Furnished and ready......
Matthew 26 and Mark 14 record the last day/ hours of Christ's earthly life...the betrayal, the surrender, the last supper, the arrest, the sleeping friends, the beginning of the night trial...everything preordained to happened...what meaningful passages...
Jesus sent his disciples ahead to prepare for the Passover...looking for a certain man to follow and make use of his upstairs room..."furnished and ready"... Was the room always ready? Was it a local gathering place?
But, there in that room, the Lord's supper is instituted, betrayal is acknowledged, the Passover is shared-the Lamb is prepared, ready for death, the first born to be taken soon...
And Jesus knowing all of this, moves forward, ready ...willing...the only one able....
I ask myself, now and in times past, am I "furnished and ready" for whatever may come into my life? No, there are so many times, I didn't want to be ready for the events taking place in my home/heart...other's easier, yes...was I ready to hand over each room in my life for the use of the Lord? No, no and yes, yes... For His banquet, for His fellowship, for His remembrances...
Thank YOU that you came in and dined...You made ready...You furnished the heart...help me always be ready...to sit and dine, to recline next to your heart...listening...prepared...
"On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples asked him, “Where do you want us to go and make preparations for you to eat the Passover?” So he sent two of his disciples, telling them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him. 14 Say to the owner of the house he enters, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ 15 He will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.” The disciples left, went into the city and found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover. When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve. While they were reclining at the table eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me—one who is eating with me.” They were saddened, and one by one they said to him, “Surely you don’t mean me?” 20 “It is one of the Twelve,” he replied, “one who dips bread into the bowl with me. 21 The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.” While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it. 24 “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. 25 “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives."
Mark 14:12-26
Matthew 26
Wednesday, November 7, 2018
Tuesday, November 6, 2018
And the Pharisees...
And the Pharisees .....
Revolutions have been fought and won over the years from similar words, changing of the guard, wars, wanting my way, handing off the baton, etc..., etc. ....etc....sometimes change is simple, other times so painful....from mentor to mentee, teacher to student, retiree to the next generation...sometimes empowering, sometimes reins held in tightened fists....old guard to new entrepreneurs....
In reading the gospels, Jesus was fulfilling the prophecies of old, bringing freedom and light to the world, showing his authority, giving the salvation that all mankind needs...but, because he was who he was and proclaimed that, he was constantly hounded by leaders who desired the status quo, not wanting change to their lives, or questioning of their authority with or over the people whom they were supposed to serve.
Some leaders did, indeed, believe in Him, while others baulked at every turn, at every miracle, sign, healing, word...
As I have reached the mentor age, "older women mentor the younger women"...I have the choice the hold tightly to my generation's "traditions" and man's rules...or let the next generation fly, empowering ones who come after to follow the Spirit in His leading. This even also means not "westernizing" mission work around the world or next door... Showing the love of Christ following his commandments...encouraging not discouraging, admonishing in love not judging..
It behooves we as mentors to make sure we are not pushing our agenda, our way of thinking on the next generation, but are examples of the truth, not man's traditions...
Thank YOU for your love and admonishment....help me radiate your light....
But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.
Luke 6:11
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:36-40
Revolutions have been fought and won over the years from similar words, changing of the guard, wars, wanting my way, handing off the baton, etc..., etc. ....etc....sometimes change is simple, other times so painful....from mentor to mentee, teacher to student, retiree to the next generation...sometimes empowering, sometimes reins held in tightened fists....old guard to new entrepreneurs....
In reading the gospels, Jesus was fulfilling the prophecies of old, bringing freedom and light to the world, showing his authority, giving the salvation that all mankind needs...but, because he was who he was and proclaimed that, he was constantly hounded by leaders who desired the status quo, not wanting change to their lives, or questioning of their authority with or over the people whom they were supposed to serve.
Some leaders did, indeed, believe in Him, while others baulked at every turn, at every miracle, sign, healing, word...
As I have reached the mentor age, "older women mentor the younger women"...I have the choice the hold tightly to my generation's "traditions" and man's rules...or let the next generation fly, empowering ones who come after to follow the Spirit in His leading. This even also means not "westernizing" mission work around the world or next door... Showing the love of Christ following his commandments...encouraging not discouraging, admonishing in love not judging..
It behooves we as mentors to make sure we are not pushing our agenda, our way of thinking on the next generation, but are examples of the truth, not man's traditions...
Thank YOU for your love and admonishment....help me radiate your light....
But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.
Luke 6:11
“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:36-40
Friday, November 2, 2018
My playlist....
My playlist....
This morning I was walking I place in my room here in Medellin, listening to my music on my iPhone. I haven't listened to it for so long...
