Monday, May 22, 2006

Well, well, Mother's Day has come and gone and whoa! There was no annual Mother's Day entry about mother's day! Actually it was purely accidental, honest.
The mother tributes have all been stated, the proclamations made and all the preachers have sermonized on motherhood , so what else is there to say?
How about this thought:
"John 19:25 And His mother stood by the cross of Jesus, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene."
You have to wonder what went through her mind. As she stood watching the man that once suckled at her breast, ran through her house, stumbled as he learned to walk, followed her to the well for water.
The memories of his work among the people these past three years, the healing, the preaching, the laughs and tears over dinners served.
You have to wonder what went through her mind that horrible day.
Then I wonder, what did she think about three days later?

Monday, May 15, 2006

All we have to fear is fear itself…FDR

Fear can make anyone stop what they are doing. Fear can prevent what must take place from taking place. Fear alone is enough to change even the strongest of men.
There are two kinds of fear that humans face. The first is the physical, life threatening fear that makes the stomach churn and the nights sleepless.
Fear sets the heart pounding, the pulse racing, the breaths become quick and shallow and the eyes wide open.
This fear can make you run and cower.
It can be overwhelming and it takes a certain type of person to stand up to it.
The other fear is not physical, but can be just as limiting. It can stop a church from growing, a Christian from teaching, a young woman from doing what is right, a man from standing up. This fear exists solely in the mind’s eye and is a tool that is used to halt a person’s spiritual walk on the path.

Some of us go to the amusement park to ride rides that put the physical fear into us. We do this for fun and it is exciting to yell and scream. We know deep down we really aren’t afraid. Its fun to pretend.
Some of us have slid around the corner on a icy road in the dark of winter and have known the heart racing fear that death breathes on our neck. This is not fun at all.
Others have felt the fear for a loved on who is sick or injured. We worry, we are scared, not for ourselves, but for them. No amusement ride here.
The others lay in their bed, scared, afraid of the dark, until mommy or daddy chase the monsters away…this we outgrow. ..or do we?
How many of use refuse to move past a certain point in our spiritual walk because of the fear of, say exposure? Exposure that we may not have the faith we thought? Or fear of ridicule from others? Or rejection? Or criticism? Or just good ole’ imaginary fear?
Do you fear the demons in the night? Satan’s attacks? What does God say to us?
“Therefore do not fear them, for there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed, and nothing hidden which shall not be known.”(Matthew 10:26)
Who is ‘them’? Read the verse above---“If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more those of his household?”
“And do not fear those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. But rather fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”
(Matthew 10:28)

“Therefore do not fear, you are of more value than many sparrows. “
(Matthew 10:31)
So what do you fear? The things that go bump in the night, the imaginary fears that paralyze you from actions?
Do you fear the wrong thing?
As Christians, it is right to fear God, “that you might fear Jehovah your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you, and your son, and your son's son, all the days of your life, and so that your days may be prolonged. “ (Deuteronomy 6:2)
It is also right to fear Satan (Matt 10:28 above) and his works. But it is not right to fall into a fear of do nothing.
“For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. “ (2 Timothy 1:7)
We can rejoice! Fear of God teaches us, fear of the evil one keeps us safe from his evil ways, and God has freed us from the greatest fear of all-death. “and deliver those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. (Hebrews 2:15)
Finally, we are not afraid of man; “so that we may boldly say, "The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do to me." (Hebrews 13:6)
So what are we afraid of?