Come home, find rest!

 I love being at ‘home!’  Home is where things are familiar, where I have a sense of security. The pictures on the wall say, “This is Jerry’s place!”  When I pull into my driveway, I anticipate stepping inside the door, pulling off my boots, turning on some music, being home. There is another kind of ‘being at home’ that is important, too, knowing that we are secure in God’s love, that we have a place in this world and the next that He’s prepared for us. The Bible calls this ‘entering God’s rest.’

Joshua, appointed by God to lead the people of Israel into Canaan, the Promised Land, told them that their rootless, nomadic wandering was about to come to an end. God was giving them a home. “Remember the command that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: ‘The LORD your God is giving you rest and has granted you this land.’  … the LORD gives them rest, … the possession of the land that the LORD your God is giving them.” (Joshua 1:13-15, NIV) These former slaves who had lived in tents for a whole generation, moving around in the wilderness of the Sinai, were now going to be able to settle in villages and cities, plant crops, build wealth – and be at home.

In the book of Hebrews, we learn from their experience that God has prepared a home for us, too. No, it’s not a holy land or a place on this earth. We are spiritually invited into rest, to leave our wilderness wandering in life, to be ‘at home’ in His love. "So there is a special rest still waiting for the people of God. For all who enter into God’s rest will find rest from their labors, just as God rested after creating the world. Let us do our best to enter that place of rest. For anyone who disobeys God, as the people of Israel did, will fall." (Hebrews 4:9-11, NLT)  

The primary meaning of the passage is salvation, that we find assurance of God’s love and restoration of our relationship to Him through Christ. We turn from our own efforts to become good enough for God, a futile effort to be sure that leads to endless struggle, to ‘rest’ fully in the grace given us by Jesus. At the invitation of the Spirit, our soul comes ‘home,’ and we know we are God’s children. Are you still unsure of His love? Do you feel unsettled when you think of His will?  The answer is not ‘more work,’ but to take the proffered gift of rest!

For those who are ‘in Christ’ there is a further invitation: to lay aside all the stress and struggle that come with trying to make life into what we think it ought to be. 

Our God invites us to “Give it a rest!”  Peter reminds us to "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7, NIV)  Jesus says, “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace." (Matthew 11:28-29, The Message) He also tells us that for all our worrying we cannot ‘add a single hour to life!’  God does not ask us to minimize our concerns or to pretend that life has no stress, but He invites us to let Him care, to entrust those things that we cannot control to Him. By faith we can choose to enter into a place of rest, even in the most difficult of circumstances. 

This is not an invitation to apathy, resignation to fate, or laziness! The Lord provides rest, but we must possess it with faithful obedience, following Him. Daily, we choose to enter His rest. He offers it, we accept, and like the ancient people of Israel who had to cross the Jordan and take the land, we leave old ways and let Him lead us to newness of life. God’s rest is not about retiring from life, about finding a place away from engagement with the world. He wants us to learn to work with Him. When we learn to work with His strength, we multiply our effectiveness.

Read Jesus’ words, again, from a different translation of the Scripture. "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  (Matthew 11:28-30, NIV)   “Come home,” He says, “where you can know my peace.”

Pause for a moment right now and thank God for His offer of a rest, a home, the security of His loving grace. Then, enter into the promise, by faith. The word from the Word for today - "And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:7, NIV)

________ 

Abba, the conspiracy of evil will attempt to
draw me into hurry and worry.

In that place, I know that You are not honored,
nor do I do my best work.

So, remind me often to be ‘at home’ in Your love,
At rest in Your gift of grace.

Teach me to work with You,
To release to Your care those things over which I have little control,
To walk obediently so that Your peace can keep me.

As You bless me, may I be a blessing to others. In Jesus’ name. Amen

 __________________ 

Only In God  

Only in God, is my soul at rest.

In Him comes my salvation.|

Only in God, is my soul at rest.

In Him comes my salvation.

He only is my Rock,

My strength and my salvation.

