Spiritual Food for Women

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life- Part 4

What does it mean to meditate on God’s Word? Why should we meditate on His Word?

Psalm 1:2b  ……and in His law he meditates day and night.

What does the word meditate mean? According to Merriam-Webster, to meditate is to focus one’s thoughts on, reflect on or ponder over, or to engage in contemplation or reflection. Another definition from Merriam-Webster is to engage in mental exercise (such as concentration on one’s breathing or repetition of a mantra) for the purpose of reaching a heightened level of spiritual awareness. Or it can just be simple breathing exercises to calm the body and mind. One more definition of meditate is to plan or project in the mind, to intend or to purpose. I believe the word that the psalmist is using in Psalm 1:2 has a much deeper meaning than all those definitions. The word meditate is translated from the Hebrew word haga. The word haga is also translated as mourn, speak, imagine, study, mutter, utter, roaring, sore, and talk. Some of these words didn’t really seem the same as the word meditate to me…that is….until I read the verses and looked at the context of them. So what does it truly mean to meditate in a biblical context? 

Let’s begin with our key verse, Psalm 1:2b, “….and in His law he meditates day and night.” In the context of this verse, we are told that a person is blessed because he/she “meditates” on God’s Word day and night. This person meditates on God’s Word, because he/she finds “delight” in God and in His Word. (Psalm 1:2a)  If we look back at Psalm 1:1, we see that a blessed person stays away from ungodly people and sin. The time that this person spends meditating on God’s Word helps him/her to stay close to God and away from sin. Also, when the verse says that the person “meditates day and night”, it means that the person is actively in his/her Bible every day. But not only that, he/she applies God’s Word to every aspect of life. The blessed person seeks to gain wisdom from God’s Word in order to become a better Christian. There is no time in any day that God is not at the forefront of a blessed person’s mind. This is the meditation that the psalmist is speaking of. It is an active and living type of meditation. And when he/she is spending time in God’s Word, it is quality time. It is not a chore that the person feels as if he/she has to do. It is not a “let me get my chapter read today and then I’m done” type of attitude. It is not a box to check on a checklist. It is a “delight” to the blessed person to read, study, contemplate, analyze, reflect on and ponder on God’s Word. Let’s look at two examples of people who meditated on God’s word. 

Do you remember who took over as leader of God’s people after Moses died? Joshua showed leadership qualities all the way back to when he was sent in as one of twelve spies to go into the promised land, and bring back a report about the people and the land to Moses. He was one of only two men out of twelve, who reported to Moses and the people that with God they could take the land. The other ten were afraid, and had no faith in God, and said that God’s people were not strong enough to take the land. God already knew the kind of man that Joshua was. However….He gives Joshua some instructions as he is taking Moses’ place as the leader of the children of Israel in Joshua 1:8. It reads, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” God wants Joshua to be blessed in his endeavors as the leader of His people. Joshua is about to take the children of Israel into the promised land. He is going to have to lead them in many battles in order to take the land that God has promised His people. God tells him to meditate day and night on the book of the law, but not just that…he is to apply that Law as he leads the people. He is to do all that God says to do in the Law. And guess what…..God says he will be blessed, “prosperous”, and “have good success.” God assures Joshua that He will be with Him, but with a condition…..that Joshua does not neglect the Law of God. It is clear in Joshua 24 as Joshua makes his farewell speech to the children of Israel before he died, that Joshua followed God throughout his whole life. In verses one through 13, Joshua reviews all that God had done for them down through the years, beginning with Abraham. In Joshua 24:14-15, he says these words, “Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” It is as if Joshua is pleading with them to follow his example, and stay faithful to God after he has passed on. But ultimately, he tells them it is their choice whether they serve God or not, but….he makes it very clear where he and his family stand, when he says, “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” What a leader! What an example! We can tell that Joshua took God’s advice and meditated on His Law all of his days. 

Another example of a man who meditated on God’s Word throughout his entire life was David. In Psalm 63:6, David says, “When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches.” This is during the time when David was in the wilderness of Judah hiding from Saul who was trying to kill him. As David lay awake during the night watches, he meditated on God. In Psalm 71:24, David says, “My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long; For they are confounded, for they are brought to shame who seek my hurt.” The word “talk” in this verse is the same word in Hebrew as meditate. (haga) In this chapter, it sounds as if God has delivered David from his enemies. For David, meditation is an ongoing, daily way of life in good times as well as bad. If you notice in the Psalms that David wrote, he meditated on God in hard times when he needed help, but he meditated on God in the best of times as well. In Psalm 143:5, David says, “I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your works; I muse on the work of Your hands.” In this Psalm, David is praying for deliverance from his enemies and guidance for the future. He is meditating on all that God has done in the past, and remembering better days. We can see from the Psalms that David wrote that he was a wonderful example of someone who  meditated on God and His Word constantly. He wasn’t perfect, as are none of us. We can certainly see that David knows his imperfections in Psalm 51, when David is begging God for forgiveness for the sin he committed with Bathsheba and against Uriah. But we can tell that he truly loved God with all of his heart as seen through his writings. Just the fact that he wrote so many beautiful Psalms for us to read, study, and meditate on today shows us David’s heart. We can truly see why God called David “a man after His own heart” in 1 Samuel 13:14. David says in Psalm 19:14, Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer. The word “meditation” in this verse is from the Hebrew word higayon. It is a variation of the word haga. It means resounding music or murmuring sound. It makes perfect sense that David would pray for his “higayon” or “meditation” to be acceptable to God. The Psalms that he wrote are songs of praise to God, and David wanted them to be pleasing to God.

The book of Proverbs also has some references to the word meditate (haga). Proverbs 8:7 says this, For my mouth will speak truth; Wickedness is an abomination to my lips. In this verse, the word “speak” comes from the same word as meditate. It means that the person will continually speak the words of truth. We can meditate in the form of speaking if we are talking about God’s Word in a meaningful way with others. We could even be alone and meditate by speaking. We could say a verse out loud over and over again to ourselves in order to help ourselves get through a tough time. I can personally say that praying out loud when I am alone helps me. Also, reading verses out loud is comforting to me. I love hearing myself speak God’s Word out loud. It is meditation and it is beneficial to my soul to hear myself either talking to God or saying the words that God says to me in scripture. Sometimes I add my name into verses as I read them out loud. Try this type of meditation sometime. Personally, it really comforts me when I need it. Proverbs 15:28 says this, “The heart of the righteous studies how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.” In this verse, the word “studies”  is translated from the same word as meditate. This makes perfect sense especially since it says that the righteous person studies or meditates “how to answer”. If we are to be righteous, then we need to meditate on God’s word so that we can be able to “rightly divide the word of truth” to others who are not Christians. (2 Tim. 2:15) We also have to be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks us a reason for the hope that is in us. (1 Peter 3:15) It takes some study and meditation on our parts to be able to truly fulfill our purpose, and tell others about the gospel of Christ. Proverbs 24:2  says this, “For their heart devises violence, and their lips talk of troublemaking.” The word “talk” is again translated from the same word as meditate. However, it is used in a negative context this time. The verse is talking about a person who wants to make trouble all the time. This person is constantly meditating on how he/she can cause problems for others. We have all known troublemakers in our lifetime. It seems as though they constantly thrive on conflict. 

In Isaiah 59, we find that sin has separated the children of Israel from God, and then we see how awful it really is in Isaiah 59:13. It reads, “In transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.”  The word “uttering” used here is translated the same as the word meditate (haga). This is not just a fleeting bout with sin. This is a deep-seeded rebellion against God. Not only had the people separated themselves from God through sin, but they were lying against God, and meditating on words that they could use to speak against God. It was hateful, deliberate and premeditated. When I look at this verse, it brings tears to my eyes. How could they do that, after all God had done for them? Then I go look in the mirror. And I realize that I have been guilty of not speaking the whole truth about God in the past, closing my eyes to what I know to be right, telling people what they want to hear, and making excuses to justify my own sins. It still hurts me to think about things I have said and done in the past, especially ways that I have influenced people in the wrong way. I wish that I could take it all back like it never happened…..but I can’t. All I can do is push forward, and spend the rest of my life in service to God and others. I can tell you with all honesty and sincerity that meditating on God’s Word will change you. How do I know? Because it has changed me just within the last few years. Meditating on God’s Word has helped me in a number of ways. Let me tell you some ways it has blessed my life.

First of all, I had to come to the realization that when I meditate on the words of the Bible, it is literally God speaking to me. When I began to realize this, that is when God, through His Word, convicted me, and made me feel better about myself all at the same time. He let me know that I needed to step it up, stop feeling sorry for myself over things that I can’t change, and get to work for Him. Low self-esteem has always been a problem for me. I know many of us struggle with this. I never felt like I had anything to offer God’s kingdom here on earth. But I have learned through God’s Word that I do! We all do, Sisters! We are all so valuable to God and His church! We are just as valuable as any other person in Bible history, including the two examples that I mentioned in this article, Joshua and David. Secondly, God, through His Word, has helped me let go of my past. Do I still regret things that I have said and done? Yes, and that will never go away. Sin has consequences in our lives, and regret is a consequence of sin that I experience daily. However, I won’t let my past stop me from God’s purpose for me. Ladies, we cannot let our past beat us down. Anyone who judges others on their past needs to go take a good hard look in the mirror at themselves in the present. Thirdly, God, through His Word, has helped me forgive people who have wronged me. This was very hard. I used to have so much bitterness and hardness inside of me, but God’s Word sweetened and softened all of that. God’s Word says that I have the capacity to forgive no matter how much someone may have hurt me. And God would never ever tell me to do something that He knew that I wasn’t capable of doing. And, I have learned that all of my experiences have made me who I am, so I am actually thankful for them. Fourthly, God, through His Word, has helped me to not be afraid to speak the truth, and to not worry about what others will think of me for speaking it. This may have been the hardest one of all for me. When I first began to write these articles almost a year ago for others to read, I started drawing up in my mind things that I was afraid people might be thinking about what I was doing. Now let me be clear….I am not saying that anyone was even thinking these things. I’m saying that they were thoughts that came out of my fear of putting my writing out there. They were excuses that I was trying to come up with as to why I shouldn’t do it! I’m so glad I didn’t listen. Some of my thoughts were, “who does she think she is to be starting a blog? I remember her when……(whatever they remember about me, fill in the blank). What business has she got writing about the Bible?” My answer to these is this….within my role as a Christian woman, I have just as much of a right to talk or write about God’s Word as anyone else does, as long as I am “rightly dividing” it (2 Tim. 2:15), and, of course, staying within the boundaries of my role as a Christian woman to not “usurp authority” over a Christian man. (1 Tim. 2:12) This is why my blog is called “Spiritual Food For Women”. If a man reads it, then that is his choice, but I am not stepping over any boundaries. And, as far as my past is concerned……everyone has a past, some people’s may be just a little more colorful than others. David, Paul, and Peter did not let their past stop them from spreading God’s Word through preaching and writing. Here are a few more things I used to worry about people thinking, “does she think she knows more than anyone else about the Bible? She doesn’t have any right to tell anyone else how they should be or what they should do. What could she possibly have to say that I need to hear?” Here are my answers to these…..no I do not think I know more than anyone else. I know that I have so much more to learn, and that is why I am doing this…..to learn and grow. Maybe the ladies that read my posts can come along with me on my journey to learn more about God’s Word. Maybe it will inspire someone to dig deeper. And I do have the right to speak the truth, because I am commanded by God to do so. And…everything that I write comes straight from the Bible with my own personality and style of writing mixed in. I am not telling anyone what to do or how to live. God, through His Word, is who tells everyone, including me, what to do and how to live. Trust me Sisters and friends when I tell you that I’ve struggled with these invasive thoughts….struggled greatly. But, those thoughts are from Satan, not from God. Sometimes I still struggle, and I let these thoughts begin to creep back into my mind. But now I know how to get rid of them!! I get rid of them by meditating on God’s Word with verses like this….“For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” and so many more. (1 Tim. 1:7) Writing about God’s word makes me stronger. Regardless of whether my writing helps anyone else or not, it helps me. I know that this is what God wants me to do, and that is all that matters. God, through His Word, has helped me grow up as a Christian, and take responsibility for my own mission and ministry for Christ. God can do that for you too if you really start to listen to Him through His Word.

