Good Morning,
Most of us have read the framed poem, FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND. But maybe you're not familiar with the author, Mary Stevenson. Her mother died when Mary was only six years old, and her father was left alone to raise the eight children in his family. We can't imagine, unless we have experienced something similar to that ourselves, how tough that would be on a single father and his kids. But to add to the difficult situation they found themselves in, this happened during the Great Depression. You see, Mary was born in 1922, and was 14 years old in 1936, when she wrote this poem. This was in the very heart of the Great Depression. She must have known what it was like for the Lord to walk by her side and strengthen her, and help her. And also to experience times when she came to the end of all her strength, and He carried her. He has a promise for all of us, regardless of what we go through, and it is found in Isaiah 41:10. Here, God is saying I have three ways of helping you. First, He says, I will strengthen thee. In other words, He is saying, "I will make you a little stronger yourself." Second, He adds, I will help thee. By that we understand Him to say, "I will add my strength to your strength, but you shall lead and I will help you." Third, He says, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness-or, "I will lift you up bodily and carry you altogether. It will be neither your strength nor My help, but My complete upholding. When we come to the end of our strength, we come to the beginning of His. In Him the weakest are the strongest, and the most helpless the most helped. He giveth power to the faint, but to them that have no might at all He increaseth strength. His word forever is, My grace is sufficient for thee. In the New Testament, Paul gives us the following verse, that at first glance seems to be a contradiction in common sense. But on a deeper look into this, we see a very practical truth. "Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. . . . For when I am weak, then am I strong " 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 At the beginning of this new week, is there something you are facing, that calls for Christ's strength and help to see you through? Or maybe you are already at the point where all strength to fight through the battle is gone, and you need Him to lift you up and carry you through it all. Put your total trust in Jesus, for He is able to deliver on His promise. Be blessed and remember that you are loved!!! Henry
0 Comments
Good Morning,
There is a tiny harbor town on the ocean shore where a lot of ships have crashed on the rocks in heavy storms. This town became well known because of the dedicated rescue team which aided mariners in distress. The rescue team would rally to the sound of the siren and rush to the scene of the accident, risking life and limb to save the sailors from drowning. As time went on, the citizens of that tiny town raised enough money to build a rescue station close to the shore. While this was a great benefit to the operation, it softened the dedicated team as well. As time went by, they added some of the comforts and conveniences that other rescue stations had. Through the years the rescue station became a social club, where the town's people gathered to have fun and relax. Ships would still crash upon the rocks; the alarm would still sound; but eventually no one responded. They were reluctant to leave their comforts, because their commitment to rescue the miserable mariners was no match for their complacency. "O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away." Let's make sure that our commitment will last. A commitment to never becoming so complacent that we fail to even show up at the rescue station, that's church Sunday morning, to be trained and equipped for the task. We, as christians, never want to become so soft and comfortable, that we fail to see those around us that are morally shipwrecked, and then fail to rush to them with help. Today and Saturday, would be a great time to share our faith in Jesus with that one that is in trouble and in real danger. And we know that includes all that are trying to live without the Savior. "Rescue the perishing; Care for the dying; Snatch them in pity from sin and the grave. Weep over the erring one; Lift up the fallen; Tell them of Jesus, the Mighty to Save." God bless you today, as you begin to invite some to church, and never, never forget that you are loved!!! Henry Good Morning,
The Lord Jesus had such great love for His disciples, that He longed for the eleven He was standing with, as he prayed, to be with Him and to experience His glory. Listen what He says to the Father. "Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. " John 17:24 His love and His desire for them to be with Him, was not directed to only those eleven, but also to us; the ones that would believe the disciples words about Him. "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word." John 17:20 But how sad it was that the twelfth disciple did not heard the High Priestly pray we have in John 17. He was not with them, because, in chapter 13, he had walked out and it was dark. It seems to me that Jesus wanted to include him, He said that the twelve would sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And Jesus had washed Judas' feet along with the other eleven. It seems that He had a great love for Judas, and made ever effort to win him. "And Jesus said unto them, 'Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.'" Matthew 19:28 How sad it would be if you failed to occupy that place Jesus has prepared for you in His glory. He loves you and longs to be with you, and for you to see His glory. Whatever it cost, do not miss that. Henry Good Morning,
