AT THE FOOT OF THE CROSS

NEW PHOTO BLOG

2012-01-09T21:27:00.002-05:00

I have started a new photo blog, The Splendor of God's Brushstrokes in My Little Corner of the World. Please stop by to visit.

HAPPY NEW YEAR -- 2012

2012-01-01T00:14:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year, dear bloggy friends and readers! I wish you peace, joy, good health, and many blessings. I've also been wanting to share this devotional by Ron Hutchcraft, entitled "Going Not Knowing," and this seemed like the perfect time to do so.
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Going Not Knowing

Mystery rides were part of growing up at our house. Usually it was a Sunday afternoon, and I'd pile our three kids, who were little then and never will be again, into our car for a ride. I think we explored every corner of our area. And as we did, we discovered over the years, a lot of great things. But I've got one son who's a lot like me. He wants to know the plan before we leave.

"Hey, Dad, where are we going? Where are we going to eat? What are we going to eat? What are we going to do while we're there? How long will we be there? What time are we going to get home?" He would pump me with questions; I felt like I was being interrogated by a police sergeant. Sometimes I knew it was better not to explain where we were going. Oh, we've done things that would have sounded boring if I had told about them, but they turned out to be exciting and I knew they would. Plus surprises are fun anyway. So, my kids got used to hearing two words when we were about to begin a mystery trip, "Trust me." I don't think I let them down. It was good training for journeys with their other Father.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Going Not Knowing."

Our word for today from the Word of God comes from the life of the Apostle Paul; he's still Saul of Tarsus here. Acts 9 - he's on his way to wipe out Christians. He missed some in Jerusalem. So he said, "I'll get them in Damascus. They all went there; I'll find them in Syria." We begin in verse 3: "As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?' 'Well, who are you, Lord?' Saul asked. 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' he replied. 'Now, get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.'"

Now, it's interesting that Saul's training for his whole life in Christ began immediately with a mystery trip. Yeah, did you notice that? He has just opened up to Jesus, and the Lord says, "Go into the city and you will be told." "Lord, what do you want me to do there? Who am I going to meet there? How am I even going to be able to see; I'm blind right now?" The Lord says, "Go and you will be told." Well, he spent the rest of his life living like that.

In Acts 20 , when he was on his way to Jerusalem as the great Apostle Paul and his friends were trying to discourage him, he said, "Compelled by the Spirit, I am going not knowing." See, you have a heavenly Father who often takes His children on mystery trips. Maybe you're on one of His mystery trips right now. There's a good destination He's got in mind, but right now He's telling you just the next step. In essence, He's saying to you as He did to Saul, "Go, and you will be told as you are on the way."

It may well be that you're in the middle of one of those times right now, and the tendency is to say, "Now, Lord, if you'll just give me all the information, give me all the facts, I'll start going that direction." And the Lord says, "No, you start moving in that direction I've told you to go, and you'll get more information as you go."

Now, maybe you're waiting to have all your questions answered before you move, and right now there are more question marks than there are periods or exclamation points for sure. Can you almost hear your Father saying as He bundles you into His car, "Trust Me, let's start traveling together."

Hey, He died for you. Is He ever going to do you wrong? God's mystery trips always lead to a destination that is selected with you in mind for your good. So, why not settle back, enjoy the trip, and let Him drive. Trust your Father and don't be afraid of going not knowing.

STEVE JOBS AND GOD

2011-12-21T21:59:00.000-05:00

This post is not my own. I found it on Ron Hutchcraft's blog, and am sharing it here because the message really spoke to my heart.
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STEVE JOBS AND GOD

When you're a kid, you're wet cement. Impressions get written so easily - and so deeply. Then they harden into the beliefs - or unbeliefs - of that kid-become-adult. Apparently, Steve Jobs was no exception.

Apple's communications genius/revolutionary, has been described as "intriguing, yet inscrutable." But as he battled cancer, he opened some windows into his mind and soul to the author writing his life story. According to the new biography that bears his name, Steve Jobs studied Zen Buddhism for years. A recent article in USA Today said, "He never went back to church after he saw a photo of starving children on the cover of Life and asked his Sunday school pastor if God knew what would happen to them. He was 13 at the time."

In a separate article, USA Today includes this near-the-end spiritual observation from Steve Jobs' biography: "The juice goes out of Christianity when it becomes too based on faith rather than on living like Jesus or seeing the world as Jesus saw it."

None of us knows exactly where Steve Jobs finally landed in his spiritual journey. But in his words about Jesus is a glimmer of the bedrock truth that answers so many spiritual questions: It's all about Jesus.

Christianity, the religion, never has been the issue - although many have been unable or unwilling to separate Jesus from the religion that is about Him. But Jesus made it all about Him, and Him alone, in the simple two-word invitation He extended over and over again - "Follow Me." Jesus never said "follow My religion" or "follow My followers." And He didn't say "follow My rules" or "follow My leaders." No, the only reason to turn away from Jesus is if you have a problem with Jesus.

As for "seeing the world as Jesus saw it," He saw it broken because people walk past the wounded, absorbed with themselves - as in His story of the Good Samaritan. He saw it cold and lonely and twisted because every man has chosen to ignore the Manufacturer's instructions and become our own god for our life. And that has brought us a world of bleeding families, greedy hoarding that produces global hungering, and an endless drama of people being used, abused and walked on.

And what about those starving children? Jesus said when we reach for them to help them, "whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me." And, "whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me" (Matthew 25:40 , 45/). Jesus is so personally identified with the hurting people of our world that He takes our treatment of them as our treatment of Him. With eternal consequences.

This Jesus that it's all about came here as "a man of sorrows, familiar with suffering...pierced for our transgressions...crushed for our iniquities" (Isaiah 53:3 , 5). This is the God who leaves the Throne to die on the Cross. He's a God you can believe in. A God who stands alone above all the wannabe gods of earth's spiritual pantheon. And ultimately, we find in Jesus the only man of the billions who've lived who has come back from the grave - and promised eternal life to all those who would "follow Me."

Behind all the fog of all the "sophisticated" spiritualities and dueling religions of our world stands one real God. One real Savior. The God who hung on a cross.

That's My King!

2011-12-18T13:17:00.000-05:00

From Dr. Shadrach Meshach (S.M.) Lockridge's famous sermon.

CREATION CALLS

2011-11-01T09:54:00.007-04:00

HIS GRACE IS SUFFICIENT FOR ME

2011-10-24T22:41:00.200-04:00

"...whenever our earthly stream or any other
outer resource has dried up, it has been allowed
so we may learn that our hope and help are in
God, who made heaven and earth." - F. B. Meyer

Several days ago, while making my bed, I found myself thinking of the Scripture verses about Paul's thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7-10), and how easily they could also apply to me and my longstanding financial challenges. Just as Paul prayed for the Lord to remove his thorn in the flesh, I have prayed for a financial miracle, which in my mind, would take the form of a windfall that would put me on Easy Street and in full control of my life. And just as Paul's request for his thorn to be removed was not granted, neither was my vision of said windfall.

These thoughts surfaced again this morning when I went to church to pick up a very unexpected little card stuffed with $20 bills that an anonymous messenger of the Lord had left in the Sunday collection plate for me. It was a very beautiful little card with a painting by one of my favorite artists, Thomas Kinkade, on the front of it, and inside, a handwritten message saying, "I have loved you with an everlasting love," and signed, "Love, Father."

On the way home, I pondered what a blessing in disguise my financial challenges have been. Not only were they instrumental in my rescue from the very dark path I was walking along that I had been deceived into believing would lead me back to God, but they have also kept me totally dependent on the Lord, and enabled me to experience His grace in ways that I could never have experienced otherwise.

I never cease to marvel at the creative and unexpected ways He has provided for my needs, and even most of my wants. I have a whole notebook filled with testimonies ranging from a check not bouncing when, in the natural, it should have, to getting a huge tip on a very small typing job; from receiving an unexpected check in the mail, to finding money in stores, parking lots, or even floating on the water as I walked along a secluded beach. Once I found a quarter in the middle of a cabbage, and another time, in a puddle, as I stepped out of my car wondering how I was going to feed the meter.

I can't wait to see what happens next!

SCARY TIMES

2011-09-22T23:36:00.001-04:00

Just wanted to share this very timely devotional by Ron Hutchcraft that I received by e-mail. I hope you'll take the time to read it.

Scary Times - #6385

You know, I'm just not used to news reporters referencing the Book of Revelation. But, I've heard some of them doing it fairly recently. These aren't ordinary times. These people have been referring to statements in the Bible about things like earthquakes and disasters; references to what the Bible calls "the last days." I mean, you think about what's been going on in our world, and in nature, and in governments, and you can understand why people are starting to think Bible a little bit. You know, the Bible talks about these last days--the last days of human history--the days before the personal return of Jesus Christ who will change things forever.

I mean, within little more than a year, there's been a massive earthquake in Japan, Chile and New Zealand. I just saw on TV a map of the Pacific "Ring of Fire," which is the part of the world where most major quakes erupt. It shows Japan on the northwest corner, New Zealand on the southwest corner, Chile on the southeast corner. And then if you go up the West Coast of the United States, the final corner in the northeast. Well, you can guess what the headline was, "Is California next?"

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You about "Scary Times."

Now of course, there's an additional concern in the aftermath of a natural disaster. We saw in Japan the specter of possible nuclear meltdowns, and that had people imagining some "apocalyptic" scenarios. The former Speaker of the House even called it "beyond biblical" what we were seeing. And then there's all those revolutions that are popping up on our news, it seems like almost daily sometimes. It seems like the whole world is shaking sometimes.

In our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus said that would happen. In Luke 21:11 He said "...there will be great earthquakes...in various places and fearful events." Of course there have been earthquakes for thousands of years, but apparently they're going to get bigger and more frequent before Jesus comes.

Jesus also said there would be "wars and revolutions" (Luke 21:11) and "nation (and that original word means ethnic groups) will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom...on the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity" (Luke 21:11). I couldn't help but think of that as I watch long-entrenched governments quaking with tidal waves of protests and revolution.

Then the Lord of the future, Jesus, went on to say that "...men will...be apprehensive of what is coming in the world" (Luke 21:11). There'll be upheaval in nature; there'll be upheaval in nations, and unrest in our souls. And then the drum roll! Here we go! "At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory" (Luke 21:11).

As the tsunami was racing across the Pacific, I saw this cable news banner: "People are urged to take urgent action to protect lives." Our potentially "apocalyptic" world seems to be calling us to one of two spiritual responses, or "urgent action." If you belong to Jesus, act urgently to tell people you love about Him - no more excuses, no more stalling. And if you don't have a personal relationship with Jesus, act urgently to give yourself to Him. That's how you'll be forever safe, no matter what shakes you, no matter what swamps you.

He is, after all, the Rescuer who died for your sins. He's the Conqueror who beat death on Easter Morning; He's alive. He can come into your life. And He's the King who will write the final chapter not only of human history, but of your history.

If you don't belong to Him, if there's never been a time you've given yourself to Him, let this be the day. These are urgent times. These are times to make sure you are anchored to the Lord of the future. Just tell Him, "Jesus, I'm done running my own life. I believe You died for my sin. I believe You're alive today and I'm Yours starting today."

Let me encourage you to go to our website and check out there some information we've put there. You can watch it, you can listen to it, and you can read it. But there are several forms where you can find out how to begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It's YoursForLife.net.

Listen to this promise from the Bible, "Therefore we will not fear though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging...the Lord Almighty is with us" (Luke 21:11). You know, as they say in those earthquake drills, "Hold onto something heavy." That's Jesus.

BOOK NOW AVAILABLE

2011-08-05T11:51:00.001-04:00

Just posting to let you know that my book is now available. To purchase a copy, click here.

MY TESTIMONY: PART V Sincerely Wrong

2011-07-22T20:22:00.001-04:00

"For false christs and false prophets will rise
and show great signs and wonders to deceive,
if possible, even the elect."
(Matthew 24:24)

The Sunday before Easter, our pastor challenged us to do something radical. I responded by writing a post entitled Sincerely Wrong. It was the first time since I became a Christian, almost 20 years ago, that I've spoken openly about having authored a book on numerology.

By the time I finished writing the post, I was convicted that it was time to bring all the other things I didn't talk about into the open too, because, just maybe, there was someone out there who desperately needed to hear it.

I always believed that the reason I kept certain things hidden, especially from my mother, children, and other family members, was because I was trying to protect them from being hurt, but now I realize that was only partly true. I did want to keep them from unnecessary upset, but if truth be told, the greater reason was fear of what they might think of me.

So now I've gone and done something much more radical than write a post. I've written the full testimony of how I was rescued from the darkness I'd immersed myself in--and I've had it published.

The book will be available in hard copy and Kindle form a couple of weeks from now. Until then, I have made it available as a free PDF file you can access by clicking on this link.

Back to the beginning of my testimony.
PART I Journey to the Foot of the Cross

IN THE PATH OF THE TORNADO

2011-04-21T09:46:00.001-04:00

This is another one of Ron Hutchcraft's devotionals that really spoke to my heart. I read it this morning and knew it needed to be shared. Ron has a way of saying things that I could not even come close to paraphrasing, so I've just copied and pasted the whole message here for you to read. It's entitled IN THE PATH OF THE TORNADO.

When the tornado sirens went off in town, I suddenly found myself huddled in a closet with two of my grandchildren. Oh yeah, and the local radio station on real loud. I'm not particularly thrilled about the style of music they play (which shall remain nameless), but they had the scoop on the storms.

As I'm reassuring the kids, I'm thinking, "I hope this closet will do it." Thankfully, we didn't have to test it. The tornado went north of us. At our own house, we've carefully thought through the safest place to be if we're suddenly on Twister Expressway. Our other children have basements. We're glad.

Of course, even a basement is not a guarantee that you're out of harm's way. I still remember those folks in that Midwestern town who thought they were safe. When the tornado warning sounded, they headed for the basement of a restaurant in a 100-year old stone building. What didn't occur to them was that the building stood on an old sandstone foundation. When that twister came through the middle of town, their place of refuge took a direct hit. The tornado destroyed the building, the foundation - and even the basement. And took the lives of all eight people sheltered there.

