Time to Vote!

Thank you, dear readers, for your input a few blogs ago.  I want to tell you the reason for my request.  I'm planning to enter some of my writing in the Writers' Digest Annual Writing Contest (spiritual, inspirational category).  I feel like this may be a door from the Lord...the info about it came to me.  I didn't seek it out.

However, because there is a fee for each entry, I thought I might ask for help narrowing down what I send in.  So here are the few blogs that seem to have surfaced as contest potential :).

If you have time and inclination, would you "vote" on the one(s) you like best?  You could rate them 1, 2, 3, ... (with 1 being the best).  Or just pick one or two.

By the way, when they are submitted, they will have been revised slightly to sound more like an article than a blog.  And I won't be able to include pictures :(

A Word of Salvation [This one will be revised as "Lost & Found"]

Embracing My Today

Choose Your Face...Change Your Day

Remembering Jesus' BIRTH-day

Walkin n Talkin...

Thanks so much, dear friends, for taking the time to read and evaluate!  I treasure your input!  Blessings!

Resurrection Walk...

When I was at the University of Arizona in the late 60's & early 70"s, the "Jesus movement" was in full swing.  A song that we always sang during praise time at our Christian student meetings in those days was "He Lives". This song grabbed me!  The concept of a living Christ who intimately related to me on a daily basis was just beginning to dawn on me.  Look at the words to this glorious song:

mom & me walking

I serve a risen Saviour He's in the world today; I know that He is living, Whatever men may say; I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer, And just the time I need Him He's always near.

Chorus: He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today! He walks with me and He talks with me Along life's narrow way. He lives, He live, salvation to impart! You ask me how I know He lives: He lives within my heart.

In all the world around me I see His loving care, And tho my heart grows weary I never will despair; I know that He is leading Thro' all the stormy blast, The day of His appearing Will come at last.

Rejoice, rejoice, O Christian, Lift up your voice and sing Eternal hallelujahs To Jesus Christ the King! The hope of all who seek Him, The help of all who find, None other is so loving, So good and kind.

Brennan Manning has a phrase that I love...living in Present Risenness.  In his precious book The Rabbi's Heartbeat, he says:

We are not cowed into timidity by death and life.  Were we forced to rely on our own shabby resources we would be pitiful people indeed.  But the awareness of Christ's present risenness persuades us that we are buoyed up and carried on by a life greater than our own.

The Christ within who is our hope of glory is not a matter of theological debate or philosophical speculation.  He is not a hobby, a part-time project, a good theme for a book, or a last resort when all human effort fails.  He is our life, the most real fact about us.  He is the power and wisdom of God dwelling within us.

Even though the holiday we call Easter has passed, dear child of God, meditate on this glorious thought:  The Resurrected Christ is alive in your world right now.  The Living Christ lives in you today.  And this same Lord Jesus Christ lives His resurrection life through you as you walk in Present Risenness...every day!

Christ in you, the hope of glory. Col 1:27

...you have died and your life is hid with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, we shall appear with Him in glory. Col 3:3-4

...to those who are the called,...Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 1Cor 124

Now enjoy this simple, sincere rendition of "HE LIVES"...

*This was posted last Easter as Walking in Present Risenness

Resurrection Joy!

Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed! What a reason to celebrate!  And celebrate is just what my 5 year old grandson does when he sings this, his favorite song.

Let's join Evan (and his brother Carter)...and all the saints and angels in praise to God for His glorious gift of His Risen and Reigning Son!

From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise...  Psalm 8:2

Happy Day by Tim Hughes

o happy day...evan & carter

The greatest day in history, Death is beaten You have rescued me Sing it out Jesus is alive The empty cross, The empty grave Life eternal You have won the day Shout it out Jesus is aliveHe's alive

Chorus: Oh happy day, happy day You washed my sin away Oh happy day, happy day I'll never be the same Forever I am changed

o happy day evan & carter

When I stand, in that place Free at last, meeting face to face I am Yours Jesus You are mine Endless joy, perfect peace Earthly pain finally will cease Celebrate Jesus is aliveHe's alive

Chorus

Oh what a glorious day What a glorious way That You have saved me Oh what a glorious day What a glorious name

Chorus

What a glorious glorious day, I'll never be the same

Be sure to view it in the full screen...awesome!

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Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21

Resurrection Zoe!

Esaster lily and cross

Easter isn't Easter unless it's Easter to YOU!

So declared a radiopreacher early in Holy Week.  At first I said, "YES!"

Then I thought about it a while and said, "Not really...Easter is Easter whether I get it or not!"  Now I'm rethinking the statement.

What is Easter anyway?  I remember in my confirmation catechism class learning that...

Easter is the first Sunday after the first full moon of the spring equinox.

That explains when, but WHAT is Easter?

Easter is the day we celebrate when...

Jesus rose from the grave...

conquering sin and death on the Cross on our behalf...

so that we could walk in newness of life.

EasterEggHunt

And that's the point, isn't it?  Easter isn't about chocolate bunnies, chicks, coloring and hunting eggs, new clothes, Easter lilies and other spring flowers, and freshness.  These are all simply pictures...metaphors, if you will, of the real deal.

And the real deal is ZOE!  LIFE!  Jesus Himself said,

I came that they may have life[zoe, in Greek] and have it abundantly. John 10:10

How does zoe happen for you and me?