So what did I hear when I started truly listening to God? In my own words, it was as if God was saying, “Greta Leslie Thaxton Hoover, it is time for you to grow up. Stop being the one-talent-woman that my Son spoke of in Matthew 25:14-30. Stop burying what I have entrusted you with, Greta. Know your worth to Me, Greta. Forgive yourself, Greta. Forgive the people you need to forgive, Greta. Stop being afraid of other people’s opinions of you, Greta. Use what I have given you for my purpose, Greta. And keep growing, Greta.” I can’t tell you how different I feel today, as compared to 30 years ago, 20 years ago, 10 years ago, 5 years ago, 2 years ago, even a year ago. And I am still far from where I want to be as a Christian. I’ll be a work in progress for Him until the day that I go to be with Him. I give all the glory to God that I am where I am right now in my life. I stopped just reading the words of the Bible, and started letting God speak to me, personally, through the Bible. There is a difference. Meditating on God’s Word is powerful. The Bible isn’t just words on a page, friends. It has the power to change us if we truly want to change. Just listen to Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” What other book in the history of books has ever been described in this way? “Living and powerful”? A discerner of the thoughts and intents of our hearts? Wow! I’ll be honest….when I used to read this verse, it just didn’t sink in what it was truly saying.  I often think….what if I had never begun to meditate on God’s Word? What if I had never begun to really listen to God? What if I never understood His Word the way that He wanted me to? I can’t answer the what ifs and I don’t need to dwell on them. Do I wish I had started sooner in my life? It’s only natural that my answer to that is yes. Of course I do! But I just wasn’t ready, and I wouldn’t be who I am without all my past experiences…..the good and the bad…..the failures and the successes. God needs me where I am right now. He needs you where you are as well. Wherever you are in your life at this moment, just know that you can change and you can grow, but change and growth will only come through listening to and obeying God’s Word. I would not be writing this article today had I not made changes in how I listen to God…..through reading, studying, and meditating on God’s Word, and how I pray to Him. Let God speak to you and help you grow. You will be so very blessed if you do. I hope everyone has a blessed weekend. Love to you all. 

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Sources

merriam-webster.com

biblegateway.com

blueletterbible.org 

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life

Part 3- What should we “delight in”?

In part 1 of this series, I focused on the first line of Psalm 1:1, “Blessed is the man” (person). I talked about what it means to be blessed in a spiritual sense. We are blessed when we are in Christ, and have put our faith and trust in Him. When we do this, we have an assurance that cannot be matched by any other feeling. We have the blessed assurance of a home with God someday. We also need to understand that we won’t be blessed if we are not putting Jesus first in our hearts and lives. We won’t have that blessed assurance that comes from knowing that we have our hearts and our priorities in the right order. Ultimately, the reason that we are blessed is because we know that our future is set in heaven with God, as long as we are a member of His body, remain faithful to Him, and keep Him number one in our lives. In part 2, I focused on the rest of Psalm 1:1 which focuses on what to stay away from. I discussed the subtlety of sin, and how it can creep into our lives in a slow progression until we are completely away from God. The verse takes us through the progression of a person walking in the counsel of the ungodly, standing in the path of sinners, and finally, sitting in the seat of the scornful. It is a dangerous and destructive progression…..a downward spiral, as we might call it today. In part 3, we will begin to focus on the positive!! What things should we dwell on in order to lead a blessed life? 

In the next verse, the writer begins to relate to us the actions of a person who is blessed. We were told what not to do in verse one, and now we are told what to do in verse two. Psalms 1:2a reads, “But his delight is in the law of the Lord…… (Psalm 1:2 NKJV)  What does the word delight mean? In Hebrew, it means hepes. Hepes means delight, pleasure, desire, or longing. It can also mean to be inclined to or have an inclination towards something, which means “a person’s natural tendency”. (Blue Letter Bible, dictionary.com) With that being said, what does the word delight mean in our lives? Are we naturally inclined to bend towards God’s word and law? I would have to say from my own personal experience that as humans we are not always naturally inclined to obey God, especially when we are young and immature as Christians. I’m not going to lie, the world used to be my natural inclination. And believe me, I am still a work in progress in this. And….everyone is different. Some are more inclined to follow God than others. Some of us (me) are stubborn. Some of us (again, me) have to go through some hard times before we begin to really look into God’s Word, and see just how delightful it is. Don’t get me wrong, I believed it, but I didn’t appreciate what it could do for my life. Sadly, there are some who never see it as anything other than a book written by men. And there are some who want to twist it to make it say what they want it to say to fit their own life, or simply ignore the parts that convict them of sin. When I came to truly realize that God has given me the words of eternal life in this amazing book called the Bible, I began to delight in it. At that point, I wanted to learn more and more. Eventually, my desire to learn turned into a desire to share what I have learned with others. At this point, it is my natural inclination to bend towards His word, like a plant growing and bending toward the sun. I firmly believe that we can grow into this inclination if we are in God’s word the way that we need to be. We can grow to delight in His Word. I did, and you can also. Delighting in God and His Word ties in with so many other emotions and behaviors. 

In Psalm 40:8, David says, “I delight to do your will, O my God, and Your law is within my heart.” This verse ties in well with Psalm 1:2, because if we “delight in the law of the Lord”, then we will desire to do God’s will. It all goes hand in hand. Psalm 37:4 reads, “Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” Is this saying that God will give us material things if we delight in Him? No, not at all, because our desires of our heart should be our salvation and the salvation of others who are lost. Our desires should be spiritual, because that is all that matters when we leave this physical world. The desire of my heart is to be with God, and for my loved ones to be with God. But not only them, my desire is for everyone to obey God so that they can be with Him. If I am a true Christian, then that should be my desire. 

In Psalm 112:1, the Bible says, “Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments.” So in this verse, a blessed man not only delights in the Lord’s commandments, but he also fears the Lord. If we delight in the Lord, we will fear Him. The word fear in this verse comes from the Hebrew word yare which means to revere or respect. Proverbs 9:10 says this, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom….” What is it called when we come to a knowledge of how powerful and awesome that God truly is? Friends, that is fear.  How do we act on that fear? That fear causes us to use that knowledge that we have learned about God to make the decision to commit our lives to Him. How do we commit our lives to Him? We commit to Him through repenting of our sins, confessing Jesus’ name before others, and being baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (See the scripture references at the bottom of this post.) At this point, we have used our knowledge of God to make an informed, smart decision. Isn’t this the definition of wisdom? Using the knowledge we have gained to make decisions for our own good? Knowledge is useless if we don’t use it. What happens next? Well….we continue to “delight” in God Word. This will lead to more knowledge, more wisdom, and a life filled with blessings that only God can give us. It will also lead us to want to help others gain this knowledge and wisdom, which is God’s ultimate purpose for us. Another Hebrew word for fear is, pachad, which means dread, terror, or a sudden alarm. We see this word used in 1 Chronicles 14:17 when it says that “the fame of David went out into all lands, and the Lord brought the fear of him (David) upon all nations.” This was not a respectful or reverent fear that all the nations around them had for David. This was a fear for their physical lives. If we have the proper delight for God’s Word, we will fear (yare) God in the manner that we should. It won’t be a trembling in a corner kind of fear (pachad). It will be a wonderful, awesome feeling of reverence and respect that only comes from being a faithful Christian.

What do we delight in? There are many things in my life that I delight in…..my husband, my children, my grandchild, my extended family, my best friends, etc. I truly enjoy being with and talking to my family and friends. I am now an empty nester! So when my grown children come around, I am for sure delighted! They just don’t even comprehend how happy it makes me to spend time with them. And when I hold my grandson…..I am in a place of happiness that is hard to explain. It’s amazing how much joy our children and grandchildren bring us. But….where does my true fulfillment and satisfaction come from? Aside from the people in my life, I enjoy good music. I am definitely a music enthusiast. I love sports…..mainly basketball and tennis. I enjoy reading a good book. But….as much as I enjoy all those things….where do I find true delight? This verse says that a blessed person delights in “the law of the Lord”. To someone who is not a Christian or not a mature Christian, this might sound fairly boring. Why would I delight in laws? Why would I delight in someone telling me what I can and can’t do? But to us as Christians, it makes perfect sense. We are appreciative of God’s laws because we know they are for our own good. We know that we cannot direct our own steps. (Jeremiah 10:23)  Psalms 37:23 says this, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way.” The only way that we can be truly good is if we allow the Lord to guide our steps, and when that happens…..delight goes both ways. God delights in us as we delight in Him. We know that He has given us His law so that we can go to heaven someday. Let’s not forget that God doesn’t want anyone to be lost. (2 Peter 3:9) And…..since God’s law is God’s word, and God’s word is the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is God, then when we are delighting in God’s law, we are also delighting in God Himself, and in His Son Jesus who is also God. I know….mind blowing isn’t it! 

To sum everything up, delight is about desire. We have to delight in God’s Word, and have a desire to please Him. These go hand in hand. That desire has to be number one in our lives above everything else. I know that I fall short every day. I miss the mark often. But I am trying to build my knowledge and wisdom by being in God’s Word. Being in His Word so much more over the last couple of years has finally made me see what God wants from me. He wants my heart. He wants my love. He wants my commitment to His purpose. He wants to delight in me. Why did I wait so long to really work at it? I know that I let the world get in the way. I let my low self-image get in my way. God doesn’t see us the way that we see ourselves. Oh if we could only look at ourselves through God’s eyes, and see the delight that He has for each of us. I encourage you to get in His Word. Find your way of studying that works for you. If you haven’t found your way yet, it is time to start to “delight” in your wonderful, compassionate, merciful God and Father who loves you so very much. 

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Sources

biblegateway.com

blueletterbible.org 

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life

Part 2- How do we lead a blessed life?

In part 1 of this series, we talked about what it means to be blessed. We said that being blessed doesn’t necessarily mean that we will be happy all the time, but that we have a deep fulfillment that only comes from God. Because we have this deep fulfillment that only God can give us, we remain content and satisfied with what we have in life. We can also deal with the suffering and trials that come our way as we lead our “blessed” life. We are blessed because we have God to turn to in our suffering and hard times. So….how do we stay blessed in the Lord?

Today, I want to focus on the rest of Psalm 1:1. It reads, “Blessed is the man (person) who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful;”. What is God trying to tell us in this verse through its writer? It is actually a warning to us. It also shows us the progressions of how sin can enter into our lives, and then grow and fester until we are dead spiritually. Just like we can become septic physically, and eventually die a physical death from whatever infectious toxin has entered our body, we can become septic spiritually from the toxicity of sin, and die a spiritual death. So how does this progression begin? Well, it all starts with who we choose to listen to. First, we are told to watch who we take advice or “counsel” from. It says that we are blessed, if we “walk not in the counsel of the ungodly”. (Psalms 1:1) If we need help in making difficult decisions, where should we turn? Of course, we know that we should turn to God through prayer and through His Word first and foremost. But…sometimes we need help discerning what God’s Word says. This is especially true when we are new Christians. And even mature Christians need godly advice from godly people during times of great distress. Stress can cause even the most faithful of people to not think clearly, and need the guidance of godly friends. Let’s go back to 2 Chronicles 10 and think about a young king named Rehoboam who had a choice to either listen to the wise counsel of “the elders who stood before his father Solomon while he still lived” , (2 Chron. 10:6) or listen to the unwise counsel of “the young men who had grown up with him” (2 Chron. 10:8). His decision caused the kingdom of Israel to eventually divide. After King Solomon’s death, Jeroboam, who had been a former official of the king, came with all of Israel and asked King Rehoboam to lighten the burdens that his father had put on them. (2 Chron. 10:3-4)  Rehoboam asked the elders who had counseled his father to advise him in this matter. They gave him great advice! They said, “If you are kind to these people, and please them, and speak good words to them, they will be your servants forever.” (2 Chron. 10:7) But did Rehoboam listen to them? No, he listened to his buddies who he grew up with, who were young and inexperienced just like he was. This is how King Rehoboam’s young naive friends told him to respond to the Israelites’ request, “My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s waist! And now, whereas my father put a heavy yoke on you, I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scourges!” (2 Chron. 10:10-11) Rehoboam didn’t really want the counsel of the elders. He was only going through the motions of asking the right people. He knew all along that he wasn’t going to take their advice. Rehoboam was on a power trip, and his friends were going along for the ride with him. Ten of the twelve tribes of Israel revolted against him causing the kingdom to be divided, with Jeroboam being crowned as king of those ten tribes. Rehoboam was king of the Israelites that remained in Judah. (2 Chron. 10:17) If only Rehoboam had listened to the good advice that was given to him. Things could have been much different for him. However, because of his unwillingness to listen to good advice, Rehoboam did not have a blessed life. He had a life of turmoil between the divided nation that he caused. However, all of this turmoil made no difference to God. He still carried out his plan to perfection in bringing us Jesus. God works everything out for His purpose for the good of all of us who are faithful to Him. (Romans 8:28) But we can learn a lesson from Rehoboam’s mistakes and not take bad advice from ungodly people. Let’s take the advice that lines up with what God wants us to do. Didn’t it sound like the elders who gave Rehoboam good advice were godly men? It certainly did to me! If the people from whom we are getting our advice are using God’s Word to advise us, then we should definitely heed their wise counsel. God always puts people in our path to help us if we will simply recognize them, and seek them out for help. Godly people giving us godly advice help us lead a blessed life. The word path brings me to my second point. What path are we on?

