Something

 “When the devil keeps on asking you to look at your past, there must be something good in the future he doesn’t want you to see.” (Facebook.com/DrugTreatment)

When you do positive things for the Kingdom of God like praying for or helping someone in need, the devil is not happy about that. He will do anything he can to stop your effort (even if that involves unleashing a hoard of demons on you). This is exactly the reason the devil despises minister (or whatever name they go by in various denominations) because of the difference they make in the lives of their congregations (and others in their communities). The devil also wishes to discourage missionaries (and those training to be missionaries like my daughter, Allena) because of the positive difference they can make all around the world.

My daughter wrote the poem, “My Armor,” for a college assignment (based on Ephesians 6 from the Bible) that in a unique way describes what must be said about the armor of God. All Christians must put it on daily in their fight against the devil. I believe everyone reading this can relate to some part of this interesting poem.

It is a battle that I must face.

There is no option to it.

I must face it.

Will I armor up and choose to fight?

Or will defeat rule over me?

Will I back into the shadows or run to the light in which I will get cleansed?

I have to face it; it’s a daily choice to be strong in God.

I can’t win without God.

It is God’s armor that protects me in my battles.

The battle is scary: will it ever end?

This battle isn’t against my own skin and blood.

The battle is incredibly planned to attack in the ways that are my weaknesses.

Strategies planned to rip me apart, push me to break, talk trash about myself, hate myself, to give up.

Because the devil is smart, he’s got strategies.

He knows how to attack my mind.

He knows how to use the powers of darkness against me.

He knows how to turn his demons & spirits towards me.

I must put God’s armor, piece by piece.

This armor (not ancient or heavy like those knights of medieval days)

But bearable with God and His strength.

The devil comes around me to steal from me, to kill me, and to destroy me.

God’s armor will protect me.

I have to stand. It is the way I fight.

If I give in to battle, then I am defeated.

I am made for good, why doesn’t the devil see it?

The truth is he doesn’t care.

He doesn’t want me here; he wants me distorted.

But I will stand.

I will stand my ground.

Because I know the truth about me.

I know what God says about me.

So, I stand with my BELT OF TRUTH tight around my waist.

I am chosen, trusted, and loved.

I am a light in this dark world that is around me.

I am a sunflower because that’s what God says about me.

I am innocent and covered in my savior’s blood.

I am who you say I am God.

I am covered with my BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS

Because righteous is what God says about me.

It is part of my identity.

That is why it covers my heart.

To seal in the truth that is put in me.

My feet are special to me.

Because they bring me peace.

Something the devil likes to take from me.

But my God has covered me in peace.

That is beyond my own understanding.

I can’t express what this means to me.

It helps me through the day, it makes me get out of bed.

Jesus’ peace means the world to me.

His Salvation of peace is what guards me.

God’s shield protects me.

It is full of faith.

Faith-filled and full of fire.

It helps me believe when I cannot see it.

It helps me when I cannot believe.

Sometimes that feels like a lot if I am honest.

But God helps me see the things that go unseen to me.

God helps me see through the problems when I want to give in.

God helps me push forward in a battle that goes unseen to the world.

My faith is increased by God’s strength that is given to me.

He covers me.

From the fiery darts that come from the Devil.

The Devil uses me as target practice.

Sometimes the Devil hits the target, sometimes he misses.

He still tries to come after me, dart after dart.

God fits me with my special helmet.

I’m covered with His finest resource.

Salvation.

God’s helmet of salvation covers me in truth.

The truth that I have been saved.

Preaching the gospel to myself is key.

I am covered in my savors blood.

He redeemed the death that I deserve.

I should have been the one on the cross.

But God sent his son to become flawed.

He was flawless and perfect.

But He took on my wrath and covered my head with salvation.

God gave me his word.

It is part of my armor too.

Its one of the most important pieces.

It is the sword I choose to hold my hand.

The coolest sword I own.

My sword of the spirit.

God’s Holy Spirit guides me in my prayers.

He helps me pray when I don’t know what else to pray.

Praying all the time is what helps.

Prayers to the one who writes.

