Saturday, April 6, 2019

April 6

After waking up early because Richard was invited to go fishing, I tried to go back to sleep to no avail. So at 5:30 this morning, I got my coffee and started my day with the Lord. I opened the windows because it was drizzling and I wanted to hear the rain. By 6:45 the birds began to awaken and the peacefulness was broken by the joy of song. Though it was still dark, they lit up the trees. As each minute passed, the skies began to brighten as if their voices were ushering in the light. Matthew Henry said “There is enough in God to furnish us with matter of joy in the worst circumstance on earth... If good men have not a continual feast, it is their own fault.” Think about the birds, they must wake early because if they don’t work, they don’t eat, yet they find time to sing praises to the Lord before they even begin to forage for food. After hearing the peacefulness transition to the joy and excitement of a new day, I believe it would do us well to wake up in the same manner as the birds, and begin our days with a new song of praise; and just maybe we will usher in the light of Jesus.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Philippians 4:4

Friday, April 5, 2019

April 5

This may seem like a coincidence, but because I know the Lord, I know that nothing is a coincidence. You may or may not have noticed that I’m studying the book of Philippians, and the next few verses that I’m meditating on are about death and the resurrected body. My friend who has been battling liver disease, passed away this morning. She had fought for her life long enough, and God called her home. When you’re saved, this earth is not your final destination. We were given bodies that would eventually wear out and lose their usefulness here on earth, but salvation gives us eternity with our Savior and a newly transformed body that can inhabit the environment of Heaven. Even though we must traverse this life, we should keep our conversation with Heaven open and continuous because that is the realm we will spend eternity in. Don’t get caught up in worldly things, it will all be burned up at the end. Set your face toward Heaven, and never lose sight of your destination.


But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. Philippians 3:20-21

Thursday, April 4, 2019

April 4

The world has a misconception about Christians. They think we feel we are better than them or “more holy than thou.” This couldn’t be further from the truth! We know that we have failed God, and know that we need a savior from all the grief we’ve put Him through. We have made it our goal to strive to become a better child of the Almighty. It’s like having a job that requires you meet a standard for a bonus, you still get your pay if you don’t, but if you want the bonus, you strive toward a goal. This motivates a lot of people who have a driven mentality. As Christians, we want to become better, so we strive for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. An important part of this equation is that you continue moving forward and forgetting what is behind you. How can you reach a goal if you keep looking back? Paul knew this, and knew he wasn’t perfect, but pressed on because of Jesus. Don’t fret if you think you’re not moving forward fast enough, as long as you are moving in His direction, your life is changing.


Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14

Wednesday, April 3, 2019

April 3

Our company has had several closings in the last few days and one of the joys of selling homes is doing a final walk-through. It’s exciting because you know it’s ready to close and all you have to do is make sure the home is what your buyers expect. Two of the homes viewed by our clients still had items in the home, leaving them far from being ready for occupancy, and leaving my clients wondering if anything will be damaged when they are ready to move. Our final walk-through ended up not being the final, they were more of a pre walk-through! Both clients ended up having to go in right before closing to see the end results, leaving us no time to have the repairs completed. Thank goodness everything was okay. While doing one of them, we encountered two cats that were frightened because of all the commotion. They had a favorite hiding place under the sink in one of the bathrooms. We got such a kick out of watching them open the door with their paw and scoot in and hide. Even though the stress level was high, the bright spot amid the chaos was those cats, even though they shouldn’t have even been there. Set your mind to look for the good in everything, and you’ll find it!


And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Tuesday, April 2, 2019

April 2

Some time back, our church had a comedian come to entertain us. Not only was he a jokester, but he was also a missionary to Haiti. There are people in Haiti that live at the dump, find their meals there, and make their shelter from the debris. He and his wife go there and feed them so they get a good meal once in a while. The people they’ve fed have become our fellow believers, and still live there. My thoughts today are not to condemn anyone, but just because you pray for the perfect home, the perfect life, or the perfect marriage, doesn’t mean you are entitled to receive it just because you are a believer. God doesn’t work that way. What makes you better than the believers who live at the dump in Haiti? They still love the Lord and their lives are dismal. Jesus loves all of us, and our American privilege doesn’t give us any more rights in the kingdom than those who live in squalor. Just a wake up call to those of you who are expecting a corvette to magically appear in your driveway.


For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it? 1 Corinthians 4:7

Monday, April 1, 2019

April 1

What is your life goal? I have a few: live in peace, love those whom God gave me charge of, and do that while living on the beach. Two of those came from God, and the other from the flesh, but you know the beach would sure give me a lot of peace. There is one life goal that we should all want, and that is to attain the resurrection from the dead! Paul was a driven man and jumped in head first in whatever he did; first killing the Christians, then agreeing with them, and becoming imprisoned because of his change in belief. He had an incredible encounter with Jesus that changed his prospective about what it meant to live. He stopped living for himself, and began living for Jesus. Being an American may prevent us from suffering as Christ did, but a time may be coming, where our freedom of religion no longer exists. Whether our culture changes or not, our goal should be like Paul’s, to know Jesus and the power of His resurrection, and to attain the resurrection from the dead for ourselves. Only through Jesus and salvation will that happen!


that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Philippians 3:10-11

Sunday, March 31, 2019

March 31

When the computer geeks come up with new technology, I usually fall for it. A while back I purchased the Apple Pencil. It allows you to write on your iPad in some apps. It is a wonderful tool, especially because you can easily erase your mistakes. I can scribble, doodle, fill in blocks of color, and so on, and when I’m finished, I can correct any errors, or completely erase it. If only our lives were that way! Wouldn’t it be great if we had a magic eraser that would allow us to go back and correct the errors of our past? Our lives are like a bad tattoo, our mistakes are written all over us and if you have ever seen where someone has tried to cover one up with another one, you know that there are still remnants of the old one that can be seen. No amount of good we do can cover up the bad. The truth is, not one of us are good enough! However, there is One who is, and if we choose to trust in Him, we can hide within Him and be perfectly pure! This is a decision that you have to make for yourself, your momma can’t do it for you. Make today the day you turn your life over to Jesus, and like a magic eraser, He will erase your past from the sight of God!


and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—  Philippians 3:9