It's a sad story. Those folks knew they had to seek safety - and they went to a place that looked like it would save them. They were wrong. Tragically wrong.

According to the Bible, a lot of people are making that same mistake. With their soul. God says, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death" (Proverbs 14:12 ). That's troubling. But it's important to know. That you can be thinking you're spiritually safe when actually it's the illusion of safety.

In just about every culture on earth, people seem to instinctively know that we've got trouble with the One who made us. Because we've disobeyed Him. We've done life our way instead of His way, over and over again. And we know that we need to do something to get on God's good side. Thus, religion...rituals...rules to follow. And that "seems right" - a safe place to escape God's judgment for our sins. But it's not. God says so, and He's the final word.

"No one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands...we are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ" (Romans 3:20 , 22- NLB).

Sin carries a death penalty that I can't pay, no matter how nice a guy I am. If it weren't for Good Friday, I'd have a horrible eternity. Because only Jesus' death on that cross could erase the long list of my sins. God "took it away, nailing it to the cross" (Colossians 2:14 ). If any religion or right living could do it, there's no way God would have ever put His Son through that awful death. But He did. For me. For you.

No religion is a safe place from the storm of God's judgment. No matter how safe it feels. That's why Jesus came. And that's why I'm hanging onto Him alone as my only hope.

SMOKE IN THE COCKPIT

2011-04-07T09:45:00.000-04:00

This message I just finished reading on Ron Hutchcraft's blog this morning really spoke to my heart. I so hope you'll read it too. It's called SMOKE IN THE COCKPIT: SOULS IN THE CABIN.

"If you've been flying commercially recently, it's probably best if you were too busy to watch the news. Let's see - there's the plane that suddenly had a hole in the roof - and the ones where they've found cracks since then. Oh yeah, and the plane with the bullet hole in it.

Today I heard about a flight where the cockpit began to fill with smoke, followed by a shutdown of the plane's electrical systems. Systems that power critical systems. Uh-oh. They played the cockpit recording of a pilot radioing the emergency to the tower. He sounded amazingly calm and unafraid. And he brought everyone in safely. I couldn't help but notice his description of the people he was carrying. He told the flight controller that "we have 106 souls on board." Not passengers. Souls.

I first heard that perspective when our family was flying across Alaska with a missionary pilot. As we sat on the runway, waiting to be cleared for takeoff, he said, "Six souls aboard." We weren't passengers. We were souls.

You know, after all is said and done, a "soul" is what we are It's wrapped in an "earth suit" that we need for our relatively brief journey on this planet. Like an astronaut with his "moon suit" - needed for a short time to survive in an environment that requires it But it's temporary. The real person's inside - even after they take off that suit they had to wear.

We spend so much time buffing, beautifying or gratifying our earth suit. And, too often, neglecting the real person inside. Our soul. The Bible's Creation account says, "The Lord God formed the man...and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living soul" (Genesis 1:7 ). Jesus revealed how much one soul is worth when He asked that haunting question, "What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his soul?" (Mark 8:36 ). Cruising for a little while. Lost for all eternity. Because you neglect the one part of you that will be around forever. Your soul.

I'm looking through God's glasses when I look at the people around me and see souls. Not just neighbors or coworkers or teammates, family members or friends. I want to look past the superficial "packaging" and see who they really are - they're ever-living, never-dying souls. People who are future inhabitants of eternity in a place God calls heaven or a place God calls hell.

And we have nothing more important to do with these few earth-years than to prepare for eternity. To make sure our soul is right with God. In fact, it's not. The Bible delivers the bad news that "the soul who sins is the one who will die" (Ezekiel 18:5 ). That's "die" as in being separated from God forever. The problem is that "all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory" (Romans 3:23 ). Even us religious folks - our soul is headed for an unthinkable future.

But God gave us good news that's "gooder" than the bad news. Speaking of Jesus, He says, "Everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name" (Acts 10:43 ). Jesus did the dying for my sinning. So at the moment I put all my trust in Him, my soul is, in God's words, "saved." The alternative? As Jesus said, "losing my soul."

When you've turned the controls of your life over to Jesus, you're flying with the Pilot who will always bring you in safely. When Jesus counts the souls on board, I hope you'll be with Him."

SINCERELY WRONG

2011-03-29T10:10:00.000-04:00

"For false christs and false prophets will
rise and show great signs and wonders
to deceive, if possible, even the elect."
(Matthew 24:24)

Growing up I desperately wanted to be accepted, to be one of the crowd. I hated feeling 'different,' and as though I was always on the outside looking in. I hated being made fun of and being picked last for teams. I hated not having the kind of family everybody else seemed to have.

Later, in my teens, I dreamed of falling in love and getting married to someone I would grow old with. I dreamed of having a solid, close-knit family that enjoyed each other's company and did things together. And I did fall in love and get married and have a family, but my husband and I did not grow old together, and the many mistakes I made as a single mom pretty much killed any chance for the strong, bonded family I had yearned for.

After my husband passed away, I went through a time of searching for roots, for something that would make me feel grounded, that would give me a sense of purpose. Long story short, I discovered New Age and the occult and felt as though I had finally come home. Astrology, metaphysics, the concept of karma and reincarnation, opened up a whole new world that seemed to provide all the answers that had heretofore eluded me. I had finally found my roots, and what I sincerely believed to be truth. My days of searching were over.

I embraced these new ideologies with a passion and eventually became a numerologist. As such, I started doing readings for folks and was even published, which brought me the acceptance I had so craved in my early years. Now, all of a sudden, I was seen as an expert. People were actually seeking me out to tell them what the future had in store.

How I got from there to here is not really what this post is about. If you are interested in that part, you can check out the My Testimony link on my sidebar or click here. This post is about how my vulnerability led to my believing a lie, and how that led to my misleading other people and getting them to buy into that lie too. I was not consciously deceiving anyone, I was just sincerely wrong, and if I can reach even one person through this post who is living under the same kind of deception I was back then and help you see the light, then baring my soul like this will have been worthwhile.

If I were to see you headed towards some imminent danger, such as a gaping hole in the sidewalk ahead of you, it would be unconscionable of me not to warn you of what lay ahead, and I would not hesitate to do so--even yanking you aside if necessary. So why the hesitation when the danger is spiritual, and therefore invisible? I guess, in my case, it's fear of rejection, of being judged, all the things I struggled with at the beginning of my life, but I know that I can't let those things stop me any longer. There's too much at stake.

Don't be deceived, as I was, into thinking that there are many paths to God, or that we get to Heaven by being 'good.' Although we were created to have fellowship with God, Adam and Eve's sin caused us to be born into a fallen world. The Bible tells us in Romans 3:23 that "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," and "The wages of sin is death." Because of sin there is a great gulf that separates us from God, and there is no way we can cross it through our own efforts. There is only one path that can lead us to eternal life, and that is Jesus, "the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through [Him]" (John 14:6).

The good news is that "God so loved the world (you and me included) that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16). In fact, God loves you so much that even if you were the only person on this Earth, He would still have sent Jesus to die for your sins so you could be set free.

This gift of salvation that is being handed to you can only be received by grace, through faith. It cannot be earned by good works (Ephesians 2:8-9). And as much as it is not God's will for anyone to perish, He will not impose His will on you or force you to accept it. The choice is yours.

Jesus stands at the door of your heart, knocking and waiting for you to answer (Revelation 3:20). I pray that you would open the door before it is too late, and accept His invitation to enter your life, forgive your sins, and make you a new creation.

THE FUTILITY OF RUNNING AWAY

2011-01-19T10:19:00.000-05:00

Hope you will take the time to read this message by Ron Hutchcraft . He expresses it so much better than I ever could.

The Futility of Running Away - #6122
Tuesday, June 29, 2010

The party had been going just fine until a doctor who was there got very offended by something another guest said. He was in a rage! He stormed out and slammed the door behind him. Someone said, "At last he's gone." The host corrected him. "No, he's not gone. That's a closet."

There's something inside us humans that wants to avoid facing the God who made us. Maybe it's because we know that He knows everything about us. Maybe we don't want to face our darkness. We know that facing God means surrendering the wheel of our life. Whatever the reason, we walk away, or run away, or in some cases we even storm away from God, only to find that we've only walked into a closet.

We get very good at avoiding God. You can hide behind all those religious hypocrites you've seen. Or you can hide out in those doubts and questions you keep raising to protect you from really facing your Creator's demands on your life. You can stay very busy, running so hard, sedating yourself so much, that you don't have to think about why you're here and where you're going. You can even hide out in your religion, faithfully, maybe fervently, going through all the spiritual motions. That way you can feel like you're spiritually OK without having to really face God Himself.

Guess who invented running from God? The first man and woman God ever created! It's like avoiding God is in our spiritual DNA! In Genesis 3:8-9, Adam and Eve realized that they have disobeyed the one command given to them by the God who had given them so much. Then, in our word for today from the Word of God, it says, "The man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, 'Where are you?' He answered, 'I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid...so I hid.'"

From the first fugitive from God down to maybe someone who's listening today, here's the reality of God's love. The God you're trying to avoid is pursuing you wherever you go. Why? Because He loves you too much to lose you. In fact, Jesus said He's like a shepherd who cannot be content with the sheep He already has in the fold while even one is lost. He said He would "go after the lost sheep" until He finds him or her (Luke 15:1-7).

His pursuit of you and me took Him all the way to the cross where He died a brutal death. The Bible says His death was "...a sacrifice for our sins" (1 John 4:10). He died in your place to pay for the sins that you would otherwise have to pay for eternally.

And now He's pursued you to wherever you are today. You can walk away or run away again, I suppose, but He'll keep pursuing you to rescue you until the day you run out of time. Someday will be your last day to get ready for God before you meet God. But for now, His arms are open, inviting you to come home to the One you were made for. When you walk away from Him, you walk away from the only possible hope of a life with meaning and an eternity in heaven. Be glad that He's loved you enough to pursue you all the way to a cross.

My prayer is that this might be the day when you run to God and let the battle finally be over. Your personal love relationship with God begins when you say, "Jesus, I'm Yours." You have nothing to fear from coming to Jesus. He loved you enough to die for you. He will never do you wrong.

If you want to open up your life to the One who gave His life for you, I've got some information on our website that I think will help. I hope you'll go there as soon as you can today. Read about how to know you belong to Jesus. Just go to YoursForLife.net. Or if you'd like me to send you my little booklet about it called Yours For Life, you can just call and ask for that. It's a toll free call: 877-741-1200.

Once you experience His love for yourself, you'll have only one regret. You'll just wish that you'd come sooner.

HAPPY NEW YEAR, 2011

2011-01-01T12:35:00.000-05:00

Dear Blog Friends -- May the New Year be a time of peace, joy, good health, and prosperity in every area of your life. Praying that the Lord would shower you with His blessings and open your eyes to his abundant love and grace.

I also have a New Years card for you, but couldn't figure out how to embed it in this post, so you'll need to click on this link to see it.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 25

2010-12-25T16:17:00.000-05:00

Day 25: The Bethlehem Scandal

Illegitimate. That's what some people called the baby born in Bethlehem that first Christmas - even years later. They didn't understand, or didn't believe, that this was God's Son, miraculously conceived in a virgin's womb.

Actually, there's no such thing as an illegitimate or unplanned child. Every life has been planned by God. "God's workmanship" - That's what the Bible calls you, no matter how you were conceived or how you've been treated (Ephesians 2:10 ).

And you can tell how much God loves you by what He spent on you - to save you from the awful penalty of defying Him and running your own life. In the Bible's words, "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16 ). He sent His Son to die in your place. He wants you in His family, in His heaven. If you've never pinned all your hopes on Jesus, this could be your day to experience His love for yourself. Call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Nobody loves you like He does.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 24

2010-12-24T09:24:00.000-05:00

Day 24: It's Christmas! Come on In!

Two teenage friends suddenly appeared at our door on Christmas Eve, looking for a refuge from the party at home. Well, we were in the middle of acting out the Christmas story - with our two-year-old in a basket as Baby Jesus, and his older brother and sister in bathrobe and shawl as Joseph and Mary - with me, the angel, on the back of the couch and my wife crawling around baa-ing. The girls weren't too sure about us - but, hey, we invited them right into our Christmas.

Which is what God is doing for you this Christmas season - inviting you into the middle of what He was really doing that first Christmas. Anybody's welcome to come on in and join God's family. Look at who got the first invitation to "come on in" - shepherds, society's rejects in that day. God said to them, "A Savior has been born to you" (Luke 2:11 ). Now, maybe you, like the shepherds, have felt your share of closed doors and condemnation. Well, so did Jesus - all the way to the cross where He died for all the sins of your life.

This Christmas, Jesus is throwing open the door to His family, and saying, "I died for you. Come on in." If you'd like to, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. You need to come on in.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 23

2010-12-23T08:43:00.000-05:00

Day 23: The Manger Under the Tree

As I was growing up, our manger was always under our Christmas tree. That's probably the right place for it - since, in a real sense, the shadow of a tree loomed over the manger that first Christmas morning. You can't really understand Christmas without Good Friday - where this sinless Son of God was nailed to a tree He created, by men He created.

The Bible says, "He bore our sins in His body on the tree" (1 Peter 2:24 ). Jesus absorbed the death penalty of hell for every wrong thing you've done - to rescue you. That's how much He loves you.

In the words of the carol, "What Child Is This": "Nails, spear shall pierce Him through, the cross be borne for me, for you." You've had your Christmases, celebrating Christ's coming. Have you ever had your Good Friday, where you stand at His cross and put your life and your sin in His hands? If you want to belong to Jesus Christ, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. No one loved you like He does.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 22

2010-12-22T09:54:00.000-05:00

Day 22: Forget the Wrapping Paper!

You can wrap that present like a pro - a kid doesn't care. He'll just rip off the paper with one mighty blow. All he cares about is what's inside.

God's like that. He doesn't much care about what you're like on the outside - the Bible says, "Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7 ). He sees what no one else sees - the pain, the insecurity, the sin. Jesus came because He wants to heal that pain...to give you one love, one hope you can never lose, and to forgive every wrong thing you've ever done.