 

My stronghold, my Savior,

I shall not be afraid at all.

My stronghold, my Savior,

I shall not be moved.

 

Only in God is found safety,

When my enemy pursues me.

Only in God is found glory,

When I am found meek and found lowly.

 

Only in God,  John Michael Talbot © 1980 Birdwing Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing; Admin. by BMG Music Publishing) / BMG Songs, Inc. (Mech) (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing; Admin. by BMG Music Publishing)

 

CCLI License No. 810055

 

Step up!

“I want to run away,” I sometimes say, half-jokingly, when I feel like the challenges are too much. In that moment, a little cabin on a river somewhere deep in the mountains of Idaho sounds inviting – yes, just for a minute. What’s your escape fantasy?

The book that tells the story of Israel’s conquest of Canaan and their leader, Joshua, opens with the Lord speaking. “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites." (Joshua 1:2, NIV)  It is not a stretch of imagination to think that Joshua might have wanted to run away at that moment. The Israelites were a fickle people, quarrelsome; in no way could we say that they were easy to lead. Jericho, a walled town right across the Jordan River, stood as a reminder that the campaign of conquest wouldn’t be a walk in the park. For 40 years he had been the guy in the second chair. Yes, he was faithful and wise, but Moses was the point man. Now, he’s dead and God hands the job to Joshua! 

The Lord is calling you (and me) today. The old era is gone, a new one is emerging that has new challenges, that demands new strategies, that requires us to apply the unchanging principles of our ancient faith to the demands of life in 2020.  Every Christian is gifted by the Spirit to serve somewhere in the purposes of God. Yes, friend, that includes you.  Your family needs a godly Mom who prays for them and shows them the way. That place where you work needs a person who is filled with Light, who reflects Christ. Your church needs you to join the mission – giving, serving, working, praying – so that the work of God will be accomplished in your community. If you’re not hearing a calling that makes you at least a little afraid, may I suggest you may not be listening to the Spirit?

God  gave him promises, assurances that we can build our faith around as well. 
“Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it.

Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:6-9, NIV)

The last line is the foundation  -  “The Lord will be with you!”  

Jesus repeated that promise to us. "Go and make disciples of all the nations … and be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20, NLT)  Nothing replaces that confidence that comes from His Presence. I remember being a little boy walking with my Dad. When he was holding my hand, I wasn’t afraid of anything. I thought he was Superman. Our God is the Almighty, the Lord of glory, and He is with us, never leaving us.  

So …

“Be strong and courageous.” 
Joshua had a choice to make. He could hide in his tent, fearful of the future, OR he could make the choice to step up.   The same choice faces us today. Will we get up and get going? Will we choose strength and courage?  These are not to be confused with bravado, that false ‘courage’ that is fueled by pride. We are strong because the Spirit lives in us. Believe it.

“Meditate in the Word.” 
What fills your thoughts? Do you let your mind wander down pathways of fear, of self-indulgence, of doubt? Feed yourself on the Word of God. The Psalm reminds us that the godly person will "delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither." (Psalm 1:2-3, NIV)

 “Obey!”
Yes, that is a key part of living in God’s promises. We do not get to choose which parts we like. He wants all of us or none of us! Let’s respond quickly to Him to avoid the false assurance of saying, “Lord, Lord,” without really letting own us – heart, soul, mind, and strength.

And then He says, “you will be prosperous and successful.”
God does not intend for us to think that means every Christian will be rich and famous. Those may be part of our cultural ideas of prosperity and success but they are not God’s.  What He promised Joshua (and us) is that when we follow Him faithfully, He will give us insight and wisdom. His wisdom poured into us allows us to become a person of influence, full of the best kind of life and leading others to the same. This is true success, to be able to say like Paul, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness that the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that great day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his glorious return." (2 Timothy 4:7-8, NLT)

There are rivers to cross, a world to be won, so let us step up to the challenge, taking our holy calling to be the people of the Light, bringing God’s glory to this dark world. Daunting? Sometimes it is. Costly? Always. But, remember that clincher – “Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”