Let’s move on to the next part of the verse. It says we are blessed if we don’t “stand in the path of sinners”. (Psalms 1:1) In the above paragraph, I said that God will line our path with godly people who will give us good advice along the way. This only happens if we are on that righteous path. But….do we sometimes go off-road and get advice? Does this normally work out for us as Christians? Well….first of all, straying off the path of God for any reason at all never works out for us as Christians. It leaves us confused and lost. If we are seeking advice from someone off of God’s path, then we were probably beginning to get off the path to begin with, or toeing that line very closely. Proverbs 4:14-15 says, “Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of evil. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn away from it and pass on.” This is a straightforward warning from God’s Word. It doesn’t get much plainer than that. Of course, staying on the right path includes seeking advice from the people who are on the right path along with us. Have you ever had a time in your life when you sought out and took advice from someone who was either not a Christian or not a faithful Christian? Why did you do it? I know why I did it. First of all, I already had one foot off the righteous path anyway. Plus, I did it because deep inside, I didn’t want to hear God’s advice through godly people. I wanted my actions to be justified. I wanted to do what I wanted to do, and I wanted someone to tell me that I was fine. And I heard what I wanted to hear from those folks, which was something like this…… “You are a good person, and that is all that matters. God loves you no matter what. What you are doing is no big deal. There are a lot worse things you could be doing. If you are happy, that is all that matters. You are not hurting anyone. God doesn’t expect you to be perfect. Nobody is perfect. You are just enjoying life. No worries friend.” Does any of that sound familiar to anyone else besides me? These are some words of advice that I have gotten in my lifetime when I was toeing that line, and listening to my friends who were not Christians or not faithful Christians. I need to also be honest and say that I have been the unwise counsel to some friends in the past. I said things like that to others which saddens my heart. I justified my friends’ sins with some of the very words above. You see….justifying their sin helped me justify mine. Do you see the progression of sin in a person’s life? First, the person listens to bad advice. Next he/she acts on the advice. And then eventually, the person who first listened to the bad advice, is the one giving more bad advice to someone else. It is a snowball effect. I ask you, did any of that advice above come from God’s Word? The only thing that lines up with God’s Word is that “God loves me no matter what”, because He certainly does. He loved me while I was yet a sinner. (Romans 5:8)  But does that mean He is going to let my willful sin slide? Romans 6:1 says, “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!” God also knows that I am not perfect, but He expects me to strive for that perfection as best I can. Am I striving for perfection if I am involved in willful sin and trying to justify it? Sisters, you know the answer, even if you are in a place in your life where you don’t want to admit it. If that is the case, just know that I have been where you are….and I’m so thankful that I did a 180, turned back to God, and turned to some of my godly sisters in Christ to help me get back to where I needed to be. If you are where I was, then I’m here to tell you that you can make that turnaround anytime. As the Nike slogan says, “Just do it!” Don’t procrastinate what you know you need to do for your eternal soul. And remember…..anytime someone gives you advice, hold that advice up next to God’s Word and see if it matches up. If we want to lead a blessed life, we need to seek out godly advice from God’s Word and from godly people, and stay on the path that leads to an eternity in heaven with Jesus. Jesus gave us some good advice about what path to take in Matthew 7:13-14 when he said these words, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” I believe this verse speaks for itself, and needs no explanation.

What happens if you stay in the path of sinners? And you continue to take bad advice from ungodly people? And you continue to hang out with the wrong crowd? Friends, if you listen to the wrong people long enough, and stay on the wrong path long enough, you will eventually find yourself sitting in the “seat of the scornful”. (Psalm 1:1) At this point, you are far off the righteous path, and nowhere close to leading a blessed life. What does it mean to be scornful? To be scornful means to express extreme contempt. (vocabulary.com) Some synonyms that I have found for this word are: contemptuous, mocking, scoffing, and jeering. (Thesaurus.com) A scornful person is someone who makes fun of others for doing what is right according to God. They laugh at Christians for using God’s Word as a guide for their life. And they don’t do this in private! They do it openly, in public and on social media. They make fun of us for not going along with society’s norms. A scornful person may be very nice to start with….that is, until you say something that is opposite what they believe to be true. Then they will become arrogant, defiant, and hateful towards you. Many of these people are miserable, because of the life they are leading. They are usually negative, pessimistic, and cynical. They need Jesus. We need to pray for them to somehow be led to the truth. 

Specifically speaking, there are also people in other religious bodies who are scornful towards the church of Christ in particular, because we don’t compromise God’s word in any way. We don’t have musical instruments, because the New Testament church did not use them. It’s simple. We are told to sing, so we sing. (Colossians 3:16, Ephesians 5:19) Other religious bodies criticize us because we teach against having manmade musical instruments included in worship to God. We also don’t believe that a person is saved from their sins until they are buried with Christ in baptism. This goes against the norm of what other religious organizations teach. However, we have scriptures to back all of this up which include every conversion story in the book of Acts (11 total), but we are still ostracized for our stand on this subject. Some folks think it is ridiculous that our members are “baptized for the remission of sins” in order to “put on Christ”. (Acts 2:38) (Galatians 3:27) But not only do we believe what the apostles say in Acts about baptism, but we believe what Jesus said about baptism as well, not to mention that Jesus was baptized Himself. He did this as an example for us, not to wash any sins away since He had none to wash away. If Jesus was baptized and God was pleased, why wouldn’t we think it was necessary? Check out Matthew 28:18-20 and Mark 16:15-16 to find out Jesus’ words about baptism. If Jesus said for us to do it, then why would we argue with Him? So….if anyone reading this is not a member of the church of Christ, here is where we stand. We speak where the Bible speaks, and we are silent where the Bible is silent. We follow the Bible as closely as we possibly can without adding to it or taking away from it. (Revelation 22:18-19) We use book, chapter, and verse so that it is God who determines and authorizes everything that we do or don’t do in our worship to Him. And also…..when we share our faith with you, it is because God has told us in His Word that it is up to us to bear fruit for Him by spreading His message. We are His vessels. If we don’t stand up for the truth of the gospel, then we will be cut off from Jesus. (John 15:1-6)  Plus…..we love your soul, and want to help you learn the truth, and go to heaven. Don’t take chances. As Peter says in 2 Peter 2:10, “….make your calling and election sure…”, which means, make sure about your salvation. Make sure that you are saved. If anyone out there reading this needs help in understanding the truth, please reach out. I would love to help you or put you in contact with someone who can. Every word that I write in my posts is written out of love for souls. 

Now…..here is a question for myself and my sisters in Christ. It may be a tough one to think about. Can we be found being scornful towards others who don’t believe the way that we believe? I believe we can, and that is not ok either. You see…everything that we say and do has to be done in the spirit of love and kindness, but without compromising God’s Word. Sometimes it feels like we are walking a tightrope, doesn’t it? It certainly does, but remember….the path that Jesus told us to walk in Matthew 7:13-14 is a narrow one, maybe even as narrow as a tightrope sometimes. It is easy to be non-confrontational and just nod your head in agreement with everyone else, even when we know that what they are saying is wrong. We have all been there, and it is not easy to be the only one speaking the truth in a group of people. People may become obstinate and possibly scornful towards us in this type of setting. And then comes another challenge for us. We have to be careful not to cross the line, and become scornful in our response towards those people. It can be hard to keep our cool, can’t it? Another challenge for us is watching what we say about others who we either know or assume are lost. Do we ever make light of people who are lost? Maybe they look different or dress differently. They may look completely outlandish to us, and we can’t figure out why they would want to look so different. We must remember that we don’t walk in anyone’s shoes. We don’t know why people choose to do the things that they do to themselves. We don’t know what they have been through in their lives. Let’s remember to be kind, speak to all people that we come into contact with, and smile at those people. Just remember that God made them just like He made us, and He loves them just as much as He loves us. Remember God wants ALL to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9) We don’t need to stare at someone, and then look away when that person notices us staring at them. That is not how we would want to be treated. The reason that I bring this up is because I have caught myself doing this myself, and then scolded myself for being so rude and insensitive. I realized that I was breaking Jesus’ commandment for me to do unto others as I would have them do unto me. (Matthew 7:12, Luke 6:31) We certainly don’t want to find ourselves getting down on the same level with the scornful. If we have the attitude of a scornful person, we most definitely will not win anyone to Christ. In fact, we will instead turn them away from the truth, and that would be on us if we did. What a scary thought!

In conclusion, the progression in Psalm 1:1 is so clear. There are three verbs in the verse……walk, stand, and sit. First, we begin to walk close to ungodly people and places. Maybe we are curious about these people and places. We know that they are not Christian people, but they seem nice and fun to be around. We begin to listen to their mindset and way of thinking. We may think, “I can still be a Christian, and get to know them a little. It can’t hurt just to check it all out, right?” And I can almost guarantee that part of the reason that we are buying into this mindset, is because we are not in God’s Word the way that we need to be. Next, we stop and stand with these people, and realize the sin that they are in. But do we get away from them at that point? No, we continue to hang out with them sometimes. Eventually we begin to dabble in sin along with them. We may think, “It can’t hurt just to do this every now and then, right? It is really not that big of a deal.” Before we realize it, we are sitting with them, and they are our best friends. At that point, we are deep in sin, with scornful people who have no regard for God at all. This is how Satan uses people, places, activities, and basically anything that he can to lure us away from God. So what is the point? The point is….don’t even walk towards sin. Don’t be curious about it. Stay away from it. The truth is….if we are tempted to walk towards someone who is involved in something that we know is wrong, then we will probably be tempted to do what they are doing when we get there. If we fall to the temptation and continue in the sinful activity, then it will lead to our spiritual death and separation from God. I’m certain that Eve was probably curious about the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and we can certainly see where her curiosity got her. You can see the progression from curiosity to sin in her story. We can see the sin progression in the story of David, Bathsheba, and Uriah. What started with David taking a closer look at Bathsheba as she bathed, turned into adultery and murder. There are also three descriptive words in the verse…..ungodly, sinners, and scornful. This is the progression of the types of people in our lives if we allow ourselves to be led in the wrong direction. We can never lead a blessed life with God while taking advice from people who do not have God in their life. This will only lead to the deterioration of our relationship with Jesus and our brothers and sisters in Christ. Let’s take the advice of the apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 6:14 when he says, “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?” And let’s always remember that we are to be in the world, not of the world. (John 17:11, 14-15) The only reason that we should be walking towards the ungodly is to teach them the truth in love. If we have any desire in our hearts to be like them in any way, then we need to stay away so that we won’t be dragged down with them. So…let’s all stay on the path with people who help us lead a blessed life in Christ. And let’s help others to lead that blessed life in Christ. You’ve heard the saying, “She’s livin’ her best life!”. I want to live my best life with Jesus by my side. Don’t you? My best life is a blessed life in Him. 

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Psalm 1- A Blessed Life

Part 1- What does it mean to be blessed?

How can we have the most blessed life possible? I believe God’s Word tells us in detail the answer to that question. I feel like this is something that I need to remind myself of often. As a Christian, I should be happy for the most part. Of course, none of us are happy 24/7. But, I should not let the daily aggravations of life get me down and steal my joy so often. I need to realize just how “blessed” I am to be a Christian. Also, it took me such a long time to realize how to lead a blessed life. I can claim to be a Christian with my words, but does my attitude show it? Does my demeanor show it?  Let’s begin to break down Psalm 1 and begin to truly see how to lead a “blessed life”. We all want that….right? What does “blessed” mean? Is being blessed simply just being happy?

Psalm 1:1 starts with the words “Blessed is the man (person)…”. So…what does it mean to be truly blessed in life? The first thing that most people think of when they hear someone say, “I’m blessed” is happiness. This is not completely wrong. Being blessed would include happiness at times, but the psalmist is not talking about a person’s feelings of happiness or sadness in this context. We know that we can be blessed within our lives, and yet still have times of great sadness. Being blessed means that we are content and satisfied with the life that we are living. It does not mean that our life is all sunshine and rainbows every single day. It is a deep fulfillment that comes from only one place…..God. It is knowing that everything is going to turn out fine no matter what happens to us. It is that feeling of security that we have in Christ. We are blessed when we decide to put our trust in God….and upon making that decision, we then have hope. 