It took dying on the cross to pay for the junk inside all of us. He's not impressed with your image, your religion, or whatever's on the outside. He wants to love you and change you from the inside out, if you'll give yourself to this Man who knows all about you and loves you so very much. Call us if you want to begin a relationship with Jesus. At 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. You can celebrate this Christmas with Christ in your heart.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 21

2010-12-21T19:14:00.001-05:00

Day 21: Missing at Christmas

As our two-year-old grandson was helping set up the family Nativity scene, he noticed they were missing one figure - Baby Jesus. That night, our grandson greeted his father at the door with an impassioned question - "Hey, where's Jesus?"

That's the question God is asking some of us as He looks at our lives - "Where's Jesus?" It's possible that, like our grandson that day, you have everything except Jesus. That's why the Bible says, "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith" (2 Corinthians 13:5 ). You may have a Christian vocabulary, Christian beliefs, - but there may have never been that time when you personally told Jesus, "I believe You died for me - I'm Yours."

He's giving you another opportunity, this opportunity, to take the step that will finally bring Jesus into your life. If you want to do that right now, we're waiting to talk with you at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Judgment Day is the wrong time to have God look in your heart and say, "Where's Jesus?" Be sure He's in your heart.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 20

2010-12-20T08:10:00.000-05:00

Day 20: Skin On

The little boy was having a hard time getting to sleep - he was scared of the dark, even though his Mommy told him God was there, watching over him. And he responded, "Mommy - I need God with skin on."

Because of Christmas, we've got God with skin on. The Bible says that the Son of God "became flesh and made His dwelling among us (John 1:14 ). Jesus isn't just another prophet or religious leader - He's God with skin on. This Jesus, who asks for your heart, has walked your trail. He knows what it is to be lonely...to be abandoned...to be betrayed...to be a victim...to be tortured...to die. That brutal death on a cross was ultimately His choice - He loves you so much that He chose to take the death penalty for your sin so you could be with Him forever.

And now this Jesus wants to walk every mile of the rest of your life with you - if you'll give yourself to Him. If you've never done that, and you want to, we'd love to talk with you at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. You'll never spend another day alone.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 19

2010-12-19T12:44:00.000-05:00

Day 19: Bombshell Birthday

Bottom line - Christmas is a birthday. The bombshell birthday. The birth that literally split history in two. B.C., A.D. - before Christ and after Christ.

For millions of people, the coming of Jesus has been the turning point of their life - my life before Jesus was there, and since He came in. The Bible describes the miraculous change this way: "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come" (2 Corinthians 5:17 ).

All of us who've opened up to Jesus consider all the years "before Christ" pretty much wasted years - away from the God we were made for, carrying the guilt and the death penalty of running our own lives. But we discovered that "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son" to cancel the death penalty for our sins (John 3:16 ).

There really is a definite moment when you move from "B.C." to "A.D." - it's when you tell Jesus, "I'm Yours from this day on." We'd love to help you do that if you'll just call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. And the miracle can begin.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 18

2010-12-18T08:54:00.000-05:00

Day 18: The Worst Part in the Christmas Story

I've played a shepherd, a wise man, even Joseph in the Christmas Story. I've never played King Herod. I never want to. He was the king the wise men told about the birth of Jesus - the king who was enraged that there could possibly be a king other than him.

So he missed the Son of God who was born just six miles from his palace. But Herod's not the last person to miss Jesus because of wanting to be king. We all want to be king - of our own life. And that self-rule the Bible calls "sin" is what ultimately separates us from the God we can't live without and keeps us out of His heaven.

Jesus asked, "What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul?" (Matthew 8:36 ). We are in danger of losing our soul- until we come in our heart to the cross where Jesus gave His life to pay our spiritual death penalty. We surrender the throne we never should have occupied to the Savior who belongs there. If you want to experience Jesus' love and forgiveness for yourself, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 17

2010-12-17T11:51:00.000-05:00

Day 17: Christmas When You Want

Recently, I went to the garage and hauled out Christmas - all the boxes full of decorations. All too soon, I'll be putting our Christmas away again - until we want it again. You can do that with Christmas - you can't do that with Christ.

To be honest, maybe that's what it's been like with you and Jesus. You've kept Him on the edges of your life. You want Him to be around, but you don't want Him to be in charge. It's nice to have Jesus for Christmas, for Sundays, for emergencies. But the truth is, you've never really given your life to the One who gave His life for you. That cross was for you - for every wrong thing you've ever done.

You were made by Him...you were made for Him...He died for you. The Bible asks this sobering question: "How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?" (Hebrews 2:3 ). If you want to be with Jesus forever, you need to give yourself to Him now. And the Christmas season would be a great time to begin your personal relationship with Him. And we'd love to help you do that if you'll just call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. You can finally be spiritually home for Christmas.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 16

2010-12-16T10:11:00.000-05:00

Day 16: Assembly Required

There are two words that I hated to see on any toys we bought for Christmas - "assembly required." Great! I get this box full of pieces, but I have to figure out how they go together.

Kind of like our lives, huh? We've got all these pieces in our life, but how do they go together into something that makes life make sense? In a recent survey asking people what question they would most like to ask God, by far the largest response was, "What's my purpose here?"

Now, Christmas is a great time to finally get the answer to that all-important question. The Bible tells us our Creator's answer. Speaking of Jesus, it says, "All things were created by Him and for Him" (Colossians 1:16 ). You were created by Jesus and for Jesus, and life won't make sense until you belong to Jesus. Because He died to pay for your sins, He can remove the wall between you and God, and you can anchor your life to the relationship you were made for.

Now, if you've never begun your personal relationship with Him, and you want to, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. He makes all the pieces into something incredible.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 15

2010-12-15T09:01:00.000-05:00

Day 15: Someone in My Room!

Recently I checked into a hotel, got the key to my room and eagerly unlocked that door. Problem. The TV was on, clothes were hanging on the clothes rack! This room was supposed to be reserved for me, but someone else was in my place.

Now, Jesus knows that feeling. Your heart was made for Him. But someone else or something else is there instead. And the one who loves you most is left standing outside. The Bible says you were created by Jesus, and for Jesus. And that means that no one else can ever fill that hole in your heart.

But just like that first Christmas, when there was no room in the inn for Jesus to be born, Jesus has been crowded out of your life, even though he died for you, for all the sinning you've ever done. But this Christmas, Jesus is again at the door of your heart and you've never needed Him more.

It's time to move out whatever is keeping Jesus out and swing open the door to Him. If you want to do that, there's someone waiting to talk with you at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Finally, your heart will belong to the one it was made for.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 14

2010-12-14T07:35:00.000-05:00

Day 14: My Shopping is Done

Believe it or not, that glorious moment will come - when you slump in your chair and proclaim exuberantly, "My shopping is done!"

Your Christmas shopping, yes - your spiritual shopping - maybe not. See, most of us spend a lifetime shopping for some lasting meaning, some lasting love, and lasting peace. It may be this Christmas that your soul is tired of shopping in relationships, religion, experiences that never fill the hole in your heart.

Life's endless spiritual shopping trip ends at the feet of Jesus Christ - the One the Bible says you were made by and made for (Colossians 1:16 ). In God's words, "You are complete in Him" (Colossians 2:10 ). "Complete" is what has always been missing. You've been incomplete because God's been missing because you've been running your own life. Jesus died for your sin so He doesn't have to be missing anymore.

If you'd like to begin this personal relationship with Jesus, someone's waiting to talk with you at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Your shopping for love and peace and meaning can be over today.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 13

2010-12-13T22:40:00.000-05:00

Day 13: Listening to Linus

It's a Christmas TV classic..."A Charlie Brown Christmas." After Charlie Brown's frustrating search for some real Christmas, Linus walks onto the stage dragging his blanket, the spotlight hits him, and he proceeds to quote from the Bible's account of Christmas 1.

"I bring you good news of great joy. A Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:11 ). That really is good news! Why? For the same reason the arrival of a firefighter would be good news if you were in a burning building.

You were about to die...and the rescuer has come. Now, that's what Savior means. Jesus has come to rescue you and me from the death penalty of our sin by His death on that cross. No one has ever loved you like that. But only you can make Him your Savior by putting all your trust in Him as your rescuer.

If you have never done that and you want to, someone is waiting to talk with you at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. This can be your first Christmas with Christ in your heart.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 12

2010-12-12T11:02:00.000-05:00

Day 12: The Longest Christmas Journey

One of the happy faces around our friends' Christmas tree this year will be their precious China doll - the little girl they went ten thousand miles to bring into their family. Her first year was in a cold Chinese orphanage. But our friends went a very long way at considerable expense to make her their child. And, she's an orphan no more.

And, neither am I. A spiritual orphan, that is. The Bible says that all of us are spiritually fatherless, not by God's choice, but by our own. It says, "We have left God's paths to follow our own" (Isaiah 53:6 ). That's left us separated from God. That's why the hole in our heart. The loneliness that never really goes away.

But that first Christmas, Somebody came a very long way to make us His child. And Jesus paid a very high price to bring us home - His life, the payment for our sin. And Jesus says, "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you" (John 14:18 ). Maybe He's come to you today to give you a chance to give yourself to Him. He is the tug you feel in your heart.

If you're ready to belong to Him, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. No longer an orphan. God's dearly loved child.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 11

2010-12-11T09:53:00.000-05:00

Day 11: Scrooge's Wakeup Call

Mean old Ebenezer Scrooge - he's back this Christmas. Ultimately, turning into kind, old Scrooge. Because three spirits come to him in his sleep and show him what his life was and is and will be. It's that Ghost of Christmas Future that really gets old Scrooge's attention. He sees where his life's going to end up - and he changes!

I wonder what we'd do if we had a chance to see where we're going to end up? Change maybe? Actually, the Bible shows us the future: "Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment" (Hebrews 9:27 ). And he says some "will live" and some will "be condemned" (John 5:29 ). The deciding factor? "God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16 ).

Your future is an appointment with a holy God to face the judgment for the sins of a lifetime. Unless they've been forgiven by the only One who died to pay for them. Jesus took your hell so you could have His heaven. So everything depends on whether or not you've ever given yourself to Him.

Now, if you want to be sure you belong to Him, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Because your future is Jesus.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 10

2010-12-10T10:40:00.000-05:00

Day 10: The Christmas Moment in the Lost Mine

The world was watching as that Chilean rescuer was lowered into the mine where 33 miners were trapped. As that capsule touched down in the mine...as the rescuer stepped out...and when the first miner emerged alive.

You know, in so many ways, it was a Christmas moment. The miners were trapped in a deadly place they could not possibly escape from. Just like us - separated from God because of our sin, facing an awful eternity without Him. The miners' only hope was a rescuer from above. Just like you and me. We can no more get to heaven by being good than those miners could dig their way out. One hope - a rescuer from above.

Well, Christmas is when the Rescuer from heaven touched down in our dark world. In the mine, at the Cross, the rescuer traded places with those who needed to be saved. For Jesus, that meant dying to pay for our sin. And the rescue happens when we step into that way out - by putting all our trust in Him to be our Rescuer from our sin.

For you, the rescue can be today. Call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. The Rescuer has come for you.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 9

2010-12-09T08:57:00.000-05:00

Day 9: How Santa Can Mess You Up

It freaked me out as a kid. Santa's got this big book where he's either got me down as "naughty" or "nice." I find out which one on Christmas morning!

Unfortunately, a lot of us think God operates sort of Santa-style. He's got this big book in the sky with each of us either on the "nice" list who will go to heaven or the "naughty" list who will go to hell. Most of us think we're on the "nice" list. We'll find out when we die.

But the Bible says "All have sinned and fallen short of God's glory" (Romans 3:23 ). We are all on the list of sinners who are unfit to live with a perfect God in His heaven. Some of the people in the greatest spiritual danger are people who have lots of Christianity, but have somehow missed Christ. Because they've never taken for themselves what Jesus died to give them - sins forgiven, hell canceled, heaven guaranteed.

The question is: Has there ever been a time when you've given yourself to the Savior who gave Himself for you? If you're not sure, please call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. You can't afford to miss Him.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 8

2010-12-08T12:24:00.000-05:00

Day 8: Holiday Heart Repairs

It wasn't exactly what our family had in mind for Christmas In early December, someone we loved went into the hospital for a routine cardiac procedure - and was rushed to open heart surgery the next morning. The doctor found a heart condition that needed immediate repair. Or, as he said, "I can't be sure she'll have a Christmas." The surgery was life-saving - and life-changing.

Dr. Jesus may be making a similar spiritual diagnosis for someone listening right now. "You need surgery for a deadly heart condition. You won't make it without it." It's a heart condition we all have. The Bible says, "Your sins have separated you from your God" (Isaiah 59:2 ). And "the soul who sins...will die" (Ezekiel 18:4 ) Our running of our own life has left us living life here without meaning and life hereafter without hope.

Enter Christmas. Jesus came to save our life by giving His. On a cross. And we're not going to make it unless He forgives our sin and fixes our heart. He's waiting to do that for you today. We'd love to talk with you about it at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Because none of us knows how much time we've got left.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 7

2010-12-07T23:07:00.000-05:00

Day 7: One Light in the Christmas Night

On a Southwest Indian reservation I know well, there are Christmas lights almost nowhere. Just desert darkness.

Except for that one village church. It's covered with lights, with a brightly lit cross on top. One Christmas Eve, Amy walked the village - her pain again drowned with alcohol. Then she saw the light on the cross. That night, her life changed forever as she prayed with the pastor's wife to give her life to Jesus Christ.

We've all got our personal darkness. Around us. Inside us. Sin...guilt...brokenness. But we don't have to live in that darkness anymore. Because Jesus came. The Bible says Jesus is "the rising sun who will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death" (Luke 1:78-79 ). Now, he says that will happen "through the forgiveness of...sins" (Luke 1:77 ). The light that has forever changed the darkness of so many of us still shines from that cross where He died for us.

