In God We Trust

 But when the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for them: Judges 3:15

In the days of the judges, Israel had intermarried with the pagans around them. They had turned to the pagan gods. Baal was the god they most often looked to who required child sacrifice. The firstborn son was placed in the hot hands of Baal to be shriveled into ashes for the god. This was supposed to bring them rain and good crops; economic success. 

We find ourselves within days of an election that is most often about economics. Our food, gas, and other necessities are inflated so high the average American is struggling to keep their head afloat. This past summer, our Supreme Court overturned a ruling that federally legalized abortion, back to the states.  Many states are in the process of restricting abortions or eliminating them all together. 

But those whose eyes are on the elections recognize it's the economy driving the electorate. One candidate is even suggesting that the lack of access to abortion is the reason our economy is in such bad shape. She says all abortions should be legal so that women are not burdened with children who are a drain on a woman's income. 

WHAT? Is her platform not the same as the Baal worshippers in the time of the judges? Isn't she telling us that to be successful economically we must sacrifice our children? She's not the only one. 

Before we cast our ballots next week (and please be sure you vote), pray, pray hard for our nation, for our leaders, and for our own attitudes.  Examine the platforms of the candidates. Examine your own priorities. The Hispanic voters are strongly proposing that we voice our long-held family values of God, Family, and hard work. May we join our voices with theirs in prayer to the true Provider. 

Heavenly Father, Help us return to the values we were taught, the values this nation was founded on. Let it be known In God We Trust. You have allowed it to be placed on every piece of our money as a reminder of where our economic success comes from. It only comes from You, O Lord. In Jesus's name we pray. Amen. 

Fishers of Men

  And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men. Mark 1:17

My son is a fly fishing guide. He studies the weather, the hatch of the insects, the water levels in the rivers and streams and notices what type of insects the fish are biting on this week. 

He ties his own flies. They have to look as close to the same color and size as the actual insect as possible. He also has to hike miles through rough terrain and wade slick rocky rivers to give the best guides in natural waters. This is a lot of hard work but he absolutely loves the studying and hard work. 

When Jesus called his disciples he told them to follow him and he would make them fishers of men. It wasn't an instant transformation any more than my son became an instant expert on flyfishing. In the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 and following, Jesus took his disciples up on the mountain away from the crowds and began to instruct them. They followed him and just like my son guiding on a trip, Jesus showed the disciples how to fish for men. They began to practice "fishing" before Jesus ascended so they would know how when they had to go "alone". 

There's a pattern to becoming a fisher of men. Mark 1:15 says to repent and believe the gospel. The first part of learning to fish for men is to know that we ourselves are sinners in need of repentance (a change of heart about ourselves) and we need to believe the gospel (Jesus is the sinless son of God who died for our sins and was resurrected again). 

Jesus then called the disciples to follow Him. Following is probably the hardest part. That's the study, the understanding of scripture, the talking with the Master. Along with all the study comes the practice, the little by little learning to talk to others, teach others and go into all the world with the gospel (Matthew 28:19,20).

The transformation into a fisher of men doesn't happen overnight. It happens over time. If my son were not a continual learner and follower of flyfishing he wouldn't have his own business today. If we are not faithful and continue in our study of God's word, faithful in prayer, and faithful to reach out to others we will not be effective fishers of men reaching all nations. 

Heavenly Father, help us be faithful followers who study your word daily and pray for guidance in reaching others. Help us practice lives of dedication to your calling. In Jesus's name. Amen.  

Hey Kids:

Do you like to fish? 

Who taught you? How often do you get to practice?

Can you bait your own hook? What type of bait do you use?

Can you take a fish off?

Is fishing your passion? 

Maybe fishing isn't your thing but God has given you interest and talents that He wants you to use for His glory. 

How can you go into all the world? Do you speak another language? Can you draw or write? Do you contribute to kids' magazines? In our day of technology, going into all the world can mean reaching them at home, but it doesn't mean it's easy.

How can you improve your talents so you can use them to be "fishers of men"?

Blessings,

Gail

 

  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: 

~Romans 1:20 KJV

Ahh, Autumn, my favorite time of the year. Leaves, mountain apples, pumpkins, and cooler weather, what could be better? We often use pumpkins to explain the plan of salvation to children. But that is not the only thing we can learn from the beauty of Autumn. 

What do we find when we cut open an apple or pumpkin or practically anything? On the outside is the skin. Just inside is the flesh. At the core of the fruit, we find the seeds. Did you notice the trinity?  Seeds that are most often thrown away are the heart of the fruit itself. Those seeds will produce more plants and fruit just like the parent plant. Even the seed is a trinity; the outer coating, the food store inside, and the embryo that contains the leaf.  