The word from the Word is my favorite benediction from my favorite book. Receive the blessing.
"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." (Ephesians 3:14-21, NIV)

__________

Way Maker

 You are here moving in our midst

I worship You I worship You

You are here working in this place

I worship You I worship You

 

Way Maker, Miracle Worker, Promise Keeper,

Light in the darkness, my God that is who You are

 

You are here touching ev'ry heart

I worship You I worship You

You are here healing ev'ry heart

I worship You I worship You

 

You are here turning lives around

I worship You I worship You

You are here mending ev'ry heart

I worship You yeah I worship You Lord

 

That is who You are

That is who You are

That is who You are

That is who You are

 

Even when I don't see it You're working

Even when I don't feel it You're working

You never stop You never stop working

You never stop You never stop working

 

Osinachi Kalu Okoro Egbu

© 2016 Integrity Music Europe (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing (Integrity Music [DC Cook]))

CCLI License # 810055

Let’s be who we say we are

 

I went to bed with a heavy heart and woke up feeling much the same. After a quick scan of news headlines from the whole political spectrum, the one thing just about everybody agrees on is that the “Presidential” debate last night was not a debate and was terrible. With all the issues facing our nation crying out for solutions, the two men who would be our next President offered up a shouting match with traded insults, without substance, nothing more. It was an embarrassing display of American politics at its worst.  I wondered if Jerry Springer was going to step out of the wings to take the moderator’s chair. (Not really, but it would have been fitting.)

Christian, I hope that this debacle finally dispels the persistent notion that we can ‘save our country’ by electing the right kind of candidate. Our hope is not in a party or a candidate, it rests on our Savior. The salvation of any nation, including the America I truly love, does not come from a party platform. Transformation of individuals results from knowing and serving the One who came to ‘save us from our sins.’  We know that, now it is time for us to live it.  Let’s begin to be who we say we are, the people of God!

Since it is clear to me that leaders will not or cannot unite us, I pray that a true grassroots movement will emerge that works hard at teaching people to listen and learn! We must begin to engage those with whom we differ beyond Facebook posts and Twitter tweets. I, a suburban, conservative, old white man, need to hear the heart of a young, urban black man.  He needs to hear me. I need to hear the words of that young woman who thinks my “Jesus” is a symbol of patriarchy and she needs to hear my conviction that He is the Lover everybody needs. IF we just keep shouting (last two guys did last night) everybody loses in the end.  

Nobody is better equipped for inviting others to this kind of interaction than Christians. We are disciples of the Man who is the Prince of Peace. We are secured by His unwavering love so we need not be shaken by rage aimed at us. Please do not tell me, “Jerry, that’s just utopian nonsense. This is war.”  We have had enough of that rhetoric even from church leaders.  Fear has overwhelmed even Christians, robbing us of reason, of the ability to reach out past our convictions, to attempt to understand. Those on the ‘other side’ are equally fearful. Last’s night’s verbal brawl in Cleveland was a revelation of the critical state of communications in our country. We, you and me, can do better, starting right where we are.  

And, we must pray! Most Christians say that prayer changes things and yet do little of it. Oh yes, we pray for our kids to be blessed. We ask God to heal Grandma. We occasionally pray for somebody who is some kind of trouble. Real prayer is needed. Prayer is not just words, it is a lifestyle. Jesus warned about making prayer into words that we babble over and over, thinking God is impressed with our “hallelujahs.”  Prayer is a connection to God that we keep through every moment that allows us to bring Heaven to earth.  I confess that I do not like most Christian prayer meetings. They leave me cold, often irritated, because they turn into little speeches to God, mostly formed for the ears of those in the audience.  Our prayers must be for God’s ears alone. No wonder Jesus said that we need to get off the streets and into a private room when we pray!  There we can get honest and hopefully hear the Spirit's voice that whispers of grace amazing.