We see a beautiful picture of what it means to be blessed in Jeremiah 17:7-8, “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.” 

If we are in Christ, we can face the trials of life that come our way. We can endure when the “heat comes” and face the “year of drought” as Jeremiah calls it without fear or anxiety, because we have hope in Christ. Some people consider themselves blessed if they have lots of money and material possessions, but that is not the meaning of the word blessed in Psalm 1:1. We know that rich people are sometimes the most unhappy people of all, because they look to earthly treasures for fulfillment. I feel certain that many of you have seen the show “Little House on the Prairie”. It is one of my favorite shows of all time. The Ingalls family is considered poor, and they are always struggling when it comes to money, but they are always joyful because of the love they have for God and one another. And they are always ready and willing to help others even though times are hard for them. On the other hand, there is the Olsen family. They own the only store in town, and are considered the richest family in Walnut Grove. However, Mrs. Olsen is one of the most miserable and selfish people that I’ve ever seen on television, and she is raising her daughter, Nellie, to be even worse than she is. Her husband Nels disagrees with her constantly, but can’t seem to do anything to change her ways. In one particular episode, when the Ingalls family had worked together to pay off their bill at the Olsens’ store, Nels Olsen tells Charles Ingalls that he thinks Charles is the “the richest man in Walnut Grove”. Charles then says, “Nels, I know I am.” Nels envied the way Charles’ family loved and respected him and each other, and pulled together as a family to get things done. They didn’t need material things to find joy and happiness. Money and things will never make a person happy. In fact, when people become greedy and selfish with money, it makes them miserable. Money is not even a part of having a blessed life. Can you have lots of money and still be blessed in the way that we are talking about? Yes, but only if you don’t care whether you lose the money or not. The rich young ruler was blessed financially, but went away saddened when Jesus told him that he would have to be willing to part with all of his riches in order to inherit eternal life. (Mark 10:17-27) His love of money brought him sadness. To be truly blessed is having the assurance found in Christ….the assurance that we will live in heaven with God for eternity. It reminds me of the words of one of my favorite hymns, “Blessed Assurance” by Fanny Crosby.

 “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! 

Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!

 Heir of salvation, purchase of God

Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

This is my story, this is my song!

Praising my Savior all the day long!

If this hymn doesn’t sound like a blessed person in Jesus, I don’t know what does. I love it! Singing this hymn with only our voices in unity, together with my sisters and brothers in Christ is a blessing all in itself. No instruments, no choir, no one singing a solo, no one being put on a pedestal above anyone else….just a group of Christians offering “the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name”. (Hebrews 13:15) When we worship God in song, do we sing as if we are the blessed people of God? I’m asking myself this question for sure. Do I sing with my spirit and sing with my understanding? (1 Corinthians 14:15) When I sing the words of the hymn “Blessed Assurance” in praise to God, do I truly mean what I am singing? Do I believe it? Every part of our worship to God is a blessing and a privilege, and plays a huge part in us having a “blessed” life. We are blessed if we belong to Christ’s church, and we are able to “worship Him in spirit and truth”. (John 4:24)  Becoming a Christian is only the beginning of leading a blessed life. But how do we stay in this “blessed” state? We will break down more of Psalm 1 to find out the answer to that question in my next post. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend and a blessed holiday on Monday. 

On a side note, I hope you will spend a little time thinking about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and purpose, since Monday is a holiday commemorating him. If you haven’t listened to his “I Have a Dream Speech”, I hope you will. It is phenomenal. His quest was to bring our country together during a tumultuous time in history. He only wanted everyone to be treated fairly no matter their race. His vision was for us to live in a world where people would not judge one another by the color of their skin, and he was murdered because of that vision. God made all of us. He does not see color, therefore we should not either. God looks at the heart of a person, as should we. (1 Samuel 16:7)  Love you all!

Have you started your “blessed” life in Christ yet? If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His Word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

The Patience of God

Do you ever wonder why we are still here? Why has God let the world continue for as long as it has? God has kept every promise that He has ever made except the promise about Jesus’ second coming. In 2 Peter 3:8-9 ESV, we find out why Jesus has not returned. It reads:

“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”

God isn’t slacking! He is not just being slow. He is not indifferent about passing judgment. He is patiently waiting on everyone to repent, obey the gospel, and follow Him. Why is He so patient towards us? Because  God, who loves us all so much that He sent His Son to die for ALL of us, does not want anyone in the human race to be lost!! Notice that verse nine says that he doesn’t “wish” or want anyone to perish, but it doesn’t say that no one will. Unfortunately, there are many people who have passed away in a lost condition. However, there are people being baptized for the remission of their sins every single day. I see it on Facebook. I hear about it from other people. God’s word, the Holy Spirit, is still alive and doing its work here on earth. God is continually adding people to His church every day, because the Bible is alive and working in people’s hearts!! 

Listen to Hebrews 4:12 describe the living Word of God,  “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” 

As long as there are souls being saved, then I have faith that God will continue to be patient. God already knows everyone who is going to become a Christian. He already knows everyone who will stay faithful until death. He already knows everyone who is wayward at this moment, but will eventually be restored. Only God knows the exact day that He will send Jesus back to get us. The angels don’t know and even Jesus Himself doesn’t know. (Matthew 24:36, 44) Jesus compares His coming to a thief in the night. If we knew exactly what time the thief was coming to rob us, would we not be prepared at exactly that moment so that we could stop him? (Matthew 24:43) 

Peter makes this statement in 2 Peter 3:10 directly after our key verses, “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.” 

So….upon hearing all of that….do we need to continue to test God’s patience by thinking that we have all the time in the world to get our lives right? It is a dangerous way to live, my friends. I procrastinated getting my life right for years. I tried to justify things that I was doing that were wrong, and I made excuses for the things that I was not doing that I should have been doing. I’m so thankful for God’s patience. I know He has waited patiently for a really long time for me to somewhat get my act together. If you are reading this, and you are not a Christian, or you are not being a faithful Christian, then you are who God is patiently waiting on. How long will He wait? We don’t know! Don’t take chances with your soul. God is patient, but we don’t know the hour when He has planned to send Jesus back. Plus…..we don’t know when our life will end. Anything can happen at any moment to cause our life to be over. At that point, God’s patience for us is over, and we don’t get another chance. Is God waiting on you? 

Jesus compares the end of time with the flood of the old testament in Matthew 24:37-39 when He says, “For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” 

No one knew when the flood was going to destroy the earth, not even Noah. Speaking of patience, let’s think about Noah for a moment. He waited patiently for 120 years while building the ark, from the time God told Him to build the ark until the time of the flood. All that time, He was trying to warn the people, and get them to change their evil ways while they all laughed and made fun of him. God waited patiently for Noah to build the ark so that He could bring about the judgment that was needed for His plan to continue. You see….a day, 120 years, a thousand years….it makes no difference to God. He definitely works within our human time zone, but He isn’t concerned about the length of time things take, just like He isn’t concerned about how old we are when we get our life right with Him. It only matters that we do it before our time runs out here on earth. Think about that.

Do you remember waiting for Christmas Eve or your birthday to come when you were a kid? It was so hard to wait, but you had no choice but to be patient. Do you remember being in the car for a long trip and saying, “Are we there yet? How much farther?”? As an adult, I get impatient when I am in a traffic jam or when I get put on hold on the phone for a few minutes. Our time is precious to us, and we don’t like to waste it. We are always in a hurry to get where we need to go. That being said, I believe we all need to slow down and enjoy our moments more. That is just a free opinion, but easier said than done, right? But what is time to God? We know that God’s patience is so much greater than ours simply because of this statement in 2 Peter 3:8, “with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” This simply means that God will wait as long as He has to wait for His plan to unfold. Whether it takes a day, or a thousand years, God will wait until the time is right, just the way He waited until the time was just right for Jesus to be born. Things that seem like a long time to us are not a long time to our eternal God. This part of the verse has been taken out of context by so many people. I have heard some people try to make this relate back to creation. They try to say that, because of this section of this one verse, we can’t say that one day during the week of creation was a regular day as we humans know it. They say that each day of creation could have been thousands, millions, or billions of years long. This is just not true. The Hebrew word for day (yom) in Genesis 1:1 is the same Hebrew word for day that is used throughout scripture. If we can’t trust that when God says a day, He means a day, then can we trust anything that He says? God speaks to us in our time zone. He is the one who made time!! He would not speak to us about a day of creation in Genesis and mean millions of years, and then turn around and speak of a day later in scripture as meaning a regular day. That is confusing, and God is not the author of confusion. (1 Corinthians 14:33) Most of the book of 2 Peter is focused on being ready when the Lord comes again and watching out for false teachers while we are here. Why would Peter have thrown in something that refers back to creation and time in this context? The answer is….he wouldn’t have and he didn’t!! This is just another of the evolutionists’ desperate attempts to prove their theories. Moses spoke of the days of creation when giving the commandment about keeping the Sabbath day holy. 

In Exodus 20:11, he says,  “For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.” 

There is no doubt about it. God made the earth in six literal days and rested on the seventh day.  If God was speaking things into existence, then why would He need a million years within each day to create everything? Don’t let evolutionists cloud your mind with their baseless theories. Nothing they have ever said has been proven. In fact, the majority of their theories have been disproven by the Bible. Watch what your kids are being taught in school, because the devil wants them. Through the teaching of evolution, Satan can put doubt in our children’s minds, and then it can grow and spread until they don’t even believe God’s word at all any more. Please watch out!! Dinosaurs are so much fun for kids to learn about, but make sure to teach them with the Bible as the main source of information, and don’t buy books and materials that talk about dinosaurs living “millions of years ago”. That is contrary to God’s Word. There are wonderful materials out there that teach children all the wonders of the dinosaurs while keeping the information in line with the Bible. Check out apologeticspress.org for some great materials. Here is the bottom line my friends, we either take all of God’s Word to be the truth, without twisting it to fit what man says, or we don’t take any of it. 

So…what led up to Peter penning our key verses in 2 Peter 3:8-9 about the patience of our great God? If we go back to the beginning of the letter, we see that the book is written to: 

“those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ..” (2 Peter 1:1 NKJV)

The book is a letter that was written to those with “like precious faith” the same as Peter,  which means it was written to Christians. The letter is Peter’s final pep talk to his readers before his impending death. He tells his readers to “make their call and election sure” with diligence after giving them a list of attributes to add to their faith, which included, virtue, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. He tells them if they abound in these things, then they will never be unfruitful and they will never stumble. (2 Peter 1:5-11) Does this not sound like a motivational speech when you read these verses? It is certainly motivational for me. This short book is packed full of encouragement for us as Christians. And the example that Peter sets before us is amazing!! Here he is, knowing that he is on the verge of death (martyrdom) just as Jesus had told him in John 21:18, and what is his main concern? The souls of his fellow Christians after he has passed on is his main concern. Listen to these verses, 

“...I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.” (2 Peter 1:12-14)

According to 1 Peter 5:1, Peter was an elder in the Lord’s church. What an example for all elders today!! Peter wanted his flock to have this letter as a set of reminders, words of encouragement, and a pick-me-up after he is gone. He wants them to have something that will be passed down through the generations. This letter was probably written sometime between 65-68 AD, before Peter was martyred in 68 AD, and here we are still getting the pep talk from Peter today. I love it!  In 2 Peter 2, Peter uses this entire chapter to warn Christians about false teachers. He says that many will follow them and “the way of truth will be blasphemed”. (2 Peter 2:1) Is this not a picture of not only the world, but the religious world as well today? 

He gives them a very eye-opening statement in 2 Peter 2:21-22 when he says, “For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

In my opinion, this may be one of the scariest statements made in the whole Bible, especially for people who have fallen away and left the Lord’s church. I can just imagine standing before God on judgment day knowing that I had salvation in the palm of my hand, but I followed a man’s opinion and turned my back on the truth. Or…maybe I just gradually became unfaithful and left the church, because I didn’t grow and bear fruit. Or…maybe I was there every time the doors were open, but I was not living my life outside of those doors the way that God would have me to live it. Wow. Just thinking about having Jesus, and then throwing Him away would have to make that moment so much worse. The analogy of the dog and the sow paints a picture of how God feels about us when we go back into the world after becoming a Christian. It makes me think about how He has felt about me in the past, which brings me full circle…back to God’s patience. 

But why is Peter reminding them of God’s patience? Why does he bring this subject up? If we back up to 2 Peter 3:1-4 we see the reason. It reads: 

“This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.””