The eternal life of God is imparted as a gift to all who believe in His Son, the God-Man Jesus Christ.  He is the One who paid the penalty for our sins, so that...

when Jesus died, my sinful self died with Him; when He was buried, I was buried with Him; when He rose from the dead, I rose with Him...a new creation in Christ.

Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory. Col 3:1-4

So Easter is Easter to me because the indwelling, resurrected Christ is my ZOE!  Is He yours, dear friend?

Even as believers, though, if we are perfectly honest, we must admit that we don't always live from His indwelling, resurrected LIFE, do we?

Rather we often live as if our abilities and cleverness, our relationships (including our favorite social media), our jobs, our pet activities, and our possessions are the source of LIFE.  But of course, when looked at that way, they aren't life at all, but rather false gods and dead works.

So back again to the statement:

Easter isn't Easter unless it's Easter to YOU!

May Easter BE Easter as we refocus on our glorious, Risen Lord who indwells all who believe.

Prayer: May every day be Easter, O Lord, because of Your abundant, indwelling, resurrection ZOE...thank you for the precious gift of Your glorious self.  Amen!

KNOWING YOU

EMPTY TOMB

All I once held dear Built my life upon all this world reveres And wars to own All I once thought gain I have counted loss Spent and worthless now Compared to this

Chorus: Knowing You, Jesus Knowing You There is no greater thing You're my all You're the best You're my joy, my righteousness And I love You lord

Now my heart's desire Is to know You more To be found in You And known as Yours To possess by faith What I could not earn All-surpassing gift Of righteousness

Oh, to know the power Of your risen life And to know You in Your sufferings To become like You In Your death, my Lord So with You to live and never die

The written lyrics are in English and hmong (a Chinese dialect); the song is sung in English.

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bible student

Bible Students:

Meditate on this marvelous passage.  Enter in...and give thanks:

But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:7-11

Lenten Meditation: a Word of Reunion

praying child

Now I lay me down to sleepI pray the Lord my soul to keep If I should die before I wake I pray the Lord my soul to take

So goes a traditional nighttime prayer taught by American moms to their children for generations.

It may seem odd to us today that there would be the mention of death in a child's prayer.  But scientists say that sleep is the closest we come to death while still alive.  The Greeks even had a proverb,

Sleep and death are brothers.

However, in the first century, Jewish moms taught their children a different bedtime prayer...quoting Psalm 31:

Father, into Your hands I commit my spirit.

Sound familiar?  It should...they are the final words of Jesus as He breathed His last (Luke 23:46).

For most of us, death comes suddenly and often without warning.  But for many, there is a sense that death is imminent...and it even seems that in some cases, the dying individual yields his spirit after seeing that treasured love one or after receiving permission from an important someone, "It's okay...you can go" (perhaps merely giving in to the inevitable).

But not so in the case of our Lord Jesus Christ!  His death was totally voluntary...under His control...in submission to His Father's will:

Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last. Luke 23:46 ESV

Good Shepherd

About a year or so earlier, He had spoken of this voluntary quality of His death in the beautiful metaphor of the Good Shepherd:

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.... I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep... For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again.No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father. John 10:11-18 ESV

Later in that same beautiful passage, Jesus says,

My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” John 10:27-31

images-7

Talk about intimacy and security!  And this with our Father God through His Son, our Lord!

So in this last word from the Cross, the God-Man Jesus Christ recites His familiar childhood prayer...the prayer learned at His mother's knee.   In doing so, He consciously and in full control yields His life and returns to the bosom of His heavenly Father.  Why? for love of you and me!

Lord, we are overwhelmed...thank you...thank you...thank you!!!!!

Calvary's Love -- S Green

Only Jesus, Only He Brings redemption, full and free There's a yearning, in all our lives That only Jesus satisfies

Calvary's love will sail forever Bright and shining, strong and free Like an ark of peace and safety On the sea of human need

Through the hours of all the ages Those tired of sailing on their own Finally rest inside the shadow Cast by Calvary's love across their souls

Chorus: Calvary's love, Calvary's love Priceless gift Christ makes us worthy of The deepest sin can't rise above Calvary's love

Calvary's love can heal the Spirit Life has crushed and cast aside And redeem til Heaven's promise Fills with joy once empty eyes So desire to tell His story Of a love that loved enough to die Burns away all other passions And fed by Calvary's love becomes a fire

Chorus

Calvary's love has never faltered All its wonders still remain Souls still take eternal passage Sins atoned and heaven gained Sins forgiven and heaven gained

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Further Application:

Consider making this your nighttime prayer as you drift off to sleep each night. You may also want to read and meditate on all of Psalm 31.

crown of thorns with bible

Further Meditation:

During Holy Week, you may like to join me by going back through the meditations...one or two each day. Journal what the Holy Spirit highlights to your heart. Here they all are...

bible student

Bible Students: Explore these Shepherd passages and be blessed! Psalm 23 -- the Lord, my Shepherd Ezekiel 34 -- contrast with false shepherds Luke 15 -- seeks for lost sheep John 10 -- the Good Shepherd John 21:15-23 -- feed My sheep... Heb 13:20-21 -- the Great Shepherd of the Sheep 1 Peter 2:25 -- the Shepherd and Guardian of our souls 1Peter 5:4 -- the Chief Shepherd