavish act. So they scolded her harshly. “But Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. Why criticize her for doing such a good thing to me?”

Secondly, we see that the act was very timely. Jesus said, “You will always have the poor among you, and you can help them whenever you want to. But you will not always have me.” He knew that His time to depart was coming soon. He told the people that there will always be poor among them, and that they can help the poor anytime they wanted, but they would not always have Christ with them in the flesh. The timing of the act was significant because although they could always do what they could to help the poor, Christ would not be around in the physical body for much longer.

Next, we see that she did what she could with what she had. She didn’t have time to prepare an elaborate meal. She couldn’t sew Him a new garment. There was no time for that. She did what she could with what she had, and Jesus recognized the significance of this. As Christians, there are many times that we can do things with what we have on hand to serve the Lord. It is practical application. This woman was practical even though her act was extravagant. And Christ said, “She has done what she could.”

The fourth thing we see was the insight in the act. Jesus recognized the fact that this woman was actually anointing His body before the burial. Jesus had told His disciples, His trusted friends and followers, about His impending death, but they didn’t believe Him. Yet, this woman felt the urgency to anoint Christ at that very moment. Jesus said, “She has anointed my body for burial ahead of time.” What a precious act of love.

Last, we see that her act was one that would be remembered. Here I sit, over 2000 years later, writing about this very woman and the act of love that she showed for our Savior. Christ said, ” I tell you the truth, wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman’s deed will be remembered and discussed.” And…so He was right! We still remember her gracious, extravagant act.

What can we take away from this extravagant act? Let’s return to the quote that I opened with. Start where you are. You may feel that you don’t have anything to offer, but I assure you, God has gifted you with a talent or ability for His service. You merely need to pray and search yourself to discover that talent. Then, you simply have to use what you have. Put your talents and abilities to work in the service for our Savior. Finally, just do what you can! I promise you that God will bless your endeavors, and although on our own, we can’t accomplish much, we can do anything through Christ who strengthens us!