And He's reaching out to you this Christmas. Isn't it time you reached back? Call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. It's been dark long enough.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 6

2010-12-06T12:01:00.000-05:00

Day 6: Jingle Bells and Jesus

Last fall, at a retreat where I was speaking, someone asked all my grandchildren to sing "Jesus Loves Me" up in front. It was adorable. Especially our little two-year-old guy. He was singing his own song. "Jingle Bells." Yeah, months before Christmas.

Now, our grandson's not the only one who's got "Jingle Bells" and Jesus confused. Christmas is so entangled with the Claus guy, and psycho Christmas shopping and a barrage of celebrations, you can miss Jesus in the season that's rooted in His birth. But behind the Christmas season fog is a game-changing message that is summed up in that little song - "Jesus loves me, this I know."

Why else would He have left heaven for a stinking stable - and worshipping angels for humans who had no use for Him? Why else would He have let men He had made nail Him to a tree He had created? Why else would He take our hell so we could go to His heaven? Because "Jesus loves me - this I know." And if you'll give yourself to Him, you can know His love for yourself. Forever.

If that's what you want, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Because you really do need Him.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 5

2010-12-06T11:55:00.000-05:00

Day 5: The Christmas List Not to Miss

I've got a list for Christmas - with all the people I love on it. Santa's got a couple of lists - "naughty" and "nice." Surely I'm on the "nice" list.

God's got two lists this Christmas. They're like the lists posted in the White Star Line offices after the sinking of the Titanic - one said "known to be saved;" the other, "known to be lost." Well, listen to what the Bible says: "God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that has the Son has life. He that does not have the Son of God does not have life" (1 John 5:11-12 ).

Those who've trusted in Jesus and His death for their sins have their sins forgiven. They're going to heaven. Those who don't have a relationship with Him still face the awful death penalty for their sins. But, thank God, we can change from the "lost" list to the "saved" list! I did. The moment I reached out to Jesus to make Him my Savior from my sins.

This Christmas, Jesus stands ready to change your eternal address. If you want to belong to Him, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Let this be your Jesus-day.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 4

2010-12-06T11:49:00.000-05:00

Day 4: The Littlest Shepherd

No sooner did our three-year-old granddaughter arrive for Christmas, and she was roaming through the house with an empty wrapping paper tube in her hand. She told me, "I'm a shepherd. I'm looking for my lost sheep." I thought, "She's on the same mission that brought the Son of God to earth that first Christmas." Looking for His lost sheep.

Jesus said He came "to seek and save what was lost" (Luke 19:10 ) and that He will "go to look for the one that has wandered off" (Matthew 18:12 ). And this Christmas, it could be that He's come looking for you. Because He knows you're lost. Maybe you know you're lost.

The Bible says we've all wandered away from God like sheep (Isaiah 53:6 ), and our only hope is if God comes looking for us. Well, that's Jesus. His search brought Him all the way to an awful cross. And now right to where you are - to give you this opportunity to grab Him as your Rescuer from your sin.

Now, if you're tired of "lost," we'd love to help you get started with Jesus. Call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. He'll bring you "home" for Christmas.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 3

2010-12-03T09:06:00.000-05:00

Day 3: A Bomb? On Christmas?

Words that go with Christmas - present...cookies...tree. Bomb? Well, you may remember that last Christmas Day a terrorist tried to blow up an airplane in Detroit. That's nice.

Sadly, it's a reminder that even in this season of "peace on earth," we live in a dangerous and unpredictable world. It's been a year of dizzying change. We're all trying to figure out the new normal. We're more confused about what's really secure - and more desperate than ever to find some solid rock to stand on.

Well, since that first Christmas, millions have found that rock in this Bible promise: "Nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:39 ). Man, that's "unloseable" love. Recession-proof, terror-proof, divorce-proof, death-proof. Not in Christianity the religion. But in Christ - the relationship!

The Bible says He loves us so much that He gave His life to pay for our sins. Which makes possible a love relationship with God that nothing can take away. And you might be ready for that kind of unloseable love. Well, call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. It's a crazy world. But there's a powerful Savior!

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 2

2010-12-03T08:59:00.000-05:00

Day 2: Retro Christmas

Retro toys for Christmas - our crazy sons try to outdo each other by finding the ultimate toy to give from each other's childhood. The "A-Team"...Star Wars...superhero action figures. Echoes from the past.

Now of course, not all retro stuff is happy stuff. Christmas has a way of reigniting some painful memories from our past. The sins done against us. The sins we've done. The broken things. But Christmas brings hope for the pain and regrets of our past!

God says, "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. I am doing a new thing!" (Isaiah 43:18 ). And, that "new thing" began at a stable in Bethlehem...it was made possible by Jesus' payment for our sin on the Cross...and it becomes yours the day you pin all your hopes on Him to be your Savior. He erases every sin of your life from God's book. He moves into your heart, He replaces despair with hope and brokenness with healing. It's the gift He's waiting to give you this Christmas.

We'd love to help you experience Him. Call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org. Make today Day One of the new you.

25 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MOMENTS FROM RON HUTCHCRAFT - DAY 1

2010-12-03T08:46:00.000-05:00

Day 1: Christmas - and the End of Goodbyes

Hey, it's a great day when our missionary kids get home for Christmas. It's a hard day when they leave. Christmas goodbyes are tough. Now, a few weeks ago we buried my cousin, and this will be his family's first Christmas without him. But they know that Christmas means the end of goodbyes is just around the bend.

The Bible says "the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ" (Romans 6:23 ). Jesus came on Christmas to make life "eternal." If the death-wages of our sin can somehow be paid. And that's why Jesus died on that cross. Because only He could die for our sin.

My cousin put all his trust in Jesus to forgive his sin. So has his family. So that graveside was so much more than a steel box, a hole in the ground. We were sending our loved one ahead to a heaven Jesus guaranteed. Because of Jesus, the reunion's comin'!

Now, if you're not sure you're going to heaven when you die, you can get that settled with Jesus this very day. Call us at 888-Need-Him or chat with us live at needhim.org.

RED'S STORY

2010-11-05T21:19:00.003-04:00

My friend Lara, director of Walk by Faith Ministries, has posted an awesome testimony of God's love and healing power on her blog, which I would like to share with you. Just click on this link--Walk by Faith Ministry: special tails. It is the second "tail" on the page.

I hope it blesses you as much as it blessed me.

GOD OF SECOND CHANCES

2010-08-29T23:00:00.001-04:00

"But Jesus looked at them and said to them,
With men this is impossible, but with God
all things are possible." - (Matthew 19:26)

Over the years, the Lord has used my gardening attempts to teach me many lessons. Usually it's through my tomato plants, and it's something like how at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up (Witnessing a Miracle, and More Lessons from the Tomato Plant).

This year's lesson was a bit different. The Lord used a couple of "dead" indoor plants. to teach me volumes about His grace.

These plants had become real eyesores, and yet I didn't have the heart to throw them away. Instead, I stuck them out on the balcony and told the Lord they were all His to do with as He pleased. I figured they could stay out there for the summer, and if they were still "dead" by then, I wouldn't feel so bad about getting rid of them.

The one pot looked like there was nothing left in it except for a bunch of dirt, and the few leaves left on the aloe plant were all brown and dried out looking.

Now I wish I had thought to take pictures to document how truly beyond redemption they appeared, instead of waiting until some signs of life took me by surprise and I excitedly snapped the picture on the left.

What a powerful reminder of how God doesn't look at things the way we do with our limited vision. I tend to get so stuck in the moment, I forget things are not always the way they seem, and that I'm just seeing one piece of the puzzle instead of the whole picture, as only He can do.

It is never too late or too seemingly impossible for God to change things around. (The picture on the right is what those "dead" plants look like now.)

A POWERFUL MESSAGE FROM A FRIEND

2010-04-13T21:00:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to share this powerful message by my friend Lara Moody, Director of Walk by Faith Ministries. May it bless and encourage you wherever you find yourself today.

GOD NEVER TURNS A DEAF EAR WHEN WE CALL

2010-03-07T21:20:00.001-05:00

"Call to Me, and I will answer
you, and show you great and
mighty things, which you do
not know." - (Jeremiah 33:3)

These last several weeks I've been having major issues with my Internet provider. I've been missing several e-mails, and even worse, a great many of mine are not reaching their destinations--even when flagged as High Priority.

At first I was unaware of the problem, and found myself jumping to conclusions as to why people were not responding, and the more conclusions I jumped to, the more upset I became. But oddly enough, even after I found out that it was nothing personal or intentional, but rather that these people really weren't getting my e-mails, that upset feeling lingered on.

When I called my provider to report the problem, they checked my settings and some other things on their side, and then pretty much blew me off, saying it had to be a problem on my end since everything seemed to be working fine on theirs. And then to add insult to injury, a well intentioned friend sided with the provider and told me I must be doing something wrong because a server doesn't have the intelligence to let some e-mails go through and not others. It would be an all or nothing proposition.

Overwhelmed by feelings of hurt and powerlesness, I decided to have a pity party instead of taking it all to the foot of the Cross. Long forgotten tapes started playing in my mind. The times the most important people in my life, who I thought would be there for me, took the other person's side; the never knowing what it was like to be loved unconditionally; the times when I had been made fun of, or been picked last for a team; and on and on.

After I had wallowed in that for a while, I thought back to the little girl whose mom would punish her by giving her the silent treatment for what seemed like an eternity, and turn a deaf ear no matter how she cried or apologized, or even became hysrterical in her attempts to have her presence acknowledged by the one she counted on for her survival.

Then as suddenly as the pity party started, it came to an end, and as I snapped back to reality, I found myself thinking, wow! Where did all that come from? It wasn't so long ago that I had told a friend how I didn't hold on to things for long. This flood of buried memories surely proved me wrong. Oh Lord, help me to release them and let them go. Forgive me for dwelling on them for even a moment. I could have turned those tapes off the instant they started playing and focused, instead, on all the awesome ways you have manifested in my life. Those are the tapes I should have been playing and focusing on.

How could I forget for even a moment that you loved me so much (and dear reader, this applies to you too), that you sent Jesus to die for me on the cross so I could be forgiven of my sins and enjoy eternal life; that my face is engraved on the palm of your hand and you save my tears in a vial; that you rejoice over me with singing; that I am a one of a kind original created by you for a special purpose nobody else can fulfill. I may be powerless to do things in my own strength, but you can use me in a powerful way if I yield myself to you, and when I stop trying to be in control and lay my burdens down at the foot of the Cross, you come through as only you can do. There are so many things that are impossible with man, but all things are possible with you.

Grateful doesn't even start to describe how I feel about your faithfulness and unfailing love; your mercies that are new every morning; and that you never give up on me, even when I am ready to give up on myself; Thank you for never being too busy, or turning a deaf ear when I call.

"To the Lord our God belong mercy and

forgiveness, though we have rebelled

against him." - (Daniel 9:9)

WHY?

2010-02-18T14:16:00.000-05:00

Some hard questions are shrouded in mystery
too deep for human minds to understand;
the hidden answers aren't meant to be unlocked
until the soul is ready to see life whole.
Every good thing has its shadow
and every dark night is the back side
of a new day waiting to dawn.
Marilyn Morgan King

The above quote is from an old devotional that I had never completed. Amazingly, the place I left off was just what I needed to see at this time of my life. How cool is that?

You see, I have been asking 'why' an awful lot lately as I try to run my race. That question has been triggered, not only by my own frustrations and setbacks, but by what I see going on in the lives of several friends, and even the world at large. More often than not I have felt like throwing in the towel and taking the easy way out, but then, on second thought, there is no easy way out.

So I keep on keeping on, trusting in a God I know loves me (and you too) so much that He sent His one and only son, Jesus, to suffer and die the most cruel of deaths so that our sins would be forgiven and we could enjoy eternal life. And as I plod along, I feel buoyed by the thought of that crowd of witnesses in the Heavenlies who are watching us run our race and cheering us on (Hebrews 12:1-2).

WHERE ELSE CAN I GO?

2010-01-17T19:29:00.005-05:00

Life is full of peaks and valleys, or at least that's what my experience of it has been. Just when things are going smoothly and I'm settling into a comfortable routine, something unexpected comes along to shake things up and test my faith. That's where I am right now. Questioning God, and not getting answers.

Aside from some frustrating issues I'm butting my head against, the prayer team at church (of which I am a member) has been getting more and more prayer requests from people going through Job-like experiences. Not just ill health, or the loss of a job or a loved one, but a whole string of such events, one following the other. And then there is my awesome blog friend, Renee, whose life seems to be the brunt of the cruelest imaginable joke of fate, except there is no fate and God does not play cruel jokes.

My powerlessness over all these circumstances, and the seemingly meaninglessness of my prayers makes me so angry I want to scream out to God, are you there? Are you watching? Hearing? Listening to our prayers? What happened to your promises? This is not the way it's supposed to be! Do you even care? Why can't you give these folks even a small reprieve in the midst of their suffering? Just a glimmer of hope?

But, of course, deep in my heart I know that our prayers are never meaningless, and God really does care. It's just that we get so fixated on the piece of the puzzle before us it is hard, at least for me, to trust that God sees the whole picture and is working things out for our ultimate good and for His glory.

I'm thinking of a time about 12 years ago when I was going through another bitter period where many tears were shed as I kept asking over and over again, why Lord did you let this happen to me when I not only prayed, but even begged you to close all the doors if this decision was not of you. In my helpless fury I even started thinking of where else I could go for help, and there was only one answer. Nowhere.

Now that I look back in retrospect to that stage of my life, and even further back to other periods of great anguish and devastation, I can see how death led to newness of life, and closed doors led to better ones opening, even though I would never have believed it had someone told me that would be the case at the time of my hurt. Instead I would have felt outrage at such comments.

So once again, I lay my burdens at the foot of the Cross, and put my trust in Him who gave His life for me (and for you too) so that we could be reconciled with the Father and enjoy eternal life.