It seems so hard to understand how God is a Trinity yet He shows us daily through His creation. He shows us how we too are created in His image. We have a body, a mind that thinks, and a soul that is eternal. The soul is actually the heart of our being. Have you ever thought about how we feel things? We say "my heart is broken." when there's nothing wrong with our heart; it's our feelings, the core of who we are. God, too, is a being who thinks and yes, who feels. Love is a feeling. God showed us His love by sending His only Son to die in our place for our sins. 

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

~Romans 5:8 ESV

When we show our children what it is like to be a Christian we are instilling in our little seeds the understanding that will reproduce itself to the third and fourth generation. In contrast, when we distort or confuse, or don't recognize the importance of instilling Christian doctrines in our children we still teach them. We teach a lack of importance for the things of God. That too will reproduce itself to the third and fourth generation. 

The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands,  forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation.

~Exodus 34:6,7 ESV

Heavenly Father, please help us be aware of the seeds we plant in our children's lives. May they be the seeds of salvation that will make a difference for our children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation. In Christ Jesus's name, we pray. Amen

Hey Kids:

Take a walk with your parents. Notice the beautiful sun coming up or setting. Notice the light, how it colors the sky or brightens the day. Feel the warmth of the sun. What a delight to enjoy another trinity God has created for us to know more about who He is and the love He has for us. Can you explain the Trinity using the sun, the light, and the heat of the sun?

Autumn blessings,

Gail 

Having 3D Vision

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. ~Matthew 28:19,20 KJV

• Decision - Exodus 15:20-27 gives us the picture of the Israelites travelling three days into the wilderness after crossing the Red Sea. They grumbled and complained because they had no water. There must have been a lack of trust in the Lord. They had seen the hand of the Lord deliver them by parting the Red Sea yet now they complained that the waters of Marah were bitter and undrinkable. So Moses took a tree and cast it into the water and it became sweet. God used the bitter water and the tree to show them how Jesus's death on the cross would make their lives sweet if they put their trust in Him and Him alone. The Lord would not need to put the plagues of Egypt on them to get their attention if their trust was in the Lord. They had a decision to make.
• Disciple - The Lord then led the people to Elim where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees. God showed them another picture as they rested here. All the pictures were to disciple them for the job ahead, the job of witnessing to the whole world. There were twelve tribes that carried the gospel message. Seventy nations were dispersed from the tower of Babel to fill the world. Now, these springs fed the seventy palms just as the twelve tribes would be the nation to feed the gospel to the whole world. Jesus chose twelve disciples, one of whom was replaced, but these twelve were discipled to bring the gospel of the death, burial, and resurrection to the world. 
• Deployed - Moses would continue to lead the children of Israel through the wilderness teaching them about the Water of Life by striking the rock to bring them water, giving them the Ten Commandments, and guiding them with God's words preparing them to be witnesses to all the world with the building and worship in the tabernacle. He deployed them in Jerusalem, the crossroads of the world trade at that time. Jesus gave command to His disciples to go into all the world beginning at Jerusalem (Acts 1:8). 

We too have the same Decision to make. Will we accept Jesus by repenting of our sins and following Him or will we choose the way of the world and continue to drink its bitter water?

We too need to be discipled by studying the word daily and attending a church where we can be taught how to live a life that witnesses of the power or Christ.

We too have been deployed by the same Great Commission Jesus gave His disciples to go into all the world and teach, baptize and make disciples of every nation. 

Heavenly Father, help us examine ourselves to know we have chosen You as our Savior. Help us make prayer and daily Bible study part of our routine. Give us the boldness to reach out to the world with the gospel beginning first in our own homes and communities. In Jesus's name we pray. Amen.

Staying in the Moment

Where there is no vision, the people perish: ~Proverbs 29:18a

One of my favorite contemporary Christian songs is Keep Me in the Moment by Jeremy Camp. I knew what the song meant to me but I wanted to know his reason for writing it. 

Jeremy Camp lost his first wife to ovarian cancer just four months after their marriage. He wrote this song as part of the film "I Believe". He has since remarried and has a daughter who is growing up fast. Jeremy wants to stay in the moment with her and his wife so he doesn't look back on all the things he missed. 

I wondered how many things I'm missing because they pass by so quickly in my busy life. I feel I need to be intentional in my relationships so that I can not only savor the moments but use those moments to fulfill God's purpose in my life. I gave my high school class an assignment to research the reasons behind their favorite Christian songs — any genre. Then they were to write why they chose that particular song, what it meant to them personally. 

This is how I felt Keep Me in the Moment is playing out in my life. 

Create relationships through

• Listening to others — giving full attention
• Patience
• Kindness
• Speaking the truth in love
• Protecting confidence
• Create trust
• Persevere

Relationships open doors

• Creates opportunities to share the gospel
• Builds relationships to disciple believers
• Demonstrates love
• 
  

Faith, Hope, Love

And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

~I Corinthians 13:13 NKJV

Father, keep me in the moment so that I have a vision for building Your kingdom.  You have told us in Your word the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. (Habakkuk2:14). May Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6:10) In Jesus's name. Amen