Peter said that there would be people (scoffers) who would mock us and make fun of us for what we believe. The world says things like… “Do you really believe He’s coming back? It’s been so long! Do you really believe all that heaven and hell stuff? That stuff is all myths and fairy tales.” And then this one, “Do you really believe that Jesus was God’s son and was resurrected from the dead? He was just a regular guy who was a little radical.” And this, “Where is God? If He was coming back, He would have come back by now. Just do what you want, because if God even exists at all, He isn’t interested in us.” Have you heard things like this? Sadly, I have! I’m sure we have all heard variations of these statements. Wow! Peter called it, didn’t he? Aren’t we scoffed at just like Peter said we would be, because we follow the Bible and trust in God to keep His promises to us. Are we surprised? They mocked and made fun of Jesus for saying that He was God’s Son. Jesus said that the world would hate us, but not to worry because it hated Him first. (John 15:18-19) This is why Peter was inspired to write about the patience of God. Because He knew what we were going to be faced with. Peter was an elder….a shepherd of the Lord’s church who gave us one last phenomenal pep talk before he was martyred for the cause of Christ. Peter knew that God had been patient with him when he was weak in his faith, and guilty of denying Christ three times for fear of what men might do to him. Look back through Bible history at the patience of God. God has given everyone free will to make decisions for themselves. God doesn’t force anyone to follow Him. He never has! God has patiently waited as people all down through history have made bad decisions and turned away from Him, then made good decisions and turned back to Him, over and over again. God destroyed the earth once before, and started over again with only Noah and his family. And He knew that He was going to have to do that from the beginning, because He is all-knowing!! Does that not take patience on His part? Then one day, the time was right for Jesus. God always knew when that time would come about. And then….the time was right for His church to be established. God knew when those moments would take place from the beginning. And now, He is patiently waiting for each of us….waiting on us, Sisters…..to do all we can for His purpose….to help save as many as we can. 

Peter poses a question to us in 2 Peter 3:11-12, Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?

When I paraphrase this to speak to myself, here is what I say. “What manner of person ought you to be, Greta Hoover? Since all this is only temporary, how should you act while you are here?” We know the answer. Sisters, let’s recognize and be thankful for God’s patience with us, all the while staying prepared for the day of His return by “growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18)

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Love you all!!  

Are you in Christ? Are you a branch connected to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ? (John 15:1-8) Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Abiding in Christ

Part 2- What will 2024 look like for you?

Do you have a new year’s resolution yet? Have you thought about it? I make them every year. I usually start off strong and then I start to fizzle out after a while. It makes me feel bad about myself every year when I don’t keep the promises that I make to myself. What really upsets me even more is that the promises that I make to myself, I make to God first and foremost so … .basically I have broken promises to God every single year. I tell God every year that this year is going to be different!! Here are some of the things that I tell God I am going to do pretty much every year in no particular order of importance. I tell Him that I’m going to take better care of the body that He has blessed me with by changing my eating and exercise habits. I tell Him that I am going to get up earlier to devote a certain amount of time to Him every morning through Bible study and prayer. I tell Him that I am going to stay positive and not get discouraged about things I can’t control. I tell Him that I am not going to worry so much and that I am going to lay everything at His feet. I tell Him that I am going to try harder to find ways to talk to people about Him. And that’s only a few!! It’s overwhelming the pressure that I put on myself, and then when I fail, and I always do, I feel like giving up. That is why I have decided not to call it a new year’s resolution this year. There will be no making a list of things I am going to do differently this year. Because you see…..I can’t do anything on my own. I can’t change anything about myself all by myself. The new year’s resolutions may work for some people, but they don’t work for me personally. I believe that making that list of resolutions, for me anyway, is detrimental to me spiritually. It causes me to take my focus off of my Heavenly Father and put my focus onto myself, and I don’t rely on Him the way that I should. I am simply going to use the title of this post as my intentional phrase for, not only 2024, but for the rest of my life. My intention for the rest of my life is to intentionally abide in Jesus. If I can truly do that, then I might be able to have some success in some areas of my life that need improving. Obviously, I will fall short as we all do, but my focus will be on Jesus and not on a list of expectations I have for myself. I am super hard on myself, and not meeting those expectations that I have of myself, year after year, has taken its toll on me. Just remember this my sisters, nothing in our lives will truly get better, unless we are abiding in Jesus. I have learned the hard way that my physical, mental, and emotional health will not get any better until I get my spiritual life in order. We can be in the best physical shape we could possibly be in, but our spiritual life can be a shambles. So my intention from this point forward is to abide in Jesus. If I do that, then I will be able to improve the areas of my life that need improvement, whether they be spiritual, physical, mental, emotional, or even social areas of my life. I hope you will go on this journey with me and let’s be intentional about abiding in Jesus together. Like Jesus said in John 15:5, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” There are many people in this world with many God-given talents who accomplish lots of wonderful things, but they don’t follow Jesus. I myself can do lots of things that won’t really matter when I come to the end of my life. The one thing that Jesus asks all of us to do is to bear fruit for Him. I can’t do that if I am not abiding in Him. In turn, if I want to abide in Him, then I have to bear fruit. Therefore, without Him, I can do nothing. If I leave this earth without bearing fruit, then I have done nothing with my life. 

Why does He use this analogy of a vine and branches to describe Himself and His followers? Why does He call Himself the “true vine”? In the old testament, the symbol of a vine is used to represent God’s chosen people, the nation of Israel. Psalm 80:8 says this, “You have brought a vine out of Egypt; You have cast out the nations, and planted it.” This is referring to when God delivered His people out of slavery in Egypt and then gave them the land of Canaan that He promised them. In Isaiah 5, Israel is referred to as a vineyard in which God is displeased. He says in Isaiah 5:4-5, What more could have been done to My vineyard that I have not done in it? Why then, when I expected it to bring forth good grapes, Did it bring forth wild grapes? And now, please let Me tell you what I will do to My vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it shall be burned; And break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down. God is at His wits end with His vineyard, Israel. Israel is a corrupt vine in the above verses. He uses the good grapes versus wild grapes illustration to make a point. Wild grape vines are considered weeds and will overtake the true grape vine or any other type of plant that is around them for that matter. They are very invasive and will destroy the plant if allowed to spread. The wild grape vines represent the idolatry and sin that had overtaken God’s vineyard, Israel. God says He will not protect them anymore from their enemies. This is why they were carried into captivity. Jeremiah 2:21 also speaks of Israel being a vine, “Yet I had planted you a noble vine, a seed of highest quality. How then have you turned before Me into the degenerate plant of an alien vine?”  Wow. In other words, God said, “I made you my special people, but now you are strangers to me.” Let’s put this into today’s perspective. Can you imagine God saying these things about us today? Imagine our great God saying this on judgment day, “What more could I have done for you? I gave you My Son! I gave you a way to be with me someday for eternity. But you have allowed a wild grape vine (sin) to take over your lives. I don’t know you anymore. So now I have to cut you off for eternity.” Now does the analogy of the vine and the branches make more sense? It does to me. After I went back and read about Israel being referred to as a vine, and how God had to cut them off and allow them to be taken into captivity, the analogy makes perfect sense. God did this so that they would eventually repent and turn back to Him. This is why sin cannot be allowed to remain in the church today unchecked. It can destroy God’s kingdom here on earth if allowed to spread. It also doesn’t help the person who is in sin to allow them to stay in sin, and remain a part of the church. This is why discipline is so important in the church. There are many scriptures on the subject of church discipline, but here are a couple for you to reference if you need them. (Matthew 18:15-20, 2 Thessalonians 3:6) When I started this study, the idea of tying church discipline in with the vine and the branches had not occurred to me. It is amazing how God’s word fits together like a puzzle, the finished product being our victory over sin and death. Here is one more example of church discipline found in 1 Corinthians 5:4-8, “In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” Do you see the connection between the wild grape vine and the leaven? Both are representing what sin does when it is left unchecked, whether it be in someone’s personal life, in the church, or in an entire nation. We cannot be connected to Jesus and be living in sin. Our church cannot stay connected to Jesus knowing that there is public and willful sin that is not being addressed. No one is perfect and we all make mistakes and sin, but willfully being involved in sin with no effort to get out of it is what Paul is speaking of in these verses. The church at Corinth had a person in willful and public sin in their assemblies taking part in the worship services. Paul said no to this situation as you can see in the above verses. He told them to give that person who is in sin over to Satan, or in other words, cut the branch off! Maybe the person will wake up and see the error of their ways and repent. Abiding in Christ in our personal lives affects the church as a whole. It takes all of us being “all in” to spread God’s word and save souls. The vine in the old testament, which was Israel, was the vine that spread through the course of history to bring forth Jesus, who is the true vine. God, the vinedresser, cultivated the vine of Israel so that we could have the true vine in His Son. He continues to cultivate us as branches on that true vine. We, the branches, are a product of that true vine. The fruit that we bear is a product of our connection with the true vine. In other words, as long as we are truly abiding in the true vine, which is Jesus, we will bear fruit. What conversations led up to this analogy of the vine and the branches? Let’s make some more connections. 

Let’s go back to John 14 for a moment to see what led up to Jesus using this analogy. In John 14:15-18, Jesus says,  “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.” Jesus is telling His disciples, as well us today, that He will not leave us alone. He may not be physically present with us, but He will send a “Helper, the Spirit of truth.” This “Helper” is the Holy Spirit. The verses say that the “Helper” will “abide” with us forever. This Helper or Spirit of truth is God’s Word, the Bible. God’s word is truth. Psalm 119:160 assures us of this fact, “The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.” And God’s Word is God according to John 1:1. It reads, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Word of God and God are one and the same. I’ve heard of some who say they believe in a god, or, as some call it, a higher power, but they don’t believe the Bible to be the absolute truth. They don’t believe in the only true and living God of the Bible. But … .I have to ask those people this question … .how do we even know about God … .who, by the way, is the ONLY higher power that exists or has ever existed, other than through the inspired Word of God, the Bible. In John 14:15-18, Jesus is setting up His presentation of the vine and the branches analogy by assuring us that even though He may not be with us in the flesh, He will be with us through the Holy Spirit which is God’s Word. Jesus wants us to know that through God’s Word, we should always stay connected to Him. We can continue to be a branch connected to the “true vine”, Jesus Christ. Does this mean that we will always automatically be connected to Jesus no matter what we do? No. The Bible says that as long as we abide in Him, He will abide in us. Jesus is not going anywhere. He will never leave us. Sadly, it is us who leave Him sometimes. It is us who neglect Him. Can we stay connected if we don’t study His word, if we don’t pray to Him, or if we don’t assemble to worship Him? The answer to that question logically is “no, we can’t”. The Bible tells us that we must abide in His Word if we want to remain attached to the true vine, Jesus Christ. To put this into an everyday perspective, can we stay connected to anyone or anything if we don’t put forth some effort ourselves? If we don’t stay connected with friends and family, then we will lose our connection with them. If one of our friends makes an effort to have a relationship with us and we just keep blowing them off, what is eventually going to happen? They will eventually stop making the effort. We may come to realize our mistakes and try to apologize for our neglect of the friendship, but who knows if the relationship will ever be the same as before. However, with Jesus, all we have to do is reach out to Him and He will pull us right back to Him just the same as we were before. We may blow Jesus off over and over but guess what?  He will forgive us over and over again as long as our hearts are sincere. That is the beauty of being in Christ. 

To sum all of this up, Christ has to be number one in our lives if we are truly abiding in Him properly. Abiding in anything requires faith in what you are abiding in. We have to have true faith in Christ or we won’t be able to abide in Him. Another word for abide is to remain. It is not a jump in and jump out type of situation. We can’t just abide in Christ when it is convenient for us, because it won’t always be convenient. Abiding has to be constant. It is not just showing up for church on Sundays and Wednesdays. That is only a part of it. Being at every service is the very least we can do. Abiding is a twenty-four hour a day, seven day a week responsibility. It is sort of like being a parent to a newborn baby or any age child for that matter. I just use a newborn because he/she is totally dependent on you every second of every day. You abide in that role as a parent every second of every day. We abide in Christ in much the same way. It is not easy and it won’t come naturally without effort. Jesus depends on us to be His branches that bear fruit through the spreading of His Word and Jesus is the Word. John 1:14 says this, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus is the word that became flesh for us. It is only fitting that we give our lives in service to Him.

