Inspirations

It was the day after Jesus was crucified.     The world seemed to echo the silence of the grave  that the disciples had laid their master in yesterday.    Jesus was dead and with his death, their hopes died too.   They had placed all their confidence in this maverick  this teacher,  from Galilee that taught like no one else.    There was no plan now, only gloom.    Their hopes lay wrapped in a tomb sealed up forever.  He had raised others, Lazarus,  the little girl of a high priest,  and the widow’s son  but no one could raise themselves from the dead.    No one.     They hung their heads and wept.    Replaying every scene of the previous day  replayed endlessly in their mind adding to their sorrow.    The finality of his death etched forever in their hearts.

He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”   Matthew 26:42 Last Sunday I was watching the “Passion of the Christ.”  As I was watching the movie, they got to the scene with Jesus in the garden with Jesus speaking these words “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”  It occurred to me how often we want to say, “My will be done.”  However, Jesus knew what would happen next still said,  "Your will be done."  What if we prayed like that more often?  I can’t promise your life would be more comfortable.  Jesus life wasn’t.  But when I can let go of my will and accept God's plan for me. This hard because I can be pretty selfish. I want my own way. But if I can grasp the fact that Jesus could say this, then maybe he will give me the same streng...

            So, he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.              Washing a person’s feet is something that has lost significance in our society.    Es pecially in first world countries.    Almost everyone can wash their own feet.    It’s no wonder that this narrative seems to have lost significance.              While washing the feet of your guests when they visit is something that has  fallen by the wayside, I hope that we can look at the principle behind it and  see  what the intent was.    Was the intent that everyone goes around literally washing people...

… like a wise man who built his house on the rock. I love a DIY project.  I have built a closet, put down new flooring.   I love the feeling of a finished project that turns out well.   I have never physically built a house,  but I am sure even a simple dwelling would be hard work.   As I was reading today,  I read about what Jesus said about The wise and the foolish man.    He said that the wise man builds upon a rock,  but the stupid man builds his house upon the sand.   I get the fact that a boulder is solid and unshakeable,  and that sand shifts around moved by its surroundings.    What burned within me was how easy it is to build on the sand  compared to constructing anything on a rock.   Rocks are solid and putting holes in it to anchor a house to it would not be an easy job.    I was remi...

Today our cat ran outside.    Midnight loves to be outside.   So, we let the cat stay out for a while.     It got dark, and my daughter became concerned.   She wanted her kitty safe in the house.    The problem is that midnight was not ready to come back inside the confines of our home. He wanted to chase birds and other animals.   No amount of coaxing could persuade the wayward cat to step one foot inside that door.    I went outside to catch him, but that too failed.   Cats are, generally, faster than people and cannot be snared easily.   Finally, I gave up came in and sat down in my chair saying that if he loved us,  he would come back in when he was ready.   Yes, it hurt, and it was scary.   I wanted him to choose to come in, but I couldn’t force him to make that decision.  I...

There is a ton of rhetoric floating around about fear.  It reminds everyone not to fear.   We hear and probably have said some of these  “don’t fear,”  “Fear is like sitting in a rocking chair, it gives you something to do,  but it doesn’t get you anywhere.”   “There is nothing to fear but fear itself.”    “Fear is a liar.”   Ironically, I have come to the realization that for many it is just words.   We say, “Fear no one,” but we fail to speak because some will be offended.   So, we hold our tongue in fear.    We are free,  but our children can’t go to school in safety  because of the increase in school violence.   Consequently, they live in fear.   Parents and teachers held hostage,  at the mercy of the children, they are to mentor and teach.   They wring their hands...

they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.  Acts 17:11 … They examined the scriptures...  As I think about this verse,  I am challenged.   Challenged to do more than passively listen to a chapter of the Bible on audio,  or quickly skim a section.   Don’t misunderstand me,  I often do these things as well,  but if I really want to know what God says about a subject  it requires more than just a few minutes in the morning or at night.    It requires study, searching, and examining the scriptures regularly.    It requires time.   It is active.   But when we genuinely want our father’s heart on a matter, it will be worth it to us.    We will want to spend that time studying God’s word.    Can we honestly e...