Change of Perspective-The "Good" Samaritan

So often in life, our perspectives are skewed or completely distorted. We live in our perspectives and think they are right until God brings us to the point of seeing that we are wrong. The truth will always win out over the lies that we and the world around us wants to carve onto the walls of our souls. So, I am reading about the story of the Good Samaritan for unknown number of times and God shows another angle, another perspective that is so profound. So let me retell the story that Jesus told. A Jewish man was on his way to Jericho when he was overcome by robbers, robbed, striped of his clothing, beaten and left for dead by the side of the road. A priest comes down traveling on this same road, sees the beaten, naked man and hurries on. What might he have been thinking? I have too much to do once I get to Jericho to stop and help this man. Someone else will come along and take care of him. Or maybe he is thinking, I have to be at that meeting at noon and I cannot be late. Someone else will have to take care of this man. Well, someone else does come by. He is a Levite and when he sees the man, perhaps his thoughts take a different path. Maybe he starts to get anxious and starts searching around the area to see if the robbers are still nearby. He thinks, I don't know where the robbers are but this could have just happened and I don't want to end up in this same condition. His fear motivates him to start walking faster and he tries to keep to the other side of the road near the bushes where he hopefully won't be seen. Alas, another someone comes by. This time it is a Samaritan. Samaritans and Jews did not like each other, in fact, call it more like they hated each other, something like the Democrats hating the Republicans and vice versa. There was so much bad blood between them that the thought of a Samaritan stopping to help a Jewish man was unthinkable but in this story he does the unthinkable. Now, interestingly enough Jesus never specifically called him the Good Samaritan. That is a label we have put on this man. I think the label is fair enough but this new perspective might make you think otherwise. So, I have felt the perspective of the priest being too busy or I have some place to be and don't have time to stop and help someone in need. I have also been the Levite who was too fearful to step in and doing anything. I had never put myself in the position of the naked, beaten Jewish man on the side of the road. Imagine you are that man. You have had everything taken from you, you have been left naked in humiliation and you have been hurt not only physically but emotionally, mentally, within the deepest parts of your heart and soul. And then, Jesus comes by the road and sees you. He comes across the road to you. He takes you in his arms and carries you to an inn. He cleanses and bandages your wounds. He pays the innkeeper and tells him he will be back to take care of anything else. Jesus has gone above and beyond what this man needed. He did that for us when he came down from heaven, lived among us, died the brutal death on the cross and rose from the dead and came out of hell as a conqueror. When we die on the cross with him in our repentance and faith in him, than we too rise from the dead and become a new creation. We have the gift of the Holy Spirit given to inhabit us, live with us in the very own temple of our body. But we can still be swayed by the sinful nature that is in us. We can still choose to let our busyness or our own selfish motives drive our behaviors and lead us to not stopping to help someone in need. Or we can choose to cower in our fear and let it hold us back from doing what we know is the right thing to do, to help the person in need. Or we can allow the Holy Spirit to direct us, to give us the other-centered outlook and attitude, to give us the trust and courage to conquer our fears and do what Jesus would do. He wouldn't care who it was or what he may or may not have done. He would take care of the man. He would take care of you. Jesus concluded his story with the command, "go and do likewise". We have him within us to help us to be the "Good" Samaritan or, in other words and perspective, to be like Jesus.

He Will Wipe Away Every Tear

Revelation 21:4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. 

The thought of no more pain in particular, in this season of my life, gives me the hope to press through the pain in life. I have often been in so much pain that tears start flowing and my prayers become desperate pleas. The Lord gets me through it each time. What really got me in reading this verse this time around is the fact that he will wipe away every tear. I had a visual in my mind of Jesus sitting beside me with a tissue in hand wiping my tears away forever. What does that say about our Lord? The words love and compassion come to mind first but also tenderness and gentleness. How many times has anyone wiped away my tears? Probably not since childhood but I have no distinct memory of it. The act of wiping away tears is figuratively like they are trying to take away the pain and hurt. Jesus will literally wipe our tears away and they will be no more. Now that is hope with a big dose of LOVE!

