The Gift of Encouragement – Week of January 23, 2011

January 23, 2011 in Devotion of the Week | Leave a comment

Hope shows itself in different ways.  A verse in the Word of God, a smile from a stranger, a note from a friend—these kindle hope.  The Holy Spirit moves in various ways to help hope be realized as an active agent inside of God’s children.

When sad times come, hope seems far away.  The Holy Spirit stays close to keep hope warm in us even if we cannot feel or see anything positive right now.  Grief veils hope.  Jesus knows this.  That is why He sent the Holy Spirit to be with us as Comforter and Counselor. Even if you cannot look at the future with a promising eye, the Holy Spirit does.  Trust by faith that He is alive inside of you.  He will help you to look to a better tomorrow, and walk with you to it. 

Lord Jesus, You know how difficult life is when we suffer a sad season.  When these times come, everything hurts.  Lord, You promised not to leave us comfortless.  Thank You, Jesus, for the ministering presence of the Holy Spirit.  Holy Spirit , touch this dear reader now with Your warm and powerful hope.  Thank You, Holy Spirit, for remaining with us through the night seasons of our lives.  In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

The Gift of Encouragement – Week of January 16, 2011

January 16, 2011 in Devotion of the Week | Leave a comment

As I write, the view I see is of a pristine snowfall that rests over the landscape.  It is a blanket of white, unmarred by footprints, and undisturbed by activity of any kind.  Pure.  The clean cloak with the rays of dawn’s light glistening on the land encourages hope.  Fresh beginnings are at hand.

Jesus brings hope.  He is the endless hope always available to you and to me.  Fresh beginnings often look fresh and pure but do not stay that way.  Circumstances change.  We change.  As a result, hope is trampled and it may appear as though another clear and good beginning will not come to be.  It will.  You can start again with Jesus.   Jesus loves you deeply.  Dearly.  He loves you as you are, and as no one else can.  Take His hand.  He is extending it to you.  Walk out into the beauty of a brand new hope.  He will stay with you, and together you can build a today of meaning and a future of purpose.

Lord Jesus, You remain the faithful hope of those who believe in You and call on You.  Lord, be with those who read this message and need to be reminded that Your hope is real and steady.  May each know that in human weakness, You are the strength.  In Thee, Lord Christ, Amen.

The Gift of Encouragement – Week of January 9, 2011

January 9, 2011 in Devotion of the Week | Leave a comment

Stories.  We like to tell them.  We like to hear them.  Each one of us is living out our personal story—one day at a time.  Certain aspects of our stories are painful; others are joyous.  What is clear is that while everyone creates his or her story as they go along, we see in the lives of each other the sorrows and smiles that are universal.

No one is exempt from sorrow.  It comes.  But the Christ of Heaven came.   Because He did, no sorrow or transition you and I face is faced alone.  Believers in Jesus have His presence to accompany them.  Whether steps are sad or celebratory, Jesus will be in them.  Therefore, keep living the personal story that only you can live, and tell.  God created only one you; the you He loves so deeply.   

Lord, You give us life.  Life in You, and a portion of time in which to live and create our todays and tomorrows.  Sometimes our days bring joy; others times they bring tears.  But we trust Your promise to be with us always.  Thank You for being the hero of our stories, and for creating meaning out of them.  In Thee, Lord Jesus, Amen.

The Gift of Encouragement – Week of January 2, 2011

January 2, 2011 in Devotion of the Week | Leave a comment

Time.  We get only so much of it.  The Lord God does not inform us as to how much each person shall receive.  Therefore, each day is a surprise; a gift of time.  A portion of grace to spend as we desire.  A segment of grace to invest.

Portions of grace can be filled with joy and fulfillment.  Portions can be sad.  What the days bring are anticipated and unpredictable.  Therefore, when we face the times that are less than we hope, we are wise to remember that we do not face them alone.  We face them with Jesus Christ.

A new measurement of grace is before us as we enter the 2011th Year of the Lord.  What you will know in it, and what I will know in it, are uncertain.  God, however, knows and sees it all.  It is the better part of human wisdom to keep our gaze focused on Jesus so that we follow His leadership throughout the unfolding of our respective portions of grace.

Lord of Time, Thank You for all the grace that You granted last year.  Thank You for all the grace You shall grant to us in Your next gift of time.   Lord, may You give to us wisdom for the use of all that You give.   In Christ, Amen.

Transitions – January 2011

January 1, 2011 in Transitions of the Month | Leave a comment

                        TERTIARY ROADS

For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart.    Ecclesiastes 5:20

tertiary – of third rank, important or value

When snow falls and accumulation is high, news broadcasts begin to speak of tertiary road closures.  Weather has to be serious and hazardous due to snow or heavy rains to hear about these third ranked arteries.  To some travelers, these roads may be routine pathways to home or work; to others they are ancillary routes rarely taken.  But there are times when new roads must be taken for these are the only passages there are.  Tertiary roads are linked to every meaningful relationship we know in life.  Whether we are ready for them or not, we embark on these roads when grief enters relationships.