A CALL TO ANGUISH

2010-01-06T08:53:00.010-05:00

"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those
who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it
is the power of God. . . . For since, in the wisdom
of God, the world through wisdom did not know
God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the
message preached to save those who believe."
(1 Corinthians 1:18,21)

Lord have mercy on my sisters and brothers who come to this blog and do not yet know you. I pray that you would open their eyes and their hearts and their minds to the truth of your word and the incomprehensible love of Jesus that is so great that He would have come and died for any one of them, even if they were the only ones here on this earth. Enable them to grasp the truth that the salvation you bought for us through the shed blood of Jesus is a free gift to be received by faith. It is not something we can earn by our good deeds, lest any man should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Friend, if you are reading this and think that what you have done is too bad to be forgiven, or that it is too late for you, that is a lie from the pit of hell. Satan knows his time is short and so the battle he is waging for our souls has become more desperate and intense. He is doing everything in his power to keep those who do not believe blinded, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them (2 Corinthians 4:4).

The Gospel truth is that God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned (John 3:17-18a). The Lord is near to all those who have a broken heart (Psalm 34:18), and, If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:9). The slate will be wiped clean, and it will be as if you had been born again into newness of life. As it says in 2 Corinthians 5:17, If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Jesus is patiently standing at the door of your heart, knocking and knocking, but He won't come in unless you invite Him to do so (Revelation 3:20). I pray that you would open the door before it is too late.

OUCH!

2009-12-29T15:56:00.009-05:00

Something I saw on a friend's Face Book that made me wince:

How would you feel if someone discarded the Christmas gift you gave them like it was trash? Now ask yourself, How does God feel each time we discard His Gift or take it for granted?

IN GOD WE STILL TRUST

The words to this song used to be true. However, you would hardly know it these days. How tragic!

Post edited on 12/30/09

THE REASON FOR THE SEASON

2009-12-24T12:11:00.002-05:00

It's all about Jesus!

Click here to see video clip.

BEYOND THE PARTY

2009-12-23T10:42:00.003-05:00

This excerpt from one of Ron Hutchcraft's Christmas Moments says it so much better than I ever could.

They called it a Christmas miracle. A California dad drove into a Sierra forest, parked his truck and went looking for a Christmas tree with his three teenage children. Then the snowstorms came. They were lost and they were unprepared. After searchers looked for three days, two pilots finally saw the word “HELP” stamped in the snow and a man waving. For that lost family, Christmas meant rescue.

And that is really what Christmas is about for every one of us. Behind the big party called Christmas is a mission as serious as life-or-death—yours and mine. That first Christmas, God announced Jesus was coming to “save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). He didn’t come to start a religion or be a good example. He came here to rescue people who would die otherwise forever, because our sin carries a forever death penalty that He paid with His life on the cross.

This Christmas season, He wants to make you a Christmas miracle, if you’ll grab His outstretched hand as your Rescuer from your sin. Don’t miss what He came for. If you’re ready for His rescue, call us at 888-NEED HIM.

WHERE'S THE LINE TO SEE JESUS?

2009-12-22T14:53:00.002-05:00

"Where's the Line to See Jesus?"

An original song performed by father and daughter, Steve Haupt and Becky Kelley
Recorded at Shock City Studios, Saint Louis, MO
Produced by Chris Loesch
Video by Robbie Haupt and Greg Haupt

The story behind the song, as told by Steve Haupt, is as follows:

"While at the mall last year, my 4 year old grandson saw kids lined up excitedly to see Santa Claus. Having been taught as a toddler that Christmas is the holiday that Christians celebrate the birth of God's son, with the innocence of a child, he asked his mom, 'Where's the line to see Jesus? If Christmas is Jesus' birthday, why don't we see Him more?'

As his grandpa, I was so happy that little Spencer understood the meaning of Christmas at such a tender age, and then the words for a song were jotted down in just a few minutes. The song was inspired by my grandson, and the message was inspired by my Savior.

Out of the mouths of babes come profound truths that many adults can not understand. Hopefully Spencer's observation and our song will cause people to reflect on the love of Jesus, and the certainty that one day we will all stand in line to see Jesus."

Wishing all of you a most beautiful Christmas and a very blessed New Year!

Great-Granny Grandma

NO MORE EXCUSES

2009-12-12T11:53:00.005-05:00

"The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart,
And saves such as have a contrite spirit."
(Psalm 34:18)

I'm just loving this e-mail I received the other day. Hope it encourages you as much as it did me.

The next time you feel like GOD can't use you, just remember:

Noah was a drunk
Abraham was too old
Isaac was a daydreamer
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Samson had long hair and was a womanizer
Rahab was a prostitute
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Elijah was suicidal
Isaiah preached naked
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow
Job went bankrupt
Peter denied Christ (3 times!)
The Disciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
Mary Magdalene was promiscuous
The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once
Zaccheus was too small
Paul was too religious
Timothy had an ulcer
AND, Lazarus was dead!

Now, no more excuses! God can use you to your full potential if you are willing to turn your life over to Him.* Remember, you aren't the message. You are just the messenger.

*To find out how you can begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, please visit Yours for Life or call 1-888-966-7325.

WATCH FOR THE ANSWER

2009-11-03T16:46:00.003-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, my granddaughter and I were setting up a time when she could come over and help me get caught up on some household chores. She said Sunday would be a good day for her, and that she could come to church with me in the morning so we could spend more time together.

Well, at the beginning of the service, our pastor told us to look at the person to our left and the person to our right and pray for them. He then added, and if the seat next to you is empty, pray that the Lord will fill it through you. As he said that, a light bulb started flashing in my head.

My granddaughter was in the seat to my left. That seat had been empty the previous week when we prayed that same prayer, and yet without that trigger to remind me, I would have remained totally oblivious to it being an answer to prayer. Wow! And wasn't this birthday gift from her (to come help me with my chores) another answer to prayer? How often I have wished I could afford to pay someone to do the thorough cleaning job I never seem to get around to doing myself.

That really got me thinking. How many times have I failed to put two and two together because I forgot about the prayer I'd prayed and wasn't watching expectantly for the answer. How about you?

THE TROUBLE WITH LIFE'S GREAT CATCHES

2009-11-02T14:50:00.008-05:00

Today I read a wonderful e-devotional by Ron Hutchcraft entitled The Trouble With Life's Great Catches. It had been sitting in my In Box for quite some time, but maybe today was the right time to open it. Hope it speaks to your heart as it did mine.

The Trouble With Life's Great Catches

In his classic, "Old Man and the Sea," Ernest Hemingway tells about a weary old fisherman who, like most of his village, has had hard times most of his life. He's barely eking out a living, and he goes out one day and decides to travel farther than usual to fish. And to his amazement, he hooks the largest fish he's ever seen in his life - so big he can't possibly bring it into his boat. So he begins to tow his prize fish behind his boat, excited about what this catch could mean and how it may be the beginning of a wonderful turn of his fortunes. It's the dream catch of his life! But as he comes into the harbor and up to the dock, his joy turns back to an even greater despair than before. All the while that he's been towing his prize; the other creatures of the sea have been feeding on it. And all that's left of his dream is bones.

Maybe one reason that story has enduring interest is that it's a mirror of many of our lives. We pursue what we think will give us what we've needed. We catch it, but our great catches all too often turn out to be just carcasses in the end. They gave us hope for a while and then they let us down. So we go back out, fishing for something else that will be our answer. And ultimately, our next catch disappoints us, too. The trail behind us from our days even as a teenager is littered with the pieces of things that were supposed to make us happy but ultimately didn't. I couldn't help but notice a comment made by Johnny Carson's biographer after that great entertainer's death. This man who was lauded as the best in his field, who made so many of us laugh so many times, who was a giant in television. Here's what his biographer said: "I can't say that Johnny was ever a truly happy man. I don't think he would ever say he was a happy man." He's not alone.

In a few, sledgehammer words, Jesus Christ exposed all our futile expeditions to find answers for our life; and the only place really worth looking for it. In Mark 8:36, our word for today from the Word of God, Jesus said, "What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul?" You can catch everything this world has to offer - its acclaim, its wealth, its pleasures, its success - and lose the only thing that really matters, which is your soul. It's your soul that's always hungry for something you've never been able to find. And your soul is forever restless because you're away from the One you were made by; the One you were made for. In God's own words, "Your sins have separated you from your God" (Isaiah 59:2).

We have tried to fill a God-sized hole with things and people that can't begin to take His place. If we live like this, we'll live without peace and without meaning. If we die like this, we'll spend eternity without God and His love. He didn't leave us separated from Him. He pursued us. He sent His Son, Jesus, to sacrifice His life for yours and mine; to take the rap for all our sin, that defiant self-rule of our lives.

So what gaining the whole world could never do, Jesus can do. He said, "He who comes to Me will never go hungry, and he who believes in Me will never be thirsty" (John 6:35). That could be you, beginning today. Beginning the moment that you admit your need for His forgiveness, your readiness to turn the driver's seat over to Him, your complete trust in Jesus and Him alone as your only hope. It's quite simply the end of your search.

You've been so busy fishing for things that can't save or can't satisfy your soul. You've neglected your soul maybe, but not anymore. This is the day you can find Jesus and find what your soul has been looking for so long.

To find out how you can begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, please visit: Yours for Life or call 1-888-966-7325.

GOD'S GRACE

2009-10-18T21:13:00.006-04:00

"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no
longer I who live, but Christ lives in me;
and the life which I now live in the flesh I
live by faith in the Son of God, who loved
me and gave Himself for me. I do not set
aside the grace of God; for if righteousness
comes through the law, then Christ died
in vain." - (Galatians 2:20-21)

We have been studying the book of Galatians in church, and this morning our pastor preached an awesome, thought provoking sermon on the grace of God. Grace that includes anyone and everyone. God's love is all encompassing. He loves the poor, the sick, the sinful, the outcasts. He does not have cliques. He does not play favorites. No one gets picked last for His team.

It was easy for me to let my mind drift back to painful childhood memories of being the last one to be picked for a team, and then forward to more recent memories of feeling excluded by cliques in a church I attended several years ago. What was not so easy, was to acknowledge the times I turned my back on someone for fear of what others would think, the times I was judgmental and showed no grace at all, the times I've thought I was better than someone else.

It cut like a knife to hear pastor say that when we think we are better than someone else, we start acting like them and even worse. For many years, even as a Christian, I was very legalistic. I never quite grasped that being a Christian means living out God's grace to the people He puts in our path.

The purpose of the law was to show us our sinfulness and how impossible it is for any one of us to keep it in it's entirety. The law cannot love you or do anything for you. Only Jesus can do that. We all need Jesus, and when we put our trust in Him, that relationship with the law is broken. Righteousness can not be gained by following a set of rules. If it could, Jesus would have died in vain. But His death was not in vain. It had meaning and purpose, and brought me life. Because of His death, I have been set free, and you can be set free too.

If you are reading this and think it is too late for you, that is a lie from the pit of hell. No sin is too bad to be forgiven. If you were the only person on the face of this earth, Jesus would still have come and died for you. All you have to do is reach out and accept His gift of salvation.

There are no Baptists, or Methodists, or Catholics in Heaven. Only people who have put their trust in Christ!

"...by grace you have been saved through faith,
and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
not of works, lest anyone should boast"
(Ephesians 2:8)

AN APPROACHABLE GOD

2009-10-18T18:44:00.004-04:00

"For we do not have a High Priest who cannot
sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in
all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.
Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of
grace, that we may obtain mercy and find
grace to help in time of need."
(Hebrews 4:15-16)

A couple of days ago I was having lunch with some friends and though they all wanted a word of prayer before the meal, nobody wanted to be the one to do it. I didn't want to be the one either, but ended up saying grace when it became evident that no one else was going to step out of their comfort zone.

Why do so many of us feel uncomfortable when we're asked to publicly pray? I have been thinking about that since the lunch incident. Why do I cringe and hold my breath while avoiding the eyes of the person requesting a volunteer to say the blessing over a meal, or to open or close out a group in prayer, in hopes that someone else will be called upon?

Could it be because I grew up in an environment where one did not speak about God in public? Or could it be because I so often have trouble knowing what to say, and then in hindsight can think of a bunch of things I should have uttered. And yet God is a personal God. He loved us so much He sent Jesus to die for our sins so we could be reconciled to Him and able to freely enter into His presence. Once we accept the gift of salvation, we are adopted into His family and He becomes our father.

Praying is talking to our Heavenly Father. We don't have to use fancy words. He knows our heart. So why the fear of what others may think?

OLD SUPERSTITIONS DIE HARD

2009-10-04T18:10:00.014-04:00

"The blessing of the Lord makes one rich,
And He adds no sorrow with it."
(Proverbs 10:22)

This post is a continuation of a post entitled FEAR that I published on my other blog yesterday.

To recap, I had recently celebrated a milestone birthday, and after a stretch of blessings and answers to prayer, the Lord chose that special day to gift me with an awesome surprise. At first my joy was supreme, but soon it became tainted by feelings of foreboding. Each time I shared what the Lord had done, it was followed by a pang of fear that something really bad was about to happen. Does anyone relate to that?

I think it is a common superstition in many cultures, and I remember my mother knocking on wood to keep bad luck away, and my mother-in-law spitting three times to ward off punishment for bragging, whenever we spoke about our good luck. So steeped was I in this mindset, it eventually became a self-fulfilling prophecy, and each time I felt extraordinarily happy about something, I would immediately become fearful of the bad news to follow, and I was never disappointed. Most times it would happen the very next day.

Old superstitions do die hard, because after all these years of studying the Word of God, I still slip back into old ways of thinking. And that is exactly the way Satan would like it to be. He is always looking for our weak points, the buttons he can push, in order to gain a foothold in our lives (John 10:10). That is why we are exhorted to renew our minds with the truth of the Word, and to bring every thought into captivity to it (Romans 12:2 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5).

Satan is the father of all lies (John 8:44), and we are warned about how he prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8-9). He may be a roaring lion, but he is also a toothless defeated one, as a result of the blood Jesus shed for us on the cross.

Despite how things may look to our natural eyes, the battlefield is in our minds. That's why we need to stand strong in the Lord and put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-13,16). The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). The only way we can be defeated is if we allow Satan to deceive us.

Anyway, all this to say, bad things do happen, but they happen because we live in a fallen world. It's not the sharing of our blessings that causes them to happen. One thing has nothing to do with the other, although Satan would like us to think it does so he can steal some of our joy.

