Meditation: August 16

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (Jas 4:8).

There is much about God that is attractive. His attributes will have an appeal to every part of our being if we are made aware of them. The Holy Spirit will provide the faith to see and understand what is missing. The necessary things are offered to us to fulfill us providing both life and godliness. Without this faith we are left empty, reaching out for things around us and slipping deeper into despair. It is the distractions that allure us away from being drawn near to God. To be drawn to God is: empowered to resist the devil in all of his deceptive ways. The world, the flesh, and the devil no longer will control you once the beauty of God’s holiness is realized. He is the Lover of your soul and your soul will know this perfectly well. He draws us with cords of love. We are drawn in response with the assurance of faith. He restores us with a confidence that all is well because we abide in the secret place of God. 

Meditation: November 5

“I, God, will begin by restoring the common households of Judah so that the glory of David’s family and the leaders in Jerusalem won’t overshadow the ordinary people in Judah.” Zechariah 12:7 (MSG)

God will raise the common people who trust in Him to a degree of prominence alongside of royalty. God’s love will know no boundaries when He is exalted above all. It will be a day of triumph where all will celebrate the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. The restoration of dignity will occur among the least which are often abandoned and forsaken. Efforts of protest will not be sufficient because many important factors may not be given proper consideration. When Jesus said, the poor you will have with you always,” He was not ignoring the responsibility we must have in the area of benevolence to them. But rather, He made it known that the opportunity to bless them will always be available to us. At that time there was something more important than benevolence because the sacrifice was being prepared for death and burial. When the Lord is honored, He will restore the order that must be established among all of humanity. Even David in all of his prominence would not remain exclusive; Solomon in all of his glory for a greater than Solomon is now here. In our pursuits for a place in this world where our lives will count for something, it will gain its greatest degree of significance when we glorify our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Meditation: September 2

The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness — Israel, when I went to give him rest.” Jeremiah 31:2

The challenges of today will be survived leading to the discovery of grace in a place unfamiliar to us. God has not abandoned His own children. Even when we are chastened, His everlasting love is directed towards us. These things are not allowed to destroy us, but for introspection. It is our responsibility to examine the caliber of our love and devotion towards Him in contrast to the time spent focusing on other things. He draws us to Himself with cords of love. We cannot depend upon what appeared to be the solutions of the past. Only God has the care and the answer that we so desperately need. Cast all of your cares upon Him and lean on Him for assistance. He will take away the reproach of the past. God is about to do wonders in our future. Remember the day of the sword when the enemy of faith appeared to destroy all hope for the future. God rescued us from the hands of the enemy. Now as we go through the wilderness, a lonely and barren place, the same God of our salvation who delivered us then, is with us now! “The planters shall plant again.” “You will eat from your own vineyards on the mountains of Samaria as ordinary food.”  Restoration lies ahead of all who put their trust in God.

December 2016 Article: “He Was Born for This”

We are compelled to face life’s greatest challenges. To provide an answer to age old and new questions that will arise out of controversy. Our lives are lived in search of meaning and our values are determined by how we interpret the meaning of life. It is both quietly and overtly expressed by unsuspecting people who are drifting through life allowing circumstances to define them. The ever-changing world squeezes them into the mold of modernity. They become whatever others are becoming—neutralizing their wills by popular opinions and paralyzing their minds by the prevailing ideas of the times.

Jesus came to change concepts and to modify the established order by transforming it into a thing of beauty (“He makes all things beautiful in its own time.”) And fortunately, Christ came to usher in a new season of change and restore all things to their original purpose.
God, who made all things, is the One who assigns meaning to His creation. But the question is, what is God like? Even though he was described through the prophets and His personality was demonstrated through their lifestyles, that was merely a glimpse into the reality of God and the full display of His glory. Their attempts fell short of expressing His life and pointed us in the direction of His acts and ways. His Person, by the intimate expressions of His love, were only implied and not expressed. So many have settled for implications and never shared that intimate fellowship provided through Jesus Christ. What Adam had lost in Eden is more than one could imagine—hearing His voice daily and being acquainted with His Perpetual Presence.