That when He is the one who is sharing that he will have the words to speak.

This author an ambassador in chains.

Tychicus whom is a servant of the Lord has been sent to bring wisdom.

Through the words that are written.

The words that are written must be delivered to a chosen people.

The Ephesians.

Chosen people to be receptive.

They to join in the battle that I face.

We have to put on our armor together.

Fight together.

And join together.

From the words of the author.

Grace and Peace to you my brothers.

1 Peter 5:8 (VOICE) gives an accurate picture of how the devil wants to harm you in all areas of your life (physically, emotionally, and spiritually): Most importantly, be disciplined and stay on guard. Your enemy the devil is prowling around outside like a roaring lion, just waiting and hoping for the chance to devour someone. Only God can make you the success you need to be because the devil is going to work to make you a failure. Don’t help him out with his objective.

 

 

 

 

 

The Seriousness

“The cross shows us the seriousness of our sin, but it also shows us the immeasurable love of God.” (Billy Graham)

The cross of Christ confuses me. I know it was there that Jesus bought our salvation to Heaven with His death. (He paid the penalty for our sin on the cross with the shedding of His blood.) I also am fully aware that the cross was a means of torture the Romans used to send out a message to everyone viewing the people murdered slowly with this device (usually to follow scourging) that it didn’t pay to rebel against the Romans.

I can understand why some people wear decorative crosses around their neck. It has become both a symbol of Christianity and eternal salvation through the shedding of Jesus blood.  On the other hand, the cross was a cruel torture device. Why would I either want to wear or decorate my home with a torture device? Today it could be likened unto someone wearing a gold necklace of an electric chair. 

Whatever your opinion is on the above subject, 1 Corinthians 1:18 (VOICE) tells us just how important the message of the cross is to those who need it the most: For people who are stumbling toward ruin, the message of the cross is nothing but a tall tale for fools by a fool. But for those of us who are already experiencing the reality of being rescued and made right, it is nothing short of God’s power. What are you doing to make that message known to everyone all over the world?

 

 

My Heart

 “My brother may not always be at my side, but he is always in my heart.” (Anonymous)

“My Tribute to Jim”

Given by A.J. Farley

Tuesday, March 3, 1992

Funeral of James M. Kinker

My friend, Jim Kinker, died a few days ago [of a seizure]. After the initial shock of the news died down, [I’ve] had some time to think about what his life meant to us.  Jim never lived his life to be seen.  He didn’t go out of his way to draw attention to himself (except when choosing a different car). He never sought the limelight yet his life had a unique influence upon each one of our lives. We are different people for having known Jim. We are better people.

Whenever someone dies unexpectedly, we have the tendency to do two things. First, we think of the person who’s gone as some sort of perfect ideal person. One who never said a cross word to anyone, paid his bills on time, voted Republican, and kept a spotless home. We all know that Jim wasn’t that man. He marched to his own drum his whole life. He wanted you to like him, but if you didn’t that was your problem (not his).

Our other tendency is to mourn in a rather selfish way. We think “How could he leave me this way?” We think mollre about our own loss than our friend who is gone. I think this is easy to adopt in this case because in many ways Jim was on the periphery of our lives. He was a very selfless person. His personality didn’t demand us to attend to him. He could take care of himself.  He was available to help us if we needed help, but he wasn’t always the first one we thought of.

Jim had the greatest mannerisms in the world. He could make a simple comment, and it would be funny. You could count on him to do the most mundane thing in a unique way. It’s difficult to describe, but Jim could adjust his glasses in a way that no one else could.

When [his brother, Robert,] asked me to do this, I wondered whether I was really qualified to speak on Jim’s life. Surely, there are others him better than I did. Surely, someone who grew up with him would be better suited to say a collective good-bye for us. I still don’t feel qualified. How can anyone adequately sum up a man’s life, short-lived though it was, in a few minutes? It can’t be done.  It shouldn’t be done.