Dear God, let me never fail to share the things you have done in my life for fear of some evil to follow. You are totally awesome, and worthy of my praise!

BACK TO THE FOOT OF THE CROSS

2009-09-06T18:04:00.006-04:00

"Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him and he will do this:
He will make your righteousness
shine like the dawn, the justice of
your cause like the noonday sun."
(Psalm 37:5-6)

Last night I stayed up really late trying to finish an interview I was transcribing, and as I fell exhausted into bed, the Lord spoke eight little words to me (not audibly, but by way of that still small voice within)--you are wound up tighter than a corkscrew. Huh? Me? I never would have thought. And yet, once the words were spoken I suddenly became aware of just how tense and knotted up my body really felt. How could I have missed that? And exhausted as I was, my mind was still in a whirl with a barrage of thoughts just tumbling all over each other.

The last few months flashed before my eyes. The frustration of trying to cram more into each day than is humanly possible, the rushing from one thing to the next as a result, the inability to achieve balance in my life and letting work take over more and more of my time. Why?

I thought I was laid back, I thought my trust was in the Lord and His provision, I thought, I thought, I thought. What a rude awakening to see that what I thought was not fact at all. If I was really laid back, why was my body all tied up in knots, and if I was trusting in the Lord to provide for all my needs, why was I so fearful that if I didn't work harder and faster, the work would go to someone else? That sounds more like trying to be in control than trusting God and being willing to step outside my comfort zone.

So back to the Cross I go to lay it all down again, and truly commit my way to the Lord. That means letting Him decide what I need to do, and allowing Him to order my steps and orchestrate my time. He sees the whole picture, and knows what is best. Plus He loves me unconditionally (and you too), and never gives up on us--no matter how many times we fall.

How fitting that I write this as Labor Day draws to a close, harboring the end of a season and the beginning of the next. I too am leaving an old way behind and embarking on a new adventure. I can't wait to see what this chapter holds in store!

DIVINE ORIGINALS

2009-08-24T07:30:00.004-04:00

"I will praise You, for I am fearfully

and wonderfully made."

(Psalm 139:14a)

Did you know that you are a Divine, one of a kind, original, created for a special purpose no one else can fulfill? I lost sight of that for a while, and in my frustration, wrote a post on my other blog which you can read here, if you are interested.

As I wrote, I had a flash of insight. I have been trying to compare apples to oranges. This was confirmed as I sat down to schedule my week in a planner. I really was trying to cram more than what is humanly possible into the 24 hours allotted to me, but because I was comparing my 24 hours to the surgeon's 24 hours and to my daughter's 24 hours, and the 24 hours of my single mom friends who are trying to juggle family and work, I felt I wasn't accomplishing anything.

What a difference a change in perspective can make. I was putting value on what I was getting done by human standards, which are quite different from God's. He did not create me to be a surgeon, or my daughter, or my friends. He created me to be me. If I am faithful to do the things He has called me to do, that is of the greatest value in His sight. That is what will make Him smile and say those glorious words I long to hear, "Well done, good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:23)

LET YOUR LIFE BEGIN AGAIN

2009-08-14T20:45:00.011-04:00

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
(1 John 1:9)

Forgiveness has been one of my greatest challenges. Not the being able to forgive others kind, but the being able to forgive myself. It has been so hard to rid myself of the guilt laden memories that keep coming back to haunt me even though I know I was forgiven the day I laid them down at the foot of the Cross.

A few days ago, I had a sudden flash of insight as I read a devotional by Kenneth Copeland, entitled Let Your Life Begin Again. It was a devotional I have read several times before, but this time the words jumped out at me and spoke to my heart in a way I had never fully grasped. The moment you make Jesus Lord and accept His free gift of salvation, you are born again into newness of life. That very instant, your past is wiped away and you become like a new born babe with a clean slate. HELLO!!! I've known this for about 18 years now, but I guess I hadn't really absorbed it the way I should have.

With great excitement, I spent several hours dredging up every memory I could possibly think of that could produce guilt or unforgiveness, made a list several pages long, ripped it up, put the pieces in a pot in my kitchen sink, and lit a match to it. As I watched it burn, I madly waved a towel back and forth for fear that the smoke would set off the smoke alarm. Then I flushed the ashes down the toilet while replaying snippets of Scripture in my head such as, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow" (Isaiah 1:18); "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us" (Psalm 103:12).

I had to flush several times, because just as my memories had kept coming back to haunt me, some of the ashes kept resurfacing and floating on top of the water. But persistence paid off. The last ash finally disappeared, and with it the last residue of guilt that had plagued me for so long.

LETTING GOD BE GOD

2009-08-06T07:57:00.016-04:00

"'My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are
your ways My ways,' says the Lord.' For
as the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are My ways higher than your ways,
and My thoughts than your thoughts.'"
(Isaiah 55:8-9)

Just when I think I've already let go of everything I can possibly think of that needs to be let go of in my life, I discover something new.

In my last post I wrote about the supernatural surgery the Lord performed on my face to remove a very large and ugly cyst. This came as a huge surprise since I was so sure that the answer to prayer was the surgeon He unexpectedly led me to, the peace I felt about making an appointment for the surgery, and most of all--wimp that I am--the total lack of fear as the surgeon explained the procedure and that I would have to return a week later to have the stitches removed. Under normal circumstances, that last statement about having to have stitches removed would have thrown me into a heightened state of panic.

So to say I was excited about the unexpected turn of events would be an understatement. It was one of the most awesome supernatural things I have ever experienced, and I couldn't wait to show everybody what the Lord had done. I shared my testimony at church, at my prayer group, on my blogs, with the person who had recommended the surgeon, and of course the surgeon's office when I called to cancel the appointment for the surgery and reschedule a follow-up instead so he could see my face and document what had occurred, and the Lord would get all the glory.

Well, the incision did not heal up as quickly as I expected it to, and once the soreness wore off and I could touch the area where the cyst had been, I could feel a knot under the skin. I started to regret having been so quick to share my testimony--especially with the surgeon. What would happen when I went for my follow-up? Would the surgeon think it hadn't been the Lord's handiwork after all? Now I was frantically requesting prayer that the Lord's glory would not be stolen. That is, until a wise intercessor reminded me that God is sovereign and does not need my help to make Him look good.

God is in complete control of every circumstance. His power is absolute, and He does things His way, in His time, in order to accomplish His purpose and plan, which His Word assures us is always for our good and His glory. This truth can be hard to swallow when we forget that He sees the whole picture and knows what He is doing. There is so much I don't understand, but God's sovereign design for our lives is so far beyond our comprehension that I am not expected to understand. All He asks is that I trust in His goodness and mercy.

Recently I came across a breath prayer that I have incorporated into my day. "Lord of my life, I give you my hopes." I don't know what will happen when I go to my appointment next week. I don't know if the healing will be complete by then or not. I don't know if there will be a scar. But I do know one thing. It's not my problem to worry about. God's glory does not depend on me.

LAY DOWN YOUR HEAVY BURDEN

2009-05-27T15:32:00.002-04:00

"Come to me, all you who are weary
and burdened, and I will give you
rest." - Matthew 11:28

It seems like I've been battling the same old battles week after week, year after year, for almost half a century now, and wondering why it's so hard to break bad habits. Seems like I'm forever setting goals and declaring new beginnings, only to fall short time and time again. I can so relate to what the great apostle Paul says in Romans 7:15--"I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do." That describes me to a tee, and I spent much time this week pondering why that should be so.

Well, a few days ago I took one of my neighbors to an Alpha course. This week's session was all about the Holy Spirit. Nothing new that I haven't heard or read about before. My mind started to wander a bit, but all of a sudden I was sitting bolt upright in my chair. It was one of those moments when you see something you've seen a gazillion times before, but this time it jumps off the page and knocks you right between the eyes.

The Lord brought something to my attention that was so obvious, I couldn't believe it hadn't impacted me sooner. All along, without realizing it, I have been trying to do what the "Law" proved it was impossible for any of us to do. I have been trying to transform myself, when the Holy Spirit is the only one who can set me free from my various bondages. Hello!!!

The whole purpose of the law was to show us our need for grace. Nobody was able to keep all the commandments, ever. The old covenant was constantly being broken. However, God promised that one day He would make a new covenant (Jeremiah 31:33) and the law would become something inside of us instead of an external thing. Instead of all those rules weighing us down from the outside like a heavy sack of potatoes, we would be energized by the power of the Holy Spirit within us.

According to Isaiah 59:1-2, we have all done wrong and gone astray, and the things we do wrong cause a separation between us and God. No one can bridge that gap by their own efforts. Jesus is the only way. On the Cross He took all our wrongdoing upon Himself (Isiah 53:6) and paid the price for our sins.

The moment we come to the foot of the Cross and receive the gift Christ offers us, we receive complete forgiveness of our sins. The barrier between us and God is removed, the Holy Spirit comes to live within us, and He begins to transform us from the inside out. This takes time. Only rarely, if ever, does it happen overnight.

Victory comes when we stop trying to gain it in our own strength. It comes when we lay our heavy burden at the foot of the Cross, turn our lives over to the Lord, and are willing to let the Holy Spirit take the lead. Only then can the process of transformation begin, for it is God "who works in us to will and to act according to his good purpose" (Philippians 2:13). All good things we have or become, whatever the world's explanation may be, are a result of His grace, and His grace alone.

AND THEN SUDDENLY...

2009-05-16T21:32:00.006-04:00

Only yesterday I posted about how calm I was feeling, calm that surprised me, given my financial circumstances. And then suddenly--I just love those suddenlies--the unimaginable happened. Unimaginable in a truly awesome way.

For several months now I have been dreaming of some day owning a Wii. However, given my downward spiraling financial situation, that hardly seemed realistic. So imagine my surprise when a certified letter was delivered to my door, and inside the letter was an unexpected check for unpaid royalties, long written off, that not only enabled me to catch up on the bills and pay off my overdraft protection loan, but it enabled me to purchase a Wii and a Wii Fit too. Is that awesome, or what?

I have had many incredible experiences of the Lord coming through for me at the 11th hour to meet a pressing need, and I've always been very, very grateful, but what melts my heart and humbles me the most, is when He chooses to indulge me with a totally unnecessary want.

TRUSTING IN THE FATHER'S LOVE

2009-05-14T21:14:00.004-04:00

"When you pass through the waters, I
will be with you, And through the rivers,
they shall not overflow you. When you
walk through the fire, you shall not be
burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you."
(Isaiah 43:2)

Lately we seem to have been bombarded with an awful lot of bad news. And yes, like so many others, I too have been impacted by the economy, as well as by a couple of large, unexpected expenses that threw me completely off course. If I were to be moved by what my eyes see, what my ears hear, what my intellect tells me, and what my circumstances are looking like right now, I would be feeling stressed, overwhelmed, even panicked. And yet I'm not. I'm feeling unbelievably calm.

Surely this must be the "peace of God, which surpasses all understanding," that is mentioned in Philippians 4:7, and that comes when we put our trust in the Lord. I can do that now because of all the times in the past when I have experienced His faithfulness. There has never been a need that was not met, and more often than not, met in some awesome way that could only have been orchestrated by Him.

A few days ago I attended a memorial service for a friend of mine who put all his trust in the Lord, despite the cancer that ravaged his body. After the eulogy, his widow read the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of passage, which so beautifully illustrates the love of a father who never leaves or forsakes his child, no matter what things may be looking like in the natural. It goes like this:

When the youth becomes of age, his father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him, and then leaves him alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night through without removing the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it. He cannot cry out for help, even though he is naturally terrified by all the noises he hears, and he cannot tell the other boys of his experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own.

Wild beasts must surely be all around him, and maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blows the grass and shakes the stump, but the boy remains stoically on his perch, never removing his blindfold, because he knows this is what he must do in order to become a man.

Finally, after a horrific night the sun appears and he removes his blindfold. It is then that he discovers his father sitting on the stump next to him. He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm.

We, too, are never alone. Just because we can't see God doesn't mean He isn't there. No matter how bad things may seem, He is right next to us, watching over us. When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him.

COME ON HOME

2009-04-24T09:54:00.011-04:00

Just wanted to share this video clip I found on Tammy's blog (Omah's Helping Hands). Don't think I need to add any words of my own. It seems to say it all.

IT'S SO NOT ABOUT ME

2009-04-07T00:08:00.008-04:00

"He who has no sense of self-importance
cannot be ofended or deflated."
(W. Phillip Keller)

This is the lesson the Lord seems to be trying to impart to me these days. The universe does not revolve around me.

I actually started writing this post a couple of weeks ago, and was happy when some rush work came my way that caused me to lay it aside. Truth be told, I was embarrassed to write it. The thought of people I know reading it and getting a glimpse of the real me, made me burn with shame. But isn't that yet another aspect of the same issue? Aren't those thoughts still all about me, rather than any reflection of true Godly sorrow?

The Lord already knows the end from the beginning. He knows our hearts and all the things we are going to do before we even do them. The tests come, not for Him to see how we will react, but so that we can get a glimpse into whether we have learned our lessons yet, or whether we need to take another walk around the mountain. My three-part test started several weeks ago.

PART I: The person sitting next to me at a prayer meeting one morning, told me about an accountability group she belonged to. I asked if it was something I could attend too, and was really excited when she said I could. A few days later, however, I received an e-mail from a friend of mine, also in the group, telling me she was surprised that I had been invited without it first being discussed with the other members. She had had brought it up to them, and the consensus was that they didn't want me to come.

Now even though I could understand their having already bonded and not wanting to expand their numbers, and even though I realized I wouldn't have been able to go anyway because the hour conflicted with my work schedule, it did sting. In fact, for a moment, I felt as though I had been punched so hard it winded me.

PART II: That first sting was soon forgotten, but the test was not yet over. Our prayer group was going to have a special meeting, and the leader asked me if I would read a particular devotional I had shared with him and, in my own words, explain how it applied to the group. That was a moment of excitement mixed with trepidation. Excitement because I felt the Lord was finally taking me off the shelf, and trepidation because it had been a long, long time since anyone had asked me to do something like this.

