God is Still Good Even When Things are Bad!

In 586 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon ordered a devastating attack on the Holy City of Jerusalem.  The Babylonians sacked the city, burned down Solomon's Temple, killed many Jews, and took the rest of them as slaves.  The aftermath of the attacked proved even more egregious because of the starvation of the remaining inhabitants.  It got so bad in Jerusalem that "The hands of compassionate women have boiled their own children: they became their food in the destruction of the daughter of my people." -Lamentations 4:10

The writer (eye witness of Jerusalem's destruction) of Lamentations describes the bodies, the tears, the mayhem, and the sorrow that filled the streets of God's city.  The great temple that once stood could have easily been considered one of the ancient wonders of the world (the best) was now plundered! Instead of large stones, there was ash and rubble from the destruction. 

And yet, having witnessed all of this catastrophic destruction brought upon by the Babylonians,  the writer of Lamentations found his praise to offer up to the Lord God of heaven.  

He writes: 

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,
    his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
    great is thy faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
    “therefore I will hope in him.”

Lamentations 3:22-24

What about you? What are you going through today? Have you witnessed devastation somewhere? Have you seen trouble in your own life or in the life of loved ones that makes you wonder whether praising God is a good thing or not? We all will witness some form of destruction in our lives sooner or later.  Either we will see that destruction because of our own poor decisions or the poor decisions of others.  Whatever the case, however, we must find our praise to God.  He is Still Good Even When Things are Bad! 

GOD LOVES YOU AND GOD WANTS YOU!!!!! 

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a time when we as Americans pause to remember and reflect upon the selfless, sacrificial service of our men and women in uniform.  Beyond that, we especially give honor to those soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines who paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country with their own blood.  These people (past and present) are true heroes.  They put others before themselves, carried out their duties, and fought to protect the freedoms that we as Americans so richly enjoy!

When we see a veteran or someone actively serving in our Armed Forces, it behooves us to pull them aside to THANK them for their service! They and their families risk so much for all of us.  There is no greater honor than when we sacrifice our own needs for the needs of others.

Jesus said it best when He spoke these words, "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends" - John 15:13 (NKJV)

A HUGE Salute to our American Servicemen and women!

An EVEN BIGGER Salute to the LORD JESUS CHRIST who gave His life for each one of us on the cross in Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago! Blessed be His Name!

GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!

Why Praise God in the Storm?

Life is filled with challenges.  At some point in our brief journey on this planet, we as human beings are going to face challenges, difficulties, and obstacles. Sometimes we refer to these problems as "storms".  If that is the case, let us examine a few realities about storms:

1. Storms can be very scary 
2. Storms can be life threatening 
3. Storms do not last forever
4. After a storm, there is calm
5. Eventually, the sun shines again after a storm

When we decide to praise God in the storm, our praise to Him becomes more authentic.  Think about it: isn't it easier to praise God when there's money in our bank accounts, food in our bellies, roofs over our heads, job security, great health and great respect from our loved ones? But what happens when we lose some or all of those things?  That was what happened to Job. Job was a righteous man who feared God and shunned evil.

According to God, there was not another man like Job on the earth.  Satan tried to argue the case that the only reason that Job feared God was because God put a hedge around Job.  In other words, Satan basically tried to say that Job's praise to God wasn't real because God was protecting Job from all of life's problems.  Satan suggested that if Job lost all of his blessings and protection from God, then he would surely curse God to his face. God allowed Satan to tempt Job, therefore, to prove the point that no matter what, Job would hold on to his integrity and not curse God.

Satan went out from the presences of the LORD and inflicted every area of Job's life. Job lost his children, his job, his wealth, and his health.  Even his wife told him to curse God and die. But after losing all of what God had originally given him, Job fell down in worship to God.  Could you or I do that immediately after losing everything (including the lives of our children)?  Job struggled in his faith for some time after the disaster hit him, but at the end of the day, he sought after God with questions, concerns, and ultimately heard directly from God.  When God showed Job that he had overstepped some boundaries by indicting God the way that he had, Job repented of his sin. God blessed Job with twice as much as he had in the beginning - cf Job 1, 2, 42

While you and I are not Job, we are in a sense.  Our faith will be tested at some point to determine whether or not it is authentic. I will be the first to tell you that I don't like trials, tests, evaluations or challenges.  I wish everything could be smooth sailing in life, but it is surely not.  And like Job, we will be tested.  We might not handle the situation perfectly, but if we can hold on to our faith, we will make it!

Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” -John 16:33

REMEMBER ... GOD WANTS YOU!!!!

Time To STOP the Bleeding!

One day Jesus encountered a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years. She was a woman whom the Bible says had visited several doctors hoping to find a cure.  Instead of getting better, however, she grew worse.  And to top it all off, she spent all of her money hoping to find a cure that never came.  She was Desperate to find help.  Haven't you ever been there before?Feeling desperate often lead to disastrous results.  When we are desperate, we generally do not make good decisions. We try any and everything hoping to find a remedy for the problem.  And like the bleeding woman, we get worse.

But all hope was not lost for this woman.  She heard reports about Jesus.  Upon hearing reports about Jesus, she was Determined to touch Him because she knew that He could bring her the healing that those doctors could not give her.  Her determination to get better was based upon her trust in Jesus that He could do for her what no one else could.  He could actually STOP the Bleeding! When we are determined to do the right thing, determined to help others, and determined to succeed in life, there is very little that can stop us.  Determination arouses our adrenaline, and fuels us forward in the pursuit of something better.

The woman's trust in Jesus was so great, that she thought to herself, if I just touch His garments, I will be healed! Because she acted upon her trust in Jesus, she touched His garments! Upon touching Jesus' garments, the bleeding woman was Delivered from her twelve year ailment - Mark 5:25-34.

Today, you and I may be facing a variety of challenges and trials in our lives.  We may not be bleeding, but we may be facing relationship problems of all kinds, employment issues, health crisis, financial ruin, or some massive decision that we must make that could have serious ramifications in our lives.  Jesus is still the same Lord who healed and delivered the bleeding woman from her disease.  He has the same power and the same love for each one of us. We must have the trust in Him that will lead us to touch His garments.

REMEMBER .... GOD WANTS YOU!!!!!!!!