Death Has Been Conquered

As I sat in church this morning for Easter service, I was watching as a little 3 year old girl who was in her daddy's arms and hugging him tightly around the neck. We were singing and it suddenly felt like Jesus opened the door and I ran in to my Father and embraced him with a hug of sheer joy and love just as this little girl was hugging her daddy.  This is what Easter truly means. Jesus took that last lock that is on the doorway to the Kingdom of Heaven, the lock called death and conquered it. With that key, he has opened the doorway to the Kingdom of Heaven. Now, it's our turn. Do you run in towards your Father thrilled at being with Him again or do you freeze in place, turn away? He gives us the choice because He loves us. Thank you Jesus for unlocking the doorway and allowing us to be together again with our Father.

365 Days of Spirit-Filled Fruits Challenge-Day 310

I was intrigued by this scripture below about a seed dying to actually grow so in my typical fashion I went to Google and started searching. Here is a quick 2 minute article about the science behind seeds and how death is the beginning. And here is my 2 cents worth of insight: Jesus died on the cross for our sins. He took on that kind of torturous death for us so that we may have life but to have that life we have to nail our sins to that cross. The sinful nature within us must die for us to grow in the glory that God designed and hopes for us. Again and again I will say, putting our sins on that cross isn’t a one-time deal but a daily for the rest of our lives process. Start today with taking your sins to the cross so your seed can grow and be fruitful.

http://www.examiner.com/article/seeds-for-success-pt-2-a-seed-must-die-before-it-grows

 

John 12:24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds

365 Days of Spirit-Filled Fruits Challenge-Day 173

I caught a glimpse of a news story yesterday about Michael Jackson and the unbelievable amount of stuff he collected. It is sadly pathetic to think of all those things he bought just collecting dust. Not one thing went wherever he went to upon his death. I know there are people with a hoarding issue. It is almost like an obsessive hobby but where do you put all the stuff. I got up this morning with this all still on my mind and decided to really get moving on my spring cleaning project. I am clearing out stuff from my basement studio and am feeling good today about letting it all go. I am moving on to the next season of my life with my career as a Christian counselor and don’t need all the stuff I have had for the past 7 years for my scrapbooking and card making businesses. It feels good to be able to let it go. Mind you, I am not letting it all go. I won’t give up making cards or scrapbooks but it will no longer be a business venture but just a fun hobby. So, I am downsizing my space I take up in our basement so we can actually get a pool table or something fun for the whole family.

1Timothy 6:17-19 As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

365 Days of Spirit-Filled Fruits Challenge-Day 123

The image of my family at the dinner table all raising their glasses of sparkling cider toasting Jesus our King came to my mind this morning. I will start this as a tradition on Easter Sunday to make a toast to our King. It made me think about other kings like you see on TV shows in which the people all bow down before the king with reverence, respect, ready to do what the king commands. Perhaps it is because we don’t have a visual on the King we are to be bowing down to that makes us apathetic in our service to our King. This Son of God made human died for me, for you, for all of us because of love for His Father in Heaven and for us. He did what his Father told him to do even though he didn’t deserve it in anyway. The Father could have at any time stopped it all and said, “No, let mankind lay in its bed that they made.” Jesus could have said “I am not going to do what my Father says, suffer on this cross and die for all mankind.” But their love was SO much that they did what needed to be done to save us from ourselves and evil. Would you be willing to die on a cross? Would you be willing to watch your child die on a cross? Love this great cannot be set aside because we are too busy dealing with our day to day lives. Worship! Pray! Sing! Bow down to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords everyday, every moment!!!

Revelations 19: 11-16 I saw heaven standing open and their before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no on knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. He will rule them with an iron scepter. He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

365 Days of Praise Challenge-Day 274

I have heard this phrase lately in a couple of places, "emontional constipated". I heard it again last evening while watching a movie called A Little Bit of Heaven. The movie was about a young woman who is not interested in being in a "love" relationship. She ends up getting diagnosed with colon cancer and her diagnosis is not good. She ends up falling for her doctor and finally admits that she loves him.  She is now not afraid to love and from there shares her feelings with all her loved ones including the very "emotionally constipated" father. In the end, she wraps everything up in her life with love and all her loved ones are there with her when she dies. Definitely need a box of Kleenex when watching this movie. It was the greatest reminder that in our lives it is not about the things we accumulate, the accomplishments and successes we make but about how we loved. There is a new song on the radio I have heard lately with the words, "I wanna live like there's no tomorrow Lord, like I'm on borrowed time. It's good to be alive." We have all seen these kinds of movies or real-life stories in which a person is dying but that is when they are truly living. Living without fear, without worry but just loving every moment and every person. I want to live out the words in this song and live like there's no tomorrow.