So I prayed about it, and even asked a couple of other folks to pray for me too. Went to church and had copies made of the devotional to pass out. Stayed up really late because there was work I needed to finish, and after that there were some Scriptures I wanted to look up. Before I knew it, my guard was down, and thoughts started flitting through my mind such as how this would be the start of a new thing the Lord was about to do in my life, the beginning of a new ministry, how maybe there would be such annointing the next morning that I would get asked to do the devotional at the meeting planned for the day after as well, and on and on and on.

Well, pride does come before a fall, and to my great shame, all I got to do at the meeting was to pass out the copies of the devotional. I never got called on to read it, or to share my thoughts. There was a momentary pang of true remorse for what I had done to bring on this admonishment, but stronger than the remorse was the embarrassment I felt at having made such a big thing out of this invitation in my mind, even to the point of asked other folks for prayer. And so the Lord reminded me that had I taken to heart the quote at the top of this post, there would now be no cause for shame. After all, He did share the message via the handouts, even if He didn't choose to use me as His mouthpiece at this time.

PART III: At a time when I was bogged down with work, a rush project with a firm deadline that I had said I could meet, my computer got infected with a Trojan virus. What to do. I didn't have money to pay someone to fix the problem, so I swallowed my pride and called a friend I haven't been in touch with for almost a year, to see if her husband (a computer pro who had helped me in the past) might be willing to come to my aid once again. He tried to help me over the phone, but nothing worked, so he said he would stop by the next day with a program he had that would clean my computer, but he didn't.

Now did I stop to consider how things might be looking from his perspective--husband, father, son-in-law, juggling a myriad of responsibilities, commuting a huge distance to work and back every day, coaching a couple of his children's teams, active in church, and then here comes someone out of the past trying to add one more thing to an already overloaded plate? No, not at all. To the contrary.

My thoughts were all about me. How was I going to get my job done? I really needed the money. There were bills to be paid. This was my livelihood. Why couldn't he see how important this was and drop everything else? Wow! I can't believe the nerve of me intruding on their lives and then actually feeling wronged when he had other obligations that were a priority. What was I thinking.

So I guess it's one more trip around the mountain for me, but the Lord did show me some mercy and grace in the form of a perfect stranger, our church's IT person, who showed up in person, to help me with my computer. Hopefully the lesson has been learned!

MY TESTIMONY: PART IVThe Best is Yet to Come

2009-03-15T16:58:00.017-04:00

"So I will restore to you the years that
the swarming locust has eaten ... You
shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
And praise the name of the Lord your God,
Who has dealt wondrously with you.
(Joel 2:25-26)

Life was bittersweet. The Lord was revealing Himself to me in awesome ways, and yet I felt isolated. There were parking issues in my development that made it difficult to invite people over. Neighbors were very transient and pretty much kept to themselves. On top of that, I was in a cold, cold church where I never felt I belonged. I stayed for eight years because the teaching was sound and it was close to home.

I felt as though the Lord had put me on the shelf, and would wonder if He was ever going to take me down, but after a while those thoughts grew less and less, and I settled in to a resigned sort of contentment--well, most of the time. Other times I would think of the friends I went to school with who had lived successful lives and were now enjoying retirement or semiretirement, whereas due to the poor choices I had made, there was no retirement in my future.

I didn't really mind the fact that I would have to keep on working, because I enjoy what I do, but I did have regrets about wasting my talents and opportunities, and not having been a better parent. I would get this overwhelming feeling of remorse at having squandered my life and not having anything to show for it. Even worse, there was no turning back the clock (something I wrote about here, on my other blog).

But God wasn't done with me yet. He still had a "suddenly" up His sleeve, and just as I was getting ready to sign my 12th lease, a chain of unexpected events took place (literally from one day to the next) that led to my moving to an even smaller town. It all happened so suddenly and out of the blue, there was no time for planning. And of course Satan did his best to steal my joy by creating obstacles that made the process of getting from there to here stressful and suspenseful, but the Lord came through in His usual awesome way, only confirming that it was He who had set the whole thing in motion.

It's been almost a year-and-a-half now since I was transported to yet another unfamiliar neck of the woods, but what a blessing it has been. It is a quiet complex, surrounded by beautiful trees, and parking is no issue. The neighbors are really friendly, and my new church home is so, so warm. It's like I've been placed in the middle of a huge, caring family. People actually want to include me and hear what I have to say. And the Lord has given me a new ministry, one I would never have chosen on my own since it is way below my level of comfortability, but one that I know is a privileged responsibility. He has finally taken me off the shelf and is training me to be an intercessor.

My professional friends may be retired now, but I am just getting started. And as for the tragedy of a wasted life, has it really been so? Had I pursued my talents and education to their fullest, would I ever have felt a need for the Lord or for His saving grace? Would I have spent my life chasing after the things the world has to offer, instead of the things that have eternal value? Would I have missed God's gift of salvation instead of my vocation, a greater tragedy by far?

Life has become exciting. I can't wait to see what the Lord is about to do next!

Read all about it in Part V.
PART V Sincerely Wrong

MY TESTIMONY: PART IIITaste and See that the Lord is Good

2009-03-14T20:34:00.010-04:00

"For I know the thoughts that I
think toward you, says the Lord,
thoughts of peace and not of evil,
to give you a future and a hope."
(Jeremiah 29:11)

Life was comfortable and fulfilling. Good friends, church family, music ministry, work I enjoyed, people who appreciated me. I had become quite content with the way things were, when suddenly and unexpectedly, I met a "Christian" man through work. And I have purposefully put that word in quotes, because one of the first lessons I learned during my stint with the organization I met him through, is that some folks claiming to be Christians just use the title to try and take advantage of their unsuspecting sisters and brothers in Christ. I have been more burned by them than by anybody else I've known. But I digress.

This person was my boss, and not only did he want to marry me, but he also offered me what looked like the job of my dreams. I wasn't sure what to make of all this because at this point in life I no longer considered the possibility of remarrying. I enjoyed my independence, and being able to come and go as I pleased. However, I also reveled in the attention he showered upon me. It felt kind of nice to have someone think I was so special and be genuinely concerned about my wellbeing. What to do.

I did a lot of praying, begging the Lord to step in and close all the doors if this wasn't of Him, but at the same time, I tuned out all the little warnings that the still small voice within was trying to bring to my attention. I saw only what I wanted to see, which was that this man was mature, responsible, and trustworthy. I believed him when he told me his word was something I could bank on. And when both his pastor and mine gave us their blessing, I reasoned that it was a sign of the Lord's blessing too, and this romantic fantasy started playing in my mind of what an awesome testimony this would turn out to be. I even tried to help the Lord speed things along instead of waiting on His perfect timing.

The owner of my apartment complex, which had turned co-op, had offered to pay me to move out so he could sell my apartment. At first I turned the offer down, but now I told him I'd reconsidered, and would like to take him up on it. My daughter had said I could stay with her until I got married, which was supposed to happen shortly after the move, and so the wheels were set in motion. I gave up my business, gave most of my furniture and money to a friend who had been staying with me so she and her girls would be able to find another place to live, and set out with only what I could squeeze into my little two-door Ford Escort. A home and a job awaited me, so I wasn't worried about myself at all.

Segway from there right into the second lesson I was soon to learn, which is that only God's word can be banked on. Only His word can be trusted 100% of the time. Everyone else's word is subject to change. People make commitments they don't or can't keep. Sometimes it's because they make them in haste before considering all the ramifications. Other times it's because circumstances get in the way. Even the most honorable and best intentioned folks are subject to sickness, accidents, unavoidable delays, and death.

To make a long story short, not only did the job fall through, but I soon found out there was not going to be a marriage either, and I ended the relationship. So here I was, stripped of everything familiar; a bag lady living out of boxes and inhabiting the top bunk of my granddaughters' bunk bed.

It was in this top bunk that the Lord finally got my undivided attention. Many tears were shed when no one was around, and after I found a job, I would even find myself crying while I was driving back and forth from work. One of the major miracles of that time was that I never had an accident, even when my eyes were so filled I could hardly see where I was going. I just kept weeping and asking over and over again, why Lord did you let this happen to me when I not only prayed, but even begged you to close all the doors if this move was not of you.

Finally, one day when there were no tears left to cry, a sudden calm come over me, and I felt as though the Lord had put His arms around me and was holding me close and quieting me. A picture flashed through my mind of a very rebellious horse finally being broken in, and in that moment, I was able to release what was in my tightly clenched fist, and open it up to receive something better.

On that road towards something better, there were many lessons to learn, and one of the first things to get chipped away at was my pride. For the first time in my life, I was on the receiving end instead of the giving one. I was beginning to walk in the other person's shoes, and experience the shame of needing a handout, and the humiliation when certain people think it's your fault and you're just too lazy to go get a second or a third job.

Another first was that nobody seemed to need anything I had to offer. In the big city I came from, I had never had problems making friends. People were often in and out of my apartment, and there was plenty for me to do at church as well, but here I was in this small town I had never even heard about before, and my overtures were rejected. My ego was diminishing by leaps and bounds. It was a very painful and puzzling experience.

More than once I asked the Lord why I couldn't make friends, and why I couldn't be part of a music ministry. His response was that if He wanted me to keep doing the things I did before, he would have kept me there. He had uprooted and transplanted me into unfamiliar territory so He could start doing something new. I began to understand that just because things didn't turn out the way I expected they would have if I had really heard from the Lord didn't mean that I hadn't. All it meant was that He had a different purpose in mind.

During my 12 years in this small town the Lord provided in miraculous ways--not only for my needs, but for some of my wants as well. I learned to trust Him more than ever as I experienced first hand the manifestations of His faithfulness and love. It is too much to put into one post, but you can read about some of the most awesome things He did, here and here (two posts I wrote on my other blog).

It doesn't end there though, so stay tuned for Part IV, the conclusion of my testimony, which I hope to be able to get written soon.

PART IV The Best is Yet to Come

THE FATHER'S LOVE LETTER

2009-03-11T18:55:00.000-04:00

Dear (insert your name):

You may not know me, but I know everything about you (Psalm 139:1). I know when you sit down and when you rise up (Psalm 139:2). I am familiar with all your ways (Psalm 139:3). Even the very hairs on your head are numbered (Matthew 10:29-31). You were made in my image (Genesis 1:27). In me you live and move and have your being (Acts 17:28). You are my offspring (Acts 17:28). I knew you even before you were conceived (Jeremiah 1:4-5). You were not a mistake; all your days are written in my book (Psalm 139: 15-16).

I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live (Acts 17:26). You are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). I knit you together in your mother's womb (Psalm 139:13) and brought you forth on the day you were born (Psalm 71:6).

Those who don’t know me have misrepresented me (John 8:41-45). I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love (1 John 4:16) and it is my desire to lavish my love on you simply because you are my child and I am your father (1 John 3:1).

I offer you more than your earthly father ever could (Matthew 7:11) for I am the perfect father (Matthew 5:48). Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand (James 1:17). I am your provider and I meet all your needs (Matthew 6:31-33). My plan for your future has always been filled with hope (Jeremiah 29:11) because I love you with an everlasting love (Jeremiah 31:3). My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore (Psalm 139:17-18) and I rejoice over you with singing (Zephaniah 3:17).

I will never stop doing good to you (Jeremiah 32:40) for you are my treasured possession (Exodus 19:5). I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul (Jeremiah 32: 41) and I want to show you great and marvelous things (Jeremiah 33:3).

If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me (Deuteronomy 4:29). Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart (Psalm 37:4) for it is I who gave you those desires (Philippians 2:13). I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine (Ephesians 3:20) for I am your greatest encourager (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17). I am also the father who comforts you in all your troubles (2 Corinthians 1:3-4). When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you (Psalm 34:18).

As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart (Isaiah 40:11). One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes and will take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth (Revelation 21:3-4). I am your father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus (John 17:23) for in Jesus, my love for you is revealed (John 17:26). He is the exact representation of my being (Hebrews 1:3). He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you (Romans 8:31) and to tell you that I am not counting your sins against you (2 Corinthians 5:18-19).

Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled (2 Corinthians 5:18-19). His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you (1 John 4:10). I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love (Romans 8:31-32). If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me (1 John 2:23) and nothing will ever separate you from my love again (Romans 8:38-39).

Come home and I'll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen (Luke 15:7). I have always been Father, and will always be Father (Ephesians 3:14-15). My question is--will you be my child? (John 1:12-13). I am waiting for you (Luke 15:11-32).

MY TESTIMONY: PART IIExploring the Word

2009-03-10T16:14:00.011-04:00

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope

without wavering, for He who promised is

faithful." - (Hebrews 10:23)

So at the end of Part I, the day came when I felt ready to turn my life over to Jesus, and as the invitation was given on the program I was watching, I put my hand on the TV screen, repeated the sinner’s prayer, and asked Him to come into my heart and be my Lord and Savior. I accepted the gift of salvation with the unwavering faith of a little child, and as I continued to spend time in the Word, I accepted every other promise just as unwaveringly. It was like God said it, so I believe it!

Slowly, slowly, the Bible was becoming my authority, and when I saw what it said about the importance of fellowship with other believers, and of being part of a body, I decided to look for a church to attend. What an eye opener that was. Up to that point I had thought that all believers believed the same thing, but that's not the way it was at all. Never in my wildest imagination could I have conceived how much division I was about to encounter.

There were believers, for example, who praised the Lord loudly and joyfully, singing and dancing before Him like David in the Old Testament must have done(2 Samuel 6:14), whereas other believers said that was a no-no, and frowned upon the practice of raising hands or clapping during worship. Some believers believed in miracles, and healing, and the gifts of the spirit, whereas others claimed those things were no longer for today. So who was right, and who was wrong?

My heart's desire was to do what was right, and so I began wavering. I became kind of like Peter who started walking on the water when Jesus bid him "come," but then took his eyes off of Him, started looking at the wind and the raging sea instead, and began to sink (Matthew 14:24-31). I began putting more faith in some of the sermons I heard than in what I saw in the Word, and was letting the words of others color my thinking.

James 1:6b-8 issues a warning against being double minded and wavering in our faith, but that's just what I began doing. If I heard something that confirmed what I believed, it strengthened my faith for the moment, but then if I heard something else spoken against it, I would start wavering again. It was a constant dilemma.