Yes, Christian, this is a unique opportunity to become who we say we are – the people of the Lord. Drawing on His strength, living in His love, knowing His peace, we can step into this day with serenity, hope, and encouragement. Will we?

Let this word from the Word speak to you today. "So we have stopped evaluating others by what the world thinks about them. Once I mistakenly thought of Christ that way, as though he were merely a human being. How differently I think about him now! What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun! 

All this newness of life is from God, who brought us back to himself through what Christ did. And God has given us the task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. This is the wonderful message he has given us to tell others. 

We are Christ’s ambassadors, and God is using us to speak to you. We urge you, as though Christ himself were here pleading with you, “Be reconciled to God!”" (2 Corinthians 5:16-20, NLT)

 

Father in Heaven,
I renew my worship of Your majesty,
Asking You to lift me above my fear.

Spirit of God, steady me, making me that person You desire.  

You know my heart, my fears, my loves, my sins.
Teach me to live with faith, hope, and love.

I pray for this troubled world, full of strife and division.
With St. Francis I pray to be an “instrument of Your peace.”
Give me patience, endurance, and help me to live with integrity.

Jesus, I ask that You will be seen in me,
For the glory of God.

Amen

Rip open your hearts!

Repent! Nobody really likes that call. When my children were young, part of my responsibility was to correct, to call them to change their ways. Did they enjoy that? They didn’t and neither did I! I loved recognizing their accomplishments, celebrating their successes. But there were those tense moments of confrontation when Dad had to say, “Stop that! Don’t go there! That ‘friend’ is not a good influence. You have gone beyond the limits of my patience.” My correction was generally well-intended, yet still imperfect.

God, our Father loves to celebrate us but He will correct when necessary, too. This text reflects on the fullness of His love. "We have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." (Hebrews 12:9-11, NIV)  

Christians tend to ignore those little books in the last section of the Old Testament that record the sermons of the so-called ‘minor’ prophets. They are corrective words, hard words that confronted the sins of God’s people. One of those preachers, a man named Joel, lived in Judah about 800 years before Christ. The nation was enduring a famine. Many were on the brink of starvation. Social order was in disarray. And, worst of all, the Assyrian army was about to invade. Assyrians were an empire that devastated conquered nations.  

Joel was moved by the Spirit, not to soothe the nation, but to call her to turn back to God, to humble and earnest prayer. "Sound the alarm in Jerusalem! Raise the battle cry on my holy mountain! Let everyone tremble in fear because the day of the Lord is upon us. It is a day of darkness and gloom, a day of thick clouds and deep blackness. Suddenly, like dawn spreading across the mountains, a great and mighty army appears. Nothing like it has been seen before or will ever be seen again." (Joel 2:1-2, NLT)  

In 2020, I believe that God has sounded the alarm and called Christians to prayer, to repentance.  Will we respond so that we can lead the way to back to God? 

One of the terrible tragedies of our time is that even the Church and many of her preachers are totally compromised by their immersion in the sins of the land to the extent that they are the ‘blind leading the blind and falling into the pit together.’  (Jesus’ words)  Let’s not confuse true repentance with a return to some ‘old time religion.’  This is not about singing the right hymns or saying some words on Sunday morning. Christian, I believe we need to do some deep soul-searching, to get honest with ourselves and the Lord about the state of our own hearts.

Yes, America is truly sick, intoxicated with Self, consumed with pleasure, and few are ready to radically redefine life around a commitment that makes Jesus Lord of all.  Then, too, we sometimes mistakenly thunder condemning words to the culture in which we live while forgetting that real repentance begins with the people of the Lord. We can condemn abortion on demand, pornography that floods the internet, and wring our hands over confusion of gender issues. 

But, the greater sin is the worship of the Self, the insistence that each of us must have his own way, live in a way that maximizes his own pleasure without much thought for God. These sins are very much a part of the lives of many of us who claim the Name of Christ. I am concerned, broken-hearted even, that too often we respond with defensive anger when anyone suggests that we ought to pause and reflect, that we could benefit from humility, that God waits for us to repent. 