The Fallen needed restoration, but who can measure the distance of the fall? A fallen world adapted its condition as its current reality. Bloodshed penetrates the soil rather than circulates through the veins, and reduces the meaning of life to personal survival than kingdom and cultural advancement. How could I wish for what I had never experienced? Sadly, the cry for spiritual union lies deep within the soul.
Within his soul, the son of the slave carries the marks of his ancestors under the mastery of slave owners. He must overcome the daily pain from the established patterns that restrict his current motion. While his DNA contains the genetic code of a bloodline that is inclusive of past experiences, his bloodline did not begin merely two or three centuries ago. It can be traced in creation and established in Adam. Thankfully, the blood of Jesus purges us from our former sins and the effect of sin in our lives. His life promises the necessity of a New Beginning, for Christ came for this very purpose: old things are passed away and behold, all things have become new! He allows the newness to be made evident for all to see! Behold; look at how new you have become because of Jesus Christ!

You become a part of the change that is necessary for all humanity. As Christ came to change the order, the order is changed because of you and not despite you. People do what they do as result of what they know. Jesus’s prayer on the Cross was, “forgive them for the know not what they do.” Their ignorance is driving their actions and leading them to self-destruction. He was born for this and now He offer the New Birth that you might be born again for this! In Christ, the believer participates with God in reconciling all things back to God’s original meaning. Your true purpose for living is hidden in Christ. Politics, education, economic prosperity, or no other means is capable of accomplishing what Christ alone can do through those who allow Him to be Himself in them. Spiritual maturity is reaching a level of understanding of God’s original intent. These are the sons of God being led to glory. They can then more fully express the will of the Father. May earth receive her King that His Kingdom may be established in the hearts of mankind.

Meditation: November 27

“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Proverbs 17:17

One of God’s greatest gifts is a true and loving friend and a brother. He is there when others may have abandoned you and moved on. The love of a friend is not always soft and easy. There are occasions when tough love is necessary. An honest friend is not the person that agrees with our wrongdoings. He insists that his brother follow a course of righteousness. He is neither a fatalist nor an eternal optimist. He is acquainted with human frailties, but help to seek a path for recovery and restoration.

The adversity may be external or internal. The troubled soul is in need of someone who will help him take an objective look at what he would otherwise be left unquestioned. There are many who fall off the cliff without warning. Their companions were too afraid to say anything thinking that they may cease walking together. While there are others who do not care enough to speak the truth in love. “Faithful are the wounds of a friend.” But there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother.

Meditation: November 5

“I, God, will begin by restoring the common households of Judah so that the glory of David’s family and the leaders in Jerusalem won’t overshadow the ordinary people in Judah.” Zechariah 12:7 (MSG)

God will raise the common people who trust in Him to a degree of prominence alongside of royalty. God’s love will know no boundaries when He is exalted above all. It will be a day of triumph where all will celebrate the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. The restoration of dignity will occur among the least which are often abandoned and forsaken. Efforts of protest will not be sufficient because many important factors may not be given proper consideration. When Jesus said, the poor you will have with you always,” He was not ignoring the responsibility we must have in the area of benevolence to them. But rather, He made it known that the opportunity to bless them will always be available to us. At that time there was something more important than benevolence because the sacrifice was being prepared for death and burial. When the Lord is honored, He will restore the order that must be established among all of humanity. Even David in all of his prominence would not remain exclusive; Solomon in all of his glory for a greater than Solomon is now here. In our pursuits for a place in this world where our lives will count for something, it will gain its greatest degree of significance when we glorify our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Meditation: September 2

The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness — Israel, when I went to give him rest.” Jeremiah 31:2

