Nothing can separate us

Romans 8:38-39

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

It seems that I’ve had a lot of devotions over the past few months that deal with death and yet, here I am again this morning dealing with it and therefore writing about it.  Later this morning I will be attending the funeral of a friend who died way too soon.  He had been suffering a long and hard battle with cancer and during service Sunday morning, he returned to our Lord. 

Last night, my husband and I went to the visitation.  The part that got me the most was watching his son, around 10 years old, stand at the casket and just stare.  You knew he was really struggling to understand what was going on and the why. 

While my heart just broke for him, his siblings and their mom, I was encouraged by a comment his mom posted on Facebook earlier in the day.  You see, in their house, they had a chalkboard wall and just a couple of weeks ago when the dad was coming home from the hospital, they put a welcome home message on the board. 

Yesterday morning the mom saw it as she was trying to figure out how to get through the next few days and she thought she should probably erase it.  Then it hit her, Brian had his final welcome home party going on.  Her young son kept saying that that they would see him again when Jesus returns. 

Brothers and sisters, when you have Christ in your heart, nothing is going to separate you from his love.  When faced with separation from a loved one here on earth, remember that when you know the love of God, nothing will separate you from their love either. 

Please join me in praying for the Miles family today as they say an earthly goodbye to their dad/husband. 

I pray today that you will have a love for the Lord that equates to nothing being able to separate you from our Lord and Savior.

Our Journey to Adoption, Part VII - Trusting the Shepherd

John 10:1-5  “Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. ² The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. ³ The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴ When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. ⁵ But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.”

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, always acts with integrity and can be fully trusted. He doesn’t scatter or harm his sheep, but personally interacts and calls each one by name. He leads His sheep in the right direction. He doesn’t always hold and carry each sheep and doesn’t have any of His sheep on a leash, but He is always there to protect and lead. As His sheep, we have the responsibility to listen and follow, even through difficult terrain.

In February last year, James and Sarah’s biological parents’ rights were finally terminated. However, more uncertainties surfaced. Their biological mom had a certain amount of time to appeal and she said she did appeal. In addition, an uncle was found that wanted the children and a former foster family expressed interest in adopting them. We appeared further down on the list of possible parents.

Since the children were now up for adoption, a new adoption worker and adoption organization were given their case. Knowing we were one of several couples in the “hat,” we nervously continued a new round of interviews, fingerprints, physicals, background checks, paper work, etc. All the while, we were growing in our love for the kids as we continued to do weekend respite care. It was a daily struggle to not let all the uncertainties weigh me down and stress me out. We kept praying for God’s will and direction while continually remembering that He’s the one who brought us together in the first place!

In what situation right now do you and I need to trust Jesus, our Good Shepherd, and follow His lead? He cares for us, loves us and is always there to lead us!

Alice

That's The Job

Then Jesus went out to the lakeshore again and taught the crowds that were coming to him. As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Levi got up and followed him.

Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were many people of this kind among Jesus’ followers.) But when the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, “Why does he eat with such scum?”

When Jesus heard this, he told them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”  Mark 2:13-17

I was somewhat a nerd when I was in high school.  A lot of it was because I tended to be a bit more open and excitable about things that made me come across as socially awkward.  I was too hyper to be cool and too sensitive to others.  I went to multiple schools, but the only one that I fit in was a small school in Boston.  Why?  Because it did not matter what color I wore and how I acted like.  They just embraced me because I was . . . Just Kent.  Many of us know groups we did not get along with.  Maybe they wore tattoos or had earrings in places you’d never consider.  Some talked a different way or said things you did not agree with.  Or dare I say they were overly religious and thought they were better than others.  We would not do that, would we?  Christians are often accused of being holier than others even when we are not, but do we have an obligation to help them see the truth?  My response is much like that to my boss whenever I have to have a tough conversation with one of my staff or take on a task that I really do not like.  “That’s the job,” I say to myself.

Helping others understand the message of Jesus Christ is as important as just knowing Him.  The calling of Levi (later called Matthew) discussed in Mark 2 exemplifies what our approach to others should be.  Levi, the tax collector (in high school terminology, that's the kid who doesn't really fit in anywhere), is called by Jesus, and Levi invites Him to dinner.  The Pharisees (a.k.a. the 'In' crowd) talk about Jesus (the cool kid) questioning why on earth would He talk to Levi and other sinners.  Pretty snooty, right?  Jesus' righteous response was to point out that He was there not only to call "those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners."  In one sentence, Jesus put everyone on the same level playing field.   The climate that we live in today is one of divisiveness with strong opposing views.  Do we look at this as the chance to challenge others beliefs?  Perhaps.  However if we want to reach one we do not understand, we have to get to know them, and to know them means to embrace them where they are as they are.  This is what Jesus taught in today's verses, and is a blueprint for us to reach those who initially do not seem within reach or equally as important unlike us.

We all fit under God’s plan.  This means we need to understand everyone is God's child, and if your circle of people talk, think, and look just like you, you are not serving God's will.  He wants us comfortable being uncomfortable.  Let us embrace that by seeking understanding of those who do not believe as we do instead of judging because they do not fit our 'narrative.'  How can you reengage with someone you dismissed because they are different from you?  Who can you reach out to outside of your comfort zone?  My prayer is that we challenge ourselves to embrace others where they are as Jesus embraced us where we were.  Why?  Because, “That's the job!"  Amen.

Tues Devo: Value

Philippians 3:7-9 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, ” (NASB)

Hello,

As I have been reading through Philippians this week, the word that stuck out to me here was value. In my work I tend to speak of value and focus on bringing value to our customers with our services, so it certainly made me take a second look at this section of verses. One question I believe this begs us to ask is simple – how do we value our relationship with Jesus?

Value can be spoken of – but how is it proven? Among other items, it certainly is proven through the amount of attention we pay to that which we claim to value, and what we are willing to exchange to get/maintain that item of value.

Again, how much do we value our relationship with Jesus? Are we giving it attention? Are we un-concerned with the things of this world that He has called us to give up?

I hope these questions challenge you today, and draw you closer to Him.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill