Encourage – Page 21 – The Jesus Chick

Posted in Life Inspiration

I know what you seek…

Written by talk2shari Published October 25, 2014October 25, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

Mark 1

³³And all the city was gathered together at the door.

³⁴And he healed many that were sick of divers diseases, and cast out many devils; and suffered not the devils to speak, because they knew him.

³⁵And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.

³⁶And Simon and they that were with him followed after him.

³⁷And when they had found him, they said unto him, All men seek for thee.

I can’t imagine the weariness Christ felt as a man, even though He was God. People continually desiring healing and help and each time, as it said about the woman with the issue of blood in Chapter 5 of Mark that “Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes?”

If they but touched his clothes healing occurred and he felt the virtue (power) leave His body; how draining that must have been when soul after soul required something. After a night where all the city had gathered at the door of Simon’s house because the fame of His ability had spread throughout the community, we find Him arising the next morning “a great while before day” and going to a place alone to talk to God. If Jesus Himself who was healthy and strong needed that time in the morning to power up for the day, how can we think we’ll survive without it.

I never thought about the health of Jesus until this morning. Yes He was human, and I guess the human side of Him could have caught a cold or the flu but if He had gotten a cold He would have just healed it. That’s not the case with us, our bodies die a little more daily, our strength weakens as life sucks the energy out of us. I take vitamins every day to try to get a jump start on all the bad things I suspect I’ll ingest the remainder of the day. I do the same with the Word of God. I need that morning boost. When they found Jesus they said “all men seek for thee.”

I believe that.

I believe that in the soul of every human being on earth there is something that seeks God. They can deny it… that’s okay, I won’t believe it. Because God created them and just as an infant seeks the parents that created it, so do we all seek the Creator.

Oh how I long to know Him deeper… that’s why I have to get up before the rest of the house, before all men, grandbabies, friends, neighbors, church folk, children and telemarketers seek me. They don’t seek me for the same thing they sought Jesus for, but it’s still tiring. I know I’ll need my strength today and so I am here; in Mark 1 desiring to start my day as Jesus did. Alone in prayer. I can’t heal people, or fix problems but I know the one Who can… no wonder the whole town showed up at Peter’s door.

Steal away today, and rejuvenate yourself in Jesus…Seek on friend.

Posted in Christian Service, Church attendance, Leadership, Life Inspiration

Parents: Here’s your sword and shield

Written by talk2shari Published October 22, 2014October 15, 2021 Discussion Leave a Comment

Judges 5

⁷The inhabitants of the villages ceased, they ceased in Israel, until that I Deborah arose, that I arose a mother in Israel.

⁸They chose new gods; then was war in the gates: was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel?

⁹My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless ye the Lord.

This post will be so not politically correct, but that’s okay… because it’s biblically correct. My frustration mounts in my community and country daily. I watch as person after person jumps on the bandwagon of politically correct nonsense and even in my little country home, the big city ways have made their way here. What once would have been unfathomable is now happening on the courthouse steps. I’m not a hater… I’m a God fearing woman who reads her bible and knows what the word of God says about homosexuality. It’s a sin. That’s it in a nutshell. So is lying, stealing, coveting, etc., etc., etc.! One is not greater or less than the other. 1 John 1:8 clearly says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” I won’t point my finger at a homosexual population and get on a religious high horse about their sin because I too am a sinner. I will however get on a platform and declare what God says, because He is not a sinner. He is a righteous and just God who will judge all men’s sins for what they are.

I want to arise a mother in West Virginia. (insert your State here)

That’s what Deborah did in her community, she took the reins. Should it have been a man? Yes. But where were they? And I ask in sincerity today, where are the men in our communities. I’m blessed to attend a church that has several men, but there are many absent husbands and fathers there too. There are many men absent in the homes as well. Often it is because of work, especially in our area where there are so many pipelining families and there is little choice for employment. So what then? What about those Dads?

As a mother in West Virginia I suggest you make the most of those few days you have at home and make church a priority without excuse. My own daughters have husbands who are gone much of the time, so I get the reality of trying to make a family work… I too raised my girls with an absentee husband much of the time because of his time in the fire department and EMS in addition to a regular job that consumed 40-60 hours a week. I really do get it. But there must be biblical foundation in your family if you want to be a greater influence than the world. Because right here in our little country community the influence of evil abounds and what we don’t want our children to see as the “norm” has become so.