We live our lives as though we are afraid of the future. Disease, illness, calamity, disaster wait just around the corner for us; we’re sure of it. I don’t think Jim lived that way. There was something good waiting down the road (if he could just hold on to the wheel).  Jim had more than his of life’s pain, but he lived with the realization that his life was in God’s hands. He wasn’t passive about his life like many of us are. He did the things that were important to him. He actively sought as much control over his life as he could.

So how (now) to say good-bye; Jim has already seen his dad.  He’s met his Lord, personally, finally.  He’s probably still learning his way around the streets of gold, and [is] confused by all the cleanliness. He’s free now from the constraints people place upon themselves. He doesn’t know pain or suffering anymore. I know I’ll see him again.  Our sure hope as believers in Christ is that one we will all be raised from the dead.  We have to wait a little while (just the blink of an eye), and we’ll be reunited.

The Lord's unfailing love and mercy still continue [as] fresh as the morning as sure as the sunrise. (Lamentations 3:22-23, GNT)

 

 

   

 

The Absence

 Joy is not necessarily the absence of suffering. It is the presence of God. (Sam Storms)

Matthew 2:1-2, 4-6, 9-11, Easy-to-Read Version

 Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem in Judea during the time when Herod was king. After Jesus was born, some wise men from the east came to Jerusalem. ² They asked people, “Where is the child who has been born to be the king of the Jews? We saw the star that shows he was born. We saw it rise in the sky in the east and have come to worship him.” ⁴ Herod called a meeting of all the leading Jewish priests and teachers of the law. He asked them where the Messiah would be born. ⁵ They answered, “In the town of Bethlehem in Judea, just as the prophet wrote:

⁶ ‘Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, you are important among the rulers of Judah. Yes, a ruler will come from you, and that ruler will lead Israel, my people.’” ⁹ After the wise men heard the king, they left. They saw the same star they had seen in the east, and they followed it. The star went before them until it stopped above the place where the child was. ¹⁰ They were very happy and excited to see the star. ¹¹ The wise men came to the house where the child was with his mother Mary. They bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened the boxes of gifts they had brought for him. They gave him treasures of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

For many, the darkness of the year 2020 has been a time of dried up, dessert-like loss in the midst of a weary pandemic.  How can your heavenly Father provide joy in this chaos?

1.   Seek for joy in the right place-(See Matthew 2:1-2) It is easy to look for joy in the wrong places. The wise men were not finding joy in their own self-fulfillment, but in finding Jesus. Their question was centered on discovering the newborn King. Christmas is when Jesus visibly entered the Earth as a fallible human.

 

2.     Find joy thru the enlightenment of scripture-(See Matthew 2:4-6) Scripture helps us to meet God through Jesus. The Old Testament points us toward Christ. But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, are the smallest town in Judah. Your family is almost too small to count, but the “Ruler of Israel” will come from you to rule for me. His beginnings are from ancient times from long, long ago. (Micah 5:2, Easy-to-Read Version) Our star to Jesus (of the gospels) is scripture. You carefully study the scriptures because you think that they give you eternal life. Those are the same Scriptures that tell about Me. (John 5:39, International Children’s Bible)

 

3.   Discover joy when you worship with total abandonment-(See Matthew 2:9-11) Manufactured joy can elude you as it does not come external circumstances (and objects), but internally from the Savior. True worship to Jesus is not a passive activity (as you give all you are and will ever be to Him).

The Hymn, “I Surrender All”

	All to Jesus I surrender, All to Him I freely give; I will ever love and trust Him, In His presence daily live.   Chorus
	I surrender all,  I surrender all. All to Thee, my blessed Savior,   I surrender all.
	All to Jesus I surrender, Humbly at His feet I bow, Worldly pleasures all forsaken; Take me, Jesus, take me now.   Chorus
	All to Jesus I surrender, Make me, Savior, wholly Thine; Let me feel Thy Holy Spirit, Truly know that Thou art mine.   Chorus
	All to Jesus I surrender, Lord, I give myself to Thee; Fill me with Thy love and power, Let Thy blessing fall on me.   Chorus
	All to Jesus I surrender, Now I feel the sacred flame. Oh, the joy of full salvation. Glory, glory to His name.   Chorus[i]

The formula for true JOY=Jesus first, others second, and yourself last.

