Thought for the Day - God loves you

 

This is one of my favorite stories that makes a great point.  A young preacher had installed a weather vane on top of his church with the words 'God is Love" on it.  He was then asked if that meant Gods love changes with the wind?  His reponse was "no,  it means which ever way the wind is blowing God still loves".   And you know, he was right because no matter which way the wind is blowing in your life and no matter what the circumstances you find yourself in right now or tomorrow or next week, God loves you.

Make Yourself at Home

 

Where do you find you are most at home in this world? 

Have you ever gone on a trip for a length of time and when you finally got home, you walked into your house and said,"its good to be home".  You dropped your suitcases on the floor, felt the security of your house, sat down in your favorite chair, kicked off your shoes, cranked up the fireplace, made a bowl of popcorn, leaned back in the recliner and said "home" and took a peaceful breath. 

Or, have you ever gone to someones house and heared them say, "just make yourself at home?"  That's a nice offer but do they really mean that?  Can you really do that?  I mean, do you have the freedom to start going through their closet, cupboards, desk?  Do you really feel comfortable taking your shoes off (or leaving your shoes on) and putting them on top of the coffee table?  Can you open the frig, get out some food and start cooking it?  One night my son came over and he said to his mother,  what have you got to eat?  Well I had some leftover pizza wrapped in foil and hidden in the back of the frig for this very reason, I knew he might come over and I didnt want him to see it :)...Well Karen said to him, "sure, dad has some pizza in the frig, to which he did not hesitate in finding it and then reheating it.  Agh !! :)   That is making yourself at home.  Well, that might work in your parents home, but does making yourself at home work like that in someone elses home?..Does it really work that way?  Well no it doesn't. 

So ...where do you find you really are most at home in this world?  What does being "at home" mean to you? Well, aren't you at home where you are most free to be yourself, where you are most comfortable, where you are most secure, and where you have the most freedom to be honest about who you really are? We are at home where our roots are the deepest, where we know we belong and where we can most be ourselves and where we don't have to try to impress anyone to be ourself. And, where you can go to the frig and help yourself without being invited or having to ask.

I think that is what David is asking in Psalm 27:4 when he says:

One thing I have desired of the Lord,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the Lord,
And to inquire in His temple

David is saying the place he wanted to be most at home, most comfortable, most real, most secure, the place he knew he would be certain he belonged was in the presence of the Lord.  There is an old gospel song that says:

Feeling at home in the presence of Jesus,

Hearing Him call me His own
Feeling at home,

Feeling at home

Putting my feet right under His table

Knowing I won't be alone
Just feeling at home

Feeling at home

For the Christian when we are in the presence of Jesus as we spend time in worship, prayer, His Word, in church and walking in obedience is when feel most at home.

 

 







Choices

Recently our family just got back from a great trip to Disneyland.  We had an amazing time, riding rides, eating, watching parades and shows and most of all watching my granddaughter get to see the Disney Princesses ...like Belle...

But one thing we found to be true not only every morning, but all through the day was that we had choices to make. Choices of what rides to ride and at what time and on what day so that we were not standing in long lines.  And one piece of technology that really helped us make the wisest decisions was a Disney App on my daughters Iphone. 

Well each day and all through the day we have choices to make concerning areas that are far more important and eternal than what disney rides to ride on at what time.  And..we have something far greater to help us with those decisions than an App.  We have Gods Word and His Holy Spirit to instruct us and guide us. 

See, life is all about choices.  We have choices to make concerning our lifestyle or how we are going to live.  We also have choices to make concerning our allegiance or what we are going to be committed to.  Questions like:

How are we going to live?
What is going to be the object of our affections?
Are we going to live for ourselves, for someone else or for the Lord?
Will you let God be God in your life or will you let other things crowd Him out?

These questions are extremely important.  You see, to put Him first in our life (as Scripture commands) is to know the blessing of His peace, His love, His provision and His life.  But to put other things first is to know the ultimate emptiness of things that simply does not satisfy.  When we say that Jesus Christ is Lord, we are saying that God is top priority.

Mark 12: 30 says "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength."

Then in
Exodus 20:3 says "You shall have no other gods before me"

Now while we are to Love the Lord with all that is within us and then allow His Word and Spirit to guide us...The answer to our choices in life isn't to 'just love God'.. The trick is to love Him exclusively.."You shall have no other gods before me".  When we love like that it helps tremendously with the choices we have to make in life. 

While a Disney App on your phone may guide you through Disneyland.. Gods Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path..and the more I love God exclusively the more I allow His word to do just that

When you need Help: Look Up

Where do you go when you need help?  I guess we can look in the want ads, call our parents or a close friend.  Perhaps even call your Pastor, go to your spouse and you might even go to your boss.  Sometimes however we talk to the wrong people about our needs.  We go to a person who either gives us bad advice or they really can not do anything tangible for us at all. 

Not only who do we go to for help but where do we go when going through the valleys?  I don't mean the valleys of death, I mean just the deep dark valleys of life, valleys that so many of us travel through.  You might say, "well its pretty shallow right now, its not that deep, and I can make it myself"  Well I have news for you, unless you begin to look in the right direction even when it is shallow you just might sink to despair when it gets deep simply from lack of practice.  Too many people wait until its a 911 call to heaven before they start talking to God about the valleys of their life.

Psalm 121 has been a tremendous help to so many people.  I know it was to me just three years ago when Karen was in the hospital and I was going through that dark valley.  It is a passage that has been memorized, quoted and sung about.. It is a reminder that God was and is a great source of help and strength to those of us in need. 

Psalm 121 says I will lift up my eyes to the hills—
From whence comes my help?
² My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.

³ He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
⁴ Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep

⁵ The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade at your right hand.
⁶ The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night

⁷ The Lord shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
⁸ The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore

 

When your mountain seems too big to climb, look up and remember who gives you the help you need.