Our schools spend far more time dealing with the corrupt than rewarding the good. So what has your child’s attention? In verse 8 of Judges 5 it asks the question “was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel?” There wasn’t and there’s not a shield or sword in many of the homes in West Virginia, biblically speaking. Parents want good children, and some do have them go to a christian school, as they are mindful of the education they receive. Then there’s others that argue they don’t have “time” to take their children to church on Sunday. Their influence is what they see happening in the school, on the courthouse steps, in the news and on the television shows that they’re permitted to watch. And then they ask, “Why can’t I get my child to behave.”

Because nobody else that they view is behaving either.

Please, share this with a young parent. And young parent… get that shield and sword out and protect your home.

Posted in Life Inspiration

Raisin Bran Theology

Written by talk2shari Published October 21, 2014June 14, 2022 Discussion Leave a Comment

Luke 18:25 (KJV)

For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

For certain in this economy there’s not too many of us that have to worry about the eye of that needle, but whether a man have one dollar or a million he’s still at risk if his money lord’s over how he lives his life. A Tanzanian friend asked me about this verse this morning and I explained it as best I could in layman’s terms, but it caused me to dwell on the priorities of life. America is a blessed nation full of great wealth in comparison to much of the world’s standards. It is said if you have $20 in your pocket you are in the top 5% of the wealthiest people in the world; and while that may be an exaggeration, it may not.

As I cleaned out my refrigerator this week and installed filters from Samsung Water Filters & Icemakers. I also threw out dish after dish of disgusting left overs my soul was pricked at the waste. I threw away more food than many have to eat in a week. I jump in the car and run to the grocery store and give no thought to the gas or the market costs, or eat out on a whim what our parents once had to scrimp and save for weeks to do.

When I traveled to the Philippines and friend and I were eating at an American chain restaurant, Kenny Rogers Roasters, and as we sat by a window a small child came up to the glass with sad eyes and hands out requesting help and it broke our hearts! So my friend and I purchased a dinner and took it out to her and then came back in and sat down. We then watched in disbelief as two men came up and took most of her meal. We witnessed another girl attempt to prostitute herself, and when my friend tried to share the gospel with her and gave her some cash she went into a meltdown for fear the man who was using her as a business would think she was trying to get money for herself. Children, even toddlers ran the streets by themselves searching for food, bathing in potholes in the street living in lean-tos made of tin or under bridges in busy intersections. It was a culture shock and for a while stuck with me as a reminder not to take my life for granted. In Manila there were two sides of town, much like we know here. On the one side the poverty was evident, on the other walled in houses protected the homeowners from seeing any of the destitute people on the street.

Some days I have a wall around my heart not allowing it to see the needs of others or giving to the Lord as I should. I have my own needles eye I’m trying to get through. Not the one to Heaven, I am saved by the blood of Jesus with that promise within but I speak of the narrow way of walking with Christ. It’s a tight relationship… where you are walking so close to Him that the needles not an issue.

Today it is my prayer that you and I stay ever mindful of our stewardship to the Lord and His desires for our lives. His desires may mean we put ours aside in part or completely. It may mean pushing outside of our comfort zone and offering help to someone or it may be as simple as not buying that extravagant or not so extravagant thing. It will most likely be different for each of us. But as I prepare to go eat my bowl of Raisin Bran I hope I truly understand how blessed I am and I hope you are blessed.

Posted in Life Inspiration

What attitude are you bringing into the relationship?

Written by talk2shari Published October 20, 2014October 20, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

Ruth 4:6

And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I cannot redeem it.

I love the story of Ruth. I have yet to see a movie that could top the truth in God’s word. There’s intrigue, love and war, suspense, but here in the book of Ruth we have the story of my redemption. Unworthy to have been redeemed by God and accepted into the family as an adopted child, an heir to Heaven’s riches. Ruth was a poor Gentile, she brought nothing into the relationship except a good attitude. I hope I have brought a good attitude into my relationship with God because that’s all I have to offer.