The waning years of the 20th Century, and the early part of the 21st Century, will be remember both as an era of mushrooming technology and vanishing virtue. As the world's scientific achievements increase, its moral discernment declines. Institutions once sacred are now scorned. Beliefs, that our less sophisticated forefathers revered and respected, are now relinquished and ridiculed. It seems that this present generation has spawned a noticeable decrease in reverence, and this tendency is nowhere more evident than in religion. Even the church has a grossly inadequate appreciation of who God is and how He should be revered. "And it came to pass on the third day in the morning that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. " Exodus 19:16 Hearing the cries of His people in the night, God was motivated by His great love for them. The Israelites witnessed the awesomeness of God's power when He brought the ten plagues on Pharaoh, then divided the Red Sea and then closed it again on Pharaoh and his army. Now they are standing at the foot of this mountain described above, and are frozen in fear. They tell Moses: "You speak to us, don't let God speak to us or we will die." As God's representative, Moses was summoned to Mount Sinai. Here God revealed that He would make Israel a "peculiar treasure" unto Himself above all other people. They would be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation if they would but obey God's voice and keep His covenant. Moses returned to the people with this proposition and they all agreed. In three days the covenant would be established, but the holiness of Almighty God is so awesome that much preparation would have to be made before the Israelites could enjoy His presence. Only the pure in heart can "see" God. Moses was to sanctify the people for two days. They were to wash their clothes, an outward sign of the fact that they were inwardly clean. This cleansing within must stem from a heartfelt repentance, deep contrition, and a sincere desire to live righteously before God. Such preparation each man had to make for himself. The Holy One of Israel appeared in a thick cloud because His presence was awesome, too tremendous to be seen physically. Accompanying the clapping of thunder was the voice of the trumpet, exceedingly loud. So terrifying was the trumpet that the people in the camp below were dumbfounded. They stood in mute reverence to the holiness of Almighty God. The whole mountain quaked greatly, shaking from top to bottom, as the people stood in amazement. The awfulness and terror of this event is even more remarkable when we consider that God was not descending to Mount Sinai as Israel's Judge. He was not about to pronounce a sentence of doom on them, but in love He was drawing them unto Himself through the Sinai covenant. The smoke, fire, cloud, trumpet, lightning, and thunder were all to bring Israel to revere Him, for He is holy and almighty. He is of incredible majesty. Although it is the duty of the Christian to praise God, it is our first duty to reverance and fear Him, regardless of how our present society, or even the church neglect or ignore His Majesty. He alone is worthy of all reverence. Remember His motive behind this New Covenant is also to establishe a loving relationship with Him. "Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: For our God is a consuming fire." Hebrews 12:28 , 29 Be blessed today as you revere the Lord and spend some time praising Him for who He is; always remembering that you are loved!!!! Henry Good Morning,
Some of us are more advanced in years, and perhaps that would be cause to wonder more often about the end of life. Last week we finished our study of Pilgrim's Progress. After the long journey to heaven, Christian and Hopeful crossed the river, and entered the Celestial City. Because this event is so unknown to us, we humans use imaginative ways of describing different possibilities. The old spiritual says: "Swing low, sweet chariot, coming for to carry me home." Some are expecting to see a bright light in death that will grow brighter and brighter as they drawn closer to it. Whether it is a river crossing, a band of angles coming for us, or a bright light that draws us, we do know that it will be a pleasant experience, for we will be ushered into the presence of our Savior, the One who died for us. In his book, "The Best Is Yet to Be", Henry Durbanville told the story of an elderly woman who lived in southwest Scotland. She hoped someday to see the city of Edinburgh, but was afraid to take the train because it had to go through a long tunnel to get there. Things came up and she was forced to take that trip to Scotland's capital. Filled with fear and anxiety, the trip began and she became more anxious the longer the train traveled with her down those tracks. Before the train reached the long tunnel, the older woman, exhausted with worry, fell fast asleep. When she awoke, she was already in the city. The author commenting about the story says: "It is even so with the dying saint. He closes his eyes on earth, passes into what he thinks of as the tunnel of death, and opens them immediately in the celestial land." "Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. We live by faith, not by sight. We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord." 2 Corinthians 5:6-8 Your earthly body is nothing more than a temporary home. Moving day is coming for everyone. You'll never know when the moving truck will pull up to your "house," with its crumbling foundation, failed heating system, and cracked windows, load up what's left inside, and take it away to your new home. The Scripture says, "For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come" (Hebrews 13:14). As moving day approaches, it is important to realize in these analogies that death for the believer is not a dreaded parting-it is a glorious homecoming. May God bless you today, as you stay focused on Jesus, never forgetting you are loved!!! Henry |
Henry DeatonHenry D. is from Southern Indiana and writes these wonderful daily devotionals to encourage those at the Dogwood Community Church located in Paoli, Indiana. Henry has graciously agreed to share these wonderful devotionals here at Without Excuse Ministries to encourage you our valued guest! Archives
January 2013
|