Joel’s words were addressed to another time, but the spirit of them finds us, God’s people, in our own time. Read his cry and hear God speaking. "Wake up, you drunkards, and weep! All the grapes are ruined, and all your new wine is gone! A vast army of locusts has invaded my land. It is a terrible army, too numerous to count! Its teeth are as sharp as the teeth of lions! They have destroyed my grapevines and fig trees, stripping their bark and leaving the branches white and bare. Weep with sorrow, as a virgin weeps when her fiancé has died. There is no grain or wine to offer at the Temple of the Lord. 

 

The priests are mourning because there are no offerings. Listen to the weeping of these ministers of the Lord! The fields are ruined and empty of crops. The grain, the wine, and the olive oil are gone. Despair, all you farmers! Wail, all you vine growers! Weep, because the wheat and barley—yes, all the field crops—are ruined. The grapevines and the fig trees have all withered. The pomegranate trees, palm trees, and apple trees—yes, all the fruit trees—have dried up. All joy has dried up with them. Dress yourselves in sackcloth, you priests! Wail, you who serve before the altar! 

Come, spend the night in sackcloth, you ministers of my God! There is no grain or wine to offer at the Temple of your God. Announce a time of fasting; call the people together for a solemn meeting. Bring the leaders and all the people into the Temple of the Lord your God, and cry out to him there." (Joel 1:5-14, NLT)  

Joel also preaches with HOPE found in the faithfulness of the Lord Who hears those turn to Him, leaving sinful ways. God will not abandon His people. "Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity." (Joel 2:13, NIV)  Those ancient people, when they were expressing repentance or sorrow, tore their robes as a sign. God, however, wanted more than symbols! He wanted their hearts ripped open before Him.

I love the promise of the renewal of the Spirit’s power that is offered. In 2020, God’s Church needs to be filled anew.  He says through Joel to those ancients and to us - " ‘And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD." (Joel 2:28-31, NIV)

So, what will it be for us, dear friend? Will we just hope for the best, staggering forward day after day, while hanging onto our own ways, wondering why God is far away, or will we rip open our hearts, waiting humbly, and turning to Him?    

The word from the Word concludes Joel’s sermon. "Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision." (Joel 3:14, NIV) "The LORD will roar from Zion and thunder from Jerusalem; the earth and the sky will tremble. But the LORD will be a refuge for his people, a stronghold for the people of Israel. ‘Then you will know that I, the LORD your God, dwell in Zion, my holy hill. Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her." (Joel 3:16-17, NIV)

___________

Give Us Clean Hands (a song of humility. Listen and pray)

 We bow our hearts we bend our knees

Oh Spirit come make us humble

We turn our eyes from evil things

Oh Lord we cast down our idols

 

Give us clean hands give us pure hearts

Let us not lift our souls to another

Give us clean hands give us pure hearts

Let us not lift our souls to another

And oh God let us be a generation that seeks

That seeks Your face oh God of Jacob

And oh God let us be a generation that seeks

That seeks Your face oh God of Jacob

 

Charlie Hall © 2000 sixsteps Music (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

worshiptogether.com songs (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

CCLI License # 810055

 

He’ll never change?

 

2020 has turned too many of us into cynics! A cynic, by the dictionary’s definition, “is a person who believes that people are motivated purely by self-interest rather than acting for honorable or unselfish reasons.” Henry Ward Beecher, a well known pastor of the 19th century, said, "The cynic is one who never sees a good quality in a man and never fails to see a bad one. He is the human owl, vigilant in darkness and blind to light, mousing for vermin, and never seeing noble game. The cynic puts all human actions into two classes - openly bad and secretly bad."

Americans are at one of the lowest levels of trust in their government in our nation’s history. Most of us are deeply cynical about our elected leaders, and for good reason. We see the self-interest, the win at all cost power plays, and the attempts to manipulate us. Trust dies! Personally, we know that people will disappoint us.  But, remember those who have stuck with you through it all.  Some of your friends will disappear when life is tough for you, but there are a few that you can lean on.  Yes, your parents lied to you about Santa Claus. Was your cynicism born when you were about 9 and discovered that fact?   

