July 4^th was usually at the beach or cabin (My Favorite Place on Earth), celebrating the birth of the USA, and my wonderful maternal grandmother’s birthday. Gram was actually born on Christmas Day, and, while beloved by her husband and five daughters, her birthday was mingled with Christmas. She usually would get combined Christmas and birthday presents, and Christmas was prominent.

After she retired, she moved in with us. The first Christmas with her, my mom and two aunts discussed what to make for Christmas dinner desert, and decided to bake a birthday cake for Gram.

After dinner, when they brought in the birthday cake, candles blazing, Gram burst into tears … it was her first ever birthday cake. After all these years, I still get teary thinking of that.

On July 4^th, her birthday cake had sparklers rather than candles. We loved making her special.

~~~

Thank You, Father, for family. Help us love them with Your love and for Your glory.

He hopes he will catch a fish.

The dictionary says hope is: “To wish for something with expectation of its fulfillment; to look forward to with confidence or expectation.”

In this world, we hope for a lot of things: I hope I get that job, I hope I get an A, I hope I don’t get sick, I hope our children … We hope everything will be alright.

The problem with secular hope is that we don’t know for sure. We want a specific result without being able to guarantee it. Not everything will work out.

There are things we can do to increase the likelihood that we will obtain what we hope for. He can use bait that succeeds at that lake, which makes it more likely he will catch a fish. We can study, making it more probable we will get an A. But there is no certainty.

However

When we hope for something God promised, it WILL happen. We can (and must) have confident expectation. We must trust Him.

God cannot lie. God knows the end from the beginning. His promises are sure things.

Godly hope

We hope with certainty in God’s promises. We hope because we trust God. God fulfills ALL His promises. All we have to do is believe, trust, and wait.

~~

Father, help us know what You have promised. Help us believe You, trust You, rely on You. Help us confidently and joyfully wait for You.

Be of good cheer!

Yeah, yeah. There is a very serious war in the Middle East. There are threats that the US and other countries may be attacked. There are riots in various US cities. There are credible threats against the US and UK from internally-placed foreign forces.  

Yet!

These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world. (John 16:33)

John 16:33 in The King James Version reads: Be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Christ has overcome the world

The Future

We know how the story ends. Christ comes again, evil is dealt with, the righteous are glorified. Believers will be in eternal bliss in heaven.

His kingdom will come.

Here and Now

Our sovereign God is in control of the evil we see, the fraud and corruption, the disasters of wars and riots. It is awful, but we have to keep in mind that God is working His holy plan. Because of these terrors, God is revealed in His wrath. Everyone is warned. Some are being saved.

In addition, we believe God’s promises to us (believers). Through hard times, through disasters, He is with us. He guides us, strengthens us, helps us. He works all things for good for His redeemed children.

Believe

Believe in God, His victory, His triumph.

Believe it will be just as He promised.

Be of good cheer.

Iran, for many years, has pledged death to America and death to Israel. Iran’s nuclear weapon capability and long-range missiles were nearly operational. Israel attacked Iran, targeting Iran’s destructive ability.

The Bible, over and over and over, tells us that God will act decisively, finally, eternally, against the wickedness of this world. Christ is coming again.

When? How close are we to God’s ultimate wrath? How close are we to Christ’s return? What time is it?

We are warned

One way God shows His love for the whole world is to warn us of His impending wrath and tell us of the possibility of salvation through Jesus Christ, the Son of God.   

For Christians, take stock. Are you ready to see God? Are you ready for Christ’s judgment seat? Is there anything you need to do?

For those who do not believe in Jesus Christ, it is urgent that you turn to Him. If you don’t, God’s wrath includes you. PLEASE take this warning to heart.

See Becoming a Child of God.

~~~

God—Father, Son, Holy Spirit—You are Holy. We praise You for Your sovereign, righteous justice. We praise You that You love the world so much You sent Your beloved Son so that we who believe will have eternal life. Help us honor You.

Those of us who have received Christ Jesus Son of God as Lord and Savior, believe IN God, believe IN Jesus Christ. We also need to believe God, to believe what He says.

The world is very noisy. Our own voices are loudest of all … either when we tell ourselves truths or tell ourselves lies.

We need to intentionally learn what God says (study the Bible!), and determine to believe what God says.

God says over and over and over in many ways He loves us, His believing, redeemed children. Believe God!

God told us He would never leave us or forsake us. Believe Him!

God told us He would work all things for good for us. Believe Him!

Apply these truths to yourself. For example:

He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,” so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?” (Hebrews 13:5–6)

Hallelujah!

~~

Father, please help us diligently study Your Word, believe what You say, speak Your truths to ourselves, and live in the light of what You say. Thank You!

Death and Homecoming are on my mind.

The anniversary of my brother’s death was a few days ago. A life-long friend died a few months ago. My mom and dad each died in the spring. Kay Arthur, the co-founder of Precept Ministries which was key in my spiritual growth, died a few days ago.

Grief. Grief. Grief.

And Yet!

And yet, my grief was Homecoming for each of them, believers in Christ.

Grief here and Joy there at the same time.

We are told not to grieve like the pagans do.

[Do] not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. (1 Thessalonians 4:13)

Those of us grieving over the death of a believer ALSO know:

They have been glorified.

They are holy and blameless.

They are more alive than ever. Truly alive.