However, one thing could not be denied. The Lord had done some amazing things in my life that I kept track of on bits and pieces of paper. Several years ago, I copied all these incidents into a notebook, which I continue to add to today, and whenever I feel discouraged or depressed, or am facing a seemingly hopeless situation, I leaf through its pages and am reminded of the Lord's goodness and grace. In fact, I wrote a whole post about it here on my Great-Granny blog.

Shortly after that, I started another notebook, a little fat one entitled, "It Is Written..." I divided it into tabbed sections, each one dealing with an issue I struggle with in my own personal life--Anger, Fear, Health, Discouragement, Spiritual Warfare, Who I am in the Lord, and so on--and every time I find a verse that speaks to my heart, I write it down in the appropriate section.

This little reference book has come to my rescue on more than one occasion when I wasn't thinking clearly, or when I've been having trouble remembering where to find a certain verse. It's been such a blessing that I've even added it to my hard drive so I can share it with whoever else might like a copy of it. If that 'whoever else' happens to be you, please send me your e-mail and I'll be more than happy to send you one. It is completely free, and there are no strings attached.

Finally, I've taken to marking up my Bibles. I underline verses that jump out at me, sometimes put little hearts next to them, and whenever one of the promises is actually manifested in my life, I put a little TP next to it (Tested and Proven). That way I no longer have to waver or be influenced by someone else's thoughts.

Now when I hear someone say these promises are not for today, I can tell them they've arrived too late with their message, because I've already seen those miracles manifest in my life. That is evidence that cannot be disputed.

PART III Taste and See that the Lord is Good

MY TESTIMONY: PART IJourney to the Foot of the Cross

2009-03-08T17:57:00.017-04:00

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock."
(Revelation 3:20a)

As early as I can remember, I felt drawn to the supernatural—God, religion, the occult. However, it took a little over half a century before I came to know Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Along the way I explored several paths—each time convinced that I had found the right one. But I thank God for His persistence in pursuing me and nudging me along until I landed right into the outstretched arms of Jesus.

How grateful I am that His ways are not our ways and that He has infinite mercy and patience. No matter how wayward I must have seemed, He never gave up on me or turned His back on me--even when I vented all my pent up anger and frustration on Him. Instead, He continued to hover over me, to protect me, and to take care of me.

As I think back on my childhood and the years before I was saved, I can remember some very distinct occasions when He actually delivered me from potential danger and harm, either by planting a warning thought in my mind, or through His divine intervention.

I was an only child and because of my father’s involvement with his work and my mother’s involvement with him, I spent a lot of time with nannies, maids and in boarding schools. I wanted so much to feel special and to “belong,” but I never seemed to fit in. I really envied friends who came from large, close-knit families, while I myself, felt as though I had no roots. My parents did love me, but they treated me more as a belonging or an extension of themselves than as a separate entity with emotional needs who needed nurturing and support.

My mother was so motivated by fear that she overprotected me and kept me sheltered from many things that I should not have been sheltered from. Even major family events that should have been shared were not, which increased my feelings of isolation and disconnectedness. For instance, when my grandmother died, and later my father, I was away at school and was not told about their deaths until after their funerals. In the case of my father, it wasn’t even my mother who broke the news to me, but rather, one of her friends who she sent to visit me at school and tell me what had happened.

I struggled with feelings of inadequacy, guilt, shame, condemnation, rejection--never seeming to be able to live up to anyone’s expectations—especially my mother's. And I found myself constantly deferring to the wishes of other people in an attempt to be accepted and loved. Even after I got married, I never knew what it was like to be loved unconditionally or to have someone stand up for me. I made many compromises I didn’t want to make, because of my lack of self-esteem, fear of abandonment, and fear of what other people might think.

Because I was so needy, I settled for very much less than God’s best for me and did many things for the wrong reasons, driven by a constant and overwhelming need to prove myself. As a result, there was a lot of anger and resentment brewing beneath the surface that I wasn’t even aware of.

After my husband’s death, I became involved in the occult. Visiting psychics became a regular activity and I also immersed myself in the study of astrology, numerology, metaphysics and other new age practices. For the first time in my life I felt at peace as I learned that my personality, the way I interacted with people, and the events that happened in my life were all predetermined by the numbers in my given name at birth and by the position of the stars when I was born. Knowing that these things were out of my control made them easier to accept. I wasn’t looking for roots any more—or feeling dissatisfied with my circumstances. I felt that all my questions had been answered in a very rational, clear-cut way that I could deal with.

It was quite a natural progression from here to the Eastern path I later became initiated into. Whereas the occult had offered me plausible explanations, Sant Mat (also known as “The Path of the Masters”) offered me the promise of a savior who would take me out of the cycle of reincarnation and lead me back to God. The teachings of this path were substantiated by numerous Scriptures—especially those found in the Gospel of John (although I later discovered that some had been slightly misquoted—like John 14:6 which they quoted as “ the way, the truth, and the light” rather than “the way, the truth, and the life).

They believed in Jesus and taught that no one could come to God except through a savior, but they claimed that the flock Jesus came to save was the flock that lived 2,000 years ago. They used John 10:3-4 (“…he calleth his own sheep by name… and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice”) to substantiate that fact. They taught that God has never left the world without a savior. He sends one to every generation to gather the sheep living at that time. They quoted the last phrase of 1 John 4:20 (“…how can he love God whom he hath not seen?”) to substantiate the fact that people can only be saved by a living Master who they can see—and not by Jesus or by any of the previous Masters who are no longer inhabiting a physical body.

All this, to say that without divine intervention of the most miraculous kind, I would never have gotten saved. I was perfectly happy with my life and believed in my salvation. I felt reconciled with God and certain that I would be spending eternity with Him. No one could have convinced me otherwise. In fact, I clearly remember a conversation I once had with a Christian acquaintance of mine who was telling me about my need for Jesus. It puzzled me that she couldn’t understand that I already had a savior and considered myself saved. She kept telling me it wasn’t the same thing and I kept insisting that it was.

At about this time, I started experiencing some financial setbacks that led me deeper and deeper into debt. Bills were piling up as I tried to juggle Peter so I could pay Paul, and my judgment must have really been clouded, because the more effort I put into trying to redeem my situation, the worse things got. Instead of making more money (which is what I was attempting to do), I was just losing it and creating more debt. It got to the point where I didn’t even know how (short of a miracle) I would be able to come up with my next month’s rent. That was when, I got a call from my married daughter who was living in another state. She wanted to know if she, hubby, and the two little ones could come up for Thanksgiving.

Now how does a mother tell her child no, you can’t come because right now I don’t even have money to pay the rent, let alone buy food to feed all of you--especially when there is a pride issue involved. So I told her that of course they could come. And that’s how the real God, Jehovah Jireh, got His foot in the door, came to my rescue, and got my full attention. I hadn’t been planning on having Thanksgiving that year, but now I was going to need to come up with a way. What a pickle I found myself in!

As I was pondering what to do, a friend of mine told me about a program she had watched on TV. This televangelist had talked about planting seeds for your needs and she had tried it and it really worked. She was so excited that I decided to see what it was all about for myself.

Under normal circumstances I would have immediately switched channels or turned off the TV at the sight of this loud and hyper man. However, because of the urgency of my situation I forced myself to watch and keep an open mind. He was talking about planting seeds of faith and about tithing and, in the process, he quoted a whole bunch of scripture verses which I later looked up. It seemed kind of hokey, but I figured I had nothing to lose at this point.

So I decided to call up his prayer line and plant a seed of faith, believing God to provide the money I needed for the rent and other bills, and also for Thanksgiving. I also decided to start tithing (though not into his ministry), and donated a tenth of whatever money came in, no matter how puny the amount, to some local charitable organizations that were reaching out to the poor and needy.

Well, my harvest started coming in and by the time Thanksgiving rolled around my bills were paid and I was even able to cater the meal from a kosher deli to accommodate my sister-in-law and brother-in-law who are Jewish and who I had invited to join us.

It would all have ended there, if the path I was on had any bans on its members investigating other belief systems or religions, but they didn’t. In fact we were taught that following the teachings of the path would just make us better Christians or Jews or Catholics or whatever it was we had been before we came to the master. In their eyes it was all compatible. So I started studying my Bible and testing the Scriptures. I figured that if some promises were true, then the others were probably true also.

Up until then I had always thought of the Bible as a historical book, but now I was beginning to see it as a very detailed roadmap God had provided me with to show me the path to follow, as well as the pitfalls to avoid, if I wanted to experience the very best He had for me.

Those were the days when I couldn't get enough of reading my Bible. I also found some other Christian programs with more substance to them, and started watching them on a regular basis. Finally the day came when I felt ready to turn my life over to Jesus, and as the invitation was given on the program I was listening to, I put my hand on the TV screen, repeated the sinner’s prayer, and asked Jesus to come into my heart and be my Lord and Savior. But that was just the very beginning. There's a whole lot more to follow.

Stay tuned for Part II.
PART II Exploring the Word

ON CALL 24/7

2009-02-28T19:07:00.020-05:00

"Call unto Me, and I will answer you,
and show you great and mighty things,
which you do not know."
(Jeremiah 33:3)

Isn't it comforting to know that in this world of voice mails, and beepers, and intercepting operators, there is one place we can call where we will never get a busy signal or be put on hold? It's the direct line to the Lord God Almighty, Creator of the Universe, Ruler of Heaven and Earth, CEO of CEO's. How awesome is that? And not only is it a free call, but He answers it right away, Himself, 24/7. But I digress.

When I was a baby Christian, it did not comfort me to be told that I was never alone, because God was always with me. To me, a flesh and blood partner was more to be desired, and I kept pointing out to God that He needed people to work through. Like when I was having a problem figuring out something on my computer, or I needed help carrying my groceries up the stairs, or I was feeling lonely and needed a great big bear hug. I would even throw Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 up to Him, and argue that He himself had said "Two are better than one . . . For if they fall, one will lift up his companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, For he has no one to help him up."

Well, for the first 12 years of my Virginia odyssey, I was alone, and during that time the Lord showed me many examples of how wrong my thinking was. I'm not going to cover much of that in this post because I'm saving it for my testimony, but I do want to share one incident where He let me see that even though He is invisible, He could still teach me how to do anything I thought I needed a human person for, and do it even better.

That incident took place almost ten years ago. I was attending a group where they were talking about the special personal blessings God gifts us with, and likening them to jewels. Right away I started thinking of writing mine out on little slips of paper and getting a box to put them in that I could decorate with magic markers or stickers to make it look pretty.

The next morning, as I drove to Ben Franklin to look for a box, I started thinking how nice it would be to get boxes for the rest of the ladies in the group too. However, I couldn't find anything like what I had in mind, and the saleslady led me over to some unfinished wooden boxes in different shapes and sizes, suggesting I could use these instead.

I asked her what I could do with them, and she gave me some suggestions such as paint them with acrylic paint, use Modge Podge to glue things on, and at that point I think the Lord must have taken over, because all I remember from then on is walking up and down the aisles, impulsively picking up this and that, and leaving the store with a bunch of stuff I had no experience working with at all.

When I got home, I set everything up on a card table and looked at it for a while, wondering what had possessed me to so mindlessly spend all this money that I didn't really have to spend, and on something that might well wind up trashed if I messed up. But not to worry. I had a couple of creative artsy crafty friends I could call on who would surely help me out.

I picked up the phone and dialed one, and then the other. Both times the phone rang and rang, but no one answered. And so now it was just the Lord and me. Time for some serious prayer. And as I prayed, two verses popped into mind with a thought that one would look nice around the edge of the lid, and the other one could be pasted inside the lid. So to my computer I went to type them up and print them out.

Then I had another thought. It might be nice to make the verse for the inside of the lid look like a scroll. But how to do that? And what should I do about names for the outside of the boxes? How I did the scroll thing, I'm really not sure. You can believe me or not, but to this day I have never again figured out how to recreate it.

As for the rainbow colored names I wound up gluing to the tops of the boxes, that was something I accidentally stumbled upon. Again, I cannot tell you how. All I can say is that it happened while I was trying to do something else. Suddenly, by some divinely engineered fluke, there was Word Art on my screen, a feature of my computer software I had no idea even existed until that moment in time.

And so step by step the Lord guided me through the process (by way of that still small voice within, as well as the above mentioned "accidents"), and the finished product was more than I had dared to hope for. Never would I have imagined that I could have put something like this together without a real live person to show me how.

Now I'm not comparing my boxes to the wonderful works of art I saw while visiting the blogs of OHOW participants several weeks ago, but I'm still amazed at the way it all turned out. In fact, I'm posting a picture of the outside of the box, as well as the inside of the lid, so you can see for yourself. Was the Lord an awesome instructor, or what?

These are the things I don't ever want to forget, and so I keep a record of them in a special notebook of remembrances I've posted about on my other blog, and that I take out and leaf through every once in a while.

WHY THIS BLOG

2009-02-22T12:02:00.011-05:00

"Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the man who trusts in Him!"
(Psalm 34:8)

Good news is for sharing, not for keeping to one's self, and my heart is full of things I would like to share about God's goodness, how He has worked in my life, and most of all, his great love for you and me.

At first I wanted to call this blog Streams of Living Water, and even had a great graphic picked out. I wanted to jump right in and share some things I've been learning that have brought the Scriptures alive in a way I'd never experienced before, but it seems the Lord had different plans, and if I've learned anything on this journey through life, it's been that even when His way is not my way, it always turns out to be the best way.

The streams of living water may be where the action takes place, but before we can jump in, we need to be transformed, and that all starts at the foot of the cross when you lay your burdens down.

At the foot of the cross there is mercy and grace. There is forgiveness, healing, and deliverance. This is the place where the slate gets wiped clean and you can have a fresh start. All you have to do is believe it, and receive it.

Thank you so much for stopping by. May you be richly blessed, encouraged, and filled with hope as you stay and visit for a while.

SITE UNDER CONSTRUCTION

2009-02-10T22:31:00.003-05:00

Setting up this blog has not been as easy as I thought it would be, so please bear with me as I try to figure it all out. Looks like I may need to learn some HTML.