Out my door/window the mountain raises up and up with high rise apartment buildings going up the mountain as well. I am on the 12th story of a 21 story building. The buildings around me are taller and some shorter...quite a difference from my little one story house in a small town...
Anyway, back to my play list ...each of the songs I have downloaded have a story in my life...when, where and why it is saved...
First, "Thank you for giving to the Lord", a favorite of my husband, we bothe liked it, Especially him and we had some one song it at his funeral.
"Blessings", I heard it for the first time driving from my home to our temporary apartment when my husband was ill. I had to pull over to the side of the road, listen and cry...
"Word of God speak ", my last solo song before I had to stop singing because of esophagitis...
"Tennessee Waltz" down loaded for my father as he was dying...he really liked that song as well as others....
"Jesus loves me", the first song I sang with my mother before church, when I was 4 years old...
"Wind beneath my wings", a song one of my daughters played for me for a birthday present when she was in junior high ...
Etc...etc...etc...
I suspect each person reading this has special songs which touch your heart in some way...bringing back good or maybe bad memories...ones that we don't want to hear, or can't erase because they bring back a moment in time...they touch our souls in a very deep way...thank YOU for music to sooth our souls, to touch us...
You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.
Psalm 32:7
The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.
Psalm 65:8
The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; they shout for joy and sing. Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious.
Psalm 65:13,66:1
Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.
Psalm 126:5
speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord,
Ephesians 5:19
This morning I was walking I place in my room here in Medellin, listening to my music on my iPhone. I haven't listened to it for so long...
Out my door/window the mountain raises up and up with high rise apartment buildings going up the mountain as well. I am on the 12th story of a 21 story building. The buildings around me are taller and some shorter...quite a difference from my little one story house in a small town...
Anyway, back to my play list ...each of the songs I have downloaded have a story in my life...when, where and why it is saved...
First, "Thank you for giving to the Lord", a favorite of my husband, we bothe liked it, Especially him and we had some one song it at his funeral.
"Blessings", I heard it for the first time driving from my home to our temporary apartment when my husband was ill. I had to pull over to the side of the road, listen and cry...
"Word of God speak ", my last solo song before I had to stop singing because of esophagitis...
"Tennessee Waltz" down loaded for my father as he was dying...he really liked that song as well as others....
"Jesus loves me", the first song I sang with my mother before church, when I was 4 years old...
"Wind beneath my wings", a song one of my daughters played for me for a birthday present when she was in junior high ...
Etc...etc...etc...
I suspect each person reading this has special songs which touch your heart in some way...bringing back good or maybe bad memories...ones that we don't want to hear, or can't erase because they bring back a moment in time...they touch our souls in a very deep way...thank YOU for music to sooth our souls, to touch us...
You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.
Psalm 32:7
The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.
Psalm 65:8
The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; they shout for joy and sing. Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious.
Psalm 65:13,66:1
Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.
Psalm 126:5
speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord,
Ephesians 5:19
Thursday, November 1, 2018
Lights.....
Yesterday and the rest of the week, I am among millions of people going to and fro, hurrying, scurrying, back and forth to jobs, life in South America...I don't know their language, and most of their cultural lingo...but their hearts are the same as those next door or thousands of miles away...
I sat yesterday at breakfast with four young people whose faces radiated the light of Jesus, whose lives are given over to reflecting that light to other young people..
One has a heart to reach physically challenged teens, whose hearing, speech or body may not respond as well as others, but who hearts and lives need the love of Jesus...a friend remarked that their worship is the quietest she has heard as they signed their praise songs with beauty in movement...
Another young woman works with teen moms...again reflecting that light into their potentially shattered lives...encouraging them to grow with Jesus as center...
The next young woman works with high schoolers in a school near the city, reaching teens through the school and community...
A young man, finishing seminary, working with groups of teens leading the way to a Christ filled life...another generation given a hope for the future, discipling, teaching living skills to win new generations to the Love and light of Christ...
These are the frontline missionaries ...these are the Warriors, the pioneers of this next generation of believers...their countenance, their laughter, their smiles light the room around them... Extraordinary ...a delight to listen to...they hug readily, that touch of their Savior...
Thank YOU for sending such "lights" forth...not just to the world location but to all the world...
26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
John 12:26
As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart.
Proverbs 27:19
The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
Psalm 19:8
“I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles,
Isaiah 42:6
14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:14-16
Sunday, October 28, 2018
Entwined ....
Outside my door at the mountain retreat, there stands two aspen trees entwined with one another. In their center branches, sits a bird nest, lovingly held . No birds reside there as fall weather hits. But, I just imagine earlier this year a pair of birds painstakingly wove bits and pieces of sticks, feathers, threads, twine into a beginning home for their little family. Eggs were laid, warmed, hatched and babies nurtured until they at last flew off into their own lives.