They are in bliss we cannot imagine.

They see Christ face-to-face.

We (believers) will see them again.

Those truths do not eliminate grief, but our grief is changed by knowing their joy and the certainty of our (believers’) Homecoming as well.

~~

Are you positive that your death will mean heaven? Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God? Do you believe He died for your sins and was resurrected, proving He is the Son of God? If you don’t, you will die in your sins. Read Becoming a Child of God.

~~~

Father, help us live in the hope of heaven. Help us be certain about the joy of our deceased loved-ones’ joy. Help us demonstrate to others Your truth, love, and power through our simultaneous grief and joy.

We all know, or know of, people that are hard to please. Is God that way? Is God hard to please?

Faith

Without faith it is impossible to please God.

Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6)

All religions, other than Christianity, teach that you have to earn your way to God through works. Those who are trying to earn God’s acceptance through works fail. They will die in their sins.

Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. (Romans 8:8)

Belief in Jesus Christ, however, means Christ-followers have faith and therefore please God.

Growing in Pleasing

The entry point in pleasing God is faith. If you have received Christ as Lord and Savior, you please God.

And, then, through our lives, as we grow, as we are sanctified, we learn more and more how to please God.

trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. (Ephesians 5:10)

We learn how to walk in a manner worthy of Him.

Finally then, brethren, we request and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us instruction as to how you ought to walk and please God (just as you actually do walk), that you excel still more. (1 Thessalonians 4:1)

Motives

Over time, we learn how to bring our motives in line with what God wants.

Thought, Word, Deed

Over time, we learn how to think, say, and do what God wants.

Make Pleasing God our Ambition; Our Driving Goal

Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. (2 Corinthians 5:9)

~~~

Father, thank You that we, believers in Christ, can please You. Help us please You more and more.

Trouble! I mean Trouble. Trouble with a capital T. TROUBLE!

I try to solve problems. Sometimes I can.

I know God has already given me everything pertaining to life and godliness. (2 Peter 1:3)

I know I need to learn to use the gifts He gave me as well as rely on Him.

But!

Not everything is solvable. Certainly not always solvable by me. Some things will remain issues until the end … unless, of course, GOD solves it.

But!

God is working His holy plan. I must obey Him. I must trust Him. I must remember He is our holy God, doing what is righteous. I must submit to Him. 

In my trust and submission, I am to be content.

Paul learned to be content. And he was content and joyful in an awful prison with wolves attacking the church….

I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. (Philippians 4:11)

~~

Father, help me learn to be content, knowing You are my loving, holy, sovereign God.

Believers, Christ-followers, are responsible for our thoughts, words, and deeds. Our sins are our doing.

Our actions, righteous or sinful, have results. Consequences of sinful acts can be life-long, and they can be horrible.

There are at least three lessons:

First, strive to live a righteous life. God is working in every believer to sin less, to make us more holy. When we do sin, and we will, confess immediately. Take the steps needed to resolve the impact of our sins, including reconciling if possible.

Second, remember that God is sovereign. Trust God throughout the consequences of our sins. He controls the length, breath, and severity of the results of our actions. It truly may be awful, but remember that God is with you, with me, helping us to walk through whatever it is in a way that pleases and glorifies God.

Third, thank and praise God. Thank Him that there are consequences of sin, helping us learn to refuse sin and obey Him. Thank Him that He is working in you (and me) and in the situation right now. Thank Him that He is sovereign. He won’t leave you or forsake you. He is teaching you, teaching me, something we need to know. If your long-term life situation changed, thank Him that He repositioned you to a new area of service.

And, finally:

Believer: whoever you are and where-ever you are, you are in God’s holy plan. He has, now and always, a purpose for you. He is leading you to glory. PRESS ON!

PS. WE are responsible. GOD is sovereign. It is impossible for us to understand that both things are true, but they are. We “just” need to believe what God says in His word.

There is no sin in heaven!

In heaven, there is no sin in me or in anyone else. 

All the redeemed in heaven are glorified.

I absolutely cannot comprehend the wonder to come. 

Three stages of salvation

Saved from the penalty of sin

Believers, including OT saints, have been saved from the penalty of sin. 

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. (Ephesians 2:8)

Believers have been justified by God. (Romans 8:30)

Being saved from the power of sin

We, the still-living believers, are in the process of being saved from the power of sin. We are learning to live in newness of life, to live in the power of the Holy Spirit.

For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (1 Corinthians 1:18)

In Romans 8:30 it is the unspecified period between justification and glorification. 

… these whom He justified, He also glorified. (Romans 8:30)

We are responsible to live obeying and pleasing God. We have to work at it. (But God helps!)

… work out your salvation with fear and trembling. (Philippians 2:12)

Right now though, we still sin. And I HATE my sins. Hate it. Hate it. Hate it. Believers typically will sin less as we grow in the Lord. But we hate our sin more. We must continue to strive to live godly lives. And, as told in 1 John 1:9, we are to confess.

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

Shall be saved from the presence of sin

But next! We shall be saved from the presence of sin. No sin anywhere. The will of Almighty God’s will be done perfectly and joyfully. 

Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. (Romans 5:9)

We shall be glorified.

… the spirits of the righteous [in heaven are] made perfect. (Hebrews 12:23)

“just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. (Ephesians 1:4)

I can’t wait.