So…I ask myself, and you ask yourself, what will 2024 look like for me? How can I abide in Christ this year? What does abiding in Christ look like in my personal life? In my family? In my church family? In my community? At my job? Abiding in Christ does not just happen without any effort on our part. It has to be intentional. We won’t continue to abide in Christ if we are not purposeful in it. Our choices are what keep us in Christ. Do we choose to set aside time for Bible study and prayer each day? Are we showing our children that example at home? Friends, that is where the fruit-bearing has to start, with our own families. But does it stop there? No, we continue to show Christ in our daily lives wherever we go, and we seek opportunities to share the gospel. Are we looking for those opportunities? Are we praying for opportunities? Are we giving of ourselves and our talents to the work of our congregation in whatever way we can? I hope 2024 finds each of us abiding in Him in everything we do. Our lives will be blessed and our cup running over if we do. Love you all! Happy New Year!! 

My friends…to abide in Jesus, we must first be in Him. We can’t abide in Jesus if we haven’t done what we need to do to be in Him. Are you in Christ? Are you a branch connected to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ? (John 15:1-8) Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Becoming a Grandma

Part 2

How big of a difference does a grandmother make in a child’s life? Well, I can say for certain that both of my grandmothers were huge impacts in my life. I loved being with both of them. When I was with either of them, it was all about me, and I loved every minute of it. I was the first grandchild on both sides and I could do no wrong in their eyes. The next two paragraphs are tributes to my grandma, Edna Cordelia (Bunch) Thaxton Hasty, and my grandmother, Wilma Edith (Bumbalow) Hill. They both hold a special place in my heart forever. 

My Grandma Edna was an amazing woman and a fine Christian when she passed away in August of 2009. I have no doubt that I will see her again. She was always thinking of others, and she had this way of making everyone she talked to feel special. Watching her interact with others was truly a thing of beauty. She was really amazing! People loved her, because she made them feel loved. She always wanted to make memories with me and boy did she ever do that! Whenever I was with her, it was all about me and what I wanted to do. Every kid needs someone like that in their life when they are growing up….you know? Someone that makes it all about them when they are with that person? Whether it was playing Yahtzee until 2 am or shooting hoops on the driveway, we always had a ball. She moved to Florida with my aunt after my grandpa passed away. I was only three years old when he passed away. She was only 49 when she became a widow….four years younger than I am now. How devastating that must have been for her as well as for my dad and my aunt. She eventually remarried, and started a new life in Florida. But our closeness was not affected by the miles between us. I talked to her on the phone often, and starting at age eight, I got to go stay with her for two weeks every summer! It was the highlight of my whole summer, maybe even my whole year! While I was there, we always did fun things that I wanted to do. She fixed the best meals with all my favorite foods. We played games non-stop. I learned to swim at one of her neighbor’s houses who had a pool. It was always an awesome trip! My trip usually included a trip to a beach or an amusement park or both, with her and my precious aunt. They were both so good to me, and gave me such wonderful memories that I will treasure always. When I was around 18, she moved back home to Tennessee. I was so thankful to have her close. I went to her house for breakfast every Saturday morning before I went to work in my parents’ store. After I got married, we would take Saturday trips to the Chinese restaurant that we both loved so much, and then have coffee at Waffle House before we came home. Our talks were endless and I loved every minute of them. Then, when my kids came along, it was all about them! She kept them for me quite a bit while I worked until they were old enough to start school. My daughter, Rhiannon, remembers her draining peach juice off the peaches for her to drink from a glass, having baked sweet potatoes at her house because they were her favorite, and watching “Price Is Right” and other game shows with her. My son, Jordan, loved to sit in her lap at church when he was a baby and touch her newly done hair that she had done weekly. Everyone in the building could tell that he thought her hair was just beautiful! Grandma was also a die-hard Atlanta Braves fan, and Jordan loved to talk baseball with her. He was a sports fan from the time he could speak. Both of my children got to make wonderful memories with her, and I’m so thankful that they got to know her. I’m so glad that she got to pass the special way that she loved me down to them. Her love helped make all of us who we are today.

My Grandmother Hill was a fine Christian woman who passed away from breast cancer in 2001. She was an example of pure strength to me, and I know that I will see her again as well. When I was young, I loved staying with her. She read stories to me from the books that she read to my mom and her siblings. I actually have that set of books out on display in my home. She taught me the books of the Bible, and she taught me how to crochet. I can’t crochet now, but I loved learning how to do it at the time. I just enjoyed the time she took to teach me how to do something new. It didn’t matter what it was. It was simply time spent together that was special. She would give me all of her Reader’s Digest and National Geographic magazines when she finished with them, because she knew that I loved to read them. I got to spend many a night with her and be the center of attention for both her and my granddad. My cousins and I would always get to go to their house for a week in the summer. We always had a ball, but I know we were a handful! I’m thankful for those times we got to spend together as kids. Grandmother Hill went to Draughn’s Business College when she was young. She worked for H and R Block tax service for a while. She eventually made the decision to leave H and R Block and start her own business. She was told by someone, a manager I suppose, that she couldn’t do that. But my grandmother did not let that stop her. She went to a friend who was a lawyer. Her friend told her that she had every right to start her own business, and a letter was sent to H and R Block from the lawyer stating that fact. She had her business in downtown McMinnville for a couple of years, and built up a good clientele. Then, when my granddad’s health began to fail, she moved her business to her home so she could be close to him as she worked. He passed away in 1993, but she continued to run her tax business for several years until her own health failed. Jeff and I had her do our taxes after we were married. She insisted on doing them for free. We would go out to eat afterwards and pay for her meal. When she became too ill to run her business, she referred all her clients, including us, to another older lady who was running her own tax business. She wanted to help another independent woman like herself to be successful. I was so impressed with how she did all that. My grandmother came from a time where women were not typically encouraged to start their own businesses. She showed me an example of strong will, ingenuity, courage, and confidence. I only wish my own children could have gotten to know her. We all need strong women in our lives as we grow up and I have so many, two of them being both my grandmothers. They both faced great adversity, and showed great strength in the face of it. I am forever grateful to God for them both. I hope that I can be a combination of these two wonderful women, for Brandon and all my future grandchildren…….with my own spin on it, of course!! 

Like I said before, it was all about me when I was with my grandma and my grandmother. I’m sure I’ll be the same way with Brandon and all my other grandbabies that come after him. I realized something that makes me really happy! With my grandbabies, I won’t have to “be the bad guy” the way that I had to be sometimes with my own children. That means, the bulk of the discipline will be up to my daughter and son-in-law, just like the bulk of the discipline of my own children was for Jeff and I. That is the way it should be, and that will be a nice change for me. I never liked being “the bad guy”. No parent does, but because we love our kids, we have to say “no” to things that we know are not in their best interest. We also have to give out consequences to our kids for their not-so-good behavior at times. I’m sure that I’ll have to say “no” to my grandson at some point, and possibly get after him a little … maybe…depending on what is going on, but not in the same way that his parents will. However, I can promise this one thing…I will be a godly example and influence in Brandon’s life, because that is my main goal as a grandma. It has been my main goal as a momma. As a Christian, being a godly example should be my main focus in every aspect of my life. If I’m being honest, and those of you who read my blog regularly, know that I am brutally honest about myself on here, I’ll most certainly be a much more godly example and influence on my grandchildren than I have been on my children. We never stop growing in our faith…or we shouldn’t anyway, and I have grown a lot in my faith just in the last few years as my kids have gotten older. My kids were here for the good, the bad and the ugly parts of me at times, and for that I’m truly sorry. I pray that my kids learn from my mistakes. Every generation should learn from the previous one’s mistakes, and do better. I’m hoping that every generation in our family becomes stronger in their faith in God than the one before it. After all, the future of the Lord’s church is in their hands when we are gone. If God’s will allows it, I hope to see my grandson Brandon, and my future grandchildren grow up to be faithful Christians, and have families of their own someday. Maybe I’ll even get to meet some great-grandchildren if it is in God’s will. 

As far as Brandon goes, I can help him learn to be kind, compassionate, respectful, and well-behaved when he is with me, just like I know his parents will want him to be. And that in itself, will help in the raising of him to be a fine, Christian man someday. I’ll do my part when I have him. It takes a village to raise a child. Every person in a child’s life has a part in influencing him/her whether the influence is good or bad. I want to help my daughter and son-in-law in whatever way that I can whenever they need me, without overstepping my boundaries, of course. The one thing that I am so thankful for is that Brandon has two parents who are faithful Christians, and who have his eternal destination as their top priority. They see the big picture of his life, and for that I am truly grateful. I’ve learned that as parents and grandparents, we have to look at our babies through Jesus’ eyes. Jesus sees an even bigger picture in our children than we do. What is He looking for in them as they grow into adulthood? I think about what Jesus said in Mark 10:14-16, Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them. But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it. ”And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them. We can learn a lot from what Jesus says about children in these verses. We are to become like children in our relationship with God, and fully rely on Him in much the same way that Brandon fully relies on his parents as a newborn. Becoming child-like is harder than we realize. As we grow older, we often try to rely on our own strength. Let’s never forget that God is behind everything that we are able to accomplish, and He is the reason that we are who we are. God has entrusted us with the special gift of children and grandchildren. I am reminded of Deuteronomy 6:4-9, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” God has not changed his mind on how we should raise our children. He expects the same thing from us today as he did back in Deuteronomy. I absolutely believe that God has given us our children and grandchildren to bring us joy. There is no doubt in my mind about that. But….He has also given them to us to bear fruit for Him, to raise them to honor Him with their lives, and to teach them the truth of the gospel, so that they can have the best and healthiest lifestyle while they are here, and make it to heaven someday. This is our greatest mission in life……helping our families make it to heaven.

Can you think of a grandmother who is mentioned by name in the Bible who had a powerful influence on her grandson? As I think about a godly grandmother, I think of Timothy’s grandmother Lois. When Paul wrote his second epistle to Timothy, he called Timothy his “beloved son”. Paul was not married and had no children so this meant that Timothy was like a son to him. In 1 Timothy 1:2, Paul refers to Timothy as “a true son in the faith”. Paul was a mentor and a father figure to Timothy in the faith. In Acts 16:1, we find out that Timothy was the son of a Jewish woman who believed, but his father was Greek. Timothy was not circumcised according to Jewish law, probably because his father, being a Greek, would not allow it. Paul wanted Timothy to go with him on his missionary journeys. He was circumcised before he began his journeys with Paul, “because of the Jews who were in that region, for they all knew that his father was Greek.” (Acts 16:3) Paul was afraid that the Jews would not take Timothy seriously if he was not circumcised according to Jewish law, especially with his father being Greek. It also says that Timothy was “well spoken of by the brethren who were at Lystra and Iconium.” (Acts 16:2) This says so much about the kind of young man that Timothy was, because people could be prejudiced against mixed race marriages, especially between Jews and Greeks. The fact that he was well spoken of was a big deal. And obviously his father was not a believer in Christ, because verse one says that his mother was a Jew and a believer and his father was a Greek, with no mention of him being a believer. Just listen to Paul’s words to Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:3-5, “I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also.” What a tribute by the apostle Paul to, not only a mother, but a grandmother! These two women together, raised this young man, Timothy, to be a fine Christian and missionary without the help of a godly father figure. God wanted Lois to be immortalized as a grandmother who made an impact on her grandson’s life. And in turn, her grandson had an amazing impact on the history of the Lord’s church. Isn’t it amazing? Through this one verse, 2 Timothy 1:5, God showed all women, past and present, that they can be the main spiritual influence in the family if they need to be. Ladies, sometimes we have to be the spiritual leader of our homes if our husbands are not Christians or aren’t strong Christians yet. Sometimes our husbands, even if they are Christians, need our quiet godly example. They need the encouragement from us to be the spiritual leader that they need to be for the family. Sisters, sometimes we have to step up the way that Lois and Eunice stepped up. We are not told whether Timothy’s father ever became a Christian or not. But it was obvious that Timothy was a grown man when Paul, through inspiration of God, wrote about his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice. God wanted these women to be honored for how they raised this amazing young man named Timothy. 

Thank you so much for allowing me to bask in the honor of becoming a grandma. I have spoken often in different posts about what wonderful parents that I have been so blessed with. Becoming a grandma made me want to reminisce and focus on memories of my wonderful grandmothers. It was an honor and a privilege to be able to immortalize both of them in this post. I’m so excited about the future. I’m excited about watching little Brandon grow up! Lord willing, I’ll get to see him do all the things that he grows up to enjoy doing whether it is sports or something else that he is interested in. Whatever it is, his Grandma Greta will be there cheering him on at every opportunity. But the most exciting thing for me will be seeing him grow spiritually into a fine, Christian young man. That will be the highlight for me! And that goes for all my future grandchildren as well. Love you all so much!! Have a wonderful Christmas holiday! 