Ruth’s kinsman had the right to marry her before Boaz, but because she was a poor woman, and he would possibly have children by her who would take away from his own children’s inheritance he opted out. Praise God my Savior did not opt out on me. Boaz, who loved Ruth, had to have been giddy inside when the man turned her down; Boaz could see the treasure within the woman of Ruth.

She had an attitude of Allegiance

How loyal a woman was she to have stayed with Naomi after their husbands had died. She was facing the worst poverty one could imagine, she was willing to accept by faith that Naomi’s God would see them through. The allegiance in relationships of today is nigh gone, is it not? Marriages begin with an attitude of separation potential, parents turn their backs on children and visa versa, loyalty to the church of God is dependent upon how much attention one gets and the value of your opinion. Oh to have the allegiance of Ruth to say in Ruth 1:16 ~ … Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:

An attitude of Affection

Ruth simply loved. There was no accolades for what she was doing, she didn’t go into it with attitude she would surely be rewarded, yet that’s what happened. She just loved… she loved Naomi enough to leave her only family. She loved Boaz… In Ruth 3:7-9 we find love.

⁷And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down.

⁸And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet.

⁹And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.

She truly cared about Boaz and was ready to be his servant. She was following God’s providential guidance that would lead to her care, but she didn’t know that. At this point she was a willing servant. That’s the heart I desire, to to love and serve without knowledge of the end result but wisdom and discernment to understand that God is in it. That’s enough!

I pray God is made a part of your day and mine from start to finish. Thanks for spending time with the Lord and I for this little bit.

Posted in Life Inspiration

That’s my God!

Written by talk2shari Published October 18, 2014October 18, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

On shouting ground again this morning with the Word of God! Some days I’m just as apt to give God a sigh of frustration with the world here below. That was last night… Oh how my heart broken for God when I saw once on fire Christians now catering to a world who would who has not hope, and the unsaved looked at me as though I was to be pitied because I didn’t have the intellect to know that God does not exist. I watched as my fiddle case was examined by one such man as he read the verse from Psalm 100 that I have scribed across the case with a sharpie. He admired my penmanship but appeared not to know the Author. They attempt to play gospel music as though it were any other song, but they can’t. Ha! I love it, that’s my God. The One that shows up at the party uninvited and says “Hey, I created you. Don’t pity my girl Shari, you should be so lucky to have what she does.”

Whew Doggie! That’s my God!

Psalm 71 put me in this mode this morning. I was feeling a tad forlorn from the antics of my fellow pickers last night. They’re good people, please don’t miss understand. I wasn’t at some bar in the boonies… well I was in the boonies but not at a bar. It’s a friendly non-alcohol gathering of musicians that are wonderful, wonderful people… but there are a few who would rather God not come up in the conversation because it makes them extremely uncomfortable. It makes them uncomfortable because they don’t understand my God.

Read the “My’s of Psalm 71”. I encourage you to read the whole chapter it’s quite a read.

My Trust – (vs. 1) When the world has let you down, in Him you can depend.
My Strong Habitation – (vs. 3) When there no place that feels like home, He is there.
My Rock – (vs. 3) He’s solid and unmovable. There is no storm that can phase my God.
My Fortress – (vs. 3) On my ever side, even my blind side. God has me protected.
My God – (vs. 4) When I accepted Christ Jesus as my Savior in 1996
My Hope (vs. 5) Today is the anniversary of my Father’s death in 2003, but because of My Hope I’ll see Him again!
My Trust – (vs. 5) When my brother was killed at 19 and my Mother was asked why she didn’t blame God, she said how can I blame the only One who will allow me to see him again. That’s trust!!!
My Praise – (vs. 6) From before my birth God created me to be who I am and love His people the way I do. I’ll rejoice in every opportunity to serve Him.
My Strong Refuge – (vs. 7) That same purpose has on more than one occasion caused an attack on my life but in Him I have safety that no man can touch.
My God – (vs. 12) It bears repeating!
My Help – (vs. 12) Indeed this very morning he helped me out of the pit of despair the world had created and planted me back on shouting ground.

Oh, Read on weary Pilgrim, we serve an awesome God who’s there for you this day.

