Marriage - What's the Secret of Success?

And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from the man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. Genesis 1:22

My mother always told me never date anyone you wouldn’t want to marry. I wondered if she thought she had married the wrong man or had she made a good choice? When Rick and I were dating, my brother told me I shouldn’t date him because he wasn’t a Christian. I told my brother to mind his own business. In a way we were both right.

Rick wanted to date a Christian girl. He liked the idea that my dad was a deacon and we were regular church goers. He wasn’t that big on going to church but he wanted me to go. I should have seen that with the right witness, he was ripe for the gospel. But, I was allowing him to pull me away from God and the church. I wanted to go where he went and do “fun things”. I was drifting from God when I should have been drawing both of us closer.

God brought Adam and Eve together but Eve allowed Satan to deceive her. Adam allowed Eve to pull him away from the Lord. They both were in a lot of trouble. (Genesis 3:6)

Jesus, the Creator of the world, already had a plan for the time we would turn to our own way. He and the Father had already agreed before the foundation of the world for Jesus to come and be the sacrifice for our sin. (Revelation 13:8) The time was not right yet for Jesus to come. Adam and Eve needed a picture of God’s plan of salvation. The Lord God sacrificed an animal and made clothes for them with the skins. (Genesis 3:21) I wonder if the Lord God washed the blood off the skins. I think maybe He let the blood remain so Adam and Eve would get the full picture that we have to have the Blood to cover our sin. If either Adam or Eve had rejected the sacrifice and the clothing, their marriage would have been torn apart. They needed to be one in their spirit and in their service to the Lord God and their family.

My grandmother met a lost man at church. He pursued her, but she would not consent to marry until he became a Christian. They entered into marriage truly one, serving God together all the days of their lives. He was 62 when he passed. She was 102. Even on her deathbed, she refused to allow anyone to remove the rings he had given her so long ago.

Blessings for a Spirit-filled marriage,

Gail

Hey Kids:

Adam and Eve needed a picture of the sacrifice for salvation. We all understand better with pictures. 

Jesus gave us pictures of Himself in His creation. (Romans 1:20)

They are kind of like the hidden picture games.

What pictures can you find in creation? Maybe you could make a drawing to share with us.

Just take a picture of your drawing and upload it to our comments section.

Need a hint as to what to look for?

The sun is a perfect example. 

Sun ball in the sky (Father)

Light all around (Jesus, the Son)

Warmth from the sun we feel but cannot see (the Holy Spirit)

The Feast of Dedication

 

www.bhg.com/houses

And it was at Jerusalem the feast of dedication, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch. John 10:22,23

It’s that time of year. Cookies, gingerbread houses and decorations galore. As I tried to copy the picture of a winter gingerbread village in a jar, I wondered what winter was like for Jesus. There were no Christmas trees, no holiday cookies, no . . . . But wait, there was the Feast of Dedication – Hanukah! Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon’s porch! He saw the city all covered with snow. There may have been holiday cookies, and gifts. There was a menorah burning in the temple by the alter of incense. Jesus may have been thinking about the lights of the temple and the miracle God had preformed. Hanukah celebrated the fact that God caused the temple lamps to burn 8 days on 1 day’s oil.

Today, we are in the midst of the Hanukah/Christmas season. Though the world tries to put out the true meanings of Hanukah and Christmas, we must keep the light within our hearts shining, demonstrating God’s love to the world. Whether we read Isaiah 53 or John 3:16 the message is still the same. It is our job to let the world know God sent His only Son to be the sacrifice for our sins. May we dedicate our lives to the Messiah. May we let our light shine before others to glorify our Father which is in heaven. 

I put the finishing touch on my gingerbread village tonight. I think I may tie a ribbon with the verse on it to remind me of the city of Jerusalem Jesus saw that winter. To remind me to keep my light shining to glorify the Father.  How are you keeping the Messiah in the Season this year?

A Thanks Giving Tree

And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. Genesis 22:18

Thanksgiving – it’s right around the corner. Have you considered the things that you are thankful for? I’ve seen several Thanks Giving Tree. Basically, they are twigs or drawings with paper leaves attached. People write or draw something on a leaf every day and attach it to the tree. It’s a simple reminder of how blessed we all are.