Are you in Christ? Are you a branch connected to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ? (John 15:1-8) Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Becoming a Grandma

December 8, 2023….a day that I’ll never forget for as long as I live. It was the day that I experienced God’s circle of life in a new role. At 8:53 pm, Brandon Scott Reno was born. And in that moment I became, not just a momma anymore, but a grandmomma, or as “Little B”, aka Brandon, will call me ….”Grandma”. God is so very good and I am so thankful for all His amazing gifts. Every child is a gift from God. Rhiannon Brooke, our special gift from God, our baby girl, grew up and married Jayden Scott Reno, another special gift from God, and they brought our family another special gift from God in little Brandon. It is hard to fathom. I blinked and here we are. When I went into that hospital room and looked at the sweet face of my grandson for the first time, life literally passed before my eyes at that moment. Rhiannon went from being placed on my chest at 2:30 am on March 24, 1999 to having her son placed on her chest at 8:53 pm on December 8, 2023. Where did 24 years go? Like I said….I blinked.

In Proverbs 17:6 (NLT), the Bible says, “Grandchildren are the crowning glory of the aged; parents are the pride of their children.” I’ve been trying to put together in my mind the events of Friday, December 8, 2023 and this verse. When I think of the word “crown”, I automatically think of the “crown of life” that Jesus spoke of in Revelation 2:10. The “crown of life” is the reward from God for living our lives in faithful service to God. I can’t help but think of a grandchild as a reward in a way. As Christian parents, we try so very hard to raise our children to, first and foremost, be faithful Christians who put God and His church first, but also to be self-reliant and independent in their everyday lives. We try to instill in them that fulfilling God’s purpose for their lives and making it to heaven is really all that matters at the end of this life, while still teaching them to work hard for what they want out of life. It is a balancing act sometimes to put God first and also strive for success in life. And don’t let the world fool you, it can be done. God doesn’t expect anything from us that we can’t do. Plus….the Christian life is the very best life. It is definitely in our best interest and our children’s best interest to have God at the top of our priority list. In reality, having God as number one, and everyone and everything else next in line behind Him, causes everything to fall into place perfectly. If you have God first, then you will be a great spouse, a great parent, a great son or daughter, a great friend, a great employee, etc. It is when we don’t have God first that other areas of our lives start to slip. All this is what we try to teach our children. But…the thing is….we aren’t perfect parents, any of us, and we don’t always keep things in order the way we should. The key is that our kids see us making the effort every day. We make EVERY effort. I know my kids have seen me fail miserably at times. You see……they see us fail and fix it, and then fail and fix it again….over and over. They learn from our successes and our failures as parents. And hopefully someday, when we become grandparents, and they become parents, we can see them trying to teach the same things to their children that we taught to them. That is the crowning glory that the Bible is speaking of. It is the fruition of all the work that we put into raising our own children. The “crowning glory” is seeing our kids teach their own kids to put God first. We bear fruit for God in our children and grandchildren if we raise them to be faithful Christians.

The second part of Proverbs 17:6 says, “parents are the pride of their children”. I think about my own parents and how hard they worked to raise me to be both a faithful Christian and a hard-working productive member of society. I didn’t make it easy on them sometimes, that’s for sure! Did I raise my children exactly the same way that I was raised? No, I put my own spin on it as we all do. However, I did try my best to raise them to be faithful Christians, in just the same way that I was raised. Their example molded me and I’m so thankful for it. I have the best parents anyone could ever ask for. They are selfless. I didn’t really realize the love that my parents had for me until I had my own children. And now that I’m a grandma, I realize the love that my parents have for my children. Wow. Bless their hearts. I’m so proud that they are my parents and my children’s grandparents. And what was it like to see them hold their new great-grandson, you ask? That…my friends….was priceless. And there is the “pride” that Proverbs 17:6 is referring to.

The love that I have for my kids is immeasurable. I didn’t think I could love anyone in the same way that I love my kids, that is…..until Brandon was born this past Friday night. And I certainly love him immeasurably. And it will be the same for all my future grandchildren. I have room in my heart for as many as God’s will allows. My cup runneth over. I am so blessed. 

I leave you with the second verse of the hymn, “Because He Lives”. This verse brings so many emotions back for me. I remember my dad leading this song at church after both my babies were born. Not sure if he did that on purpose or if it just happened by coincidence, but it made an impact on me. 

How sweet to hold a newborn baby,

And feel the pride and joy he/she brings;

But greater still the calm assurance:

This child can face uncertain days because He Lives!

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow,

Because He lives, all fear is gone;

Because I know He holds the future,

And life is worth the living,

Just because He lives!

I know that I was in the middle of a series on “Abiding in Christ”. I will pick back up on that in a couple of weeks. I’m going to continue to write about being a grandparent for a bit. It has been life changing for me. Next week, I will write about the influence of my grandma and my grandmother in my life and write about the role of Timothy’s grandmother, Lois, in his life.

Are you in Christ? Are you a branch connected to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ? (John 15:1-8) Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

Abiding in Christ

Part 1     Pruning and Producing

In John 15:4, Jesus says, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” 

What does it mean to abide in or abide by something? The word abide means to comply with, follow, hold to, conform to, or stand by. One example that comes to my mind are the laws. We all strive to be law-abiding citizens. This is a part of being a good citizen of our country, state, and town. What happens if we don’t abide by the laws of the land? We get into big trouble, right? Another example that comes to mind is a dress code. I am a teacher and I have to “abide by” a dress code that is set forth by the county school board. There is also a code of ethics that I must follow or abide by as a professional educator. I am also told that I have to turn in my lesson plans on Monday of each week. What happens if I don’t abide by the rules and policies of my employer? Well….that means that I am being insubordinate and could be put on probation or even fired if I don’t change my behavior. We are all conscientious about obeying our countries’ laws. We are all very careful to abide by the rules and policies of our workplaces. It is called insubordination when we don’t abide by our boss’s rules. But think about this for a moment. What if we were as concerned about abiding in Christ as we are about abiding by the laws of the land, or the rules and policies of our employers? What does it mean to abide in Christ? How do I know if I am truly abiding in Christ? Abiding in Jesus is so much more than just saying we believe in Him. It is so much more than showing up for church on Sundays. I can show up, but not be engaged or connected at all. I can show up to my job at Bobby Ray Elementary, but if I am not engaged in my purpose, and intentional in my actions as a teacher, then I will not be effective. If I don’t establish a relationship or connection with each of my students and foster that connection, then they will not make progress. It is the same for us in our Christian walk. If we don’t establish and maintain a connection with Jesus, then we won’t be successful as a Christian.  Let’s begin by looking at one of the greatest analogies from Jesus on what it means to abide in Him.  

In John 15:1, Jesus says, “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser”. The dictionary definition of “vinedresser” is “a person who prunes, trains, and cultivates vines. To prune means “to cut off or cut back parts of for better shape or more fruitful growth” or to “cut off what is unwanted or superfluous”. (Merriam-Webster) To “train” a vine, the vinedresser will put a structure or trellis in place amongst the branches of the vine to cause the vine to grow in the direction that will promote the most growth. To cultivate means  “to till and prepare (land or soil) for the growth of crops” or “to plant, tend, harvest, or improve (plants) by labor and skill”. (Dictionary.com) Can you see how God does all these things in our lives as Christians? 

In John 15:2, Jesus says, “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” So…if I am bearing fruit for God in my life, then God will prune me so that I can bear more fruit. God wants to get the very most that He possibly can out of all of us for His purpose while we are here on earth. If something is keeping us from being the best we can be for Him, then He is going to try to prune us. But the truth is, we are never the best we can be, are we? We can always do more, so…..God will prune us for as long as we are alive and living our lives for His purpose. But….what if I don’t accept and recognize when God is trying to prune me?  If I don’t allow God to prune me, then I will eventually become unfruitful. What happens when I become unfruitful? John 15:2 says that every branch in Jesus (the true vine) that does not bear fruit will be taken away by God (the vinedresser). Is this as scary sounding to you as it is to me? I’m picturing a dead branch on the vine. Here comes the vinedresser. He cuts it off, throws it in a pile with other dead branches to make a big brush pile. Then we know what happens next!! The pile of useless dead branches is burned!! You see…..the dead branches can hinder the healthy branches from growing and producing fruit. In John 15:6, Jesus says, “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.” I don’t know about any of you all, but I do not want to be a part of that brush pile! 

How does God prune us? Well…..maybe I have someone or something in my life that is hindering me from reaching my potential as a fruit-bearer for God. It could be a bad habit or even an addiction. It could be that this habit has taken me completely away from God. I may have allowed myself to become a dead branch. Maybe it is a hobby that I am putting ahead of God. Maybe it is a person who is a negative influence on me. Notice that the definition says “to cut off or cut back”. For example, if I am involved in an activity or habit that is detrimental to my spiritual or physical health, then I need to prune or “cut off” that activity or habit. If it is an addiction to a substance, then we may need professional help to kick whatever the habit is. When our bad behavior convicts us, then guess what? That is God trying to prune us. Will we let him? There may be people that we need to completely cut out of our lives. I know that sounds extreme, but nothing is more important than our souls, and where we spend eternity. If I can’t be around a person without saying and doing things that are uncharacteristic of a Christian, then I need to allow God to prune that person from my life. Do you know that feeling that you have inside when you know that a person is just not good for you? You have fun with them, but it is not the kind of fun that Christians should be having and you know it….deep inside. That conviction that you feel is God trying to prune that person from your life. Will you let Him? I’ve had this happen multiple times. And I eventually realized that I had to make the effort to distance myself from the person. God wasn’t going to do it for me. It was my choice. But….when I started making the effort to distance myself, it seemed like something would always happen that took that person out of my path. I didn’t realize it at the time, but looking back now, I see it. God helped me prune people from my life, but only after I was willing to let them go. Pruning is not easy, but it is necessary to grow as a Christian. This lesson has made me realize that God has probably pruned me out of others’ lives when I was the dead branch that needed cutting off in the past. 

God can also prune us by getting us to realize that we aren’t giving Him enough of our time. Let’s face it, friends. We can never give God enough, but we have to have Him as number one on our list of priorities or we are spinning our wheels as Christians. We are going nowhere if He isn’t first. In Matthew 6:33, Jesus says, “ But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Putting God first means putting His church (kingdom) first. Colossians 3:1-2 says this, “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.”  Is it possible that we just need to cut back on or prune away some things that are hindering us from being who God wants and NEEDS for us to be? Friends, let’s remember this….it is not just about who God wants us to be. It is about who God NEEDS us to be. We are His vessels that are to carry His message to the lost. It is us, my Christian friends. It is our responsibility. Whether we want to accept the responsibility or not, God has given it to us. He needs us to be committed to His purpose for our lives. I mean, after all, He is why we are even here at all. So I ask myself and I’m asking you to ask yourself, are there things that I need to prune away or “cut back” on in my life. I know that I used to spend a lot of my time watching TV or movies, and reading secular novels. I’ve cut back, but honestly, I need to cut back some more. For some, it may be scrolling through social media, or playing games on your phone that takes up a lot of your time. It may be something else entirely. Am I saying that all these things are wrong in and of themselves? NO! I still enjoy a good movie, show, or book. That hasn’t changed. And that is totally fine. But the intensity of my affection towards those things has changed. Why? Because I now realize that I love God’s word so much more than those things! I didn’t realize how awesome His Word is until I truly put my heart into Bible study. Psalm 119:97 and Psalm 119:105 truly sum up how I feel about God’s Word, “Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day.” and “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”  Now I can tell you this….I don’t feel that way about any movie, TV show, sport, book, etc. Nothing else will fill the void that needs filling in our lives. And even still, I don’t feel like I spend enough time in it most days. So….if we spend all our time with our worldly activities, and we don’t set aside time for personal Bible study and prayer, then we won’t be as fruitful as we could be. This has been me for so much of my life. It has been easy for me to let personal Bible study and prayer slide when I wasn’t being intentional about it. It may be that we let worldly activities get in the way of Bible study and worship services sometimes. I know that I can raise my hand on this one, because I’m ashamed to say that I’ve done this. I’m sure we all have. But…I had an example set before me that I will never forget. I remember when I was growing up, I never asked my parents, “Are we going to church tonight?” on Sunday or Wednesday nights. Because I knew it wasn’t even a question whether we were going or not. We were going, and I knew that! If the church doors were open, we were going, unless something out of our control had come about to keep us from it. I am so very thankful for my parents, and what they instilled in me in my youth. Jeff and I tried hard to instill that in our kids, but I know we could have done better. We can always do better. We all sin and fall short of the glory of God in some way every single day. (Romans 3:23)  I am so thankful that Jesus did what He did 2000+ years ago so that I can be forgiven for my shortcomings. I ask myself, am I abiding in Christ? Am I allowing God to prune me so that I can bear the most fruit that I can?