I love ya, hope I encouraged you. Be blessed Friend.

PSALM 71 In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion.

²Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me.

³Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.

⁴Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.

⁵For thou art my hope, O Lord God: thou art my trust from my youth.

⁶By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mother’s bowels: my praise shall be continually of thee.

⁷I am as a wonder unto many; but thou art my strong refuge.

⁸Let my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honour all the day.

⁹Cast me not off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength faileth.

¹⁰For mine enemies speak against me; and they that lay wait for my soul take counsel together,

¹¹Saying, God hath forsaken him: persecute and take him; for there is none to deliver him.

¹²O God, be not far from me: O my God, make haste for my help.

Posted in Life Inspiration

Good Grief Charlie Brown

Written by talk2shari Published October 16, 2014October 16, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

I realized I was out numbered last night in the teen class when I ask a question about their favorite television classics. I watch very little television, preferring silence or a podcast of my favorite preachers, perhaps I’ll pick a little on the guitar or play the fiddle but upon the occasion that I decide I’d like to watch a movie or show, I spend more time scrolling through the guide than I do actually watch anything. I usually end up on DIY or HGTV channels because at least there I don’t have to put up with gore, drama, language or just plain idiocy.

I’m for certain dating myself, but when the commercials came on for the Halloween episode of “It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown,” my heart went pitter pat wondering if my grandbabies would find it as big a deal as I did as a child. We waited weeks with anticipation for those special TV nights when kids ruled! Today half the kids in America have their own TV and there’s a new cartoon on every hour. Wow… that’s really sad. Another example of excessive living taking away the wholesomeness of our youth.

The conversation in the teen class last night stemmed from the question “Why does it matter about the music or Television I entertain myself with?”

I gave them the verse Philippians 4:8~ Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

It’s really hard to think on those things when you have zombies screaming at you from the television, or a chick just got stabbed to death. Reality TV is not reality at all… or is it? Have we really gone that far as a world today? Even my beloved DIY shows have gotten ridiculous as spoiled brat couples are just SO STRESSED OUT because the million dollar home they toured had the wrong color tub. Oh my goodness, my stomach just seriously rolled over, and this is why I don’t watch television.

In the words of Charlie Brown, “Good Grief!”

I need a Philippians 4:8 day. I need things that are honest, just, pure, lovely, a good report and praise!!! I need good news! I know the world’s full of bad and I need to understand the dangers that are out there but I do not need to sit with my nose glued to the latest Ebola report or watch garbage on television that makes me treat every stranger as a suspect in a murder or go to bed with fearful thoughts.

I don’t care if Charlie Brown’s not cool. As much as I love the technology of today, there’s a part of me that longs for those Kool-aid and popcorn nights and the Great Pumpkin…

Posted in Life Inspiration

What a Verse!

Written by talk2shari Published October 15, 2014October 15, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

Hebrews 12:2

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 12:2… What a verse!

I was looking for something to reign my mind in today. Yesterday was scattered, today began much the same. Technology glitches, a “to do” list a mile long, a desire to be a better child of God, wife, mother, servant… and my mind was reeling. The days seem shorter and shorter, I know there’s still 24 hours in them, but deed I don’t know where it goes. I’ve set in my heart to be a better steward of time, money, resources, etc…. Ha! Well you know who that torqued off. And he and I both know it’s no small feat; discouragement should be no problem. And it wasn’t. A few minor snafus and I went to bed with a headache and awoke with one. So I knew that I needed to gather my thoughts and refocus them on the Lord. Thus… Hebrews 12:2

What a verse! I know I said that but just think about the goodness packed in there. Let’s unpack it…

He Started it – He’s the Author of my soul

Looking unto Jesus the author

Wow! Before I was in the womb He knew me. That in itself can cause me to ponder for hours on what I was doing before I was born. Jeremiah 1:5 says – Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. He wrote my story and nothing that happens in my day catches Him off guard or happens without His approval and for His glory. That’s good to know!

He Finished it – He has the final Word

finisher of our faith

When Christ said those words on the cross “It is finished” in John 19:30, what exactly was “it”? It was the ceremonial law that was finished. No more would man be accountable for his own salvation and Hallelujah, Glory to God for that! Man couldn’t keep the 10 laws from the days of Moses, how on earth were we going to keep the 613 man had added with it. It was now by faith alone that man could have access to the throne.

He Paid it – and was happy to!

Who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross,

For the joy!!! He paid the price on the cross that we can’t even imagine to restore man’s relationship with God… and yet man treats God like a nosey neighbor interfering in their life. It’s hard to imagine why He tolerates us at all.

He Protects it

…and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

That plan that He began, He oversees every second of it. That good to know. That means when I get my sights off Him, His is never off of me.

Posted in Grace, Leadership, Life Inspiration

We should do no less

Written by talk2shari Published October 11, 2014October 11, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

What do you do when the world around you is full of wickedness and you’d like to lash out and do ungodly acts? When you’ve had it up to your eyeballs with bad attitudes and hatred spewed in the name of politics, when the Name of Christ is uttered in contempt and it seems as though it’s in vain that we attempt peace? There was a day that it took a woman to fix the mess that man had created.

Shocker right? Just kidding!!!! Kinda…

In the book of 1 Samuel chapter 25 we find the story of Abigail, wife of Nabal who was a wicked, self-centered man, described as Belial; a demon himself who no doubt made this woman’s life miserable, and yet she stayed. David who had yet to become King was on the run from Saul with a band of rag tag men who had been described as “every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented”. Not exactly an army of heroes that we read about with David in other stories. But at this point we find David and his men voluntarily performing the unpaid task of body guards over Nabal’s men as they were in the same fields shepherding. David thought it not too much to ask of Nabal for a few victuals but Nabal’s arrogance railed against David, who he knew to be future King saying “ Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse?”

He was about to find out! The next thing you hear David saying is “Gird ye on every man his sword”. It was the equivalency of the Power Rangers of the day. But then came Abigail.

A few lessons from Abigail that help me this morning in the face of this adverse world we live in.

She waited in Adversity

Living with a man such as Nabal was not an easy task, and though it would have been the culture of the day for her stay it wouldn’t have made it fun. Yet we find her there with an obvious respect of her household and a desire to care for them. Our main role in this life (aside from the first serving God) is to take care of our family and make it as pleasant as possible. Abigail had garnered respect and honor, her husband’s staff obviously felt that she was competent to get something done because when they’d heard what Nabal did to David and knew that there would be certain repercussions, they came to Abigail for help.

It’s often not easy serving when the world around you disregards God and His people. But it’s important to stand strong in the faith so that in the hour of need, those around us know in whom they can depend.

She waited on an opportunity

As soon as the servants came to Abigail with the news of her idiot husband’s behavior she went into survival mode. She knew that she would need to fix what her husband had broken. She didn’t go to David with excuses, she went to David with humility. We’re not going to gain God’s mercy and grace on this Nation by making excuses, we’re going to have to go to Him in humility for our idiot leadership who spout off to God with their behavior “Who is God?” I have wonder how many times the sword could have been drawn on us if it had not been for God’s people taking that opportunity to intercede on America’s behalf.

Abigail waited… both in time and in service. We should do no less.

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Posted in Life Inspiration

Stay Put and Dig

Written by talk2shari Published October 10, 2014October 10, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

Having watched my husband treat and supply water for our community for over 25 years I understand the importance, but I don’t think that I have a clue about the significance of the water in the days of Abraham and Isaac. After all, I turn on the faucet and the water magically appears, I waste water as I let it overflow down the drain when filling pots or running dish water, or running the dishwasher. Giving no thought to the value of it in comparison to its value in the days of Genesis 26 and of its spiritual implication and application in life.

Stay Put Shari… that’s what I hear this morning.