Have you considered your greatest blessing and where it came from? Salvation would have to be one of the first leaves on my tree. God freely sent His Son to die for my sins so I can spend eternity with Him. But someone at some point in time had to be willing to be responsible for the family into which Jesus would be born. Abraham was that man. God wanted to see if Abraham was willing to give his son, Isaac, back to God as a sacrifice. God stopped Abraham just in the nick of time. Because Abraham obeyed God’s voice, he received a promise that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through his family. Wow! What a promise to know that somewhere down the line God’s Son would be born into Abraham’s family. Abraham believed God and obeyed God in all He asked.

I’m just wondering what blessings we would receive if we believed and obeyed whatever God asked of us. Would school be a better place? Would there be peace in our families? What would our nation look like if we Christians obeyed God? Is there hope for the lost? Abraham could have thought all hope was lost when he had no child. Yet he continued to believe God and when he was 100 years old and Sarah was 90 they had a child, their only son that God asked Abraham to sacrifice. God blessed Abraham with family because family is the only thing that lasts.

Why not begin a Thanks Giving Tree today. Then let us know how God has blessed you. 

Dirty Feet

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Psalms 51:10

Wet grass all over my feet and sandals! How can I go inside the church like this? I’ll track this mess everywhere. I had walked up with a friend from the Sunday School classes through freshly mown dew covered grass. Her shoes were a mess too. Actually she was the one who noticed our problem. One of the men saw our dilemma and brought us paper towels to clean our shoes and feet. It was embarrassing leaning against the building and wiping my feet but it was better than messing up the foyer and aisles.

Jesus took a towel and washed the feet of his disciples. Peter didn’t want his Lord to perform such a lowly task for him. Peter wanted to serve Jesus, not have Jesus serve him. What Peter didn’t understand was that Jesus was the greatest of servants. He not only served, He sacrificed himself for Peter and for us. Later in the same chapter Jesus tried to explain the symbolism of what he was doing. We walk through this world every day and pick up “dirt” from the world. Not the dust of the ground but the bad things of this world, the attitude, the language, the selfishness, etc. Jesus wants us spiritually clean. He washed the disciples’ feet as an example to serve our fellow Christians by watching out for each other and helping each other keep our lives clean.

In the days of the tabernacle, the priest had to wash at a laver before going into the tabernacle. They first passed by the burnt offering, then washed hands and feet before entering the tabernacle to offer the incense. The incense of prayers needed to be offered by spiritually clean priest. Priest still covered with blood and ashes from the burnt offering would not symbolize spiritual cleanness.

How often do I rush to God with my desires without stopping to ask for the cleansing of His forgiveness? I want my prayers to have a sweet savor to God.

Dear Lord, thank you for a friend who noticed the dirt on our feet. Help me Lord to notice the dirt on my heart. Create in me a clean heart; and renew a right spirit within me. In Jesus name. Amen.

God Loves a Copy Cat

 

That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou has sent me. John 17: 21

He pulled an old green sheet over and shoved it up under his bike. He put his goggles on and picked up the drill. Turning himself around backwards he sat down on the sheet and laid back under the bike. Then the real work began. How cute is that, I thought. He has watched his Papa work on cars enough to know just what to do. Apparently his sister is learning as well.

God, our Father, wants us to learn what to do by copying His Son, Jesus. Jesus prayed for us in John 17 for us to be one with Christ as Christ is one with the Father and the Father one with the Son. We can’t go watch Jesus as the first disciples did but, we can read the Word He left us. We can learn the care, the love, and the sacrifice that Jesus gave to us. He wants us to follow him so closely that the world will know that the Father sent Jesus to be our sacrifice. That’s what millions of Christians have done since Jesus ascended back to the Father. They have been his witness in word and in deed so that you and I know what Jesus did for us. We don’t usually like a copy cat but God loves it when we copy His Son. Won’t you be God’s Copy Cat that the world may know?

What have you discovered by being a copy cat of God? Leave us a message so we all may be one in the Father.