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[i] Inspired by the sermon “Stuff with Joy: Stocking Stuffers,” (installment five, final) Thursday December 24, 2020, Pastor Dave Jansen (CPG).  All CenterPoint churches have returned to an online format because of the increase in COVID-19 cases in central Ohio. Services can be viewed at facebook.com/centerpointchurches or centerpointchurches.com/live.

The Storehouse

”A [person] can no more take in a supply of grace for the future than [they] can eat enough today to last [them] for the next [six]months, nor can [they] inhale sufficient air into [their] lungs with one breath to sustain life for a week to come. We are permitted to draw upon God's store of grace from day to day as we need it." (Dwight L. Moody)

Matthew 1:1-3, 5-6, 18-21, 24-25 (International Children’s Bible, ICB)

This is the family history of Jesus Christ. He came from the family of David. David came from the family of Abraham. ² Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and his brothers. ³ Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah. (Their mother was Tamar.) Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Ram. ⁵ Salmon was the father of Boaz. (Boaz’s mother was Rahab.) Boaz was the father of Obed. (Obed’s mother was Ruth.) Obed was the father of Jesse. ⁶ Jesse was the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon. (Solomon’s mother had been Uriah’s wife, [Bathsheba].)

¹⁸ The mother of Jesus Christ was Mary. And this is how the birth of Jesus came about. Mary was engaged to marry Joseph. But before they married, she learned that she was going to have a baby. She was pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Mary’s husband, Joseph, was a good man. He did not want to disgrace her in public, so he planned to divorce her secretly. ²⁰ While Joseph thought about this, an angel of the Lord came to him in a dream. The angel said, “Joseph, descendant of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife. The baby in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son. You will name the son Jesus. Give him that name because he will save his people from their sins.” ²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the Lord’s angel had told him to do. Joseph married Mary. ²⁵ But he did not have intimate relations with her until she gave birth to the son. And Joseph named the son Jesus.

The book of Matthew depicts Jesus as King with a royal genealogy going back to King David. The regalness of the Wise men connects into the narrative of the scripture. The book of Luke intends to show the humanity of Jesus. The manger bed, the excited shepherds, and the celestial angels helped to reinforce that this gentle boy child was both fully God and fully man.

For this holiday season, how can fill your life with plenty of God’s grace?

1.   Believe in God’s grace to shape you into who you need to be-(Matthew 1:1-3, 5, 6 above) Women were not usually included in a genealogy. It went through the men in that time period. It was an exception for these five incredible, brave, and ordinary women (Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Mary, the mother of Jesus) to be included in the lineage of Christ.  (I believe Jesus was the humble, dynamic man He was because of these women.)

2.   Offer God’s grace to those who hurt you deeply-(Matthew 1:18-19 above) Joseph believed the spectacular story Mary told him (with the help of an angel) of her impending pregnancy. Instead of casting Mary out (to eventually be stoned), he chose out of love to show her grace.

 

3.  Trust God’s grace to make the truth evident to you- (Matthew 1:20-21 above) One of Satan’s greatest lies is that you have control over your eternal destiny. Your good deeds do not outweigh your bad ones, and eventually grant you entrance into Heaven. We can’t save ourselves. Relying in Jesus’ atoning death on the cross makes this possible. Trust Jesus’ grace because it makes you acceptable in your heavenly Father’s sight.

 

Ephesians 2:8-9, The Voice- For it’s by God’s grace that you have been saved. You receive it through faith. It was not our plan or our effort. It is God’s gift, pure and simple. You didn’t earn it, not one of us did, so don’t go around bragging that you must have done something amazing.

 

4.   Rely on God’s grace to strengthen you-(Matthew 1:24-25 above) By agreeing to be Mary’s husband, the community would most likely believe He was the father of her Baby. Joseph took responsibility for the situation. His reputation was at risk if he stayed connected with Mary. Though you may not know what you will deal with this holiday season (things may be more difficult internally than how they appear externally), your heavenly Father has the power to get you through what will not go away.

