Carrying His Message

“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.  All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” 2Corinthians 5:17-19 ((ESV)

He has given us instruction through His word:

“Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us.  We implore you on the behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” 2 Corinthians 5: 20 (ESV)

So what does that look like, being an ambassador?

Is it using the street corner as a pulpit declaring the day of the Lord is near?  Maybe.

Or maybe it’s seeing a neighbor struggling to carry a burden and you sharing about the One who wants to carry those for us.

It could look like forgiveness given to a spouse, or a child, who needs to see grace in action.

 

God is making His appeal through us.

“For our sake he made him to be sin, who knew no sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21

It’s a little overwhelming. To think that He, the Maker of the Heavens, wants to use us to spread His message when so often we stumble around acting as though we don’t even know what His message says.

 

But then, who better to share with those who are drowning in sin than one who used to be…

Teach us, Lord, how to be ambassadors for you.  You alone can save and make new.  Show us what it looks like to carry your ministry of reconciliation to a broken world.

All glory and honor belong to You.

 

 

 

 

 

Are You Thirsty?

I’ve started placing my bible on top of my computer. It’s a little thing, I know, but:

For a season my routine had changed and instead of reading the Word with my coffee I was scrolling through my Google Reader and checking up on email.  I meant to get to my bible but by the time I reached for it, the little people were ready to start school.  We study Him together in the mornings and I teach of Him and His sweet promises but I just wasn’t feeling them.  My spirit was dry, and tired, and…

So, I grew sad, and melancholy, and for the first time in my life felt the chains of a depressed spirit. I cried to my husband. I cried to my sister. I cried to everyone but Him, you know, the One who breaks the chains. 

Wouldn’t life be simpler if we always ran to Him first?

My girl’s scripture for memorization is : “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. ” John 7:37b (ESV)    And as I read with her and repeated the verse over and over, I realized that I had forgotten some things:

He meets me where I am.  His is enough. He is sufficient. His water never runs dry.  Though my spirit fails me, He will not.

Come, drink, believe Him, and “Out of his heart will flow streams of living water.” John 7:38 (ESV)

Fear Not

“Look unto Christ; fear not.  There is no stumbling when a man walks with his eyes up to Jesus.  He that looked at the stars fell into the ditch; but he that looks at Christ walks safely.” Charles Spurgeon

For so long I carried fear.  The yoke was heavy around my neck.  It became the friend who wouldn’t leave, outstaying it’s welcome for years…

Little things, really…They seemed so innocent at first: Why wouldn’t I be worried about my children getting hurt?  It’s what a good mother would do. Make sure and say all of the right things.  You want everyone to like you. You had better go on another diet.  Your husband may stop loving you. Don’t get in that car.  You know you’re not a great driver, just think what could happen…

It kept going and going until I couldn’t see the light of Truth anymore and for a while I let the deceiver win, because when you aren’t fully trusting in the One who holds you in the palm of His hand,  your heart gets tired.

But He is faithful when we are not and once again He draws me back to His side with the gentle wooing of His word.

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

With a repentant heart, I asked and forgiveness was granted, washing me clean with precious grace and mercy.

What freedom there is in being yoked to Jesus! All my sins and grief to bear…

Now friend, what about you? He wants you; he’s wooing you. Will you listen?

The Bread

This was in the girl’s lesson plan today:

“Read Luke 22:7-20

Read verse 19 again:

Then Jesus took the bread.  He gave thanks and broke it.  He handed it to them and said, “This is my body.  It is given for you.  Every time you eat it, do it in memory of me.”  Luke 22:19 NIrV

Jesus took the bread without yeast (which was like Jesus with out sin) and broke it.  The bread in New Testament times wasn’t like our bread, which comes already sliced.  It was all one piece, and had to be broken so that it could be shared with Jesus’ disciples. Jesus said that His body was given for us, and that when we eat the bread, we are to remember Him.  Next time we have Communion at church, it can remind us what we have learned-that Jesus is the Bread of Life.”   -taken from Adventures in MFW Week 7

…”I am the Bread of Life.  He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.”  John 6:35 NIrV

He was beaten,

broken,

and poured out for me…and for you.

Are you sharing Him?

Thank you, sweet Jesus.

Thank you for being the Bread and Wine.

My Favorite

Today in school our verse for memorization (for the boy) is this:

But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 (ESV)

A while ago my son asked me what my favorite verse was.  I always have a hard time answering that question.  I’m not good at making on the fly decisions.

But this verse…it’s the one.

Because even though I’m:

a liar

fearful

angry

impatient

unloving

ungrateful

disobediant

…and so many other things…

He loves me.

He’s redeemed me.

I’m forgiven.

And He has shown me through the work of His Son.

I’m declared righteous because of Jesus. The Father looks at me and sees Him.

That’s why Romans 5:8 is my favorite.

What’s yours?

Hands-On Bible Giveaway

When I saw that Tyndale Publishing was putting out a newer edition of the Hands-On Bible, I was excited.  It has been time for us to get my daughter her own “real” bible.  My son owns the previous version and has read and re-read that bible until the spine completely broke apart.  He has outgrown (in his opinion) the Hands-On Bible but my girl, who is seven and going into second grade, is just the right age.  She has been looking forward to having her very own copy and my son was more than happy to show her his favorite parts and stories.

This book did not disappoint.  It’s filled with extras that make your children want to dig deeper into the stories of the bible.  My prayer is that my children will desire to know more than just the “basics” and I think that the Hands-On Bible is great tool for that.

My kids love:

• the experiments (crafts or projects that relate to the bible story you are reading)
• full color pages of “extras”
• the “Did you know?” questions in the back that pertain to anything from “Who wrote the bible?” to “Does Jesus really want us to poke our eye out if we sin?”

I love:

• the Jesus connection – At the beginning of every chapter there is a Jesus Connection.  It takes all of the books in the bible and pulls them together for kids (and parents) to discover who the bible points to.
• the experiments – I guess I’m a hands-on learner too because I had as much fun as the kids making the “extras”.
• the readability – Normally, I like a word-for word as opposed to a thought-for thought translation, but my children are actually understanding a little more with this translation and I keep my word-for-word translation close by for reference.

I would recommend this bible to anyone for personal use with your children or for children’s ministry workers who are looking for a fun reference to have in their classroom.

Tyndale Publishing has graciously provided me with a gift certificate good for one free Hands-On Bible to give away.

To enter, simply leave a comment in the section below telling me your favorite bible translation, along with your email address by Wednesday, July 28th.  I’ll choose a winner using a random number generator.

Thanks for stopping by!

*I was provided a free copy of the Hands-On Bible for review.  I do not get paid by Tyndale Publishing for liking (or disliking) any product.  All opinions are my own, I just enjoy reading books.