It's Not Over 'Til It's Over

A man on death row. 72 hours to live. The Innocence Project. The race for evidence, witness statements, lab tests...Anything to get a stay of execution. It's a classic crime show plot based on a very serious, real life situation. Ultimately, someone wants to fight the death sentence to the bitter end and someone wants to accept the "inevitable".
 
The "inevitable"? If the "inevitable" is only three days away, why wouldn't you do anything and everything in your power to save the accused?!!! How could the stress or potential disappointments of the emergency investigation possibly be worse than the aftermath of the execution? In my opinion, IT'S NOT OVER 'TIL IT'S OVER!
 
This is how God feels about people. It's not over 'til it's over. Listen to this:

 

"One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, 'So you’re the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself—and us, too, while you’re at it!'

But the other criminal protested, 'Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die?  We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.'  Then he said, 'Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.'

 And Jesus replied, 'I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.'" 

Luke 23:39-43 NLT

 

This criminal was being crucified next to Jesus.  This man was dying with only hours left to live.  AND HE WAS GUILTY!!! But when this dying criminal asked, Jesus instantly guaranteed him heaven. 

 



This is how God feels about everyone. We are all guilty of disobeying God (Romans 3:23). But God's forgiveness is free to anyone who asks for it, any time.  You can ask on your fourth birthday or the second before you die. No matter who you are or how bad you are. 

“he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.” Titus 3:5

“that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9

Death is inevitable. But it's not over 'til it's over.
(So stop making jokes about Hell because it's real, it's coming and you don't have to go there. It's a terrifying reality and it's NOT inevitable!!!)

Love Note

Here's a clip that reminded me of my Savior's love.

“But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” Romans 5:8 NLT

“And being found in appearance as a man,
    he humbled himself
    by becoming obedient to death—
        even death on a cross!” Philippians 2:8 NIV

“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit,” 1 Peter 3:18 NKJV

“There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” John 15:13 NLT

The One Who Lives And Sees Me.

Hey, guys!  I just wanted to drop you a little line to share my favorite event from the Old Testament.  This is so encouraging and I hope you love it too.

This is the background:

 God promised to give Abraham and Sarah a son.  A son who would become important and turn their family into a huge and important nation.  The nation that the Messiah (the Savior of Humanity, The Way to Heaven) would be someday born into.  But Sarah got impatient and decided God needed her help with this whole son thing.  So she and Abraham decided that Abraham should have a son with the maid, Hagar.  Hagar got pregnant and uppity and started being mean to her boss Sarah.  So Sarah whined to Abraham and Abraham basically said "do what you want, she's your maid".  So Sarah was harsh to Hagar.  So Hagar, the maid, ran away...

Genesis 16: 7-14

"The angel of the Lord found Hagar beside a spring of water in the wilderness, along the road to Shur.  The angel said to her, “Hagar, Sarai’s servant, where have you come from, and where are you going?”

“I’m running away from my mistress, Sarai,” she replied.

The angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit to her authority.” Then he added, “I will give you more descendants than you can count.” And the angel also said, “You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael (which means ‘God hears’), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress.   This son of yours will be a wild man, as untamed as a wild donkey! He will raise his fist against everyone, and everyone will be against him. Yes, he will live in open hostility against all his relatives.”  

Thereafter, Hagar used another name to refer to the Lord, who had spoken to her. She said, “You are the God who sees me.” She also said, “Have I truly seen the One who sees me?”  So that well was named Beer-lahai-roi (which means “well of the Living One who sees me”). It can still be found between Kadesh and Bered."

 

God sees you.  He lives and He sees you. You are important to Him.  No matter what anyone else says, sees, hears or thinks.  God SEES you.  He HEARS you and He CARES about you. 

Hagar was unimportant.  A maid.  A mistake.  The other woman.  She wasn't part of God's plan to bring the Messiah.  But Hagar was important to God.  He heard her, He saw her and He cared.

 

1 Peter 5:6-11

"So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are.  In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation.  All power to him forever! Amen."



When You Become the Fist of Goodness...

 

I love this series of DIRECTV commercials!!!  Sooo Funny! But they remind me of something (as usual). 

I was thinking the other day about a bad habit I have.  And then another day about a new bad habit that was cropping up and I remembered these commercials. The series of events on this commercial is like temptation in my life.  I let myself get away with one little sin and it causes another that causes another and then I realize I have this sinful habit!  Woops!

Here's a non-me example so that I don't have to embarrass myself:

 

When you daydream about becoming famous and important, your real life seems hard and boring...

 

When your real life seems hard and boring, you get cranky...

 

When you get cranky, you yell at your boss, have a fight with your friends and break things...

 

When you yell at your boss, have a fight with your friends and break things; you end up jobless, homeless and in debt...

Don't end up jobless, homeless and in debt!

 

Here's another one:

 

When you think a lot about how you look, you want to be good-looking...

 

When you want to be good-looking, you get jealous...

 

When you get jealous, you feel sad and angry...

 

When you feel sad and angry, you make fun of someone...

 

When you make fun of someone, someone cries...

 

When someone cries, you get punched in the nose...

Don't get punched in the nose!

 

My point is that sin snowballs.  It grows and builds on itself.  And it ends up with us acting like jerks and getting bad consequences.  So we have to try to cut it out when it's just a dumb, little thought.  Because that dumb little thought is actually a sin.

 

"The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure."  

1 Corinthians 10:13

 

By the way, I don't have anything against becoming "The Fist of Goodness".  But only in a strictly law enforcement, super hero, defending the innocent sort of setting. Because, you know, " 'Vengeance is Mine' says the Lord".

 

Be Encouraging!

As this musician struggles with her recorder, her classmates imitate

Jesus by clapping along to encourage her- WAY TO BE GODLY CLASS!!! Jesus wants us all to be ENCOURAGING!

1 Thessalonians 5:14-18

"Brothers and sisters, we urge you to warn those who are lazy.

Encourage those who are timid.

Take tender care of those who are weak.

Be patient with everyone.

See that no one pays back evil for evil,

but always try to do good to each other and to all people. 
Always be joyful.  

Never stop praying.

Be thankful in all circumstances,
for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus."

 

 

Represent

Well, it's official.  Football season is over...  So here are some funny fan pics to help ease the pain:

        

I get a kick out of looking at their crazy getups but I have to give it to the superfans- they love their team!  They're loyal and they show their passion.  They're not afraid that someone will make fun of them or of hurting the others teams feelings.  They want their team to win and they want everyone to KNOW IT!!!

 

Christians should learn something from these football fanatics.  We have a passion that is way more important than a football team and we need to show it.  The Bible says that with Jesus as your Savior you will spend eternity in Heaven and without Him you'll spend eternity in Hell.  Everyone has to pick a side- Jesus' or not. 

 

With Jesus you will have peace, satisfaction and belonging.  He doesn't ask you to do anything, He just wants your trust.  He's the Ultimate Friend who offers love, hope, forgiveness and protection.  I don't know about you but I'm on HIS TEAM!!!

 

Christians need to be a little more like those crazy football fans and show our love!  Who cares if people make fun, Jesus is Awesome whether they like it or not!  The Bible says that Jesus is the only way to Heaven.  That hurts people's feelings but it's the truth and they need to hear it if they are ever going to trust Him to get them there.   

 

"For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes," Romans 1:16a NLT

 

"You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.   No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father."  

Matthew 5:14-16 NLT

 

So get out there and REPRESENT!

 

 

 

The Avengers: Puny God

Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye and the Hulk. These are the Avengers. And this is their first mission together. The mission: Save The World, of course! Loki, a powerful alien, is threatening to overthrow Earth and enslave humanity. Loki likes to go on and on about his own magnificence. He thinks that he's God and that everyone and everything is less than him.  But then Hulk teaches him a lesson:

 

 

This makes me think about all of the "puny gods" out there.  The kind of "gods" that ask for worship but don't guarantee Heaven.  Gods that don't believe in an afterlife.  Gods that care more about what you wear than about your welfare.  Gods that encourage injustice, gods that perpetuate abuse, gods that cannot satisfy or comfort, gods that cannot help, cannot save...mostly because they are imaginary.  But whoever imagined them wasn't even creative enough to make them loving or invincible.  And then there is the puniest of all "gods"- the "I don't need a god".  The very experience of life and the very thought of death should make a person realize they need a God.  

 

Don't ever let anyone fool you into thinking anything "puny" about Yahweh- the One True God!  His name is "I AM".  As in: no one made Him, no one controls Him, He doesn't need anyone or anything and NOTHING can EVER get the better of Him.  Nothing happens without His permission and He will never cease to be exactly what He has always been.  His power, justice, wisdom and love are infinite.

 

“I am the Alpha and the Omega—the beginning and the end,” says the Lord God. “I am the one who is, who always was, and who is still to come—the Almighty One.” Revelation 1:8 NLT

 

"Trust in the Lord forever, For in YAH, the Lord, is everlasting strength."

Isaiah 26:4 NKJV

"The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.
The world and all its people belong to him." Psalm 24:1 NLT

"Who is the King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty;
the Lord, invincible in battle." Psalm 24:8 NLT
 

 "The faithful love of the Lord never ends!
    His mercies never cease." Lamentations 3:22 NLT
 

I don't know about you but I will only trust and serve a God who ALWAYS WINS.  The true God cannot be injured, thwarted or wrong.  Why would I want a God who is imperfect?  That's preposterous!  Puny!