Whatever our disappointment, to become a cynic is not the answer. It is a response to life that makes us mean and ugly! If we will, however, learn to forgive others their failures and short-comings, if we will accept that no one will ever perfectly meet our expectations, we came remain people who love, who are capable of forming real human relationships, who know how to wisely risk loving others.

We read that Jesus "came to seek and to save those who are lost!"  (Luke 19:10) The Son of God might have cynically concluded that it just wasn’t worth it, that people would not change. But, He chose a different way.  

There is a great story of His hope for change, found in the Gospel of Luke, about a man named Zacchaeus.  Zee was a man who had put self-interest first. He decided to work for the Romans as a “tax collector.”  He wasn't above adding more than his legal commission to the bill, a common practice which made ‘tax collector’ a phrase of contempt. Why was he willing to take the scorn? His work had made him wealthy. As we read between the lines of the story, we find a man hungry for acceptance and love.

When that tax collector heard that the traveling rabbi named Jesus was coming to Jericho, he wanted to see him. Of course, due to his lack of social stature, he had no hope that a respected man would entertain an offer of hospitality at his house.  Because of his literal lack of stature, Luke drops this detail into the story - "He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd." (Luke 19:3, NIV) - Zee decided to climb a tree to get a glimpse of the Man. 

Jesus, never a cynic, saw a person the world rejected and a heart that could change. As He looked up, He said, "Let's do lunch together, at your place!"  The cynics went crazy! They muttered "He's going to be the guest of a sinner!"   

What a conversation they enjoyed.  Jesus offered him acceptance and pointed Zee to the real purpose of his existence. What no one thought to be even possible happened. This little man returned to the God of his fathers, getting his life right in the process. Here is how that interaction turned out: "Jesus said, “Today is salvation day in this home! Here he is: Zacchaeus, son of Abraham! For the Son of Man came to find and restore the lost.”" (Luke 19:9-10, The Message)

Disciple, let the love of God wash the cynicism from your life. Let the Lord of Love make you tender, forgiving, and full of hope.  Joining the cynics, with a permanent sneer on your face and sarcasm in your words, you may look sophisticated, but your life will be poisoned by a toxin that kills the soul. Choose to love the silly, the stupid, the selfish – people who are just like you and me!  It may earn you mockery, contempt for being naïve, but it is the way of Jesus.

In our word from the Word God invites us to love like Jesus did.
"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude.
It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.
It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance."
(1 Corinthians 13:4-7, NLT)

Lord, renew my hope.
Help me to look for the best, to love those who are lost,
to be wisely willing to take a risk on someone that others have decided is beyond redemption.

Amen.

______________

Good, Good Father  

(this song helps us to see the goodness of God AND
Invites us to the change He can bring to our lives)

 I've heard a thousand stories

Of what they think You’re like

But I've heard the tender whisper

Of love in the dead of night

You tell me that You’re pleased

And that I'm never alone

 

You're a Good Good Father

It's who You are

It's who You are

It's who You are

And I'm loved by You

It's who I am

It's who I am

It's who I am

 

I've seen many searching for answers

Far and wide

But I know we're all searching for answers

Only You provide

Because You know just what we need

Before we say a word

 

You are perfect in all of Your ways

You are perfect in all of Your ways

You are perfect in all of Your ways to us

 

Love so undeniable I can hardly speak

Peace so unexplainable I can hardly think

As You call me deeper still

As You call me deeper still

As You call me deeper still

Into love love love

 

You're a Good Good Father

It's who You are

It's who You are

It's who You are

And I'm loved by You

It's who I am

It's who I am

It's who I am

 

Anthony Brown | Pat Barrett

© 2014 Capitol CMG Paragon (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

Common Hymnal Publishing (Admin. by Capitol CMG Publishing)

CCLI License # 810055