 Colosians 3: 12-14 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

365 Days of Praise Challenge-Day 130

Have you ever had a wonderful Aha moment during a sermon where you see something you didn't see before? That happened to me yesterday at the Church of All Nations when Pastor Mark was talking about the events of Holy week and said how Jesus was declared by Pontius Pilate innocent and because it was custom at the Feast to release a prisoner, he gave the decision to the crowd to release Jesus, the sinless or Barabbas, the murderer. Well, we know what happens, the crowd chooses to set Barabbas free and condemn Jesus to death. Jesus was our sacrificial lamb. He died on the cross and because of that we are set free from our sins. The aha moment came when I realized that Barabas was the first to be set free because of Jesus' death. I was in awe of how well placed all of what happened went. God uses everything for good. Setting this murderer free is a concrete example of how we are set free from our sins because of our belief and acceptance of Jesus. Thank you Lord for that nice tidbit you shared with my open heart yesterday!
Matthew 27:26 Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.

365 Days of Praise Challenge-Day 97

As I met with my bible study last night and we discussed the chapter on fear of death, my thoughts were with my friend's family and how they are doing. I found out it was a very unexpected stroke that took her to Jesus. We ended up discussing what we think is on the other side. What do you think will happen when you die? A few of them actually had some real life stories of family that died and a bright white light that was seen. I think when people acutually experience this or something like it that is God letting them know it's okay. I am praying that my friends family although they may not have seen the white light or witnessed anything that was profoundly of God, that they keep the hope that they will see their mother, wife, daughter again. When something like this happens, you really take heart of your own life and how much you are loving others and how much you are sharing about God. There is always room for improvement! So first we take our prayers to God to help us let go of the fear so that we can reach out in love. Is there a fear of something that is keeping you from reaching out in love or being all God wants you to be? Seek him out and be freed.
Psalm 34:4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.

365 Days of Praise Challenge-Day 95

My first thought to praise for today was on laughter. I have been so angry and frustrated because of work that it's been seeping into every aspect of my life but I am choosing to not let that happen. Surround yourself with positive things was the advise in a book I read recently that I have taken to heart. I have been in devotionals, in the bible and praying and do feel a sense of peace for a time. But what I really needed was a good laugh. So, here I was sitting on the toliet and I pulled down a Reader's Digest with the title "Oh, Cheer Up!" Okay, top 10 jokes in America is what they had for me. I can't say I would have voted for all of them but this one tickled my funny bone and helped at least again for a time let go of the anger and frustrations I have been dealing with. Here's my #1 from the top ten:
A priest, a minister and a rabbi want to see who's best at his job. So they each go into the woods, find a bear, and attempt to convert it. Later they get together. The priest begins:"When I found the bear, I read to him from the Catechism and sprinkled him with h oldy water. Next week is his First Communion." "I found a bear by the stream," sasy the minister,"and preached God's holy word. The bear was so mespermized that he let me baptize him." They both look down at the rabbi, who is lying on a gurney in a body cast. "Looking back," he says,"maybe I shouldn't have started with the circumcision." So, I was thinking of this joke when I got on my email this morning and heard that a friend from my MOPS days who attended my church unexpectedly passed away. Wow, I am still reeling from that piece of news. Her husband is an anathesiologist who did a surgery of mine way back before Faith was born and they have 3 kids the youngest at 11. That's always been one of my greatest fears; dying when my children are still young. Thankfully I know my friend is with Jesus right now and that God will bring good out of this tragedy but it's still a tough thing to even contemplate. I thought this scripture was appropriate because things can happen on a dime at any time. So today I am thankful to God for being alive so I can lavish love on my family and share another day with them. Who can you love and laugh with today?
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance, a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away, a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak, a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.