Every life knows endings. Endings come as a result of choices we make, and they come due to circumstances imposed.  Endings come due to abrupt deaths and departures for which were is no preparation.  Endings are inevitable.  The question that eventually gets answered (over a lifetime) is how and when endings meet us.  When they do, they put us on paths unfamiliar, emotional, unwanted, and lonesome.  Yet, when grief leads us on these paths, grief offers certain points of worth that could not have been on primary or secondary roads. 

Scripture (as quoted above) speaks of a joy in the heart; a joy that comes from a quick passage of time because life has been busy being lived while the heart was recording the living.  In an odd way, grief takes us on a mental and emotional tour of a particular season of our lives that held someone or something of value.  We may not even realize how much someone meant to us because we were so happy living life.  When a goodbye comes, it hurts to review and to remember.  That is the underside of love.  But it is still part of love.  The ache of goodbye is the heart’s emphasis on the strength of that connection to you, to me.  Even though it is painful to remember moments that cannot be relived, it is grace to have had them at all.  It is grace to hope to know of other joys to come.

God is a promise-keeper.  THE promise-keeper.  Whatever He said shall be, shall be.  He promised in Romans 8:28 that all things work together for good for those who love God and are the called according to His purpose.  All things.  That includes grief.  That includes loss. I take God at His Word.  I pray that you take Him at His Word.  He assures us that the tertiary roads we rarely yet of necessity must travel, are roads on which He shall accompany us.  They are paths through which He knows the way, and shall bring us through by the integrity and strength of His love.

Lord of Life, You know the way through all the endings and their adjacent emotional roadways.  Grief hurts yet we must travel that path.  In Your steady manner, You show us the way and shield us with Your love as we walk those weak steps.  Thank You, Lord, for Thy precious companionship.  Thank You for the gift of life we are granted to share with others.  What we exchange is a gift that continues to give exponentially beyond a goodbye; in You, Lord Jesus, everything lives and flourishes forevermore.   In Thee, Lord Christ, Amen.

The Gift of Encouragement – Week of December 26, 2010

December 26, 2010 in Devotion of the Week | Leave a comment

New year.  New hope. As we look to a fresh canvas of days, we are given the opportunity to again—to still—look to the Star, Jesus, for hope.  The new year will be filled with new opportunities and revelations.  They will come.  Be alert.  Even if your life right now is transitional, challenging or uncertain, the Christ of hope and purpose can guide you.  Trust His hand of love to usher you along. 

Whatever this year has been or has not been by your estimation, if Christ is in your heart, He has already redeemed the year for full worth in Himself.  Of all that Jesus is a part, He imbues it with meaning.  All He has ever done points to His love; a love  active and purposeful. 

Go forth, dear one, in the presence of Jesus.  He shall be at your side every step of His coming year.  Keep following the Star.

Lord Jesus, You remain faithful to Your people.  How we praise and adore You for the Saviour You are.  How dear You are to us.  How dear we are to You  as hold us in Your ever present love.  In Thee, Lord Christ, Amen.

The Gift of Encouragement – Week of December 19, 2010

December 19, 2010 in Devotion of the Week | Leave a comment

Christmas conjures different emotions in people. Because our life stories are unique, emotions show up for each of us in different ways; sometimes in ways we do not expect. If we grieve someone or something, grief is certain to complicate emotions at Christmas.  However, the very hope that Jesus brought so long ago is the same hope He still gives to you and to me today. 

Immanuel means God with us.  Jesus came to the world so that God would be with us.  He knew we would need Him so.  The birth of Jesus we celebrate at Christmas is far more than pageantry.  It is life giving and life-sustaining power.  God sent His Son to the world for assurance, companionship, and to demonstrate how very much He loves you and me.

When life is less than what you want it to be, the Lord Jesus is the more to fills you.  Hold to Him and His love and hope.  He is holding on to you.  He will not let you go.  He promised.  Know that.  Hold to that promise.  Tomorrow belongs to Him and you belong to Him.  Together you and the Lord Jesus will live tomorrow together in His abiding love and His upholding strength.

Loving Jesus, we celebrate Your birth and look to You with love knowing Your eyes of love remain fixed on us.  As we look on You with adoration, You look on us with deep affection.  Because of Your gaze of hope and love on us, we go on in Thee.  Amen.

The Gift of Encouragement – Week of December 12, 2010 – Third Week of Advent

December 12, 2010 in Devotion of the Week | Leave a comment

Anticipation can be good or unwanted.  If we desire to see someone special, look forward to an event or hope for something wonderful to be on the horizon, anticipation is exciting and generates enthusiasm.  Conversely, when life hurts and disappointments come, when loved ones die, and when we experience betrayal, upcoming events and occasions are often met with dread or indifference.  When hopeful expectation is not present in us, the future can seem grim.  However, the arrival of Christ changes that.

