I've listened to Todd Agnew's song New Name on the Reflections of Something album for quite a while.  I like the song but I wouldn't have bought the album because of this song.  I've got this CD in my car again and been listening to it off and on.  Today, though, I was listening to The Message on satellite radio and heard another song that I've heard several times recently. It's by Matthew West and is called Hello, My Name Is . Today, I got it..... Today, after hearing both songs repeatedly, I get it. Just like God gave Abram and Jacob new names. He gave me a new name when I claimed Him as God and Savior. I have a new name. That name is Child. At first glance....and second glance.....and likely several glances after that, it is not a particularly an attractive name.  It means that all Jesus-followers have the same name.   AHHH, maybe that is (part of) the point! After all, we lose ourselves in that name. We become, we all become, children of th...

Oftentimes, we say we live by the Golden Rule, then quote "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Do you know that isn't in the Bible?  It isn't. At least it isn't in the translations I looked at. I believe that somehow we took "Love your neighbor as yourself", which is in the Bible, spoken by Jesus (See Matthew 22:39 ), and turned it into "Do Unto Others.... Those two sentences do not mean the same thing. For example, just because I'd like this thing or that thing done for me, does not mean that others would want the same thing done for them.  What we need to do is to watch for things that others need or want or like and do those things.  This takes more time and effort. It means you need to pay attention to them in much more detail. You really have to care enough to take the time to notice (and remember) things that would make another person feel loved. This is closer to what Jesus said. His commandment wasn't as self-ce...

A t my church , Lent began on Ash Wednesday with a reading of Psalm 51.  Lent, the time when we are supposed to prepare, reflect, repent, forgive, actually look at ourselves and feel why we need Jesus.  A time to understand why we need Jesus.  Why we need Jesus.... on the cross,  in the grave,  then triumphantly standing nearby. Read Psalm 51 .  The first words are " Have mercy on me, O God ...." Isn't that a great way to start Lent? Brought me to silent tears. Oh, God, Have mercy on me. Forgive my sins.  Help me forgive and love as You do.  Help me to understand my need for You.  Help me to be thankful, so thankful, that I reflect You and Your love and forgiveness to others. Prepare me to fully accept You in my heart and repent from all of my wickedness, even the wickedness that I have yet to acknowledge.  Help me.  Save me. Thank You for Your sacrifice.  Amen Psalm 51:1-17 1 Have mercy on me, O God,  ...

Mark 1:40 - 45 (NIV, 1984)  A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured. Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: “See that you don’t tell this to anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere. Look at this act of disobedience and the result.   Jesus told him, with a strong warning, not to tell anyone except the priest of his healing. The man didn't listen. Instead he went out and began to talk freely,.... And the result of this ...

Mark 1:32 - 35   32 That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. 33 The whole town gathered at the door, 34 and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was.  Jesus had followers, groupies, people who followed because they were curious or because they needed what Jesus offered.  His disciples, at least some of them, knew who Jesus was, the Son of God, part of God Himself. His disciples and some followers knew this because of what they'd witnessed Jesus do and say.  The demons seemed to know before any of that. Jesus prevented them from speaking - " but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was." This appears to be early in Jesus ministry.  Recorded in the first chapter of Mark, He's preventing the demons from speaking because they knew who He was.  Why? Why prevent them from t...

I heard a song this morning called "What Love Really Means" by J. J. Heller.  I got something from the song that was not what the song was about. One line is "who will love me for me, not for what I've done or what I'll become."  The song is about people looking to be loved and of course, Jesus loves them. What occurred to me while listening is do I love Jesus for who He is, or do I love Him for what He's done for me? I would like to say that I have unconditional love for Jesus, but in reality, I don't. My connection with Jesus started when I realized what He did for me on the cross. I continue to love Him, in part because of what He does for me every single day. I hope I get to the point where I love Him just because of who He is. Because He is God, you know. Creator of everything.  He, and He alone, is worth of praise. click here to see the video and hear the song on youtube: What Love Really Means by J.J Heller

How have you changed since you accepted Christ's gift of salvation? There are several ways to see that a person is new in Christ. One is evidenced in growth in fruit of the Spirit.  See Galations 5;22.  "..the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."  Of course, this is a short list of the attributes of a Christian, or rather becoming more Christl-ike. I'm reading a book called "Love as a Way of Life" by Gary Chapman.  It lists several ways of loving others, including several from the Fruit of the Spirit list.  There are a lot of ways to grow in Christ. Others should be able to see your growth in Christ-likeness. But I believe you should also be aware of your own growth. You are the only one who knows about ill-feelings you may be harboring against someone.  That is not to say that it isn't obvious to other people but only you know the depth of ill feelings you have for someone w...