So….to end part one of this post, let’s make some comparisons and review. God is our vinedresser. He prunes, trains and cultivates us if we are willing to let Him. A vinedresser cuts back the branches to promote the bearing of more fruit on the branch or vine. He completely cuts off the dead branches so that they don’t get in the way of the vine’s overall growth. In the same way, God, through His Word, convicts our hearts, and we act on that conviction to prune or get rid of the people or things in our lives that are keeping us from being the best fruit-bearers we can be for Him. A vinedresser sometimes uses a trellis to train the vine so that it will grow in the direction that will promote health and growth to the vine. In the same way, God trains us through the Bible (our trellis) to grow in the direction that will lead to bearing fruit for Him, and eventually lead to an eternity in heaven with Him. A vinedresser cultivates (prepares) the soil to promote health and strength for the entire vine or plant. He wants to promote a strong root system so that the plant can withstand harsh weather such as strong wind and rain. In the same way, God cultivates (prepares) our hearts through His word so that we can face the storms that life with strength and grace. If a branch is going to stay attached to the vine, it has to bear fruit. In order for us to abide in Christ, we must bear fruit. In order to bear fruit, we have to allow God to prune us. If we do not allow ourselves to be pruned so that we can bear more fruit, then we will become a dead branch on the true vine (Jesus) and the vinedresser (God) will cut us off. Isaiah 59:2 says this, “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.”  This verse says that sin (iniquity) separates us from God. We learn in John 15:2 and 15:6 that if we are unfruitful, then we are cut-off or separated from God. So….being unfruitful is a sin that will separate me from God. I don’t ever want to be a dead branch again. I certainly don’t want to be a dead branch when I stand before God on judgment day. I can never do enough to repay Jesus for what He has done for me. He doesn’t expect repayment. He only wants my heart. He wants every person’s heart. If we truly give Him our hearts, we will bear fruit as we abide in Him. It will become more and more natural to us as we step out of our comfort zones and do more. So…..prune, bear fruit, and abide, my sisters in Christ! We can all make a difference!

We will talk more about how we can bear fruit for God in the next post. In John 15:1, Jesus says that He is the “true vine”. What does that mean? I will explore that next week as well. I hope you all have a wonderful week. 

Are you in Christ? Are you a branch connected to the true vine, which is Jesus Christ? (John 15:1-8) Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help understanding how to be saved, please reach out. I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can help you.

God’s Plan of Salvation

Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)

How Am I Stronger in Weakness?

Part 2

Key Verse  2 Corinthians 12:10

“Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”         

In my last post, I began to try to understand why Paul made the statement that he made in the verse above. Why does he take pleasure in all those things that cause him to suffer? He actually answers that question in the verse. He takes pleasure in his suffering “for Christ’s sake”. So… because he is suffering for the cause of spreading the gospel of Christ, he takes pleasure in his suffering. Wow. When I really think about that statement by Paul, it nearly brings me to my knees. I wish that I could be more like Paul and find joy in bad situations. I’m trying, but I am a work in progress in this area as well as lots of other areas in my life. You know, Paul was inspired by the Holy Spirit directly to preach and write exactly what God wanted him to preach and write about. But aren’t we inspired by the Holy Spirit today? Well, that is, we are inspired if we allow ourselves to be. We are not directly inspired in the same way that Paul was inspired, but we have the Holy Spirit. God’s word is the Holy Spirit, therefore we have the same inspiration and comfort that Paul had. But are we letting the Holy Spirit inspire and comfort us? I realized way too late in life that I wasn’t letting God speak to me through His Word (the Holy Spirit) enough. I was praying for God to help me, but how can He help me if I don’t listen to Him. I was also going to Bible study and worship services regularly, but that wasn’t enough. I needed my spiritual food every day. I needed personal Bible study….a special time set aside for myself and my God. How does this relate to suffering, you ask? Well … .let’s just think about this logically. Let’s just say that I am suffering in some way, and I beg God to take my suffering away. But my suffering continues. Maybe it even gets worse. If I am in God’s word and letting His word soothe me and comfort me, then I will grow closer to God through that suffering. Turning to God cannot be one-sided. It includes not only praying to God, but listening to Him as well. However, if I don’t get in God’s word during times of suffering, then I have nothing to comfort me. This opens the door for Satan and discouragement.  I may be praying to God for help and relief, but how can He help me deal with my suffering and my problems if I’m not listening to Him. Have you ever heard of a one-sided conversation? This is what we have when we pray to God, but we don’t open our Bibles and listen to Him. So if you are suffering in some way, open God’s word. Look up scriptures to encourage you. Pray through those scriptures. I’ve said this before but I’ll say it again….put your name in the scriptures that you are praying through, and make them personal to you, because, my friends…..it is personal. God wants to get personal with us, but He can’t if He isn’t given the opportunity. So talk to God every day, and read, study, or listen to His word at some point every day. Set aside that special time for just you and Him. That is what God wants from all of us. 

Believe it or not, our suffering has a purpose. It has a purpose for God and for Satan. Satan tries to use our suffering against us, to torment us and possibly cause us to blame and abandon God. Let’s think about Job for a moment. Satan tried every way in the world to get Job to turn away from God, but Job never did. Satan even used Job’s own wife against him when she said, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!”.(Job 2:9) But let’s never forget that Job’s wife was also suffering beyond our imagination. Job’s wife deserves a post of her own, because she has gotten a bad rep, in my opinion. I haven’t been through anything compared to what Job went through, or what his wife went through along with him, but I have been through my own troubles as we all have. Job’s story, just like everything in the Bible, is there for us to learn from. That was the purpose for Job’s suffering. His situation shows us that no matter what happens to us, we can overcome it. Do you think Job grew closer to God through His suffering? Read the book of Job and you will see that Job and God had a very close relationship while Job was going through all this terrible stuff. And the relationship was brutally honest. Job told God exactly how he was feeling, but…..he never turned away from God. Listen to Job’s words in Job 7:11, Therefore I will not restrain my mouth; I will speak in the anguish of my spirit; I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.” Job was not going to hold back. He didn’t understand why all these things had happened to him. We don’t have to hold back either. We are allowed to tell God how we are feeling. We can be honest with God about our feelings. It doesn’t mean that we are turning against Him. It will actually draw us closer to Him. He wants us to come to Him. And that, oftentimes, is how God uses our suffering…..to be closer to us. I had a very dear friend who has since passed away from cancer say something very profound to me once. She told me this….. “Maybe it took me getting sick to bring me to God the way I’m supposed to be”. I will never forget that statement by my sister in Christ and dear friend. Wow. What bravery. What strength. Now are we seeing the meaning of the “when I am weak, then I am strong” statement by Paul?

So……let’s go back to Paul’s suffering. Paul suffered from a “thorn in the flesh”. Let’s look at the verses leading up to our key verse, “And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2 Corinthians 12:7-9)  This “thorn” that Paul had was a physical disease or sickness. Paul calls this “thorn” a “messenger of Satan” to “buffet” or harass or torment him. You see ….that is what Satan’s purpose for our suffering is….a way to torment and even torture us into destroying ourselves by becoming bitter, blaming God, and eventually turn away from God. Whatever the infirmity was though, it was bad enough that Paul prayed three times for God to remove it, but God did not remove it.  It is possible that the “thorn” was an eye disease from all that I have read. I can’t say this for sure, but it is a possibility. In Galatians 4:13 Paul says this, “You know that because of physical infirmity I preached the gospel to you at the first. And my trial which was in my flesh you did not despise or reject, but you received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. What then was the blessing you enjoyed? For I bear you witness that, if possible, you would have plucked out your own eyes and given them to me.”  The whole “pluck out their eyes to give them to Paul” statement implies that he had eye problems when he preached to the Galatian Christians the first time. And, according to other scriptures, Paul had more than one infirmity. 1 Timothy 5:23 says this, “No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake, and your frequent infirmities.”  The wine, of course, was to be used as a medicine for physical infirmities, not for pleasure. I can say one thing for sure. Paul’s infirmity was not any kind of sin that tempted Paul. I’ve read some articles from some outside the church that try to claim that Paul’s “thorn” was some form of sin that he struggled with. The context of the verse does not support this and neither do other references to Paul’s infirmities. I believe some want to try to make this claim in order to justify sin. They want to say that God accepts sin by implying that God accepted Paul with his “thorn” or sin, especially since He didn’t take the “thorn” away after Paul prayed three times for it to be removed. This theory is simply not supported in any way. I’m just letting you all know the kind of false teaching that is out there about the apostle Paul. Can a temptation or sin be our “thorn in the flesh”? Absolutely. But we can’t keep living in that sin. We have to resist the temptation to commit that sin. Romans 6:12-13 tells us not to let sin reign in our mortal bodies and not to present our bodies as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but to present our bodies as instruments of righteousness to God. Paul himself said these words to the Christians in Rome. 

So what was God’s purpose for allowing Paul to keep his “thorn in the flesh”? To understand God’s reason, we have to go back to part one of this post where we discussed Paul’s trip to the third heaven. During this trip, God revealed “inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter” to Paul. (2 Corinthians 12:4)  Paul was allowed to keep this “thorn in the flesh” so that he would not grow conceited because of the revelations that he had been given during that trip to Paradise. Wasn’t Paul the picture of humility in his walk with Christ? Well…..this was God’s purpose. God wanted Paul to remain humble. And Paul was thankful that God allowed him to keep the infirmities. Paul knew that God knew what was best for him spiritually and that was all that mattered to Paul. The infirmities made Paul a stronger vessel for Christ. What about us? Don’t we all have a “thorn in the flesh”? We all have infirmities/weaknesses/sicknesses of one kind or another, whether it be physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual. The worst kind of sickness is spiritual sickness, because that type of sickness deals with our eternal soul. The other three forms of infirmities are only temporary. Let’s remember God’s servant, Job and the apostle Paul when we go through problems in our lives. If we are right spiritually, then we can handle whatever this life throws at us. It may be the most excruciating pain we could ever imagine, but with God by our sides, we will make it through.  

On a personal note, I went through a period of time where I was suffering mentally and emotionally in a bad way. Depression and anxiety were overtaking me. I won’t go into details, but it was worse than any physical suffering that I had ever experienced. It was hard for me to get out of bed in the morning. I had to make myself eat. It was hard for me to put one foot in front of the other one. Everything that I had to do was so hard. The simplest things were difficult. My responsibilities as a wife, a mom, a daughter, and a teacher did not stop. I had to just keep going. The only way that I was able to get through it was through God’s word and prayer. I found verses that helped me get through it. I journaled through Bible verses and wrote out my prayers. Even going to the grocery store was hard. I had Bible verses bookmarked on my phone so that I could stop and pull them up on my phone while in the grocery store. I had to pray through verses to go get groceries, friends! It was a rough time. And I know that there are many of you that have been through something similar. Many of you have been through much worse, and you may still be going through some really hard times. I’m just sharing mine with you so that you know that you are not alone. During this time in my life, I had a wonderful support system. My sweet husband and children were wonderful. I had some close friends who were always there for me. All of these people helped me along the way, but it was God who truly got me through it. I had to truly lay it all at His feet. The two-way conversation of praying to Him and listening to Him through His Word is what saved me. I am thankful for that time though! That time in my life taught me how to truly lean on God. It brought me close to Him in a way that I had never been before. Like Jesus said to Paul 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” His grace is sufficient for me and for you. His strength is made perfect by our weakness. 

What about the suffering of Jesus on the cross? Was it from Satan or God? Well it was Satan who caused wicked men to put Christ to death. It was Satan who tried to destroy Christ. It is Satan who continues to try to destroy us. But…..it has always been God who prevailed from the beginning. It was God’s plan from the beginning all along to send Christ to be our Savior. It was God’s plan from before time began to use the horrible death of His Son for something good. In Romans 8:28, the apostle Paul, says these words,  “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” All things, including suffering, work together for good, my sisters in Christ. Why? Because we love God and we are “the called” according to His purpose. I hope this post encourages you to never, ever give up. Keep fighting the good fight, stay on the right course, and finish the race. (1 Timothy 4:7) I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and week ahead! Love you all!! 

Are you in Christ? Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help in understanding, please reach out.

God’s Plan of Salvation

If anyone ever needs help in learning the truth of the gospel, please reach out and I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can. Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)