This Advent Season is filled with hope—not because of our hope.  Because of His hope—for us.  Jesus, the Baby of Bethlehem, came to a lost and dying world to bring hope and new life.  It is there for the taking although some will pass it by, and even reject the hope Jesus brings because of life’s hurts.  Jesus knows it hurts.  Still, He offers to you and to me Himself so we may draw on His hope to see us through.  As we anticipate His birth, He anticipates our receipt of His hope.  This is why He came. 

Lord Jesus, You came into the world full of promise and an endless well of love and hope for all to draw on.  Thank You, Jesus, for all You have made and still make available to Your believers.  Thank You, Jesus, for Your touch of hope on those too weak to reach out but still needful of all You offer.  In Thee, Lord Christ, Amen.

The Gift of Encouragement – Week of December 5, 2010 – Second Week of Advent

December 5, 2010 in Devotion of the Week | Leave a comment

Do you know that God is with you?  He is.  Immanuel means God with us.  Because Jesus came into the world, God is with you and with me.  When Jesus completed His earthly ministry, Jesus told us that the Holy Spirit would be with us to comfort and guide us.  As believers in Jesus Christ, we are never alone.  Never.

Do you believe that?  If you are going through a time of sadness and grief, it may be difficult to believe that.  Emotions may overrule that truth and leave you feeling empty.  That is what grief does.  But each moment that you feel depleted, Immanuel is with you.  He has His hand on your shoulder and His Spirit covers you.  This Advent Season is a time to prepare for the celebration to remember that coming.  For those who grieve, Christ remembers you.  He knows what you are feeling.  He is with you.  Immanuel promised to be.  Trust beyond what you can feel to His living promise. 

Lord of Life, we look this season at the merriment around us and yet for those who are emotionally tried due to a loss of some significance, feeling merry is just not so.  Jesus, You know that.  In Thy grace and steadfast love, please touch those who ache this season with Your comforting and assuring presence.  Thank You, Lord Jesus, Amen.

Transitions – December 2010

December 1, 2010 in Transitions of the Month | Leave a comment

GRIEF’S GIFTS

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.        James 1:17

When we think of gifts, more often we think of something we want and welcome.  A new book, a shiny toy, a tie or the gift of company with loved ones.  Seldom, if ever, is grief considered a gift.  However, hidden in and beyond its obvious sorrow is benefit to be revealed once grief’s shadow passes—which, it will.  In the Bible, the Book of James tells us something of perfect gifts and that they are from above, from God.  Grief is in God’s realm.  Grief offers something not readily seen when one is living in a season of grief but it is there.  In truth, grief bears several gifts—if we opt to receive them.

One gift is the compassion of Christ that often deepens in us in a time of personal loss.  To encounter a serious sever is to be especially sensitive to others who encounter loss.  Another gift is to realize the degree of God’s faithfulness.  It can become clearer when we grieve.  Without the absence of our measure of faith, we would not be able to see the immeasurable faith of God, and His hand that upholds us—regardless of how life hurts and how we feel.  Another treasure comes from Jesus Himself.  What Jesus did on Calvary for you and for me cost Him dearly.  When we grieve a penetrating loss, we get a little closer to comprehending the suffering Jesus endured and His grief due to separation from the Father.  We feel more keenly the love that brought Him to the Calvary, and kept Him there.  Ease and life’s lightness do not—cannot—produce awareness of such gifts, and concurrently shape more of Christ’s character in us.  Grief can.  

Christmas is a time of wonder, delight, and celebration.  The arrival of Jesus into the world is worthy of our celebration.  For those who grieve, celebration can seem far off and perhaps reserved for Christmas seasons to come.  God understands.  Others will try to understand.  Those who have ever suffered loss, already do.  It is worthwhile for those who grieve, and onlookers, to remember that the daily presence of the Babe of Bethlehem is here.  This Son of God grants joyous blessings but He came primarily to endure with us and for us the pains of this life, and to shield us from pain in the life to come. 

May this Christmas be a reminder that the Lord of yesterday and its memories, and the Lord of tomorrow and its hope, is with you and with me.  However Christmas is celebrated, Christ Himself is celebrated with and for the attention He gives to people.  This is attention He awakes in us through grief’s gifts.  We are wise to receive them and carry them with us throughout all the days of our lives.

Lord Jesus, You came to the world to meet people in need, and to rejoice with them in blessings.  At Christmas and throughout the year, we remain blessed, grateful, and humble by Your steady and powerful presence in our lives.  Lord Jesus, for those who are living this Christmas season with the ache of loss and emotional pains, we ask that Your touch be especially penetrating to them.  Please comfort those who grieve, equip those who encourage those who hurt.  Make and keep us Thy hands and feet to one another.   Thank You, Lord Jesus, for hearing our prayers.  Thank You, Holy Spirit, for directly our steps to be Your meaningful answers.  In Thee, Lord Jesus, Amen.