One small blessing today: about half way through the morning of a typical work day, realizing that it is WEDNESDAY!  What a nice blessing!

I'm going to try to start posting regularly again. I won't be able to daily or even once a week for sure but I want to try. I miss it. I mainly miss the time spent dwelling in thought with God and His Word.  Hopefully, I'll be able to spend some quality time with God and appreciate His Presence and blessings.  I haven't made that a real priority in the last 7 months. Seemed just too hard to do....Isn't that a ridiculous statement?  Too hard to spend quality time with God. God would never allow that. God is the place where we find rest and refuge. If nothing else, God gives us the ability to spend time with Him, IF we choose to. Well, I plan to do better. I'm hoping that restarting posting to this blog will help. I have some random things to post about. 1) The sermon last Sunday was on God's call to Samuel.  1 Samuel 3:1b says " In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions." The pastor said that he figures that God...

WARNING: This is a book review. I have one book that I received prior to starting my new job that is from Blogging for Books for doing reviews for the publisher Multnomah Publishing.  It is my duty to read this book and do a review.  I hope you enjoy. The book is called You Were Born For This: 7 Keys to a Life of Predictable Miracles by Bruce Wilkinson.  OH MY GOSH! I want to be part of that! Oh, did I already say that? Well, it is worth repeating.  This book....oh my....I like what it says.  I want to be part of witnessing and being part of daily miracles.  The miracles discussed in the book are not parting-of-the-sea sized miracles.  They are daily miracles.  Ones that outsiders would think aren't even miracles, but that if they happened to you right when you needed them, you'd call them miracles.  I've experienced that.  I've witnessed that. I believe you have too.  If I'm right, you might very well say you want to be part of ...

Well, for anyone who cares (besides me and my husband), I start a new job on Monday. My nearly 2 year vacation is coming to an end. This is bittersweet because in spite of the drastically reduced income (and the perks that were lost with that reduction), it has been really enjoyable spending so much time with God. When I'm home by myself for almost 8 hours every day, it is very easy to spend time in  prayer, reading a devotional or Bible, and/or writing a blog.  I have also been able to spend a lot more time with my husband and others. So I will be giving much of that up. But I will be gaining too. I can already see my husband is less tired. I can see how the burden of paying the bills alone can be exhausting. After I start making an income again, we will be able to plan for things like vacations and retirement. Yes, I am going back to work in part to plan for retirement! Building that retirement account is important. I am posting about this for a couple of reasons. 1) I'...

Matthew 20:28   just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45   For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” 1 Timothy 2:6 who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time. Hebrews 9:15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. I read a booklet yesterday by Charles R Swindoll called The Rising Hope . It is a short little book but it has a lot in it that was noteworthy enough for me to highlight, dog ear pages and/or write it in my scripture journal with my comments. One such item is on page 48. " Redemption is God's act of paying the ransom price to release us from out bondage of sin. Held hostage by Satan .......

Mark 10:51 “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.    The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”  I'm sure that Jesus knew that the man was blind. I'm sure that He could tell by looking at the man that he couldn't see. Why did Jesus ask the man what he wanted? Here's something I think about this passage. 1) Jesus wants us to ask. He knows what ails us. He knows what we want and what we should want. He wants us to ask. 2) The man knew what he wanted....."I want to see." As for me, I am not always as certain about what I want.  Sometimes I think I know. Lots of times, I don't. It is easy to say I want God's will, but to some extent that is a cop-out. It keeps me from having to make a decision, from having to make plans, from working toward a goal - because if I can lean on "I don't know what God's plan is", I don't have anything to commit to.  What a revelation!  The other part of that revelation is why do I le...

Today, I am just going to note some passages that I've written down the last few days. I may add a note or two but then, maybe not. 2 Samuel 18 : 1-3 NLT David now mustered the men who were with him and appointed generals and captains to lead them. He sent the troops out in three groups, placing one group under Joab, one under Joab’s brother Abishai son of Zeruiah, and one under Ittai, the man from Gath. The king told his troops, “I am going out with you.”  But his men objected strongly. “You must not go,” they urged. “If we have to turn and run—and even if half of us die—it will make no difference to Absalom’s troops; they will be looking only for you. You are worth 10,000 of us,......" For some reason, when I read this passage this morning, I thought of the contrast with the disciples deserting Jesus when they arrested Him. Ephesians 1 :17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so ...

Primal: DVD-Based Study By Mark Batterson / Multnomah This DVD has five video segments that are visually stimulating.  Each segment is approximately seven minutes and corresponds with chapters from the book of the same name by the same author.  I have not read the book. I wanted to see if the DVD could stand alone as a Bible Study.  I cannot say that it does.  I can say that it offers a lot to think about.  It does not provide enough scripture that I would consider it a Bible Study.  It is a concept study and a review our response to what Jesus said is the greatest commandment as recorded in Mark 12:29 - 30 The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The L ord our God is the one and only L ord .  And you must love the L ord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength .’ This DVD offers an opportunity to discuss and evaluate our responses to how we love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mi...

King David had made a promise to Jonathan who was David's friend and Saul's son. Later, he made good on that promise. 2 Samuel 9 tells the story of King David asking if anyone still lived who was part of Saul's family. He was told, "yes". So King David had Jonathan's son come to see him. This story is remarkable for a number of reasons. 1) Jonathan's son, Mephibosheth, was crippled. In that culture and time, people who were crippled were a burden on a family and often were beggars, unable to do more. 2) David restored all of Saul's property to Mephibosheth - all of it. He didn't just give Mephibosheth a little house somewhere.  He gave him all the property that King Saul had had. (See verse 7) 3) On top of all that, David had Ziba, formerly one of Saul's servants, and his family farm and take care of the property for Mephibosheth. The Ziba family was not a small one.  There were 15 sons and 20 servants!  This is a lot of people for David to ...

Psalm 119:5 NLT Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees! Let me revise this a little: Oh, that my actions would consistently reflect my love and respect of You. I believe this is the same thing, for obeying God's decrees would demonstrate love and respect. I wish I could say that I am consistent in obeying. I am like Paul when he says he wants to do right but does what is wrong.  Of course, this isn't always the case but I do sometimes fail or choose to fail.  Isn't that the awful part?  Sometimes I choose to fail?  But that is really what happens. I go through the thought process and choose to go ahead do whatever it is.....like eating what I shouldn't (gluttony) or not showing up as a volunteer when I think I should or whatever the case may be.  I am not fully devoted to obeying! That is a painful realization!  God, Please forgive me. I pray that You continue to convict me. At some point, I hope that my actions will consistently re...

Ephesians 4:29 : Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.  How hard is that to do?  How hard is it to curb your tongue when others are talking harshly about someone or something and you are in complete agreement?  But we are supposed to hold our tongues.  We are supposed to make sure that what we say builds up and does not destroy.  We are supposed to refrain from speaking ill of others and spewing "unwholesome" talk.  "Unwholesome" is a word that we don't hear or use much. Perhaps it is out of style.  Perhaps we don't like what it means.  I looked it up on dictionary.com . Seems it means unhealthy, noxious, morally harmful or depraved.  We need to make sure what comes out of our mouths is not unhealthy, noxious, morally harmful.  Boy, that is a lot of stuff we can't say!  We can't say anything, true ...

I've been preoccupied the last several days.  I started reading a book my dad loaned me.  He is a really big reader of WWII books, especially if they are true stories. This one is called Flyboys: A True Story of Courage by James Bradley.  He is the same author who wrote Flags of Our Fathers , about the guys who raised the flag at Iwo Jima. The author seems to do a really good job of presenting the facts, as ugly as they are. I haven't done any research to verify his sources but he seems to be very balanced in presenting what happened and why in his opinion it did.  He starts by explaining how this book came to be written. This book presents events 150 years prior to WWII and helps to explain the Japanese mindset and how western Christians helped to create that mindset.  Yes, Christians. This book was very difficult to read and difficult to put down at the same time - The idea of not being able to drive past a wreck without straining to see what happened....

Matthew 29:10 ( NIV-1984 ) Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. When someone passes away, especially when it is sudden and unexpected, well meaning people will say something about it being God's will.  I do not believe that in the way it is presented, or the way I think the person means it. Let me sum up my beliefs on this subject: God's will. There are two distinct parts of this concept to me.  1) One part of God's will is what God wants and wills to happen. It is God's will - wish, if you will -  that we come to Him to worship, for healing, for complete surrender. 2) The other part has to do with what God allows to happen, as in the case of Job.  Satan went to God to ask permission to mess with Job's life. It was not God's will (wish) that Satan do this but it was within what God allowed to happen. To elaborate: God does not wish that a person suffer with cancer or some de...