As I look at this tree each time I go by, the whole retreat fits this picture as well...a hundred plus people from all over the United States, Central America, South America entwined with one another with their love for Jesus, their love for teens, their care for one another, their common goals...
Each meeting of hearts and souls grows them closer together...building that "nest" to nurture one another til they fly away to their lives in different lands...but still entwined at the heart...
Thank YOU....for your entwining care, love...You pull us to grow with you...entwined with brothers and sisters in the Lord...no matter where in the world they may be....
By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 3:10-11
From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
Ephesians 4:16
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart.
1 Peter 1:22
Exalted...?
Exalted....?
http://mvotd.com/mobile/watch.php?vid=d32720a09
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Luke 18:9-14
How humbling....I watched the video referenced above...after reading today's scripture selection...how humbling...
How would the church I attend do in this situation? How do I do? My fears rise when I pass someone on the street ....but, it is not just the homeless person, it is the neighbor next door, the teen selling fruit for their team, the Salvation Army red bucket soon to appear, the woman holding a sign at the stop light, the pregnant young girl, the abused child, the countless pieces of mail arriving daily asking for funds with sad pictures attached....the world outside my sheltered life...
Am I the Pharisee, thanking God that I am not like those "others" or the tax collector, "standing at a distance", humbled in the very presence of the Almighty God, asking for mercy...? Do I exalt myself in front of others or am I humbled ? Are your plans, my plans or do I rush into life ahead what you desire, basically saying, " come on God, follow me"? What is my heart attitude, really deep in my soul???
Thank YOU for the check in my spirit...the reminder to come into your presence only acknowledging You...exalting You...Your grace is sufficient ...
http://mvotd.com/mobile/watch.php?vid=d32720a09
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Luke 18:9-14
How humbling....I watched the video referenced above...after reading today's scripture selection...how humbling...
How would the church I attend do in this situation? How do I do? My fears rise when I pass someone on the street ....but, it is not just the homeless person, it is the neighbor next door, the teen selling fruit for their team, the Salvation Army red bucket soon to appear, the woman holding a sign at the stop light, the pregnant young girl, the abused child, the countless pieces of mail arriving daily asking for funds with sad pictures attached....the world outside my sheltered life...
Am I the Pharisee, thanking God that I am not like those "others" or the tax collector, "standing at a distance", humbled in the very presence of the Almighty God, asking for mercy...? Do I exalt myself in front of others or am I humbled ? Are your plans, my plans or do I rush into life ahead what you desire, basically saying, " come on God, follow me"? What is my heart attitude, really deep in my soul???
Thank YOU for the check in my spirit...the reminder to come into your presence only acknowledging You...exalting You...Your grace is sufficient ...
Saturday, October 27, 2018
"Did I not tell you...."
Am humbled to be at a conference of Christian leaders from Mexico south through South America . I am just an observer..and here to give a friend a traveling partner...but....
We are among to trees of the high mountains of Colorado...the aspens have lost their leaves, the air is crisp, fall is in the air...the mountains rise above us, snow dusting the craggy rock slopes...the forests hiding a multitude of homes of all shapes and sizes...people living day to day lives...some aware of the call of Jesus, while others are oblivious to the Great God who has surrounded them with his creation...
The Glory presented in the beauty, the nature around us....as beautiful,as it is ....nothing compares to glory of the Lord...that belief brings ...the salvation of someone's soul...that eternity waiting...face to face with our Savior
...
Thank YOU...
Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”
John 11:40
“You are my witnesses, ” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed— I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses, ” declares the Lord, “that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?”
Isaiah 43:10-13
16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
Mark 16:16
Am humbled to be at a conference of Christian leaders from Mexico south through South America . I am just an observer..and here to give a friend a traveling partner...but....
We are among to trees of the high mountains of Colorado...the aspens have lost their leaves, the air is crisp, fall is in the air...the mountains rise above us, snow dusting the craggy rock slopes...the forests hiding a multitude of homes of all shapes and sizes...people living day to day lives...some aware of the call of Jesus, while others are oblivious to the Great God who has surrounded them with his creation...
The Glory presented in the beauty, the nature around us....as beautiful,as it is ....nothing compares to glory of the Lord...that belief brings ...the salvation of someone's soul...that eternity waiting...face to face with our Savior
Thank YOU...
Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”
John 11:40
“You are my witnesses, ” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed— I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses, ” declares the Lord, “that I am God. Yes, and from ancient days I am he. No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?”
Isaiah 43:10-13
16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
Mark 16:16
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