The challenges of today will be survived leading to the discovery of grace in a place unfamiliar to us. God has not abandoned His own children. Even when we are chastened, His everlasting love is directed towards us. These things are not allowed to destroy us, but for introspection. It is our responsibility to examine the caliber of our love and devotion towards Him in contrast to the time spent focusing on other things. He draws us to Himself with cords of love. We cannot depend upon what appeared to be the solutions of the past. Only God has the care and the answer that we so desperately need. Cast all of your cares upon Him and lean on Him for assistance. He will take away the reproach of the past. God is about to do wonders in our future. Remember the day of the sword when the enemy of faith appeared to destroy all hope for the future. God rescued us from the hands of the enemy. Now as we go through the wilderness, a lonely and barren place, the same God of our salvation who delivered us then, is with us now! “The planters shall plant again.” “You will eat from your own vineyards on the mountains of Samaria as ordinary food.”  Restoration lies ahead of all who put their trust in God.

Meditation: November 5

“I, God, will begin by restoring the common households of Judah so that the glory of David’s family and the leaders in Jerusalem won’t overshadow the ordinary people in Judah.” Zechariah 12:7 (MSG)

God will raise the common people who trust in Him to a degree of prominence alongside of royalty. God’s love will know no boundaries when He is exalted above all. It will be a day of triumph where all will celebrate the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. The restoration of dignity will occur among the least which are often abandoned and forsaken. Efforts of protest will not be sufficient because many important factors may not be given proper consideration. When Jesus said, the poor you will have with you always,” He was not ignoring the responsibility we must have in the area of benevolence to them. But rather, He made it known that the opportunity to bless them will always be available to us. At that time there was something more important than benevolence because the sacrifice was being prepared for death and burial. When the Lord is honored, He will restore the order that must be established among all of humanity. Even David in all of his prominence would not remain exclusive; Solomon in all of his glory for a greater than Solomon is now here. In our pursuits for a place in this world where our lives will count for something, it will gain its greatest degree of significance when we glorify our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Meditation: September 2

The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness — Israel, when I went to give him rest.” Jeremiah 31:2

The challenges of today will be survived leading to the discovery of grace in a place unfamiliar to us. God has not abandoned His own children. Even when we are chastened, His everlasting love is directed towards us. These things are not allowed to destroy us, but for introspection. It is our responsibility to examine the caliber of our love and devotion towards Him in contrast to the time spent focusing on other things. He draws us to Himself with cords of love. We cannot depend upon what appeared to be the solutions of the past. Only God has the care and the answer that we so desperately need. Cast all of your cares upon Him and lean on Him for assistance. He will take away the reproach of the past. God is about to do wonders in our future. Remember the day of the sword when the enemy of faith appeared to destroy all hope for the future. God rescued us from the hands of the enemy. Now as we go through the wilderness, a lonely and barren place, the same God of our salvation who delivered us then, is with us now! “The planters shall plant again.” “You will eat from your own vineyards on the mountains of Samaria as ordinary food.”  Restoration lies ahead of all who put their trust in God.

Meditation: November 5

“I, God, will begin by restoring the common households of Judah so that the glory of David’s family and the leaders in Jerusalem won’t overshadow the ordinary people in Judah.” Zechariah 12:7 (MSG)

God will raise the common people who trust in Him to a degree of prominence alongside of royalty. God’s love will know no boundaries when He is exalted above all. It will be a day of triumph where all will celebrate the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. The restoration of dignity will occur among the least which are often abandoned and forsaken. Efforts of protest will not be sufficient because many important factors may not be given proper consideration. When Jesus said, the poor you will have with you always,” He was not ignoring the responsibility we must have in the area of benevolence to them. But rather, He made it known that the opportunity to bless them will always be available to us. At that time there was something more important than benevolence because the sacrifice was being prepared for death and burial. When the Lord is honored, He will restore the order that must be established among all of humanity. Even David in all of his prominence would not remain exclusive; Solomon in all of his glory for a greater than Solomon is now here. In our pursuits for a place in this world where our lives will count for something, it will gain its greatest degree of significance when we glorify our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.