Genesis 26:1-3

And there was a famine in the land, beside the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. And Isaac went unto Abimelech king of the Philistines unto Gerar. And the Lord appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware unto Abraham thy father;

Isaac was a new generation, he had begun his family and now had the responsibility of provider. Egypt would have made a lot more sense from the world’s standards with its great water supply and fertile lands, but God said stay… Gerar was a training ground for provision. It didn’t make sense by the world’s view point but from the perspective of Heaven it made perfect sense. God was teaching Isaac to depend on Him. Yes, he’d seen his father live by it but that didn’t make the lesson any easier for Isaac. I too have seen God’s provision for my parents in miraculous ways, I’ve seen Him provide for me in miraculous ways, but that doesn’t make it a breeze when I’m having to re-dig a well that has been stopped. When I walked away from a career in 2005 that was stable for the land of instability I second guessed that decision multiple times. It was a fertile land, but it was full of despair. So I traded it for a land with few resources, a land where I believed God said go. And after a short span of time, the new well I had dug dried up (A Substance Abuse Prevention Grant) but I struck water again at another location, but strove for it was well and it was soon gone. Again and again I’ve struggled, questioned, prayed and continued to stay where God has placed me. This morning as I grappled with unemployment, a land of little resource, God said stay put and dig. And so I dug for water where I knew it would be in the word of God.

Genesis 26:18-22

And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them. And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac’s herdmen, saying, The water is ours: and he called the name of the well Esek; because they strove with him. And they digged another well, and strove for that also: and he called the name of it Sitnah. And he removed from thence, and digged another well; and for that they strove not: and he called the name of it Rehoboth; and he said, For now the Lord hath made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.

So… this morning I sit at my kitchen table… in my make shift office. Grateful for a husband with a wonderful job, who today is aggravating me with redneck hunting shows while I’m trying to blog and God speaks sweet peace to my soul. He put a giggle there too when my husband came in as I wrote that last sentence and asked if I’d like him to make himself scarce… and then read what I just wrote. We both laughed. God is good and God alone is an awesome provider.

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Posted in Life Inspiration

A Reason to Cleave

Written by talk2shari Published October 9, 2014October 9, 2014 Discussion Leave a Comment

When my girls were little and we’d go shopping or out into the community I wanted them as close to my side as I could get them. As long as I was able I carried them or had them in a stroller for safeties sake. I was quite the nervous Nellie when it came to their protection. As they grew older it grew more difficult to keep them reigned in to my side and eventually as all good parents do I had to lessen my grip on the reigns and see if my training had stuck. It didn’t always… they had lessons to learn on their own, but many of the lessons did stick because I see them re-teaching them with their own children today.

God, Who’s not a nervous Nellie, still makes it a practice to keep His children close, but much like our own children we have a tendency to stray a little further and further away each day. If every day were like Sunday we’d likely be in great shape; we’d stay on fire and in focus. But then comes Monday, and Tuesday and by Wednesday we’re a pretty good piece from the Lord. However, if we attend Wednesday Night Bible Study that reigns us back in again, but by Saturday our focus is askew once more.

When my Tiffani was about three or four we were in the Mall at JC Penney’s shopping and she decided she would play in the circular clothing wrack. She climbed up into the center of it and was concealed by the clothes. In a minute or two I went into a frantic panic looking for her. She finally popped up out of the center just when I was on the verge of a heart attack. She was playing…I was sick. Although we’re never out of God’s sight we’re away from His protection when we continue to stray further and further into the world. Deuteronomy asks the question this morning “Are you as close as you once were?”

A Reason to Cleave

Deuteronomy 4:4-6

⁴But ye that did cleave unto the Lord your God are alive every one of you this day.

The children of Israel were literally alive because they were close to the Lord. We’re physically alive because of His grace, but we stay spiritually alive when we stay close to Him through His word and service. God is not for Sunday only, but for every day. I love that old hymn

I need Thee, oh, I need Thee;
Every hour I need Thee;
Oh, bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee.

That’s how we’re blessed by staying up close the Savior every hour of the day, in constant need of His presence. I’ve played the hiding game with the Lord that Tiffani played with me at the mall. I’ve gotten wrapped up in pretty things and knew in my heart that the Lord was near by waiting for me to pop back up by His side. The problem with that game is the same problem that I had with Tiffani, although she knew where she was, she couldn’t see me, and some creep could have been hovering close by to snatch her out of my life. Makes me nauseous just to think about it. It makes me sick to think about how many times I’ve gotten away from the Lord and from his blessings to cleave to the world for a little bit.

I hope today finds you cleaving, believing and receiving the goodness of God.

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