2 Corinthians 12:7-9, International Children’s Bible, ICB-But I must not become too proud of the wonderful things that were shown to me. So a painful problem was given to me. This problem is a messenger from Satan. It is sent to beat me and keep me from being too proud.  I begged the Lord three times to take this problem away from me. But the Lord said to me, “My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, then my power is made perfect in you.” So I am very happy to brag about my weaknesses. Then Christ’s power can live in me. (Paul)

God’s grace is your one and only parachute when the world is about to throw you out of their airplane (high up, and in the middle of nowhere). Your heavenly Father’s grace can rescue you from those who treat you unfair and incorrectly. Rely on His strength by strapping on your parachute, and jumping.

GRACE stands for “God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense.”

God’s grace transforms us from the centerpoint out.[i]

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[i] Inspired by the sermon “Stuff with Grace: Stocking Stuffers,” (installment four) Sunday December 20, 2020, Pastor Dave Jansen (CPG).  All CenterPoint churches have returned to an online format because of the increase in COVID-19 cases in central Ohio. Sunday morning online services can be viewed at facebook.com/centerpointchurches or centerpointchurches.com/live.

Remembering

 “Lethologica [means] the inability to remember a word or put your finger on the right word.”

Maybe this is another sign of aging.  How many times have I been in the middle of a conversation when my brain decides to forget a word (or phrase) I’ve known all my life. I usually end up embarrassing myself stumbling verbally as I try to describe what I’m thinking of at the moment. Luckily someone else in the conversation (puts me out of my misery), and comes up with the word I couldn’t recall at the moment.  Usually, in these times I can picture the correct word in my brain, but the word picture never verbalizes itself to my mouth.

In any situation, I am certain that God will bring the right words to mind when they are needed. Your heavenly Father desires you to be more like Him daily. Ephesians 5:1 (TPT) says: Be imitators of God in everything you do for then you will represent your Father as his beloved sons and daughters. God is available anytime to help if you’ll only call out to Him. Be willing to listen for His reply to your request.[i]

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[i] Inspired by and adapted from the article, “21 Words (That You’ve Never Heard Before) Which Will Speak to Your Soul,” by Taryn Williford

 

 

Three Things

 “I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way (s)he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.” (Maya Angelou)

 Germany is credited with starting the Christmas tree tradition as we now know it in the 16th century when devout Christians brought decorated trees into their homes. ... It is a widely held belief that Martin Luther, the 16th-century Protestant reformer, first added lighted candles to a tree.[i] Chances are this holiday season that the centerpiece of your Christmas decorations inside your home has been your Christmas tree (whether it’s live or artificial) covered in lights and all kinds of ornaments (some bought from a store and others that have personal meaning to your family). On Christmas Day (today), you’ll find a variety of presents underneath your decorated tree.

In Ray Boltz’s song, “The Perfect Tree, it becomes apparent that the perfect tree did not become noticeable during a Christmas celebration.  Do you know where I am going with this post? Read the lyrics below, and see if you were right.

The ornaments are ready
The place has been prepared
Strings of lights and holly
Are draped across the chair
The family's all together
I know where they must be
Everyone is searching
For the perfect tree

Chorus
The perfect tree
Grew very long ago
And it was not decked with silver
Or with ornaments of gold
But hanging from its branches
Was a gift for you and me
Jesus laid His life down
On the perfect tree

Mother wants a straight one
The children want it tall
Dad just hopes that somehow
He can get it down the hall
Soon they'll gather round it
As proud as they can be
But when they're looking at it
I wonder if they see

Chorus

With all the celebrations
Sometimes the truth is lost
That every step this baby took
Brought Him closer to the cross

Chorus (Twice)

There is one thing your heavenly Father wants you to keep in mind now on Christmas Day and later (in the New Year, 2021) as you put it into practice. This reminder is found in Matthew 6:33 (ICB): The thing you should want most is God’s kingdom and doing what God wants. Then all these other things you need will be given to you. God bless you.

 

Merry Christmas 2020

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[i] Taken from the article, “History of Christmas Trees” by History.com