SON-rise of HOPE

 Have you ever experienced the beauty of sunrise after a long dark night of worry and fear? The first rays of light that pierced the darkness seemed to carry real hope of a better day. The warmth and energy the dawn fed into your body and soul; the colors flooding over the darkness, revealing the life and hope so far away all night.

Imagine how beautiful and exciting the morning must have been when they heard the angels say, “…Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen:” Lu 24:5-6 Hope restored and renewed excitement because Jesus was alive! The Son had risen!

Do you remember how beautiful it was when the light of Jesus shone into your heart? The SON-rise in your soul, the relief, the warmth and exhilaration of hope it brought.

The sun rises every day driving life here on earth, providing energy for the water cycle and the transformation of basic elements into the foods that sustains us.

Let us celebrate the rising of the Son of God every day. Let us fulfill our calling to be the light of the world by embracing the rising of the Son of God, our Savior every day. Let it energize and drive the transformational work that brings relief and warmth and hope to all that remain in the darkness of night. May the Son rise in us today and every day ‘til He comes again!

DIFFERENCES

God, who never makes a mistake, created us different from one another. Those differences make each of us like the colors on an artist’s palette. Even though monochromatic pictures can be visually striking, they fail miserably at representing the splendor and variety of God’s creation.

Given an amazing opportunity to be the expression of the love and compassion of God we must learn to embrace our differences. To be right with God and properly express His love and compassion we need to know Him and learn to be content as the hue that God intended and to accept the hues of others, as they are in the beautiful picture God is painting.

Some of us work so hard at blurring the differences between us and those we like, while others do everything, they can to exaggerate the differences. Even if it is not our purpose, both end up closing a circle around us resulting in keeping most people out of our lives.

Either way the beauty of God’s work is marred because of our fears and insecurities. Faith in God and His Word will allow us to be grateful and excited that He has chosen to add our hue to His masterpiece.

Near the Heart of God

God is all about people! Mankind was introduced as the pinnacle of creation and into him alone was breathed the breath of God. No other creature is described as being in the image of God. Jesus Christ came to earth to seek and to save lost people, not money, politics, or even the environment; PEOPLE!

Jesus then commissioned the Church to carry on His mission to reach the world with the Gospel “Good News” that God still loves humanity and desires to restore a beautiful perfect relationship with every person.

With such a massive mission that was begun by the perfect missionary (Jesus) it is easy to think, “I could never measure up to the enormity of the task or the talent required.” However, that is not what God is looking for.

 

I believe missions has never been about strength, talent or intelligence; mission work is all about an ability to understand God’s will and the faith to walk with Him wherever He leads. This requires living daily near the heart of God. 

We are so blessed that people just like this will be with us during this year’s Missions Conference. Missionaries Robert and Jody Hayton have been serving in the Zambezi River Valley of Sub-Saharan Africa for many years. I encourage all to come and share in the heart of this couple who live near to the heart of God.

Faith Promise Missions Conference February 19 - 23, 2014

Participate

Participation is at the heart of every good relationship. It is impossible to express real love and concern without participation. How can anyone ever feel the blessings of love without a genuine connection? This can take many forms and is necessary. Consider the “Good Samaritan” of Luke 10. The injured man realized no benefit because the Samaritan noticed his plight. It was when compassion carried help to the distressed man and participation rendered aid that the connection began making a difference.

Every relationship is different, yet, all require participation. Your child needs you to take some time to listen to her stories or celebrate his win in a game you don’t even understand. Your spouse needs to know they really do matter most to you by involvement in their life.

One day Jesus looked over Jerusalem, a city full of people that did not believe in Him and would eventually actively engage in His death, yet, filled with compassion not animosity or hidden hopes of evil for them, He wept over them and walked the road to redemption for them. That is LOVE expressed by participation.

Blessed Beyond Measure

I am a man blessed beyond measure. God is with me all the time and has promised one day soon, when my time is fulfilled to take me safely to my heavenly home. Completely forgiven and loved perfectly through all eternity.

Yet, that is not what I was thinking about when I was considering my blessings. I am unbelievably blessed with my amazing wife, Jackie and her love that envelopes me every day; with sons that I am so proud of and that share their love with me daily. I am blessed with family that extends well beyond our house with parents, siblings and extended family that share our joy. I am blessed with a church family that loves with a god-like love and that graciously share in life’s triumphs and tragedies, and is there with loving arms and encouraging words.

I am blessed to be a part of the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank God for you all and for your prayers and help. The blessings continue as my cancer indicators have continued to drop since radiation ended.

Thank you all for your love and patience, Merry Christmas and much love,

Season of Joy

Christmas Holidays can be hectic and stressful if I allow. That is in direct conflict with the announcement at Jesus’ birth. “And the angel said …I bring you good tidings of great joy...” Sometimes I have to stop and have a talk with myself and remember Joy is a birthright that Jesus brought me from heaven! To continue without joy is unacceptable; I remind myself that anything less is to treat the blessings of God disgracefully.

Lord help me to trust in your grace and enjoy the joy I am promised.